Madhouse27

They say that with a larger bass such as this one that it's best to support the fish's body with your other hand when holding it. This will insure that the jaw is not injured.

Well said Crestliner. The warmer it gets, the more time you spend looking at your screen. There are few better sights in this world than a ball of baitfish with some bruisers lurking underneath it. I love July and August!

Great pics Husky. It's been a fun first part of the season up here despite all the rain. I'm curious, if you were coming back up and could only bring one bait for some big Maine bronzebacks, what would it be?

We all have our brand preferences (I like Yamaha) but it's hard to knock any of the new outboards. I might spend a little bit of time researching the reputations of the local dealers/service departments and see if that steers you in a certain direction. If you hear that one is head and shoulders above the others that might be the brand to go with. Do you already have a boat or are you shopping for the whole package?

Hard to go wrong with those two reels.

Thank you all for your input. This might be a good idea for a thread "Alternate uses for a Whuppin' Stik" ;D

I was looking through the new Cabelas catalog and noticed the attractive price on the Whuppin' Stick rods. I was trying to determine if one of these would be right for my application. I have a large oriental rug in my living room. In the spring we like to take it outside, hang it up and beat some of the dust out of it. It's fairly large so I was thinking the 7'2" Heavy Spinning model might be the proper choice. Now I know it was designed "to go after tackle busting lunkers" but something tells me it might just be a better rug beater.

Ihave YHUS 6lb on a couple of my spinning reels but haven't tried it on any baitcasters. What pound test would you guys recommend?

Hmmm, I think that the original post was about the Shimano Symetre. I really like this reel (both versions). Not only is it a fantastic reel for the money, it's a great reel period.

For my reels that have mono on them I use Stren green.

I agree, it's been a loooooong winter. It started early and seems to be hanging on late. I'm chomping at the bit to get fishing up here.

Good point. Put 3 lbs of weight in a plastic grocery bag and tie it to your line. GENTLY lift the bag. If you are not comfortable with the stress this puts on your rod, back the weight up to 2 1/2 lbs and try it again. I find that 3 lbs is about right on my Medium Power rods, but equipment varies. 8-) I learned something new today. After all this time, BR keeps on producing.

Good score!

1) Case Plastics Jack's Worm 2) Zoom Fat Albert Grub on an 1/8oz head w/ 3/0 Gammy hook 3) Strike King Bleeding Bait tube 4) Booyah Pro Finesse Boo Bug jig w/ Netbait Tiny Paca Chunk 5) Senko wacky 6) Zoom Superfluke 7) Spinnerbait chart/w chart blades

Now that's a receipt I might not leave laying around for the wife to find.