Goose52

...and I use YZ-Ultrasoft - 6 or 8lb on spinning, 8 or (mostly) 10lb on casting.

A reminder went off in my computer this morning to order a re-arming kit for my PFD. Dang - has it been three years already? Yep. Is everyone keeping track of the status and expiration date of the gas cylinder and bobbin in your auto-inflate PFD? Be safe...

In this case - you really need to help yourself. The other folks on the boards can make suggestions about what works for them, and can ask you questions about your needs - but YOU need to decide what works for YOU. Start making a list of what you NEED out of a watercraft. Some examples: How many people in the boat? 1, 2, 3, 4... How much money do you want to spend? How are you going to transport it? Tow? Car-top, etc. How heavy can it be? (a big issue if cartopping, not as much if trailering) How much room do you have to store it? How stable does it need to be? Want to stand up and fish? 2 or more people standing? How are you going to power it? Gas, electric? Any electric only lakes? Etc. Once you start coming up with those answers, you will start to have a better idea of what you need. Grab some paper and a pen (or open a word processing file) and get started!

Ah - gotcha. I thought you meant both lines...

Hey Dwight - I was reading your post and nodding my head and wasn't suprised at all. But then I remembered seeing Shimano rod weights when I was rod-shopping one time so I just checked to see if they were still there and they are. Not directly on the Shimano web site, but they ARE in the 2013 Shimano catalog that you can download. For Loomis - no weights on the web site OR in the Loomis catalog...

Great gear! For some reason though, I just had the urge to put on a pair of shades...........................

Hootie - I can't help much other than to say that some of the new low- to mid-range rods may be lighter than the (last) GLX line. I can't speak about the new GLXs or NRXs as I haven't weighed them. Here's one example. Three BC rods - all 7'mf - weights in grams: 124.9 Loomis GLX MBR842C 122.2 St. Croix Avid AVC70MF 104.4 BPS Carbonlite Note that the weight delta between the GLX and Avid is probably meaningless - could just be individual cork density, etc. FWIW

An hour after typing this...I had to "walk the talk." Was fishing a lipless crank in 42deg. water and hooked up with a BIG bass - big as probably 6 pounds or larger, perhaps much larger big. Pulled drag twice, got it back within a few feet of the bank, and suddenly, it was gone. Maybe 30 seconds. I'm looking down at the lipless crank laying on the bottom of the crystal clear water column, my shoulders droop, head goes down, exhale. It coulda been the biggest bass I'm going to catch for a while. 7'mf rod, 10lb YZ line. Was tackle a factor? Maybe. Moving bait in cold water, sometimes the bass doesn't quite catch the bait and only gets one hook of the rear treble in the hard part of the jaw. With a stouter rod and heavier line, maybe I could have got that hook more solid in the jaw. Maybe, maybe not. Or maybe, the hook pulled out and stouter tackle would have just pulled it out that much faster. Who knows. BUT, I had the excitement of the initial strike, the 30 seconds of the (said to be non-existent) fight, and then the emotion dump. Thrill of victory, agony of defeat. Karma. Air temp was 32, light wind, perhaps 25 wind chill, light icing on the rod guides, a little snow on the ground. Much better to go out and fish, and then lose the fish, than sit at home thinking about fishing. Sometimes fishing is about more than just catching...at least right now I'm trying to convince myself of that...

John, I don't play out a bass, all I've said is that I enjoy the fight that there is. Since I fish mostly open water, and typically use lighter baits, I use lighter tackle and enyoy the fight. Even with ML rods and 6lb test, you've still usually got the bass back to the boat/bank in about 30 seconds, minute tops. I'm still trying to get the bass in before I lose it, and it's not like I'm trying to land 9 pound bass on 2lb test. I understand about enjoying the strategy, tactics, bait selection, presentation, etc. But for many of us, bass ARE about the only species available and the fight is a big part of the equation.

Sure, I know. And ww2farmer is talking like a good tournament angler. I don't want to lose fish needlessly either...but I sure do like to feel the tug on the line. AND, I don't mind the risk of loosing a fish from time to time. Thus, I personally will keep my tackle on the light(er) side to get more of those tugs.

Wow, in that case, perhaps the right tool for the job would be dynamite. Certainly, a fish in the boat is important for tournaments and fishing for food. And I always feel bad if I loose a quality fish. But isn't part of the enjoyment of fishing the fight? The knowledge that perhaps the fish might win and get away? I don't know about others on this board, but that's important for me. Sometimes, fishing is about more than just catching...

4lb was nylon mono 6lb, 8lb, and 10lb was both nylon mono and YZ-Ultrasoft 12lb was flouro 14lb was nylon mono 20lb was braid

Most of my water is open and as a result I can get away with fishing lighter gear than most. I do go up to MH every once in a while, but while I have an H rod, I've never used it here other than some practice casts. Some years I use more UL and L power rods. On line, 6 or 8 pound is the norm on spinning and 10 pound on BC gear. The only braid I routinely use is 20lb on spinning gear. Fishing just seems to be more fun with ligher tackle, especially in my water where smaller bass are the norm. Why use MH rods to go after smaller fish in open water. I can readily land any fish in my lakes (up to 50lb grass carp) with M power rods, and ML makes it even more fun. Using 2012 as an example - heres a summary of the fish I caught by rod power and line test: Fish by Rod Power (both spinning and BC rods): 12 UL 9 L 232 ML 970 M 13 MH 0 H Fish by Line Test: 12 4lb 121 6lb 157 8lb 427 10lb 84 12lb 2 14lb 433 20lb (braid)

No set period - it depends upon how much use any one particular reel has had. I'm not one to believe that nylon mono, copolymer, or flouro suddenly "goes bad" just being on the reel. Braid never "goes bad" either - it just gets worn out or used up. I trim back 6" to a foot of line at every retie (sometimes more if I feel abrasion on the line), and may retie multiple times a day. On the reels that I use the most (I fish every day), I might have trimmed-back 20 to 30 yards of line after a month or so and will have to add new line often. Otherwise, I'll only change line if I've had a backlash or other problems that makes the line suspect. I might change the line after I've caught a 40-50 pound carp or otherwise put stress on the line. I use backing on most reels so I'm usually only changing the top 70-80 yards of line. Now, if line has been on a reel for a couple years or more (I keep a written record of when the line was installed), I might change the line just for grins, or perhaps to avoid manageability problems related to coiling, but not because I think it's suddenly "gone bad." I should mention too that all my reels are stored in the garage, or inside the house. If reels are kept in the rod locker of the boat forever, with lots of heat, then perhaps line is going to degrade at a faster rate... Here's some earlier responses to the same question: How Often Do You Change Line

The ProLites are indeed great reels. I now have quite a few higher-end reels that perform very well...but they SHOULD - they're expensive. The ProLite has features and performance at a level quite a bit above it's original price, and at my average price of $57, they are just incredible values. I fished one the other day - with a big smile. Yes - too bad BPS isn't offering that 05 size in their mid-range reels. In fact, there really is a hole in the reel market for a reasonably priced "finesse" type BC reel having a line capacity of about 80-100yds of 10lb line, a light spool, and the ability to handle lighter baits. The current production reels that fit that bill are expensive, and that leaves people with looking for used Sols, Pixys, etc. Even used ProLites have gone up in price - especially the "C" models. I bought two of my ProLite C's used (but as new) - one for $30, one for $40.............can't get them for that any more!

Microguides have some advantages - usually said to be lighter rod weight, increased casting distance, and increased sensitivity. How much of that is real, and how much is theoretical, has been the subject of some debate. Microguides also have several issues. If you fish braid with a leader, there may be an issue with the leader knot flowing through the microguides. If you fish in sub-freezing weather, microguides will ice-up faster than conventional guides. Microguides may also potentially get fouled by slop that is carried up to the guides on the line.

I have Compres and Premiers, but only casting - not spinning so I can't compare them. Plus, I have the older cork-gripped Compres, not the latest model. On the reel - the "35" size Pflueger spinning reel is pretty big. I have two of them and run 10 and 12 pound line on them - they're really bigger than you need for most bass applications. I think the "30" size reel would suit your needs nicely - especially if you're talking ML.

Here you go...

Good to know. Lots of folks seem to be interested in the Lexa and some of those might already have the new-gen Compres and Crucials. I keep eyeballing the Lexa 100 - price on-line is down to $100. For such a new reel, I'm not sure I understand why it is discounted so far already. At $100, it may very well be the best value at that price point - especially if one is a fan of the Daiwa mag braking. I wish they would make a "50" size Lexa - the 100 has more line capacity than I need. I guess there's still no replacement for the Sol...

During the Classic last year, I called in an order and they price matched the store price. Give it a try....

Just make sure that you keep the brake drum clean and with a thin film of lube on it. Brake drum and brake shoe wear, so far, have been the only problems with the PQ 5-Year Challenge reel. Most of the wear may have been preventable had I kept the drum clean and lubed...

The bling is OK - but at the end of the day, as you said, it's the performance...especially the end result. Speaking of end results - here's the best color match: silver reel and big green bass...

Blue and Gold - go Navy !

The only time I noticed color when putting together a combo - I had this PX Type R first and needed a light-power rod to go with it. The Recon fit the bill performance-wise and I noticed that the red accent on the rod would match the reel. Black on black, red and red - looks OK. Core 50 / Cumara A Gold reel on a blue LTB looks OK too!

It's open 24/7 - but only to a select clientele...that would be me...