ghost

It finally happened, I caught bass on the Tru-Tungsten & Sebile swimbaits! I was in this shallow area of the lake & noticed the bass were jumping, so I first threw the TT Shad & jerked it a couple times & then swam it. Got hit & was very excited...but it wasn't a big bass...no problem the swimbait skunk is off my shoulders. I then changed it up & casted the Sebile Magic Swimmer & caught another bass reeling the lure back. It felt just like a crankbait hit, felt pressure...realized it wasn't weeds & caught another small bass. I'm beginning to think after reading these posts & catching some bass that these swimbaits catch small bass, oh well at least I've caught! I then tried the Spro BBZ-1 Shad & no bass, I guess it was "just" a little too big. Prior to catching these bass I did catch other bass on a wacky rigged worm, drop shot, buzzbait, Spro's new Bronze Eye Popper, Xcalibur wake lure & BPS Rick Clunn jointed wake bait. I think I caught around 5-8 bass on different techiques & some lures that I bought during the winter & caught bass. I also tried out a new Deps Buzzjet & Megabass X-Pod but those lures did not catch, got some hits but maybe next time. I'll be bringing these lures w/ me when a buddy invites me to a lake that has big bass & pike...I know those fish will like these lures! Not bad for a real hot day on the lake on my pontoon boat...I did take a few dips in the shallow areas to cool off. When I got home I had heat exhaustion(sp?), I was very tired. First time out this year on my pontoon boat & it was a blast!

I have some spinning rods that have a minimum of 8 lbs up to whatever for line rating. Can I drop down & use 6 lb line, even though the line rating starts at 8 lbs? If I did use 6 lbs will the line break easier on casts or not? I like to use Yozuri Hybrid in 6 lbs & have used it on other rods w/ lower line ratings & have had no issues. 6 lb Hybrid is some strong stuff, I used before 6 lb P-Line CXX but 6 lb Hybrid is so much stronger.

I got both lures & have not caught a bass on either...so...if you've caught using either of these lures, please post a pic & a little blurb about it. I guess after spending alot of cash for these lures I'd sure like to see if other are catching using them. Thanks, I'll have a chance to really use them tomorrow...till then show me that these swimbaits are effective.

I bought a couple of the 1/4 oz Chuck-It frogs, the smaller ones. Not a bad frog lure but since it's smaller & has the rubber strand legs, it does not cast that well when there is a bit of wind. It's not a heavy 1/4 oz like a jig so spinning gear is needed. I use braided line w/ this lure. I've caught some bass w/ it. It's smaller than the Spro Bronzeye jr, so it's easy for a bass to take in whole; so no missed fish.

I don't own either but haver researched both, cuz I'm also looking at the Code Red. Both have non-aluminum frames while the Code was first introduced the Code Red a year or so later. I think the Code Red has a few more bearings than the Code. Also the Code Red has the flipping switch, which I think is to take over the discontinued Accurist. If anything I would get the Code Red...just wish it was an aluminum frame like the BPS KVD model, but that weighs just a bit more than the Code Red.

Got the 6'3" Med, spit grip spinning rod for dock skipping. It's a Med action but the one I got feels more like a MH...that's what I want. The XML rods are very good rods & have a very good warranty through Cabelas. Hold on to your receipt, don't matter how old it is; Cabelas will replace a Cabelas house brand rod. It has Fuji Alconite guides & they have models in split grip. I like split grip rods & this feels much better than the Kislter Magnesium 6'3" Dock Skipping Special I had. That rod was just not feeling right for me & the XML w/ a MH feel is much better for dock skipping. I've found that this rod is also good for other applications. I either use an Abu Garcia Soron 20 or a Shimano Symetre 2500FJ & either reel feels balanced & casts great. For the sale price the XML is a very good rod. Just a bit heavy but I don't care.

I reckon you did you good. I eventually will get a JDM reel sometime...not sure when that will be.

Yeah I lipped it out of the net & pulled it up to get a feel of how heavy it was....it was heavy!

The bass aren't biting, walleyes aren't biting earlier this evening so I load up my other rod w/ a garlic scented nightcrawler. It was just getting dark, I just put my spinning rod away & just turned back to see my other rod go bendo...ran to it & reeled in the slack & set the hook. I didn't know if I had a big catfish or a carp, I fought this beast for 10 min! The fish once hooked took off to the left just under my friends pontoon boat while it peeled line from my reel. I started to reel in & felt how "BIG" this thing was & it still kept pulling line. Just as I got it close to me I called my friends wife to send one of the boys to get the net cuz this thing is too big w/o one. Since it was getting dark I wasn't sure what I had on the other end, then I saw it was the biggest carp I've ever hooked into. I was surprised that the 6 lb line didn't snap while this fish made many a mad dash all over the place. Like the title says, I used 6 lb line...I wasn't looking to hooking up a big beast. I used a Berkley Amp 7' Med baitcast rod w/ a Shakespeare Synergy spincast reel, loaded w/ 6 lb Cuda line. Cuda line is strong & landing this huge carp is proof. Bummer thing though is Cuda line is out of business, glad I have a few spools of different poundage; it's similar to Yozuri Hybrid line. The Berkley Amp rod held tough & it proved to me that it's a good rod for $30. The Synergy spincast reel really surprised me that there wasn't even a hiccup from this reel & the drag worked great. The fight was awesome, the best so far this year for me, I don't mind that it's a carp, these fish's can fight like crazy beasts, it even did a couple jumps on the run. Once I got it close to shore my 10 yr old son, after a few attempts finally netted the carp. It took him & his friend to pull it out of the water while the net bent from the weight. I didn't have my scale or tape measure but just from the weight I could feel this carp was around 25-30 lbs easily...this thing had a wide gut! It swallowed the worm & hook so it wasn't getting away that way. I was more concerned of it going under the pontoon boat & getting tangled up on the aluminum pilings, how I got it out of there I don't know. I did catch a smaller 2 lb carp earlier but no pics cuz it was small. The bass were not hitting at all this evening, previous evenings I've caught bass on topwater & that was totally fun. Well this evening no bass, but ended up being thrilling w/ this big carp...NO COMPLAINTS from me!!!

Hmmm, no reply back from this guy who started this thread....must be a troll. 6 Carrot Stix to my collection & I'm very happy w/ them, no problems so far.

My experience w/ braid on Carrot Stix rods: LTX has SS chrome guides, a bit noisey using braid but it does handle braid good. Only complaint using braid or mono lines is on the spinning rods. The first 2 guides from the reel seat are small in diameter IMO compared to spinning rods w/ ceramic inserts which the 2 guides mentioned are bigger in diameter. The smaller diameter guides on the first 2 doesn't seem to give you very good casts, like the line is labored to shoot out of the guides. The guides on the b/c rods though is no issue mentioned, the line shoots out whether it's braid or mono...then again I'm using 8 lb P-Line CXX on my spinning reels on the spare spool. I wonder if that makes a difference compared to some other mono or copoly line. New Gold Carrot Stix & Boyd Duckett baitcast rods: The guides are coated w/ a ti something & I've noticed that braid shooting out & reeled in is not as noisy as on the LTX. I don't know how long this coating will stay on since Tackle Tour did experience some wear on the first guide on top of the new Gold Carrot Stix. I've used braid on both these rods & so far I've not noticed any wear on the first guide or the other guides. I don't own any spinning rods in these models.

Hmmm, don't know about the under rated thing about the Zillion rods, I have the 6'9" MH & it feels more like a heavy action rod. If anything that 6'6" MXF would feel more like a MH, which I've had a chance to handle before I bought the 6'9" MH. If you're going to use 1/4 oz or heavier lures, make sure that that 1/4 oz lure is more dense so it casts better. Don't use a 1/4 oz lure like a jerkbait or spinnerbait those lures have wind resistance & will not cast as well as a jighead & worm combo...less wind resistance.

Dude, the double palomar is much stronger than a regular palomar...IMO I think it's the strongest knot. You know how to tie a paolmar? The double palomar you loop it twice on the hook eye or snap. On the tag end, I put a knot about an 1/8" from the knot so in case it does slip (which I've notice it hasn't done) it catches on the knot. It's easier to do the double palomar w/ braided line but I've been able to do it w/ mono but using a snap(not a snap swivel). The snap eye is wider than a hook eye so you can actually do a double loop...it's a bit tricky at first but once you do it a few times it's easy...& very strong! I've pulled broken branches from sunken trees w/ the double palomar. Here's a video I found on the double palomar knot...the guy does a triple palomar....I don't recommend cuz it is just too hard to tighten on the hook eye or snap, just use 2 loops it'll be strong enough.

Float tube fishing is fun if you are fishing small lakes. What I didn't like about float tubes is the leg cramps I got after some time kicking around. Now I was float tubing on some big lakes & went quite far & after awhile I started geting leg cramps....IT SUCKED! I did like that it was small enough to keep half inflated in my jeep. So I sold that & got the pontoon boat. Only major disadvantage or 2 is transporting it...I have a van w/ roof racks so that's not a problem. Other is it weighs almost 80+ lbs, so lugging that beast any farther than 50 yds is a chore; you'll need another person to help you get it to the side of the water. What I do like about the pontoon boat is I can go much farther in bigger bodies of water especially getting a trolling motor for it. I can row, kick around w/ my fins or move far w/ the trolling motor. With the float tube you are limited to how far you can go. Overall both water crafts are great if you don't own a boat.....yet.....

Redsyn, I first used the rod floaters when I started using the float tube, I wasn't sure if I'll end up losing 1 or 2 rods in the water. Sooooo....when I upgraded to the pontoon boat I started not to use the rod floaters cuz I feel that I won't be losing a rod in the water....knock on wood! Also the rod floats somewhat got in the way using spinning rods, like the line would slap on the rod float & diminish casting distance. Also on the b/c rods the rod floats would twist & the line would get caught in the cut in the foam tube & tangle up the b/c reel.

Haven't heard of any. I've had a couple rods snap on a hook set this year already, new 2009 rods. Daiwa 6'8" M Ike series spinning rod & Okuma C3 7' spinning rod. I really put the Magnesium 6'10" MH spinning rod for some hard fishing & did not have anything to worry about, I was also using 20 lb braid on the spinning reel.

The 2008/2009 Magnesiums were much better than the older models. The older models had Pac Bay or Batson reel seats & there were problems of the reel moving or slipping on the seats. Now they all have Fuji reel seats & guides & I've had no issue w/ the 2009 Magnesium casting & spinning rods I have. Used the 6'10" MH spinning rod w/ a Shimano Symetre 2500 reel today & caught 3 bass w/ it today.

Here's the pontoon boat I bought last year, Outcast Fishcat IR9: Here's the float tube Outcast Fat Cat, I had the previous year, sold it so I could get the one on top:

Fuji Hardloy guides & Fuji reel seat, ECS on the baitcast rod, don't recall the style of Fuji reel seat on the spinning rod but it's the one that other mfg's would use if they are using Fuji reel seat w/ the screw on top not on the bottom.

Another rod you may want to look at but costs a bunch more is the St Croix legend 5'10". Don't know if you want a rod that short but makes good sense for that type of fishing technique you want, but from what your're saying the Magnesium 6'3" would work very well.

What are you planning to use it for? I bought it for a dock skipping rod which is was made for. I got it & for a rod that is rated MH it felt more like a Medium. And the handle is really on the short side, I guess it would be good for someone who is looking for that type of handle; I prefer one that is just a bit longer. With the short handle the rod felt tip heavy, but it was overall light though. I returned this rod & went to Cabelas & bought their XML rod in 6'3" medium. Now for a rod that's rated Medium, it has a faster action & feels more like a MH...this is what I'm looking for a dock skipping rod. The handle is just a bit longer than the one on the Kistler Magnesium of same length. Why I want a MH 6'3" rod for dock skipping is if I decide to use mono, I have the backbone to set the hook quickly. If I use braid no problem I just don't set the hook as hard. Also a rod at that length is good for an all around rod. It's a perfect length for jerkbaits & for tight areas.

In regards to the noise from the reel, yes it's coming from the braking. I had a similar thing happen w/ a Shimano 201B before. What you need to do to quiet the noise is to open up the reel and use a q-tip & run it on the inside drum where the brakes would make contact. You will see some residue go onto the q-tip. after that take another q-tip & put a small drop of reel oil & rub it on the drum, but just a very light coat. This will quite the noise & improve casting a bit. I have the 2009 Catalyst b/c reel(nice match to the 6'10" MH 21 Gold Carrot Stix) & I like it also...will eventually get the tour edition in the later this year.

Advice on the popper & the Bronze eye...bend the hooks up a bit, just enough that it is even w/ the top of the frog. Doing this the frog doesn't have to compress as much for hook penetration.

Works best when the depth of the water is around 5' or less. I've done quite well during fall & winter w/ this lure. Or cast parallel from shore where the water isn't as deep. Do a frightened or injured minnow & stop the action, I get my hits when it just stops & flutters down.

Cut about 3/4" from the end & it will so often walk the dog. Cut it about an inch & it will walk the dog better. I add a couple bb's & a worm rattle to mine. Doing this if the frog is on top of weed matts, it's extra noise for the bass to home in on. Nothing like seeing a bass bust through weed matts to jump on your frog! I'll use a popping technique like use a popper w/ pauses to get strikes. Or I'll scurry it so many feet & stop, the bass think somethings up & blow up on the frog. I'll do these on open shallow water or if there are openings in the weeds or lily pads.