RichF

Better than the SS SV for $150? Both these reels have my attention.

Check out Sierra Trading Post. They usually have good deals on really nice stuff. I got my Simms Prodry Jacket on there for $245 and my Simms Contender Jacket for $140. Use this link and it will give you a discount (15 - 25% depending on how much you spend). There are a couple Simms rain Jackets on here, excluded from the extra discount unfortunately, but they're still under $100. http://www.sierratradingpost.com/mens-rain-jackets~d~389/

I'm pretty sure there will still be a Classic sale. Like most have said in other threads, it's not site wide, just a select few things on sale. The Tax Stimulus sale will probably start mid-April and is 10% off sitewide (probably with some exclusions).

Welcome! We are in the same boat (pun intended). I've been in Arlington for a little over a year now and have yet to find any good shore fishing spots. But then I really haven't looked too hard. I try to spend as much time fishing back home in NY where my dad and my boat are.

While I only have a third of your bass fishing experience, I too know that 90% of bass anglers target the banks, that's why I agreed with you. I guess it just comes down to a matter of interpretation. If I went to any lake and immediately went straight to the obvious shoreline structure and caught some bass, does this mean I am highly skilled at finding bass quickly? I would say no, but if that's all it takes...shoot, I'll take the compliment!

Heavy jigs, lol. That's what I use mine for.

I don't see how your hypothetical approach to fishing an MLF event addresses the point. I'm not saying the Elite guys can't find fish. But to say they are so skilled at finding them quickly based off MLF events isn't accurate. They are simply looking for and fishing the most obvious stuff. That's not finding bass quickly, that's just fishing for bass in spots most anglers would deem high percentage spots (and would also likely fish). And I definitely disagree that the highest % of bass live around shoreline cover in most lakes. It may seem that way because those are the easiest fish to actually target, so 90% of anglers do just that.

MLF does a good job making the audience think this but I just don't really see it. 99% of the events play out the same way. Each angler finds the most obvious shoreline structure and goes to work. To me, that's not locating bass quickly, it's just doing what the majority of bass anglers do. The only difference is, these guys are better than most at actually fishing. Some guys pick the right point first, the right pad field first, or the right set of docks first. Then they all rotate. I think Marty Stone and the anglers themselves do a great job of making it seem like their decisions are made by this in-depth, analytical thought when really, they're just doing what was stated above (99% of the time). I wouldn't necessarily stop watching but I totally get where you're coming from. MLF is so good because it's so different from traditional tournaments. I think there could be some improvements but it's so popular right now, I don't see anything changing in a good while. Haha. I can relate. Maybe because I'm also from the great white north (way Upstate NY). I would like to see bigger fish caught (or attempted to be caught) on the show because that's what I relate more to. I fish for big ones every time I go out. I may only catch 10 - 15 a day but 7 - 10 of those will be over 2 and a quarter.

Welcome! A lot of guys on here took advantage of that deal during the Spring Fishing Classic sale. I'm not much of a BPS fan but I hear they're great reels for the $$. Thanks for sharing. I didn't think they were supposed to be selling them at that price online so I bet a few more will get sold once guys start reading this thread. lol

That's like the only time that has ever happened in the MLF. He happened to stumble across a massive school of good fish. To me, that's not figuring anything out. That's pure luck. But, this is the kind of thing that could happen more often if there was some kind of new size restrictions imposed. It would force guys to do what Aaron did and we'd likely see more occurrences like his.

I throw my frogs with a 7'3 H Kistler so I would use your 7'3 for that. The extra 3" seems to help me walk the bait a little better. I prefer a heavy action for this but you could get away with the med-heavy since you're likely using braid. I fish jigs a lot and have 4 rods dedicated to them. The 7' heavy is my favorite for dock skipping jigs as well. Since you've already tried that one for jigs and liked it, I'd say stick with it. If you find that the med-heavy is a little under powered for frogs, you could always change then...or give in to the bait monkey and buy a new one

I think they'd just be more of a pain than their worth. They're not gonna fit in my rod locker, truck, or apartment. They with definitely be tip heavy unless you add a bunch of counter balancing weights (or they have 2 ft long handles). I just can't imagine they'd be comfortable to fish with. Who would want to frog with an 8'8 heavy rod?!

I think there's some editing going on that actually makes it seem more "wire to wire" than it probably is.

I think there is another thread where this topic was discussed at length. I agree with you a 100%. I don't get overly excited watching the biggest names in pro bass fishing catching a bunch of 12-14 inchers on drop shots, finesse worms, and wacky rigged senkos. I like a lot of things about the format but I'd also like to see a few things changed. It's still, by far, the most entertaining bass fishing show on TV though and I'll keep watching it.

I posted the same thing on a different thread but the Walmart I went to sunday had 1/4 spools of 12lb Trilene Big Game for $1.50, 10lb, 15lb, 25lb for $3.50, same size spools of Stren mono for $1.50, Zoom lizards and Missile craws for $1, and Zoom utail worms for $1.18. I did see a few KVD 1.0s for $3 also. There was also a bunch of pan fish stuff as well.

Probably not this but I'm sure there was the assumption that switching to bigger baits will often produce a kicker bite. While they may not have explicitly explained that, the notion could probably have been inferred. I'm not saying there isn't a lot of dud information out there, but my assumption about this article is that it wasn't necessarily meant to be a "how to catch a kicker" article but more of a "this is how I approach a tournament day" piece.

This isn't nonsense at all. Most guys that fish 3 to 4 day tournaments will "fish for a limit" first thing, every day of competition. That means they're going to fish MLF style (shakey head, wacky rigged senko, etc) just so they can put 5 keepers in the box quickly. It's no easy task to limit every day in a tour level event. Most of the touring pros are just fishing for a check so they can continue with the season and often times, just limiting every day will guarantee they cash. Once they get their 5, then they have more freedom to fish for a kicker/bigger bite. This usually means they will throw bigger baits which will drastically lower their catch ratio. This right here is gold. It doesn't really bother me if a pro pushes a sponsored product even though they might not use it a lot, because I know that you can catch bass on just about everything out there. I use the "pros' recommendations" as a way to see what kind of stuff is out there on the market. If they're showing off something that looks neat to me (and not obnoxiously priced), I'll give it a try. Whether or not that specific product was used to win a tournament has no bearing on my decision to acquire.

Yes. The one across from gander mountain.

Braid is perfectly fine.

I love St. Croixs and was looking at the 7'4 mh legend glass as well for bladed jigs. I decided to go with the Dobyns Champion 736 glass after the guys on here pointed out the mislabeled rod deal ($170) on the Dobyns webstore. I got the rod saturday and it just feels amazing. It's actually not quite as stout as I thought it would be but I know I won't have any issues hooking up. Both are great quality rods and have very good warranties, which is a bonus. Can't go wrong with either.

It seems silly to cast judgement on anglers that like to have a lot of rods on the deck of their boat as "wannabe pros." Could some be trying to "playing the part" like they see on TV? I'm sure. But I think there are also plenty of guys, including myself, that just like to actually use all the crap they buy. I tend to keep 8 - 10 rods on the deck whenever I fish. 99% of the time, I actually use all of them and maybe even a few from the rod locker. When the fish are really biting, I'll constantly throw different stuff just so I can catch them on different baits, rods, reels, line, etc. I see it as practice and it makes me a better angler. If I was only gonna bring 2 rods out all the time, I would only buy 2.

If anybody lives near Woodbridge, VA, the Walmart there has Missile Craws, Zoom Lizards, and U-tail worms for $1 a pack. They also have the big spools of Trilene Big Game for $1.50 to $3.50. There was a bunch of other stuff on the clearance rack as well but those were the only things that stood out to me.

Good choice. Tatulas are great reels and super popular. For the rod, a 7ft medium heavy would be a good to handle all the techniques you listed.

Green Pumpkin is all you need.

I have 3 Curado Es and 2 Is. I think the old braking system is just plain simple and works pretty darn well. Not saying the new one isn't good by any means, it's just a little more complicated to fine tune IMO. I actually haven't even tested the I's casting ability (my 7:1 is on my flipping stick and I run 17-20lb fluoro on my 6.3, so I'm not going to get superb distance anyway). That being said, I think the I palms better and just feels a little more solid in hand. I really both. I'd say go ahead and check out the I. Might as well get used to the new braking system anyway...I don't think Shimano will go back now and those E's will just keep getting harder to find. lol