andrew_t_moran

These look great! I've always been so enamored with Northstar that I've never really given Siebert a shot but these colors are awesome. Think it's time to place my first order!

HUGE fan of the Black Series. Not had much time with the newer Southpaw on the water but it catches fish and seems to come through grass pretty well. Some of the best jigs on the market, for sure!

Dunno if you're still in the market or not but I love my Oakley RadarLocks. They have interchangeable lenses. Not completely necessary but for a guy like me who likes to golf AND fish, I just switch to my G30 colored lenses on the course and use the HDPolarized lenses for everything else. Super comfortable and very lightweight. They're worth checking out!

Awesome - thanks! And very interesting - so in this case you would jig using a spinning rod? I've never used a jig on a spinning setup before. MH action, probably?

Think a big swing in the creek or main river channel up against the shore and you have a rocky bluff wall (lots of these on Cumberland and Dale Hollow). You could be a boat's length from the wall and be in 25+ feet of water. How do you like to fish this during the different times of the year? And...GO!

How's the fishing? Ended up pushing back my annual trip up there over a month to the middle of July to allow the vegetation to rebound from the ice a bit more...

Most of the time it's pretty open water with no real heavy cover so much more like a T-rig. The body of water you see in my profile picture is the lake I'm on most often - and almost always from shore. It is a long, thin neighborhood retention pond. Thanks for your help!

I'm really trying to commit to jig fishing this year - haven't had too much success with them but I know they can really bring in some great fish. So let me ask you all - what type of line do you use while jig fishing and why? I've heard arguments both ways - fluoro has better slack-line sensitivity and the invisibility factor but braid is has more sensitivity on a semi-slack line with zero-stretch. Right now I've got a 4-5' fluoro leader on braid hoping to get the best of both worlds but is that really the best solution? Thanks for your help and thoughts!

1/2 oz. NorthStar Custom Baits Knockout Flippin' Jig in Alimony or Green Pumpkin Candy

Just one heavy rod for me - a 7' Grandt Payara. That thing is incredible. Use it for jigs (> 1/2 oz) because you can feel EVERYTHING on that rod. Also a great rod for topwater frogs. Also, I have a MH Veritas, which I also consider a H rod because that line is so stout. I use that one for pitching/flipping heavy cover because it is lighter in weight and has a bit more spring in the tip for that application.

Caught my first yesterday out of Lake Lemon near Unionville, IN. She was caught on a 7' H Grandt Payara Rod + 7.1:1 Lew's SuperDuty with a NorthStar Custom Baits Black Series Jig and a Rage Tail Craw trailer.

Too much...

x4. Couldn't agree more. If I had to choose one rod as my all-around it'd be by 7' MH Duckett MicroMagic. Seems like you either love or hate these rods. They work for me and I couldn't be happier so far. Let us know what you settle on!

Ditto on the BB1 Pro. I recently got one from Ron and supertuned it with Boca Bearings. Two great companies to work with. Finally had the chance to get out this afternoon and use the reel - glad to see the ice going. I've never used a reel with centrifugal brakes that was so easy to fine tune as the Lew's BB1 Pro. If you decide to give this a think I'd definitely recommend upgrading the bearings.

I don't always use scent attractant...but when I do, I prefer JJ's Magic.

I don't think the Veritas will disappoint you. I own a 7'MH - started out with a 7' H and that thing was almost a broomstick. FYI - I've found the lure weight ratings on the Veritas to be a little skewed as well. To load my 7' MH with a 1/4oz jig + trailer (usually a RageCraw), I've really gotta be whipping that puppy around. To it's credit, there is plenty of bounce in the tip when you need it - it pitches really well. Good luck with your decision tomorrow!

Wow. That's great info. Thanks so much for that! I'm wondering if because the spool is balanced better using S3D if it can compete with spools lighter in weight...hmmmmmm........

Awesome. Thanks for the input, guys. Will start researching the 50E. Never owned a Shimano reel before but with all the renewed Curado buzz, I've been looking into them a bit more.

Just purchased a Lew's BB1 Pro from Ron for cranking among other purposes but am now looking for a reel that handles light lures/rigs with ease to compliment it. Hoping to gather thoughts between the new Curado I with the S3D design and the Tournament Pro, which has been proven as a killer lightweight lure reel. If it makes any difference, the primary application is weightless T-rigs and light Carolina rigs. Thanks in advance!

Haha. You and me both, brother... Cabin fever is at an all-time high.

Depending on the size of the grips on your spinning set-up you might wanna check out the X-model reel grip. Supposed to have a smaller inner diameter to accommodate more spinning reels. Good luck finding a retailer that carries the X though. Nobody in the Indy Metro area does... :/

Just about everybody and their brother has seen the "Top 100 Bass Lakes" releases put out by B.A.S.S. (if you haven't, click here for the 2013 list), but I was wondering what some of the guys on here think about the best lakes in this region. For me, the fishing is always the main draw to a lake but the experience can be elevated or dampened by other factors such as heavy boat traffic and ease of access, among others. Just hoping to get some input - which lakes and why you like 'em?

X 2 on contacting Ron from Valley Sports. I've got a BB1 Pro on its way to me right now. Very reasonable pricing and a great purchasing experience. You won't regret it!