punch

Cabela's has invizix on sale right now.

The Abu baitcast reels are MSRP. So 40% off a STX or MGX seems like a pretty good deal. Better than TW sales.

40% off fishing & sporting goods with code SPORTS40 https://lifestyle.focuscamera.com/deals/sports/fishing.html Lots of pfluger and Abu reels. Free shipping too.

I actually did some bass fishing in 2019! With the gamefish season now closed I went and hit the Mississippi river a few days in a row last week to get some action in. I hit one of my usual spots and the fish were really biting. In 3 sessions I probably caught 30+ smallies and 3 nice walleye. All pretty shallow and off sand bars. Swimbaits is really all you need there. I bring other stuff (ned rig) but in the end the keitchs get the most action. It's best to keep it simple. River smallies + wader fishing is really a hoot. Only downside is combating the ice in your guides & your braid. I was using my 7' st croixs (LTB and a legend xtreme) with 10lb braid to a floro leader. My standard smallie setups. Sunday morning I hooked into this 4lb tanker.

I do keep and fillet pike out of my local bass lakes, to help out my bass buddies of course.

Nope, and every time I see someone keep a nice bass I cry a little bit inside.

What other things did you use it for?

They do look shiny together. It will be fished.. hard.

Thanks! Loading up on swim jigs.

I'm sticking with graphite for tossing 3/8th chatterbaits. The last few years I've been using a 7'3 MH *** but this year i'm rolling with a GLX 893c. After doing some research and reaching out to Jeff Gustafson (Shimano pro) I've learned that the 893c's allegedly excel at spinnerbaits/chatters/buzzbaits along with all of it's bottom contact applications. A lot of the loomis guys toss chatters on a 839c.

My jig setup this year, however I'm going to run 30lb braid to a floro leader. MB Destroyer FMJ and Lews Pro Ti.

What's the code??

As with everything in fishing, how much do you have to spend?

I think if you judge a company by the entirety of their reel line, from the top of the line down to the budget reels, Shimano is number one with a bullet. Diawa would definitely be a close second but I think Shimano is a company that is innovating more often and having their technology trickle down the line quicker than anybody else.

That's literally what Zaldain is using on Lainer this week in the Bass Elites, catching spots. Spark shad on a dropshot.

That's not reasonable.

Funny because I have a Megabass FMJ on it's way right now or a jig rod. I've never touched a Destroyer before so I'm excited about it.

Funny, I picked up a 7' Xtreme this winter. I'm smitten with the balance/fit/finish and can't wait to use it this year. How's the sensitivity vs the NRX? I've yet to get my hands on an Addermine but being a finesse addict I'm sure I'll grab that rod eventually at some point.

NRX 852s no question, that's an amazing all-around spinning rod. It would be top-self good for all the techniques you listed. I don't think theres a rod better honestly. I owned one for a while and it was phenomenal.

Rapala 6" filllet knife on sale for $5 https://www.cabelas.com/product/bargain-cave/rock-bottom-deals/camping-auto-atv/pc/105591780/c/105642180/sc/105646680/rapala-reg-soft-grip-reg-fillet-knife/716594.uts?slotId=3

I think most new boats are sold nowadays with "How much will the payment be?" vs "How much is this boat?". Oh it's only $224 a month for a new Nitro? Awesome!

I currently own a very clean 2002 Skeeter SX190 w/ a 150 VMax. I paid cash for it, as I've never wanted to get a payment on a recreational vehicle. I paid $12000 for it BUT it was a long road to get to that point to be able to write that check. It started out several years ago when I bought a old 14' aluminum crestliner w/ a 9hp for $700. I used the crap out of that boat and it was just to get me back on the water (I always used my parents boat but they sold it, which killed my fishing for a while). I started saving up for the 'next boat' while using this 14' foot rig. I kept my eye on Cragislist in the spring & fall when all the boats hit the market here in Minnesota. A few years ago a REALLY nice 2000 16' Smokercraft with a 25hp merc popped up and it was in my same town. The guy wanted $3200 for it which was right in my budget. I went and bought it, then turned around and sold my $700 14' for $1200. I used the crap out of my 16' smokercraft aluminum while saving up for "the next boat", which was definitely going to be my jump into a used fiberglass bass boat. I just had to wait for the right one to pop up. As usual I was checking Cragslist every morning and evening. Some guy posted some blurry pictures of a Skeeter bass boat. I went and looked at it immediately and KNEW I had to buy it, as it was in VERY good condition. I didn't have the full $12,000 but I had about $5,000 between some company stock I was saving for a rainy day, and my savings for my 'next boat'. I called up my parents and asked them if they could float me $4000 for a couple weeks. I also did a fire sale of some fishing gear & other random things around my house (poker table, watches, electronics) and I raised another 2 grand that way. I gave the guy selling the skeeter a $500 check to hold the boat for me for a few days so I could get the money together, to which he did. Within about 4 days I had the full $12,000 and I went and purchased the boat (no loan!) thanks to my folks. I then sold my 16' for $3800 about a week later (I paid 3200 for it) and paid my parents back the full 4k they loaned me. So, it took a bit of luck and a bit of hustle.. but in the end I have a fiberglass bass boat that I love and I own it outright. It was a slow boat-to-boat transition over several years, BUT i'm glad I did it because fishing out of small/cheap boats helped me regain my skills. I don't think I'd be as good of an angler if I just went into a dealer and bought a new $45,000 skeeter off the floor and took it out. Being in a smaller boat with a smaller engine means you can't run around the lake as much as you'd like so you have to really break down an area thoroughly. I'm pretty good at picking apart the bank now vs just pulling up the trolling motor and running to the next spot that looks good.

"Is all that stuff necessary"? Where do you live? In Florida, maybe it doesn't hurt if you like punching mats with 1.5oz. If you're in Wisconsin, the setup you have is just fine for most everything 1/2oz and under.

A local tackle shop has the new Tatula Spinning rods in and I have to say.. I was very impressed. The grip is very acceptable and the rods seem to have above-average balance. They didn't seem tip heavy at all. The fit & finish is typical Daiwa standards, which is always VERY good. These look like $140-160 rods. They don't look or feel cheap in any way. Seem worthy of the price, ascetically. I'm burying the lead though because what really impressed me about the rods was the soft tips. The new Tatula casting rods have VERY stiff actions. The tips are a little over powered and feel "broomsticky", which kinda reminds me of the previous gen tatula casting rods (I actually highly suggest going with Tatula Elite casting rods vs the Tatula casting rods because of this.) The elite casting rods have much much better action. I was worried this stiffness would be present in the spinning rods, but it's not. The spinning rods have accurate actions and have tips that I would appreciate for finesse fishing. Honestly they reminded me a lot of a Zodias, which is a very good thing. The tatula spinning 6'10 M and 7' M both felt like fantastic rods... I would use em. However these thoughts are just me bench-testing them in the store.

I was ready to say "oh man I'm so bored with ice fishing, is it spring yet??".... then I won an ice fishing derby with my son this weekend. We won a new clam hub, which of course I'm going to sell and buy bass gear with! (I already have a good hub) We won with 56 fish scored during the tournament period. 2nd place had 40, 3rd had 38. Now if I don't win any bass tournaments this season, I can still say I won a fishing tournament in 2019.