mcipinkie

It really depends on you and how you fish. If you are a deep water fisherman that likes to idle around and look for off shore structure, and fish that, then maybe the console unit is the most important. If you are shallow water fisherman that really just wants to know how deep the water is and maybe the temp while idling around, and you primarily fish shallow, visible, or nearly visible cover, then the bow is probably the most important. I run Helix 10's. An old gen 1 on the console and new Mega G3N on the bow. SI on both. I like SI on the trolling motor. I don't network anything. For my style of fishing, shallow, dirty, nasty, don't see the need. I use the console unit and a Lakemaster chip for navigation and general area location. Once the trolling motor is down, I don't need GPS, I'm looking at my targets, not the screen, so sharing waypoints and all the high tech stuff just don't work for me. I'll spend my money on high dollar jerk baits. If you like to fish the other way, then pick what works for you. I'm 73 years old, fished my first tournament in 1975. This is my way to fish. You need to figure out how you want to fish and then make up your mind how to rig. Within reason and budget, buy the best you can.

Agree with Keeper 100% on this one. The Tracker Heritage is marketing hype. Just a cheap, poorly rigged boat. (Ugly Also). You can get a lot more boat for $10,000.

Don't forget the 110 Junior. Got to have some of those.

Here's my 73 year old perspective: Turn all the brakes off. Learn to use your thumb. Then it doesn't matter whether magnetic, centrifigal, digital, or what ever the latest give me your money gimmick is. I've thrown every type of casting reel made from old red Ambassdeur 5000's (actually some old knuckle busters) to the newest Shimano and Daiwa wonders. First thing I do is turn off the brakes. In the old days, we used to rip them out of the reel to save few grams. I'm mainly a Lew's guy now. Have 4 or 5 different models depending on what I use them for. Couple Revo's, couple BPS Carbonlite's, some Quantum Tours. Some are better than others, more bearings, etc. but the brake system doesn't matter to me. I can pick up any reel made, turn off the brakes, and in 5 - 10 casts, rockin. As Swindle says, "years of excessive practice." No short cuts. You have to learn to cast. I'll echo DTS, some maintenance is required, but minimal. These modern reels don't require much. PS: I can't imagine weighing a spool. My thumb will do that in the first 10 casts.

I think you are hunting a G7 ring. Do a Google search. They are out there. I just buy tube from Amazon and make my own.

I don't see much that makes me want to spend $30 or more on a box. I carry probably 20 in the Skeeter and that many more in the tackle room or truck. 3700's are $7-$8 all over the world. The water proof are about $12. Maybe the terminal tackle box would be worth the money, but I use the Bass Mafia for that now. Ever notice how everything "new and improved" costs twice or three times as much as the last one. I guess we should be happy that KVD doesn't have his name on them (yet).

I can't resist this !! Is this what fishermen have become? If you're not looking for collectibles, I'd go out to the lake, tie them on, cast them out, see how they cast, and how deep they run. If they need new hooks, put some on. Any information that you might glean off the internet, or some catalog, is worthless if you are planning on fishing with them.

Don't like to get into a discussion, but I'm left eyed dominant. I can cast with either hand, pitch, flip, roll, underhand, backhand, long rod, short rod, don't matter. I can do it, just not as good as Swindle. Years of excessive practice is what it takes. No other secrets except watch the target, loosen the spool tension, practice, practice, practice.

IMHO, you're either taking your eyes off the target, or you have the spool tension too tight. Get on the Tube and watch Swindle cast. He describes it as "years of excessive practice". I've been throwing bait casters over 60 years. I think I'm good, but not that good. Now you know the secret. There ain't no other one. I

The real question is whether or not the "tell tale" (that is the correct name) is stopped up or if your engine is not pumping water. Open the cowl, find where the hose to the tell tale hooks to the engine. Pull it off the fitting. If water is coming out the engine fitting, then clean or replace the hose. If not, you have much more serious problem. You said 25 HP. I assume not a typo. I had the hose on my 25 break at the fitting and the water was just going into the cowl. Simple, another cheap piece of hose to the tell tale, and my motor looks like a sailor. Of course mine is a real 25 circa 1985 2 - stroke.

Put 'em on a SK Bitsy Flip and go to town. I thread mine up the hook rather than just nose hooking, but either way works. Seems to work really nice on 1/4 oz jigs. If you are going to nose hook, stick a piece of toothpick through the plastic behind the hook. Really makes the trailer stay on. Bigger jigs not so much. Use a Rage Craw or a Money Craw on the big jigs.

Here's my $0.02, and I live and die with a flipping stick in my hand. Learn to use both hands. It's easier a lot of the time to change hands rather than move your feet, or even worse, the boat to make a cast. I pitch and flip so much, my rod just gets in the hand it needs to be in. Most of time I'm not even aware of which hand it is in. That being said, my dominant hand is my left hand. I reel right. Watched Denny Brauer and Tomy Biffle do it left handed about 20 years ago, and learned to do it that way. Not changing hands will let you make a few more casts in day. Once or twice in a year not changing hands will put another fish or two in the boat, but which hand you use won't get you to the Classic. Hank Parker won two, and I don't see how he ever catches a fish the way he holds the rod. Look at Gary Klein. The only thing that really matters is putting bait in front of the fish.

What most people don't under stand is that Hawg is correct. For slot limits to work, we have to take out the fish. Don't start on me. I have some reservations about slot limits, but they definitely will not work unless we take out the fish. I fish a lake that has a 12 -15 throw back slot. It's over run with 8 - 14 inch fish. The lake would be better off in the long run if we threw those short fish up on the bank for the coons, but I can't do it. Catch and release is not always the best thing to do. I personally like to eat bass. A couple 12 inchers makes a nice meal.

I see it this way. If you weren't sitting on your duff, typing on the computer, you could be out trying out the new reel.

Do the arithmetic. Assume a 30' cast. 360". At 26.3 = 13.7 turns of the handle. At 30.5 = 11.8 turns of the handle. I'd say it really didn't matter. I remember the old red 5000's with a 3.? ratio. We fished everything with them. Jigs, worm, cranks, spinner baits. No problem. Then the 5500 came with a 5.? ratio. Burning fast. Then the 6, then 7, then 8, now a 10. All that said, I flip & pitch with an 8.0. Crank with a 5. Everything else with a 6. Moving from a 6 to an 8, I can tell the difference. From a 6 to a 7, I doubt noticeable. And I see it the other way. It's easier to speed up than to slow down.

I put, depending the reel, 20 - 50 yards of 20# Big Game on for backing on every reel. I spool braid over that on every rod, regardless of its use. Long cast rods; Square bills, topwaters, Carolina rigs, Alabama rigs, jerkbaits, etc. get 50 yards of line over the braid. My big crank bait rods get 75. That's it. Can't cast any farther than that. Don't care what Van Dam can do. I can't throw anything 100 yards. Short range rods - Flipping sticks, etc get 30 yards. You'll never pitch that far. Braid basically lasts forever, so I don't change line until I've cut off enough that it's too short. I typically use mono or fluoro leaders, so not an issue to me. I've got reels with 2 year old braid. Never a problem. If I was still using mono, or fluoro, I'd change line almost every day. Certainly every tournament day. One thing that makes it easier if you're just starting out is a line counter. Berkley makes one that clamps to the rod so you can see actually how much you're putting on the reel. Once you've got it figured out, you don't need the counter, just strip the line off to the knot and retie.

Well I know everyone likes to bash BPS, and sometimes they deserve it, but for me not this time. I went to the BPS in Independence, MO Saturday morning. Store wasn't crowded. Snow may have something to do with that. They had everything I wanted and lots of it. Bought $350 worth of line, umbrella rigs, swim baits, few new wiggle warts some other garbage. Even picked up a couple of the Pro Qualifier bait casters. Don't normally buy inexpensive reels, but at $50 each had to try 'em. BS'ed for 30 minutes with a buddy i met in the store, went up to pay. Two in line ahead of me. In and out in an hour. Did overhear one conversation about the Lowrance 9ti's they on sale. They sold 71 Friday, and had two left in stock on Saturday. Guess if you wanted one, you'd be PO'ed. Rare as it is. Good job to BPS.

What did I tell you? Every one is telling you what THEY like, or who sponsors them. You've got to do your own homework and find what YOU like. I wouldn't even start to recommend you throw my rods. If you have that kind of money to buy rods, you are going to get a pretty darn good rod, no matter what brand you buy. I am quite secure financially, probably a lot better off than that. I don't buy $200 rods, and I can afford them.

Personally, I think the hard lines (mono, fluro) are harder on guides than braid. That said, I can't remember the last time I've worn out a guide. Any reasonably decent rod will have good guides. Some better than others, of course, but I don't see guide wear as a problem. I step on two or three every year, slap a few more up against the boat, but never wear one out. I'm a braid believer. Every rod I own, and I have a whole bunch of them, casting or spinning, is spooled up with some kind of braid. I alternate between Power Pro Slick 8 and Suffix 832, whichever is on sale. I am going to try (really don't know why) some of the new Berkley braid. BPS has on sale starting tomorrow.

Drags? We don't need no stinking drags. We're bass fishermen. I don't own a bait caster, and I have a whole bunch of them, that doesn't have the drag screwed down all the way. I feel much more comfortable controlling a fish with the rod and my hands, or pushing the free spool button, than I do playing a fish with the drag. Just me, but I don't lose very many fish.

Almost every rod you buy in that price range will be a good rod, but maybe not good for you. Once you get out of the cheap rods, it's really a matter of what suits you and the way you fish. The Loomis guys will say their's are the best. St. Croix, Dobyns users the same. All fine rods, but so are dozen other brands. Pick 'em up and try 'em. If you haven't squandered a thousand or so trying rods, you really ain't playing the game.

I don't see anything wrong with Black Max'es. Fine, inexpensive reels. The question is "what do you mean by tournament fishing?" A Saturday tournament 4 - 6 times a year, maybe a practice day or two. Or you talking whole hawg BASS or FLW, every day, long day, all day. I doubt the Black Max'es would hold up to the work load Elite, or FLW Tour boys throw at them. For the average week end tournament fisherman, probably just fine, particularly if you have a spare or two. As for the KastKings, I'm curious. Read lots of good, lots of bad. Intriguing. We'll see how Brent does this year.

See my note above. VMC 9651 is a nice round bend. Heavy wire, short shank. Sometimes a little problem with sharpness, but I've used them for years. All the hook suppliers have them. You can also buy in bulk if you hunt some. The gammies are probably a better hook, but cost 3x the VMC's.

I throw 10XD's on a flipping stick. Generally use 30 lb. 832. Works well. I throw every other sized CB on the old blue W & M Rick Clunn glass rods, but they just won't handle a 10XD. Your rod won't fall apart or break in your hands (at least hopefully not). Start with some tenderness and lob the plug until you get the feel. I can throw the 10XD on the old W & M's and if I'm cranking and want to try a few casts with the big plug, will tie it on, but if I get serious about the 10XD out comes the flipping stick. 7-10 Ardent Denny Brauer heavy. Look up some Phil Marks or Keith Combs videos about the big cranks. They seem to be the best with them.

The VMC 9651's are a nice round bend at a reasonable price. Not as sharp as the more expensive hooks, but I've used them for years on everything. It's short shank, 1x wire hook, so you can upsize same as the KVD's.