punch

They sent email & paper codes to Club members this week.

Very true, and you might not have the skillset or correct gear to fish the technique that would be most effective on that particular day. That's why experience will always be the most important thing you can acquire in fishing. Sweet rods coming in a close 2nd of course.

One thing that Gerald Swindel said that has always stuck in my brain is something along these lines: There is no such thing as "the fish are not biting", have you ever been to a Chinese buffet and not seen someone going up to get food? Fish eat all day, all the time if a meal is presented to them... it's your job to figure out where they are and what they want. (i'm paraphrasing of course)

Hah, this is my favorite reply yet. So true. Plus if you're in the wrong bass area with a Ned rig, you'll still catch bluegills.. crappies.. pike.. walleye.. etc etc.

If you're talking actual LCD display quality the new Lowrance HDS Carbon screens are REALLY good. You can tilt and look at the screen from any angle and there's no distortion or loss of clarity. It's really impressive. I'm not sure if the bird solex's have the same thing (not played with one in person) but when you look at the new HDS carbon screens next to the current garmins/birds you can tell they are one huge step ahead in the glare reduction & viewing angle department. The guys at Cabela's get a kick out of this and like to show customers by tilting all the display models upwards, and the Carbons are the only ones that are still readable. Obviously you're paying a premium for the premium screen, which is always the downside!

Dangit, @WolfyBrandon reminded me I need to order that new smaller stutterstep.

I like the 4" senko wacky rigged for a dropshot in most situations, it feels "lighter" to me and easier to work if you're casting out away from the boat. I've tried the 5" senko but it feels very "heavy" and I feel like it's always sinking on me if i'm not fishing it DIRECTLY under the boat where I can keep a minimal amount of slack line. It might just be in my head. Play around with it. I often see 4" senko's on clearance and have found them to be a nice dropshot bait.

Michigan actually did a study where they took a few lakes and left them open for year-round catch & release and compared the data with lakes that had a closed season and found that C&R didn't damage the population. Which is super obvious to ANYONE who lives in the south that catch bass all year. Michigan, however, used the data to make a legitimate argument for changing the regulations. Minnesota & Wisconsin need to follow suit, and i'd imagine they will someday. They don't even need to do their own surveys! Just use the Michigan data. Every season I send the MN DNR an email asking them for year round bass C&R, and link the articles about Michigan's open season. They have yet to respond to me.

I actually was smitten by weight of the ballistic LT when I saw it at the Daiwa booth at a local sports show.

Dang it, you guys are going to end up costing me a lot of money this year. Now I have to try one of these things.

Guys.. it's burnt orange. They have to compete with the you know who Z. Case closed.

What's the difference between the Luvias and the ballistic LT?! They seem pretty darn simliar, spec's wise. I was able to snag the ballistic off eBay for like 160 bucks w/ the coupons. The ballstic has a bigger 3000 size spool version (i opted for the 2500) and has the zaion body w/ magseal. I get Luvias is a JDM reel... but seems like the Ballstic seems to match it feature wise. Unless i'm missing something.

@MN Fisher Woah that Pflueger 640 is pretty awesome! Still works and everything?! I've seen them before but they are never in working order.

I got the ballistic LT in the mail today and BOY is it nice! I can't wait to use it this year. I'm pairing it with a 7' M steez and the combo is just sexy. This is the video that convinced me to dive into this LT reel line.. the gearing looks fantastic. Daiwa is really stepping up their game with this LT series.

Is Daiwa really discontinuing the Zillion rod line?? Guess that means i'm going to have to keep my eye open for clearance. They are sweet rods. It makes sense now that they have the regular tatula which is basically a dressed down Zillion, AND the new Tatula Elites. A lot of the Daiwa pro's were using zillions and steez rods and now they are using the tatula elites.

They are awesome! Buy it.

What's your budget?

My payment never went through so I just cancelled it in my PayPal account.

Anyone looking for a cheap finesse/dropshot rod.. search for Fate spinning on Academy + 10% off with code 18WACTEN $40 isn't too shabby They have Ochos on sale also that the coupon works with.

What's your contact info for curious parties?

Unknown, they are literally marketing it as "Frogfur".

If you want a keitch 'clone' on a budget i'd suggest the Eco Pro swing shad. They don't have quite the same action, BUT it's very close. I've found them for $2 a pack at Cabelas.

I picked up a Swim Senko kit on sale and i'm going to play with them this season. I've never used them before. So what I've gathered is they are a good trailer on chatterbaits & swim jigs, or I could just rig the up on a jig head and fish them like a jig worm. There's not too many videos about them on youtube. Maybe I should correct that.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-HBF.html?from=basres I'm always amazed by the latest & greatest takes that tackle companies come up with for the hollowbody frog, but this is something else. Fur on top of the bait to add some friction so the fish can't spit the bait? It's either genius or a total gimmick. Anyone tried one? Looks like they are "new". I'd like to try one for fun, but at $11 bucks?? Who do they think they are, Spro? haha

Dangit! American Legacy (on ebay) put up some new Daiwa Ballistic LT 2500's for 189... so $161 shipped with the 15% off code. Ok ya got me. They are going fast.