matuka

Like others have said, it's just a factor. Whether or not the fish you have found are biting is a bigger factor, though yes the moon can influence that. Those pre-spawners are still gonna be there so make'em eat.

I did the same thing on mine. Pulled the bearings, and I did find grease in the spool tension side bearing. It also seeped back onto the spool shaft I had cleaned up last week. After thorough cleaning of the grease, and everything else bearing to bearing, I gave it a try on the lake this am. NOW it performs like a new reel should. Casting was clean and smooth with impressive distance. Backlash into the wind was managed well with the new brake system. I'm happy! I don't know if the manufacturer has human hands greasing these things or if it is done robotically, but one of them needs a talking to.

If the green one has been maintained decently I say it's a go. I have about eight or nine of them. Still use them too. Easy to work on for the DIY kinda person. A true workhorse in the reel lineup.

Out in my part, those who are good froggers may start when water temps are in the mid to high fifties. Which one? Way too much debate! Everyone uses straight braid at least fiftylb, bigger is better, for rods, there are a lot out there. Common thread is LOTS of butt with a nice workable tip action for accurate pitching under things. I'm no expert but I seem to favor the old Bobby's perfect frog just for hookup ratio issues. I'm not in faver of the new ones with enclosed cavities but that seems to be all that's out there now. Many guys out here throw them all day almost regardless of the conditions.

For texas rigging, I'd agree here, particularly if you are buried the hook point. As well, if you are making long casts if stretchy line, you can't move enough line to set that hook well.

I just recently learned about Sieberts, but I have used the BOSS products a lot and really like them. they have nice stout hooks that work for my purpose. The occasional weedgaurd escape doesn't bother me since I have a bunch anyways. And a lot of other brands will have eye paint as well. I've cut the cost a bit also. It seems the major cost is in skirting material, the more colors you desire the more you pay. I use a fly tying vice but you really don't need one, it will just be more tedious. I never like rubber collared skirts so I don't one of those collar things either. Rod winding thread or even braid will do nicely touchéd with a little fly head cement. Now I have way too many jigs and need to cull a bunch out!

Dear Jiggin, That one looks great, and cant beat the price. I've built a bunch of rods in the past and my hand winding just didn't cut the mustard. Always seemed to get sag, bubbles etc. Strictly a cosmetic issue. I had a winder many years ago but it got "borrowed". Thanks for the tip!

Oh my! I used my wife's kitchen shears a few times. When she found me sitting in the boat with her shears cutting fishing line........well you can imagine the response.

I need to make a purchase on a rod winder one of these days. I have a bunch of rods that need a different hook keepers, a guide etc. I actually don't need it to wind thread, but to coat the windings and avoid sag. Any thoughts on brands or models?

I have a G1 706 and Throw 15lb P-line on it. I like it for bigger squarebills especially the LC BDS 3and 4. I've used it on 3/8 0z blades in a pinch, but 7/8 oz Super spooks seemed a bit much for it. I also have used it for big deep divers but it wasn't great for that purpose. The longer rods do better as others have stated. The newer generation rods may be a bit different as in many other models. It's a wonderful stick nonetheless and has plenty of oomph when it counts. Hope this helps.

I hear ya! I have a few but got them only on great deals. When I compare some of the $150-$175ers that I buy now, to some of the $225+ ers from say the 90's I think we get way more rod now for the price. I recently fished my finesse rod that was THE rod to have back in 95' (at $225) . In a head to head comparison with a mediocre Phenix M1 ($175), the M1 was better in all factors. Just my opinion, and my budget.

Dobyn's Champ Ext 734 Most versatile rod I have. Spooks, Crackers, blades, chatterbugs, hollow bellies, plastics. I think the price tag makes me think she's even that much prettier. I bought it when people were having trouble with the G1s. Now the saavy series is a great bang/buck option, but oh my, they don't belong in this thread!

Here's a similar incident. My friend lives in Hawaii. They went fishing crevalle Jacks. They cast a heavy weight off the rocks then tighten up and prop the rod. A snelled live mullet is hooked and clipped to the mainline by a snap, and zip-lined into the water. A jack crushed his bait as soon as it hit the water and took the whole rod and reel with it, oh well.. A week or so later the same jack was caught by a guided fishing boat on the other end of the island. The rod and reel still attached. By hook and by crook, my friend got his equipment back from the guide, but it was hopelessly beat the shreds on the rocks and coral.

I guess this isn't so uncommon and I can now admit it! Same exact deal down the sweet beaver, except I'm going for largies in grass. That fish wasn't worth the $125 though.

Good point. I found that out years ago with flyfishing leaders. I carry a micrometer in the boat now. Pretty geeky eh?

Yes, I also had to take grease, yes grease off the spool shaft, and it was spilling off the gear where the shaft inserts into the handle side bearing. I wonder if there is grease on that bearing. I cleaned up as much grease of the worm gear also. Man, Those guys like grease! I don't feel like I can ignore that drum suggestion, as there is a clear performance difference, bummer. And BTW, I'm not even sure what a Conquest is, LOL. I use workhorse stuff.

Next time you need to change several lines try this. Lay all the rods in the pickup bed, tips pointing toward the rear. Open all bails or freespool. Grab all lines simultaneously and wind on your hand and elbow, (like I ask my wife not to with electrical cords), till there's no line left.

I have a 7'1" mh spinning rod in the Endurance line. It's a beast. Not much in the tip but a lot of backbone for a mh. I stuck an eight lb largie in fairly thick cover and had no problem whatsoever bringing her in. Are they still selling the Endurance line?

Overall I like the design, I've seen the manufacturing detail, I get it. What I don't like is I don't think it casts as well as I expected. With two brakes up and a half ounce well balanced jerkbait I have to really heave it to get decent distance. I get more for less effort with my E's, Tatula etc. I could knock it down to one brake I suppose but from what I gather, it seems most folks were using two as their "base". What really annoys me is have to lube the brake drum, at all, much less every outing as per the manufacturer. I've been using this reel for almost a month now and it doesn't seem to cast as well at the end of the day as in the beginning. Other than that, I like the drag a lot and it seems well built. And BTW, it sells at the price point of all my other reels as well.

Please forgive but I couldn't find any other posts on this but they are likely there. Anyway I wanted to know if anyone else is a little underwhelmed with the Curado I.

I'm not trying to be a wiseguy but sometimes pressured fish are more willing to eat a "naked" soft plastic than one on a jig head, either suspended or on the bottom. To me it's that simple. Sometimes these fish won't even tip their noses down eight or ten inches to eat any lure on the bottom, but annoy them with a DS bait at their eye level and eventually they take a swing at it. My home lake as a lot of spotties, and some good ones too. They have a reputation for being aggressive, but I think they can be very moody. I'll bet most us have fished vertically on fish and watch them disappear when your offering came into they're domain. On the other hand, last week I was dropping the hounddog retriever on a stuck A-rig. And I mean about two-hundred times. I was amazed at how many fish were showing up on the graph to check out the dumb looking orange thing jumping up and down for no reason.

I make sure I bring my dog Louie. He doesn't complain about my boat positioning, laugh when I get hit by my own punch rig missing a bite, or even care if we're getting skunked. Come to think of it, neither do I as much if he's on board. We always can chat about something else.

My swimming pool, (unheated) mimics the surface temp of my home lake pretty darn close. As others have said, certain foliage helps. Dogwoods, Redbuds etc. My neighborhood has a lot of trees that stink when they bloom, but it tends to indicate it's rippin time. If you wait for the ornamental cherry blossoms, you may be a bit late.

Braid is cut pretty easily by rocks, particularly lava rock where I fish. I learned the hard way, two LC LV500's on consecutive casts. But still, topwaters and punching need straight braid. I use braid/mono for lots of big baits, even bigger swim baits and swim jigs. The little bit of stretch from the mono is a little insurance when fish fighting. Fluoro leaders up to fifteen ft get the nod for the fussy stuff. I tried drop shotting with straight braid before too. It was a nightmare. Fish tangle that thing up beyond belief.

I keep a chain stringer in the boat for this purpose. Open up all the hooks and rig it up on a flippin stick with braid. Try dragging it thru the area in question. It has worked twice for me.