In both Rigafishing boats the gear is practically identical \u2013 the rods and reels we use as client setups are the same ones we use ourselves every day and in competitions. For every species, and even for every type of lure, you can put together a very specific, specialised rod\u2011and\u2011reel combo, but that\u2019s not always necessary. There are plenty of versatile rods that work with a very wide range of lures and therefore let you target many different species. Below we\u2019ll describe the rods and reels (setups) we use when fishing from the boat, and the gear we give to clients who come to learn, catch their fish and have a good time. <\/p>\n\n
We\u2019re definitely not claiming to have found the \u201cultimate truth\u201d, and we fully realise this is not \u201cperfect feng shui\u201d. There\u2019s more than enough theory out there about perfect setups for each technique, and you can always find some JP or US rod that\u2019s \u201cmade\u201d for a specific lure, a reel designed for a specific technique, and so on. This article is specifically about what we use, and briefly why we made these choices. Most of the rods are not top\u2011end flagship models, but mid\u2011range rods in the 150\u2013250 EUR price segment. <\/p>\n\n
If you\u2019d like to learn, test some of these setups, have a great time and also catch your trophy fish with us \u2013 YOU CAN BOOK HERE.<\/mark><\/a><\/p>\n\n Pike rods can be divided by the technique they\u2019re intended for: twitching, jigging, spinners\/chatterbaits, soft plastic shads, jerkbaits, BigBait, etc. Regardless of that, one of the most important factors when choosing a pike rod is its action. Pike have thin and relatively \u201cfragile\u201d lips: if the hook is set and the rod action is extra\u2011fast, fish are lost more often \u2013 classic \u201chook pulls\u201d, because the hook can tear a large hole in the lip and when the pike shakes its head, the lure tends to fly out. In classic pike fishing we mostly choose rods in the 220\u2013240 cm range. Of course, \u201con paper\u201d twitching rods should be more like 190\u2013210 cm, and for soft plastics you can go longer, 250\u2013270 cm, etc. For us, versatile rods are more than enough, and we\u2019ve found an excellent middle ground to work all the classic pike lures with good quality. By the way, all our \u201cclassic pike\u201d setups are spooled with 4\u2011strand braid, because it\u2019s more abrasion\u2011resistant when fishing in grass and reeds. <\/p>\n\n Choice<\/p>\n\n We have several BigBait rods that work both for jerkbaits, larger swimbaits and soft plastics up to 28 cm. BigBait rods have come a long way over the years, and now there is a much wider selection than 7 years ago when we bought our first setups. That said, both rods and reels are still in good working order after 7 years of active use, and we still use them daily, both for classic fishing and pelagic casting for big pike. Choice<\/p>\n\n Perch rods can be very different, and many people choose a rod primarily for the technique they use most. We fish for perch with wobblers and hard baits (spinners, chatterbaits) about 80% of the time, so our rods are tuned to those techniques. That said, these rods can also be used for jigging quite effectively. The only note is that for jig or micro\u2011jig, the ideal casting weights would probably be lower. <\/p>\n\n Choice<\/p>\n\n For pelagic fishing we use universal rods with a fairly wide casting range. Lure size is from 4″ up to 10″, with the average \u201cworking\u201d size around 6\u20137″ soft baits. Depending on the water body, season and target species, the weight of the jig head\/sinker changes from 5 g up to 50+ g, especially when fishing in current and deep water where you need to get the lure down as quickly as possible. Choice<\/p>\n\n Of course, in each boat you\u2019ll find several other setups, but those are more like backup options. In this article we\u2019ve described the gear we truly use on a daily basis. <\/p>\n\nGear for pike fishing<\/h2>\n\n
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BigBait setups for pike<\/h2>\n\n
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Gear for perch fishing<\/h2>\n\n
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Gear for pelagic fishing with Live technologies and zander<\/h2>\n\n
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