Crankhead

I use the Go-Get-It lure retriever. You can find it at another site.com. I've used it for years and it's saved me a lot of money when I get one of my Lucky Craft's caught on something.

One of my Lucky Craft Rick Clunn 2.5's is missing an eye. It's my top producer. Throw the lure & give it a try.

Every May after picking up my buddy (who lives near Park Falls, Wis.) for our Canadian fishing trip, we of course we have to make a stop at the St Croix store. Last year the guy in the showroom was showing me the Legend Tournament Bass rod made just for top water(LTBC68MXF). And of course it felt great & after about 30 seconds I had to have it. Best buy I ever made. This rod is great for throwing any top water bait. You will not be disappointed.

I like them because I don't have to spend time trying to untangle my cranks. I use the topwater, small, medium & deep crank Falcons. The only one I didn't really care for was the one designed for weights & hooks.

I'm looking to get a new fishing net. I saw a Frabill fishing net on Joe Bucher's fishing show the other day, a Frabill Pro net. It wasn't deep, had a flat bottom and looked like it was made of hard rubber. Bucher was fishing with crank baits and I noticed none of the cranks got hung up in the net. Anyone used this net or have other ideas?

I watched the BassMasters Classic & thought it was terrific. As I was watching, I was wondering why you never see any of the pros use a net to boat the fish. Is it against the rules? Great Classic!

If my bullmastiff was in the boat when I caught a fish, it would be scared to death. She's such a wuss!

My choice is: Shimano Curado CU200DPV (5.0:1) & St Croix Legend Tournament Bass LTBC70MHM (called the "Big Cranker"). You can't beat it.

Northern Bass Supply. They are fantastic to work with. They usually have what I want & get it to me very fast.

elduderino, was it Berkley Vanish or Berkley Vanish Transition?

Well after reading the Tackle Tour test results...wow! I really don't know what to think. I would like to know if when they did the knot strength tests, did they wet the fluro line before tying say the palomar knot? But in the end, it sounds like when you finally decide on which flurocarbon line to use, you'll choose it the same way you choose everything else you do in fishing - whether it is buying new rods/reels or even what lure and technique is your favorite go to - it all comes down to what you have confidence in. Thanks for the info. I'll probably stick with the Vanish Transition.

I went to a fishing show yesterday & was talking to the rep at the Shimano booth about my reels. He asked what reels do I have & what lines do I put on the them. I told him I've got Curados & Stradics. Since I fish a clear lake, for the last few years I've used nothing but Vanish Transition on all of my reels and really like the line. He said he's used Vanish Transition but prefers Gamma. He feels that Gamma is a more superior fluro line & out performs Vanish Transition and suggested I try it. I looked online & couldn't believe the price for Gamma...ouch! So I searched the internet for any articles and/or field tests on flurocarbon lines. I found a couple of articles from 2005/2006 but no more up to date results. So I'd like to either hear from those that have tried a variety of fluro lines for their results & what they prefer. Or maybe somebody has found some recent articles and/or field tests on fluro lines that explains the differences of the various brands on the market.

I keep mine sitting next to me while I'm watching tv.

I've been looking to order some Megabass pop max lures and would like to find out how many colors they come in. I can't find the website home page for Megabass, does anyone know it? Favorite colors?

Hot n Tot "We need to quit hearing about this 'third person'. Anybody who spends money on equipment like that should be posting on the forum with the rest of us tackle junkies. Guide him this way." My buddy saw your post & I told him he should take your advice. For info this site has it all. He also said I screwed up on which rods he bought. We were looking at so many rods, oh well, I'll let him clear that up on his 1st post. I don't need any more rods but when we were at Cabela's, those G Loomis Brozeback rods looked pretty sweet and very tempting. But then again if I bought one, my St Croix family would get very upset! Can't have that.

What colors and which size for clear lakes?

When you said your line breaks, make sure when your tying your knot that you wet the line. Also with fluro I was always having trouble with the fluro jumping off the spool when I opened the bail & getting a lot of loops and twists. I went back and read the pamphlet that came with my Stradic. They showed 3 different ways to put line on the spool. I needed to adjust my sools so they loaded up closer to the front. Since I made the change I don't have any problems with fluro on my spinning reels. Hope it helps.

Thanks for all of the advice, here's what happened. We went to Cabelas today & my buddy was looking at these rods & reels: (1)Shimano Curado 200 DHSV w/St Croix Avid 66MHF. (2)Daiwa TD Zillion w/G Loomis GLX MBR784C. (3)Shimano Stradic 3000FI w/G Loomis GLX. My buddy was hesitant to ask about getting a discount. So I did. The salesman said that the price shown is what you pay. I asked him to call the store manager & ask what kind of discount he would give if my buddy bought all 3 sets today. The manager gave him 10% off the entire purchase. My buddy pulled the trigger and was very pleased at what he bought and the price he paid. Me...I couldn't believe that he bought all 3 sets. I mean I've got 3 curados with 3 St Croix tournament bass rods and 3 stradics with 3 St Croix rods: 1 legend elite & 2 tournament bass. Remember guys, you can't get a discount if you don't ask for it. Tight lines, thanks for the help.

My choices are all St Croix rods. Casting: LTB 6' 8" MXF Topwater LTB 7' 0" MHM Big Cranker LTB 6' 3" MF Sniper Spinnerbait Spinning: Legend Elite ES60MF (for small cranks) LTB 6' 6" MLF Split Shot (plastics) LTB 6' 3" MXF Shakin' (plastics)

Which size would be best for fishing deep clear lakes?

I was watching Roland Martin's show today fishing somewhere in northern Wisconsin with his wife. It looked like they were having a good time. One of the lures they were throwing was a Aruku Shad. I hadn't heard of it before so I went to his website and he had it listed under new products. Just wondering if anyone has tried the Aruku Shad or did it just came out for the 2008 season. I'd like to know if anyone thought it was any different from say the Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap, the Strike King Diamond Shad or Lucky Craft LV series cranks?

I agree with Rob G. I called BPS last year and told them to save their money and not send any hunting and/or salt water catalogs. The response was that I either get all of the catalogs or none. Well I want the fishing so when the others come...they go from the mailbox to the trash. And I also get the hard cover catalog from Cabelas. It's nice but I never really use it. I think BPS and Cabelas should do some surveys and in the long run they would save a ton of money.

I agree with Avid. Not only is that a good price but that is a great rod.

I'd like to know if anyone has had any problems with Quantum baitcasters (like the one I mentioned above-difficulty adjusting new baits).

Alger319, why G Loomis over St Croix?