War Eagle 44

D-Bomb's, Paca Punch, Zoom Speed Craw, etc. There are others but these are the ones I can think of at the moment. Both sizes of the D-Bomb are what I'm mainly punching these days.

The original Spro Bronzeye 65 is my all time favorite. The Bronzeye Jr is next followed by the Bronzeye Shad.

I agree 100%!

I've had great success with the Bronzeye Jr. I fish it on the same set up as all the rest of my frogs & toads, either my Powell Max 735 or my new Max 3D 736. Both rods are fished with 50# braid. The Bronzeye Jr is heavy enough to be fished comfortably and effectively on this type of casting set up while at the same time being small enough to help generate some strikes on slow days. In my experience the Jr also has a slightly higher strike to hook ratio than larger baits. I personally think this is because their size makes it easier for the fish to get the entire lure in its mouth.

I have one, I've fished it once but didn't get any bites. It casts great on MH casting gear. I'll have to experiment with my retrieves but I just slowly reeled it in on that first trip. I need to break it back out soon, truthfully I'd already forgotten about it.

I totally agree with everything you said. Although I'm a Shimano guy these days I have owned and fished quite a few of Daiwa's top reels. I've previously owned a TDZ, Fuego, Zillion HS, Steez, Pixy, and the original Alphas. Out of all of these the Alphas was my favorite and it's the only Daiwa I kept. I really think you're on to something here with your comments about people enjoying the classics more so than the current generation. I really believe that I would if I were still fishing Daiwa gear. I can't say for certain though as I've not fished any newer Daiwa's. I hate to see this type of thing because Daiwa makes very good gear and they are one of the true "giants" in this sport so I like to see them doing well even if I'm not currently supporting them. I haven't kept to close of track on what all they've done in these past few years but if I were looking at buying a new Daiwa it would definitely be one of their older platforms with the new SV spool.

Another Power Pro fan here,50# is my favorite strength for baitcasters because it just handles so well on them.

I use Owner ST-46 trebles with 50# braid and a locked drag with zero issues. They don't effect the action or balance on any of the lures I've used them on. They aren't technically short shanks so I simply use the same size as stock. Super strong and super sharp, they're fantastic hooks in my opinion.

My absolute favorite is Dirty Jigs. I really like all the different types of their jigs that I've tried. Whether it be a football or a swim jig they're all great. Second choice would be the Hack Attack.

Another vote for the NetBait T-Mac. It's a fantastic worm no matter how you fish it. As for colors the two that come to mind are A Magic and Paca Melon.

I'm another huge P-Line fan, have been for years. There was a time I used CXX for everything except frogs, today I'm only using it on my cranking rod. I've pretty much moved to all braid. It's a great multipurpose line, you can fish it for just about any and every technique. I'm also a big fan of their 100% Fluorocarbon and I mainly use it for leaders. I would choose the fluorocarbon for jigs and worms regardless of how or where I'm fishing because of its superior sensitivity. A-Rigs, big swimbaits, or large hard body topwater lures I'd definitely go with CXX. I think the handling characteristics of these two lines are fairly close with the slight edge going to the CXX IMHO.

Also since no one else has mentioned this I'll bring it up, experiment with the amount of line you leave between your rod tip and you spinnerbait. Sometimes this can make a huge difference, depending on the action and power of your rod and your own personal casting style it's important to find just the "right" amount of distance. Just something to consider.

Flip/Punch - D-Bomb, Brush Hog, Speed Craw, Paca Craw, Paca Punch, & Pit Boss. There are others but these are the ones I could think of at the moment, they're also some of my most used, especially the D-Bomb. 90% of all my jigs (and that's a lot because I love jigs) are Dirty Jigs. I have at least 4 different series of jigs from them, by far the 2 most fished are their swim jigs and their no jack flipping jig. I use any number of craw style trailers but again off the top of my head rage craw, paca craw, pit boss, menace, d bomb, etc. The swim jigs usually get either a Skinny Dipper as a trailer or a rage grub, craw, or menace.

I'll have to go with my Chronarch 101B. Great classic from Shimano. It's even better now that I acquired a Yumeya finesse spool for it!

I've owned rods from all 3 Crucial generations, the current rods are the best so far IMHO. It really isn't all that close either. The new rods a very very good sticks. Out of the rods you specifically mentioned the only two that I own are (of course) the Crucial and the Loomis E6X. Don't get me wrong here the E6X is a pretty good rod but truthfully I think the Crucial is better. I was super pumped about the E6X when they first came out so I picked up 2. After fishing them a couple months I slowly became a little more disappointed with them. I only have one now, the MBR 843C, it's a super versatile rod. I can't put my finger on exactly what makes me unhappy with them, all I can say is I enjoy fishing my Crucial more. I know this wasn't a line you asked about but in this price range I haven't found anything yet that comes close to the Powell Max 3D rods. I've been a big Powell fan for quite some time now having fished with their original Max series for many years and I can tell you with complete confidence that the new 3D rods are even better. Fantastic rod for the money. Just thought I'd mention these since they are right in your price range.

I also go with 50# braid. The waters I fish are never crystal clear so I really don't worry about the fish seeing the line. I've also used 15# CXX in the past and it's great as well. Another reason I never worry about using straight braid is because I'm always fishing my jigs in or very close to grass. Ideally I want it to make contact with some form of cover at least half of the entire retrieve.

This isn't correct. SunLine FX 2 is an eight carrier line and it's just as noisy as Power Pro.

I'll second the Curado 300. It's overkill for a frog rod but one thing is for sure it'll be a beast of a frog reel.

This is what I use the Pit Boss for mostly. It's a pretty good bait for that. Sometimes it's just the right mix of action and bulk.

I agree with this order. D-Bomb's are fantastic. Although I've been trying to find ways to use the Pit Boss more and more lately.

I've had really good luck with a Smallie Beaver on jigs. I've also had decent luck using a Pit Boss. My new favorite at the moment is a D-Bomb. I'm just so confident in them because I've caught so many fish on them by themselves. I love their bulk, action, and most importantly productivity.

I like Rage Craws and Chunks but in my local lakes the Paca Craw out produces the Rage products for me. It's by quite a big margin as well. I've actually been very surprised by that but it's true. I've asked around at the ramp during tournaments and the responses I've gotten support my own findings. Again personally I've done SO much better on a Paca Punch than any of the Rage baits for flipping. Truthfully about the only action (catch fish) I can get on the Rage Craw is if I'm using it as a jig trailer. I don't want guys to think I'm bashing the Rage products because I'm not, I have a box full of them. I wish I could have better luck with them. I just wanted to suggest that along with the Rage Craws you might want to try the Paca Punch as well because they've been fantastic for me.

I'd try and find a heavy powered rod in the length you're looking for but other than that you should be fine.

Nice swimbait set up buddy! Good luck with it on those smallies.

My favorite is the Bronzeye 65 in Outback color. I also love the Bronzeye Jr in that color. The Bronzeye Shad is also a favorite when the bass are targeting bait fish. R2S Spittin' Wa 70 is also a good big fish bait. I don't get nearly as many strikes on it as the Spro but when I do its usually a good one.