Whip’R Panfish Rod
Justin Clark 11.15.11
I have been on the hunt for several years for a true dropshot rod for fishing gills and yellow perch on the inland lakes here in Michigan. No matter what brand of rods I had looked at, I just couldn’t seem to find what I was looking for. I was trying to find a rod that matched up to a bass dropshot. The rod had to have lots of backbone and taper quickly into the tip section.
For years I just couldn’t find what I wanted, I even entertained custom rods but could never find a blank to match what I was looking for. Fast forward to about a month ago; I was looking at ice fishing products doing some research for some upcoming articles. I was on K & E’s website looking at jigs when something caught my eye. It was a new ice rod combo they were offering. That combo prompted me to look at their other rods and not just the hardwater products.
That is when I saw an image of a fishing rod that had the bend I was looking for with the words “Ultimate Panfish Gear” on it. I started thinking to myself, “have I found the rod I’m looking for?!” I was quickly on the phone with Jim over at K & E asking him about the rod. It wasn’t long until I had a rod in the mail to me so I could do a product review on the rod.
I was excited to see this rod come to my doorstep a few days later. I quickly rigged it up and headed on down to some docks on Lake Erie where I knew there were good numbers of gills and pumpkinseeds. I rigged the rod up with a simple dropshot rig with a waxworm on the hook and started working it like you would a dropshot Goby for bass. It didn’t take long for me to see that this rod had the action and taper I was looking for. Then it was time to change-up the rigging a bit after catching some nice 7 inch gills. I set it up with a Thill Shy bite and started casting to structure. I wanted to check out and see how it handled fishing the way most pan-fishermen would use the rod. It preformed pretty well for a rod in this price point. I fished with this rod on and off on Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair and numerous nameless inland lakes over the next month. I was 
fairly happy with the rod.
The rod is made of a composite construction, the top third is made of fiberglass which then leads into the back two thirds, which are made of graphite. The rod has a split rear grip which lowers the overall weight of the rod and it shows off it blank through construction. The reel seat was kinda oversized for a panfish rod, but it held the reel tightly. I am not sure on the brand of guides this rod has but they have ceramic inserts which handled the braided line I was using well. The openwater series of these Whip’R Rods comes in 7 lengths from 4ft to 8ft long. I was fishing the 6ft 6 inch model. Many of the rods are two-piece constructions.
Justin runs Michigan's premier fishing and outdoor blog Out in Michigan.com. He is also a local fishing guide, tournament angler and freelance writer and manages the newest tackle shop on Lake St. Clair "Sportsmen's Direct. He has been featured in regional publications like Michigan Outdoor News, Woods-n-Waters, Great Lakes Angler and a few others. Justin has made several TV appearance in recent years.
He has a true passion of sharing his knowledge with other anglers and non-anglers alike within the communities surrounding the waters that he loves to fish. Justin is a true multi-species nut. He can be found chasing everything from Bass, Carp ,Walleye, Muskie and everything in between. His background and experiences studying Ichthyology, Microbiology, and River Ecology gives him a totally unique view on fishing.
