hawgchaser

Exactly, but when a 16 y/o brags on his new(used) Ford, would you tell him its no good and he should go buy a lamborghini? Thats my only point. Lets not pretend this equipment is necessary to be a great fisherman. Once again, there are folks that don't even have boats that are sporting equipment that cost more than the pros.

Let me be clear on my point. I am NOT saying that cheaper gear is as good or that there is something wrong with buying expensive stuff. But I see a lot of posts were people, often kids and teenagers, are looking for quality stuff that they can afford or ask their parents for.....only to be told that their options aren't worth a darn and they need to go get a curado and a loomis. I think it is better to point them towards a BPS reel and a lightning rod and congratulate them on their new rod and reel! Now that doesnt mean that you cant give honest reviews of equipment, i just dont get the snobbery. I use what I do bc it works for me. I have American rodsmith, falcon, loomis, bps, browning, all star, shimano, abu, quantum, lews.. And probably several more brands. I use stuff that works for me and I have tried a lot.... Actually too much ;D

I would recommend the Woo Daves series combo for your drop shot. I have recommended this to several people and have received PMs telling me how much they like it. For a jerkbait, I would recommend the 7'MH extreme combo. Or Use the $150 and get a Quantum PT Energy 7'M paired with a code or extreme reel for the jerkbait. The energy rods are awesome! Bass pro has the combo for $139. Then spend the $100 on your Woo combo... Viola 2 awesome combos! If you are going to use the jerkbait rod for other crankbaits, then a crankin stick may be another option. But for suspending jerkbait, I dont like a lot of give or even a slow action. I want to feel the hit when the bait is suspended and a little stiffer rod to move the lure. Some rods that's a M action and some a MH. But that's just me.

Well hurry down..I got the bass pegged and the hybrids just started busting shad on the surface, which means lots of topwater hawgs!!

I personally use them about the same amount of time and in the same places. I really like the Eakins Finesse jigs in Texas Craw and PB&J for rock bottom smallies. But some days the Hula grub paired with a spot remover or gambler giggyhead is deadly.

Thanks, Ill look into those. Strike King has some new ones out as well. I may try some of these. http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&partNumber=98858&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

I agree with you to a point, but it's like this in anything. You oughta see what some guys think they have to spend on a shotgun to qualify themselves as a bona-fide grouse and woodcock uplander. You ever seen a $50,000 shotgun? ;D Seriously, some guys figure you have not arrived until you spend at least $5000 on a SxS shotgun. Weird. Trust me.....even in the upper levels, fishing equipment can seem cheap compared to other pursuits. That's certainly true....being from Arkansas, duckhunting is my true passion with fishing a close second. Though there aren't many $50000 guns in the marsh, the same trend is there. Tts no longer about killing ducks or catching fish for some. For the love of pete some people are actually worried that their reel doesn't look good on their rod....very strange but hey its none of my business. I'll just keep pulling in fish after fish on my "cheap""junk"

There is a trend in fishing that actually bothers me a little. Many people act like you have to spend a lot of dough to be a successful fisherman. That's just not the case..... KVD is the best and he uses gear that many on this board have deemed as junk! It's really humorous to me. I just hate to see fishing going in this direction. But to answer your question, you are the only one that fishes with this reel so if you like it, then it's good!

Is this the tourney where you can only fish with Gambler baits? If so, the giggyhead and the sweebo worm are deadly. This is my favorite shakey head rig.

I am out of the loop when it comes to spoons. My favorite big trout bait is a holographic spoon but I haven't fished them for bass in many years. A very knowledgable fishing buddy of mine has been catching a lot of fish on spoons lately. My question is what are some good ones? I have plenty of Johnson's that I used to use but now there are tons of different kinds. BTW. My buddy is not vertical jigging he is casting into creek channels and bringing it up to the flat that his boat is on. Mostly on points in 30' of water reeling into 12'. So what are some good spoons to try?

Thanks, I just haven't seen the same amount of interest in the Abu spinning reels that I have seen in the Revos.(which is evident by the number of responses ;D) But I wanted folks to know that they are just as good. Anyway, I am putting my 701 back on the ultra lite for some trout action in the morning.

Glad you like it. I have 6 extreme baitcasters and have fished them probably 100 days a year for the past 5 years and have not had one single problem that wasn't fixed with a good cleaning. I have acquired a few "other" reels so I have passed a few of them on to my brother who also loves them. I just don't hear the same bad things about these reels that some of the others have. However, the local shop here hates working on them bc of some parts issues...don't know the details of that.

Insurance/Investments for school districts only. Which means i basically have the summer to fish! And free gas to get me there

Reel before rod anyday. Gotta get your bait in the water first

Its either a bad spool of line, your are getting knots/loops on the spool, or if you are using the same rod it could be an eyelet. If it happens on 2 reels it probably isn't anything to do with them. What line are you using? Spinning or baitcasting?

Glad you had a good trip. I haven't done that in years. Its a beautiful river.

Skillet, don't take it personally. There are plenty of people on here that would say I am crazy for recommending a quantum. Threads like these are for opinions and thats it. Comparing a Tour Edition to a Citica is not apples to apples. The Tour Edition is quantums top of the line reel....the best they have to offer. A more equal comparison would be a tour edition vs. a chronarch in which case I would have a chronarch 50mg! As I said before, the citica has many fans! I just don't care for them myself. (however, I do have six of the older 3 bearing Citicas)

Ive got an old Browning 5'6" pistol Grip crankin rod that I use when fishing jetties on the river. I only use it on the river but it is one of my favorites. It is probably 15-18 years old and I have no idea what I paid for it but it is worth every penny and then some.

I thought some of you may want to know about these reels. I was originally looking for a reel that would be used 99% of the time freshwater fishing and about 4 times a year for redfish and specks. After looking into many different reels, I chose the new Abu Garcia Cardinal 701LX and 702LX reels. I was going to get the 800 series but thankfully another member alerted me of a great deal so I bought 2 of these reels. I received these reels several weeks ago but wanted to wait until I had caught some fish on them (especially redfish) to give a good review. Right out of the box a couple of things jumped out at me. The first thing was that the reels look great and are built like a TANK! No cheap plastic to be seen and everything is thick and re-enforced. Abu paid great attention to detail in these reels and it is obvious from first glance. The second thing I noticed was that they weren't the smoothest reels out of the box. They retail for $110(although I got a great deal on mine) and I would have expected a little bit smoother feel. The main thing was that you could feel the gears. It wasn't bad but it just didn't have that smooth as butter feel that many in this price range have. As already stated, the reels are built like a tank but aren't extremely heavy and they are very compact. The 701 weighs 8.1oz and the 702 weighs in at 9.6oz. For comparison, the popular Symetre weighs 9.5 in both the 1500 and 2500.(comparable sizes) These are pretty light reels! The 700LXs have 7 HPCR bearings(anti corrosion), over sized bail, and the carbon matrix drag(similar to the monster drag system on the Revo). So basically these reels are loaded with top quality features. They also sport an identical spool as a spare and not some cheap one. I loaded both of these reels with 8 pound Trilene XL and the spare spools with 30lb Sufix braid for my redfishing trip. I have been bass and trout fishing with these reels for the past three weeks and have managed to catch a couple hundred fish on these reels. Both reels cast like a dream and the drag (only lightly tested) was smooth and worked well. I wanted to test the drag on a monster bull red this weekend but it didn't workout. However, I did land a nice 8 pound red that made a few runs and the drag performed flawlessly. I don't know if I have just gotten used to it or if these reels just needed some wear but they now feel very smooth. They are the most versatile reel I have ever used with the ability to fish for rainbows on the little red on Thursday and Redfish in Venice on Saturday....not bad for an 8oz reel!!!! However, it wouldn't be possible without the help of braid. I keep light line on one spool then simply change them out with the spare spool of 30 lb Sufix for larger fish such as reds and hybrids. It's an easy system that makes for a very versatile reel. These reels are the real deal and are my first Abu Garcia products in a long while. I am now looking into the Revo line to see which model I want to try. With the popularity of the Revo, I thought some of you would be interested to know that their spinning reels are just as great. Pick one up and the quality is obvious..... I hope some of you find this review helpful and feel free to ask questions. http://www.***.com/descpageRLSABU-AGC7.html Please excuse any errors. I wrote this from my Iphone!

Go play around with them and see what feels best. That Quantum PT is tough to beat. it was the surprise of the year for me as far as gear goes. VERY underrated....I have 2 of them.

If I get one, it will be an auto. I just want one for fun but it will have to haul my boat. I am sure it will be fine for duck hunting as well. I will get a hitch haul for deer. I am going to look at one tomorrow.

Around here, pound for pound, the smallmouth fight harder than any largemouth. I actually like them about the same. However, I treasure a big smallie over a big black any day.

That's just crazy. I like talking and debating about gear but why anyone would care what someone else prefers is beyond me. This is a great forum and is lots of fun.

I fish a lot of 10" Power Worms and would not rig with 2 hooks simply bc it kills the action IMO. However, I have not fished it that way for very long. A 4/0 hook will work but is not optimal. As soon as you feel the fish, reel down and hammer him! They are fun to fish...Good luck and get some bigger hooks when you get a chance.

Quantum's braking system is the best of both worlds. Externally adjustable centrifugal braking. I am actually not a quantum fan boy. I only have 2 of their reels out of about 15. BUT it seems to be exactly what you want.