Freshwater Rods Comparable to Mitchell's Zero Gravity

[Koshaw]

I was at Jenks lake this weekend, and saw a guy with an ultralight Mitchell's Zero Gravity 6' rod. He was able to cast 70-80+ yards or so with only a small weight (1/2 oz or so) and hit the underwater channel closer to the north shore from the south...he hauled in maybe 30 fish...total by noon.

Are there any decent rods equivalent to this for not a whole lot of cash? I did find one of these rods online but its a 5'6" not a 6'...


Albeit he was an old timer and probably very very experienced etc...but still the rod I think has a bit to do with this... I looked on the web and they have been discontinued since at least 2007 or before...


Any ideas folks?

I was able to come close to his casting using my custom 12' rod using a 1oz weight...


Chuck

[El Weirdo]

lighter line will do same trick..less restrictive and will go farther plus longer rod helps more of a bow effect to cast weight

[Koshaw]

Thanks =)

I figured this would be part of the reason he cast so far.

He was using 6lb spiderwire that was 1-2lb diameter. I use 8lb power pro that has a 1lb diameter equivalent...

[El Weirdo]

love the power pro line...use it when i fip/pitch for bass....but it is braided..and offers more friction that say pure mono...when i do trout fish..i use 4lbs test cajun red momo....and can chuck it a mile.....hope this helps

[Koshaw]

Thanks again! I really may try that out as well... :D

Hmm still wondering about that mitchell zero gravity ultralight hmmmm =)

very tempting.

[calico killer kevin]

What I interpret is that you want to cast 1/2-1oz of weight 200-250 ft on 2-4lb line with a 6ft rod? Hmm...If you can't get that far with a 1oz and a 12ft rod, why downsize? Shorter rods will not cast further than longer rods. If you aren't getting that distance with the equipment you have now, you won't get it with the equipment you want. Keep on going to the lake and practice your casting is what I would recommend.

[bsp]

What I interpret is that you want to cast 1/2-1oz of weight 200-250 ft on 2-4lb line with a 6ft rod? Hmm...If you can't get that far with a 1oz and a 12ft rod, why downsize? Shorter rods will not cast further than longer rods. If you aren't getting that distance with the equipment you have now, you won't get it with the equipment you want. Keep on going to the lake and practice your casting is what I would recommend.

Definitely second this. It's generally the fisherman and not the gear when issues like this arise. If you can't hit 80yds with a 12ft rod and 1oz weight, you definitely aren't going to with a 6' rod and 1/2oz no matter what the brand is. People always look for a magic bullet, but in this case practice is going to pay off a lot more than buying new rod. I really recommend going to a park lake or something and spend a few hours just practicing your casting. Look up techniques online for getting more distance.

One thing is that you don't EVER use a pendulum cast with anybody nearby! If you hit somebody in the head with your broken off weight, then they are going to need some serious help if the weight's 1/2oz or more.

The other problem might be that you are overloading your rod. Believe it or not, more weight doesn't always mean more distance. If your rod is weighted to 1/2oz, and you toss 1oz on there your casting performance will be worse since the rod won't load properly.

[BingJr]

Koshaw, you should be able to bomb that 11ft rod you have out there a long ways. You should be able to outcast any ol 6 ft'r any day.

[sansou]

What's that old saying about the length of your rod.....?

[Koshaw]

Thanks guys for all the advice/suggestions! Yea I probably need to practice more too. I do realize that as well. I was just really amazed what these old timers could do with only a 6' rod which is fairly short! They were going 3/4 across Jenks Lake O_o

I mean smaller than the 4'-5'6" rods are getting into the ultra light range, no?

I know there is no magic bullet, but heck, if there is an edge somewhere I want it =).

I can get 60-70 yards on my long pole usually. I do not also take a step or two that I notice people doing to load the rod.