lightsout

I dont believe for one second braid of equal diameter has less abrasion resistance than mono/copolys. After catchin 4 or 5 bass on baits where the lure is in the fish's mouth (causing the line to rub on their teeth) my hybrid and cxx need to be retied. With powerpro its not an issue. I fish the fall line on the james alot (the rivers 400 yards across and covered in rock) with cranks and have no issues with power pro. Mono on the other hand... Look at how hard it is to cut braid versus other lines....The fact you can bite through mono with your teeth but need special scissors to cut the braid should tell ya something... As far as I'm concerned based on years of on the water experience, this simply holds no weight with me.....

There are many times YOU DON"T want the fish to get a good look at your lure, thus clear lures. I keep it basic. Black or something with a lighter colored stomach. Except for insects, pretty much everything a bass eats has a lighter colored belly. (fish,mice,frogs,birds,snakes, tadpoles etc)

Yea get the dechlorinator, follow the instructions, and your good to go. I had one in an aquarium for over a year and he did great. They eat anything (mine loved sandwich meats like turkey) and are suprisingly hardy. I released him into my familys pond in december, we cut a notch out of its tail fin to ID it, and have since caught him twice!

cough cough* quantum

I almost teared up when I read that! :'( Agreed. Well put !

IMPO I wouldn't spend that kind of money (custom build rates) on an all around rod. There are plenty of really good all purpose rods in racks 6'6" to 7' med fast. I think that a really good custom rod is built for a specific reel weight, blank power, tip action, and lure range for a stated technique.. Not trying to rain on anything, just a builders thought.. Good Luck & Tight Lines!!! You make a very valid point reel mechanic and I appreciate your honesty, my main reason for going custom is I want a GLX blank (though I'm still flexible), but find the GLX rods to be just too plain looking for such a high dollar rod.I'm thinking a split grip with a trick realseat, no or custom foregrip, and maybe some more stuff. I'm just curious as to what can be done and thought I could get some quick ideas from you guys. pgersmunky- thanks for the advice, but 7'6'' is just to much rod for what I'm looking for. I often hit backwoods areas on foot and with trees it just wouldnt work. (ever hit a tree limb as you go to make a really long cast with a baitcaster? > ) Thanks Guys, Josh

I've decided to pull the trigger on getting a custom rod finally. I'm thinking of something between 6' 6'' and 7' in MH fast action for an all purpose (or as close as possible) stick. If money were no object, what components would you use? Blank, guides, reel seat, customization, etc ?

Never used a compre, but I can tell ya i own a 7' m (the plastics model). And havent been too satisfied. Its heavy, not as senstive as some cheaper rods I own, and have had two guide inserts fall out. They look better than the shimano in my book, thats about the only good thing i can say.

Nice fish! Used to work over at 4801 knuckles, always looked at the ponds driving by but never fished em. Hopefully the immigrants won't RUIN your spot like they have much of the richmond public fishing areas....The parks along the james used to offer great smallie fishin. Now you cant walk among the rocks without stepping on beer bottles and dodging groups of people.

There are many options out there and others have gave some good reccomendations. My only suggestion is go as lightweight as possible if you plan on using this technique exstensively. I've fished sammys/spooks/frogs that walk etc. a ton over the last 3 years and my wrist and forearm just dont enjoy it anymore. I mainly used a plueger president 6740 (a tank of a spinner) and I blame that. This year I got a great deal on a H 6'6'' airrus mated with a revo and its helped, but the damage is done i'm afraid :-/

Those shallow spools are for PE ( braided ) line and are not for casting but for vertical jigging. I'll have to take ur word for it, your more knowledgeable than myself with the japanese stuff. I've never seen a low pro baitcaster made specifically for jigging. What niche exactly are they targeting with that? Just doesnt make sense in my little brain... With all the holes drilled in the spool and the depth of it it looks like their going for spool weight reduction i.e. better casting of lighter baits/lines. That thing is REALLY shallow.

They both look great! The handles on the 2nd reel look sweet and would likely fit a variety of reels. Im assuming by the name the 1st reel is for saltwater? If so why the pixy-like spool? :-? Might be an engrish kinda thing.

Nothing beats the OG chatterbait in my book. Tried the pure poison and could never get it to run right? Do like the skirts on em though. I also have zeroed on the gambler model (the one with the weedguard) I like to use the secret weapon lures bluegill skirt with a twin tail Yammo grub for quicker retreives. And a zoom chunk when working it over the bottum.

they really do look good! Heck woo daves uses spincasters in tourneys.

I regularly fish a bank fishing only pond similar to yours and just couldnt use jigs the way I like to, this is my solution: step 1: get the straight tale worm of ur choice. As mentioned earlier u dont want appendages or tails to "grab" anything Step 2: take the hook of ur choice and run the "head" end of the worm so that your knot is completely covered by the plastic. (very important) Step 3: insert a nail weight inside the plastic completely concealing it. This creates a very streamlined, weedless rig. Another trick I use on fluke type baits is cutting the plastic with a knife, and inserting a tungsten bullet weight into the plastic, then glue it back securely. (I also cut the Head end of senkos a 1/2'' or so down the middle and saturate the inside with super glue. This saves me a TON of money over a season) Good luck and I hope ya catch a biggun'.

Still kickin myself over that one!

well done! aint nothin better than james river catfishin. Where u above the fall line?

yes even loose....like i said if i grab it directly above the reel its smooth...I'm no reel guru, but was wondering if their could be something with the drag stack? I havent opened it yet as I have no schmetatics and honestly am very inexperienced with reel repair

I have an SX and on two occasions now when hookin into a healthy fish Ive had topush the thumb bar to release line as the drag just wouldnt give line, even though it was correctly set. When i grab the line by hand its smooth......What gives? (no it doesnt have braid on it) Thanks Josh

forgot to mention braid is a little unforgiving with treble hook lures. Just back of the drag for a little "give" and you'll be fine.

There are many reasons in my book to make the switch. -braid will make ur $50 rod feel like a $150 (in sensitivity). -Wind knots, or those crazy loops you have probly seen with ur mono will be a thing of the past as braid has little if any memory - even though its more exspensive initially braid will last u a LONG time. So its cheaper long term. (like synthetic oil) I've had power pro on a president for 3 years! - Greater strength (you will save ALOT of lures because of it) -less stretch= better long distance hooksets -smaller diameter= longer casts Theres a debate about the line visibilty factor, personally i dont think fish care. If it bothers ya just use a leader. Thers many brands that are popular. I've used power pro and stren and have been equally pleased with both.

pretty much says it all! they will stack up around those feeder creeks (or anything that feeds water in) after a rain. Only thing I might add is they may be more shallow than normal if the waters darkened up any.

haha still a nice fish bro! (even though it aint been eatin' much, lol)

BPS still does under the browning brand........I dont know much about them, I've heard their more brittle than graphite but dont know for sure on that.... I'd assume if they were any competition to graphite, our "next big thing" tackle industry wouldve been all over it....

3/8oz secret weapon buzzbait in black/blue has accounted for over twenty citation caliber fish in the last 3 years. luckycraft sammy (95?) in american shad has landed some football shaped smallies for me.