Big Bait Fishing

i Citra-strip every rod blank i have built , even matte black blanks like the Phenix blanks and also did my St.Croix Legend Tournament Muskie rod with the Colbat blue finish had to go !!

i was originally interested in the MB 806 HM , at the Batson Booth at the Long beach Fred Hall show they had the blank there and to me it did not have the power in the backbone i was hoping for , so i looked at the other blanks in the rod rack they had there and lo and behold they had an 806 , 807 , & 809 . so i then went up the rack trying different blanks thinking i was gonna find a more powerful blank , went up to the 809 ( which is supposed to be the most powerful ) it felt like a moderate fast medium heavy powered blank , not at all what i was expecting to find , the blank flexed all the way in to the handle section , literally no backbone shutoff . so take this as my opinion only , but i was looking for a heavy powered 8' jig rod and these blanks do not fit my needs at all . i am gonna stick to buying and having rods built on Phenix blanks , just picked up a Ultra MBX 707MH blank at the San Diego Fred hall show yesterday as at their booth they didn't have a 707H blank , the guys from Phenix gave me a good deal on it and i wanted one anyhow , dang Rod Monkey !!! for anyone looking for a longer lightweight and powerful blank in medium heavy , i'd suggest you take a look at the 707mh , by the way , i weighed the blank when i got home and it weighed 2.35 oz. , pretty good for a 7'7'' blank as powerful as this !!

i was kinda interested in the 8' MB HM blanks , that is till i checked them out in person at a fishing show at the beginnig of the month , i'll definitely pass ....

as far as rod weight being added by the heavier burl cork , i use longer blanks (7'6'' & up) so utilizing the heavier handle materials are really working out to the good helping with rod balance/tip heaviness .

here is a blue burl cork ring (natural) next to a rear grip with light coats of Tru-Oil , yeah , i really like it !!!

that's my love of custom rods and why i will NEVER buy a stock rod , i laugh to myself when i see pics of other peoples rods with short (9-11'') handles and wonder how anyone fish those rods !! my other casting and spinning rod have 16'' handles , my swimbait rod has an 18'' handle ...

Phenix Ultra MBX 707ML

the phone camera makes it look two feet long ! it is actually 15'' from the back of the reel seat , and yes blue burl cork with Tru-Oil , i used to love eva but from now on i will always have burl cork on my new rod builds !!

cool. everyone has their own take ! you like full grips , i like minimal grips

9525 = 1000 size 9530 = 2000 size 9535 = 3000 size 9540 = 4000 size

not to sound critisizing , but why didn;t you just utilize a full one piece rear grip , looks like you put on two different split grips .

the rod is a St. Croix Legend Tournament H/F" Big Nasty " , i have a Revo Toro 51 on it , and yeah , it's tip heavy despite being spiral wrapped with size 4 micro guides . the tip heaviness does't bother as swimbait's are a tip down presentation .. when $ is better , i may get the 8'6'' Sling blade for 2-4 oz. baits as the Big Nasty is a beast

i have a 9 ft. swimbait rod i've been using for over a year ..

check out the Tackle Trap

i was gonna pick this up to clear it , if it comes out good , i'll get some more of the lures , the jerkbait was $7.40 shipped .

checked them out right now on ebay and ordered the '' real shad '' color , since the paint is fragile , i'll take off the hardware and clear coat it with some urethane rattle can clear .

the hook i showed a picture of ( the Owner UltraSled head ) was more in reference to wanting to the OP using it for texas rigging ....

i've been using the Surgeon's Knot and it is probably the easiest knot to tie , it's compact ( i have micro guides on ALL my fishing rods ) and very strong from this picture it looks bulky but it is not at all ...

i prefer the Owner Shakey Ultra Head over the Finesse ball head , as i like the longer hook ( 4/0 vs a 2/0 ) and definitely love the CPS bait keeper ! you'd be better off with the Ultra SledHead as it also has a 4/0 hook

i am not a fan of belly hooks on swimbaits , i'd rather tale my chances with a top jig hook .

here is Toray's chart - Laminate Properties T300 T700S T800H T1000G M30S M40J M46J M50J Tensile Strength (ksi) 255 385 410 440 455 330 335 315 Tensile Modulus (msi) 20.0 20.0 24.5 25.0 25.0 34.0 39.0 43.5 Tensile Strain (%) 1.30 1.80 1.60 1.70 1.70 1.00 0.90 0.70 Compressive Strength (ksi) 200 215 225 240 220 175 150 145 Flexural Strength (ksi) 240 260 255 225 235 225 195 185 Flexural Modulus (msi) 17.0 18.5 21.5 21.5 22.0 27.5 35.5 36.5 IL Shear Strength (ksi) 14 13 14 13 13 13 13 11

this worm flies under the radar , big time !! which is cool because they are usually in stock when i want to get more as i throw them a lot !

i think you are thinking '' swim jig'' when you say retrieved like a crank bait , to me a swing jig or jointed shakey head rig as i think of them are fished the same way as a shakey head . some get a little more action as the joint let's the bait articulate more . i fish GrandeBass AirTail Wiggler in 6 1/2'' ( the tail is hollow and the tail stands up always ! ) , best shakey head worm i've tried , done searching !!

i only use Pro Cure , for all my soft plastics and swimbaits , i use rainbow trout , trophy bass , crawfish , and shad .

i have the 7'8'' M/XF M1 , very nice rod , i use it for drop shot , weightless plastics , wacky rigs , and spybaits . the rod is custom wrapped with micro guides .