LVLDVL

Don't count to 3. Don't lift rod to feel the weight of the fish. When you get the thump! or thump, thump!, reel slack and reach for the sky. One tip: regardless of the cover, start with a lighter weight like 3/16 or 1/4oz. You will learn faster and your lure will stay in the strike zone longer leading to more strikes. Not only that, it doubles as a slop swimmer! A heavier weight is like having a Corvette as your first car drive. Unless you have a gift of extreme sensory perception, it's very daunting, It will feel like during the whole retrieve, your lure is under mud and you'll have alot of "I don't understand this is texas rig? I don't understand am i on a weed stalk or on the bottom?" moments.

Rage Toad. Throw all other buzzfrogs in the campfire, please.

No. The store doesn't have any effect on Shimano's turnaround time. It's all on how busy Shimano warranty department is. Your local store seems to have cool people working there. When the store receives your warranty Compre brand new with tag and all, don't take it home. See if they are willing to let you credit it towards a different rod. As long as the rod can be re-sold as new, most stores will honor a store credit exchange. They might be more willing if you upgrade to a more expensive rod. If you feel the medium heavy Crucial "worm" rod is lacking power, whether or not it has enough power for jigging, it's going to affect your comfort and confidence. I say go find one that feels like the old Crucial medium heavy cork that you're used to.

Worse: "What the hell are you gonna catch with that big *** lure [1/2oz spinnerbait]?!" (note: I'm from Minnesota, go figure. Once in Wisconsin, I freaked out a fisherman as I walked past him with a 6" senko, it wasn't even my 7" senko. It's like he's never seen anything bigger than 3 inches. ) Best: [a concensus among the bass angling culture] "Spinnerbaits will catch bass, in 30 degree or 90 degree weather, spring, summer or fall, clear water or muddy water, in California, Texas or Minnesota." Edit: Didn't mean to leave out the eastern guys. I just don't have much exposure to the east so I don't know what is the mecca of East coast bass fishing.

That's 2010?

Can't wait for my 704c to get here tomorrow! One concern: has anyone successfully used it for frogging for bass <5lbs? If so, how did the fights usually go?

Power Team Conviction Craw. Takes the best of the traditional beavers and infuses with creature tentacles. The bulbous body is a different profile than the usual ribbed beavers we see.

The size profile difference between a 1/4 and 1/2oz spinnerbait may be enough for fish to notice during finicky moods, but a 3/8 and 1/2oz has no profile difference other than a smaller lead mold. Better weight for casting means slightly bigger line can be used, faster drop, more thump, bigger blades, more bang for your buck - you're getting 0.125oz more lead/steel for the same price.

You can't get more correct than a >6'6" MH-extra fast for pitching jigs regardless of brand (modulus). That can't be the problem. "Yesterday I decided to try my luck at jigs again." I could be wrong but I assume that by saying "try your luck again", it's not really your lure of choice? If that's the case, then I give you same advice I give myself every time I tie on a jig. When you get a take, set it like it's the last set you'll ever get. Set it fast and set it hard. Do not be afraid of breaking the line or if it's a snag or if it's a piece of milfoil.

It's just another tool. It's not a new way to fish nor will it improve your skill (it may appear so because with 2 tools, you can do the job better). Anything a baitcast can do, spinning can do - just not as good in some areas like heavier baits with heavier line and pinpoint pitch, pitch, pitch accuracy. Vice versa, anything a spinning can do, a baitcast can do - and again, just not as good such as weightless flukes and 1/16-1/8 swim jig/tube.

P-Line hating going on again? With Floroclear, the fluorocarbon coating is just that - a coating. The core is still copolymer. Whereas with Yozuri Hybrid, fluorocarbon is actually infused with copolymer to form the core. There is no fluoro coating - the line itself has fluoro. How can anyone honestly say "Oh, P-Line Floroclear sinks. Get the Yozuri Hybrid."??? That's like saying "Don't get the Chevy Silverado because it's a truck. Get the GMC Sierra."

Aw shucks. Update: I have a dud. Gotta bring it in for exchange. According to a youtube video of a guy cleaning his exact same Citica reel, at the end when he is closing the side plate back up, he is able to turn the dial about half an inch and have it "click!" lock. Mine just tightens about 1/8 of an inch and doesn't click lock. Thanks anyways for the reply Mr. Leo.

Just got a Citica 201E last night. Fiddled with it and when I got to the side plate opening, I noticed the turn key is strange. To open it, I turn the turn key just about 2 millimeters before it snaps open. To close, I am only able to turn the dial just the 2mm to lock the sideplate. It doesn't snap or anything, just kinda tightens. But when the side plate is opened, the turn key fully does a 45 degree snap lock, snap unlock. It is not loose when I close it, it's secure but I would just like to know if it's faulty so I can exchange. Do I have a dud? Can anyone who has one handy confirm?

Bought two Premier Plus spinnerbaits the other day, one in 1/4 oz and the other in 3/8 oz. So two nights ago I'm just petting my lures and I realized that the wire on the 3/8 oz is not the "V" shape at all! It's odd, like the corner of a tetragon. The top wire passes way over the hook point and the gap is very narrow. Yes, this means the blades go all the way beyond the hook point. I thought mine was molded wrong so I took back to the store last night. Every single 3/8 oz was designed this way! What the hell?! Did Kevin Van Dam authorize this design? What do you guys think? I think I'll go back to Booyah's.

After much money lost and lots of trial and error, I've nailed it down to only two brands of jerkbait that I use: Berkley Powerbait Jerk Shad and Castaic Jerky J's. These two jerkbaits always drop belly first and has the slightest sashay on the fall. Every jerkbait glides similar but the fall is what separates these two jerkbaits from the rest. The only thing to keep in mind is both are really light because they use different grade plastic compared to the typical jerkbait. They rip easier and you will notice your supply going out faster. When I switched over from Yum Houdini Shad I noticed a big weight difference, especially the slimmer profile Berkley. Use caution, baitcasters.

Rapala Skitter Pop #7 (2.75") in lime (frog) or fire tiger. This season, I've caught all my 17"+ smallies on either of these poppers; I got my personal high 19.25" just this past weekend along the Chippewa River (Wisconsin) with the lime. I've thrown XCalibur Zell Pop's, Rebel Pop R's, Rage Tail Shads, and they won't eat them - they just keep waiting for the Rapalas. There must be something to the profile of the balsa wood. Cast very slightly upstream and left it drift for a few seconds while keeping your rod low so the water takes your line. Bring your rod slightly high and pointed towards downstream, work a cast and pull technique to make a spit-spit-stop technique. With your line underwater, the lure moves in a way that makes the smallies go nuts.

Bought a 6'6" MH for $90 clearanced at Cabelas earlier today. I'm browsing the website now and realized that there are new models which were not at the store. I thought it was a fall clearance, not a liquidation. This time around, they are set at $100 instead of $120, they have action ratings on the rod, and Fuji Alconite guides. I would imagine the components on the new models are either similar or better quality. How can it be that it's lower in price? By the way, what is the action rating on the (old) HMG? I dunno...should I refund and wait for the new ones or am I holding a similar product for $10 less than the current model?

Specifically looking at the 6'3" medium finesse spinning. I'm not allowed to post HTML links yet. I mostly do weightless worm, poppers, and spinnerbaits (less than 3/8 oz). None of the stores near me carry these Daiwa rods for some odd reason so I can't examine and compare it to Shimano/St. Croix. Opinions are greatly appreciated. My price range is no more than $150-ish. Thanks! By the way, I currently own 7'0" Shimano Compre. Does the job but too long for my height (I'm only 5'2") and hard to maneuver along shoreline trails and shrubbery.