Djman72

I've not used any of the above reels, but people on these boards rave about the PQ. Seems like the best bet to me.

Duo Realis Spinbait 80/90 Scrounger heads (Which I am the most excited about) Various soft plastics.

I would check out a Dicks Sporting Goods if you have one nearby. I was able to get some Rapala's & strikeking spinners on heavy discount. Also picked up some line for next spring.

I try to be a jack of all trades, but I feel I gravitate towards a few specific techniques that I know produce in the waters I fish. I would hardly call myself a specialist, but I would fall more to that side than the other.

I own both, and both are fantastic. President is a workhorse that'll last forever. I've used it for for panfish all the way up to steelhead/pike. The supreme is a bit smoother and lighter, but not a huge jump from the President. Go to a store that has both and check them out. The best test for a rod/reel is to have it in your hands. Good Luck!

Roughly $500.00 dollars i'd say. This included 2 rods 2 reels and tackle. This year I expect it to be significantly less, maybe $200.00. That will be on line/terminal tackle/lures. I should record this guess and see how much I actually spend.

My favorite fish story is below. I've caught bigger fish since but this was my favorite fishing moment. I was 9 years old on vacation with my family up on a popular lake in Michigan. We had rented a lakeside cabin and this cabin had a old abandoned dock that looked like it was about to collapse. I was fascinated by this dock and whenever we were not on the water I wanted to play in the dock/fish in it. My mother caught wind and told me i'd be grounded until winter if I went in there. My dad said the same thing. One day my mother took my two sisters to the beach of lake Michigan to play (About 20 minutes away) and I stayed back with my dad since we were going out on the boat later that day. He took a nap and I was left to my own devices. I took my Zebco 33 and grabbed some leaches out of the fridge and went to the old dock. I was fishing about 20 feet up from the dock since I couldn't climb down and get back up. I saw what looked like a giant brick/cinderblock in one of the abandoned boat slips that was under the roof of the dock. I cast right in the middle of the slip and waited. This "brick" started moving straight towards my leach. My bobber went under and I set the hook and this monster took off. She could have went in any direction but one and snapped my line easily, but as fate would have it she went right out into open water. I had a net with me for some reason and I decided to jump down to get inside the dock to land this monster fish. I fought this fish for 15-20 minutes and I finally landed the fish. At this point in time, the owner of the bait shop/convenience store who owned this old dock had heard all the racket and came to investigate. He yelled at me for being in a dangerous place by myself, and being the kid that I was I just held up my net and showed him a 5-6 pound largemouth bass and he immediately lit up and laughed and congratulated me. He walked over and helped me out of the ditch with my prize. Told me that my dad and I could get fresh bait for free every morning we went out. I walked over to my cabin and banged on the door. Showed my dad my prize and he took me out for ice cream. I left out the part that I went into the old dock to fish. Fun times at that lake.

So I've been doing some research on what lines to use for the main techniques I use. I've never really given too much thought to the line I've been using. I've been strictly using cheap mono line. I was hoping to get some suggestions/help on what line type would be best for the following techniques. -Weightless soft plastics on a ML Rod and a spinning reel. Use this around very light cover -Weightless soft plastics/Jigs/T-Rigged Plastics on a MH Rod n bait caster. Use this around med-heavy cover -Shallow Cranks/spinners on a MH Rod n Baitcaster. Depth of 0-6 -Hard/Soft Jerkbaits & Top Water baits (pop-r's, spooks, buzz baits) MH Rod. Just as a FYI. I fish almost exclusively from the banks and typically in waters ranging from 0-6 feet. No deeper than 10 feet. Water Clarity is typically clear to stained. I appreciate the help and info.

Flukes, Jigs, and spybaits are on my to do list for 2015. Spy baits are crazy expensive though

Zoom Trick Worm.

Cabelas gift card and a Pflueger Purist spinning reel to add to my collection. Gift card will come in handy to match a rod.

Both are solid. President is my pick thought, I own one Cardinal and 3 Presidents.... I got the ABU first.

jigs... Say what?

Any Luck? Let us Know! If they're hitting i'll tell my GF i'm going to the lighthouse outlet mall. Instead i'll just wet some lines for awhile!

Reel - Anything Pflueger. They are outstanding reels Rod - I prefer Fenwick or St. Croix but everyone has their own tastes.

So, I live in the Chicagoland area and I won't be wetting a line for bass until April. I just did a tackle inventory to see what I need for next season/what needs to be replaced. I must have went a little crazy on terminal tackle/lures this season because I only need a few soft plastic replacements and a few spinners. It's a long hard winter, and the bait monkey will find me... I'm afraid I'll be buying a bunch of random lures just to get my fishing itch scratched. I also don't need any more rods/reels so I can't even hold out for that. What's a man to do????

Lake County as well.... Willow Slough and Wolf Lake are good lakes in our beloved county. There are plenty of smaller ponds/lakes that provide some great fishing spots. Trick is to know where to look! I fish quite a few areas in Lake County and would gladly point you in the right direction if you were out this way.

Looks like i'll be checking out Dicks today....

I work for a large printing company in the Midwest that will offer 3D printers once in the near future once they become more available / cheaper. From what I know (and that's not a whole lot ), it'll be significantly cheaper to buy your fav lures opposed to 3D printing them. At least for the foreseeable future

Pop-r's and spooks are way above anything else for me.

Indiana has some surprisingly good fishing if you know where to look. I live in Northwest Indiana, and have caught quite a few fish over 4 pounds and my PB of 7.5 out of Indiana lakes. I mainly fish IN and MI and it's no contest between the two. Michigan wins hands down.

I'm looking to order and I see you mentioned free shipping... How did you get that (promo code?) I'm currently seeing a $6.00 ship fee.

Literally my exact DS setup except I use a Pflueger Supreme reel. I absolutely love this set up, and I've been using it for weightless plastics around light cover as well. Great bang for your buck.

I've always been a huge fan of Pflueger spinning gear and I finally bought a Pflueger baitcaster (patriarch). I couldn't be happier with it. The real is as smooth as anything i've used, and I throw everything I have on it.Great drag system. I've even been able to chuck a few weightless t rigged baits without any hang ups. I would recommend the reel to anyone. I've never had another high end baitcaster reel so I can't speak to those, but this reel has been nothing but gold for me. Also landed my PR with this reel!

8.1 lbs pre spawn, caught in 3-5 FOW on a 1-2ft baby bass crank around 7 p.m.