Delaware Valley Tackle

1. Med Hvy/Fast for jigs, plastics etc 1/2oz> 2. Med Hvy/Mod for trebel hook lures 3. Med/Fast spinning for light jigs, plastics <1/2 oz (already have) as for baits, try the Yamamoto Fat Ika rigged weedless skirt forward on a 3.o EWG hook on your spinning rig. Cast it let it sink and drag slowly along the bottom. If you dont get bites on either a senko or Ika, move to a new spot.

Light tackle fishing is fun. Just be sure not to go so light as to over stress the fish with a prolonged fight. To me, spinning tackle is where i turn for a better presentation of light baits more so than giving the fish a chance. Once I set the hook hook on a 6'8" ML/XF spinning rig spooled with 20# braid,or 6# flouro for that matter, that fish don't stand much of a chance at all. lol

"Dock talk" can be more harm than good especially if you're really new and can't weed out the BS. No need to throw away that reel. For reliable guidance you can't beat this site. As for lubing reels, in general less is more. Gear teeth get lightly greased with a corrosion resitant lube (Superlube), bearings get one drop of light oil (Yellow Rocket Fuel), sliding parts such as clutch parts get oiled with a corrosion resistant lube (Reel x). Reels should be professionally serviced annually (more or less frequent depending upon use). Keep them off the ground and protected from dust and sand.

I'll be happy to take a look if you want to send it in. I'll evaluate and get in touch before investing anything substantial.

Any jigging rod you'd use for that lure weight range should be fine. Med/F or XF

Line damage is the main concern. Casting may be negatively affected as well. It's a pretty simple fix that should not take long at all. If you feel that you must fish it before fixing, strip the broken guide off completely and use it with the one less guide.

Cork comes in many grades, is getting very expensive and some times hard to get. I wouldn't be surprised to see an even bigger move away from cork grips on all but the highest end factory rods. As for the reels, specs don't necessarily tell the whole story, but there is probably some valid raeson for skeptisism.

This how I spool reels. Line coming off the bottom for a spinning reel and off the top for a baitcaster.

Yes, it's just a hot glue. A couple tips: pull the top straight off. Avoid twisting.It should not require force once heat is applied. Apply heat from the very tip so as not to over heat the blank. Repair kits including the glue are readily available. Match the tube size as closely as possible to the tip diameter.

I can't think of any tip tops that 2" long off the top of my head. If you want to post a pic I'll try to identify the model and tell you where to get a match. For that matter, the rod manufacturer might tell you or even send you one.

Don't let the "balance" debate cause undo concern.There is no right or wrong. A rod that long will have some tip to it but with the tip held high as is usual in jigging it wont be a problem unless you just prefer a different feel. The advantage of the added length is not leverage, but the ability to move a lot of line quickly.

x2

The light weight and sensitivity we appreciate in modern rods comes at a price, which is a level of brittleness. It can be surprising how little it can take to compromise a blank. Care should be taken to not do anything with a rod that will load the tip beyond 90* to the blank. As bass fisherman and tournament anglers, we are hard on equipment. Often harder than we really need to be. ABU may or may not have manufacturing issues with the Veritas, but in general we need our practices to evolve along with the products we use.

Ambassaduer parts are surpirsingly widely available. They are reliable, perform well and are prime cadidates for upgrades. Some of the more rare models in good condition sell for a good buck, but even everyday use reels will get $30-$40. Good find!

10-12 lbs of drag is sufficient for bass fishing. Too tight of a drag can result in undue stress on the rod,reel,line and knots etc.

Don't feel bad guys. You wouldn't believe the number of times I've received a "Bag-O-Parts" from someone that took a reel apart and got side tracked or whatever. One guy's wife "helped" him by scooping the lined out parts into a bag so they wouldn't get lost when he stepped away to do something else.

Up to $200 is a generous budget for a spinning reel. It's hard to wrong with any of the name brands. I regularly recommend Pflueger spinning reels as a bang for your buck deal. I also have a Stradic ci4 2500 that I like a lot.

Brand aside, Signature Series rods are marketing with little unique to offer. In this case, I also find the term "Custom" inaccurate. By it's nature as a production rod, it can not be defined as "custom" IMO.

Lubing is important and always worthwhile. A full deep cleaning and re-lube is probably in order as you mentioned.

I use a mono backing with about 2.5 good casts worth of braid (about 75 yards).

Mild soap and water is fine to wipe down the outside of your reel. Don't over do it and force water etc into the newly lubed reel. A little car polish is ok as well if you want to go that far.

A similar bait, Keitech swing impact has become a staple around here.

Black Lake's a great fishing lake. It's been quite a few years, but when I was there, on a 4th of july week,the water was pea soup green. Does it still get like that?

The SR765 is 7'6" Retail is $260. Mine is custom built on the same blank. It's paired with an ABU 4600 C3. It casts well, sensitive enough to feel the wobble of the bait, has plenty of backbone to haul fish out of cover and is forgiving enough to keep them hooked up.

I'd say line visibility can be an issue in gin clear water when fish are negative. I'm not convinced that color, as we see it, translates directly to visibility by fish. In a heavy tackle setup more typical of braided line applications it's more important for me to see the line than the fish not to. I see a lot of bites that I'd never have felt.