Tywithay

My biggest bass (8lb 9oz) came off a live shad while fishing for catfish. I should just leave my nice stuff at home and use a bobber with a minnow. The part of the country I live in doesn't really value bass fishing like some other regions. Decent numbers of bass are difficult to find without driving a ways, bigger bass are even fewer and further. There's hundreds of rods and reels to choose from, so it's not too difficult to find something that works well and looks good. I'll always choose performance first, but if I really like the combo it makes me feel more confident, whether or not I catch more fish.

Stores here in Wichita are still pretty much fully stocked, save for a select few items. I guess it depends where you're from.

Unfortunately, the fish aren't always cooperative. In those instances, I get a lot more enjoyment out of my equipment than I would if I didn't catch anything using lesser gear. It has little to do with technology and more to do with the personal satisfaction I get from using a premium product. Sirloin and ribeye are both steaks, but there's a reason one costs double.

I think it's absolutely worth the extra money. If you find them on sale, even better. I've only used the 704c Fury, but I would rather pay retail for my Tatula rods than buy another Fury on sale. I've seen the Tatula Elite rods on sale for just under $150 at times and they're another step up as well.

I don't know if it's the same one, but American Rodsmiths had a Team Series rod called the Hibdon Hammer. DHX (dual helix) blanks were made by Graphite USA, if I remember right. I think they were originally in the $199 range, assuming it's the same one.

What line is it? Fluorocarbon should take years of UV exposure to degrade.

I only have one spinning reel without a shallow spool and that's because it was too good of a deal to pass up. There's no reason for a bass/panfish sized reel to hold more than 100 yards of line, especially with the number of people using ultra thin diameter braid nowadays.

I love my 753 for weightless plastics, but I wouldn't say it's an extremely sensitive rod. It looks amazing and the balance is pretty decent, but it doesn't have that electric feel. The 73LMH ZBone is the most sensitive rod I've used. A lot if that is likely due to the weight, 3.4oz for a 7'3" is about as light as it gets.

To add to the tapered spool design, Daiwa also uses a cross wrap oscillation. It lays the line in an X pattern, rather than one strand on top of one another. It's supposed to help braid from digging in. Just another thing that may or may not help with function, but doesn't look.as pretty as other manufacturer's perfectly even line lay. Gets a lot of folks on forums talking about how bad their reels are working, when really it's by design .

ZBone is the best value, in my opinion. The XRay blanks are the real deal and on par with the NRX. They go on sale often and you can even get them 25% off at the moment with a code. For $415, there's nothing else close, except the Edge Silver Widows, but they can be difficult to source because the company has garbage service.

People catch a ton of fish on black lures. Never understood why people made the line darker. Only reason I could see might be a UV marker for black light fishing.

There's not really any secrets to using each model. They all achieve the same thing, but with different braking systems. The DC is the most user friendly, because the computer controls it. The XT is the most adjustable. Regular SLX is the simplest. Depending how good your thumb is and what you're throwing, you may or may not see any difference in distance between the three reels.

Z2020....not even a competition, in my opinion. The Mag3D and light rcs spool allows it to do all of these things well. Only thing that ever held that reel back was the weight and size. There's a reason people have been screaming for a 1016 version for years.

If it was 5oz or so, I'd pick a Daiwa Millionaire 7HT Mag. Those surfcasting reels are absolute missile launchers. With 1oz-ish, the furthest casting reel I have ever owned is the Daiwa Z2020.

The DC on that Scorpion model was terribly overbraked and it didn't make the patented DC whine. Some people prefer that, but I like when it sings. They are not bad reels, but not great either. The IDC4 system is a pretty big improvement. The old Curado platform was one of the more comfortable palming reels they ever made and they're made to last. Basically, if you want better performance, go SLX, if you want better made, go Scorpion. If it were me, I'd look for a used Curado DC, if you're sold on a DC reel.

I haven't used the newest Vanquish, but I like the Certate LT better than the 2012 version. I didn't care for the hollow feel of the magnesium. The Certate just feels smoother and more solid. The 2019 Vanquish may be better. I wouldn't suggest a beginner try to take apart either of these reels. The Certate uses magseal and can only be replaced by Daiwa techs, to my knowledge. Both reels have extremely tight tolerances, so they have to be taken apart and put together extremely carefully.

I bought a bottle probably 5 years ago and it's still half full. I've tried it on mono and fluoro. It did make a small difference, but I've never really seen the need for it.

Depends on the rods. There's a couple brands that you're paying more for the name.

Probably looks like a dying fish on the surface. I've heard black is easier to see underwater because fish think it's a silhouette.

Very little in terms of on the water performance gains, in my opinion. The biggest difference is in refinement. Same reason a Mercedes costs more than a Ford Focus, even though they essentially perform the same task.

About 80% sure that reel is about the same as the Tatula CT Type R, but has a deeper spool. It will work fine for frogging. I imagine if you ask the fish, they wouldn't know the difference between a saltwater reel and a bass reel.

Not entirely true. You can't add sensitivity, because the blank is just a blank. It's limited by the materials used in manufacturing. However, a spiral wrap typically requires at minimum 1 or 2 less guides. Less weight, especially in the tip, can add to the perceived sensitivity. It also helps the rod balance better. I prefer spiral wraps because they feel more in control with a fish on the line.

With 10 and 12 sniper specifically, the difference is inches when cranking, not feet. Other lines may have a bigger discrepancy.

The difference is .03mm, less than the diameter of a human hair.

With enough weight on the line, yes. With typical bass lures you have to strike a balance between startup inertia and rotational force.