islandbass

This might very well be the issue and not you. The weight of the lure combined with its aerodynamic profile are working against you and you are at the mercy of the limitations of the baitcaster you are using assuming the rod is suited to throw this lure well. There is that lower threshold on every casting reel that even with the best of tuning, you might still experience its limitations. sounds like a chronarch or pixy territory. ;D

LOL Now that's funny! Dave, sorry that we kind of messed up your thread, but as JF said, it is something that you will eventually get accustomed to.

You're right! I don't know how I misinterpreted that! :-[ Oops!

Fortunately, that is not the case and there are casting rods out there with longer handles. At times, that extra long handle can get in the way of pitching or flipping if you have a gut like me. ;D Joking aside, if you have a cabelas close by, take a look at the Mag Touch line of rods. The casting models IMHO have unusually long handles and I can tell you this because I have one. I have the Cabelas Mag Touch Power: Medium Action: Fast Type: Casting Length: 7' Model #:MGTC70 Pieces: 2 Lure Weight Range:1/4 - 1 oz Line Weight: 8 17 lb. Color: Black Guides: Alconite I have noticed it drops to about half of its regular price twice a year. It is a mighty fine rod at $99 and sweeter at $49.99. I have caught many nice bass and some hefty pink salmon with it.

For those prices, you could make your own. They're not too bad, but since you mentioned it was a bit pricey, you could make one for about $20.00 to hold 3 rods and be a heck of a lot more sturdy.

Welcome! Based on your outlined specs, I'd say the second rod. The first one could do alright I suppose too. I think your second rod would be alright for your treble hook lures, including topwater.

You should always check the manufacturer's site first. http://fish.shimano.com/publish/content/global_fish/en/us/index/customer_service0/instruction_manuals.html It's one of the reasons I like shimano. I know I can find a pdf version of the manuals and schematics for my reels on the fly. Oh yeah. It is the schematic that has the parts and numbers. The manual does not contain this.

Woh! The next time he goes stripper fishing, let us know! ;D To the subject, it's a bit embarrassing, but I caught someone's underware with my UL rig. They must have lost it while skinny dipping. I just cut the line. I've also caught a bat, turtles, and almost hooked a duck in flight who was flying toward my crankbait in midflight.

Cool! I bought my first curado using that plan. If I were to buy another curado, I wonder if I should use my Cabela's Visa card. ;D

Take a look at the lamiglas Excel rods. You will be pleasantly surprised AND save $50 off your upper limit.

In addition to that, you might want to keep the tension in the line at all times during the fight. The big girls can throw off lures quite well. Triple grips are nice hooks, btw.

Take advantage of the search feature here. This topic comes up on occassion and there is a wealth of solid recommendations here. There are nice 2-piece rods from makers like Shimano in their Clarus and Compre and Convergence rods to suit your needs.

That's what I thought initially, until I clicked on the Who Iam (intentionally spelled like he did). Had to pick my jaw off of the floor. JF's right. He is a big scammer. I wouldn't trust him to clean my daughter's Barbie pole. Nice catch, JF. 8-)

I have used my 101D for cranks. No problem even with a DT6. Shoot, after a super, mega long cast, its gear ratio is probably going to be less than advertised with a lot of line out anyway.

That is very neat. I've just been using a shoe box but your set up is much better and far cooler. ;D

I hear you on the $90 price mark, but I would recommend that if he is going to spend $90, then it couldn't hurt to wait a little longer and save the extra $30 to get the citica. You could almost predict the Brand X reel a great deal for $90 or less, works great for a while, then craps out, and now your buddy finally buys a Citica or equivalent Daiwa. Take that $90 already spent plus the $119 for the citica and shoot, he could have gotten a curado and nearly a Chronarch. This is why I suggest saving the extra $$ for the Citica. 'Tis a lesson not worth learning.

I have also used it, in 6# test and it performs very similarly to invizx. Its price also makes it more attractive too. It's close enough to Invizx to go for the money savings.

First, congrats! Next,just wait until you try a Curado E or other reel in the same class. Second, I can help you with carrying rods around. As a shore angler myself, I too got tired of lugging multiple rigs around. I have since figured that 3 rods will cover most scenarios I face. You can make yourself what I call a rod quiver. Depending on the configuration you choose, you can hold as many rods as you wish. I designed mine to hold three. Prop it on something like your tackle bag and your reels will not get dirty or scratched on the ground.

Look to either Shimano's Convergence or Clarus rods. There should be 2-piece casting rods in there. The $50 price point will limit you to some house brands outside of Shimano. I have a 2-piece clarus rod and it is a very fine rod. I also have a Cabela 2-piece mag touch. While they are $99, about twice a month, they drop the price down to $50. So check out Cabela to see if they're on sale. They look great, feel great and have a graphite handle. I have caught bass, trout and salmon with both casting rods.

Why the short topwater and why spinning on the jerkbait I'll just speak on the spinning set up for jerkbaits. I happen to use both reel types, as it really depends on which rig has the jerkbait tied on. With that said, there is is "comfort" or "ease" of use that I feel when ripping jerks with a spinning rig. I think this "feel" I don't mind experiencing might have something to do with the reel being under the rod and much of the reel's weight is nicely put below the rod. On a casting set up, we know the handle side is going to be the heavier side and the weight is on top and depending on how you're jerking it, that lopsided weight gets into the mix of my "feel" of the overall rig. Sorry I can't explain it any better and my description is less than sub par as I can't really put it into words. There other plus albeit minute is a spinning rig won't have an issue tossing the lighter, smaller, and/or less aerodynamic jerkbaits. To the question, I prefer to use as long as possible as is comfortable. As already mentioned, the shorter rod is much more convenient to jerk in close quarter or tight settings and is less prone to smashing onto the side of boat or water. @ 6' You'll feel like you're wielding a light saber. @ 6'6" To me, it's the best compromise @ 7' Just love the line control and casting increase for the same effort this length offers.

Amen Brotha! Nope, it's on the "correct" side. ;D

Seems like you've been mulling over this for a while. As a result, I can only give the one true, bait monkey answer, one that resonates well with the dark side... Get both! ;D

I think any gain would be minimal but present. It might even make it more uncomfortable with smaller hands. That is probably not going to be an issue for you though. Hornytoad's recommendation is spot on. If you ever hand-line fished you would instantly know this as I have discovered. When you have the line on your finger, that sensitivity is superior to any GLX rod out there. You are in direct feedback mode with no middle man (ie, the rod). I do like the look of the no foregrip.

BOOYAH!!! 8-) Right on. I like reading about steals of deals. It's just like when I found my Crucial for $59.00 Congrats.

It depends on the size of the spool. For a typical 2500 size spool, I wouldn't go higher than 8 for FC or 10 for mono.