Trolling rods

I pretty new to trolling. I’m looking to get some shorty 5ft rods to go along with my 9ft rods. My 9ft rods are Cabelas Tournament trails. They have a nice soft tip, which I think would be great for when I switch to braid. My question is does anybody know of any 5ft models like that? I’m looking at the Eyecons. Any other suggestions? I’m thinking a nice soft tip will offset the hooks pulling out with braid on the initial strike. Thanks

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I pretty new to trolling. I’m looking to get some shorty 5ft rods to go along with my 9ft rods. My 9ft rods are Cabelas Tournament trails. They have a nice soft tip, which I think would be great for when I switch to braid. My question is does anybody know of any 5ft models like that? I’m looking at the Eyecons. Any other suggestions? I’m thinking a nice soft tip will offset the hooks pulling out with braid on the initial strike. Thanks

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Personally I’m not a fan of the shorties. They do provide separation in the spread but you can accomplish the same thing by turning a long rod in the rod holder towards the back of the boat. My dislike of the shorties is they’re not a versatile rod. Basically all they’re good for is pulling an inside trolling line. I find a 7’6″ rod will do the same job, fight a big fish better with much more forgiveness and control than the 5’er, and can be used as a 3 way rig rod, bouncer rod or even an inside planer board rod in a pinch.

Rods in my boat need to be able to be used in a variety of applications. I’ve got a lot of storage in my Skeeter but not so much that I can add a pair of one trick ponies.

Limit Creek makes a good shorty rod. Been using them a lot lately and have zero issues so far!

I will second the Limit Creek shorties. I have 2 and use them a lot without any issues. Great rods at a good price.

Agree with James, tried – no like. But I keep it around for use with yougsters in the boat. Pretty easy rod to handle for a 4 foot kid.

But if you need a 5 footer on the cheap, Cabelas has one on sale right now.

Depthmaster 5 foot rods.

-J.

I like the Limit Creek shorties for pulling lead. Pulled in fish up to 10lbs no problems. Would I prefer longer, yes, but they make running multiple lead lines so much easier.

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I like the Limit Creek shorties for pulling lead. Pulled in fish up to 10lbs no problems. Would I prefer longer, yes, but they make running multiple lead lines so much easier.

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X2 only I used Peregrine shorties and I love them.

I’ll tell you why I like them so much. When we have 3 people trolling straight behind the boat with lead core or flat lines, I can sit and run the kicker via the tiller handle with the shortie in my hand running straight down the pipe.
The other two guys each fish with a long rod on opposite sides of the boat. This allows all lines to be as far apart as possible while still being held in the hands of the fisherman. A long rod down the pipe does not work as well in this situation. The shorty fits this situation perfectly. Especially when I have to put it in a rod holder to net one of the other guys fish. I keep a rod holder next to each person in case they want to use it. The rod holder for the shorty rod is point back and towards the middle of the boat. With the shorty rod in the holder, the line is running right over the big motor and centered almost perfectly.

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Agree with James, tried – no like. But I keep it around for use with yougsters in the boat. Pretty easy rod to handle for a 4 foot kid.

But if you need a 5 footer on the cheap, Cabelas has one on sale right now.

Depthmaster 5 foot rods.

-J.

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Those Depthmasters aren’t bad rods for the money but James and others raise good points. They don’t fight big fish well, but they do a pretty good job handling leadcore. At that price, I can justify owning a pair that I swap reels between when I really need it. Leadcore, especially over structure can be a tangly affair, and with the price of leadcore it’s sometimes nice to max your spread as much as possible.

Joel

I agree with James we run 9 ft and 7.5 ft rods when trolling.

It’s all personal preference but some of it may also be the beam width of some peoples boats. If you have a 21′ fiberglass boat, you probably also have a very large beam width.
People who own boats with smaller beams, may find the shorties to be more useful.

Cabelas does make 5′ trolling rods the same as the others you have referenced, they are hardly ever in the stores though so maybe order onlinIe

I have two of them that I bought 3 years ago when I started pulling lead core more frequently, they work just fine. I have fished other brands that have a little softer tip, but those do cost more.

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Limit Creek makes a good shorty rod. Been using them a lot lately and have zero issues so far!

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+2 on the LC Shortie. It makes fishing lead by yourself a much less daunting task to accomplish.

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I will second the Limit Creek shorties. I have 2 and use them a lot without any issues. Great rods at a good price.

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X3 On the Limit Creek shorties(aka “The Runt”). They load very nicely and show good action. I wouldn’t be afraid to purchase them again.

I have a couple of the Scheels 5′ shortie rods. They are responsible for a lot of jumbo walleyes as well as a few river monsters that come over the side of my boat annually. My Down East rod holders are pretty hard on the cork handles though. These rods get used hard and abused and work great for me.

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I have a couple of the Scheels 5′ shortie rods. They are responsible for a lot of jumbo walleyes as well as a few river monsters that come over the side of my boat annually. My Down East rod holders are pretty hard on the cork handles though. These rods get used hard and abused and work great for me.

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Good to hear. I just purchased 2 of the Scheels 5′ rods with LC. Haven’t had a chance to use them yet, and was getting a little concerned over this thread.