smalljaw67

I have a few of the Matte finish bluegill cranks, both the shallow and medium diver and they are good baits. What got me was they are flat sided baits and I'm not sure if they designed them to swim like a bluegill but they do. I find that in mid June when the bluegill are on beds, nothing produces better than the bluegill crank.

I have the Smoke 100 and 150 casting reels, the best reels I believe Quantum ever made.

That is one of the reasons I don't use scrap lead.

They send you a card in the mail and it goes out to customers who either have a club visa or who have made a recent in-store purchase. I think if you are on the email or newsletter list you may also get it in the mail, but I know that not everyone gets the card sent to them.

They are real, the center hook is indeed barb free. I'm guessing you got a great price but it doesn't matter, the finish peeling and having hook rash were some of the early complaints when that bait was first available in the states. I'm guessing what you got were new old stock that were not sold because of the problems, and like I mentioned previously, when that bait started becoming more available here, there were a lot of complaints about hook rash right out of the box and the actual finish peeling on certain patterns. Those problems have gone away since then but if they were sold on ebay, especially at a discount, chances are these were sold in a bulk lot to a vendor and are just some that had some issues. I didn't buy the 110 until it was here for about a solid year because I have read a lot of guys complaining of the same issues you have but the lack of split rings and a barbless center hook is common on the 110.

Bill Lewis Echo 1.75!!! It doesn't have a circuit board lip but it takes a beating and the fish really eat it! Another good one that doesn't have the circuit board lip but handles abuse is the Yo-Zuri 3DB square bill, it too is a fish catcher. I have 2 honorable mentions, the Bagley Rattlin' Kill'R B has a slightly smaller profile than the previous models but it has a low pitch rattle that not only works in stained water but is my main square bill for clear water as well. The other is the Berkley Pitbull 5.5, I don't have a ton of time with it but so far it has been awesome, the profile is a little different and it swims a little deeper than others.

If you look on ebay you may be able to find some Mann's Waker Elite baits. I never understood why they didn't get a lot of sales but they didn't and were discontinued. I called Mann's direct a few years ago and I was able to get a dozen of new old stock, and that wake bait only dives to 3". It is a big body but light at 3/8oz, it produces a big wake and has a loud rattle, I love them because I can reel them at a pretty good speed while still producing a big wake, something that is hard to do with other wake baits of that style. The Arashi wake crank is another good one but I use it when I want a slower presentation because rather than dive deeper with speed like most do, it will blow out but when you get the speed dialed in it produces a good wake and it too is pretty loud.

I think it depends on how heavy the cover is and the size of the baits you intend to use. As long as the grass isn't super thick I think a stout MH-F is what I'd look for. I normally don't go for the lower end St. Croix rods but I was out with a friend last weekend and he has a new St. Croix Bass X and of course I had to check it out and I have to admit at $100 it is nice but more importantly it fits what you are looking for. It is the 7'1" MH-F but like other St. Croix rods it is about 1/2 power over what it is listed but it will give you enough backbone for fishing swimjigs and frogs but it has a little more tip than a heavy power rod so you can sling spinnerbaits in open water without feeling like you are using a broom stick.

Try a different knot, fluorocarbon has poor knot strength compared to other lines and a kink along with a hard hook set will cause break offs. That rod is an extra fast in the JWR series so it is on the stiff side but even that shouldn't be causing the break offs but to make sure try using a mono leader and see if the same thing happens. If you can use mono with the same knot and you don't have the break off issue, then you know without any doubt the knot you are tying is causing a weak spot in the fluorocarbon, and that is one of the reasons I hate fluorocarbon.

I can't give you a positive answer since I haven't been able to find the new style Aetos anywhere. The original Aetos in a 7'M-F was rated down to 1/16oz as it had a soft tip, the new version is rated 1/8oz and also is rated for up to 14# line. I would be willing to bet money that the medium power Aetos has more backbone than the HMG in ML and the tip is probably a little more stiff as well.

I have 2 favorite baits for a Mojo rig, the first was the original Mojo Reaper which has been discontinued. So now that has been replaced by Poor boys Erie Darter, and the second bait is the River Rock Custom Baits SM Killer. I use a 1/8oz cylinder style weight I pour myself and with both baits I use a 1/0 hook.

A Boga grip is a scale that is accurate enough to be certified. You don't simply buy a certified scale, you buy one that is listed by the IGFA that is approved to be certified then you have your local bureau of weights and measures test and certify the scale and it has to be done yearly I believe.

With jigs and baits like that the weight is the head without the hook, paint, and skirting material or any other add-ons like eyes. Crankbaits are usually close, the weight is normally just the body before the lip, and hardware and are sometimes off because the baits are mostly made in countries where the metric system is used and conversion rates aren't exact so a lot of rounding up and down is common. The nice thing about crankbaits is they are normally close, usually within 1/16oz while jigs and spinnerbaits are often over 1/8oz and can be over 1/4oz.

I highly recommend a Hammer rod in a 6'9" or 7' MH, they have a moderate fast action but aren't soft like some others. I have a 6'9" Heavy power that I got for big topwaters like super spooks and the like but it has become the best spinnerbait/chatterbait rod I ever used hands down. It has the sensitivity of a bottom contact rod with the forgiveness of a reation bait rod yet has a stout enough tip section to drive home large diameter single hooks. I never would have thought a rod with that action could be used for moving baits as well as bottom contact but the Hammer rod is that versatile. I even use my rod to throw stick worms under overhanging trees and boat docks and for fishing on a Kayak it would be perfect. The MH power would be similar to a Kistler light MH as the Hammer fishes about a half power lighter than the rating, so a MH is rated 3/16oz to 3/4oz, you can use it for spinnerbaits and chatterbaits along wiuth being great for square bills yet still have the ability to fish worms and jigs should the need arise.

There are a couple reasons to start doing this yourself. The first reason is it can be a fun and rewarding hobby, the second is you can make color combinations not found on store shelves, and for those reasons it is worth it to do it. If you are doing it to save money or sell baits then I highly recommend you don't do it, and the main reason are that it will take a long time to recoup the start up costs unless you really go through a lot of baits per season, and I do mean a lot. If you are thinking of selling baits, well you have to remember, there is a learning curve and as someone who makes tackle and has had a business doing it I can tell you that the profit margins are really low and the only way you really make anything is by selling volume and it takes a pretty large investment to make that kind of volume. You also have to factor in the amount of free time you have to do it and the possibility that you may not like doing it, and if you do like doing it you'll end up finding out that you spend more money to make your own. I know a lot of anglers on both sides of the fence, some invested only to not like it and sell off the supplies they bought at a significant loss just to get back some of it, and there are some guys that have spent literally 10 grand on molds, glitters, colors, special pouring equipment and melting pots, it can add up fast. So think it through, do your research and decide if you want to get into it, as I said, awesome hobby but if you only want to save money then I believe you will save more by just continuing to buy your baits.

I use a shaky head a lot and I make my own so I can get just the right head for the baits I'm going to fish. I use 1/8oz the most but I do use a 1/16oz and a 3/16oz from time to time for certain situations. 12# line, in my opinion, is too heavy for shaky head fishing unless you want to go with 1/4oz to 3/8oz weight with a heavier hook and larger worm or if throwing it in brush. I like 8# line for shaky heads and my favorite baits are straight tail worms in sizes that range from 4.5" to 6" and the heads I use have hooks from 2/0 to 4/0. I like using a screw lock for my heads, I've tried every other head with different ways of holding the bait and the screw lock may take an extra second or two to rig but it holds the bait in place for me better than anything else.

I like what you did and it shows there is more than 1 way to make a fluid bed. Most I've saw had 2 pieces of PVC, the bottom has a cap glued on and a hole drilled for a petcock and then the airline attached to it. The other piece of PVC is smaller and fits snug into the bottom piece, this section is where you glue your filter whether it is a paper bag, Tyvek material or porous board. The reason it is done that way is that you can make multiple cups so you can change colors easily but I do like how you made yours which I believe may fluidize the powder a little better. I did the same as Allen, for the cost I figured I could buy one and I did and I still recommend the one I got. I purchased it from TJ's Tackle over 12 years ago and it works as well today as the day I got it, and the best part was it was only $50.

I'm with Dwight, I'm neutral on the issue. I think the feathered treble on an X-Rap makes it useable as a cold water bait because it is really erratic but on other baits not so much. I tried adding feathered trebles to baits without it and I didn't find a lot of difference, so now the only time I add a feathered treble is when I need to replace one that came on a bait.

They are actually nice rods for the price. The MH is the rod you want as others have said, and while you can use it for treble hook topwaters I don't think it would be ideal. you could fish a wake bait or popper but something like a spook or other walking bait would be hard. They are glass rods and the rod you are looking at is a moderate which even in the MH will have a tip section that will be a little softer than what you want to get a consistent cadence, now it can be done but will take time learning to adjust for the tip recovery. They do make a 6'8" MH with a mod-fast action that is made for square bills and topwaters but for cranks diving deeper than 6' or so I'd opt for the 7'3" MH.

If you go to Speedy Metals just click on "stainless Steel" then "round" and select "304" grade. A chart will come up and you want to choose 5/64", that is the diameter of the FG 12 weed guard. The shipping will cost more than the steel rod which is like 30 cents per foot, get the rod and cut into 1"-1.5" lengths and you'll have base hole pins for your 1/8" poison tail mold. What I do is keep the pin in to paint, it keeps the hole open and then you can glue in your guards like you would on the larger 1/8" diameter weed guards.

What line and what techniques you plan on using the rod for? I ask because the description of the Avid X makes it sound as if your rod was a medium power. You said the tip section was more of a medium fast than a fast, and I'll bet the house you are confusing action with power, that happens to a lot of us. I ask about your line because if you get a medium heavy power rod with an extra fast action, it is going to really stiff just so you know, unless you get a rod that is technique specific which may have a softer tip section. So if you are using braid you may end up losing more fish than normal just because the stiffness of the rod with the no stretch line may have you pulling the bait out from the fish more often. I do not know about the megabass rods but here is what I do know, if you thought the tip section on your Avid was more of a medium fast action, you just eliminated the G.Loomis rods you picked out because the Loomis mag bass taper has more tip to it than a conventional fast action rod, they are loved because they are sensitive enough for jigs and worms but they have a little softer in the tip allowing you to use them for spinnerbaits and even some cranks, it really is a versatile taper but because of your Avid X you probably wouldn't want that. What that means is that it bends in the same place as a fast action rod but it is a little softer than what is normally found on a fast action rod. You hear a lot of anglers ask the question about how stiff a rod is, a drop shot specific rod rated extra fast will have a really soft tip while a jig and worm rod rated extra fast will have a stiff tip section. So if you want an all purpose rod that you throw moving baits as well as bottom contact baits, well the MBR is what I'd go with but you don't like that softer tip, so go with something more conventional and with more time on the water you'll learn where the forgiveness helps and where it doesn't and that will help make it easier for you to choose a rod further down the road.

I like the Tiny Paca Chunk for small jigs and when I want a really small profile I opt for the Venom Lures Ron Yurko Finesse Chunk. I use to use the Zoom skinny chunk they discontinued and then the Prowler Lures small pro chunk and the small pro eel chunk, no made anymore either. So my main 2 weapons are the finesse chunk and the tiny paca chunk.

I'll admit I don't know what a "California" rigged worm is but I'm sure it is effective. Based on your location I'd have to say the reason worms aren't effective is the fish are most likely feeding up, meaning they are focused on minnow forage exclusively. This happens in the North, the water is a bit cool for craws and other bottom forage species to be active and big temperature swings usually happen which makes thermal shocked minnow forage available in big numbers and easy to get. Another thing is the only real good worm presentation that is reliable during this time is a small shaky head with a small straight tail worm and because of the way it sits on the bottom, it probably resembles more of a bottom feeding minnow than a worm but if we knew why they hit one thing over another fishing we'd be millionaires. I'll bet once you get into mid to late June you'll see more of a worm bite take hold but while the water is cooler and loaded with oxygen plus the fish getting ready to spawn, you'll do better with moving presentations because the winter groupings are now spreading out actively searching for food, cover more water and get more bites, no secret there.

Bluebasser86, you can use Surflon 7 strand nylon coated leader wire to make weed guard but Lure Parts Online sell their own wire weed guard that is good for a single wire guard but if I was going to do a "V" style with 2 wires I'd opt for .015" diameter single strand wire. The nylon coated Suflon 7 strand won't unravel when you cut it but it will sometime give a puff ofsmoke when you pour, the ones from LPO are nice and if you have to trim them all you need to do afterward is heat the end that you trimmed and dip in powder to seal it. To put them in your mold you can do a few different things, you can fill the weed guard slot with form a gasket or plumbers putty and then lay the wires in, or use a skirt collar, simply open the skirt collar and insert your wire or wires and lay in the weed guard slot. The collar will hold your wire and also keep the lead from flowing out of the cavity, just position the collar with the wire in it at the entrance to the head cavity and adjust the length of the wire to fit in the cavity then close and pour. Again, with the rubber skirt collar you may get a puff of smoke but it is nothing and a single collar will last a good long time. I also have another solution that I like a lot, find Cadman and ask him if he's sell you some reducer pins, he had some pins made that are the same as the regular base hole pins you get with the mold but the ends are turned down to a smaller diameter and the bell at the end is cut off. What you do is lay it in the mold and depending on your mold you will most likely have to trim a little off the end as they are made long purposely. Once you trim to fit you pour just like normal but when you pull the pin instead of there being the normal 1/8" hole for an FG-30 fiber guard, it will leave a hole for the 1/16" diameter FG-9 weed guard or the 5/64" diameter FG-12 weed guard which will also be a lot lighter than what you currently have. I believe he has pins in both sizes but I typically use the FG-12 a lot of smaller jigs like that.

I go with the 5" as well, it draws strikes from bigger fish but will still get average size fish as well. I also don't get what I call "tail strikes" with it like I do with the 6" and 7" versions.