smalljaw67

Even is you aren't going really heavy in the weight department I still recommend a MH rod with a fast action for fishing plastics. The reason is you will throw it around cover and the MH will allow you more line choices as well as lure weights, if you go with the medium you will be limited but it does give you better ability to use a wider variety of reaction type baits, good luck.

The moss boss you got is my secret weapon!! It is a weedless spoon and it out fishes frogs by a mile over pads, frogs seem better over matts but over pads the moss boss is a killer lure.

I'll be the bait is a Manns Waker, not the 1 minus which is also a fantastic bait. Manns discontinued it and I've been trying to find something that worked as good and so far I have 1 that is ok. The difference between the Manns Waker and every other wakebait is the Manns Waker will stay up and produce a wake no matter how fast and that action is killer during the summer. The Rapala DT Fat 1 is what I have been using and it does a great job because the body is pretty big so it will throw off a wake even when it is 6" below the surface.

I never decide if a lure is good based on price but I also won't buy what I consider junk either. The thing with the Japanese imported baits have very good construction and attention to detail plus the labor rate in Japan is similar to the U.S. so that has a lot to do with price. I bought a black popper at an outdoor show 17 years ago for $1, it was simple with bad hooks, but the 1/4oz bait just had a look to it that I liked so I purchased it and I'm glad I did. The thing was all black except for the red mouth and red painted eyes and another 1 dollar investment I made to change the hooks out brought my cost up to 2 dollars but it has been the best 2 dollars of tackle I ever got my hands on. I won 3 tournaments on that thing, and 1 of those happened when the state went to a 15" size limit and I was the only angler to weigh in more than 1 fish, and I have caught countless quality size fish and a bunch of lunkers on this cheap popper that to this day I'm not sure if it ever was a brand name or some knock off as there is no name but it is a plastic body and I only had to change the hooks out a couple times but it still works when nothing else does.

The 150 is my favorite, it not only holds more line but there are some subtle differences. I like the fact it has a clicking spool tension knob which you may also know as the cast control knob, the 100 does not have this, and it also has the ACS 3 and the 100 has the micro ACS, big difference. The ACS 3 works by applying pressure so there is an infinite amount of settings, all you do is turn the knob as far as you think you need and there are markings on the side that you can use as a guide, very good break system.

I got a Smoke 150 HPT and a 100 SPT and hands down they are the best bait casters Quantum has put out. This is my 3rd season and no problems, the 150 is great for jigs, soft plastics and any technique were you want a quick line pick up, I even use it for frogs.

I agree with DVT 100%, no matter what reel you want you are in the perfect price range for a good reel.

I throw jigs to target areas, even football jigs go into target areas. When I say "target area" I mean like a transition bank where you will see rocky terrain turn into clay, if it that way on the ban the it is more than likely it is like that underwater also. The only jigs I fish deeper than 10' are football jigs, and the occasional flipping jig if I'm stroking but that is a whole other discussion. Keep it simple, find isolated stumps or stickups and dead falls and make short casts or pitches to these spots and start with a small hopping retrieve then drag it and change it up until you find what the fish want but the best way to do it is to fish in areas that you know could hold at least one fish and that is an area with cover or some sort of structure like a drop off or hump.

You can do it but you are going to be hard pressed to find a medium power in those lengths. The best one I could point to would have to be either the Daiwa Procyon 7'6" Heavy which is rated for 1/4 - 1 1/4 weights or the Daiwa Ballistic which is on sale for 65 bucks at TW right now, in that series you can get the 7'6" or the 8' but it will be heavy which is rated 3/8 - 1 1/2 I believe. I think the Procyon is more inline with the weight range you are looking for and both can be had for under $70.

The best part is you can put together your own combos and then it is truly unique. One of my favorites is to take a tab of "molting craw" which is in the living image series and put it together with a tab of green pumpkin, that combination on a watermelon colored head looks alive at the bottom of a lake.

I got a decent spin cast for my grandson and I can tell you that for the type of fishing you do that you don't want braid. The issue with the line twisting is because a spin cast is like a spinning reel in the sense that both have a fixed spool, it makes for easy casting but you will get line twist, it is unavoidable. The way to deal with line twist is to just tie a swivel on to the main line and then tie a 2 foot leader to the other end of the swivel and tie on the bait you want to use, this will really help with the line twist. Investing in much better equipment will help but I don't recommend doing it unless you plan on really getting into it as a serious hobby rather than just having it as a past time. The reason is the better equipment is much more expensive and much more complicated than what you currently are using so get the hang of the spin cast down then if you plan on getting in to fishing a little more then move to spinning but for right now go back to the 10lb mono, Berkley trilene is a good line and you can get it in XL for easier handling (which I think would be what you need) or the XT which is better if you have a lot of cover around. Spool that up and use a size #6 or a #4 barrel swivel, not a snap swivel, and see how that will help.

The hardest hit I ever had was from a 5lb 1oz river smallmouth that absolutely crushed a 1/2oz spinnerbait I was burning about 3" or so below the surface that just caused a small wake. I probably had the bait a quarter of the way in when all I saw was a huge swirl and my spinnerbait disappeared and then the rod was very close to being ripped from my hands, literally, I actually felt the rod slip and then my grip tightened and I reared back and set the hook, it seemed like it all happened in slow motion.

Here is what I do, I put a little money away each week and I make a list of 3 things, the first thing is lures I need to replace or get more of, these are productive cranks or stocking up soft plastic that I use a lot. The second thing is terminal tackle, this is hard as it is the most boring of tackle purchases but you can't fish without it but do it in a way that you get what you need and still have money for other kinds of tackle. The 3rd thing is stuff I want to try, this one is tricky as I will often want to put this one up front but don't do it as the new stuff is still unproven so approach this section with caution. Once you have your list and you have been saving for some months, (winter is great for this) the first big sale is where I start and for me it is the black Friday sales, this will account for most of my lure purchases of the year, after that I begin to save again until Easter or memorial day depending on what I need and how much I have to spend. Buying tackle like this systematically will fill your box with plenty of tackle and when you get to that point you can fill in holes here and there should you lose one of your goto square bills or you are down to your last bag or rage craws.

I won't blame the rod entirely, high modulus graphite rods aren't meant to flex at certain angles and even if you get away with doing it over and over, eventually it will break. I've witnessed rod tips break with just a few ounces of weeds on the line, my buddy did it as we was going to get the weeds off he lowered the butt of the rod making the tip rise so he could grab his line and get the weeds off. When he did that the weeds on the end of his line came out of the water about 3" or 4" and the rod tip instantly went "snap", what he did was something called high sticking and it is the reason most rods break. I hate it for you that your IMX broke, that is a very good rod but the one big problem with good rods is they are more brittle and require an extra level of care unless you're a sponsored pro and get the rods for free, then feel free to swing fish into the boat.

The Fenwick elite tech smallmouth 6'9" M/XF spinning rod is my shaky head/drop shot rod, it isn't a true drop shot rod but it is very versatile in that the rod is more than sensitive enough to drop shot with, the question is the line. I don't use braid for finesse techniques so the extra fast action is great, especially in deep water as you will get really good hooksets and while the guide system works great with braid the rod may have a bit too much backbone for a drop shot with braid. If you want a dedicated rod rod for drop shot only or if you might use it for something else but only once in awhile the 6'9" ML/F would be a better choice. It has the same sensitivity with more tip, if I was going to have a dedicated drop shot rod in the $200 or less range then this would be it and it would have more forgiveness to use with braid.

Devcon 2 Ton 30 minute is the best I found, out of about 15 different ones I used it is the only durable epoxy that stays clear, everything else yellows over a short time. Etex is another good one but it is thin and requires a drying wheel and multiple coats. Devcon goes on thick but it self levels so you don't leave brush marks and I do not recommend you thin it with anything, and the reason is simple, bubbles, everyone I know that has thinned Decon epoxy with alcohol has had issues with air bubbles even when no bubbles are left after coating, they still form.

The 4.5" baby slug-o and the 6" slug-o are river smallmouth killers!! I use these and flukes because I consider them to be very different baits. They have a slightly faster sink rate than a fluke and have more dart in their action. What I mean by that is when you twitch you rod tip with a slug-o it will dart to the side or up , down or whatever and then it will almost stop were as the fluke will dart and then sort of glide a bit, it really is hard to put in words but side by side you can see the difference. Anyway, yes, a lot of anglers still throw these, they just don't talk about it much and the alewife and Arkansas shiner are my 2 best producing colors.

Fishing from a Kayak is fun, an all purpose line would be a quality copolymer mono, it isn't sexy or the in thing but you can use it for anything and unlike braid were you will find yourself tying leaders, which isn't fun in a yak, or pulling yourself into bushes as you have a hard time breaking off when tying braid direct. I hate fluorocarbon and I only use braid to flip and pitch heavy cover and I do mean heavy cover, and fishing frogs, other than that I use Silver Thread AN40 in 12# for most everything except jigs and soft plastics in weeds or around moderate cover and for those I either use Berkley big game in 15# or Cajun clear lightning in 17#, the Cajun is the clearest and lowest stretch copolymer I ever used but it is almost like fluorocarbon, it is very stiff so you only use it on casting reels, the only difference between that and flourcarbon is the clear lightning handles a bit better but only on casting reels.

As with any type of lure making, when I hear phrases like , "I want to save money", or "I don't want to spend a lot", I would have to say then don't even bother starting because what will happen is you will spend the majority of your time trying to find ways to cut corners and end up in frustration with a poor quality lure. Tackle making is expensive but it is also very rewarding and just flat out fun but trying to do more with less normally has bad results and while you will find was to improvise and save money, your initial investment is going to be sizable like a microwave as you aren't going to use the one you use for food items, plastisol, hardener, softener, not to mention colors, glitters and so on and so forth. If you want to make some soft plastics by all means have at it but if you want to do it on the cheap, well good luck because it is hard when you are trying to go that route, it isn't impossible but don't expect a ton of quality either.

I use both spinning and casting and one thing I can honestly say is the casting gear makes using heavier baits like those over 1/4oz , a lot easier to handle. I don't think you are at a disadvantage now but years back the spinning reels made to handle big line were really heavy compared to what is on the market today. The only other thing is you have to be mindful of what lures you use and the rigging with a spinning set up because you will get line twist, and that right there is enough to get guys away from it, once you learn casting gear and you have a day with zero line twist, well then you will truly know why most bass anglers prefer casting. If you want to learn how to use a casting reel I would suggest something decent, not a cheap sub $100 dollar model because those reels make learning a little tough to be honest. The reason has to do with the bearing quality, and the brakes, discount reels normally use steel bearings that are packed solid with grease, it forces the user to throw harder to get distance and forcing a cast for distance with a casting reel is a no-no, instant backlash. Try learning on something with a little better quality in the $100 to $150 range, the Lews speed spool, not the laser speed spool but plain old speed spool or the Shimano Citica, Quantum Kinetic, Abu Garcia Revo S.

The Storm baits have been less expensive but absolute killers, I could not believe the Storm Twitch stick was only $5.00, I got a half dozen to try this spring and on the deeper fish I was doing good with a super rogue in clown but the Storm Twitch Stick in threadfin shad was smashing fish when they moved up in the 6' mark so I would not hesitate to grab the new square bills. BTW Palaniuk was crushing the rest of the field using those new cranks and I don't think it is a fluke, ICAST is going to cost me a lot of money this year.

I'm not trying to be smart but I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed so I can't find the right words to make this sound better but here goes. If you are looking for a little more sensitive rod, you are going to need to spend a lot more than $60 bucks to get that, one thing is true with fishing tackle more than anything else and that is you get what you pay for. I'm not knocking the rod or your budget but if you are looking for a rod with a decent amount of sensitivity don't look to anything less than the $100 dollar mark. That doesn't mean rods less than that aren't good, I bought a Vendetta and was given a Daiwa Procyon which are inexpensive rods that are really good but they are good for what I use them for, and if I was going to buy a rod that I was going to use for feel type presentations I either step up and go for something in the $150 and up range or I get something a little less and use braid. braided line will increse the sensitivity of any rod unless you did end up with a cranking rod.

It really sounds like you may have got a 7' MH-M which means you got a medium heavy rod with a moderate action and if that is the case then yes, it will have a considerable bend in it. When you buy a rod you need to first think what you are going to use it for, if you are going to throw 1/2oz spinnerbaits you are going to want a MH fast or moderate fast action, I have a moderate action rod for cranks and it is rated for baits ove 1 ounce and a big spinnerbait will put a nice bend in the rod just retrieving it so look at what action and not the power of the rod, as I said, it sounds like you have a cranking rod.

You are hearing bad because of the sheer amount of them that sold, the same thing for the first generation of Vendetta rods. There is nothing wrong with the "V" series of rods and the Veritas is one of the best selling rods for Abu Garcia. What you are seeing is the breakage issues as some will get bad blanks and it is just because of the sheer number they sell because you get a pretty decent rod for the price point so if you haven't had any problems after you caught some fish and got snagged a few times then chances are you will be fine, most problems with a blank will show up quickly.

Is this a know fact? Do you have stats to back that up? Relax, I know you don't have that and you are going by name but that is a big mistake. I remember two Shimano Symetres that I had, I bought them as they were Shimano reels of the $100 dollar variety and both lasted less than a single season, the first one went through bait springs every two trips and the other had less than a month of fishing before the bearings gave out and Shimano told me to buy a better reel, true story. If I based all Shimano reels off of that I would say they wouldn't last but a few months. The truth of the matter is any spinning reel at that price range is probably going to last for awhile and I would lean toward the Quantum just because it is aluminum and not a composite and there isn't science behind it, I just can't pay that much for a composite because all I think of is cheap graphite framed reels and I know the Ci4 isn't that but it is still composite. If you want to be truly good at using tackle as well as fishing in general then try your best not to be a "fanboy", as you may be missing the boat on somethings and over spending on others.