masterbass

The alberto has never let me down but I'm going to experiment with the fg knot because it looks like it'll run through guides better.

No worries.

Now that would be an amazing senko set up.

Favorite: T rigged soft plastics Least: deep cranking just because I don't do it much.

So far the best I've found is the kvd braid scissor/split ring combo tool. Very clean cuts and lasting so far. Rapalas don't seem to last very long for me.

I've had nothing but good experiences so far. I'm always amazed at how fast shipping is.

It all depends on the lure and cover. I pitch with almost every combo I own with the exception of my crank bait rods.

New2bc4bass, I'm more intrigued by your statement that you haven't fished in a month and a half! Bro, how can this be? I'd be going absolutely nutty from withdrawal, LOL.

I don't feel guilty or inept for learning how to use a bc the way it was designed, with brakes. I also taught myself and don't claim to be a pro, but I can hold my own.

And sometimes you do nothing wrong and the rod still breaks. Christmas of 2013 I bought a DX743. I absolutely cherished this rod and babied it. I always put a rod glove on it when I wasn't using it. This was my senko rod which is my confidence bait so this rods was used more than any other rod in my arsenal. I caught numerous fish, even a small musky that took my senko. I was always careful not to high stick or dare to boat flip with it. Then one day it snapped casting a senko t rigged with 1/16oz worm weight. This was after 6 months of lots of use. I sent to rod for inspection to dobyns and they declared a defect and replaced my rod (great customer service). I never understood how the blank could withstand so many fishing outings then all of a sudden snap casting.

Starting over again buying new stuff sounds like fun. I sometimes wish I could start over again because I've bought so much stuff I don't need and it just sits there.

I have no experience with that particular combo, but I've owned the bps pro qualifier and carbonlite rod. Based on my experience with those I'd say you'll be happy with the tourney combo. They make quality stuff.

Originally retail around $100.

Adamseye, what reels do you use now and do you use any brakes?

Get some 4" black yamamoto senkos and 3/0 ewg hooks. Learn how to texas rig the senko weightless. Also try some 3" chartreuse grubs rigged on 1/8oz jigheads. With the senkos, cast and let it fall. The grubs you can cast and retrieve or jig.

I prefer braid w/ leader on spinning reels.

G Loomis cr721 imx. It's 6' though.

IMO the brakes and spool tension are there for a reason. Set up the reel properly and then learn how to cast and use the thumb. If I was teaching a new person how to use a bc I wouldn't cut his legs off by shutting off the brakes. I don't set up my reels like this so why would I handicap a new bc user? If you don't use brakes, more power to you. Me on the other hand, I must not be that good.

I started with spinning gear, but started using bc gear a few years ago. The one thing I can say is I've spent a ton of money since taking up the bc. I could've saved a few thousand bucks! I use spinning gear for drop shots and live baits. Other than that it's all bc gear for me. The past few days I've been bank fishing a creek that runs into the Ohio river. When we get lots of rain the creek gets high enough for smallies, sauger and walleye to run up in to chase the bait. It's one of my favorite types of fishing because I tie on an 1/8oz jighead and a 3" grub and I literally don't need another thing with me. I use my cr721 imx and 51e with avail shallow spool. It gives me the control to make pin point casts and pitches in tight quarters. I just cast, pitch and reel over and over again. I used to use spinning gear for this, but this feels so much more efficient and controlled.

It works fine for heavy cover. It has an aluminum frame and brass gears. I'd get 7.2 gears. Some prefer a longer handle, but I must be the only guy on the planet that can't tell the difference between 80 and 90mm. Half of a cm on each side doesn't make a difference to me. If you wanted to feel a difference in leverage then I say get 100mm.

Which reels were you reading about? Maybe you can find them used. If you're going to spend $200 and order online then you should go to japanlureshop.com and order an alphas sv. When I pitch I want the spool to start up fast so I can pitch something as light as a 4" senko up to a 1/2 oz jig with trailer. Some reels with deeper, heavier spools aren't the best pitching reels IMO. The lure flies up in the air instead of staying low and accuracy suffers and gets lots of overruns. The SV has a shallow light spool for pitching, but holds enough line to be a great casting reel too. Stress free versatile.

Try putting on 2 or 3 brakes and loosening the tension. You should get more distance and better control. Use the outside brake dial yo fine tune.

I have 9 casting combos ready to go and 5 spinning combos ready to go. No shelf queens. I guess the reels I use the most lately: zillion 50th, metanium xg, alphas sv, tdz r+ and steez 103hla.

My buddy has an alphas ito. I'm not sure if it's just his reel, but I watch him cast and he struggles to get any distance throwing the same stuff I'm throwing with my sv. He backlashes a lot too while I just make cast after cast. I'd say the sv is the worth it over the other variants.

I like 30 or 40lb and I use a leader mainly because if your fishing from the bank and get hung up you can break off easier than with straight braid.