Hooligan

For that money get a 300 D series. It is the bees knees.

Northstar will build what you want. Best spinnerbait out there today, period.

I have to agree, the 733 is a superbly built rod, one of the only that I really, really like in the Dobyns line. The DX795 is my "must have" from their line. The other rod that I've been fishing a ton, of late, is the Mike Long Jig rod. I didn't like it at first because I was soooooo used to the NRX and GLX, but now that I've become accustomed to the way the stick performs, I'm going to have to get a couple more.

@Bill- Okuma and Viva are the same company. Okuma is one of the largest OEM manufacturers of spinning and conventional reels. They're marketed under about five different names. BPS reels aren't made by Pflueger, nor are Gander. Pflueger doesn't make Pflueger reels. They're made at the same factory in Korea on very similar lines, in some cases the exact same production lines. Don't kid yourself into thinking Pflueger makes reels- Pure Fishing doesn't "own" a manufacturing facility for any of their reels. Outside of Ardent, Shimano, Daiwa, and several other very small outfits, they're all made at one of three factories in Korea, or one of four in China.

Most commonly used one da may not get used again for the next six. It's all dependent on the weather, the water, and the fish. I have everything from 1/16 to 2oz for tungsten T/rig and flip and 1/4-2oz barrels. Drop shot I have everything from 1/48th to 1.25oz.

I just use a hound dog retriever with a few links of the flat chain on it.

The sole combo I have that is over a grand is a Megabass Destroyer and a Megabass Ito reel. Total of something like $1300. Stupidest purchase I've ever made for tackle, too. I don't even use it... All my other stuff is $550-$850.

Yesterday I threw three baits. Period. Two of them were over $30, one was a spinnerbait. I hung up probably 20 times, and still have all three baits. If you're losing that many baits, I'm going to give you all a class on how to use a plug knocker. I seriously cannot validate the argument that baits are too easily lost to spend money on; which how much of this thread reads.

Least expensive, at cost to me would be a CH50mg $55 on a 6-9 Cumara $60.

Of those two, the heavy. It's probably the second most used rod in my arsenal for swimjigs and spinnerbaits. The 7-11 MH XF is a great stick as well. The Gen 1 Cumara didn't have a jig/frog. They had a heavy jig rod that was 7-4, and a 7-7 punch rod that were very hard to get. I would bet there were less than 200 of both those rods out there. The 7-2 mhxf is the original 1/2-1 ounce jig rod. The two mentioned above were released two years into the series, and both were considerably slower than their previous bottom contact counterparts.

on a swimjig- vertical. On a football fished deep- Horizontal. I don't fish them much as trailers in other situations. Now, what I do use them for is flipping and pitching- they're stoopid good for it.

Don't fish them much anymore. But when I did it was the Baby in Green Pumpkin Blue, Black/Blue, and Black Ruby.

That's the whole point, though. That translation of value and the cost consideration. You say that a $20 crank is expensive when you're regularly paying triple that price per fish for a bag of Senkos. In terms of a bait being double, or triple the price of another, I have seen, and I will guarantee you I will see again, instances in which very specific baits are the only ones that catch fish under the conditionas at hand. There are times that a Megabass 110, for instance will catch fish when a Rogue, a Rap, or even a Pointer will not. Megabass knockoffs? Nope, the weight, rise and action of the original is what gets bit. There are situations in which LC, Jackall, or SPRO cranks outperform everything else that have been thrown at them. That alone justifies the expenditure in a tournament to me. Catching more and bigger fish justifies it when I'm out fishing with my son.

All good sugestions. I'd add in the Shellcracker, too. The S-Waver has caught me a lot of fish of late, I didn't have enough faith in it. Another couple relatively inexpensive and decent baits are the Jackall Mikey, Swimming Ninja, and Giron. The Giron is really a versatile bait, but takes some getting used to. Other sub-$20 baits I like a lot are the Berkley Grass Pig, the Bass Pro Shops Nitro series of swimbaits, and the Koppers Herring- though you'll undoubtedly have to paint the thing in due time. Along with the Pig, another tremendous soft swimbait for me is the Optimum Double Diamond. Yet another soft solid is the Mattlures line which are indispensable for me under certain conditions.

Many species of crayfish are burrowing crayfish that don't necessarily live in water at all times. Prairie Crayfish, for instance, can inhabit grasslands and prairie literally miles from a water source. They burrow up to six feet deep, and live rather solitary existence.

"So called fishing" the rig can be extremely effective at times that, historically, are extremely low production periods. When fish are suspended in open water and feeding on baitfish, it is much, much harder to target quality fish. Sure you can catch sinks all day long, but getting 4# fish under those conditions used to be near impossible. The rig has changed that. It isn't a need, by any means, but it sure is a lot of fun to catch more and bigger fish. In any situation th st I can legally maximize my opportunity to do that, you'd better believe I am going to, regardless of technique. A lot of guys used to say the same about throwing cosmonauts beyond the 12 foot depth. A jig with rubber instead of hair was cheating, why would anyone resort to that...

The way I understand it, yes. If it is within the official practice days, and you are registered for the tournament, you are still subject to the sportsmanship by-laws. Still awaiting clarification on this one, however.

No problem spending that kind of money on baits. It is what it is. I'm like Speed, I've fished free cheapos to $340 swimbaits in the past four days and caught fish on all of them. Earlier this year, I had a bad stretch where Muskies felt they were the rightful possessor of my Vision110 and I was out the price of those baits, in one tournament it was three of them. The counter is that I won three of the tournament's that I lost those baits in, one for a quite considerable sum. Even if I were not fishing tournaments, I would still be spending the money on them. Anything I can do to up my game is worth it to me, regardless of situation.

In almost every category, a Duckett is going to be a downgrade from Dobyns, with very rare exception.

85% of my jig fishing is done on 15# fluorocarbon. I definitely catch more fish on that line than I do 20#. It isn't because visibility either, it's all about feel.

It's so subjective man. I broke six rods on hooksets in the past 15 months. Prior to that it was at least two years. I really can't help but think that modern resins and pressures are the real cause. I think people with more powerful hooksets are also more liable to have it happen. I tend to really lay the wood to em when I set, regardless of braid or fluorocarbon. A good friend that has a lot softer set has never broken a rod. Another friend that's the same as I am has popped three this year. Long story short, I don't really have answer. I know you fish good sticks, and I'm not going to turn it into a peeing match, either, because it happens with all different rods.

As I've transitioned to more and more rods that use reconcile I agree. Sure didn't like them at first, but now I don't want anything but.

Not at all surprised. A lot of tournaments have seen a large increase in mortality when the rig is employed. In many circumstances, large fish were being foul hooked by the outside baits causing further injury and scale loss. The second aspect of it is that there are improvements that it is legal to use a full rig in one portion, and not legal in others. It eliminates grey area and opportunity for he said / he said situations, some of which have occurred in the past two seasons of FLW. I don't see it as being a step back, I see it as confirming that they are primarily concerned with fish care and reducing tournament mortality rates.

I've had just as many issues with St Croix guides as others. It happens. That said, they're not St Croix, they're Fuji. What St. Croix does better than almost all others is reel seat alignment and fit. I've NEVER had a problem with theirs but have had Loomis, Sony's, Kistler, and others that are flat terrible. Check, I broke 5 NRX at the reel seat.

Never had a problem. I've go the BBZ, Shad, and Jrs. I originally bought the BBZ as a Muskie bait, and even then, had zero issue.