TorqueConverter

The Livingston Lures DM Jr. doesn't light up and the croak is extra, extra quiet. I'd recommend passing on those cranks. The Livingston Spook type bait is fantastic. The croaking is significantly louder than my DM 14, 20 or DM Jrs and the red light is very bright. I look forward to some warm water night time topwater action with that thing.

I remove all my split rings and use Norman Speed Clips. This allows me to change lures quickly especially when deep cranking with braid as the knot I use for braid is not a quick knot to tie.

Post pics of your cankbait boxes/collection. Sharing helps.

Most lure design and paint is very generic. SK, Bandit and Norman are some of the worst offenders in making generic blobs of plastic cranks. Their get out of jail free card is that they are old or "classic" designed baits. This is what the Livingston DM baits are. Classic plastics based heavily on Norman designs with guts full of Livingston's tech. The BPS Egg looks to be more impressively designed bait than the Pro Wake. If were judging books by their covers, then the Livingston baits are very plain when put beside any JDM type bait or even BPS XPS.

In bass fishing talk a "jig" is a weedless jig head dressed in either rubber, silicone or hair. It was developed as a stand alone lure but plastic trailers are commonly add to the bait for additional action and profile. To outsiders they are known as "bass jigs".

I should have bought more $4.88 DT-6s in demon when I had the chance. I could have sold them on ebay like a scalper for upwards of $12.00 a piece. I don't get the hype behind the DT-6 demon. I love than bait and color but there is no reason why it should be that popular all of the sudden. Mardi Gras DT-6 gets no love.

Bassjunkies Frog Pond did a review on it last year. I trust about anything frog related he has to say and he thought highly of it. It's a pretty big bait so keep that in mind. I hear pike guys like it as well.

The Lightning Rods are heavier, clumsy and stiff compared to the Cherry Wood. I'm assume topwater means poppers, spooks ect. Floating things with treble hooks dangling off of them, right? You definitely want a crankbait like rod for those baits but you will also need something that is light weight and well balanced so your arm doesn't fall off. A medium Cherry Wood, BPS Cranking stick, medium Abu Vengeance, medium BPS Graphite Series are just a few I can name off the top of my head.

They're actually quite generic in their action. The DM14 and DM20 are straight up Norman DD baits. To put that in perspectve, DTs are sub $8.00 baits and have, IMO, a better action that Norman baits. Why should I pay DT money, or more, for a Norman bait? There are people out there that like the LC baits for their action and durability. I don't like LC baits, but I also bought 2 Livingston baits and had decided I was going to buy them before the Classic. I am disappointed thus far. The Livingston dream-catcher 9000 looks like a generic JDM type bait. Unless I can see the action, then I'm not touching that thing.

The best bang for your buck baitcaster that is also available at a store (i doubt you have a credit/debit card for online purchases) is the Pfluger Templar. 6 pin centrifugal braking, coated level wind and decent bearings for a cheap reel for a $60 at Walmart. That leaves you with $40 to spend on a rod at Walmart. Bass pro has some combos in the $100 price range, but they may only be available in store, as that is where I have seen them. The Pro Qualifier reel and rod combo looks good although the rod is very moderate in action.

Big eyes eat DTs! I've caught a few in the 30'' range on DT-20s in old Red Crawdad junk fishing. I crank with 6.4:1 but I'm slow on the reel handle.

Cherry woods are great, Light weight, well balanced and the M power can handle treble hooked bait all day long. In a pinch it makes a decent crankbait stick. Another rod to consider if you want something nicer, is the BPS crankin stick. Those rods are surprisingly light weight and decently balanced.

Looks like might be a some generic Japanese style bait. A BPS XPS, Blaze, or some other big box fishing store house brand.

Small 2 inch cranks work well as beginner cranks while also working real well in ponds/small rivers. I'd use what I call "classic plastics" such as the Bomber 4A, BPS Laser Eye Medium crank, Cabelas Grave digger and Diawa Peanut. They're going to run between 3 and 5 feet depending on the model and hive tight wobble with a soft rattle. They're also cheap running between $3.00 - $500 on average. The diminutive little 2'' body size really gets bit.

So the hooks are like leads on a multimeter. Once there is continuity between the leads it completes the circuit.

They claim they activate in water. I can take mine and place the hooks up against the body so the the bends of the treble hooks are facing each other and get it to go off. I'm going to place plastic hook protectors over the hooks when in my deep crank box to keep them from going off and killing the batteries. There is some sensor in the bait that is able to detect the presence of water and it is being fooled by the hooks. Once the croaker is activated it emits the croaking sound as the bait moves. Moving the bait one the croaking has begun causes he bait to continue croaking. Once moment has stopped the bait stops making the croaking noise and then triggers an LED lamp located the head to illuminate the eyes, bill and head portion of the bait. I guess their intent is to have the things croaking away, albeit quitely, when cranking then stop making the sound and glow red once the bait is paused, bumps bottom ect. I like the hard, robotic like action of DD22s in dirty deep water. The DD22 doesn't quite get down to 20 feet. The dive master 20 is a 20 foot diving DD22 that lights up sometimes. Kinda neat

That crank that aided whatshisface in wining the classic was a JDM looking Livingston bait. Well see if maybe that bait and its colors are good in their own right. If I'm going to trow a gimmicky bait then the gimmick better just be along for the ride like the Storm Arashi "self tuning eye" and "invisible" fluorocarbon. I feel that the product has to stand on its own two feet and am almost ashamed to admit that I just bought a DD14 and DD22 with blinking lights on them.

Cotton Cordell Wally Diver Magnum.

I bought a Bluegill 5 foot diving squarebill last summer. I didn't get to put any time behind it because it was frogging season. The bait cast very well and came through the water with little effort. The thin bill really allows it to slice through the water and to get down to its diving depth quickly. The action seems good, but not great IMO. I would liked to have seen more tail kicking and some roll in the bait's movements. Their buoyancy is not excessive nor is it insufficient and is about right, if not slightly slow rising. I think the combination of the thin bill and low-ish buoyancy should make them good cold water cranks. I picked up a Flat 7 Arashi the other day and it's a completely different animal from the squarebills.

I like SK River Bugs as jig trailers. The same bait is available through Big Bite Baits as the YoMama. What I like about them is that they are a cross between a paca chunk/craw papi and a beaver. The tail is larger and has a lot more action it it than your average beaver bait but this comes at the cost of reduced body size.

The Extreme 7' H makes a really good frogging stick. It's got a long, soft tip and a stout carbon fiber wrapped backbone. I love the Veritas but I would think a H power one would be a too much for frogging. That rod is notorious for being stiffer than the power rating. My H Extreme has tip like my MH Veritas but a much stronger backbone and more power. My hookups are approaching 100% thanks in part to the tip on that rod. Too bad the rod is heavy and clumsy because that action is great for frogging.

The lights and croaking noise is pretty gimmicky. I can barely hear the croaking over the sound of the spit rings on my Livingston DD14. I like the Livingston DD22 because it's a DD22 that gets down to 20 feet. We'll see what Livingston Lures has in store for the future, but as it is now, the baits are "classic plastics" Bill Norman style baits in traditional colors with a faint croaking noise and the occasional red glowing eyes. They're alright for $9.99 but I wouldn't pay $12 for one.

The Rig is not something you typically get bit with frequently. It's a tournament bait in that it gets very few bites but the fish are typically larger than average. I've had the same experience as you with the rig and I've grown to despise it as a rec angler.

I just got back from my BPS. I picked up a Pro Qualifier for $65, a Carbon lite spinning reel for $50, Arashi cranks for $6.47, a couple of Livingston Diver Masters for $9.98 and some XPS cranks for $3.17.

Cabelas has Rapala DTs for $4.88 and Havoc baits for $1.99. I have both a BPS and Cabelas near me and it seems like when Cabelas does a sale they really go all out.