Nine Miler

That is comparing apples to oranges. Dale Earnhardt proved himself. His successes bred credibility. Nobody listened to Dale Earnhardt before he won races. In fact most of his peers thought he was foolish, and reckless. When he started winning, people feared and respected him. I tried to end this argument a few posts ago... I am not saying you don't know what you are talking about because you don't use a comma. All I am saying is that people who have never met you will take you more seriously if you write like you have made it successfully through grade school. I am sorry but it is the truth. Would you write a resume or job application with no capitals or with incorrect punctuation? You would if you wanted the company to put your application in the trash...The same applies here. We can argue this for ages, but I would rather end this. I apologize to the original poster for derailing this thread. I tried to give input a few posts back...

You make a good point, Rooster. I agree with you. I played golf professionally (mini-tour) in a former life, and I can tell you there were guys that would use anything if it was free, and even more so if they got paid. There were also guys who used what they thought gave them the best opportunity to win. (If they were offered a sponsorship by those manufacturers, it was a bonus.) I was never good enough to even get sponsored for equipment, but those guys that used what they thought would help them win were more likely to do just that then the other guys. My point is, I think KVD wants to win. I think he wants to use equipment that is going to give him the best chance to win. If that was something other than Quantum, I think we would see his signature on different gear.

First off, I was asking roadwarrior an honest question. Second, Maybe you should reread his post. He said nothing about spelling or punctuation at all. He was referring To(I do believe) In the differences in the two rods,and I wanted his honest opinion on them both. Third,("And" you've got to be kidding) If all you got is,"And" and a "comma" out of my post I can live with that . I am not here to impress anyone with my writing skills.(sorry) But thank you Nine Miler for pointing that out. No hard feeling and I hope you enjoy the rest of you evening. Now lets get back on topic about these Tour PT rods. There was plenty more in there besides a comma- that said, I have no issues with you, Turtle. I am just saying an argument is more effective/credible when it is delivered intelligently. I have never used a Quantum. They may be great. I don't know. What I do know is that I would be more apt to try one if the person trying to persuade me made a compelling educated argument. Several others make compelling arguments, TourPT does not. KVD is the man, others said it before and I agree. He seems to have no issues with the equipment. I do not know what the terms of his contract are, but he catches fish on those Quantums.

We are questioning his credibility because of the way he spells prefer. How can we take someone's opinion seriously when they use a hyphen in that word? I have a hard time taking anyone seriously that doesn't punctuate, use capitals, or form sentences correctly. I mean, we all read these posts several times. If you aren't sure you spelled per-fur correctly by looking at the red lines under it, at least go look it up or ask someone and come back to correct it. I get frustrated trying to read things like that. If you intend to sound educated on a subject, you should be able to show some command of spelling, punctuation and sentence formation if you are going to write on the internet. By the way, Turtle, there should be a comma after roadwarrior in the first sentence. You also should not start a sentence with "And."

You're kidding, right?

Thats a pretty sweet deal. They are $179 in person at the store all day long.

I gotta agree with this one. Me too. I have 14# on most of the time though.

Unfortunately, "NO" is the answer to all your questions which is why I rely heavily on the advise from those with experience using the equipment I am looking at purchasing. I had the same problem with another of my hobbies. I spent a few thousand dollars on air rifles, and was only disappointed once, and then only because the seller was less than truthful about the guns accuracy and trigger. Oh, well then get the Compre. ;D ;D ;D 8-)

A 6' 6" to 7' medium heavy fast rod is your best bet. Everyone will tell you their favorite brand. Take a look at the warranty. Are you happy with what is offered? Have you had positive/negative experiences with the company in the past? Do you have any friends who own rods of the two brands you could try to get an idea of what they are like? Can you at least feel one in a store instead of just online? If you can, take your reel with you and see which setup feels best, because ultimately, what feels best to you is most important.

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I think one rod could serve both purposes just fine. I would go with the XF action. If budget isn't an issue, its cool to have a designated rod for each technique you mentioned, but I don't think its necessary. It would also be nice to have separate rigs for convenience, and that may be the justification to get both if budget isn't an issue- which it doesn't seem to be. edit- I have not used any of the rods you indicated so I can't make a specific recommendation there.

Yes

That is the concept I was trying to get at. He said it better, though.

Its definitely cheaper to replace your hooks than your bait, but those smart links are fairly pricey themselves. In my opinion, probably not worth it until you get into the $15-$20 bait and up range.

2500. I have about 6 2500 size spinning reels. They aren't that big. You can use light line, like 6 or 8, but it will be fine with 12 or 14 as well.

http://www.***.com/Ultimate_SmartLink_Titanium_Rings/descpage-ULSR.html

Try flicking it sidearm. It sounds like you are "snapping" the rod tip too much, like cracking a whip. If you load the tip of the rod too much you can "******" the hook through the bait, as it is very soft. By throwing sidearm, you can actually see the tip load and control it better. When throwing overhead, the tip is loading behind you and you can't see it. Try a longer slower motion to build momentum and send the bait. It is heavy enough to travel pretty far. Hope that helps.

Maybe I am naive about swimbait rods, but would something like this work? It is from the Compre Muskie Series...Hard to beat for that price- I don't see why you would need an ultra sensitive rod, as long as you can tell if your lure is fouled. Correct me if I am wrong, I have never fished a swimbait specific setup, just trying to offer another option. CPC-M76XH Length= 7'6" Power/Action= X-Heavy/Fast Line= 20-50 lb. Lure= 2-6 oz. Pieces= 1 Fore grip/Rear grip= 5.0"/14.0" $119.99

I know, you'll see it on the 11th look. That's when I found it.

There is definitely a reel there, look again. I didn't think there was the first time I looked either.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1265751304 This is on page 2 of this board. There is another one called mixing soft plastics you should read. http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1265424515

Now, I have only fished St. Clair for about two seasons, but I just bought my first pack of tubes this winter. I still have a hard time believing I can catch fish with this thing. To this day, I have never tied a tube on my line. Maybe we should start a St. Clair tube support group.

I would go with... Reels: Baitcasting- Shimano Citica: This is a great value. Spinning- Shimano Sahara: Another great value. Rods: Baitcasting- Shimano Compre 7' Med Hvy/Fast Action CPC-70MH Shimano Crucial 7' Med Hvy CRC-70MH St. Croix Premiere 7' Med Hvy/Fast Action PC70MHF St. Croix Avid 7' Medium Heavy AVC70MHF Spinning- Shimano Compre 6'6" Med Xfast CPS-X66MB Shimano Crucial 6'8" Medium CRS-X68M St. Croix Premiere 6' M Fast PST66MF St. Croix Avid 6' 8" Med. X-Fast AVS68MXF or 6' 3" Med. X-Fast AVS63MXF I put a few different series' of rods in there because the prices are a bit different. These are my opinions, but there is a lot of great stuff out there, it is hard to go wrong.

I have absolutely no idea if it is hard/expensive to put a reel seat on. I would assume it would be fairly expensive/intensive, and if the rod is inexpensive, it may be easier to try and take it back, send to manufacturer or just dump it and get a new one. I don't think the zip tie would be very effective. you want the rod and reel to feel like one unit, I am not sure you could get that effect with the zip tie.

Aww son, try them Tournament Grade rods, and if you're like me and want to fish live bait without the hassle, try Timbuktu preserved baits, they come in nightcrawler, cricket, and my favorite, wax worms. Aww, son. ;D