Hound_dog

http://www.***.com/evers-clarifies-classic/ Edwin Evers take on this same topic. This interview happened after this years classic.

The bag above is the same size bag (or smaller) that co-anglers I've had in the boat have brought with the exception of one guy who brought this monster of a huge bag. I don't really care what size bag you bring as long as it doesn't get in the way for moving around the boat. The guy that brought the huge bag seemed to spend more time looking in it and pulling stuff out trying to find something instead of fishing. Even as a boater come the night before the tournament I move tackle around so that it is condensed so I don't have to spend time digging around for something. As far as rods go, bring what you want. They will be next to your seat anyways and not up on the casting deck.

I would except for the the lady likes the dual console. Sometimes you have to give a little.

My charger doesn't need upgrading. I was changing to this system to get rid of weight from my 4-bank charger.

I use a 102" steel whip CB antenna for running wires inside my boat. It works great. Has enough give to bend around everything but strong enough to be able to push it through.

This might not be the right area to post the topic but figured it would get the most looks under this category. Does anyone know of a good way to get in touch with the people at Stay 'N' Charge? I ordered a system from them in December. I got a couple of emails from Jim and have spoken to him one time on the phone in Jan. I have sent several emails since and have had no reply. I have tried calling and have only gotten voice mail. I really want the system but I am at the point of filling for a refund through Paypal and going back to my old charger. Anyone who could help it would be greatly appreciated.

Still got a few weeks till I am over there but looking forward to it and just trying to do some planning ahead.

I'm not that familiar with the lake to know where Hurricane is at. I'm going to be staying North Toledo Bend SP and fishing around there. If the wind isn't too bad I can run to other parts of the lake but I know how big it is and could fish around there and still not hit everything in a week. I will keep it in mind to look up shallow.

Going to be heading to Toledo Bend for a week from March 31st to April 5th. Looking forward to it. Been a few years since I have been over there. Last time I was over there was 2007 and only caught a few keepers over 3 days. I'm thinking them to be in a post spawn pattern. 10-15 ft on grass edges around the mouths of creeks?

As mentioned before Mudhole has a ton of information on their website and you can order everything from them. Great people to deal with and will take time to answer any of your questions a long the way.

I'm over on Lake Oconee and this is where I spend most of my time getting a hook wet. Usually have an open seat if anyone wants to come out.

BASSclary: As already been stated the MHX blanks are lighter than the St. Croix blanks. I find my MHX blanks to be more sensitive than my rods that are built on St. Croix blanks that are comparable rods. For the price point you can't go wrong with a MHX blank. Then you get the added benifits of a custom built rod over a production rod. You get the handle length and type you want, thread color you want, the type of guides that you want, and any other little thing you might want to add to it to make it "yours". Keep this in mind when building or having built a custom rod. The more you add to it to personalize it the more it is going to weigh. I build all my rods and have been building them all off MHX rods since I learned about them. If they have the High Mod blank in the action you are looking for go with it. If you don't see the action listed give them a call to see if they have it. They are continually adding HM blanks to their line up. I don't think you would be disappointed in them. If you have any further questions drop me a line or give the guys down at Mud Hole a call. They have great customer service.

Call them and talk to them instead of email. Tell them everything up front and see what they say. They are a reputable company and I would think they would stand behind it. Lots of chargers power cords get modified to adapt to the on-board plug in system. I don't see this as being an issue.

One thing I noticed in the BPS catalog. They dropped the price point on the Z-9 for 2012 which is probly why they are coming in so close.

Look at a Phoenix Boat. Gary has been around the bass boat industry a long time and makes a good quality boat. My dad ran a Nitro for 8 years and never had a problem with it. He kept it well maintained. The motor had over a 1000hrs on it when he sold it.

Never used either one. I only use Custom Rods. With that being said, I won a Duckett rod at a tournament in FL and couldn't give the thing away. I was trying to sale it for half of what they were worth and had people telling me they wouldn't take it for free. I got home to GA and was offering it around the lake I live on and couldn't find anyone who wanted it. I offered it up to a guy I know for free and he wouldn't take it. I ended up giving it to a guy that said he might use it. Don't know what has people disliking the Duckett rods but appearently they have a bad wrap around FL/GA.

I have a Kel-tec PF-9 and have nothing but good things to say about it. It shoots accurate, have no problems runnings rounds through it, probly have 500+ though it. Its a fun shooting gun to me and I know a few LEO's that carry them as back-ups. Comfortable to carry in the small of your back.

Those are some nice builds you have there. MHX does make a great blank to build a rod off of. Can you tell a little bit more on how you did the decals? I agree that the decals from MHX can be bad and I like how you did these so I would like to see about doing these on mine that I am working on.

Inventory and restock in the winter for most things. If I run across something I haven't used in awhile then I usually will pull it out of my go to boxes and will not buy anymore of them. If I run low/out on something during tournament season then I will restock. I try to keep it down to a big restock just once during the year. The big thing that usually comes up for me is the one bait the bass seem more to want on a particular day is the one I don't have in the boat!

4" finesse I either fish it on a darter head, shakey head, or carolina rig. These are the 3 most productive for me. As previously stated it is very versitle.

I have a few and like them. One thing I have found with jerkbaits is you really need different brands because they all act differently. Some have more of a rolling action than others. Sometime the bass want one that has a lot of roll to it and then other times they want one with more subtle action. I've caught just as many on my $5 jerkbaits as I have my $20 ones. It just depends on the fishes mood that day.

The majority of my drop shotting is verticle. I go with a 6' M XF rod for my drop shot set up. I have one spool for my real with 6lb invizx and one spool with 8lb abrazx. I prefer the shorter rod because I am fishing it verticle. It makes it easier for me to have a shorter rod for this application. If I am going to be casting it out I will move up to my 7' M F rod for better casting distance. . I don't do much finesse fishing but when I do this is what I go with.

Chris, Look at Mud Hole Tackle. They will have all the equipment you need plus tons of advice on what you might need for what you are wanting to do. They have complete kits for building a rod. If this is your first rod then a kit might be the way to go to get your feet wet. A quick look in their catalog shows you can get a MHX kit for around 80 bucks.

I think you will be happy with your choice of going with the Lew's. I am switching from Curado E-7s and Citicas 200E's to all Lew's reels. The Lew's are much better in my opinion. I tested out an Ardent and did not like them. I agree with the other post they did feel cheap to me. I flip with my Lew's and have zero problems with them flipping. I had a Citica 200E that the gears stripped out on while setting the hook on a fish while flippin.

If the bass are slapping at my topwater baits I will swap out for a feathered hook. One thing to try with your popping baits is to have a regular hook on the rear, tie a leader line a few inches long off the back to a feathered hook. I have had a lot of success doing this and have hooked up some doubles on a pop-r rigged this way. Also as mentioned I use them a lot on my jerk baits. If I am going to yo-yo a rattle trap or similar bait I will put a feather hook on it just to give it a different look.