Pantera61

Correctomundo!

about 45 degrees.

I have a pair of Kaenon Kore's in copper and Wiley's in the green mirror. My eyes are quite sensitive to the point where smoke/gray has my eyes burning and a headache by the end of the day. I actually found the Wiley's in green mirror to be comfortable to the eyes while allowing great through the water vision. Considering I got them through the Abu Revo promotion, the price was very good.

Send an email to Jun @ japantackle.com. He may be able to provide an answer.

I used the Daiwa S for quite a few years. Great performing rod.

I don't think it's a matter of flat vs gloss. If you look at injured or dying bait fish, there is a loss of iridescence, a dull pallor as opposed to healthy fish's sheen. There's also a difference in shell color when a crawfish is molting as opposed to a solid shell. Both are indicators of weak or compromised prey and the bass MAY trigger on that. Personally, I preferred matte or powdered finishes until this past summer when a metal finished bait just kicked serious bass booty. Now, I'll start with the metal finish and work my way down to more subtle baits rather than the other way around.

PERFORMANCE-WISE the Premier is turning out to be an excellent replacement for the Daiwa TD Z series. It falls a bit short cosmetically but I'll take smooth casting, smooth drag and smooth retrieve over eye candy.

Update: Received confirmation of cancelled order w/confirmation to credit to my account. Placed order for G3 Gator Tough 1756SC, significantly more expensive and need to find an outboard but I kept my last boat for 11 years and only got rid of it because I wanted a bit more room. Here's a manufacture's pic:

Maybe we could have Patrick Sebile tell us if he feels "wiped out" after he cashes his check from Pure Fishing. It appears to me that he is a shining example of what the american dream is all about. steve Which isn't bad for a Frenchman.

On the other hand, we're that much closer to a "Rollerball" scenario.

If you look at what PF in recent years, it has improved products, ABU, Pflueger, Berkley, not destroyed them.

1. Bow mount trolling motor limited to 43 lb thrust. 2. Transom mount outboard limited to 83 lbs in weight. That's important because the owner's manual claims you need 9.9 to get on plane. The lightest 9.9 I found was 83 lbs dry weight. Now, I'm sure that's livable for some folks or you could exceed the recommendations, have something break and they don't honor the warranty. You can't hold a fire to your chest without getting burned. If this were a second boat or for a property pond, maybe I would go forward with it but ...

Well, can I change the headline to "cancelled order"? On the surface, not bad. In detail, not that great.

Verdict rod and Megabass rod

After spending the last 4 months in search of a new (or new 2 me) boat and the sticker shock for even a basic aluminum boat, trailer and outboard, I decided to get back to my roots. Small boat for small ponds, creeks and rivers. I saw most of the guys on the Pelican and related threads and how most of you are quite satisfied with your smaller water craft I figured maybe it's time to go back old school. It's going to be 3-5 weeks before it arrives to my house. Last week I told my uncle I would take his 20' Stratos w/200 hp and I was nothing but a bundle of nerves. A few unforeseen hurdles arose and I had to back out. I put the phone down after placing my order and I'm quite relaxed. My previous boat was a 15' Express aluminum with a bass boat side console layout. I'm really not losing that much space. A new page!

There is one more point I'd like to make, this is just from observation of Japanese tackle porn mags and websites. Japanese anglers don't have as many rod and reel combos as we do in America. They don't have as much access to the variety of fishing areas and most don't have boats. A serious Japanese angler may pay $800 for a casting set up and $800 for a spinning set up and be happy. They also have inexpensive tackle there but it's not stuff we would point to as "gotta have" or post worthy.

Bass Pro has/had the 2009 model on sale for about $200. I don't know if that's the in-store price only but quite a few guys picked them up.

The price isn't bad, considering MSRP on the original JDM Certate was about $349+. There are a couple of JDM Certates that are over $400

Don Iovino is on Team Ardent?

1. ALL rods have horror stories when first introduced. Some are serious, others should be taken with a grain of salt. 2. It's a pain when rods break because of the inconvenience to you but great customer service goes a long way. 3. I had the opportunity to fish a prototype Veritas casting rod for a full season before official introduction and I put the rod through Hell, per request of the individual who sent me the rod. The rod performed well without a single hiccup. I used lures beyond the recommended range and line beyond the recommended range. I used the rod for applications from finesse to flippin'. High-sticked on hooksets and quicksets during reaction strikes, never a problem. Based upon my experience with that one rod, I purchased the next heavier model when the Veritas became available on the market and I couldn't be happier. I purchased the 6'9" spinning rod and the 7'6" MH flippin' stick. I used the spinning rod once before the weather turned to crap up here and wasn't able to fish the flippin' stick. When the Verdict rods became available I sold the spinning rod and flippin' stick to get the upgraded blank. You can purchase a Veritas rod with total piece of mind because even if there is equipment breakdown, Abu's customer service is excellent.

I got the 7'6" MH/F action and the 6'9" ML/F action spinning. Unfortunately, the snow has made any field testing all but impossible. I think the 7' casting models should fit the bill for you.

But do you fish Lucky Craft baits? Lucky Craft Megabass Evergreen Jackall Plus the regulars: Rapala, Storm, Bill Lewis n 'such. They don't call it a bait kitten! 8-)

Two pieces of advice re: Vendetta rods 1. DO NOT purchase the Vendetta 7' M action, Mod taper rod unless you're using it for deep divers. It was quite dead/dull sensitivity-wise. I'm no Abu basher. I used Vendettas all last year, casting and spinning models. The 7' cranking rod was the only one that disappointed me. 2. Unless you are doing serious punching, I would recommend the Vendetta MH, fast action, not the H action. The difference in weight, handling and comfort is significant. I can't speak for BPS rods, it's been about 25 years! Hope that helped a bit. Best of luck!

But do you fish Lucky Craft baits?

Yet, the "average angler" posts here all the time that Lucky Crafts are too much. Guess you can't please them all.... I just hope the lure works. It probably will, Luck-E-Strike is usually good stuff. Yup, they are posting the complaints and most of them are still buying them.