fishking247

Decent reel, my only complaint is the mag control dial will change due to my hand rubbing against it. I wish they put it in a different place on the reel. As for a reel i recommend the shimano citica

It could be the reel. I have owned some reels that just do not manage braid, mono, or both. this generally happens when the line spools unevenly on the reel

What he said. I prefer a non levelwind reel when fishing live bait such as herring, shad and bunker for stripers in saltwater. I would look into an avet reel for what you want to do.

What is everyone using to get way under bushes besides senkos?

8+lb largemouth on a yum dinger. I remember this because I hooked the fish from the bank in between two huge downed trees and somehow managed to land the fish on 8lb mono without the fish running me into the trees. I will never forget that fish

never understood the leader with braid thing for bass fishing. if i want braid i fish straight braid, if i want fluoro or mono, i fish fluoro or mono. i only use leaders with braid in saltwater

I have not found that with any st croix's. i basically only fish st croixs. one rod manufacturers "medium" rod may be different when compared to another company. I can tell you for a fact any of the medium fast or extra fast action st. croixs will do the job for what you are looking to do. it will also double as texas rig rod for fishing plastics with 1/8-1/4oz bullet sinkers

stradic fj. worth every penny.

I recommened just saving the extra cash and go with the crucial. That rod is a beast

what's the point of limiting yourself to one brand? you are missing out on a lot. I prefer zoom and berkley powerbait but use many others as well

those stock hooks that come on the rat-l-traps are garbage. i had a 4lb fish straighten them out. I always thought they were set-lock hooks too. i change all my hooks to owner st-36

7' MH/F st. croix premier. i like the fast action expecially when "yo-yoing" the rattle baits

If you're just getting back into it i wouldn't spend $200 on a reel. Heck, i fish hard every day and still use 50-$100 reels. the Shimano sedona is a good start for you, they are around $60

Palomar

14 or 17lb trilene xl

Anything 1/4oz and under I use spinning tackle with 8 or 10lb mono. I see no reason to use casting tackle with anything under 3/8

i'm a die hard shimano guy. the only complaint i have is with their spinning reels. they tend to bind up during a heavy rain, even after the rain stops once the reel is wet is seems to bind up until it dries out. my other complaint with other reel manufacturers is most of them do not come with the little "shims" to adjust line lay. I can't tell you how many spinning reels i had bought before i was a die hard shimano guy and had the line bunch up toward the bottom or top. even the daiwa ss which is supposed to have superior line lay i had this issue with. i bought two of them and one spooled line fine and they other spooled line like crap. with today's technology you think most reel manufacturers would have the whole line lay thing sorted out by now i'm a shimano guy for now until something changes

Turnaround time by me can be months this time of year as far as local shops. I am on long island and 90% of people are saltwater fisherman. Can't wait to use this little SS for blues, stripers, and albies on the flats!

Should be ok i generally don't go any heavier than 8lb on a spinning reel for bass

i been banging fish on topwater since the water was 54 degrees.

Took the top thin shim off and the line spooled beautifully.

Two shims. One thick one and one smaller one

recently purchased a daiwwa ss and while spooling had more line gather towards the bottom then the top. can you remove the white spool washers on this reel like you would with the shimano's to achievee better line lay?

neither. strike king red eye shad or the bill lewis rattle trap.

classic old school technique that works real well on finicky or heavily pressured bass. i like using 4" power worms on 6lb line with a split shot 12" above the hook