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Here's a thought: Be honest and don't try to scam people or companies, especially those with a long track-reconrd of exceptional customer service.

Great work! That's like a whole year's worth of lunkers in a few days.

I honestly think jigs without rattles catch slightly more fish. A jig makes plenty of racket while being bounced/dragged through the cover. Many of my jigs started with rattles, but they were eventually ripped off by northern pike. It seems the older jigs (minus rattles) work better.

I've never handled the Champion versions of the 702/703, but I much prefer the dx703 over the dx702 for the techniques you're describing. The dx703 is an excellent shaky-head, wacky-rig, soft jerkbait rod, and it's got enough backbone to set hooks on T-rigs. I think the 702 are better suited for 1/16 - 1/8 grubs/tubes, splitshot rigs, and light dropshot. It's a very finesse rod. I owned one and sold it because it was just too light for me.

I'm in St. Cloud too. I also fish Mink/Somers sometimes, though it's declined drastically over the last few seasons. 5-10 years ago, that was the SPOT! Then the word got out...

It only upsets me when they take the big lunker bass for their dinner tables. A few years ago, I severely gill-hooked a 6-pounder (a big bass by Minnesota standards) with a frog and then wrestled it out of the lily pads and 80-degree water. The gills were detached in places, and the fish had nearly bled out and died by the time I got a hold of it. It was clearly going to die, so rather than give it to the turtles, I decided to take it home, fillet it, and deep-fry it in Shorelunch breading, like I used to do with sunnies as a kid. The taste of that bass still haunts me to this day! Without a doubt, it was the most terrible meat I have ever eaten; it tasted just like how lake-bottom muck smells, even after being soaked in soda water, breaded, fried, and drizzled with hot-sauce, lemon, and tartar. For the life of me, I cannot understand how people actually enjoy the taste of big bass. Cat food would be more appetizing.

NIMBY

If you're fishing out of that kayak, I'd recommend looking for small lakes with lousy boat accesses or relatively inadequate parking (for trucks/trailers). Some of those are relatively untapped by anglers because they're too much of a pain to get the boat into. These kind of lakes are a dime-a-dozen. Give Google Maps a shot for scouting.

Big fan of the standard (not Ultra Soft) Yo Zuri Hybrid! I probably would have never discovered this terrific line had I not found Bass Resource. I use the 10-12# mostly for reaction baits, with 10# being reserved for cranks. I don't do a lot of deep cranking, using a little thicker line doesn't bother me. Mono would offer more stretch and perhaps an extra fish or two, but Hybrid flat-out saves money due to it's toughness and abrasion resistances. Hybrid is also more sensitive than any mono I've used. After all, my local lakes are full of toothy critters that would cut right through mono, but with Hybrid, they just scuff it up and force me to retie a lure that I would have otherwise lost.

Have you fished with it yet? Its hardly a whip; its a med/heavy compared to industry standards. It has a nice tip and a solid backbone. It's the ideal 3/8-3/4 oz. spinnerbait rod. I have those two rods, Savvy and Champ 734. Power-and-action-wise, they're indistinguishable, as far as I'm concerned. One is just lighter, more responsive, and more sensitive that the other.

Luckily, I have access to a 80-acre private lake nearby. The property owners let me drive through their lawn to launch my boat using a private concrete access. The bass in that lake are basically 'virgin' fish; they'll hit anything you toss at them. They're not conditioned at all. If anything, they seem to be generally more aggressive under all circumstances, and more likely to be caught using run-and-gun tactics (as opposed to slower, bottom-contact fishing). I don't fish it as often as I would like because I don't want to wear out my welcome, but it's as close to a sure thing as a lake can get. I've never seen a public lake like that.

You can do just about anything with the 734. It may be the most versatile rod in the lineup. I use them with 12# Yo-Zuri Hybrid for reaction baits: spinners, buzzers, chatterbaits, large square-bills, big wakebaits, large lipless cranks, etc. The 735 is a nice pitching/jigging/T-rig stick. It's also a lot of fun to fish frogs with, but sometimes it's slightly lacking in the power department, even with 3-5 lb bass and moderate-to-heavy weed cover, as is commonly found in MN. I have Samurai 30# braid on it, and use it for fishing swim jigs, toads, and paddle-tail swimbaits. Perfect fit. It's also quite the versatile rod. The 736 is the best frog I've ever used. It's has all the benefits of the 735 in terms of frogging, yet it has quite a bit more power. I've owned one for a season (replacing the 735/766 for frogging), and I'm really glad I did. I used it for frogging exclusively. I wouldn't consider it a versatile rod; it's a premium frogging stick, and that's about all. 55# Daiwa Samurai line. All of these 3 rods are very well balanced (that's why I'm such a fan of Dobyns rods), and the reel-seats are not an issue in any way, shape, or form.

Good baits, especially T-rigged with heavier weights (3/8+). Tons of action, and very few bites from dinks. Nice presentation for above-average sized bass.

7.1:1 for everything aside from cranking. I specifically like the faster feels to take up slack with a fish hits. It's also nice to take in those last few yards with just a few fast cranks once the lure is out of the likely strike-zone. That said, I have to constantly remind myself not to overwork baits with those fast reels.

I had two 744 and two 745 that I bought in the 2012-14 seasons. They're my favorite bottom-contact rods.Broke one of each this season through sheer stupidity and chance. Using the Dobyns warranty replacement program, I was able to acquire the new ones this summer and fish new/old side-by-side.

I prefer mod/fast action, medium/heavy power graphite cranking sticks. Glass feels too 'whippy' for me. Graphite is much more crisp and sensitive.

Good choice. I'd have a hard time imaging you won't be pleased with it.

Aside from maybe being a hair lighter, I can't tell a difference in terms of power or action. I own two 745's and two 744's, one new and one old. The new ones are all rigged up the same, rod-, reel-, and line-wise, as their older counterparts. As far as I'm concerned, it fishes exactly the same as the older version, which is by no means an insult. They're sweet rods.

Dobyns Champion 735c on a Black Friday sale will run you $200 or so. It's a terrific, versatile rod that would match up very well with the techniques you mentioned. It's also a first-rate frogging rod. I own two. If you don't like it, you could very easily sell it in the flea market for a minimal loss.

I've had my best luck using these hooks. My theory is that I get more strikes because I'm spending more time actually fishing and less time un-fouling a twisted up rig.

Champion 734 735 Extreme 744 745 Those are my favorite in the line. They'd all be a great fit for you. Given those lures you mentioned, you might be better off with two rods, both a 4 and a 5 power. Perhaps it'd be worth considering two Champions (734/5) and two lesser-priced reels (Citicas or Curados).

The waters are clear up here, for the most part. That bass would spot that giant leader from a mile away and it'll cost you bites.

Yep that works well. I toss my swim jigs on 30# braid and lose very few of them. 20# Tatsu fluorocarbon also resists northern teeth very well, so that's what I toss my jigs and worms on. These lines get nicked and need to be re-tied sometimes, but rarely do they get bit off. I used to toss swim jigs on 12-15# copolymer and it would get bit off routinely.

10,000 Lakes with 10,000,000 dinky pike that can't wait to bite your lure off.

I'd stay away from the cranking sticks (or any cranking stick) for soft plastics, without a doubt. They're just too soft in the midsection of the rod, which works great for sticking fish with reaction lures, but would work very poorly for Texas Rigged baits. I tried my 705c Graphite with some soft jerkbaits, and it was not easy to drive some of the hooks home on long casts. What lures are you primarily going to be fishing with it? IAbass8 is 100% correct in his assessment of the Dobyns power-rating system. From what I've seen, the 3-powers are "mediums" and the 4-powers are "med-heavy" basically. Don't sleep on the 734c; it's the best "all-purpose" rod I've ever used. Hands down, my favorite next to the 744c, which has a little more backbone and excels at bottom-contact lures rather that "all-purpose". I own two 734 and use them for spinners, buzzers, spooks, chatterbaits, squarebills, lipless cranks, some swim jigs, soft jerkbaits, light T-rigs, you name it. They probably have more miles on them that any rod I own.