FishTank

I have Super Jigman x8 and Upgrade x8 on two setups already. Both these lines float for the most part. I also have Ohdragon x4 on some spinning gear and this line has a higher specific gravity (1.40+). It sinks like a rock and is great for Ned Rigs.

Varivas AAA FC, Seaguar R18, YGK Super Jigman Ultra 2, and YGK Full Drag.

The JDM Zillion would also be my choice. Great reel. One of the few game changers I have seen in the past few years.

I'm with @WRB. I don't think its a BFS rod. Also, everything I've seen on this rod says 3/16 to 3/4. When I was looking for a BFS rod, I thought this one was strange in that the part number (EXC72MLB) for this doesn't have BFS in it but the 6'8'' ML BFS does.

An 18lb tournament bag. I've come close a few times and have caught over that amount for five fish on several occasions but just not in a tournament.

I use the Berkley Fusion 19 wacky jig head either 1/16th or 1/8th. They work great until the wires get twisted but overall I have been happy with them. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Berkley_Fusion19_Weighted_Wacky_Head_5pk/descpage-WTW.html

It's been years since I used their service but all went well. It did take about 6 weeks to get my reel back. Even back then, they were overwhelmed. The guy that worked on my Calais sent me video of their office. They had these big metal bins the size of a skid filled 4 feet high with reels, no boxes, with tags rapped around them. There must have been a dozen bins in the office, not including the ones in their warehouse, and about 4 or 5 guys working on them.

I pick trailers based on water clarity. Clear water I use something that doesn't displace a ton of water, like a Spunk Shad or a Zako 4in. For stained water, something that thumps, like a Fat Impact 3.8, a Skinny Dipper or an OSP DoLive Shad. For something different, a Zoom Speed craw.

What reel is it? Did you follow a schematic? I would take it apart to see if there something small that fell out like a spring. Does it have a clicking drag? If so, look for the pin. Also, check that the anti-reverse ratchet is placed in the correct position. Another thought would the AR bearing. Grasping for straws but that's were I would start.

I haven't fished Geist but I hear it has been good. I can't bring myself to pay $20-$40 to launch. Eagle Creek has been hit and miss. I caught around a 7-8 pounder in Spring by the spillway and several 3-4 ponders but when it's cold, they seem to shut off. You also have to dodge the crappie fishermen. Overall, I like going there.

I was thinking of going to Eagle Creek on Saturday. If the wind is bad, forgert it.

Anything 1/4oz total weight and below. So far it's been a great rod.

Take a look at the Megabass Triza F1-66XSTZ Yamasemi. It is a 3 piece travel rod that comes with two tips, a Fast and an X-fast. These rods are a work of art. They have them in stock at Asian Portal Fishing.

Sometimes it isn't about having the right stuff as much as it having the right mindset. I am reminded of two occasions when I think about this sort of thing. First, my daughter smoking me at a pond with Barbie poll. I had tons of gear and lures and I got blanked. My daughter was catching them left and right. Second, I was fishing a tournament last year and it was about 1 o'clock and we had caught two keepers all day. It was a rough one not only for us but for all the guys in our tournament. We went passed a set of docks and a young lady was sitting there reading a book in one hand and holding a rod in another. She couldn't care less about the world around her. We asked "Doing any good? " She stood up and pulled a stringer out of the water with about 7 or 8 largemouth, all of them in 3lb± range. We were totally confused and asked "How?". She responded with one word "Patience". But she had just been sitting there using an old Rapala Silver Minnow and keeping any big ones she caught. Bass fishing can be a humbling sport.

Pro Blue, French Pearl OB, and ITO Clear Lake cover a lot of my fishing. Also, if you can find it, Kasumi Ito has been a good color in every bait I have tried from Megabass.

I could have picked up a ton more but I have already over done it. Wait until I post some pictures or maybe I'll do an unboxing video, it might be easier. I was tempted to grab a few A-rigs but I have become more of an expert at getting it unsnagged than I have at catching fish on it.

A 200 size would be about the smallest I would go. For 2oz and up, I use a Tatula 300 or an old Calcutta 250. I also have an Anteras 200 that I throw big baits on. The only smaller reel that I have that might work, would be the Daiwa Coastal 80. It has a larger spool capacity and a 100mm handle.

They got me for some Picasso spinnerbaits. Some were, at one time, only available from Picasso's website.

The longest I can cast anything is around 150-160 feet. The only thing I bomb like this are bigger crankbaits. It's not really necessary on anything else. At the most, I might cast every other lure a 100 feet or less.

I guess I should have mentioned, I did order I think two Frittsides and no issues with those. These breaks occurred within a few casts of being taken out of the box and also in open water. I wonder if they were damaged somehow in shipping or packaging. They look good out of the box though.

Digger, Dredger, and Money Badger. I also ordered a few Stunnas and gave a couple to a buddy. Neither one of us has caught a fish on them.

I use a Ketch. Works great, especially when the fish is jumping around.

I didn't have any issues with my orders last year but the hard baits I bought were just bad. About half of the bills broke throughout the year. Most of them broke while casting. It got so bad I called their customer service line and to my surprise, I got through to someone helpful and nice. She was able to warranty about a dozen baits after I sent pictures. I received new ones a few days later but unfortunately a few of these baits did the same thing and the rest didn't run well and needed tuning. On a positive note, I had no problems with the soft plastic and terminal tackle I ordered. Still a big fan of this stuff.

I have a few from St. Croix and a few from Loomis. You really can't go wrong with either one. But.... what do you intend to use it? I find that most St. Croix rods are a fuzz more powerful than Loomis when comparing them at the same rating. Personally, I like Loomis' spinning rods in the NRX line but I find the St. Croix 7' M Fast LE casting to be my go to senko rod. Also, I feel St. Croix XF rods to be a little stiffer than Loomis' XF rods but that also depends on the rod and the length.

For me, it's the spinnerbait. I miss more fish in this bait than most others, except maybe a frog. In the lakes I go to, fish will hit the blades and not the whole bait. Then there are times (and there are a lot of them) where the bass won't touch a spinnerbait and I need to stop throwing it but I'm just too stubborn or too lazy to throw something else.