My Solution For Fishing Small/Lighter Crankbaits On A Bait-casting Rod Setup

As many of you know trying to cast small crankbaits on a bait-casting setup such as a Rapala Shadrap #5,Luck-E-Strike RC Series 1 or 2 Squarebill’s and even small Bomber Squarebill crankbaits etc. can be quite difficult due to their lighter weight. Many people just resort to using a spinning rod type of setup with 6 to 8lb line. I have found with using most spinning rod type setups you dont get the baits full action and its quite awkward. With that said I have a found a suitable solution for casting & fishing these type of light or smaller hardbaits on a bait casting setup.

Back in 2014 when I was living up in Washington State I purchased a bunch of G-Loomis bass rods from their E6X series,GL2 series, IMX series,GLX series,NRX series,crank bait rod series etc… At the time I was also looking for a couple of trout rods,one spinning rod setup and one casting rod setup. I decided to go with a G-Loomis E6X series model 9000C HSR (Hot Shot Rod 7’6 MAG-LIGHT – EX-FAST – 6-12 lb – 1/4-1/2 oz) for my casting setup. Upon using this rod with smaller type baits such as Luhr Jensen Hot Shot Crankbait’s I was impressed by the cast-ability and also the action I got out of the rod. The vibration I got out of the rod was insane and I just had to try it with some of my smaller crank-baits that I used for bass. I tested it out using a Okuma Helios bait caster and 8lb Berkley vanish fluorocarbon line with a small Bomber squarebill tied on.Again the action was great and it delivered,I never broke a single fish off. The rod handled the 8lb line very well with bass in the 2-4lb range. The only downside to the rod is the longer rod handle.The rod handle extends 13 and a half inches from behind the reel seat. However, what I have found is that it can be used to my advantage when casting with sorta a two handed sidearm baseball bat swing type of cast and get even far more distance with my casts. The more limber/soft action also helps with keeping the fish hooked when using smaller type treble hooks. In fact,I have yet to lose a fish on this rod,which can happen often when using a stiffer rod when using the small treble hooks that come on most smaller crankbaits. Another thing I also should add is,this rod also works great for throwing smaller type finesse baits such as Keitech 2.8’s paired with a 1/10oz jig-head. So needless to say I’ve been more than happy with the rod and it has delivered over the years and I just thought I would share with others who may looking for the same solution.

Here’s a quick little demo video I did.
The crankbait is smaller than it appears if you look at the size of my thumb and compare it to the bait.

Thanks for reading & good luck fishing.