SirSnookalot

@dam0007, glad you are pleased with your mono selection, I only fish braid in freshwater. The only time I use mono line, except for drift fishing, is when I'm throwing my barracuda tubes, they rotate a constant 360 degrees causing sever line twist. Braid is my true preference but braid does not troll out like mono does, I troll my mono out after each outing, once I've done that about 5 times I respool with fresh line. I've used Spiderwire xxx and it's ok, but I seem to always go back to trilene xl. I spool up about 170yds of 14#, so a 330 yd spool works out good for me.

Most of the time I fish them on or subsurface. I do not twitch them, I pull the fluke with an arm movement the reel up the slack, I have gone back to a standard 4/0 worm hook. If I fish them in open water a jig head is my preference.

Don't know that particular rod, but a few years back I purchased an Allstar im10 , labeled as a redfish rod. On the way home from the store I stopped at a canal to test it, a couple of 1# bass bent that rod in half..........redfish, yeh right ! I took it back right away and exchanged for a rod half the price with the same line and lure ratings, happy as could be with exchange rod.

I don't fish frogs very often but when I do I use my lightest SW inshore combo that I have. 7' med spinning 8/17 with a soron 20 and 15# braid. In all fairness this rod would probably match up to a mh if it were a freshwater rod. For some it would be on the heavy side, but being mostly a saltwater angler it's a feather to me. Have yet to meet a bass that could stand up to this combo.

Zero ! I throw any kind of lure, exposed hooks or not, on any kind of rod I want to, spinning of course. I hate decisions, I just like catching fish.

Congrads on the bluefish. We have been having them all week here, mackeral and jacks too. Just a suggestion, when those types of fish are busting bait any live, cut bait or artificial lure will work, use the cheapest and most durable like a spoon, gotcha and bucktail jig, it's a strike a cast, we put on 1 lure and just stay with it, it's ok to use wire for these species. This is the fall mullet run ! The surf without a doubt is my favorite way to fish, we have had 25 mph wind 8-10' surf, so it's been the jettie for me all week.

Probably not an IGFA record, but don't let that dampen your feelings. Great catch, brag about it !

@vabass...........excellent avatar pic !

8# is a good bass, congrads. I only use the $1.00 spinner baits, bet Walmart is out of stock on them this morning.......lol.

It really doesn't make a difference, it's ones own justification for the expense. To me a $1000 reel and $500 rod is like wearing plus 4's on the golf course when you can't break a 100. When a person with a $100 combo is out catching you, or a golfer with a set of 30 year old clubs is driving 40 yds further, you start realizing that you can't buy swing or a fish.

Nice fish jitterburg...........even a 5 lb fish is gonna put you thru your paces offshore.

After being on this site for several years and have read 1000's of posts, it appears to me that most fisherman here relegate spinning gear more for open water type fishing. IMO line management is the paramount concern and not breaking strength, especially for those that set the drag with a scale relative to the pound test they are using. With the drag set properly I'd have no qualms in landing a 6# fish, if I had enough line capacity I could land a 30 pounder, others have posted pics doing that already. To me the brand itself isn't all that important, I've had equal success form the bottom of the line to the top of the line.

@DarrenM Not sure if that's true, although I'm not knocking the products. In the case of Shimano, the new saros, symetre, and sahara the words "approved for saltwater use" are no longer on the web site, previous versions of those models were. I would do my homework first before considering the 3 reels mentioned above. This is why I say this, if one is a devoted saltwater fisherman you will be fishing at times in some very harsh conditions. For example, the last 2 days, and the forecast is the same for today, we have had 25 mph winds with 6-8' surf busting over the side of the jettie, every 7-9 seconds, everyone's gear( people too) were drenched within minutes. I gotta say we live for this weather, a bluefish, kingfish, and jack crevelle on every cast, total awesome, not only will the fish pull your equipment apart but harsh conditions are going to play havoc. A reel suited for the elements is a wise choice, I had no concerns with my stradic or my soron. On a calm day day, yeh you can get away with about anything.

Are we talking $150 for 1 or 2 reels? What are your plans for these reels and do want them both to be the same size? From $60-100 there are countless choices that can be used for freshwater fishing, most of which will be more than adequate. Generally speaking the you spend the more refined the reel will be. I would suggest getting an idea of what you have in mind in reference to weight, line capacity and so on. I would pay more attention to the quality of the drag rather than the max number, your drag will be set in relationship to your line. I have read in the past that some ICW fishing is in store for you, all reels can be used but some are better suited. Now it's up to you to do your homework and become an informed shopper. Interesting, as I was thinking about my response I went on few websites, I noticed some reels that used to be approved for saltwater no longer are. Probably for occasional use no problems would arise, but doubt I'd go there for steady use.

Yep, probably the first thing to do. Everything works some of the time and nothing works all of the time. As bluebasser said the bowstring method works well, even better with braid because of the no stretch, I would try jiggling the line by hand first, pulling hard to quick may result in burying the hook deeper. If I'm really stuck I'm going wrap the line around my shoulder and walk backwards, release your bail first so you don't break a tip, I learned the hard way on that one.

Those photos are precious.

Most of my rods (spinning) are med fast, a good hook set can be obtained with any kind of lure, exposed hooks or not, imo good timing is the key factor. In regards to Hi Salinety's comment about moving or turning a fish, a very good way to do that is to move your hand up onto the shaft of the rod, you now have leverage on the fish, another reason all my rods have a foregrip. This is basic " landing fish 101", as with anything it's just a matter of getting the feel for it.

An opinion of course..........Braid ! Any technique can be used, any kind of fish can be caught, more line capacity, incredible strength given the thin diameter, minimal line twist, inexpensive in the long run if used with a leader, no need for a line conditioner (warm water works just as well on mono anyway). The only real negative to braid is getting tangled with another fisherman's line..........fish alone lol. Many feel braid gets severed more easily over rocky terrain, it may but the same diameter in a mono will too, if not severed roughed up and weakened for sure.

It's easy to be fooled into believing that mega pixels are mandatory for quality photos to be posted on line, 3-5mp is plenty good which even inexpensive cameras and smartphones come equipped with. I've dialed back one of my cameras and my phone to 3 mp, the quality has not diminished, plus more photo storage and easier to manage the size for on line uploading.

I don't buy that. True the mechanics of the 2 reels differ, but bringing a fish to the boat or shore is done by gathering up line on the reel. You can say winch if you like for a b/c or wrapping the line around the spool on a spinning reel but the result is identical, line gets put on the spool by turning the crank. The rod can move fish around, like away from cover or pylons but it doesn't bring the fish in, the reel does. Pull up and reeling in the slack is "landing fishing 101", primarily done with larger fish, this action is done with both conventional gear as well as spinning gear. As far as which type has more power, what's actually meant by more power, a higher max drag? I for one don't batten the drag down all the way, the max number is not all that important if you are playing a fish and not dragging it in.

@ Bluebasser, that cat is impressive. I could never land that Cobia on lighter tackle now, I had youth on my side at the time. My bonus fish because I made quite a bit of money on it.

I made a paper clip keeper yesterday, may have all of 30 seconds and no money invested, looks like it work great. If it rusts I'll take another 30 seconds out of my hectic day to make another. I think it's a winner.

An easy rig to hook up, just for clarification I believe it's called a fish finder rig. There are illustrations and variations on google.

In all fairness I'm in an area where it's pretty easy to buy over the counter, I can even buy a Loomis at 6 am.

No redfish or stripers here and I have never been into boca bearings..............lol