# How many of you have kicked rods overboard?



## jonboatboy

Well this is a interesting story. Fished a tournament last night and it all started when it got dark. I was throwing a 1oz hand made night time spinnerbait that has been landing 4lbers one after another when i slung it off and broke my line. I don't know how this happened but it did and FAST but after i slung off the spinnerbait i fumbled my rod and off in the lake it went. I dove to my knees and reached for it but it was already gone in about 12ft of water. I had bought a Abu Garcia black max reel at a tackle show for 20 bucks new and a Vengeance rod from Walmart for 50 about 3 weeks ago. It also had a set of the rubber grips on the handles so i had about 75 bucks in it plus 10 bucks worth of 10lb string and the 8 dollar spinnerbait i lost. For a cheap rod i could slow roll that big Colorado blade an feel it knock when my buddy's 200 dollar carrot stick couldn't feel it. Anyways I'm wondering what's my chances of recovery? It's on a big flat next to a point where it drops off into the main channel. Glad it wasn't one of my new denali rods but i liked it just as much. Loved the rod but not so much the reel. Would it be worth going back across the lake for when i live 15 miles from the boat ramp and it's a 5-7min ride running 34mph in the boat and my truck gets 10 miles a gallon without the boat? Please feel free to share any advice and your own personal horror stories. Also any advise as to how to keep from this happening in the future as I am notorious for this but have always been able to grab them before they sunk.


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## bobberboy

When I was a kid my brothers and I used to fish below a dam for bullheads. Once I was taking a break and leaned my rod against a log - the tip sticking up in the air. One of my brothers was casting and his hook snagged the eye at the tip of my rod and in the river it went. The kids across the river started laughing at us (we gave them the finger) and my fishing was done for the day. About an hour later the same brother snagged the thing and pulled it in again. In the days of one rod and reel and a cigar box for a tackle box, that rod and reel was a pretty precious thing. I never expected to see it again. We weren't trying to find it, it was a complete fluke that I got it back. Don't know if you dropped a marker where yours went down or have a GPS location but seems it might be worth a try - knowing the chances are pretty slim.


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## KMixson

I am nervous when I am fishing for catfish to the point that I tie a small rope to my rod and reels while I have them in the water. I have them set so when the fish hits the bait clickers start sounding off but I still tie them on. I use circle hooks so they need to have a little time to hook themselves. I would be hurt to see one yanked out of the boat. I think I would troll for the rod for a while if it were one of mine.


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## juggernot

If you can pinpoint where it went overboard or marked it w gps I would say go back and get it. Tie a med size treble hook behind a 1oz bullet weight and drag the bottom. I've recovered a few rods this way.The hook catches the rod and then a guide and you can pull it to the surface, you should be able to feel when you snag it. Years ago my brother lost a rod while we bank fished for Cats. He was messing with another rod when this rod was violently yanked into the water from a forked stick. A half hour later I felt a tug on my slip rig and reeled in What seemed like a nice fish, his rod hooked in the tip eye by my single hook emerged from the water and he grabbed his rod and reeled in the 10lb Channel Cat that stole his pole!


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## earl60446

Don't remember dropping my own overboard but I went to Heidecke lake in IL one time, my buddy caught a nice walleye and a striper. All I caught was a rod and reel on the bottom while trolling. Plfueger Supreme reel and nice ugly stick rod, both still usable.

Here is a expensive one for ya. I was on a long range trip out of San Diego on the Shogun. A guy was using a 200 lb test rod and reel for BIG yellowfin tuna on the rail (as we all were), something hit it and it was out of his hands in an instant. He just put his head on the rail and cried. Probably a $900.00 rig minimum including all the 200 lb test hollowbraid we were using.

Tim


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## jonboatboy

Wow. 10lb channel. I've seen a 7 but nothing bigger in a channel cat. Got a few 15lbs flatheads I've caught. I didn't mark where it went over but I know the general area. The guy I was fishing with trolled off while I was trying to rig a recovery pole and since we was in a tournament he didn't want to stick around trying to get it. We even ended up leaving early because nothing was biting. There was another 10 or so boats take out after us. It was a bad night. I was ready to sell everything and pick up something else for a hobby


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## juggernot

A few years ago my father, brother and I were fishing for Red Drum w a guide near Morehead City. We brought our own tackle but ended up using his because all his rods were we spooled w braid and we fished around oyster beds and packs of 10-20 Reds were cruising the shoreline near the Haystacks. We casted Redfish Magics and frequently doubled and tripled when a scholl approached and the braid held up better w frequently crossed lines and light tackle, Oysters and 5-8lb fish. He had a brand new Shimano Stella 2 weeks old and talked about how expensive it was $750 and the features,corrosion resistant, sealed case, 12 bearings etc. we all took turns w it and liked the performance of the expensive reel. I was using it when a huge fish was sighted and the guide told me to grab a rod w a large topwater plug to cast to the big Red. I layed the Stella on the front deck of his 20' Riddick bayruner and cast to the big fish cutting a V in the shallow water. It hit the plug and I set the hook, slipped a bit and kicked the Stella off the side. I jumped down and grabbed it before it sank but it had a good saltwater bath. The big fish got loose after 10 seconds. I could tell the guide was upset and I felt like an idiot for dunking his brand new rod/reel, he said it would probably be ok but he wouldn't use it again until it was disassembled and cleaned.


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## lovedr79

when i was 15 we were fishing off the catwalk on the bonnie bridge (oregon inlet) i had a huge chopper blue on pifted the rod up to see how heavy it was and if i could reel it up. well the 1.5 oz hopkins spoon pulled out, flew like a bullet to my eye, i covered my face/eye with both hands in turn dropping my brand new Abu Garcia Royal Express III into the water. was a very expensive rod/reel for me a working 15 year old to have. which i bought with my own money. 

a month ago i lost my pflueger reel i bought off of here thanks to someone who threw waht seemed like a spool of bailing twine off the route 66 bridge in front royal, tied the end to the bridge and tossed the spool. me being nice i stopped the boat and started winding it all in. well i didnt notice that it had wrapped around my rod and while rolling it into a ball i pulled on it and my rod lept out of the rod holder and is on the bottom of the river somewhere......... 

not quite kicked but they were lost.


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## jonboatboy

Man that sucks. That's always how it goes with nice people. I like to help people because not only is it the right thing to do but I always hope carma will come back to me and give me something good but it always seems like while helping someone I'm always the one to get screwed over or something of mine gets broke. I don't even like fishing tournaments but my buddy's co-angler quit on him and your only allowed one back up person so here I am helping him do what he enjoys. I like to do it for fun and relaxation. It is fun to take off with 80 other boats and pass 20 of them before they make it off the main lake running 72mph in a Nitro z8.


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## El_Guapo

I've only done it a couple of times - caught the thing successfully before it sank once, and as for the other one....well, there's a BPS Bionic Blade with a Mitchell 308 on it in about 60' of water near the Apache Lake marina if anyone wants to go get it.


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## jonboatboy

I used to joke about buying those floaty things at bass pro because I always kicked rods off in the water but they was always easily retrieved before they sank or they was in such shallow water it was no big deal. Just add a little more oil and they was good to go. I threw my big spinnerbait tonight on my denali 7' medium heavy crankbait rod and it didn't feel nothing like that Abu Garcia rod. Think ima buy another one from wal mart and put a new 6:4:1 Lews reel on it and keep on going. 

Also back to the being nice thing and getting screwed over again. My buddy calls while I'm out tonight, he and another guy are fishing a tournament. I hadn't caught a fish and was just fishing new areas when my phone rang and he asked if he could borrow my net. I let them borrow it and I ended up loosing a biggin because I didn't have a net. I can win for losing but it was just a fish. Hopefully I'll catch more on another day.


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## bcbouy

i've lost 2 flyrods over the side.both times i had to grab the floating line and pull in at least 300 yards of line and backing to save the stupid things.next time they stay sunk :LOL2:


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## MikeG81

I had a Fenwick Smallmouth EliteTech/Shimano Calcutta B combo resting in my boat with the tip up while using the HMG. Hooked the ET on the backswing of my cast and pulled the works clear over my head and into the lake. Luckily the line on the ET was hooked to the spinnerbait I was using and I was able to reel it in.

Horseshoes on that one.


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## jonboatboy

Usually if I hook another pole while I'm casting I end up with the biggest birds nest you've ever seen. Never lost a rod though that way (knock on wood). My partner and I fish about shoulder to shoulder on his Z8 and this has happened several times. He will goto cast and hook my pole just about jerking it outta my hands but end up nesting his reel. It's always those side swing cast trying to throw under a tree from a good distance. He almost lost a rod on Thursday because we took off and got on plane and at about 60 realized the floppy rods wernt strapped down.


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## Butthead

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=359518#p359518 said:


> lovedr79 » Mon Jul 14, 2014 2:16 pm[/url]"]...
> a month ago i lost my pflueger reel i bought off of here.........



Was that the one you bought from me? That SUCKS!!!
Maybe I can find you a new one to replace it, ha-ha. :wink: 


A buddy of mine was fishing for walleye and pike with his brother and elderly father up in Canada last month. They only brought 1 rod each for the walleye and they were literally 15 minutes into the trip and his dad accidentally dropped his rod into the water. Thankfully they had a big old spoon tied onto a rod for the pike and they were able to drag it along the bottom and snag it up. Later that day my buddy brings in a nice walleye, so dad sets his pole down in the back to come up and take a look. Sure enough, walleye hits and the rod goes over. Thankfully they were only in about 5 or 6 feet of water and they could see it on the bottom. Big old spoon saves the day again. Fishing for walleye in Canada and saving your rod from the bottom twice, they're some lucky bastards in my book. HA! :mrgreen:


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## Loggerhead Mike

If it's only in 12 FOW, I'd be swimming


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## Gitzet

That suks!

If you have a pretty good idea where it is, take out a 3/4 oz rattle trap, literally drag it across the bottom slowly. Do it from many different angles. If the bottom doesn't have a lot if hard cover and such, you might get lucky and snag the rod, reel or line.

I've done this twice. It's painful tedious work, but it might work. You might get snagged and lose your trap too.

Good luck!


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## Moedaddy

No way, stuff cost too much!!!


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## Brine

Buy/Use one of these







Tie to heavy braid/line of choice, open all the clips, put a heavy sinker on the end and start casting.


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## jonboatboy

I got one of those. The interesting thing is they're dropping our 10,000 acre lake 6in. a day for winter pool and it's about 10ft down from summer pool so I'm waiting to see if I can find it. I know it's probably no good now and it was a cheap rod and reel but I liked it and won alot tournaments with it. I'd just hang it in the garage if I found it.


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## Captain Ahab

Or just use a bunker snag hook


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## Captain Ahab

Snag hook


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## shamoo

Right after work I went fishing in my little Bantam 3X, my buddy had just given me a Bass Pro Shops pistol grip casting rod(a week before), I bought a new Shimano Bantam Mag baitcast reel for it, after an hour of casting my fore arm cramped and GONE, by the time I got where the combo landed it sunk in about 2 feet of sediment. It took me a couple of minutes to massage the cramp away.


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## RiverBottomOutdoors

Had a big catfish snatch a rod out of my hand when I set the hook. Barely got a hold on it before it went out of site.


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## KMixson

RiverBottomOutdoors said:


> Had a big catfish snatch a rod out of my hand when I set the hook. Barely got a hold on it before it went out of site.




That is why I tie my catfish rods to the boat. I set the bait clickers to go off to notify me that something is running with it. I use circle hooks so they need a little time to get hooked anyway. Works like a charm. I do attach a piece of frayed nylon rope to the hook to catch the garfish that take the bait also. They have very bony snouts that are very hard to get a hook to penetrate.


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