islandbass

Another 6# invizx user. If you're going from being accustomed to braid to using fc line, I can "see" why you might think that fc line is dead. All you have to do is switch to mono for a bit and then switch back to fc and then you'll think, "Dang, fc is as good as braid," lol. Kidding aside, 6# or 8# (and I prefer the lightest line I can get away with) ought to be sufficient and for me, and this is relative, 30' isn't all that deep. For lack of a better term, I strive for a "semi-slack" line when I drop shot. This is not too loose and not too taut and enough to let the movement of the water move that bait. If the water is dead-still, then just the slightest twist needed to move the bait without moving the weight. There will be times when the take won't be a definite tug but perhaps the slightest nibble that won't make even your rod tip bend, but it would be enough movement down there to send vibrations (what I can feedback) to you throught your line. And this is what, IMHO, fc line does so well. Even at greater depths, I can feel the slightest nibble and just know that I have one and I attibute it not to my super sensitive hands, but to the way fc transmits feedback to me. Perhaps it is just a matter of you getting accustomed to using fc line. The one thing that I might ask you is what is the bottom made of where you think you are missing those bites? For me if it's: Rocky - No problem Grassy - No problem Fine Sandy Bottom or Muddy Like - It's feels more muted I bet it's just a matter of time and experience gained using FC that you will become accustomed to using it. Invizx rocks! (Or cabela's house brand - it's cheaper and practically the same)

The boat monkey handles them little boats like jon boats and kayaks. The boat ape is the one who makes you buy a bass boat, lol.

Good stuff! The one thing I do differently, because I don't fish from a boat, is not to pitch from an elevated position. Another thing you can experiment with is practice casting "the other way". Though I prefer LH retrieve, I can now fish with LH or RH now. Those dark, icy, evenings spent in the cul de sac practicing has earned me that skill in addition to the strange, coo coo stares from the neighbors, lol.

Those are great suggestions, but that is a bit too much (translates to lazy) for me. My best guess as to why line gets spooled unevenly is because we are putting on the line "at an angle" as opposed to being directly "in line" with the spool. The next time you add line, make note as to the angle of your rod with respect to the spool. Are you "in line" (directly behind it, straight on) or is your rod at some angle to the left or to the right of the spool? I think the more extreme the angle (the rod is closer to being perpendicular to the spool) the more likely it would be that uneven spooling might occur. I do my best to spool line with my rod directly inline with the spool, spinning or casting. IMHO, it minimizes the chance of uneven spooling. I also pay close attention to how the line is being laid on. If I see that the line lay becomes uneven, which is not too common any more, I will do what I must to "even it" back out, even it if means. For example if one side is higher than the other, I will only allow line to get spooled on, on the side that is low until it is even. Then, I continue. Doing this completely eliminates the need to tie it to something in the yard to get it on straight. This is based on personal observation. I was trying to figure out why my line, while starting with an even spool of line, got unbalanced while fishing. It was then that I noticed that it occurred more often than not when the rod was at an angle relative to being position straight out from me. Haven't taken the time to substantiate these observations.

I have no doubt that they'll work on bass and those look mighty fine on trout or bass. I do something similar but with round headed jigs for steelhead and salmon, but have done good with them against smallies too. Give him some round headed jig heads and have him show you how to do these. Then you'll have an additional tactic to the t-rigged fly. Not to mention, that would probably kick phanny on a DS set up.

Yeah, I keep missing that sale, every year, lol. The competitor series is also great bang for the buck. Also, the excel series actually uses the same blank as the certified pro series so it is an awesome deal even at retail. I have the Lamiglas Drop Shot Special rod and it isn't a fair fight. It is the epitome of a classic finesse class drop shot rod. I love this rod. Lamiglas makes awesome bass rods and IMHO they are underrated. I'm just north of you in Fed Way.

I have that same mutant power, lol!

1) True Story - You know you're an insane bass angler with it's a clear day for a crisp 22 degrees but you leave a warm bed anyway, head to the lake to go fishing and find that the pond is frozen over. Do you go home? No! You search for large, heavy rocks and toss them skyward to bust holes in the ice. Then you skip your tube bait across the ice and hope as it slides across the ice that it falls through one of the holes you made. 2) You oohhh and ahh more at pictures of JDM rods and reels than you do the models in the Victoria Secret catalog.

I have two casting rods that are two piece. A Clarus and a Cabela Mag Touch. I use them for their convenience despite having my share of one piece bass rods. The ironic thing is that my two piece rods see 90% of the fishing action since they fit in the trunk. It appears that the only time I can use my one piece rods is on the weekend. One would be be a fool to leave your one piece rods visible in a car in my neck of the woods which is why the one piece rods stay home during the week.

Nice report! Those that say this probably never once cleaned or took care of their reels as they should have. Even the best reels will cease to work without proper maintenance.

Daughter at 4: It was either a barbie or disney princess shakespeare rig. She caught a ton of fish with it. Was using a spinning reel at 5 and casting reel by 6 1/2. Son at 3: Spiderman, Superman, Batman rods. Why so many? Because he kept dropping them into the lake, lol. It doesn't get any easier or more convenient with these cute, little rods. They work very well for them.

The one in your hands. It is the only one with a chance of catching a fish.

it's topwater time! gotta love it oh my bass

Either reel is going to be awesome. However, my question to you because I am dying to know, is have you decided left or right hand? I am betting a Floating Rapala minnow you will prefer hands down the left hand model. Don't go right hand given your spinning background. Been there done that.

Goes to show fish don't care about paint jobs at times. Good job! Careful though. Lure making is a side addiction to fishing. I'm with you on the cost of baits getting pricey. Other good woods to use are pine, basswood and balsa. The first two are strong enough to not need thru-wire construction. I am not a painter but I do alright with a regular paint brush. I really like this one. The use of sharkteeth has become my m.o. or trademark.

Nice. My first bass was caught on a Rapala.

If you need assurance from others about the fishing gear you bought, that's not a good place to be. Heresay is just that, heresay. I couldn't, I wouldn't, I shouldn't give a rip, why could they, why would they, why should they give me lip, for I can fish with what I wish 'til bacon becomes ham, says I, the islandbass, a friend of Sam I am. Don't know what got into me but Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham story just popped in my head. If you like Shimano then let no one talk you out of using their products.

In not toothy critters, or guides or anything already mentioned, how often and/or severe are your backlashes. I think that this form of line damage is a culprit in some line brerakage issues and for any line type to boot.

Three letters... DVT.

Now that's awesome! That's right, DS is not exclusive or limited to only finesse situations. Step in line size, rod power, bait size, one, two, or all three. To the subject, I also noticed that trend in DS specific rods. Mine is a Lamiglas that has a mod fast action and I love it. It seems that since them Lamiglas has followed suit to and now makes them Med light, XF. Go figure.

x2

Another thing that helps that is not mentioned that i have found helps is keeping rod and reel completely perpendicular to the line. Uneven spooling is kept to a bare minimum and virtually non existent when I do this. From my own observation, it seems that the uneven laying of line occurs most often when the spool is at optimum capacity where I am dealing with long casts in which I am retrieving line holding my rig at an extreme angle relative to the line's position. Not always but it seems that's when it occurs to me. I have been told it does not affect reel performance but it sure looks weird, lol.

Yup, I learned the same lesson. It seemed every time I had them ready to go and I had barely picked up my rod, it was like, "Dad, it's stuck, or it's all tangled, need a new worm," The other thing I realized was needing to keep an eye on them in case they fall in as it only takes a split second. The snacks work wonders but it only goes so far. My daughter was no fish in 10 minutes? It's time to do something else. My son had a longer attn span, closer to an hour. They are now a far cry from the 3-4 range now. Almost miss those days.

Nice story. But when you take them at that age, you should not expect to fish, lol. I chose not to when my kids were older and so that I could give them 100% of my attention. I also bring plenty of snacks and drinks. Untangling line, freeing snags, yada yada, it's all good when you take kid(s) fishing.

Year round but not exclusively for bass.