hatrix

Fluke Koppers/Spro frog Fluke you can fish super fast and let it drop in open pockets when working grass and mats. Plus I get tired of walking baits. After a while it messes with my wrist from snapping the rod 10,000 times in a day.

x3

+1 for Lew's

Screw lock hooks and Mend It work wonder for making plastics last longer. The only time I dont use a screw look any more is when im trying to fish it top water. Then I switch to a plain thin wire hook.

I think every one would buy the absolute best gear possible if they could afford it. But at a point it sort of becomes diminishing returns for buying the next level up. For example is a Curado twice as good as a $75 BPS reel? Probably so. But is a Core twice as good as the Curado? Probably not IMO. Some people might disagree but once you reach a certain level you don't really gain as much as you did from the previous levels of equipment. I look at it like would you rather have 1 really really good combo for $1,000 or would you rather have 3 really good combos for the same price? I think most people would choose the 3 over the 1. Some things you can't skimp on and have to buy the best but for the most part you can get a really quality product at a good price and not be selling your self short by buying cheaper. In a way its like electronics. You never buy the T.V. that came out last week for twice the price of the one that came out 2 months ago. Maybe some of you do but its just silly and you don't gain as much as you put into it.

I had 2 of Capt Kens frogs and they work great. The hook up ratio is much better in my opinion. I lost both of them and they were like $30 a pop when I bought them. Its been a while since I had one but now they have a $10 version that I want to give a try when they frog bite starts this year.

Is there one color that is better at spotting fish then others?

I do pretty good with suspending jerk baits on windy days. Today the wind was strong enough to knock over small children and old people it was so bad. I slayed them with a erratic shard catching around 40 in under 2 hours. Jigs and creature baits seem to excel for me also when there is some wind.

It seems kind of dependent on the person to me. Maybe I reel faster then you on average and could get more cast per hour then you with a slower reel. I guess it probably depends on preference and what you "think" you need or a confidence thing. Slower reels though for cranking actually make a difference at least to me.

I would use scew lock hooks on the rage products. There kinda pricy compared to other plastics but with a screw keeper you can catch like 20 fish on one bait so long as u don't loose the claws.

Ya thanks for the info, @RW I have been using keel weighted Gamakatsu screw look hooks 4/0 I believe. I really want to try lobsters. I been wanting to since last year for a bigger presentation and maybe get some bigger girls. Unfortuneatly the places around me (that I go to) don't carry them. I usually only shop at DSG since there sales are insane and there is a local shop I go to that has a huge selection but there rage products are really limited. I might have to order some or call around and find a place clost to me that carrys them. As for the jika and mojo rig I was unfamiliar with them so I looked them up and the jika I can understand, its sorta like how a drop shot works but T rigged. That one I will try tomorrow if I get out. The mojo rig, I can not really find good info on it, and from what I saw, it just seems like a carolina rig with no bead or like a split shot rig. I dont really get the advantage of using it. It goes through weeds easier cause of the skinny weight? If someone has info on the mojo rig and can tell me how to rig it or maybe post some good pictures of one so I can figure it out I would appreciate it.

This is the only bait I have caught fish on so far this year. I got a few on jigs also with rage Craws for trailers but that's about it. I have used other baits but not really for to long since I keep going back to rage craws. I have been using them mostly with a 1/4 oz keel weighted screw lock and just slaying them cast after cast. I haven't caught anything over 3.5# yet but with there extream love for rage craws this year it seems inevitable that I will get one soon.

I just got a shimano convergence for $40 a few weeks ago and I like it so far. I wasn't fond of the foam handles at first but after using it I don't even really notice. For the most part my hand never really touches the foam or cork since I palm my reels but we will see how it hold up after this year.

The release point is for sure earlier on a casting reel then spinning. It just take a little practice to get the timing down. Also the tape idea is a great trick to help you out. I would try casting the heaviest most wind resistant bait you have to start off with. Things like spooks and lipless cranks have like no wind resistance and are some of the farthest casting baits IMO. Some people said to use a spinner but I would personally disagree with that. They can helicopter and do all kinda of things in the middle of a cast that will slow it down and only cause you more problems controlling the spool. I taught my brother how to use a casting reel last week and he nailed it in a day. It helps a great deal having someone to personally show you what to do. I did teach him with no spool tension as I consider it a crutch and think you become to reliant on it and it is really not needed if using heavier baits that cast far.

It's 77 degrees today we have had a week of temps above 60 finally. My local tackle store is having a huge sale and giving away a ton of free stuff! Today will be one of the first times I really get to fish this year w/o being freezing outside. I predict nothing but greatness for today. I hope the weather continues. I'm sure it will snow again though if you just wait 2 min. Gotta love Cleveland, happy St. Patricks day.

I cant remember what the technique is called but you stick a nail weight in the end of a senko or any worm I guess so it stand up right and put the hook through the middle of it and kinda wiggle it accross the bottom. I had great success with that last year using senkos. The action looks amazing on it and the fish seemed to love it. That might be my favorite way to fish senkos even though I rarely fish them.

I didn't know you could put them in hot water and fix bent up ones, I might have to try that some time. I usually look through the packs to find the one I think has the least amount of messed up tails. I usually fish them double rigged and nose hook the jr's and texas hook the regular ones. I also have good success with them fishing over mats. I use a thin wire hook so it stays on the furface easier and twitch it super fast and kill it in open pockets for a few seconds.

When the wind is out of the East on Erie. I don't know if there is any real fact behind this but it really seems to hold true when perch fishing. It usually seems to be a slow day when that happens. Both of my grandfathers who don't really know each other use to say that about East winds and its seems pretty accurate.

Nice fish! With no leaves on the tree's I have really been looking hard for new spots to fish. I found a few I never knew where there that look really promising. Hopefully I can get permission to fish them when the weather turns around. Keep up the good work.

How do you do it? Its like mid 40's outside and the water is even colder. My hand gets so cold from the spool going through it and water splashing all over my hand. I always use spinning in winter but have seen people using casting reels and wonder how there hand or for that matter thumb is not completely frozen.

I thought that picture looked familiar. I'm pretty sure that down by 55th marina if it's Cleveland. Those stacks make a great reference point when your way out on the water.

Some of this stuff is absolutely amazing! I can't even comprehend owning some of this stuff. Having 20 high end rod and reel combos just blows me away. Plus the insane amounts of random tackle... I imagine a lot of you guys had to sleep on the couch over some of that stuff

How do you like the lew's rods? I'm looking to get a new rod and since my reels are all lew's why not match.

So my brother who does not own a casting reel and as far as I know has only used mine a hand fuull of times is dead set on getting one of these. What he wants a new set up for is for muskie and throwing big stuff like swim baits and bricks. In reality all of that would only be like 1/50th of the actual fishing he does. Would it be better to get a nice dependable all around reel instead and just buy a rod for muskie and throwing the big stuff? I don't know that the reel is really as important as the rod. If he bought a smaller reel he could get a rod and reel for about the price of the 300E and then buy another rod for every day use and have both set ups. Like I said he has never really used a casting reel and it seems like such a big jump to spend so much on such a specific set up when you dont already have a boat full of other rigs.

Last year after almost all of my gear was stolen I bought a Lew's. They are now the only casting reels I have any more. I have not used every single reel there is out there but I think it's kind of hard to find a better reel then what Lew's offers for the same price range.