Revival

I am looking for my first real baitcaster rod. I have a Premier spinning rod which I love so I wanted to get a Premier baitcasting rod. I noticed that there is the Trigger rods and the Crankbait rods. What is the difference? Is it just the action? Does anyone have both? How do they compare? Trigger Rods http://www.basspro.com/St-Croix-Premier-Series-Trigger-Rods/product/74388/ Crankbait Rods http://www.basspro.com/St-Croix-Premier-Series-Crankbait-Rods/product/74391/ I mostly throw plastics and recently been throwing shallow crankbaits consistently with the occasional spinnerbait. Which rod should i go with? How will the trigger rods handle crankbaits and how will the crankbait rod handle plastics? I guess im looking for the rod that will suit my needs overall. Also do i go with medium or medium heavy? I know different rods/reels are best suited for specific applications but im looking to get the best overall set up for right now. Let me know what you guys think. Thank you in advance. EDIT: Crankbait rod link has been fixed

I need to try this stuff out

Thanks, good to know. Thanks for the info! I dont own a boat so I screamed from shore. Funny thing is that there was a couple relaxing, laying in the grass about 20ft from me and also quite a few people walking their dogs. I am not usually emotional like that but after having a rough month and that being the second fish lost not to mention actually seeing the size of the fish, i couldnt help myself. Oh well, i have a score to settle with that bass.

Not only read, but also watch a lot of videos on youtube. There are a lot of informative videos. Pay attention to how they fish a particular lure you might be interested in. With access to so much valuable information these days, you will be catching a fish in no time.

Yup I found that out quick. I wanted to try braid with my new set up as I mainly fish plastics. When this incident happened, it was my first time using crankbaits and at the time did not realize that braid had that type of effect. I changed my line to fluro, changed my hooks and went out the next day and caught some fish. Although i would not use braid while fishing cranks again, I would not take the risk and I will be changing out the hooks from now on.

They look pretty good. I wouldnt mind getting the reaper, bluegill and tilapia.

I only fish from shore and i use a Quiksilver backpack. It has 3 main compartments and 2 water bottle holders on the sides which is important to me. At one point I was carrying 3 tackle plano cases but i now i only carry 1. Took some time to find the perfect case that would fit everything i need but i finally did. This is how i carry my stuff: Big compartment: - Plano box with lures/plastics - Long sleeve shirt Medium compartment: - Small Plano box with hooks/weights - Small Plano box with crankbaits - Scale - Pliers - Towel - Flashlight - 2 Knives (1 fixed/1 folding) - Fishing license/Park pass Small compartment - EWG hooks in original packaging in a plastic bag - Keys - Money clip I have extra line in one of the bottle holders and always have a bottle of gatorade/water in the other. Another thing I have which i find is important is a fingernail clipper on a lanyard that i have connected to the top strap of my backpack. When i put my backpack down to change lures, its right there and its very convenient.

Yeah i can honestly say i never got hung up at all with that lure that day. I seen the bass hit the lure too and it was 4-5lb minimum. I immediately changed colors to try and get the same bass to hit it. I tried for about half hour and had no luck so I left the pond and when I came home I inspected my lures for the day and found the hook like that.

Try a KVD 1.0/1.5. All i do is fish ponds from shore and struggled for a month using plastics/spinnerbiats etc. I tried a 1.0 yesterday and got 2 on but lost both. I changed the stock hooks and got 3 this morning. Fish early morning or late evening. If possible, fish at night too. I have caught more bass at night then during the day.

Haha awesome thread man....i think the same way too. Should i change my lure, should i change the color etc. I just get impatient and think something else would work better. At times I feel that i should I bring less lures so i have less things to choose from. I struggled for a month but now I finally found something that works in the ponds i fish (KVD 1.0), Im sticking to it but just varying the colors.

I used to catch smallmouth on these. No weight, but it was situational at the time.

What did you use to catch each fish again?....or did you stick with the same type of bait?

I ended up finding these hooks at Bass Pro and these hooks are no joke. I was able to land 3 fish today so i got to see them in action! I was going to return the gamakatsu hooks but I decided to keep them and try them out as i bought couple more 1.0's and 1.5's. I got myself a split ring pliers and it helps but its still a PIA. I think its still easier to use my fingers with the 1.0 but it comes in handy for the 1.5.

This is the reason why I ended up changing the hooks.... I use a 6' St Croix Premier Medium with a Shimano Stradic CI4. I actually was using braid yesterday. It was the first time using cranks too so i didnt know what to expect. I guess I learn really quick...haha.

I made this thread about changing out the hooks leaving the pond on the way to bass pro.....haha http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/119876-kvd-10-hook-change/ I do realize it happens often but I never use cranks and never lost one like that so I wasnt sure what was the right thing to do in that situation. I know that cranks are reaction baits and wasnt sure if it was possible for the same bass to react to the same lure. I also thought about throwing something like a senko but didnt end up doing it. I was just thinking overall what should I have done. I know the bigger bass hangs out in the same area for the most part. I did reviews about the hooks but it was my first time using the 1.0. All my new 1.0's already have new hooks and working on changing my new 1.5's once i get a split ring plier.

Yesterday I lost 2 fish on a KVD 1.0. I am new to crankbaits and honestly I never lost a fish due to the hooks like that. Each bass was near wooden structure in the water near the shore (I fish from the shore). My question is what are the chances of the same bass hitting the same lure? What would you have done in that situation? Change lures?....if so to what? Change the color of the crank? Thank you in advance.

Went to Walmart after work and they dont carry the split ring pliers. The employee said they been pulling a lot of fishing items from the shelves. I guess im going to bass pro again later today. I was trying to use the razor blade in an attempt to space the ring to get my nail in there. With the 1.0 i could use my fingers alone but with the 1.5, no way. Also this was the back hook of my 1.0. For now i changed it to Gamakatsu EWG's. Our bass pro doesnt carry the Mustad KVD Elites.

I was able to change out the hooks on the 1.0. The 1.5 is a different story. The O rings do not give and I had to take a break. I'm sure my fingers will be throbbing tomorrow. I tried using a razor blade to get in between but still having trouble.

I just lost 2 fish on the KVD 1.0. The second one hit the lure so hard, I almost lost my rod! Driving to bass pro right now, what hooks (brand and size) should I replace the stock hooks with? Thank you in advance?

What do you mean? You are saying the stradic Ci4 that was "rumored" to be release soon is discontinued? If so, for what reason?

I bought my Spirex abouy a month ago. It worked fine in the beginning then it started getting real sticky and its not smooth at all. Sometimes when reeling, it feels like the line is stuck over the eye of the rod but its not. Then on occasions the bail does not close completely yet I am able to reel and it causes the line to stack up at the top of the spool. I had a spirex from 2003-2004 that was a lot better but got pretty bad over time.

Got my Stradic Ci4 in and after inspecting it, it looks and feels awesome. I cant wait to try it out. Bass Pro is taking extremely long with the rod for some reason. I do have a question about the Stradic Ci4 though. I noticed that the handle is not straight but rather pointed out at an angle. This is obviously by design but i was wondering for what reason? When i tried the other Shimanos, i never really noticed it I guess.

Awesome info! I am also trying to learn this technique. I just got some Roboworms to try out.

When does the newer CI4 rumored to be released? I noticed no one mentioned the Sahara. I was able to fondle most of the Shimano reels and my local Bass Pro and i think i was most impressed with the Sahara (besides the Stradics). It felt good on the display rod but then again i havent personally used all of these reels like most of you have. My local Bass Pro and Sportsman Warehouse didnt have the Stradic Ci4 in stock and werent due for more for another 2 weeks. I was looking online and seen that one of the sites were having a 15% sale for Memorial day so i couldnt pass it up. We will see how it goes. I still might get one of the other reels for a back up set up.

Awesome info guys! Wow the color selection for the Paca craws are overwhelming...haha. Do you guys usually rig it with a jighead? Ill be fishing whatever crayfish i end up getting from shore so im just trying to figure out what my best option is. Also are you guys using these craws as trailers or by itself?