Steveo-1969

Sweet! I just can't get my 10 year old grandson interested in fishing. "Sorry Pap, I'm a gamer." Now if he could fish with an XBox controller in his hand.....

I've never learned how to post pics in a thread, sorry. I will say that it sounds like you are MUCH more meticulous than I am when it comes to knot tying!! So I would guess your knots are much prettier than mine. I also have trouble getting the 12#-15# fluorocarbon to cinch down easily which is why I only use 5 wraps on the Trilene knot. More wraps than 5 and I really struggle when cinching down. Is this because the fluoro is stiffer than mono? Probably. I cinch slowly and with saliva as lubricant, and also use my fingers to push the knot down. The only time I tie it again is if the fluorocarbon is noticeably stretched out and shiny above the knot like I "burned" it when cinching. I also leave a longer tag end of about 1/4". I'm not fishing weeds so no worries about a longer tag end grabbing them. So assuming you tie better knots than I do, but I don't break off on hooksets, something else is different between us. As I stated in an earlier post, 51 weeks a year I'm fishing ML or M powered rods with 8#-10# fluorocarbon mainline and leaders. But 1 week a year I use a MH powered rod with 12#-15# fluorocarbon mainline to fish ledges with jigs and soft plastics. Lines I've used are Seaguar 12# & 15# Invizx and 15# Abrazx. The only fluorocarbon I experienced break-offs with on the hookset was Berkley 15# Vanish. I feel like I set the hook hard but maybe not as hard as you do? Also I'm using a Loomis MH (3-power) which may not be as powerful as other manufacturer's, so maybe your MH rod has more power? Have you considered ditching the fluorocarbon and using straight braid?

I use a Frabill Kwik Stow folding net that is very similar to the Plusinno net a couple posts above this one ^^^^

I have no suggestions, but when you find this perfect weather/fishing locale and move there can I live in your basement/garage/spare room? For free? And go fishing with you every day? I can tie my own knots and take off my own fish...

I use the Trilene knot for every line type I fish with - mono, FC, braid. I only fish a MH rod with jigs/plastics one week a year during a fishing vacation. The other 51 weeks I'm using M or ML rods. But I've never broken off at the knot on a hookset with my MH rod. 12#-15# fluorocarbon and 5 wraps.

Exactly! The fish "just can't handle it!!" While I understand you shouldn't take what a sponsored pro recommends at face value, if professional sports figures/celebrity spokespeople didn't help companies sell more of their product they wouldn't use them.

Congrats on that beautiful walleye! I never would have guessed that a DD would come out of a small lake in WV.

I use yellow or neon lime Sufix 832 in 10# on my ML spinning rod. I usually have a FC leader tied on to help break off more easily when snagged. The couple times I've used straight braid the hook has either straightened out or broken when pulling out a snag, the 10# braid didn't break. I'm sure it would break eventually, but my light-wire hook was the weak link. To save on braid I spool up partway with a cheap mono line, then finish with about 75 yards of braid.

Gotcha, thanks TOXIC! I grew up in WI and we called them yellow perch. Interesting that you catch them in the lower Potomac, but I've never caught one in the Upper Potomac and I've been fishing it pretty heavily for the past 7 years. Regional names can definitely get confusing. When I moved to WV I heard people talk about catching "goggle eyes". I later found out they were catching "rock bass". And I have a fishing buddy who calls any kind of panfish a "perch" no matter what it is.

Nice crappie! I only catch a couple a year in the Upper Potomac though I don't target them. Caught my first of the year a couple weeks ago. What is a "ring perch"? Is that another name for "yellow perch"?

Congratulations! Enjoy your first (yes I said FIRST) NRX rod!

I do not own any of the three rods you are thinking about purchasing but I can definitely empathize on wanting to buy them! And buying them is only a stupid decision if you can't afford them and you get evicted and your kids go hungry... I bought an NRX 893c and love it, but for 99% of my fishing it's too heavily powered for the small baits I throw. So it gets used 1 week a year while I'm on vacation. I then bought an NRX 842c MBR because it was lighter powered and the fast action was more versatile. I use this rod for literally anything I want to throw and it's amazing! For the past 2 years I haven't had the urge to buy another fishing rod. Seriously. Until yesterday when I saw G. Loomis 25% off. And saw there is a GLX 892c (which is not available in the NRX line). And the bait monkey whispered in my ear "Your favorite way to fish is with a jig and you love the 89" length and the 2-power. Why wouldn't you buy the jig/worm rod with the XF action? You NEED that rod!!!". I haven't bought it. Yet...

I fish these small swimbaits with a baitcaster. Not because I think it works better than a spinning rod. Not because of ego or any silly "my rod is bigger/better than your fairy wand" nonsense. I use a baitcaster because I enjoy using one more than a spinning rod. It's really that simple.

I've used lots of different lines as leaders, but for the past year I've been using 10# Seaguar Red Label because that's what I was using on my baitcaster as mainline and I always had some left over. It's definitely not as abrasion resistant as actual leader material and I've found I have to check it frequently for nicks, cuts, etc. and retie if necessary.

I use ball head jigs because of lower cost and multiple uses for the same head. I use them for swimbaits, grubs, finesse worms, etc. Really any plastic I want to fish with an open hook jig head. What changes is weight and hook size for different baits and conditions. I have used actual swimbait heads and also darter heads for paddletail swimbaits, but I never found an advantage over a ball head jig.

Before I bought my pair of Costas I tried on a bunch of different frames at a Bass Pro Shop and found the frame that was most comfortable on my head. (Fisch for me!) I wasn't sure if I wanted plastic or glass lenses because some people complain about the weight of glass. I decided on glass and I don't even notice I'm wearing my glasses while fishing. I also like that the glass lenses are more scratch resistant. I used to wear Strike King S11 polarized glasses and they would only last a year before they were so scratched I couldn't see through them clearly. I've had my Costas for a year and the lenses are still completely scratch free. I bought my 580G glasses from Amazon for $180.

I use a plain lead ball head jig, 3/16 to 1/4 ounce with a 2/0 or 3/0 hook. I've caught smallies on all different color baits and I don't think color really matters, unless it matters. (don't you hate that answer?) Ayu, Bluegill Flash, Electric Shad, Gold Flash Minnow, Perch, Male Perch and of course Smallmouth Magic! I've tried supergluing the bait to the jig head with mixed results. I've also tried running a toothpick through the bait in front of the hook bend with mixed results. I just know if I use a Keitech it's gonna get tore up.

Wading a river for smallmouth is my favorite way to fish, and what I do exclusively from early spring to fall. Small paddletail swimbaits on a jighead are one of my "go-tos" and I use baits from 3" to 4" in length. I have yet to find a paddletail this size that WON'T catch smallies. If you made me choose just one it would be a Keitech Swing Impact FAT 3.3". Others I've used: Berkley Powerbait Ripple Shad - 3", 3.5", 4" Keitech Swing Impact FAT - 3.3", 3.8" Keitech Swing Impact - 3.5", 4" Keitech Easy Shiner - 4" BPS Speed Shad - 3" Reaction Innovations Little Dipper - 3.5"

This is what I was thinking too. OP made it sound like he wanted to replace the current rod because of lack of sensitivity compared to his other two rods (which use braid). Trying braid on current rod first would be a cheap experiment to see if you can get the desired sensitivity without buying a new rod.

Nice. I live in West "By God" but am a transplanted cheesehead, and of course a Badger fan.

Oh yeah, the "Striped Tomato"!!!!!!!!!!

Ha-ha. You'll get LOTS of OPINIONS on what works best. Braid mainline, fluoro mainline, copoly, mono, what pound test works best, you should use a leader with braid, you don't need a leader, and on and on and on ad nauseum. The beautiful thing is there are no wrong answers so everyone's opinion is worth considering. The right answer is whatever works for YOU. To your specific question about smallie fishing... I'm assuming you are fishing in the Potomac River? And you aren't pulling them out of heavy cover? Then you are like me. I use a ML powered spinning rod with 10# braid and a 10# fluorocarbon leader. With a correctly set drag there isn't a smallmouth in the river you won't be able to land. Now, some people also say the longer you fight them the more harm you are doing to the fish and the more likely the fish won't survive after release. But that's for a different thread!

Badgers hat?

The spinning rod I use for smallmouth fishing has 10# braid mainline and some kind of leader tied onto it. The past couple years has been 10# fluorocarbon. Works great.

I've never tried one but have also read good things. Best thing I've found for cutting braid are ceramic scissors. It will cut limp (not under tension) braid like butter. I don't know how long they last though. I've had mine a couple years but only cut braid with them. I have steel scissors for cutting mono and fluoro.