TacticalBassin's Crankbait Fishing Buyers Guide

Crankbait fishing for bass can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. You can do everything with one crankbait rod and catch a lot of fish or you can fine tune it into a variety of baits, rods, etc... and take it to another level.  In this fishing video we break down the gear and the baits that will let you push your bass fishing to new heights.

The Holiday Buyer's guide has already been a huge success! You requested a video on crankbait gear and we're delivering. If you have other interests please let us know and we'll continue the series. The series is for fisherman but its also for your loved ones to easily find the products you're looking for. Below you'll find a list of the products mentioned in the video. Using the links provided to make your purchases supports Tacticalbassin while simplifying your shopping. 

Lipless Crankbaits...
Lucky Craft LV-500
Strike King Red Eye Shad 2-tap

Squarebill Crankbaits...
Lucky Craft RTO (on sale)
Lucky Craft BDS Series
River2Sea Biggie

Mid-depth Crankbaits...
Norman Deep Little N
6th Sense 300

Deep Diving Crankbaits...
Norman DD22
Strike King 10XD
Strike King 8XD

Crankbait Rod/Reel Combos...

Rod- Dobyns 805CB
Reel- Abu Garcia Orra Winch

Rod-Shimano 7'6" Glass
Reel- Shimano Antares

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Rod- St. Croix Big Cranker (7'8" Medium Heavy)
Reel- Curado 200I

Rod- Dobyns 764 Crankbait
Reel- Curado 200I

Rod- G Loomis CBR 845

Less Expensive E6X Version
Reel - Curado 70

Rod- Dobyns 704CB
Reel- Curado 70

Best Fishing Rods for New Anglers

Its crazy how many brands, lengths, and types of rods are on the market! Tim helps make sense of it all by recommending the 3 rods that you need as a new angler. Forget all the hype and marketing, these will get you through 99% of the techniques we use in bass fishing. 

As a beginning fisherman you want to purchase the best equipment you can within your budget. These are fishing rods you're going to use for a very long time. However, you do not want to exceed your budget so we recommend spending more on the fishing rod than the fishing reel. With that in mind we aren't recommending any high end reels with this video. 

Tim's Recommended Rods Based on Your Budget...

7' Medium Spinning Rod:

Low $$$- Shimano Sellus
Mid $$$- Dobyns Fury
High $$$- G Loomis NRX

7' Medium Baitcasting Rod:

Low $$$- Shimano Sellus
Mid $$$- Shimano Clarus
High $$$- Dobyns Champ Extreme

7'-7'2" Medium Heavy Baitcasting Rod: 

Low $$$- Shimano Sellus
Mid $$$- Dobyns Fury
High $$$- Shimano Zodias

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Reel Recommendations for each...

Spinning Low $$$- Shimano Nexave 2500
Spinning Mid $$$- Shimano Saros 2500

Baitcasting Low $$$- Shimano Caius
Baitcasting Mid $$$- Shimano Citica 7:1

As a new bass fisherman your first purchase should always be a spinning rod. With a spinning rod you're able to master a variety of bass fishing techniques like dropshot, senko fishing, worms, tubes, small topwater lures, and even a few reaction fishing techniques. 

Once you've got a feel for these techniques your next purchase should be a 7' medium baitcaster. This rod will allow you to branch into a few more techniques like rigging a senko texas style, fishing a jig, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, crankbaits, etc. 

These two fishing rods are going to help you progress your bass fishing more than any other purchase but when you're ready, add in a 7'-7'2" medium heavy baitcasting rod. This rod will let you get into heavier bass jigs, texas rigs, large topwaters, small swimbaits and paddletails, and a handful of other techniques. 

We know that getting into bass fishing and trying to purchase tackle and equipment can be very overwhelming. We hope these quick tips will help you make educated decisions while purchasing your first fishing pole. Good luck on your fishing adventure

The First 5 Rods Every Bass Fisherman Needs

The truth is, not every angler needs to own dozens of rods. You don't need to spend hundreds of dollars on combos, and you certainly don't need 5 of the same rod. In this industry, its easy to get caught up in the hype of fishing tackle.

From TV to magazines to websites (including Tactical Bassin) you're bombarded with anglers who own dozens upon dozens of high end fishing rod and reel combos. Its not hard to fall into the trap, believing you need all that equipment to be successful. The great news is, you don't.

If you don't plan to fish the elites this coming year you can probably get by with a lot less tackle than you'd like to believe. For the anglers just getting started, you need even less. Here are top 5 fishing rods that you need to become a well-rounded bass fisherman.

1) 7' Medium Light Spinning Rod: You can use this rod for dropshot, split shot, tubes, worms, even poppers and other very small hardbaits. This is going to be your most frequently used rod when you're getting started. Its also the rod that you'll still have in your rod locker as a back up 20 years later.

2) 7' Medium Heavy Spinning Rod: This rod will cover larger worms, senkos, light texas rigs, and even branch into medium topwaters, jerkbaits, etc.

3) 7' Medium Baitcaster: In no time this will become your go-to rod for everything from a crankbait, to a topwater, to texas rigs, worms, etc.

4) 7' Medium Heavy Baitcaster: You can use this rod for jigs, heavier texas rigs, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and other reaction baits.

5) 7'6" Medium Heavy to Heavy Baitcaster: If you even need a 5th rod, this will be the one. This rod is going to let you branch into frogs, small swimbaits, flipping and pitching.

Personally, we use Dobyns Rods for these applications. We recognize that every angler is different and needs vary but these are a great base line for you to make your decisions. In the beginning, consider the Fury or Savvy series then work your way into the higher product lines as you begin specializing at your favorite techniques.