Chris at Tech

Crankbaits run from 6 inches to 30 feet deep so you can target fish 12 months out of the year. I think the more appropriate question you should be asking is how to choose the appropriate diving depth by season.

Yes, use a leader Yes, get a wooden dowel to help pull snags free Yes, keel-weighted presentation can help with snags In addition, I'd say that as you get accustomed to the increased sensitivity of the braid, you'll get better at avoiding snags. You'll still pull through the gnarly cover, but you'll recognize it easier so you can lightly shake the bait free more effectively.

If you're bored, I think you can find about a hundred similar threads on this exact topic My short answer -- fluoro takes some more care and management than mono and braid, but to me it's worth it for the extra sensitivity needed for "feel" techniques.

What jighead? Senkos are decently thick so it helps to ensure the hook/jighead has enough gap to get a good hookset.

Country Western?

AnDDy - looks like you taught Hootie how to do your "SOTS"

The best five fish limit I've ever had in my boat was from throwing pointers into grass and grasslines.

I'd suggest two areas to look at in an effort to reduce. First is focused on the colors of the baits you bring. Don't buy and bring every color known to man. Have a color for clear, off color and murky water. Second, consider seasonal patterns as well. Don't bring your deep diving crankbaits when the fish are getting ready to spawn.

I don't care what the horses' names are or who wins as long as I've got a well-made mint julep in hand.

Mono was the only gig in town for quite a while before copoly, braid and fluoro came around. People will have their preferences (for example, I prefer fluoro for bottom contact presentations), but you can pretty much do anything with mono. I use mostly for moving baits like topwater, cranks and spinnerbaits.

For just bass fishing, I'd use a backing. If the reel was going to see double-duty for inshore saltwater fishing like most of my spinning reeels w/ braid do, then I fill the spool completely with braid.

Jig, chatter bait, Colorado bladed spinnerbait

I used to throw them exclusively on a Dobyns 683c with a Revo Premier baitcaster and 12lb fluoro and that rig did just fine. This week I've actually been breaking in a new spinning rod by doing some golf course fishing. It's a Kistler KLX 6'9" M/F spinning rod paired with a Stradic 2500 and 10lb Sufix braid. I was skeptical at first but the rod is a bit more powerful than other mediums I've fished. I gotta say I've had a great time throwing both weightless and 3/32oz weighted flukes on that rig (along with quite a few other types of plastics)

Has anyone fished one of these blanks yet? I'm curious how they compare to MHX offerings.

Bigger hook and make sure to set the hook well. I never fished that size fluke until I went to Baccarac last year and it was a bit surprising to me how much of a hook set I needed.

What fluoro? Some brands don't play nice on spinning gear.

In a pinch? Sure. Spooling a rod with fluoro purposely for buzzbaits? Not for me. There are plenty of other abrasion resistant options

What he said! Where in GA where you? Drop me a PM if you prefer to keep it on the down-low.

I've got a few... If you want a boat, strongly consider going the jonboat route. As far as jonboats go, my rig certainly wasn't cheap but it was a very good bit cheaper than a full-on bass boat. And it seems to me there is much less that can go wrong in an aluminum, electric-powered jonboat than a gas powered fiberglass rig. Don't forget to factor in the gas savings aspect here too! But just make sure you factor safety into this. Don't go driving off into the big waters of Erie with your 12-ft jonboat Don't be fooled by the "technique-specific" stuff. Yes it's likely true that some power/action/gear ratio etc is better than others in certain situations, but you CAN fish a topwater on the same combo you fish worms on (for example). Research BEFORE you buy. There are quite a few folks on here who post stuff along the lines of "I just got this rod/reel. Was this a good choice?". Ask these questions before you buy! Use cheap (but still decent) mono backing on all your reels. Whether the line you're fishing is fluoro, braid or mono, you can still save decent money by filling the first half of the reel with cheaper stuff. Be patient and wait for sales. Between Dicks, Academy, TW, etc -- chances are you're never more than a month away from SOMEONE having a good sale. And anyone who has been on here a while has seen some smoking deals in the Flea Market. While it's true across the board, this was especially helpful for me with plastics. Stick to a a collection of a few core colors. With very few exceptions, I stick to GP, watermelon, junebug and a shade of black on all my plastics. Don't feel the need to have every color of every bait. Resell what you're not using. I'd say that 95%+ of us on this site buy stuff that never gets fished. Use winter to look through your stuff and cull the items that you're just not using. Take care of your stuff! At least get knowledge of how to do a very basic reel cleaning and lubing. I'm not saying you need to break it down all the way, but know how to take the side plates off, and know the easy-access areas to clean and lube. Rod socks and reel covers are very good investments! I'm sure more will come to me later.

Here's how I do it -- don't buy colors that are so similar I've simplified my fishing especially with plastics by limiting my colors to some version of GP, some version of watermelon, junebug and some version of black. This makes my choice on the water a lot easier.

Time to update the sig line! Hehe... Kidding -- I come in peace

For me, I'd choose Shad and either Parrot or Hot Mustard.

Just find some pics of the Plank Hydroflow on the internet and drill a similar pattern.

If I'm grabbing one rod for the salt, it's gonna be my St. a Croix Tidemaster 7' M/F with a Stradic 4000, 20lb braid

Bass Pro makes the Bionic Blade in a 2-piece 7' MH/F and it's currently on sale for $60.