Choporoz

Truly cannot say enough good about it. Mine (7MHF) is, I believe, previous generation. Not sure what changed, except maybe better guides. It is light, sensitive, and comfortable. If I don't get a new rod this winter, it will probably be my primary jig rod next season. The last couple/few months, I've used it mostly as a chatterbait (and spinnerbait) rod. It certainly excels at both moving and bottom baits.

Like, "If your fishing was a movie....." lol :)

The vast majority of my jigging is in nasty wood. I have tried most of Siebert's styles. I use his Brush Jigs (Dredge, Grid Iron, Extreme) almost exclusively now.

I'm still looking for the perfect jig rod. I've tried a bunch. I currently rotate between Dobyns DX744C, Fenwick Aetos, St Croix ETSM, and a couple of mediums for light jigs. None are close to perfect. It's going to be hard to pass up the email I just got for Kistler Helium for $219. I realize that it's over your stated budget....and I've never even held one.....but, way, way, too many guys on here have raved about them for me not to give it a shot

Interesting, @Brad Reidand @Darren.. I, too, fish from a kayak a lot, but I prefer baitcasting gear in the yak (seated only.) I always have 1 or 2 spinning rods with me and I use them...and almost exclusively if on a smallmouth float. But I struggle a bit with spinning because of the reel placement. My wrists and forearms tire or ache after hours of holding the rod out farther due to being seated and due to my pfd. I spent a couple hours drop-shotting on Monday and was sorta miserable. I've considered trying a finesse baitcast rig for just that reason.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/sunken-ships-lake-michigan-are-visible-ghostly-blue-180955108/

Agreed. Other colors work for me at times, but even then, white variations are working....I rarely (never?) found a time when dark worked better than whites

The Jerk

@Ksam1234, that photo should be called 'fun FAKE fact #5314'. That wreck is in 12 feet of water....not 300

My dad had a black and white checkered one he owned (and wore) from the 50's til he died a couple years ago. He always called it a shirt...since I was a kid, I always thought he was mistaken....that it was a jacket.....now I finally know the true name...thanks, @Glenn

Congratulations! Not sure I would have ever expected to see those words all together in one sentence. Really is good to hear.

Bought a box of them from bps years ago....five or six each of a bunch of different colors. Tried them a couple times with weighted and unweighted hooks, but always got the impression that the sweet-spot speed for the tail to look right was a really tight window -- too slow and you get nothing, and little too fast and it rolled or you got nothing, so I buried them away and now they contribute to my island of misfit plastics.

Temps in 60s yesterday for probably last time until March, so used a vacation day. Was a dink sort of day for first several hours until this guy came along

A decade or so ago, I was on a trip and needed two spinning combos. Found a couple of Quantum combos on sale for about $50 each. They served their purpose for the week, but neither reel lasted the rest of the year, and one of the rods broke not long after that. Totally disregarding the lower end aspect, I got it in my head that Quantum meant sub-par quality. Unfair, sure. But, sometimes our minds have minds of their own Fast forward to three years ago, and I was offered deal on two Smoke baitcast reels that I couldn't pass up ($75 each for reel that MSRP $199...who cares what name is on the side...lol) I've since gotten two more Smokes (all PT's, not 'newer' S3.) Those four reels are my favorites. Now, even that said, I'm not sure if its a totally fair comparison, because I got each of them at WELL below msrp, but my Daiwas and Lews and others are closer to ebay retailer price points....not msrp, but lower than tw/bps. What does all that mean....? IDK, except that if I am offered a Smoke and a Tatula at same price, I'm taking the Smoke....every time. It is so very hard for me, nearly impossible, to compare any one reel to another without taking price into some consideration. So, I suggest you don't write off Quantum, or any other brand unless you've got experience comparing models of them to comparably priced other models from different brands.

@fishwizzard, you probably need to factor in a variable that equates to 'time spent with rod before breaking' - like a reverse-equity function....and somehow a depreciation factor that may not be equivalent....the calculation of each of those variables would probably fluctuate depending on the cost of the 'replacement plan' rod ---- even shipping cost is going to screw up your tables -- sometimes you pay; sometimes in-person drop; sometimes you pay, but you can break the rod into several smaller pieces; one time, I simply sent mfr a digital photo and they said go ahead and toss it out. I am anxiously awaiting your updated product :)

Nice! MWR on LOZ also rents bass boats, though we haven't been there yet....it's been in back of our minds a couple years, though.....don't think its near that cheap, however.

Thanks, guys. @Logan S, every year I seriously consider your club and others around here, and ultimately decide that I think I have more fun fishing for fun....or maybe I am just averse to commitment :) I get the cost and liability challenges faced by rental companies, but I can rent 150HP pontoon and ski boats just down the street. Just got me thinking...to what end, IDK. I just see soooo many boats on land or parked in slips day after day every summer and it seems there's got to be some opportunities there. I'm in a town house with pretty limited storage options, so I've limited myself to kayak and jon rentals for now....but get the itch all too often. @TOXIC, two summers ago, our family also rented a big pontoon for a week in northern WI, also. Not the greatest of bass platforms, but worked surprisingly well.

I wouldn't overthink this one. For most rod choosing, hook setting is an important consideration, but for frogging, its way out front, IMO. It's good to be able to launch a frog a mile....and to be able to horse a fish around pads and weeds....but most any rod with a good backbone and a fast tip will do fine. If I have five MH or H rods rigged, the one with the frog tied on is probably the least sensitive (and was probably cheapest.) I love throwing frogs and toads, but I'll probably never seek out a special rod just for frogs.....bait monkey willing

Lol....for tree-fiddy, you might get your lure back

I'm sure it varies by type, size, location, season,etc. But around here, the slimers, the blues and channels will inevitably roll. Big flathead, though are more like @Bluebasser86described. They might just drift off or go down and lay on the bottom and try not to budge

Turtle would be my guess.

I've rented jon boats on small lakes for years. And, I've seen 'boat clubs' with small cabin cruisers, big center consoles and pontoons. But, very few fishing boats in between. Anyone have experience with marinas that rent freshwater fishing boats, or boat clubs that have something between a rowboat and a 22' center console? Seems that fishing boats with high cost-to-own, and somewhat limited use opportunities, there'd be more rental or even shared owner options out there, despite the risks. Shoot, you can buy into a club and use 22' ski boat just down the street from here, but if I want to fish from something bigger than my kayak without buying, I would need to buy into membership to fish from a 22' scout. Alternatively, has anyone shared boat ownership with anyone else? I recognize there's a long list of potential problems, but with agreements in writing and the right 2-4 people, it seems like it could work.

Funny coincidence....I was just considering strolling in and starting a thread about boat rentals...guess I should...instead of jacking this one

http://fish.shimano.com/content/fish/northamerica/us/en/homepage/INFO/ROD_SERVICES.html http://dobynsrods.com/warranty/ https://stcroixrods.com/pages/service-warranty

Curious what you'll do with the list. Because even if two companies have 'limited lifetime', the terms for execution could be very different. And, without more details, limited lifetime might be a worse deal than, say, a five year warranty with 'less limitations'. At any rate, Fenwick has limited lifetime on some and 5 year on others Most every company will have their warranty info on their websites, so short of a list to give you, the info should be there with a bit of googling