SirSnookalot

Line is too thick, use a thinner diameter line and don't overspool.

I wouldn't buy anything if I didn't have a job, you can do do pretty much everything with what you have. If I bought anything it would be a fly rod and learn something totally different.

Water mocs, one reason I'm doing very little bass fishing.

Spending the rest of my days in the land of my forefathers.

Snook definitely go airborn. Not been the best snook season so far but I've caught a few 15-20#, killed them everday this week, mostly smaller ones. People don't realize that there is an underwater calender and the snook look at at, season opened yesterday and I didn't have 1 strike..........lol.

I couldn't agree more. I grew up fishing nothing but freshwater on Lake St Clair, pretty much only fishing with my dad I had no idea of what other people used, there was no internet then. We fished LMB, smallmouth, walleye, pike and muskie, 1 lighter spinning combo and another just a bit heavier, I even caught a 61# cobia on one of those outfits in Key West, before I knew there was a difference in salt gear. Fast forward 40 years and I'm reading people are using 50# braid for bass, and 80# for muskie I can't comprehend that to save my life, I don't think the fish are bigger now or is there any more vegetation.

Last year I did decent in the summer, this year it's been so bad I'm hardly doing any bass fishing. This time of the year saltwater should be on fire but it isn't. Spillways are spewing so much freshwater the bite has not been as it should be and certain species haven't appeared. Even the offshore commercial fishermen are crying the blues.

Those reels bring me back to my roots. The rods do too, always loved metal rings. My new inshore rod has an aluminum reel seat, really nice.

Two nice fish.

Rules.......Yeh, I've got some. If you haven't done your homework...............don't come with me. If you are analyzing every other minute.........don't come with me. More than 1 rod and 1 tackle bag.................don't come with me. If you are a whiner.........................................don't come with me. Music.............................................................don't come with me. Playing with your Iphone...............................don't come with me. Castnet..........................................................don't come with me. Baitfisherman.................................................don't come with me. Firearms, unless you're a cop........................don't come with me.

Yep, don't use them in saltwater. Real snook fishermen only use artificial.

good luck

Television may have a big influence on how many people set the hook, I don't think it's necessary to set it that hard. Even more so with the use of these extremely strong lines that have no stretch to them, the energy created has to go somewhere, and quite possible puts undue stress on the rod. I know many people feel a bass has a hard mouth, that mat be true if you haven't caught other species, so many others have a much harder mouth. Whether it's a bass or something else I don't over exaggerate a hookset, pretty much just raise the rod tip and let the weight and speed of a fish set the hook. I won't argue the fact the smaller fish like 4# and less may need a little bit of help.

@primetime.........well said and for the most part I think you are right on the money.

Most lures can and will catch just about anything. Lures that are specifically designed for only 1 species at times still will catch other species, case in point for me are surgical tubes. Originally made for stripers, they catch bluefish, barracuda, kingfish, jack crevalles, just not as often, never trying it there is no doubt in mind they would do well with muskie. Reasons we catch 1 species over another with the same lure is clear vs dark water, incoming vs outgoing tide, different water depths. IMO the 2 most prolific lures to catch just about everything are spoons and jig varieties.

I use equipment I feel is suited for the water and type of fishing I do, what some one is doing on TV may not apply to my situations.

I think most would agree the more you spend the more the reels are refined. I've never seen one of these reels, but based on personal experiences with a few inexpensive reels, I have been very pleasantly surprised, but not always. Nothing to lose but a few bucks. I tend to pay little attention to user reviews, many of my decisions are made from people I know that allow me to use their gear. I do read reviews by a person that does complete breakdowns with pictures and field tests each reel, I haven't found anything more comprehensive. These reviews however pertain more to the kind of fishing I primarily do.

I charge my phone while it's off, which is recommended for my phone, so it's getting rebooted often just like my PC. Smart phones are constantly getting updates for many of the apps and os, I did a factory reset as I was having some minor issues, it's beautiful now.

Buying and selling shouldn't be this difficult.

Common sense leads me to believe that a thinner line is more sensitive, but common sense isn't always reality, so I don't know. I'm braid user myself and don't use anything heavier than 20# for fresh and saltwater, I mostly fish moving baits. Lines are pretty strong today, as WRB noted Yozuri 8# has the thickness of 12# and we have read the breaking strength is over 8. That being the case wouldn't one actually be using 12# line, not 8# as the label indicates? I use a lot of 20# braid, it breaks over 30#, that said I'm really using 30# line, kinda reduces the notion of bigger fish on lighter line.

I don't have an answer either, but I do see a pattern. It seems that the rods are breaking pretty much in the same place on the hookset, I'd be focusing on that first. The question is, had the rods been stressed first, or is it the hookset itself causing the problem. Both derekexe and I flip up 6-8 lb fish daily with no problems, we are not using heavier rods we just know how to spring them up, but sometimes we do need a net. Regarding the comment about having a hand on the shaft, I've seen Bill Dance do it on TV with a real nice sized tarpon. I do it all the time when I have a good sized fish on and I want to move it away from the engine or trim tabs. Also many fish like to make a beeline for the pylons on jettie or pier, the hand on the shaft is exactly how you move them back into open water.

Haven't been giving any reports as I don't want to jinx myself, but it hasn't been bad and you know what I'm catching. We have been seeing mullet, so you know what's coming.

I'd probably do a factory reset if I was running into the same problem all the time.

Have to admit when I lived in Michigan a 20#+ fish was an exceptional catch and didn't happen all that often, that isn't the case anymore. We have some pretty decent fish down here, 20 pounds and bigger is common place and nearly an everyday experience certain times of the year like now. I'm going to use what I think are the most effective lures for my particular targets, cost is not even a secondary concern, all that matters is the fish. In the long run I just might be spending more money on what I use, lures don't last too long here, when do lose something, which happens everyday, I don't even give it a thought. If someone honestly feels that an expensive lure is going to yield better results, fine for them, I know what works best for me.

My rods are fished pretty hard, I do not baby them. All my rods have fuji guides, I do have the occasional insert pop out, because the guides sometimes get corroded and crack, just a fact of life. Other than that I don't recall ever having an insert pop out of get chipped. My 2 main brands are Star and Hurricane, I can take my rods to any dealer for an over the counter lifetime warranty exchange, glad I've never needed to.