TorqueConverter

Old small warts have a plastic that deadens the sound compared to the post rapala warts. The post rapala large size warts use steel bbs and a hollow sounding plastic that give the bait a much higher pitch than pre rapala large warts with their lead bbs and deadened plastic. Post rapala warts make use of low slung ballast weights doubling as knocker rattles to induce a lot of stability to the bait compared to the pre rapalas where the lead bbs doubled as a ballast weight and were situated high enough on the bait to make the baits inherently unstable, sometimes resulting in a hunting action that the baits are famous for.

Most braids will sink once the coating has worn down and the line is thoroughly saturated with water but there isn't enough mass there to get it to act like the fluorocarbon. 832 is the heaviest (mass) braid I've used and I don't think even it is as dense as a fluorocarbon. All that sinks in not fluorocarbon. Sinks? Floats? When it comes to topwater and braid it doesn't seem to matter.

They seem to go on sale like clockwork every year and usually only online although don't know the dates off the top of my head. Sale pricing is usually $20 off.

A 'normal' ratio such as 6.x:1 should do you just fine. Not that long ago that was considered ultra fast but today in a world of 7.x:1 let alone 8.x:1+ becoming common place it's considered moderate if not even slow by some standards. I'm of the school of thought that when in doubt go medium retrieve which means 6.x:1. Worse case scenario going 5.X:1 or 7.x:1 won't kill ya.

I jest. Tongue in cheek and such. PP original is a great product and truly worthy of it's gold standard of braid rating but it has been shown to have less than a gold standard roundness in the context of modern 8 carriers such as Suffix 832, hence the "no go below #50' rating of PP that is common knowledge. We're at a crossroads of braid where some good 8 carriers are dig in proof @ #30 while the old guard (PP) states that braid is unsuitable on baitcasters below #50. 'Boji wasn't even on my radar in this thread although I absolutely agree with him. Tongue in cheek and whatever. . .

I picked up a cheap spinning MH worm/jig rod for my non boater, AKA father, during the classic sale at BPS and I'm very impressed with the rod thus far. Dollar for dollar I haven't been this impressed with a rod in a while. Key talking points: A.) It is technique specific meaning that it has a proper XF worm and jig blank. What this means is that the rod has a soft ultra fast tip that very quickly transitions into a long and powerful backbone B.) The length of the rod and reel seat location reflect it's technique specific application.. What is means is that while being a 7'2'' XF rod it also features a shorter rod handle length that both exaggerates the blank length (and back bone leverage) while allowing for a handle that is not too long yet not too short. It fishes with a longness in its blank that is more reminiscent of a 7'6'' flippin stick than a 7'2'' MH rod placing it at perfection for a worm/jig rod. It fishes longer than it's length would indicate given traditional MH non technique specific tapers. C.) The rod features nice touches. I didn't expect much of anything in the niceness department from a $59 rod but boy am I impressed. The EVA foam is rock hard and the nicest I've seen by miles. I've got rods that cost much more and might as well have black kitchen sponge for handle material. Even the butt end of the rod features a decorative metal cap with an image of a jig imprinted into it. It features tapers, actions, powers and seat locations that I thought were exclusive to much, much higher end rods. It truly excels and beats up on many a rod in this department while still being offered in a spinning rod. At the end of the day it is a $60 rod and it does show. The negatives: A.) It;s not a very high modulus graphite but at this price point the material is appropriate. IM6 is just fine for this rod at this price point but is not blowing anybody's mind.. B.) While not a heavy rod the balance is less than ideal but still adequate for a rod of it's price point and features. Not clumsy and not crisp either. It's not going to wow anyone. Conclusion: I got him a MH 6'6'' Veritas Micro the previous classic sale @$65 with rod trade in to use as a a worm/jig rod and this Shimano Sellus @ $50 blows it out of the water in every department other than balance and sensitivity with the latter being made moot by braid. Long story short, I'd go Sellus over Veritas If I was looking for a budget worm/jig rod and I'm a Veritas guy. I'm not a Shimano guy but I really like length, taper and power of this rod and if this is indicative of Shimano rods at higher price points, then I may have to give Shimano a look in the future. lt:dr: Shimano brand rods are more awesome than I thought they could ever be.

That they can't figure out how to make a round braid?

Lightning Rod. The Graphite series are softer and have slower tapers than the Lightning Rod. Stay away from the Shock unless you want a slow tip. Those rods use a slower taper because they're supposedly superline (braid) rods. They're moving bait sticks IMO.

Id scratch the Lews off that list. Lews reels are great reels but that one is a plastic framed magnetic reel. I don't know anything about the Victory but I have an Accurist PT and it's very similar to my BPS Pro Qualifier. Might as well be a brother from a different Korean OEM mother. There are a bunch of BPS stuff that some in under $70 and features both an aluminum frame and centrifugal braking.

I'd definitely get a Carbonlite over a PQ and especially if I was already getting the Carbonlite rod due to the combo discount as well as the weight savings. It'd be a crying shame to stick some 8+ oz reel on one of those rods.

You can go as small as #30 and be impervious to line ding in as long as the braid has a high degree of roundness such as Suffix 832 but the majority of the braids out there are happier on baitcasters at around #40 - #50.

I'm interested in picking up a proper pair of sight fishing glasses. My problem is the range in prices and the fact that I may end up paying for things other than functionality. I trust your opinion on this subject, so what are you gold standard and/or bang for your buck glasses out there? The BPS PQ or Academy Mettle of polarized fishing glasses, if you will

I fish state ponds in the summer months that eventually get so weedy that I have nothing left but to throw frogs. My favorite baits to throw when there is some open water above the weedbeds are wake baits and my all time favorite is the 5/8 oz BPS 'The Egg'. It'll wake with the best of them, has a nose down hard wobbling action while diving down to 10'' or so and powers through cover like a super shallow square bill crank. The neat thing about the bait besides it's square bill esq nature is it's ability to be walked in a surface and sub surface action while also rolling side to side as it floats to the surface flashing it's colors at the fish. It is a very stable bait which means 2 things: A) it can be fished over weedy cover and have chunks of weeds stuck to the trebles and not effect the action of the bait while others would become unstable and blow out when burned as fast as you can turn the handle it will reach max depth and become unstable but just enough to begin to take on a form of hunting action while refusing to blow out and even when made to blow out it will very quickly recover on the surface and get back to work. There are 4 different ways to fish the bait that I have found will catch fish depending on how they want the bait. 1. slow wake 2. powering through cover on a steady retrieve like a big body super shallow square bill 3. walking the bait while transitioning from surface to subsurface in a classic walking motion with longer 'pulls' between pauses (it won't walk surface or subsurface alone) 4. burning the bait as it reaches ever increasing levels of instability at max depth resulting in a side to side hunting esq action The negatives are that the stock hooks suck and are hard to find replacements given the short distance between the hook hangars, although the hooks from an Excalibur XCS 200 square bill fit very well. Despite BPS' massive color pallet, the colors are limited for whatever reason. Purple Tiger is a favorite. The small size The Egg doesn't scale well and is not nearly as good as the big one so give the small one a pass. Guys in the know are paying good money for custom painted 'The Egg'. Anytime a $4.29 bait sells for $15+ in custom painted variations is when it is time to take notice. Just super sayin.

I've never owned anything but the cheap ones. Am I missing out?

I've been fishing them unweighted or very, very, lightly weighted since they 1st stormed onto the scene. Never liked the way they moved when fished with any amount of weight and you won't believe the things an unweighted tube does under the water. It's an easily skipped bait that will break into and out of death spirals, rise to the surface mimicking a feeding bluegill when pulled.and then glide with random occurrences of spirals/turns. My favorite do nothing bait by miles. I like the salt and sand impregnated pitching tube to get some weight to the bait without having to add a sinker.

The only musky baits I throw in the 2 oz + range are Revolution Shads and I throw them on a BPS Musky Graphite Series rated at 2-10 oz. Being a musky rod the handle is very long but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Get her something cheap and centrifugal. Try a pfluger Templar with 4 or all the brakes on or Nitro Tournament Z with the brakes at "II" or "III". Both reels are around $60. A PQ for $20 more is also a good choice.

Too stiff for braid? We're pitching jigs and plastics here not casting cranks. I'm not sure it is possible to be too stiff for braid.

I use #30 8 carrier braid a lot but which is equivalent to a #8 mono. The older 4 carrier stuff can't match the newer braids in roundness, for example I wouldn't bat an eye at #30 832 on a baitcaster but wouldn't go bellow #50 Power Pro.

The Victory. The others are plastic framed magnetic reels.

The BPS H Extreme has a softness in its taper that works well with treble hook baits and is rated up to 2 oz for $100. The $60 BPS Musky Graphite Series comes in a 1-4 oz rating if you're looking to throw something bigger.

Sounds like the spool shaft pin is jumping out of the pinion. I had a Bionic Plus that would do this. Does the spool turn while making the clicking noise?

Where I'm from law enforcement will go after you for running diesel #2 on the road because it doesn't contain a road tax and is intended for farm use. I can't imagine them being too happy about homegrown biodiesel.

You can float it off and onto the trailer. Pulling it out of the water while keeping the boat centered on the trailer can be tricky. I bring a buddy and have him grab onto the submerged trailer while in the boat to keep it centered as I pull it out.

A milk crate containing: a) At least one full jug of oil (I run an oil injection 2 cycle) Rope c) Jumper cables to jump start my outboard battery off the trolling motor batteries in the event that it has died Outside the milk crate I have some bumpers and a tool case