Big Tom

I don't think that the braid is hurting you at all in this situation. This is my preferred method as well and I really like the added sensitivity that braid offers.

This is the handle of the reel he has. The grip is elongated opposite of what most reels use, rendering the traditional grips posted above useless.

Those won't work with the President handle design. And I don't know of any reel grips that would, either.

"Yoozee" LMAO

It takes an act of God for Bass Pro to match their own prices when they differ from internet to store.

I am thinking they gave Kistler rods a good review because they are good rods. :-? Crazy thought.

Topwater = Lucky Craft Sammy 100, Zara Super Spook Jr., and the original Zara Spook. Shallow = Lucky Craft RC 1.5 and anything made by Bomber. Mid depth = Rapala DT 6's and 10's. Bombers are also up there too. Deep = Not much experience here yet. My two favorites are the Fat Free Shad and the Rapala DT 16.

Thanks for the input. Currently, I use 15 lb. CX Premium for just about everything but the Flouroclear seems to be good stuff too. I might try some of that this season and see whats up.

What he said.

For those of you who have or currently use both, I only want to know three things: Is it as strong as CX Premium? Does it handle as well? Is the line diameter the same? If no, bigger or smaller? Thanks a bunch!!!

I have been on this site for way too long because that cracked me up!

If I had my own boat I would surely have a lot more. As I mentioned earlier, I am a lot more comfortable with five but space constraints limit me. This is what gives me the most versatility: Rod 1: Casting Rod - 7' Medium Power with a Moderate Action - Most Crankbaits, Hard Jerkbaits and Top Water. Rod 2: Casting Rod - 7' Medium Heavy Power with a Fast Action - Shallow Crankbaits, Spinnerbaits, and Buzzbaits. Rod 3: Casting Rod - 7' Heavy Power with an Extra Fast Action - Jigs, Texas Rigs and the occasional Carolina Rig. These are the techniques I fish the most and the above Rigs fit me pretty decently.

You Rhode Islanders sure have a pretty state. For some reason, its one of the places I have most wanted to visit. Beautiful pictures, Matt.

I suppose you could say one only needs one rod and reel to fish with. That's not fun though. I am comfortable with three but I prefer five.

Agreed. Why choose when you can have both? ;D

Same here.

Welcome back! This is a one of a kind place. A lot of great information here posted by a lot of real good guys.

This is how I think too. After a certain price range, it seems just about everyone makes high quality stuff.

A 7 ain't that much faster really. It is a significant change but it wont skip a bait on the top of the water either. You can really use a 7 for just about anything except deep crankbaiting.

I have fished a 6'6" medium Johnny Morris Elite rod and thought highly of it. I haven't tried the longer, more powerful models but I wouldn't mind picking one up on sale sometime to try.

The Patriarch is money. Just be sure to look around before you buy. You can get them for as much as 70 bucks off of what Bass Pro sells them for. As far as I am concerned, I am still trying out all different types of brands of both rods and reels. Like I mentioned above, I got my hands on a Pflueger Patriarch not long ago and I don't know if I have found another reel that I have liked as much. And I have fished extensively with everything from the Quantum Tour Edition PTs to the new Shimano Curado's. I owned a couple Abu Revo SX's as well. If I cannot find another reel that I like as much as the Patriarchs, I may become brand loyal to the higher end Pfluegers as far as my next few reel purchases are concerned. Then again, I haven't tried a high end Diawa yet either... For rods, I was mostly brand loyal the Bass Pro Shop name but that was due to tight financial parameters and mainly because I did not have access to information on places like this and Tackle Tour where rods are compared to one another constantly. A couple of the Bass Pro sticks served me well but I feel like I am outgrowing them quickly. Beyond the 6'6" medium power range is where I start to have the most problems with Bass Pro rods. If you move into the 7' Medium Heavy and above classes of rods, their weight significantly increases while their sensitivity drastically decreases. In this class of rods, there are significantly better choices out there, but they will almost always cost a little more coin. As these are the only rods I have truly tested, I feel I am far from finding that one particular brand for me. Heck, I sometimes feel like I may never be happy with one certain brand and that is perfectly alright for me. There are plenty to choose from and getting new crap is a lot of fun! I suppose spending a lot of time and money is really the only way to know what I will find the most appealing; albeit one particular brand or a combination of several.

That sounds like one awesome woman right there. I guess you better keep her around for a while.

Its also acts as a safety mechanism. If you get thrown out of the boat the pedal comes back to rest which cut off the throttle.

I wonder this too. Especially when compared to the weight of a full tank of gas. The lithium batteries they showed toward the end looked like they didn't weigh anything and significantly reduced the weight of the car. Its going to be interesting to see how this technology can be harnessed.

You might want to check out the Senko sticky too. http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1121527643 A lot of good information in there pertaining to a bait that you just cannot seem to fish wrong. Good Luck.