einscodek

Yer right no doubt cause in my setups I spent a looooooong time getting the best possible rod and reel together (for me). I should have used "more" important. More is subjective but IMO a rod is "more" important than a reel. When I go .. I have 3-4 different rods.. only 2 different reels.. theres a reason for that.

The answer is all of the above.. the best bait or lure depends on the season, time, situation.. etc. Sometimes one bait is killin' it and it goes dead and another picks up the slack. Your job is figuring out which that is.. thats the difference between two fisherman next to each other and one isnt gettin bit while the other is beggin for a break.

The color goes quickly so I wouldnt be worried about that.. maybe put a fluoro leader on it if you are worried about visibility. I have 832 performance braid and have used powerpro and slick8 All had fraying as you mentioned only on the portions of the line which contact the rings at cast. Essentially based on my experience its fraying because of casting. I did not change up my line this season and only cut off the first 8 feet or so to the portion which did not have fraying and back to business.. no breakoffs yet this season.

I was gonna say the entire setup which is.. but thinking more.. the rod would have to be the most important. I could put up with any reel as long as it had capacity but I really need the right rod to impart the action and to chuck that lure the distance I need and for it to be light enough and sensitive enough I dont wear out during a trip.

In 3 short trips to the reservoir I've taken: 2 x 18" bass on large spinnerbait 4 x 20" bass betw/4-5lbs ea on large spinnerbait > 10 dinks between 12"-14" on KVD caffeine Shad in 56-60 degree water muddy (after the NE storms) to stained KVD Caffeine shad is killin the dinks.. I dont even weight, measure or count how many anymore I am just slayin them. Spinnerbait is killin those big'uns.. this is pre-spawn in full swing. I've not even taken the kayak out yet.. shore fishin.. gotta love Spring.

Many saltwater lures are balanced for saltwater which has a different buoyancy than freshwater.. for example my yozuri saltwater popper which floats and pops ok in saltwater barely floats in freshwater..

Stained to muddly water w/ muddy water preferred. In clearwater you really need to burn it or present it quickly off obstructions(there are better lures for clearwater sunny blue skies) Wind or surface ripples preferred Rain even better Early spring Fall

Was going to do a separate post as I just got back from fishing and post pics.. will prob do that in a separate post .. Went bank fishing (NJ) in the morning for a couple of hours before work and returned after work fished another hour. Surface water temperature 56 degrees. Water clarity = chocolate milk (from the northeast deluge storm) Caught: 20" 5lb female plump (spinnerbait) 20" 4lb female skinny (spinnerbait) 18" 2 lb skinny guy (spinnerbait) 4-5 dinks from 12-14" (all on KVD caffeine shad) Southern boys are spoiled.. 20" fish for Northerners are good fish.. I had a good day.. Looks like our Northern fish are in pre-spawn.. the big ones were caught in the shallows still alil skinny from the winter. Recommendation to you: Spinnerbait (muddy water perfection)

Guys, anyone had great success freshwater bassin' with the 6" model? It'd be great if you had both and could tell me if one size is better at walking or not. I noticed the shorter topwaters dont walks as well so I am thinking the 6" subwalk walks better than the 3" subwalk. These are subsurface lures. Anyone?

Glad to hear the constitution still stands first in the hearts of some! Too many have sacrificed to preserve these founding laws.

Yes though he has racist remarks under his belt, this is a "free" country with freedom of speech. He is "free" to be an ugly racist.. and we should not have our freedoms restricted just because some of us choose to be free with the ugly side. Freedom is paramount. We've already had plenty of our freedoms already taken over the last hundred years.. dont dare take away arms nor speech.

Nice try buddy.. you know government and military workers are on the government hand-out payroll..

Challenge the law! Its against the constitution since its the right to bear arms. Sorry all laws stating to hand in arms are against the LAW!

57 degrees? You aint in the south.. jigs my boy.. jigs.. crawdad trailer..work em slow.

I think we NE-erners are gettin jealous hearing bout the spawn-time bass fishin down south. Fish up here in Jersey still bite but its a winter/early Spring bite.. fish are still just snapping out of it and I am seeing some aquatic vegetation budding. Went fishing once for 2 hrs on an afternoon and finally caught a male 15" on a jig after frantically trying to search and cycle through my lures to figure out what the state of affairs is and where they are.

Can you action the topwater properly in a float tube? I suggest a kayak you can stand on..

If I use topwater frogs, I want a stiffer rod .. yet walk the dogs and other would like a softer tip. I use my MH 7'6" flipping rod IM8 (light) as a general purpose and it get me long casts.. Not saying its for you but heres what I use it for: topwater frogs spinnerbait small swimbaits worms flippin drop shotting lunker punker JR and Rapala XWalk I usually use medium-large size lures from 3/4oz to 2 oz and this one rod could handle it all. I still carry 3 rods but if I could only take one.. this be it. Hope this helps.

Bank fishin with cranks is a bit frustrating esp if there are weeds and I assume there is cause theres bass all over u said.. I'd replace that lost topwater frog, learn to walk it and work it, and work the area meticulously in the early AM. Also try a texas-rigged brushhog subsurface as a backup Both are friendly in the weeds.. happy hoggin'

This is why you carry long pliers with you when fishing so you dont have to rip it out of them.. if they aren't going to survive it then it needs to come home for dinner.. yuk

I dislike green swimjigs in stained water unless its like high noon .. I dunno but I wouldnt waste time just my experience. If you wanna use green in stained, I'd put a blade in front of that puppy.. bladed swimjig in green .. now that will rock the fish in stained.

You in LA meaning Louisiana?.. its Bass'in time .. I seen monster Florida strain LMB on their nests last week on vacation.. wanted to jump in and help protect the nest but my wife wouldnt let me If you are, the bass dont all spawn at once so you could still bed fish or hit the shallows hard and I've never had problems fishing post-spawn in the shallows.. the best and biggest fish i get are pre-spawn-post .. Up here in the NE, I think topwater is a bit early and they're not hitting them for me.. and theyre not in spawn yet almost like they just came outa hibernation..

What time of day did you fish on both days?

What time of day are you hitting these holes? NY is approximate to NJ and the fish here are sluggish .. winter baits are working better for me. Jigs/craws + flies + jerkbaits .. they are not chasing much so fish slow. I would expect a slowly presented soft jerkbait would produce for your suspended fish. Else I'd wait for them to approach the shallows and throw craws at them.

Was in Florida last week and saw a monster female on her bed guarding younguns so I got the itch so I also went bank fishing as well in NJ on return but topwater wasnt cooperating and the water temps were still too cold so ended up with a jig which produced for me as well.. fish just outa winter and a bit sluggish. Hopefully the water temps head higher soon..would love to see bluegills then bass on their beds here in the NE..

Yep.. popped on another skirt color I had and liked and a trailer to match.. its all customizable