SWMIBASSER

While an introduced predator surely can have an effect on a fishery, and I totally understand concern over an invasive species.... There is probably some overreaction to this fish. Reminds me of the misinformation about Musky, and how some folks think all they do is eat walleye and other game fish.

Poor Boy's Goby, Erie Darter, DS Darter. Slim senko's, and a secret lure of mine, that hasn't been used by many for YEARS.

Are they on the same rod?

It really depends on what your idea of swift is. I don't think we can give an accurate idea of weight here. When I fish the creek in my back yard I fish wacky worms weightless, and let it drift down river reel in and cast again....Whatever you call that : Same basic idea as salmon fishing. When I fish a jig I use a 3/8oz but with a trailer doesn't fall terribly fast. It will make it to bottom but drift down stream when lifted off the bottom. I've hauled several 3lb fish and a few 4lb fish out of the creek along with a bunch of other smaller chunks. That creek was a pleasant surprise when we moved here! ;D

While I fished several different things this year, I really worked on upgrading my equipment and fine tuning my jig fishing technique. Overall I've slowed down a BUNCH. I had gotten so bad that I couldn't even fish a worm or jig because it wasn't fishing fast enough. Slowing down, and Jigs. That was my focus.

Yep that's the basic idea. I need to get out on the lake this coming year. If I can find a reliable partner I want to join the local NBAA chapter and they fish this lake more often than the other three in their series. Mark Zona has a house on it

Given the entirely free spooling of line on a spinning reel when casting, I think the rod has more to do with casting distance than the reel. With that said, I've got the Loomis SHR821S Shakey head rod, with a Pflueger Supreme 8030. Which is actually a relatively small reel. Casts plenty far for me. With 10lb 100% Flouro. Switching to 6lb Y/Z Hybrid next season. Sadly around here, the shakey head is getting played out.

Given the typical sized largemouth in lakes up here, and the fact smallmouths are typically caught in more open water (except some places I fish on a local river) I'm downsizing all my line this year. 6lb Y/Z on all my spinning gear, 8lb Y/Z on crankbait rods, and 10lb on every thing else. Y/Z typically has a pretty high break strength though. If you aren't breaking your line, it makes sense to 'me' that lighter is better. Offering less visibility and more natural action in your presentation.

In that picture it appears there is a pool or something just to the right of the outlined areas. That is a field or something. That end is the incoming, and the other end is the dammed end. While there is current, it is a slow moving current.

This is a picture of the lake. The black outlined area is completely overgrown with pads. The yellow outlined is heavy with pads but navigable.

To clarify the pads are the long stem type, with the actual canopy being above water 6-12"

The area full of pads is generally a little shallow and warmer. And there are LOTS of pads away from the main channel so they aren't receiving much current. One of the things I've always wondered is if those pads offer enough oxygen to hold fish? And faced with huge expanses of thick pads, where would you start?

One other thing, at least with KVD (I don't know about the other C/B fisherman) He has gone back and forth a BUNCH over the years. I've always followed him being a local and all. I know I've read before he uses 6.3.1 reels before. And he has said in the past he uses all graphite rods for cranking to increase sensitivity now he uses a blend. There have been a bunch of things he has gone back and forth on over the years.

From a Strike King Journal interview Question: How were the fish positioned, and how were you working the bait? VanDam: There wasn't much current coming through the dam because we hadn't had much rain, but there was enough wind to create a current. If there was current from the wind, the bass would be holding on the top edge of the ledge. I cast the crankbait out and reeled it until it was hitting the top edge of the ledge. I think the critical key in my lure presentation was that I was reeling the bait fast. I thought that reeling the bait fast in the summertime would trigger the inactive bass to bite. I was using a 5:1 baitcasting reel, but I was cranking fast and hard to get that reaction bite. More from an Icast interview Energy E100PPT Crankbait Reel. The reel that goes with the KVD crankbait rods is the 5.1:1 Energy E100PPT. It takes in a low 21" a turn. "When you see KVD, it seems like he's wearing himself out reeling so fast, but it's actually just the opposite," says Chris Strickland. "With the lower ratio reel, there's not as much torque, that's what will wear you down quickly - the torque of higher ratio reels," Chris explains. "In addition to the gear ratio, the spool size is critical," says VanDam. "A 5:1 reel with a big spool will take in more inches per turn than a small spool. So in the final analysis what I like to have is something that takes in about 20 inches per turn - and that's what the E100PPT does," says Kevin.

This is a real lake. I have fished it one time for just a few hours without much success. It is a very small damned reservoir. Very stained water relative to other MI natural lakes. The majority of the lake is 4-6 deep. The entire bottom is a silty mucky bottom. Very little weed growth in the main lake (I'll get to that later) Since it is a damned river it has a main river channel running through it, but there is very little depth change associated with it as it is silted in heavily. There is a 'headwaters' to the main lake. There are several stumps, and it is overgrown with lillypads. There is a channel running through it to get to the main lake-otherwise much of the year it is solid lillypads. If anyone has read this far I'm curious as to where you would look for bass during summer months. From what I gather most concentrate on the main lake river channel. Which makes sense but again there isn't much of depth change there, and very little weedgrowth. And no stumps like are scattered throughout most of the "shoreline" areas. This is a lake that a pretty prominant ESPN BASS personality lives on, and is only a few minutes away. ;D

if you notice when he casts , he actually uses a energy pt 5.1:1 reel , i have seen it on many occasions , but he might switch to the tour pt sometimes .... Not only did I not know that they made the slower reels (I guess I just don't pay attention to Quantum) I thought I read, or heard in an interview, that he used the 6.3 reels. If I didn't then I stand corrected.

I think we all have read this. Some of the pro's say that it is important to maintain the same feel from rod to rod by using the same brand for everything. I've never really noticed a difference, I DON'T THINK. I'm curious to hear everyone's thought on this. Does it make a difference? While I have not done it yet, and am not sure I notice it effecting my fishing, it can only help and not hurt. I'm thinking about trying to upgrade/change my equipment around so that everything matches.

These really are great reels. It would be nice to have an external cast control adjustment, but otherwise I really like them. By design however, they are a larger diameter reel than what some are used too. This of course was on purpose but still something to be aware of. The 4bbl is misleading as the real is very smooth. I have one on an older 7ft Tim Horton Pflueger crankbait rod and this real literally casts farther than anything I have ever seen.

Have you used the Loomis DSR? Which one did you use and why didn't you like it?

I'll add something else..... Some people feel the need for quanity of rods. If you think you need several rods, and that is why you are on a budget I would argue that LESS equipment of a higher quality is a better route to go. A 7ft MH casting rod, 7 ft M spinning rod, 7ft M or MH crankbait rod, and you have the basics down. IMO.

Nothing wrong with the question....It's winter/tinker time up this way so I understand believe me. What BPS reel are you working on? if it comes down to needing to have some made and mine use the same I may be interested in having a few made too. I know on my Abu round reels, polishing the drag contact surfaces and drying the washers off from a year of oiling the reel from the outside, helped smooth out and strengthen drag function dramatically.

Have you checked with Bass Pro? They have their own reel service center. I would bet there is another reel with drag washers that drop right in. Problem is finding out which ones.... You might be able to gain smoother drag operation by replacing the washers, polishing the drag contact areas, and replacing the washers in the main drive/spacer stack.

Anyone else use this rod? Got a decent deal on one from the forum. Can't wait to get it.

do you currently fish with a baitcaster? I've always said that the Abu round reels are one of the best to start out with. Simple as can be to use. I learned to use a bait caster with an Abu round reel when I was 12 years old, and haven't looked back. As for rods, watch Bass Pro shops this spring as all their stuff seems to go on sale. The tactics are OK. My brother has one for drop shotting. It's nothing great. A little heavy, really slow action (i guess this is on purpose though). He catches plenty of fish on it though.

I really love the action of the Loomis Shakey head rod. Nice fast tip, and would be a great rod for other plastic presentations too IMO.