Temple Fork Outfitters - TFO Rods
One exciting development this offseason has been the addition of Temple Fork Outfitters - TFO Rods to the brands I’m partnered with. I’ve always recognized their name in the fishing industry but honestly I’d never tried one before. They began in the 90’s focused mainly on fly rods and have greatly expanded from there. One thing that really struck me about TFO is when I started talking about working with them. That I had quite a few people reach out and say hey I’ve got a few of those and they are really nice. None of the people who offered up that feedback were just casual fisherman, so I knew I would be in for something good.
First impressions of TFO are that they’ve got no gimmicks. Nothing fake, nothing misleading, nothing focused on catching fisherman more than fish. They’ve got a rich history of building rods for more than just bass too. While I’ll mainly be focused on the bass line I can’t help but be excited about some of the other things they offer. High end panfish rods, salmon/steelhead rods which I’ll be using to float skein on Muskegon Lake this fall, and walleye trolling rods that are going to be perfect for shallow water Lake Michigan Trolling. They’ve also got some American made options which is pretty cool.
On the bass side their are 5 main lines to look at. I’ve still got a bunch of rods to get but I did get a sampling of 4 of the 5 lines so far. I’ve got some initial impressions and a few of the rods that stand out to me. One thing to point out is that all these rod series have a color coding component that specifies their action. It is different between some of the rod series but it helps you to easily identify your rod when on the water I won’t really know all their strengths until I get them out on the water so keep following along for more feedback and as always reach out if you have any questions.
Professional Series - Retail $119.95 -129.95
The Professional Series is their entry level series and is packed full of quality at that price point. One interesting thing about this series is that it is a crossover between bass and inshore saltwater designs. So you will find some spinning rods in heavier actions than you typically would for bass fishing. In my world that is a good thing as I’m often using a medium heavy spinning rod around thick coontail or with techniques that favor a stiffer rod like an OW Sniper Jig. This series is also going to see a lot of action with Multispecies for me. They have an easy numbering system with all their rods and with a little research is easy to follow along. I favor longer rods for just about everything so the PS 764-1 and PS 765-1 really stood out to me. Those are already making long casts off west Michigan Piers in search of Great Lakes Salmon and Trout. The baitcasters in this lineup are shorter than I prefer but I think there are some good options for topwater/jerkbait style rods and I picked up a 7” medium action baitcaster for that.
Option Bass - 149.95
The first thing I noticed about this series is wow they look cool and have a great price point. If these act the part too they are going to be a great combination of price and performance. They lived up to their looks! One thing about this series is that it isn’t that specialized, meaning that one rod is going to be good for a lot of different techniques and not boxed to be a specialist. We all need those all purpose setups that cover a wide variety of techniques for when you are moving between fisheries. This where I see the Option Bass fitting into my gameplan. Any one of the 7’3” baitcasters are going to fill that role for me and I will have several of them ready to go. When I picked up the 7’3” spinning rod in this series (OPT S -734-1) I knew it would be my all around spinning rod too. Several of those will be in the boat because they will be so versatile.
Taction Bass - 199.95
Stepping up the the Taction Bass we start to get a little more specialized. There is a mix of fast and moderate fast actions and you’ll see a few rods specifically geared towards moving baits/treble hooks. Everyone likes throwing small swimbaits at times in Michigan and at the recommendation of a buddy the TB S 744 spinning rod is the one to get. I’d have to agree that is going to be great for making those long casts and keeping them hooked up. The TB C 755 casting model is one that I felt I really need for casting some smaller jigs around cover. That is always a good technique in west Michigan and beyond.
Resolve Bass - 299.95
Wow do these feel nice! Once again we are getting even more specialized with these. While these rods are a bit pricier they are going to be the deal for those techniques where sensitivity is at a premium. Are you going to feel more bites throwing a spinnerbait on a 150 dollar rod or a 300 dollar rod? Probably not but if you substitute throwing a spinnerbait to flipping into mushy feeling grass all day. I can promise you the more expensive and more sensitive rod comes out on top. There are certain techniques that premium components are really going to make a difference in your fishing. For that reason the RB 766 flipping stick is going to see some time on my front deck. One thing you might notice is that the rod is mod fast instead of fast. I’m a big fan of that especially when flipping braid around vegetation. You’ll also notice a 7’3” ML+ rod in the spinning lineup and that is the “minnow shaking rod”. While I’m not the biggest minnow shaker out there, I think that rod is really going to shine when dropshotting largemouth with texas rigged style baits.
Centra Bass
This is the American made model in the bass lineup and it is tournament grade with Toray Hi Mod Carbon Fiber Blanks and premium components. I don’t have one of these yet but the 7’10” mag heavy will be making it into the boat. I’ve always been a proponent for the longest rod possible when I’m fishing deep grass. Simply because it helps me to move the bait more vertically with in the grass clump and get a more vertical hookset. I don’t think you are really going to go wrong with any rod in this lineup.
If you want to see them for yourselves find me at any tournament or check out any of our Michigan Dealers. I know ClearH20 Tackle, D&R Sports, and Jays Sporting Goods all have some and I know more options will be coming soon.