Blade-Runner

Spoon

Portable depth finder is worth the hassle, particularly if this is more of a "set up base camp and fish" mission as opposed to a large circumnavigation w/ lots of portaging. Make sure someone has a small folding camp table - big difference maker and often overlooked.

Thanks for the suggestions... Yes I am looking for a one-piece rod. No, transport is not the only reason. A 6-6.5 ft. rod fits the bill a little better for the small flows I fish on a regular basis. Late-spring into mid-summer finds much more overhanging vegetation, a tighter "canopy" within which to cast/work, and 2 guys on a 13'6" RamX Canoe w/ 7 ft. spinning rods is a little anti-ergonomic. The 6'3" St. Croix MLXF looks like a good little rod. I'm a little more used to their rating systems relative to power/action, so it makes thinking about a 0 vs. 1 power SR in Loomis difficult...

Hello, I am looking into a new versatile spinning rod for an assortment of applications and am seeking opinions. While I've gradually moved up through the years in terms of quality/prestige on most of my baitcasting gear, I've yet to really step into the light with a good spinning rod. I am seeking something to fill such a wide range of applications: a "truck" rod for having around in case of pits/ponds, something to live bait/bobber with, river smallmouths, vertical jigging for crappies/gills, possibly a marble-eye or two, and misc. applications on the boat for light lures for bass-fishing (soft jerks, small cranks, plastics, etc)... I would prefer something shorter than 6'6", which seems to have severely limited my options. The best spinning rod I have right now is a 7' ML/F St. Croix Premier (which is a good rod). I would like something in the 6 - 6'6" range that can handle panfish to bass. Of particular specificity is that I spend a great deal of time floating the river, where smallmouth is the game. My part of the Midwest doesn't see a whole lot of "whoppers" - typically 12-14" smallies. I need that shorter rod length for canoe/yak/john fishing and for portability and in-cab lock-up in the truck. I've spent over a year thinking about that "tennessee-handle" Bronzeback Loomis (SMR 750) but cannot find much online nor any warm body who has fished it. I'd really like a "hybrid" or newfangled length (like a 6'2", 6'3") M/ML rod with a lot of versatility. I'm sure many of you have investigated this rod option with similar parameters - any ideas? Thanks and all the best. May ice-out be sooner than later.

I typically use 12-lb. Big Game for most cranking. If I can afford it and not get upset w/ manageability issues 10-12 lb. 100% Fluoro is great for suspending jerkbaits (and other cranks). There is no doubt that fluoro gets them down deeper. My main use (cranking) for braid is Rattle Traps. Works great for ripping, pumping, and vegetating.

Get a riveted aluminum johnboat.

Bass Pro's 'Monsoor' Swim Jig in 7/16 oz. and white/chartreuse works great for me.

I hate Purdue.

- Spinnerbaiting - River-fishing - Lip-ripping

Nope, you're not allowed to use this rod for T-rig or weightless senkos. Sorry.

The only time I use the real deal anymore is night-fishing summertime largemouth. 1/2 oz. Black Jig & Black #11 Uncle Josh.

6'6" MH/F Shimano Clarus.

Love the Original Lunker Lure, Original Floating Rapala, and the Long-A. But my favorite topwater has got to be the Rapala Skitterpop (Clown) - searched all over for that model because I wanted one like Al Lindner's! It does work wonders for bassin blowups.

Agree with this angler. This was almost exactly what I was going to say before I read down. Senko was the bait of the 90's. Yamamoto's knockoffs were starting to make their impact in the early 2000's. I think the whole Lucky Craft revolution really changed things for hard-baits too. Pointers, etc...even the lowball anglers who normally poke fun at people paying $10 + for a plug were picking those up. Now there's a myriad of Nippon knockoffs.

I know what you mean... I still look over my shoulder sometimes with that darned orange stick slinging around... I don't like fads, I'm a wee-bit antisocial in parks & recreation areas, and those old-timers think I'm some kind of city slicker with that carrot... I'll tell you what though - it's a GREAT cranking stick! Lightweight saves the day; particularly post-spawn into summer when I'm really chunkin and windin'... Loomis, Falcon, Shimano have to be as good or better than the E21!

Changing lures/presentations too often. The number one thing I can do to increase chances for a hookup is to keep that bait (whatever it is) in the strike zone for the maximum amount of time (where are you at walleye guys?). Instead I'm always dicking around changing lures and giving the fish way too much credit in terms of discretion and selectivity...Just put it in their face!!!

River Smallies on Top? L.C. Sammy (M.S. Shad), Rapala Skitter Pop (Clown), 1/2 oz. Lunker Lure, Original Floating Rapala, Bomber Long A (Bone). Pearl/Redeye Footloose sure works good too. As does a rapido-twitched soft jerkbait. Topwater wouldn't be my first choice right now, but you never know until you try. I'm a northerner but I can tell you that there is no better time of the year to locate river smallies than now, though their activity level might be low. You don't have to search hard... Sure, D.O. is inversely proportional to temperature which would lead one to believe they could be anywhere. But that cold-bloodedness is the bane, a kin to a buck in the rut. They will not be fighting current. Topwater twitch in slack water with excrutiatingly slow retrieve could work. I'd be throwing a jig or suspending jerkbait. Good luck.

I searched for the longest time for a moderate priced "do-it-all" cranking stick. The one I love that works great for me is the 7'2" E21 Original Carrot Parabolic Crankin' Stix. I would have gotten the 6'9" but I believe the 7'2" edges it out in overall versatility (particularly if you're a deep cranker). Mated with a Shimano Curado 5:1 and 12 lb. Big Game. Handles 4wd Footloose's and Bomber Balsa B's and also pulls great on midsummer DD22's and Hot Lips. I throw virtually all my cranks on this, with the exception of suspending jerkbaits, small floaters, and traps. Some folks don't like the beta carotene err david carridine, I mean Carrot Stick. I think it's perfect for this application. Touchy feely rods are not E21's.

I like this guy... That is the most outstanding answer I've ever read, and I haven't been on the board since hunting season started.

St. Croix Triumph 6' Lite is a great all-around panfish rod. Matched w/ a 10-series reel and 4-6 lb. mono. I fish 1/32 Layman jigs w/ beemoths no problem. Plus it's got just enough strength to handle those pesky schoolie green bass who take your slip-bobber/minnow under...

BCR 803 GLX is the one-and-only stick I've been thinking about all season long...

Heavy braid to mono/flouro leader.

10" Worms make a good night bait, too. And, I've caught many, many smaller bass on these big worms, so don't totally believe you're going to have fewer bites. My favorites are the classic 10" Berkley Powerworm, the Zoom Ole Monster, and the Yum 10" ribbontails. 5/16 oz. bullet weight and a 4/0-5/0 hook. Or carolina rigged. Or go with the secret method in weedy waters - weightless. Snaky...

Come on, you should know the truth about the pig. In old-school terminology the "pig" was pork rind before we had 100's of varieties of plastic jig trailers. I still like to use an Uncle Josh 101 black trailer for my night fishing during the late spring/summer. Some people think real pork is good for cold weather because it is more tantalizing and flavorful. And there were the smallmouth guys down in E. Tenn. who would use the "fly n' rind" - a hair jig w/ pork rind. Some people do call any bass jig w/ a trailer a jig and pig (or pig n' jig). I usually call them a jig and grub, jig and craw, or jig and eel depending on whats on the hook.

Get a used aluminum john.