Dan:

a valid point which I had not considered. lol

That's awesome Dave. I went on a guided trip with Capt. Mike in Mattawoman this summer and I had a snakehead follow my bait and slap at it but he wouldn't bite. They are definitely on my "want-to-catch" list. What are the bass doing this time of year back there?

ahhh, gotcha. That's what I thought. I used to do a lot of Photoshop stuff and trying to match the lighting of one picture to another was always a challenge. Nice work Paul

Most of the time I just see line snapping with this method. It depends on what line you are using. With braid, it usually results in getting your bait back, but the idea is for the line to snap instead of your rod. In some situations you are going to lose your bait, you can't really do anything about it. Your method might work for easy snags but if you get stuck into wood, under a rock, or pierced into lily clumps then that isn't going to work.

x2

I don't think any of the Zillions would be ideal for crankbaits, but I guess it depends on personal preference. They are very fast actions. I have the 691mhxb and I think it is GREAT for spinnerbaits. It's also good for plastics and light jigs but I prefer longer rods for those applications. I feel like anything under 7' can't get enough leverage on a hookset (but that's just me).

So you are adding balance weights to all of your rods? I prefer my balance points to be an inch or two in front of the reel seat. I can usually achieve that without weights. Wayne, I understand that fingers should feel the vibration before the waves travel to the back of the rod tip but I think the waves travel back and forth through the rod too fast for our fingers to tell the difference between the vibrations on the way from the front to the back or the back to the front. On a hollow piece of graphite like a fishing rod I don't see how it's possible to add anything to any place on the rod without dampening the sensitivity somehow. At least that's how I think of it, like a high speed echo that goes back and forth throughout the rod. Does that even make sense?

Balance points are in front of the foregrip. When you add a reel behind that balance point it will shift the balance point closer towards the reel. A heavier reel will shift the balance point closer to the foregrip than a light reel. So yeah, if you have a top heavy rod, one way to help balance it out (if only marginally) is to put a heavier reel on it. It's not going to make a lot of difference but it will shift at least a little. I don't mind a rod/reel combo being a little top heavy for tip down presentations. As long as it's not REALLY unbalanced than I don't mind that much but a balanced reel definitely feels more comfortable and fishes better. As for weight systems, they do add weight but they can also help balance a rod. A well balanced rod can *feel* lighter than a rod that is actually lighter if it is unbalanced. The problem with weights is that the added dense material is just more to dampen vibration.

the sunfish looks off. was it just the angle or is the picture edited?

nice! any pics dave?

that sucks dude. Good luck on finding someone to meet up with.

lucky scoundrels. You live near GT, BPS, Gander Mtn, Hookers, and Protech. We have Dick's Sporting Goods. That's it. And you have the Chick! That place looks beautiful.

great stuff, really great stuff.

sunday morning service at greentop. Classic! I can't wait until Bassarama. I can't afford a trip to GT before then. Rowland, do they have any Deps Highsiders or Highsider Jrs?

I am still catching most of my fish in the mornings. It's also a lot easier to catch them as well because I am targeting active fish with buzzbaits, swimming frogs, wakebaits, etc.

dude, look at that pose at the beginning with the guitar over his shoulder and the purple background and the swirly lettering. Dude. I'm not saying he's emo, that just looks like a pose that an emo kid would do for his myspace pic or something.

as in, it doesn't twist and maintain that twist.

I veto this story without pictures.

besides the totally emo pose at the beginning that was pretty impressive.

If a bait comes with crappy split rings then that IS a problem with the bait itself. I don't know about the split rings but I've found the hooks on the Aruku Shads to be pretty weak. It also could have been the fish. I would just replace them with some quality rings and hooks and then you should be fine.

Don't worry, just do what the box says. Like you realized, its not going to matter because braid doesn't twist.

always always always reel down, point your rod at the snag, hold your spool so it doesn't turn, and walk backwards.

watch out, touching a fish on its sides removes slime coat also!

Yeah, exactly. Especially if it was at night in dark water, I feel like a fast retrieve can make a bass' targeting get screwed up.

I thought the Wiley's felt very cheap when I inspected them at BPS (P-17s specifically). Also, I found a lot more disheartening reviews of the Wileys than the Costas. That's why I went with the Costas instead of getting the free Wileys. My CDMs float.