rods for shooting docks

I am new to crappie fishing and enjoy it. I just need some opinion on what type of rods and reels people use shooting dock. I have ordered a wally marsh medium light action with fast action 4ft 6 in rod. What is everybody opinion?

First of all,are you going to be a little ways away from dock,if so 5 1/2 to 6 1/2 would be better .the short rod if you are getting in the dock,but the longer rods will shot farther,i use a 5 1/2 foot cherrywood for casting and dock shooting and am going to try a 6 1/2 when it gets warmer

Hello Twofish, I've read a lot of threads and articles lately about which rods are best for shooting docks. The possibilities seem to be endless. This can be a deep subject and it appears personal preference plays a big role in it as well. I've been shooting docks a few years now and actually started with the 4'-6" Wally Marshall Signature rod, like you have ordered, when Bass Pro Shop carried it. Since then, I have purchased a couple Wally Marshall Signature Series rod in 5'-6" (made by Lew's) and really like them. I have one in 4'-6" as well and am ordering one in 6'-6" for longer casting applications. As you fish with different length rods, you will zero in on what suits you the best for your particular style of fishing & boat positioning. Some position their boat close to docks and prefer a shorter rod and some position farther away and prefer longer rods for longer shooting distance. I also use the Wally Marshall hi-vis line in 4# test as it really helps with strike detection. Don't be scared of this line as my son and I have caught 15# blue cats and several 3#-5# largemouth while crappie fishing. My reels are probably overkill, but I really enjoy the Shimano 1000FE spinning reels as they are very smooth for casting & retrieving which is my primary fishing style over shooting docks. Shimano Sedonas or Pfleuger Presidents are great reels as well. It just depends on what you want to spend. Overall I think you will enjoy your purchase and may want to graduate in lengths until you find the length that suits your style. Additionally, reels with larger spools don't cause as much line twist/memory as smaller spools. I started out with 500 series reels and learned the hard way. I made it through the spring/summer/fall with them, but it got tough in the winter. I now use 1000 series reels and some people even go with the 2000+ series.

Browning ultra lite 4'9 and 5'2 is all i use.

Genec, I actually got my hands on some Cherrywoods in Academy Sports this weekend for the first time. They are nice feeling rods for the money.

Twofish, don't count them out. While I really enjoy the Wally Marshall Signature rods, I may give one of them a try as well.

Good advice, so far, as to it being a "personal preference" deal on rod length.

My dock shooting "mentor" used a 6'6" med action rod, but I was into "ultralights" at the time, so I started out with what I had. I experimented off & on with rods from 5' to 8' ... and while I could make all of them work, I eventually settled on a 5'6" ESP UL rod as my primary dock shooting equipment. I also started out with 4lb test hi-vis mono, but recently changed to 6lb test.

Like has been mentioned ... a wide spool or longcast spool reel & quality line will make your dock shooting adventures more pleasurable. So will putting the line on correctly, and the proper amount !! And should you notice the line starting to show signs of twisting ... and it will happen, eventually ... simply remove the bait from the line & let out about 1/4 - 1/3 of the line and drag it behind the boat (at idle speed) for a couple of minutes ... then reel it back in under tension, and retie your bait & get back to fishing. The time spent untwisting your line will pay you back in better performance !!
I even go so far as to "unkinking" my line, on reels that haven't been used for awhile, before I even take them to the lake. I simply tie off the end of the line to something ... walk off about twice the distance of a normal "long cast" ... then pull on the line to stretch it out ... untie the line & reel it back on the spool under tension (between finger/thumb). That seems to undo the coil sets that mono gets when stored on your reel for a length of time.

You might also want to give this a try, while you're dockshooting or before you leave a dock, as it may put a few more fish in your boat ... like it has for me : http://www.crappie.com/articles/crappiepappy.htm

... luck2ya !!!

... cp :kewl

My favorite dock shooting rod is the 4'6" Bass Pro Microlite. I use a good quality open face spinning reel with 4 lb. test line. I've tried the closed face spincast reels, but found they just don't hold up; after a while the retrieve gets really rough.

I use one of the original Wally M rods that BPS used to sell. It's 5' with a light action. One thing I do use, that I think gets me way more cast's per day is a shimano trigger reel. I like the Spirex model the best. This way when I reel up I can grab the lure with my left hand, put tight to rotate the reel back to the trigger position and then grab trigger and cast. This eliminates me having to fill the bail with my left hand before grabbing the lure.

6' berkley cherry wood, quantum optix 10 reel, 4lb berkley xl orange line. it works for me

I like a longer lite action rod for shooting. Seems like I can get quite a bit farther more consistantly. I always use 6lb hi-vis mono, but may switch to braid. Last week of the year, I was teaching my son to shoot docks with me, and I only had one other reel set up and it was loaded with braid. Once he got the hang of it, he was out catching me 6:1! They were biting extremely light and he was able to feel it with the braid better than me with mono.