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I just received two of the newer Extreme versions direct from Dobyns as part of their warranty replacement plan. It's been my worst year ever for rod breakage (entirely my fault). I got a new 745c and 744c, both full handle. They don't fish any different than the old ones, as far as I'm concerned. I have both an old and a new 745c, and I was going back and forth yesterday tossing a 1/2 oz jig on them. Same reels (Curado E), same line (Tatsu 20). They're equal in my book, though it wouldn't surrpise me if the new version is an 1/8 oz lighter maybe. That won't put any more fish in the boat. The both look good, but I don't buy rods for their looks really. If you were to put my feet to the fire on the matter, I'd probably prefer the look of the older one by a slim margin, but the new one looks sharp, too.

Wait until you feel it and then reel fast and sweep set.

The generic answer would be, "I'll fish whatever type of cover is producing quality fish at the moment." That pretty hard to argue with, honestly. 75% of the time, that's how I roll. However, I prefer close-quarter fishing in and around docks and slop if given the choice. Those are my favorites. Frogging and jigging. There's no other thrill like that, not in the bass fishing world at least.

Personally, I fish in Crocs sandals. I have three pair in various styles. I wish I would've found these years ago… I went thru so many crappy pairs of boating shoes. By the way, I'm not talking about the ugly clogs. I actually own those too, but I won't wear them outside the house. haha. They're my 'house shoes'. Seriously. I have wood floors, and Crocs clogs are the most comfortable thing that's ever graced these two feet. I wear them instead of slippers inside the house. In regards to your foot pain, it's worth a shot trying Powerstep insoles. They can be purchases on the Net for a decent price. They may seem expensive at first at roughly $30-40 apiece, but you may like then enough to buy a few pairs. I own 5 pairs right now, and I won't even own work shoes without them again. I have flat feet, and they've greatly improved my life. No exaggeration. I used to put icepacks on my feet and ankles to reduce swelling and foot pain my feet were so bad, but I no longer do that, thanks to these $30 insoles. I should mention, there are $30 blue insoles, and there are $40 maroon insoles. I just recently tried the maroon ones. They offer better heel support and are arguably worth an extra $10. Keep in mind, I am really cheap, but these seemingly overpriced sandals and insoles I've mentioned are a no-brainer to me. They're a total bargain. For what it's worth...

I've tried them on spinnerbaits and buzzbaits, but I kept fouling the lure with weeds. There's really no need to compromise the weedlessness of your spinners; I find that a nice, 2/0 long-shank trailer hook catches plenty of extra fish.

I prefer the Improved Clinch for mono, fluoro, and copoly, and the Double Palomar for braid. The Double works especially well with newer styles of braid which tend to be slicker. I know a lot of people swear by it, but I've had bad luck and a few breakoffs while using the Palomar with fluorocarbon line. Fluoro is highly susceptible to friction burns that badly weaken the knot, and I believe I was burning my line when I tried it, despite using lots of spit. I'm very comfortable with the Improved Clinch. I can tie it with my eyes closed, so I see no reason to switch.

Carp do that all the time in the lakes i fish. I've wasted a lot of time going after them in the past, thinking they were bass.

Somewhere between 4.75 and 5.5 lbs.

6-14 LMB that came from a shallow dock with a 10" plastic worm and 5/16 oz. sinker.

I'd recommend getting yourself a 1/2 and a 3/4 oz. tungsten sinker for your C-rig. One of each is all you need; I've been using the same ones for the last three seasons. It's a great way to probe the bottom of lakes. You'll discover things that you'd miss even with electronics.

I would recommend just adding one or two new techniques per year, and pound the heck out of them. This year, it'll be hairjigs for me. It was swimjigs last year. The best time to learn a technique is when the fishing is hot. When you know they're biting on just about anything, toss the lures you have very little confidence in. That's what I did to develop confidence in carolina rigs, dropshots, and shakeyheads. I'd fish spinnerbaits and jigs until I found active pockets of fish, then I started tossing c-rigs, drops, and shakeyheads. It didn't take long before I had a half-dozen nice fish on each lure. My confidence was restored, and I have since gained a lot of respect for these baits that I once disliked.

Is that a typo? Is your main line braid or mono?

Acetone in a baby food jar for an occasional flush. 1 drop of Shimano oil. They don't need much. I used to overdo it.

I think it'll be fine as long as it's dry out there.

I use two at the moment: Dobyns DX703 SF Shimano Sustain 2500 15# braid with FC leader Dobyns DX792 SF Shimano Stradic CI4 2500 6-8# FC

It's a low-grade fluorocarbon line.

I'm right-handed; I use lefty baitcasters for all of my jig/worm/pitch/flip rods, and righty baitcasters for moving baits. The biggest advantage of a right-hander using lefty reels is not having to shift hands while flipping/pitching.

Pretty much all my other hobbies take a backseat in the summer. I have plenty of time during the long winters to focus on the other ones.

In the type of cover commonly found in MN waters, the Dobyns 735 is a perfect fit.

Try the Strike King Caffeine Shad and the Yum Houdini Shad. Those are my two favorites.

If the wire arm is in line with the hook and it's still turning over, then either you're moving the bait too fast or it's just a unbalanced spinnerbait.

To give a bait the freedom to walk from side to side, you have to throw a little slack into the line after every twitch. The shorter a frog's legs, the better it walks. The longer the legs, the more water it displaces, so it "chugs" better.

I've tried spray painting them different colors, but I think it made them slightly less sensitive (if you can dig a fingernail into the paint, what does that tell you?) Now I just repeatedly use a black Sharpie. I believe shiny weights can be a deterrent at times in clear water.

Black, junebug, watermelon/red, and green pumpkin on a 1/8 oz. T-rig or shakyhead jig. I haven't had any luck fishing finesse-style worms on a C-rig, and I've tried quite a bit.

Half the time, a strike on a C-rig just feels kinda mushy. I make a lot of unnecessary hook sets while Carolina rig fishing, since with tungsten sinkers, every little pebble results in a tap. There is no other bait that's as well suited for the old adage, "When in doubt, set the hook."