VolFan

I would be looking for a M or MH crankbait rod to do it. You need a softer action to load and throw that - XF isnt going to do it. That said, i'd probably go spinning.

I wouldnt tow any full sized glass bass boat with a Taco. Great truck - not a great tow vehicle.

What he said ^ Get an overgrip - to save money or get more color and thickness selection, look for tennis overgrips. Not the actual grips themselves but the thinner, self-adhering overgrip. They come in a number of thicknesses, colors, and tackiness.

Lightening Rod Shocks or house brands at BPS/Cabelas/Acafemy should get you what you need. Academy has some solid baitcasters in the range you're looking for. They're not going to be Chronarchs, but they'll get it done. You could also check the *cough* site sponsor *cough* Kastking stuff, although i think the Academy stuff will be as good or better.

This topic hurts me inside - i did three reels in 10 minutes this past weekend. No way would i outsource this to BPS for pride reasons alone much less my OCD about line. How much do they charge to spool a baitcaster?

2006 4Runner with the V8. 160k miles and really tows to kayak trailer with ease, even with both yaks in it. ? Ive had it for almist 10 years. Got the V8 with plans of buying a boat. Still planning...

Uh oh...Roadwarrior is going to be very disappointed in you...

My advice would be to grab your pfd, leave your gear, and go lean it until you fall out so you know where that is (and you get your first dunk out of the way). Take a friend. Otherwise everything you're doing looks great.

I just bought 10 $5 boxes of screws to fix a fence with. Each box had a Torx head in it to fit the screws. You would think Daiwa could throw one in on a reel.

No - theres a thin cloth-like covering. Look at Costco for kitchen mats or stanging mats.

I use a rubber-backed memory foam mat that rolls up. Works like a charm for my Nucanoe Frontier 12

Caney Fork is north and just east of Nashville. Probably further than you wznt to go, and probably no better than the Elk fwiw.

Probably the Ocoee east of Chatanooga would be a good bet. All I really know in that area. Maybe the Camry Fork but that would really stretch your two hour drive. The Duck River is diverse but I don’t know any wading spots.

Depending on what you fish more I’d do the DX if you fish more single hook plastics like Hudds or the Okuma if you’re going to fish more treble hook baits like triple trouts and slammers. And definitely the Cardiff. I had DVT super tune a Cardiff a few years ago and the results were fantastic.

Where are you? I Have an unused still in box 55 that id give you for $100 plus shipping.

SeaArk makes a couple big aluminums. Depends on what you want it to do.

One of my neighbors organized a coat drive last year and had two ministers from the mission it was benefitting helping collect the coats and sell soup door to door on the collection day. NextDoor app collective lost its mind and one of the people actually called the police on the poor guys. Mind you, the coat collection thread and date were right above the "Strange Men" thread.

"A spincaster is for youngsters and people that are not serious fisherman." I find that to be a disappointing level of elitism for a mod to express on this site. Buying a decent spincast and maintaining and using it doesn't make you not a serious fisherman. 

Between this and the Kayaks vs Boats thread, I'm still trying to figure out when BR morphed into a fly fishing group...:-)

My son uses an Omega. He'll probably start using some spinning reels this year as well. I disagree with Roadwarrior's comment above. That Omega is as smooth as most of my baitcasters, and much more user friendly on mistakes. I have used it when my son wasn't on tight quarters river floats, and it handles business just fine. Would I use it to fish shiners for 10 lb+ bass? No. But there's no reason to look down your nose at it as a sub $100 reel.

10 or even 8. I use 12 and 15 for my swimbait setups with weights from 1 to 6 oz.

I have the same trailer, and for your purpose I think I would bolt a carpeted 2x4 along the back edge.

Id go Upper Potomac below one of the dams. You may not catch huge, but theyre there.

Not knowing how old you are or your work situation, I would put that $1300 (ok maybe $1000) per month into a savings account until after the wedding. Then reassess. Life changes a lot in those two years surrounding a wedding.

Go Vols! i second the Topside Rd suggestion above. Look for areas where the road dams the lake and there's a flow age between. If they're pulling any water those spots will hold fish. If they're not, the steep banks around them still hold fish and the bass and wipers will be pushing shad in the corners.