Jrob78

Kalins, Yamamoto and SK Rage Tail are the brands I use. White, smoke and green pumpkin are the colors. I use them on jigheads and as swim jig trailers.

My go to jig rod is a Kistler H3 7'3" H/XF.

I generally look for something with green pumpkin and chartreuse. My water isn't clear so I think that chartreuse is key when imitating bluegill.

I've got Huk, Columbia, Under Armor and North Face stuff, it's all about the same to me. The key to staying cool is not letting the sun touch your skin, with the right materials it's like you're in the shade all the time. A wide brimmed Outdoor Research hat, a Buff, sun gloves and an occasional jump in the lake help. It's going to be hot regardless so you might as well protect your skin.

Picked up a new Chatterbait rod but will try it out with spinnerbaits and lipless cranks too. Kistler KLX Feel N Reel 7'3" H, paired with a Daiwa J-Dream.

Nice write up, I've been using 24g wire and I've had it break a few times. I might have to try 22 for a little extra strength. Those twisting pliers are cool too, gonna have to swing by Harbor Freight.

Picked up a few wood baits. From top, Old School wake bait, Catching Concepts SC1, PH Customs Lil Hunter, Barron Customs BC-1.

The baits I looked at that are $6.99 have more baits in the bag so the per bait price is the same. Edit: This is not the case for the Menace Magnum or the new punch bait. Hopefully prices don't go up on everything.

Academy is always the first store I go to when I need anything sporting good related. We've had them for 15 years or so here in TX. They don't have the fishing selection of BPS or Cabelas but they're way better than Dicks or Gander Mountain and have the best prices around.

My issue wasn't discussing warranties on social media, it was bashing a company that hadn't done anything wrong. My 2nd post was a direct reply to OP pointing out the terms of the warranty. I understand OP's frustration about breaking a rod but a 3 year old rod shouldn't be subject to a free replacement. I'm all for holding companies accountable when they screw over customers but that isn't the case here.

Because the company hasn't done anything wrong. Their warranty guidelines are clearly laid out in the link OP posted and he doesn't have a valid warranty claim.

The average size hollow body frog weighs 1/2oz and generally cast a mile. Something is wrong with your set up. Also, 15lb braid is mostly reserved for spinning gear due to its diameter, that might be your problem. I use 50lb on my heavy/fast frog rod and can cast a frog about as far as I can cast anything.

You aren't upsetting me and I understand what you're saying but I think you have it wrong. Phenix's lifetime warranty isn't an unlimited warranty. It specifically says so in the link you posted. I'm sorry that you feel misled but the terms are pretty clear. "Accident, abuse, misuse" is what caused your rod to break and what causes all rods that have been in use for 3 years to break. If there were some factory defect in your rod it wouldn't have taken 3 years to show itself. I'm not saying you intentionally did something to your rod but at some point something happened to the blank while in your possession. If rod companies had free replacement on every rod that broke they would go out of business. It would be like wrecking your car and expecting Ford to fix it for free.

Those Benkei's are really nice rods, especially for what they cost.

If a rod breaks 3 years after you buy it that isn't the manufacturers fault. If they offer a lifetime warranty I guess that's on them but I would be embarrassed to send in a rod I'd been using for that long expecting a cheap replacement and I sure wouldn't bash the company on social media.

Both are excellent. Shimano uses centrifugal brakes and Daiwa uses an advanced magnetic system. I prefer Daiwa but use reels from both companies.

I don't do a ton of night fishing but when I do I use the same baits I would use during the day. Prey items don't change when it gets dark and bass don't have trouble finding and eating them. Worms, jigs, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, topwaters, crankbaits, etc all work at night. I'll 2nd the recommendation for a good headlamp.

I think you're going to find a lot of different answers to this question. Rods are often a very personal thing and there aren't cut and dry answers. I fish all crankbaits, sq bills included, on glass rods. I prefer the extra give. Swimbaits is a wide category that includes many different sizes and rigging styles which dictate different rods, but it's going to be different for everyone.

I agree with @Paul Roberts and @whitwolf, versatility is about the angler, not the baits.

They are awesome baits but the reason they are so expensive is that XCalibur as a brand was discontinued several years ago. Booyah picked up the XR line and now produces baits that are supposed to be the same as the XCalibur baits but I haven't personally tried them. I have a big stash of the lipless baits as well as the XCS square bills that I wouldn't sell for any amount of money, they are great baits. Also just fyi, the XR 100 is a large 1oz bait, the XR 50 is the more standard lipless size.

I imagine it's for a treble hook

This is a really cool bait but I think it's too expensive. If it holds up well it might be worth it.

My main fluke setup is a 7'3" MHF with a 7:1 casting reel and 15lb fluoro. It's basically the same setup I use with weightless Senkos.

Yeah maybe so, the difference in diameter of yours does look bigger than in mine. I don't have a large but he actually lists them as 13" on his website. Yours seems like an inbetweener.

Kind of strange, my 7" and 9" are on the nose.