Toeshots

Glad to hear it's as good as prescribed. Will be here next week. Looking forward to a nice Black Friday session at the local pond while the crazies are out shopping!

Couldn't say no to 20% off, plus another 5% cash back on card, plus free shipping. Hopefully it lives up to what the reviews are saying. Will probably pair it with a size 30 Pflueger and 6-8 LB Tatsu. Based on what I've read it should be good for finesse/hair jigs, weightless T-rigs, tubes and shakey head, right? Sucks that it's going on winter in the Midwest but I should be able to get some time with it before the water freezes up. Looking forward to it coming in next week!

You can fish them at just about any time, although it can be tough when the wind is really blowing as it creates bows in the line and you lose the feel/connection with the jig. Fluorocarbon can help alleviate this somewhat as it sinks and is more dense than braid which not only floats but is also much more effected by the wind.

Can't add much that hasn't already been said. Try to slow down and watch your line. Many times the bass, especially bigger ones, will suck in the jig and start swimming around slowly. Many times it can be tough detect these bites if you aren't keeping an eye on your line. Don't give up yet. That first jig fish changes everything!

If you are looking for a Crankbait rod, BPS Crankin' Sticks are on sale for $55 right now. Really tough to beat at that price.

Thanks guys. Decided on the 20LB Tatsu after a break off today on a nice bass at the local pond.

You know what, I think I'll jump on that TW Tatsu as it's $10 cheaper than BPS. I have a few more things I need that I can get through TW so I'll get the free shipping. Back to my original question, would 15LB test a good choice for both my jig rod AND my t-rig rod? I don't fish a ton of dense weeds but I do fish a lot of docks, timber and also rocky areas. The jigs I use are 1/2 oz and up and always have a trailer. Again, if I can use one spool of Tatsu for both these setups, that would be a nice cost savings.

Hmm, maybe I was mistaken and they don't stock Tatsu. I'll have to give them a buzz this morning.

I definitely will although it's only about a 15 min ride and I have to go there for other stuff anyways. I thought I saw Tatsu last time I was there, but I don't think BPS carries Sunline now that I look at it. May have to go through TW if I go with Shooter over Tatsu.

Heading to BPS this week to replace the line on most of my setups and I was looking for some opinions on what I'm planning on buying. For my jig rod (Avid 7' MH/F) and my T-Rig rod (Avid 7' M/F) I was planning on taking the Fluorocarbon plunge. I currently am using braid w/leader on both, but I am tired of the wind bows in the line with bottom contact fishing. I am looking to either buy Tatsu or Sunline Shooter so it will not be cheap. Is there any reason I shouldn't just throw 15LB on both setups? Is there a different LB test that would be better that I could put on both? This would save me some cash as I could take care of both with one spool of line. FYI, the lightest jigs I throw are 1/2 oz and always have a trailer. For my topwater/spinnerbait rod, I am just going with 12LB Trilene XL. For my Crankbait rod I was going to grab some 10LB Yo-Zuri Hybrid. I'll be grabbing a semi-cheap frog rod while I'm there but I'm going to put the 50LB Power Pro (currently on jig rod) on that setup. What say you?

Red Eye Shad by a mile. Nothing else has really produced including my beloved jig.

Having one setup was more than fine until I discovered this place. Now I have 5 setups and wish I had several more...

Can't argue with that! Nice bass!What color is that lipless?

I really think you should give them a shot. They cover a ton of water in a short amount of time. Also, the fish seem to always hit on the fall so when you rip it back up, you are already setting the hook, so just give it a little extra pull in the same direction and you will be making a proper hook set. It came pretty naturally for me since, in essence, it's similar to fishing the T-Rig/Jig except at a faster pace.

Thought about this, but I had quite a bit of success with a T-rigged Blue Fleck Power Worm just last year. I also caught the fish in my profile pic on a 1/2 oz green/brown jig with craw trailer this January before the local waters froze. One of the things I read several times during my research was that Spring is a great time for the lipless crankbait. Maybe it's just the right time of year? But is there really a bad time to yo-yo a lipless crank in and out of the grass? Seems like such a solid technique year-round.

Thanks. Figured those three would cover just about everything.

I spent a bunch of time this winter researching new lures/techniques in order to become a more versatile fisherman. The bulk of that research was done here and I noticed quite a bit of praise given to lipless cranks - a bait which I had never really given a fair shake before due to limited success. I decided I was going to give it another go this year and bought three 1/2 oz Red Eye Shad in Sexy Shad, Chili Craw, and Gold Black. I also read and watched a few KVD vids discussing the yo-yo technique. I tried this for the first time about a month ago by letting the RES dip just into the weeds then ripping it out. First cast and BOOM chunky 17" largemouth. I was sold. Since then I've still been trying to fish my confidence baits (T-rigged plastics and Jig w/craw trailer) and haven't caught a single thing. The only thing I've caught fish on is yo-yoing the RES. I've been successful with all three colors. My next step is to vary the weights for different fall rates and such. I must say, it's great to have a place like this with so much good info. To be honest, I don't think I would have gone back to lipless cranks, but I sure am glad I did. Without them, if be off to one heck of a slow start this Spring...

I am using the Camo Green.

I just filled it.

I know I am late to the party on this, but I just wanted to share my experience. I had the YZ Hybrid (8# test) out for the very first time today and I must say I was very impressed with the sensitivity, castability, and manageability. The thing I liked most and what truly surprised me, however, was the seemingly minimal stretch. I tied on 6-7 different lures today and when cinching the knot, it felt very stable and there didn't seem to be much give. Very nice. I now see why this line is praised here and on other sites. I am seriously considering putting this on just about all my setups.

Will be fishing Lake Shafer quite a bit this year. Anyone have any tips for this lake?

I'm with ya - got some major cabin fever. I've been watching the 10-day forecast like crazy and keep looking towards next weekend where they are calling for almost 50-degree weather for a few days in a row. Should melt the ice and let me get some fishing in. Please no more snow!

Those are some nice rods you have on the way! As far as the Rage is concerned, I don't believe the Bargain Room rods qualify towards the free Rage giveaway. I could be mistaken but I thought I remembered this when they did the Christmas Rage giveaway. You may want to call St. Croix to confirm but those guys are great up there so they may let you do it regardless.

Thanks for writing the review. I'm looking forward to mine arriving even more so. I also went with the 12lb to throw on a spinning setup.

Not sure but I have both of these reels on the way and I can't wait to see how they perform. ON PAPER, the Lews seems to be a better value based on what you're getting, however we'll see if that holds true out on the water.