blckshirt98

Custom builds are very subjective to "the best" - as far as I know custom builders aren't making their own blanks, they're using readily made blanks like Rainshadow and Phenix blanks, and buying reel seats and guides out of a catalog. Apart from being able to get a rod to your exactl specifications in terms of length/action/components, the custom guys really set themselves apart in the detail work. If you're looking for a specific color scheme, wrap pattern, or personalization, some of those guys produce absolute works of art that you'll never get in a mass production rod.

Memorial Day for sure, but that's not until May 30th. Not sure between now and then what they might have.

If money was no object I'd go all Phenix. People can say what they want about it not being made in the USA, but every Phenix rod I've ever fished has been freaking awesome. If I ever get a custom rod made I'd ask for a Phenix blank for that as well.

Outdoor Pro Shop has some D&M Piranha Beast chatterbaits which use the Owner Beast hooks. I haven't given much thought to using a chatterbait weedless since I get the impression that no matter how weedless the hook is, that big blade in front will catch on anything a hook would.

Original Bags, then into Gallon Ziploc Freezer Bags, then into cheap clear Sterlite storage containers from Target (cheaper than Plano).

I got some of the spinshots and tried using them but I'm just way too lazy to retie them after a snag because of the two extra knots! I'm back to using the old palomar with the loopback (caught my first two bass of the year on it this morning to!).

TNT Wadda!

Rats have blown up on the West Coast and the Spro rats really put rat baits at a reasonable price point for a lot of customers. Most rats prior were custom small batch jobs that ran upwards of $50, usually around $100. Spro put them in the sub-$30 range and a lot more accessable. If the bass you're targeting eat frogs, they'll hammer the rat. Keep fishing it around the people that are laughing and they'll be throwing them soon enough.

Nice, don't think I see too many of those rods mentioned here so be sure to give us your thoughts/review once you've had a chance to fish it! Enjoy the new combo!

I either use mono to back the braid to prevent slipping/not waste braid, or, I'll use 2-3 of those little strips they stick in the PowerPro boxes. I'm assuming those are used to put on the spool to prevent slipping, or I've been using those things incorrectly lol.

I saw those for the first time at Glory Hole Sports last year and got a couple of packs but have not yet used them. Really liked how it kept the hook vertical in place with that extra extension instead of relying on the loop-back on the palomar.

" Maine fishing can be very satisfying -- lots of smaller bodies of water filled with aggressive bass and little pressure. " This is what I want...lots of smaller lakes that have never seen a lure where you can throw anything and get a fish.

15% is commendable!

I use gift cards at BPS and never receive reward points for using the gift cards. My receipt always shows a big fat 0 in eligible reward points.

It's all about the Ziploc Gallon Freezer Bags in bulk from Costco!

Throughout the state, DD bass are in pretty much all of the major reservoirs, though the places with larger forage like hitch and trout get some real tanks. I'm not sure why the fish in Cali get so large compared to other places around the country. I do know pretty much all of the largemouth bass here are Florida strain or hybrids that are genetically Florida-dominant that have taken over most of the state.

You get extra points if you buy Bass Pro in-house brands - Q. How many points will I earn with my purchase? A. The amount of points earned will vary based on the item(s) purchased. A certain percentage of the purchase will be added to your Rewards account, as seen below: For standard purchases (non-Bass Pro Shops® branded items) from the Bass Pro Shops Catalog, Internet, Retail or Outlet Store: 1 point per dollar @ 2 cents per point = 2% Example: $100 purchase = 100 points x $.02 = $2.00 toward a future purchase For purchases of Bass Pro Shops® branded products from Bass Pro Shops, including RedHead®, Ascend™, Bob Timberlake®, Natural Reflections®, and World Wide Sportsman®, and more: 1.5 points per dollar @ 2 cents per point = 3% Example: $100 purchase of Bass Pro Shops® branded product = 150 points x $.02 = $3.00 toward a future purchase If you use your Outdoor Rewards® Platinum Plus® MasterCard® credit card, all of your qualifying purchases through Bass Pro Shops® earn 3% toward a future purchase. If you use your Outdoor Rewards® World MasterCard® credit card, all of your qualifying purchases through Bass Pro Shops® earn 5% toward a future purchase. With either type of Outdoor Rewards® Credit Card, all of your purchases outside of Bass Pro Shops® earn 1% toward a future purchase. Purchases of licenses, Tracker Boats, ATVs and other vendor services do not qualify for 5% and 3%.

For a goby profile also check out the Strike King KVD Go-B-Gone, or the Bass Chow Skobie!

I can't complain here in California but one thing we lack here are any "secret" spots. If there's water, and there's fish, it's been fished and there's going to be trash laying around. One regret I have is I lived in St. Louis and Atlanta for about 6 years combined in the early 2000's and wasn't fishing back then. Now I look at all of the good places a short drive away and wish I had.

The one that closed near me was, well, in a not so nice area, and, they had opened SuperCenter about 2 miles away a couple of years ago in a much nicer area.

ZMan because of the elasticity, and pork because it's basically freaking leather.

- Almost anything with a light twitchy tail will work. I've got hundreds of bags of various baits that I thought would look good on a drop shot, and have nose-hooked almost every one of them on a size 4 or size 2 hook. No matter what body of water I'm at I have 100% confidence that one of the following will always get bit - Yamamoto Kut Tails (3.5-5"), KVD Dream Shots, Jackall Crosstail Shads, Molix Sator Worms, Reins Bubbling Shakers. - For a drop shot bait I basically look for 3 things 1) something that tapers off to a thin laser-point tail (Yamamoto Pro Senko, Basstrix Loca Motion), 2) something that has a main body that tapers off to a smaller "bulb" tail (KVD Dream Shot, Damiki Pen 2, Reins Bubbling Shaker), 3) something that tapers off to a tail with "fins" (Yamamoto Kut Tail, Jackall Crosstail Shad, Yum Warning Shot). I like the action of 2) the best where there's a "bulb" tail, but you'll go through bags of those quickly because panfish/baby bass love those things too and you'll get a lot of short strikes where just the tail will get bit off and you'll be left with a useless stub on your hook. If i run into that situation I'll switch over to something with a "fin" tail like the crosstail shad because the small fish won't really be able to nibble the tails off of those. - I don't really use Roboworms anymore because they're the #1 selling worm around and I always feel like the fish have seen them a hundred times over. - A great option if you're on a budget are the new Yum drop shot baits - Sharpshooter, Kill Shot, Warning Shot. Cheap as dirt and they work. - Don't expect more than one bite/fish per bait. Nose hooking provides the best action but they get torn off the hook very easily, usually on the initial strike or while bringing the fish in. Sometimes you can salvage a bait but rehooking it "deeper" towards the body, but expect to go through quite a few baits.

Man, I just stopped by the local shop on Saturday morning and got some ST-41s at full price! Do any of those places do online/mail order sales?!

For topwater I think it's just the silhouette and the noise/action of the bait that draws the fish in to strike. If a fish is looking up at a lure from underwater with the light source behind it, it's not really going to see the colors. In clear water maybe a dark or light belly will be noticable, but the colors on the top of the lure, the fish are NEVER going to see those colors.

i don't c-rig much but in the handful of baits I've tried I liked the action of the Gambler Ugly Otter the best. Pop it up off the bottom and it has a nice action on the fall, and, when you drag it as well.