If you plan on punching for bass then you are going to need the right equipment. There is no making due with a spare rod you have for this style of fishing. Punching is a very effective method that requires a special rod with a ton of backbone, and the power to horse fish out of very dense weeds.
Your punching rod is most likely going to be the most powerful bass fishing rod on your rod rack, possibly the longest too. Not only do you need this rod to be able to pull fish out of heavy cover, you will often be pulling about twenty pounds of weeds along with the fish too. Punching rods are designed specifically for this kind of abuse.
Punching rods are usually around seven and a half feet to eight feet long, making them ideal for flipping and pitching. You may have even heard them referred to as flipping sticks. You won’t be doing any long casting with this rod, it will be all close quarters fishing.
One of the best rods for punching is the Dobyns Fury Series FR735C.
A punching rod should be paired up with a strong baitcasting reel with a high speed gear ratio. This is so you can reel in slack quickly between flips. The more flips you make the better your chances of putting the bait in front of a bass. When it comes to line most anglers use braid, you can’t go wrong with a good sixty-five pound braid.
