Bass Fishing Rod Arsenal: Every Rod I Use & Why (2026)

Over the past few years I’ve used probably 30 different bass fishing rods and reels across ponds and lakes of every size — but I’ve never sat down and explained which ones I’ve actually found most useful. So here it is: the exact specifications of every rod I reach for when I fish from the bank, the kayak, and the bass boat, and why each length, power, and action earns its spot. One quick note before we start — every rod I own is a Lew’s (they sponsor me and their gear has taken big steps forward), but the lengths, powers, and actions I talk about apply to whatever brand you like. Focus on the specs, not the name on the blank.

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My Rod Arsenal — Quick Reference

Bank anglers want to keep it simple, and most of the time that means a good pre-built combo. The one you’ll see me use constantly through the Hunter Ponds and 200 Ponds series is the Mach Smash — around $149 for a genuinely high-quality reel and a sneaky-good rod that, for whatever reason, casts farther than any pre-built combo I’ve ever used. I’ve never broken one. My two main ones:

A 7-foot Medium for all-purpose duty — smaller crankbaits, spinnerbaits, vibrating jigs, suspending jerkbaits, small jigs, and small Texas rigs. And a 7-foot-3 Medium-Heavy for topwaters, buzzbaits, bigger swimbaits, and smaller glide baits. Here’s a spec argument worth hearing: the internet says the ideal all-around combo is a 7-foot medium-heavy — but if you’re throwing a medium-heavy, you’re throwing bigger lures anyway, so you might as well take the longer casting distance and better hookup percentage of a 7-foot-3. That’s why my medium is a 7-foot and my medium-heavy is a 7-foot-3.

The other bank workhorse is the Accel RX combo (around $119–$129) built around Lew’s Paramag RX braking. Its components aren’t quite as premium as the Mach Smash — I’d rather throw a frog or small glide on the Smash — but where it shines is light lures: a skunk-buster, a Caffeine Shad, weightless soft plastics, anything light you want to throw far. For light stuff the Accel RX out-casts the Smash; for normal-weight lures the Smash is all you need. (I put four baitcasters head-to-head in my baitcasting reel test if you want the reel side of this.)

The one specialty rod I lean on mostly in fall and winter is a 6-foot-8 Medium LFS — my little KVD 1.0 squarebill and small jerkbait rod. I’ll throw tiny swimbaits and even little finesse jigs on it, and it’s a great match for my Outkast Pond Finesse Jig. The LFS series is incredibly underrated — it lets you throw small things and fish them effectively. If you want the full breakdown on that small-jerkbait game, my jerkbait masterclass covers it start to finish.

I’ve really only used two types of spinning rod over the years: a medium and a medium-light, somewhere in the 6-foot-6 to 7-foot-4 range. My favorite for the past four seasons is a 6-foot-10 Medium, extra-fast — I’ve worn the grips right off it and never broken it. It handles everything finesse except a drop shot or a tiny hair jig: Neko rigs, shaky heads, wacky rigs, and Ned rigs. That 6-foot-10 length fits my height perfectly for bank, kayak, and boat — I can skip it and set the hook well.

For my drop shot and minnow-shaking rod, I want a 6-foot-9 to 6-foot-10 Medium-Light. The length, taper, and thinness make me deadly accurate and sensitive with it — I hold the trigger between my ring and pinky finger with my pointer on the blank for ultimate feel. I honestly think it’s the best drop shot rod out there. Pair it with a 300-size shallow-spool spinning reel — a shallow spool keeps fresh line on at all times, and you don’t need a lot of line for finesse. If you want the technique side of it, here’s my full drop shot masterclass.

Crankbaits are where I’ll argue you actually need a more technique-specific rod. Aside from the ultra-small cranks on my 6-foot-8 medium, I throw everything from a 1.5 and 2.5 up to a 5XD on a 7-foot-2 Medium, moderate. You want a taper slow enough to let the fish load up — remember, a crankbait needs almost no hookset; you just keep reeling and sweep strongly into them. Any reel works here; you don’t need a deep-spool cranking reel to throw a squarebill.

On the rare day I throw an extra-deep diver (15-foot-plus), I reach for the longest rod I own — a 7-foot-11 Medium-Heavy, fast. The longer a rod gets at that power and action, the whippier it feels, which is exactly what you want to launch a big deep crank and let fish load up. Watching someone throw a 10XD on a plain 7-foot medium-heavy, you can see the rod struggling — go with a real deep-crank stick. For everything crankbait, my crankbait masterclass breaks down the baits themselves.

My most budget baitcasting rod is one I truly love and can beat the snot out of — the TP2 Gen 3, 6-foot-10 Medium-Heavy, moderate-fast. Along with a 7-foot-1 Heavy, fast, these are my two favorite kayak rods. In a kayak I go shorter and stiffer so I can move the rod around, change my hookset position, and fight fish in tight quarters. The 6-foot-10 MH moderate-fast is a fantastic all-purpose kayak stick — vibrating jigs (see my chatterbait masterclass), spinnerbaits, swimming worms, light soft plastics, buzzbaits — anything that doesn’t need a super-strong set. The 7-foot-1 heavy is my frog and buzz-frog rod, and it makes long bomb casts with a walking bait.

For dock skipping, a 6-foot-9 Heavy, fast is the ultimate combo. I used to think all rods skipped the same — then I tried skipping a 6-foot-9 against the 7-foot-4 I always used, and a shorter rod is dramatically more accurate. Even at 6-foot-9 heavy I still get a great hookset every time; I love it for compact jigs and spinnerbaits fired into tiny gaps.

For bigger soft plastics and heavier presentations, I run a 7-foot-5 Medium-Heavy, fast — my Carolina rig, football jig, swimbait, and glide-bait rod (up to about a 6-to-7-inch glide). The length loads up long casts beautifully. Rounding it out are two do-everything sticks: a 7-foot-2 Medium-Heavy, extra-fast (a fantastic jig rod I can also skip docks or throw a frog with) and the classic 7-foot Medium-Heavy, fast — the all-purpose rod everyone talks about — for Texas rigs, spinnerbaits, bigger squarebills, and swim jigs. The extra-fast is a touch beefier; the regular-fast custom-light version is lighter and more sensitive — grab whichever the moment calls for.

Final Thoughts

That’s every rod I’ve leaned on over the past few seasons, and you’ve watched me catch countless fish on all of them. But hear this loud and clear: you do not need a bunch of technique-specific rods to catch bass. A Mach Smash and an Accel RX combo will cover an enormous range of techniques. I use a variety because my channel is for every kind of bass angler — bank, kayak, and boat — and I want to show gear each of you can relate to. Start with a solid medium and medium-heavy, add specialty sticks only as a technique becomes a real part of your game, and spend your money on time on the water before you spend it on your twelfth rod.

Related masterclasses: Fishing Line · Baitcasting Reel Test · Crankbait · Drop Shot · Texas Rig · Pond Fishing Tips · Better Hooksets

Source: Based on video content from TylersReelFishing — “ALL My RODS For Bass Fishing (2026 Fishing Rod Arsenal)” · youtube.com/@tylersreelfishing