Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod

By: The Angler

When Otto Henze left Germany for the United States of America back in 1922, little did he know that just 10 years later he would start a company Penn Fishing Tackle Manufacturing Company. That was the birth of the legendary Penn brand name that has since become the household name for big game saltwater fishing. Hence when we talk about the Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod, we are not talking about some sheep in wolf’s clothing trying to blend in with the wolves.

[ PE4 does not stand for Physical Education Level 4… ]

Penn’s focus has always been on the big and strong fighters of the sea. Of course you can take your Penn reel and rod to your favourite pond to bully some of the local fishes there. That would be a kin to taking your monster truck to the market to buy some vegetables. Unless the route that stands between you and the market is laden with big rocks, gullies, muddy grounds, and fallen timber; perhaps a car would do just fine.

Awesome carbon fibre wrap.

So what kind of a monster killer is this Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod? The Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod is lightweight for a PE4 rated monster killer. For those of you reading these who are not into saltwater fishing, especially jigging; PE4 does not stand for Physical Education Level 4. No, it certainly does not although the workout you get can certainly be above level 4 physically with 5 being exhaustive. PE4 simply means that the rod is rated to take up to 40lb of line pressure.

Rod Configuration

The Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod comes in a graphite blank that is strengthen with cross crimped carbon blank wrap towards the fore grip of the rod providing the Detonator 2 Jigging Rod with additional power when the bend of the rod reaches about 50% of the blank. This provides a surge of additional power to take on and exert more pressure on the hard fighting fish.

One piece blanks always provide a more stable power flow when it comes to fighting the fish as well as handling pressure exerted by the hard fighting fish. The issue with one piece rods is that they are quite cumbersome to transport, hence why 2 piece rods are still the rods with the biggest number of users. One thing that can be done is to use a one piece blank that is inserted into the fore grip section of the rod butt; classifying it as a 2 piece offset rod (butt joint).

Quality Fuji components. Pictured here are Fuji guides (O-ring).

Sporty Rod For Sporty Anglers

Fishing is a sport and I don’t care what the none anglers say; fishing is a sport. Hence anglers are participating in a sport. Hence also why many fishing tackle or products are sporty in design. Of course some are mundane and boring as hell; probably to tickle the fancies of undertakers (not the wrestler).

Good looking and sporty is what the Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod is. It is not overly fancy the way the Japanese design them but it is sporty. With its cross crimped carbon wrapping, metallic red thread windings, on a matte black blank; the Detonator 2 Jigging Rod looks sporty and good. Its contoured high quality EVA grips add to the its good looks too.

Let The Battle Begin; Penn’s tagline.

When it comes to balance, the Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod certainly is well balanced. Placed horizontally the weight of the rod evens out when held at its real seat; the area of the rod that is held on to when fishing. Ok, this brings me to a discussion I had with a fellow angler some time back. Are not rods supposed to be a little tip heavy? That was his remark to me in the form of a question.

This here is my take on that question of his. Baitcasting rods or rods that are used for lure casting should ideally be a little tip heavy as the rod is pointed downwards most of the time when fishing (playing with lure). Bottom fishing rods on the other hand should be slightly butt heavy as the rod is fished mostly with the tip pointing up.

Tough, strong, and powerful; that is the Penn Detonator 2.

What about jigging rods? They are fished mainly horizontally with up-down-up-down movements. How should the balancing be for such a rod? The rod should ideally be balanced at the area of which the rod is held and that is the reel seat of the rod. That is my take on the balancing of rods in relation to their purpose, or rather style and type of fishing.

Want A Giant Killer?

So, should you consider the Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod? If you are in the market for a new jigging rod and your target fishes are hard fighting fishes like giant groupers, cobias, sailfish, and other hard fighting fighters of the sea; then you certainly should consider the Penn Detonator 2 Jigging Rod. But if your target fishes are more like scads and sardines, then…errr… perhaps look for a smaller weapon of choice.