Jrob78

I broke about 4" off of a standard MHF bass casting rod, it was virtually unusable after the break. It was just too heavy and too fast.

Instead of buying 4 crappy, out of business reels, why not buy 1 good one? I mean, I could care less what you buy, I just don't understand buying junky stuff, especially 4 of them.

I don't live bait fish but to do it right there's way more to it than simply sticking a minnow under a bobber. I've got nothing against live bait fishing, it's just not the way I enjoy bass fishing.

I don't drop shot very much but I really like the Fuse when I do. It's great on shaky head too.

I'm probably going to pick up a swimbait rod next week, if they have any left.

I think your bait monkey is senile.

There is no swivel and you will have to replace the split ring if you take it off. Get some split ring pliers and take the blade off if that's what you want to do. There is no reason to take the split ring off, unless its bad.

Pline CX for me.

In my experience, go with whatever is the most comfortable to you. I tried switching to left handed reels and couldn't do it. I honestly don't believe one way is faster or better than the other. Pick the one you like the best and run with it.

This is BASS Resource, I'm sure all those other species have their own forums. If I wanted to talk about carp fishing or crappie fishing or saltwater fishing, that's where I would go. This one is for bass.

My guess is they were trying to move the fish to somewhere with more water. They weren't going to kill the fish, quite the opposite actually. You could tell there was at least 1 more in that tiny, drying puddle they were in.

That looks like a giant Arapaima. They are very dangerous fish. One hit Jeremy Wade from River Monsters in the chest and did permanent damage to his heart.

They have smaller versions coming out soon, you might wait for one of those if you don't want to buy a new rod.

A small Roadrunner is great for small bass.

Beautiful reels kickerfish!

Very nice!

That reel looks barely used!

The Crucial is the best rod of the bunch and the 7'3" HXF is best suited to your needs. It's a no-brainer for me.

I would personally buy the 7'3" Crucial. The 6'10" would be my second choice.

I've only fished them on a football head. I will have to try a swing jig, makes perfect sense.

Assuming the blanks are the same, my guess is the micro guides and split grip are the difference. The split grip will change how the rod balances and overall weight of the rod. Any time I go from a rod with standard guides to a rod with micro guides, I can tell an immediate difference. Rod blanks feel so much lighter and more responsive with micro guides. It makes a huge difference for me. I don't have as much experience with spinning rods but with casting rods, this is definitely the case. Of course, if the X series uses different blanks than the Avid, that will play a large role as well.

If I'm not mistaken they we're originally designed with the c-rig in mind.

Yeah, I was under the impression that going forward the JDM and USDM reels would be exactly the same.

I'm sure those off-shore reel companies that make reels for large US companies are capable of making quality reels. I would take each reel on it's own merit and not worry too much about where it came from.

That's what I use.