lecisnith

I have only used rogues, Spro Mcsticks, shadow raps, and husky jerks. And I have caught far more fish on husky jerks than all others combined. They also happen to only be about $5 apiece.

I don't post much about specific rods or reels typically because I don't care about someone's opinion about specific brands because their opinions can be biased simply based on a siNile experience. So I ask questions in general terms: rod power and action, gear ratios for reels and I will make my purchases and applications accordingly and then change them if necessary based on my experience. I don't care to hear about some dude that doesn't like a Lew's Speed Spool because his second cousin's friend had a handle break on his first fish.

Most guys say that you should have both the telescopic and the chain knocker retrievers. After a couple saves of a $10 crankbait it pays for itself. You could do what I did and go full redneck. I made one out of a 10oz lug nut socket strung between 25 lb mono with swivel snaps on either end and another out of an extending paint pole.

I've caught fish on them every way I have tried so far. I have caught them on a stand-up shaky head jig, Texas rig, weighted swimbait hooks, and when used as a jig trailer, all in green pumpkin. And I suck at bass fishing. Keep at it, use them around a lot of cover.

What about rod action? I've seen a lot of differing opinions on squarebills and lipless cranks and some people don't like a moderate action and some people like a MH power for them? Just a matter of personal preference?

Also, I'm going to put a 4.9:1 gear ratio reel on the new one. I'm thinking something in the 6 range for shallower stuff? Always felt way too slow for my shallow stuff with the lower ratio. Especially considering I don't do a terrible amount of deep cranking.

I'm thinking of keeping it for lighter cranks. I'm fairly new to the cranking game so is it important to have different rods for lighter cranks, shallow-medium depth squarebills, and light lip less cranks considering they all usually fit the weight profile?

Picked up a new cranking rod because I think it's going to be a little more versatile than my old one. So if you had a 7' M/M Falcon Bucoo laying around what would you use it for? Just keep it for a spare or find a new use for it?

I change my vote to this...

Looks like a black crappie to me.

Really depends on a number of variables. Clear water and finesse tactics require light line. 4-8#. More murky water you can get away with a heavier leader. I have 6'6" M spinning rod that I have a 12# leader on right now for light jerkbaits and light cranks. When I think tubes are the answer I'll trade the 12# for 6#. Experiment for yourself, your experience might tell you otherwise.

I've got two ML. On my crappy one I've got 6# copolymer that works really well for split shot rigs, weightless plastics, and panfish. On my nice one I have 20# braid with a 6# copolymer leader that I got late in the season but caught a lot of fish on the drop shot and split shot rigs. Very effective for my clear water smallies.

While admittedly biased, you would have to look really hard to find an area better than the one around Traverse City. You have Grand Traverse Bays for trophy smallmouth, Lake Michigan itself for anything from smallness to Lake trout to salmon, the Chain O' Lakes that begins only 15 miles from Traverse City and has produced a new state or world record musky every year it seems for the last five or six years. That doesn't count the 15 or so other lakes in the immediate area that produce trophies. Then you have the Manistee, Platte, and Betsy rivers that flow through the area for trout, smallies, salmon, and steelhead. It's a destination. I highly recommend it.

I'm voting for new. I also don't see the value in complaining about the aesthetics of the site changing when it is still giving me free, valuable information on something that I wouldn't have much trouble paying for elsewhere.

Go with MH/Fast action with mono or braid with mono leader. Or MH/Moderate action with straight braid. I go with the former with good results.

Man, that's even easier than figuring it out on your own. Thanks, Glenn.

Man. I need to get over my disdain for Wal-Mart people and get there more often, I guess...

Click on the options menu (the three lines next to the search menu) and go to activity streams. There's a "view new content" option in there. All it takes is some looking around but people would prefer to lose their minds.

I use braid for frogs and anything else I'm going to put in anywhere ridiculous. Mono for open water applications. I don't ever have issues with setting the hook at distance. I've been using Berkley Big Game. I don't really get into the intricacies stretchiness and sink rate and yadda yadda yadda. If it works for me it works.

I had a lot of success with the shallow bluegill until I lost it in a hangup at the same time I had a monstrous bird's nest (don't ask me how that happened). Never got around to picking up any more.

Most likely you are using more shoulder/arm when you cast overhand than you do when you cast sidearm. When you cast sidearm you, when successful, bring your elbow back into your body and allow your wrist to rotate and the rod to work. As soon as I figured that out my backlashes went down to almost nothing. I try almost keep my elbow tucked in to limit the energy my arm exerts on the cast and that allows the rod to load and do the work as it is intended.

I was pretty happy with the red label before I switched to P-Line copolymer for all the applications I deemed appropriate.

I know where I'm fishing next spring...

I figure it's not the fishing that hurts. It's the ten years of delivering furniture that hurts. That being said I must still be pretty stout or just not doing it right because usually the only thing that hurts on me is my back after fishing for 12+ hours.

I used to have problems with this and I decided that it was probably due to having excessive slack in the line. Now it's "hit, reel in slack, swing" and I Don't. Lose. Frog. Fish. I imagine it's a combination of waiting a split second to determine if the fish has actually taken the frog and the added leverage of getting a good hookset with the constant contact of the line. Don't stop. I'd rather swing and miss than not swing and let a meatball go straight down the middle of the plate.