Chris at Tech

How heavy jigs and plastics? I'd say the AC68XF or the AC70MH The AS66MLF is alright if you're throwing 1/4oz and under inline spinners or maribou jigs for panfish, but I don't think this is a good rod for general bass fishing. I got one for Xmas last year, but returned it shortly thereafter because it was just too whippy for my tastes.

Is this a great board or what? Man, there's an answer from someone that's got a few comps for reference. Thanks! That is a GREAT post. 8-) I'm SHOCKED, RW You didn't inform Lard_Bass that the AC66MF is not suited for plastics or jigs? In any event, I use the AC66MF for topwater, jerkbaits, shallow to med cranks, and traps. It works well for that, but I would not recommend this rod for plastics.

Agreed. Rod weight doesn't mean squat unless the weight was shaved in the right places.

What should you do? Not chase them. It's an easy trap to fall into, believe me, I know. But it's just like you said. By the time you get there, they're gone. If you're there when the shad are getting fed on, take some casts. But don't chase them around the lake or you'll get more exercise than fishing time.

You can use the same rod for T-rigs and shakey heads, if you're using approximately the same weight. For example, 1/4 oz shakeyhead and 1/4 oz T-rig. But if you want to mix a 1/2 oz T-rig and a 1/8 oz shakey head, that may be a bit of a stretch. Bottom line is to find a rod with F or XF action, and is rated for the lure weight you want to use. How much do you want to spend on this rod?

The crankin stick is hard to beat, especially when it's on sale for $29

I have a Zillion, Curado 101D and Revo STX's in my arsenal. I have the Zillion on my 7' H Dobyns 704c rod and I use it for throwing frogs, jigs, small swimbaits and c-rigs. My opinion? Depends on what you're planning to throw. It's a very solid, smooth reel that I like a lot. Casts well, feels great, easy to adjust...But it clearly excels in some areas and not in others. I'd recommend this reel for throwing lures that are ~3/8 oz and above. For weightless or lightly weighted plastics, or ~1/4 oz hardbaits, I'd recommend something else.

Whatever floats your boat. I do have a Sammy or two in my box, but when throw topwater, I always reach for the bone white Super Spook Jr. first.

Dude, pick a rod

They are nice looking rods!!! Basically what they did is use fore grips. Take two of them, one is placed at the seat and, the other is split in half and a foam cap is added... I told everyone after the ICAST show that not all of the split grips on the new St.Croix® LE, and LTB rods wouldn't fit everyone.... The only way to get a fitted/balanced split grip is through custom builds..... 8-) Tight Lines All !!! I understand... I took an ergnomics class in college that said one should design for 95% of the population. You're not going to get everyone with one solution. However, I think this was a poor design solution. A longer grip can be used well by by those that palm the reel and those that grip the rod. Just sayin'

Are the squirrels biting? Yeah, I see your point. Just knowing that not everyone palms the reel, and some people actually hold the rod there, it was puzzling that they didn't simply include another 3/4 to 1 inch of cork there to pretty much cover all their bases... The Zillion is too heavy? Nice...

They do look great in person... However, I have no idea why St Crox made the cork grip under the real seat so short. It's not even an average hand's width...

Was this straight braid, or braid with a leader?

I currently have a Humminbird 535. If I want to replace this unit with, say a Lowrance, can I simply unplug the old unit and plug the Lowrance into the existing transducer? Or does each brand/model have it's own transducer?

The 535 was purchased brand new and installed on the brand new boat I got in March 2007

Interesting... Without having my manual in front on me, any settings you can think of off the top of you head I should consider messing with before calling HB?

This is my first year owning a boat so I'm still learning and getting used to things. I have a B/W Humminbird, 535 I think, and I fish a few lakes that are REALLY weedy, with weeds almost to the surface. Now the question...what should I expect to see on my depthfinder. Often times, the screen is simply all black. I've played with the sensitivity and a few other settings. In open water, it seems OK, so I've simply told myself that with so many weeds, that's what I'll see. Is my assumption correct, or should I expect a better picture? And in a friend's private pond that's a bit muddy, the depthfinder often reports 0.6 feet of depth when I KNOW I'm deeper. I've tried wiping off the transducer. Any ideas? Is this what I should expect, of is the depth finder not behaving correctly?

I've recently gotten much better in walking the dog while holding the rod upright. It's just easier to learn when you can point the rod down. Any docks around that you can fish from? Take a few casts from there and try to get the cadence down while twitching downward. Once you know what to do, you can easily adapt to fishing the spook with the rod upright.

Talk about a close one. 2 hundredths of a pound?!??!?! Wow...nice

Please clarify! When you say o-ring are you speaking of the rubber o-rings or are you talking about a split-ring :-? I'm sure he means a split ring. 1) not sure how the heck he'd get a rubber o-ring on there 2) setting the hook with a rubber o-ring would bring back the end of the line with the lure likely missing

If you're just learning how to do this, I'd recommend a 6ft baitcaster. Shorter rods are easier to learn the technique on, and once you have the basics down, it's easier to do with 6'6" and 7' rods. Start simply. Cast it out and let it sit. Give the rod a downward twitch with your wrist. If the bait comes straight forward, you didn't have enough slack in the line. Try again with a bit more slack. If it 'walks' sideways, you had enough slack. Now the trick is establishing the cadence between twitching with your wrist, and reeling in just enough line. You can also experiment with different amounts of slack, and different twitching to see the effects. You can get the lure to glide gently, pop, swing wide, walk narrowly, etc.

You will either find a rod that excels with plastics/jigs, or excels with cranks. Those 2 applications really require 2 completely different actions that don't overlap.

What was different about them? Still good D and special teams, bad O.

Baitcast or spinning?

First off, you'll probably want a H rod with heavy mono or braided line. Now, 2 possible approaches: 1) a heavy T-rig. 3/4 oz + is often needed to punch through. Peg the sinker, or even better use screw-in sinkers 2) Zoom Horny Toads rigged weedless and retrieved over the top of the grass. You can also let it sink into the holes