The Lure-rod & Multiplier Reel Set-up
by Brian Barwell

Once Mastered, Multipliers are Magic!
Many lure-anglers prefer to fish with multiplier reels because they are inherently stronger, better for bigger lures and jerkbaits as well as putting you in much more direct contact with those hard-fighting predators than a fixed-spool reel.

OK, so multipliers do take a bit more getting used to than their fixed-spool counterparts but it's worth the time and effort to learn especially if you plan to lure fish with big lures and jerkbaits or simply to enjoy some trolling.

Although this is an article about lure-rods for multiplier reels, I've deliberately avoided suggesting which particular multiplier reels are most worth considering for lure-fishing because that's a whole separate subject! But for sure, you'll know all the most popular and reliable brand names anyway.

Baitcasters
Often referred to as baitcasters (an Americanism), rods specially-designed for use with multiplier reels are very different from those designed for use with fixed-spool reels.

The baitcaster rod itself is used with its rod rings facing upwards, and the reel mount usually incorporates a trigger grip to help with the casting and control of a multiplier reel.

I have fished with baitcasters that don't have a trigger-grip but they're not nearly as comfortable and easy to use as rods with a trigger-grip multiplier reel mount.

Rod-Rings: Size, Quality, Number and Position
Because the rod rings and line on a baitcaster rod and multiplier reel set-up are on the top of the rod, as opposed to being underneath with a fixed-spool reel set-up, they should be more numerous and are usually smaller, in order to hold the wet line away from the blank, and, it is said, to improve casting distance and accuracy — personally I'm not at all convinced that more rings mean greater casting distance but there you go!

Rod Length
Rods for multiplier reels and especially for jerkbait fishing from boats, trolling and so on, are shorter, stiffer and stronger than their fixed-spool counterpart rods.

For example, 6 ft is a very popular length of baitcaster rod, with me anyway. When you're fishing from a boat, shorter rods give you much greater control when bringing the fish to the boat for netting.

Shorter, stiffer rods are essential for jerkbait fishing in which most of the action is imparted to the lure by the angler, rod, zero-stretch braid and solid trace wire.

And then there's the question of whether to go for a one-piece or a two piece rod. Technically speaking and from a fishing performance point of view, a single piece rod has to be favourite but of course the problem is that a 6 ft section isn't very easy to transport around in your car or on your bike.

Best of Both Worlds ?
Incidentally, and I'll be talking more about actual rods in a moment, one very good idea that I've seen that goes a long way to overcoming this conflict without too much compromise, is a 2-piece rod with non-equal sections: the ratio of butt section length to the length of the main section is roughly 1 to 3 e.g. a butt section 18 inches long that fits into a main section 4 ft 8 in long, giving you a 6 ft rod almost achieving the performance of a 1-piece blank while as the same time, being much easier to transport .... the best of both worlds?

Lure Weights
Before you set-about choosing your baitcaster rod and multiplier reel set-up, firstly you really need to get a good idea in your mind what sort of lure weight range you're going to be fishing, the likely types of venues and maximum size of predators that you're likely and hoping to encounter. Once again, baitcaster rods will usually come with some sort of rough guide to the lure weight range for which they're designed. I've never really understood why some rod manufacturers quote line B.Ss. or even line diameters (are they for mono or braid?) for their rods, but maybe that's just me!

Jerkbaits have become very popular in the UK and being at the top end of lure weights and requiring most of their action to be imparted to them, this style of fishing is very demanding indeed on the angler, rod, reel and line. As a result, unfortunately, there's no really cheap-skate route to successful jerkbait fishing and probably more than with any other type of lure fishing rod, with these rods you very much get what you pay for.

Which Rods ?
As far as my fairly broad experience of Editor's go, Nick's a very tough and demanding one, and, as someone who really knows what he's talking about as far as lure fishing's concerned, there's no room on his website for (how shall I put it?) hot air. And so it was that he metaphorically got me in a Half-Nelson and demanded to know which rods I'd take with me on my deserted island!

Well, only one name sprang immediately to mind (above the pain of that Half-Nelson!) and that was St Croix rods. You can get them as ready-made rods from St Croix distributors or, alternatively, use one of the UK custom rod builders to make you up a rod based on a St Croix blank, whichever takes your fancy, the latter being the more expensive option, of course.

Several of these custom rod builders use other blanks as well, for example slightly softer-actioned ones, and so they can usually offer you quite a wide choice of alternatives if you find that the St Croix blanks are too stiff for your liking.

That said, many lure anglers prefer to choose an off-the-shelf rod because it's much cheaper even though it's mass-produced and probably hasn't quite got the top-notch performance that they'd really like but can't quite afford. Anyway, that was the case with me originally when I first got into fishing with these mega-lures and jerkbaits.

With my multiplier reels I have used trigger-gripped baitcaster-style rods from quite a few UK sources. If you're new to fishing with a multiplier reel and big lures, Masterline's John Wilson Six Shooter rods are OK for starters, but don't expect too much of them.

Buy British -- Harrison blanks and Custom Rods !
There is one British option which is very much worth considering before you take the plunge and cross the Atlantic, and that's to buy or have a custom rod built based on a Harrison blank. Harrison blanks are some of the best around and what's more they're made in the UK.

I have to say that I personally don't own a rod based on a Harrison blank but I have lure-fished with one and found it most acceptable. If you want to know more about these British-made blanks and rods, then I suggest that after you've finished reading this article, you have a look at www.harrisonrods.co.uk

Also, before you get up into the St Croix class and cost, there are some very competent and competitively-priced rods from Abu (as always!), Normark and, though I've yet to try one, Fox, and while you can expect to pay well over £100 for a St Croix rod, these other rods will set you back quite a bit less e.g. £50 to £80, while the Entry-level lure rods like the Six Shooters can be had for less than £45! But like I said, you get what you pay for, so don't expect too much of them. If you want the dogs doodahs, it's got to be St Croix.

What's My Line ?
It's difficult if not impossible to talk about rods and reels for lure fishing without mentioning line !  Well, you're not going to be the least bit surprised to hear that nowadays I use braids for most of my lure fishing, whichever type of reel and rod set-up that I'm using.

At the outset I have to say that I haven't found a particular favourite braid or brand ... yet! I don't know about you but I've found that braids are a funny sort of thing ..... they seem to make you want to chop and change brands in search of I don't know exactly what!

Of course cost is a big factor but prices have come down a lot recently and are much more comparable so it's a matter of finding the braided line which suits you best — soft, open-weave or harder, thinner tighter weave.

Currently the choice of braid is quite wide and varied, PowerPro, Whiplash, Herculine, Spectron and Spiderwire to mention the main ones that come to my mind and which I've used and have been quite OK — they're not cheap though. I tend to use Whiplash or Herculine mainly for my everyday medium and lighter lure fishing. For bigger lures and jerkbaits I use like TUF-Line or PowerPro in 80 or 100 lb BS.

"Chacun à son goût !"
I have to say that I've been more than a little worried about all the reports about the poor abrasion resistance of braids compared with some of the latest high-tech monofilament lines to the extent that I've even been experimenting with a safety section of good tough mono between my main line braid and my traces.

Practically it may not yet have made much difference but psychologically it definitely has! I use a short length of Sufix Tritanium, a really tough monofilament line that I normally use for sea-fishing, between my lure-fishing braid and my trace wire and so far it's given me a whole lot of comfort. But then again, there are those who say I'm kidding myself and wasting my time and " chacun à son goût "  is what I say to that !

An Important Point
It's important to remember that if you're fishing with a stiff multiplier rod & reel set-up and with a high BS braid, you need to take great care and pay special attention to the reel's drag setting -- always have it set slightly on the slack side especially if you're trying to net a big fish close to your boat or other similar situations ....... and don't forget to slacken off your drag after every trip if you want it to maintain its strength for future tussles with mega-pike.

IN CONCLUSION
Well, I hope that you've enjoyed this article and, whether you prefer a multiplier or a fixed-spool reel and rod set-up, if just one single hint or tip in any of my articles helps you enjoy your lure-fishing even more, and catch more fish, or perhaps stops you from making an expensive mistake, then I'll be a very happy bunny !!

Good Fishing !
Brian "Bunny" Barwell

Nick's Notes: We've also asked Brian to do another follow-up article for us on the subject of more specialised lure-rods for medium and lightweight lures (see below). I hope you enjoy them both ! And if you've got any questions or comments, click here to e-mail me directly.

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