SoFlaBassAddict

Is there a difference between a 25 dollar rod and a 100/200 dollar rod? Yes. You'll be getting a rod that has better components, one that should last far longer, and usually a far better warranty. Other benefits will be a rod that is more sensitive, generally they will have better blank actions. Most cheap rods are just that, cheap. They aren't made with serious fishing in mind. Part of the enjoyment of using nicer rods is just having them. They can be much more comfortable to use for longer periods. Plus tackle junkies like to collect rods. That being said, if you're using a 25 dollar rod and catching fish, who cares. The fish can't tell whether you're using a cane pole or a 500 dollar rod. All that matters is that you enjoy what you're using.

Ouch, that sucks, Dale. Sorry to hear that. Hopefully they get it fixed quickly and don't screw around with it up in Missou. I've heard some horror stories from people that had problems with warranty work. I'll put a list together, Mike. I'm trying to drain my Jon right now. I left the cover off last night and it absolutely poured over here. Good thing I keep it hooked to the ground otherwise it might have slid down into the lake.

That looks more like line twist than anything. Theres some memory in it, thats going to happen no matter what with a small spinning reel though. Doesn't look too bad. You may want to try and get rid of some of that twist in the line and see what happens. I'd definitely consider dropping down to 6# Yo-zuri myself. That stuff is still plenty strong.

Looks like hitting Lox up is what most people are preferring. The only question is what day and ramp. Next week I'm good Friday for certain. Probably Wednesday or Thursday as well. Lox road is closest to me, but that doesn't really bother me much. I'm good for whatever ramp everybody else is comfortable with. I'll leave that up to you guys that are more familiar with the area. I've been out of Lox Rd. and thats it.

You may want to either read the FAQ's or use the search function. You'll find plenty of threads about it.... IBL!!

That could be understandable. I'm not familiar with how most northern lakes act, but as far as I understand it, once the water temps start to drop they topwater bite dies off. Down here, it's a year round thing. It's kind of hard for me to not throw some kind of a frog or toad at first light.

I've been searching for a couple for a while myself. Just an awesome frog. I don't know if I really want to drop 20 bucks per frog on them though. I wish RI was still making them.

I was wondering why I hadn't heard from you in a while, Mike. Thats one long trip. Looks like I may be heading over there before too long myself to do a launch event for the Mini Cooper. I'm always up for hitting Okeechobee. Doesn't really matter to me though. As long as theres fish in the water, I'm good to go.

Who's ready to get back together? From the guys I've talked to, it seems that several members are ready to meet up again to do some fishing. Doug mentioned something about hitting the south end of Lox towards the end of next week at some point. I believe Kevin and Shane were both game for that. I'm good to go whenever as long as I've got a few days worth of notice. Ideas on where or dates?

They're decent. They used to be a spectacular deal before they signed a few pros and prices jumped. I never had an issue with line fray with them. The paint chips fairly easily if you're around rocks. If you search around, you can generally find a better deal. You may have to search, but if I remember right, Alleys Tungsten has always been a highly recommended place to buy from.

Theres a reason to dislike a frog?

Never hurts to try. Who knows, it just may be the ticket on any given day.

I've never seen any need or reason to. Cranks are a reaction type of bait that I'm generally moving. Fish will see it and either hit it or not. I don't really think that they're going to sit there and analyze whether or not a crankbait smells "real."

Have several different rods rigged up on the deck with different types and colors of baits. If you're working on shallower water, look down as you're motoring along. Frequently you'll see some of the available forage cruising around. I realize this isn't always possible depending on water and weather conditions. In those scenarios, you can usually get by with a "generic" baitfish mimicking color and size. On my lake, I know that there are plenty of small bluegill and redear sunfish cruising around. Do the bass eat them? I don't know. I'm sure they do. I do know that I'll get traps and shallow cranks that are on those patterns smoked by both Largemouth and Peacocks. The only thing I've ever seen in a basses throat down here has been some of the small minnows that are all over the place. I've got nothing that matches the size of them, but I can get fairly close to the same color and catch fish on that "generic" baitfish imitation.

I generally ignore the reviews on most of the big box store websites. Like other people have mentioned, a lot of those get filtered and whatnot. I put far more stock in independent websites, and the opinions of people that I know and trust. As long as you can get through the biased opinions of the manufacturers fanboys, you'll find some honest reviews on several different websites. The single best way to learn what you'll like is to get out and test it. Each person will have their personal likes and dislikes about a certain reel.

More Savvy rods. I've used the Champions. While they're certainly built with better components, the difference in feel isn't really all that much. Certainly not enough for my to justify spending the extra cash for the Champions. I'm very impressed with the Savvy line. Supposedly, Dobyns will be expanding the Savvy line in later 2011 early 2012. If that does happen, I may be loading up on a few more. I'd love to see a 704 or a 705 crank rod in the Savvy series.

You mean it aint hot already?

Great fish Shane! Looks like a d**n good time. WTG.

good stuff right there

Uh.... You're old? Thats all I've got....

Dobyns 704 and 734 to go with the 733 I bought not too long ago P-Line Voltage 12 and 15 pound Shimano Cardiff Tungsten weights Few more shallow cranks and a bunch more plastics.... Stupid bait monkey.

Definitely had to do mine. I had 233 PM's in my box somehow.

If you can't smell JJ's when you open the jar, I suggest you go visit a nose specialist. JJ's is some ridiculously strong stuff. It smells like a garlic truck flipped over and baked in the sun for a few hours when you open up the jar.

If you're going to force me to use one, it would be a brush hog or baby brush hog. That being said, I still have several bags of large lizards for C-rigs and T-rigs when I'm looking for a larger bite or to use when I'm blind casting a spawning area.

When my housing development was built, they made a deal with Comcast. Every house has cable ran through it for Comcast. You just pay the service, etc etc. The only other option right now is Satellite. AT&T U-Verse is slowly working it's way out here. Until they upgrade the boxes in the neighborhood though, it's Comcast or nothing. I've had my fair share of Comcast problems, but this has made much happier with them.