JBigfish

I think the recoil guides are crap. They're the noisiest things I've ever used, especially with braid. I have quite a few carrot stix (LTX, Gold and even an old Duckett gold), and will be getting a Micro Guide real soon. I cut up 7' MH gold baitcaster and sent back for an upgrade. I never used it too much, personally I feel more comfortable with Daiwa baitcaster rods. Carrot stix baitcasters never quite did it for me. But I do love my 4 carrot stix spinning rods. I'll be sure to let you know how these stack up. Right now I think the Daiwa Zillion rod is a much better rod for the money than a standard carrot stix.

Whatever hook you pick up, you might want to rig one up and throw in the tub to see the action. You'd be suprised by the difference in rate of fall and and general falling shape. I tend to stick with the sallest size hook I can. 1/0, 2/0, and 3/0 have a tendency to pin the bait in a V during the fall, especially with smaller baits. I've found #2 allows for a more natural fall and wiggle.

Gamakatsu makes a weedles wacky hook that takes the cake, at least for senkos anyway. I believe its called Weedless Wide-Gap Finesse. I use #2, most people use bigger but I guarantee you will get more bites with the #2.