I skip a jig or soft-plastic jerkbait on casting gear, but I use a spinning rod when I’m not getting many bites or in areas where I think the fish are getting more pressure than normal. That’s when the finesse technique and the spinning rod become a really strong game plan.
I throw a wide range of baits. A wacky-rigged Zoom Trick Worm is probably my go-to deal. It’s one of the first things I grab just to see where the fish are in the water column. I like either a watermelon red or watermelon candy color, and I usually use the 6-inch worm with a 1/0 Gamakatsu Split Shot hook. I’ll skip a little swimbait too. Those little 3 1/2-inch Missile Baits Shockwaves on a 1/8-ounce head can be real good to catch suspended bass. And, of course, I’ll skip a weightless Senko.
For my tackle, I use a 7-foot, medium-power Kistler Helium 3 spinning rod and a 2500 Shimano Stradic CI4+. I use 15-pound-test Seaguar Smackdown braid for the main line, and I’ll use an Albright knot to tie on a 6- or 8-foot leader of 8-pound-test Seaguar Tatsu fluoro.
Fishing light line around docks is a risk, but I roll the dice. I’ve had some instances where I caught some really big ones off docks with a spinning rod – like David Dudley did at Chickamauga. It’s a risk, but when you have confidence in a tactic that’s the risk you take.
I’ve got more control with a spinning rod in most cases. I can skip a jig under a dock just as well as anyone, but cast after cast, I am going to be much more accurate with a spinning rod.