Dead Stick Walleye Blank

Recently decided to get into a little bit of rod making and wanted to make a deadstick for walleye but was unsure on what blank to use. I see that the Thorne Bro’s deadstick blank, with shipping, would be around $50 but I’m not sure if that’s worth the cost or not. Is there any blanks you guys have used from Mudhole, Janns, or otherwise you like?

You could custom sand one using blanks from sportsmans direct.

But, the longboard noodles from DH customs are 25 bucks and have a nice soft tip and a bunch of backbone. Made myself one from his 36 inch blank this year and really like it as a deadstick. Anything from perch to medium size pike are no problem.

Tucker

curleytail wrote:

You could custom sand one using blanks from sportsmans direct.

But, the longboard noodles from DH customs are 25 bucks and have a nice soft tip and a bunch of backbone. Made myself one from his 36 inch blank this year and really like it as a deadstick. Anything from perch to medium size pike are no problem.

Tucker

You use it exclusively for walleye? I don’t see the blank itself on DH

Christian Slick wrote:

I don’t see the blank itself on DH

https://www.dhcustomrods.com/product-page/al-dente-noodle-blank-36

I really like that blank. But I am not too sure if I would want that for a dead stick. I know many people who do use that as their dead stick though. The tip on the al dente is so light that every shake of the minnows tail will make it move and I think the action is too fast for a dead stick.

I us dedicated DH longboards (long Al Dente) for most my walleye deadsticking. Soft tip to let your bait dance and loads of backbone. I see he has the Big Boy noodle blank as an option now too.

DH “Big Boy Noodle” is the BIG brother to the “Al Dente” noodle. The Big Boy is like NO OTHER IceRod on the market. Since DH hand designs his blanks and extensively tests before production we are truly excited to bring his latest creation to you. Imagine a Noodle rod with the ability to use 1/4 to 3/4oz jigs and rippin raps, Jigging raps etc. There is no other noodle on the market that will do what this rod will. Laker’s, Walleye, Pike, Open water jigging..Small jigging raps to large this rod WILL handle it all.

I may just give the long board a shot and potentially trim an inch off the end so its just a touch less whippy but that’s tough to judge without having it assembled of course

I build my own rods as well and have both the DH Al Dente and TB Deadstick. For walleye fishing the TB rod is hands down better (my opionion). It also has a little more moderate action which I believe helps. DH rod is awesome for panfish and perch but to me isn’t ideal as a walleye deadstick.

thanks Pike!

I use my Thorne deadsticks more as a light spoon indicator rod for perch when it’s blazing cold.

You can’t go wrong with browsing Mudhole.com or getbitoutdoors.com.

I like this blank for Deadsticking personally
http://www.mudhole.com/MHX-Ice-Rod-Blank-CIB-36MH-MHX

It’s a little heavier rod but still has Medium Heavy action. The rod tips on these blanks are great they kind of remind me of Tuned up Customs.

Check out bass khang. I build a walleye deadstick on there power noodle blank this year. Really love it on my artic warrior. Think it came 36” i trimmed it to 30”. Soft tip section and loads of back bone. And they are pretty cheap compared to a TB.

I have built on the Bass Khang power noodle and the Al Dente. Those blanks are very close to each other with only a slight difference. So you could treat the remarks about these blanks the same as for a dead stick. Sorry I wish I could be more help for an off the shelf dead stick blank but I sanded and shaped my own.

Like all rods some of the choice is personal preference and usage. I’m using an Okuma baitfeeder with my DH blank. The reel feeds line so the fish doesn’t feel resistance when taking line. If using a standard reel that doesn’t give line, a slower blank might be a better choice.

The DH will still give a few inches of travel before getting into the backbone where a fish might feel it, but you’d want to be fairly quick on the trigger with them if not using a baitfeeder reel.

Tucker

Jt snares work awesome w regular reels. Haven’t missed a fish w them yet. Not sure if they sell blanks

PmB wrote:

Jt snares work awesome w regular reels. Haven’t missed a fish w them yet. Not sure if they sell blanks

Nope they do not. I have a few JT’s already but wanted to make something similar to their snare rod

You may be able to create a semi-similar rod to the JR Snare by adding one of the TB spring bobbers to the tip of their deadstick. Now that I think of it I wish I had done that on mine…

Christian Slick wrote:

Nope they do not. I have a few JT’s already but wanted to make something similar to their snare rod

I have not handled their rods, but I do know they use a hybrid glass/carbon blank. Janns sells composite walleye blanks that you may be able to make work with some trimming/sanding. Find the transition in the JT and replicate the dimensions on the Janns blank. You may not get it exactly, but you could get close. Plus those blanks are only about $6.50/ea, which would allow you to play around with them until you get the taper you desire.

Sanding and tapering a glass blank really isn’t too hard. The issue is you then end up with a semi opaque white blank. If you want to color it and have it look professional that adds a little more work to the project.

I use powder pigment mixed in a water thin fishing rod clear coat to color my blanks that I custom sand. Coloring them and doing a final clear coat is about a 3 to 4 step process. Adds some time and cost if doing just one rod.

Or, you could just keep the rod white. Or, you could probably make sonething that looks decent and holds up reasonably well using spray paint. All depends on what you’re looking for.

Tucker

Can one of you compare the tip of the DH al dente vs TB deadstick?

Specifically can you see the minnow twitching? If yes, is that true only for larger profile like big shiners/rainbows or also can you see for fatheads?

I can’t compare them, but you can easily see minnow movement on the DH blank. Even a struggling crappie minnow will move it slightly. A medium size walleye sucker will move the tip a fair amount. I don’t mind seeing that but maybe too much movement psycs some people out thinking they have a bite all the time and want a little heavier tip.

To me the Al Dente is an extra extra fast tip and the Thorne Brothers Deadstick is a moderate.

Got a Thorne bro’s deadstick. Will let you guys know how it goes!

Christian Slick wrote:

Got a Thorne bro’s deadstick. Will let you guys know how it goes!

You’re going to like it. It has become my favorite rod this year for walleyes.

Might try to attach a spring bobber to the end and create something like the jt snare with no hinge point so it’s effectively the last guide in the rod. How would one attach that?

curleytail wrote:

I can’t compare them, but you can easily see minnow movement on the DH blank. Even a struggling crappie minnow will move it slightly. A medium size walleye sucker will move the tip a fair amount. I don’t mind seeing that but maybe too much movement psycs some people out thinking they have a bite all the time and want a little heavier tip.

Thanks! That won’t psych me out. For now I’m using a JM Meatstick where you can see everything swim. Not a huge fan of the guides on that when deadsticking outside. Too much free time has me thinking on this topic.