smalljaw67

I wouldn't buy any of them, every year they used a different blank because they originally were using Batson blanks but decided to make more money and used blanks from other sources. The biggest knock on them is depending on the year a 7'MH-F could be a decent rod for jigs and worms and the following year the same rod had a different taper that was better for moving baits and you often see these for sale on ebay.

Nope, there isn't anything like it, nor can it be made either. There are several swim baits made that way and they don't suspend but they do have different sink rates, just check out Mattlures.

Lipless and square bills for me also!!!!

At one time I didn't care but now I have to be careful. I cap reels at $250 now and since I've found rods that work for me I am safe and don't have to climb over the $200 area for one. I think if I was going to fish more than 1 or 2 tournaments a year I might go higher but since I don't there is no reason to spend more.

I use a 2/0 hook for a 4" fluke Jr. and I use 4/0 for a 5" fluke, that works for me and the rod you are using is similar to what I use, which is a 6'6" MH-F casting. You got good advice here, I'm willing to bet you are setting the hook too soon and if you see the fish inhale the bait it makes it worse as you try to set as soon as you see him take it which is too soon. I do believe in rigging it texposed and then skin hooking it, this will get the hook even in a light bite and still remain weedless. If you aren't in heavy cover you can try a light wire hook, these require less force to penetrate but if you hook a hawg you need to take it easy as too much pressure can bend the hook and you'll lose the fish.

If the bait is made with a blade connected to the head via split ring or other device then you are fine, if the blade is attached directly to the head then you are in violation of the patent. I believe it covers the blade shape, size, and how it is attached. I bought 500 blades that were exact to the original chatterbait from Barlows tackle and not long after I got a cease and desist letter, after a little checking I found that as long as I didn't sell any baits I was fine.

Just like everyone else said, great for casting reels and not so much spinning. Try Silver Thread AN40, it is very supply with very little line memory and superior abrasion resistance.

The Banjo Minnow actually taught me about nose hooking a fluke to get more action and the banjo minnow bodies worked pretty well in their own right. I also caught a ton of smallmouth on them as I got some as a gift and I went through them all and after they were used up I went right back to a fluke but sometimes I nose hook them.

Unfortunately the Citica is head and shoulders above the Caenan, but maybe a Bas Pro Shops Pro Qualifier could help you out, that is also a much better reel than the Caenan.

No. There is a product made by spike -it that you can "cold pour" and then heat but regular plastisol need to be too high in temp for the radient heat from the mold would get it hot enough.

Daiwa's regular means it is a moderate action cranking rod, not too good for jigs and worms.

Fenwick will have a new line of Elite Tech Bass rods and one that I know of is a 7'8" cranking rod. I'm not sure how many rods will be in the line but I know they were based upon what Ott Defoe wanted.

There are multiple ways to fish my favorite bait but there is one tactic that works in summer and when it is on it can be more exciting than topwater. I'm talking about surface burning or bulging a spinnerbait. This is a tactic that is killer on river smallmouth and the strikes are violent and it is often the only way to get them to hit it, pure reaction strike. Another summer tactic is the "rip and kill", it is done over top of weeds and you basically get it caught in the weeds and rip it free and let it fall and repeat.

What do you intend to use the rod for? An example would be for spinnerbaits, jigs, Texas rigs, all of those things I would say you need an all purpose rod. Now, if you a cranking or technique specific rod, well that is another story, but you really aren't going to get the best answer unless you are more specific. I really like the Fenwick but if you want it big jigs or worms then you'll be better served with something else. Do you know what I mean? You choose a rod on which one will do what you need it to do, a cranking rod is going to be terrible at fishing a worm and a jig and worm rod will be bad at fishing a crank.

Everyone gave you good advice and so I'll answer the other question you have about the fish wanting to hit a craw on the jig with a full skirt. I can't tell you what the fish think it is but I will do my best to explain a few things for you to understand. I had a friend who told me he would do just as well fishing just the trailer and basically said the jig was useless so it was on, we fished together 4 times in a 2 week period choosing days which we figured would be good. I was using a 1/4oz jig with a 3" craw, it wasn't bulky as it was a finesse craw, and my friend fished the craw by itself, did he catch fish with it?? Of course, did he catch as many?? Yep, were they the same size on average?? Not even close!!! I caught 17 fish, not many for 4 days but all I fished was the jig and craw, my friend caught 23, a few more but the big difference was the size. My fish on average were a little over 15" and the biggest was a 4 lb. 11 oz and 21" largemouth, the average size of my friends fish was barely 12", his biggest fish didn't even hit 3 pounds. Now he has a nice assortment of jigs and he found out what the jig does, and that is it bulks up the trailer, it makes easier for the fish to spot and it makes it appear big and slow and a good size meal. Once you really learn the jig you can adjust sizes and go heavy to get reaction strikes or perhaps use a smaller jig and adjust what kind and what size trailer to change the action and fall rate of the jig, it is very versatile like that. For a pond I'd go with a finesse jig in the 1/8oz to 5/16oz, the Jewel finesse jig comes in 5/16oz, it is a lighter version of the Eakins jig, take that jig and put a Gene Larew 3" salt craw on it and I will bet money you will catch a lot of fish on it without a doubt.

It depends on what you need in a rod, are you wanting an "all purpose" type set up? If you are looking for that kind of set up then the Verdict is what you want. The Powell is too long for an all purpose and the Elite Tech smallmouth rod is closer to a medium light and is better suited for finesse presentations and small treble hook baits like poppers.

I like the IMX, I always did and I don't know what the new ones are like but it seems like every other company has caught up and now you can get rods just as sensitive, if not more so for a good deal less. The GLX is the benchmark for sensitivity and that kind will never come cheap. I like a lot of Loomis rods and the Mossyback was one that I feel is over priced by a good bit.

The 7' medium HMX is a nice rod and will handle Senko fishing quite well, the only way I'd go to a MH would be if I was throwing in some nasty cover but then I'd use a casting rod. If you are throwing to moderate cover or less then the medium in that rod will be perfect.

I live below you but it is still considered in the Northeast, and the scenario you described is perfect for what papajoe222 has suggested for you. I'd be throwing a spinnerbait with an Indian blade on top with a small Colorado blade underneath in black and red or white and chartreuse. The other power fishing item would be a square bill like a Big-O in chartreuse with a black or rootbeer back or a chrome with black back rattle trap. If they aren't chasing then a 5" black stick worm like a Senko is a good bait to throw.

I have tried it and here is what I can tell you, if you are fishing stained water with less than 4' visibility then forget it. I put these in jerkbait category in that they are visual, they are subtle and don't displace much water so the fish have to be able to see them at distance, in dirty water you have to hit the fish in the head for it to find the bait. I also don't recommend anything over 6lb. line, I tried it with 10lb and then 8lb because I wasn't after fish, I wanted to see how the bait reacted with different size lines and everything I read said to use light line. Well what I read was true, when you see the bait on 6lb line and then watch it on 8 and 10, you notice a dramatic difference, and I say it is dramatic as when it would sink on those lines there was zero movement while the light line lets it roll and shimmy on the fall and it also has a gentle rocking action on the retrieve but not with 8lb line. The last thing is you need to be in a boat with a depth finder and fish in areas where you are marking fish or at lest marking cover or structure that will hold fish, you can get lucky and get a cruising bass out from the bank but there are better baits for that. So, if you have clear water and know of off shore structure and cover that holds fish then by all means give it a try, personally I have only caught 2 bass like this and I find it boring because I used it wrong, I was trying to search for fish with it as I was determined to use it and of course I hauled a lot of water but I did come to realize that it isn't for everyone, your results may be different.

Out of all those I'd say the Tatula, the least likely one would be the Fenwick and while it is a favorite rod of mine, the OP is looking for an "all purpose" set up. The one thing with the Fenwick casting rods is they are great at certain things but there really isn't an all purpose type set up. Ideally anything from 6'6" to 7' in a medium heavy with a fast action, that is what will work for any single hook technique out there, the only problem is with cranks, then you are better served with a medium power, fast action but they have a smaller range of lure weights to work with and aren't strong enough for heavy cover.

I used it as a late spring right thru fall bait for years and it was only this year that I saw how effective they were in the prespawn. I was always a spinnerbait guy when it came to weeds but over the last several years I will use it around grass or brush and turn to the chatterbait in stuff like coontail as it doesn't foul and it also gets more strikes when ripped off cover compared to the spinnerbait. So go ahead and use them, it is a year round bait without a doubt.

I fish the same type of lakes and rip rap is prime for square bills, what I do is I work my baits by paralleling the rip rap, make a long cast and bring in back 2' from the bank, you'll be banging rocks along the way and then keep working further out and once you find what depth there at you can usually move along and catch more in that same depth. Jigs pitched to the deadfalls and lay downs are a must, I will often use 1/8oz and 3/16oz finesse jigs in the shallower areas and use heavier models to work the ones that extend out to deeper water. You also need to incorporate a stick worm like a senko as well. Another great bait is the spinnerbait, if you get wind or an overcast day, the spinnerbait around brush and docks can be incredible, the same thing with bladed jigs and swim jigs, if the lakes see a lot of pressure I usually go to a swim jig first, they are more subtle, good luck.

I've been making my own for years, I do everything from pour the heads to bending my own wire and here is what I can tell you. If you are a casual angler then the $1.00 walmart specials will work but if you like to tournament fish or if you like to fish a spinnerbait slow rolled then you need to step up. I use Worth ball bearing swivels, the difference is I can reel my spinnerbait just enough that it isn't laying on the bottom and my blades will spin but good ball bearing swivels cost money, the only two I would ever use is Sampo and Worth. Then you have the hook, a high quality hook will penetrate, the cheap hook is ok when the fish pounds it but when they swip and just get it in the corner of their mouth , that is when you need a good sharp hook. Even the wire, in stained water you will want more vibration but you still need flash, a good quality stainless wire will allow you to run a willow leaf blade with a small Colorado kicker blade and you'll get vibration along with the flash, the cheaper bait will need to have a hubcap Colorado blade because they are made on really heavy wire, it will last and it will catch fish but you will get more bites and fish on the better bait more often than not. I'm not exaggerating either, when the fish are hitting a spinnerbait and they are spooky, they will often have what I call the "area of commitment" , if you come through that zone too fast you will get chasers but no takers, but if you have a bait you can reel slowly and still have good blade spin, then you'll get those fish. I have heard the stories on how dollar spinnerbait work really well and I don't question it because I've witnessed it but I also witnessed when the premium model was lighting it up when slow rolled and the dollar special wasn't able to slow down enough, I actually got started making my own because the dollar specials would roll over on me in current and I'd miss fish so I made my own when I could not find one to suit me needs. Here I am 15 years later and the spinnerbait is still my favorite bait and I found that there is no substitute for a high quality spinnerbait, it is the most versatile lure in the box next to a jig.

I like the flukes for chatterbaits and scrounger heads, for swim jigs I like a paddle tail trailer, it gives it a little extra action since the head doesn't move but flukes do work as well. The best bet is matching the trailer close to the swim jig or completely opposite, and being that bluegill is completely different from one manufacturer to the next it would be hard to recommend any color since some brands use chartreuse in their bluegill patterns while others use orange. Tell us the brand and you'll get some good suggestions.