MDbassin

Ok so I've got a question in my quest for new rods I have heard as I'm sure all of us have that certain rods fish heavier/lighter then what they say they are. I have noticed that the lure weight ratings on the rods people say fish heavier have heavier lure ratings then a comparable length, power, action rod from a different company. For example a 6'8" mh/f st.croix is rated at 3/8-1 oz which people say a st.croix is a stiffer rod. Then a Dobyns 7' mh/f is rated for 1/4-3/4 oz. Is this just a coincidence or can you use this as a indicator as to whether the rod is stiffer or lighter compared to others? What would be the lure rating be on a true Mh/f rod? Maybe I'm just overthinking this or maybe I'm onto something I don't know I just figured I'd ask

I'm looking to try hard body swimbaits this year and was wondering what rod to throw them on? I was looking at 4"-6" swimbaits... the biwaa seven and the River 2 sea s waver were the 2 swimbaits I was looking to try and the weights range from 2/3 oz-1 5/8 oz. Just wondering what I can throw them on and not have to worry about snapping my rod when casting them. Was thinking MH/MF Saw a few crankbait rods that I thought I could use that way I could make it like a crankbait/small swimbait rod but the highest lure weigh I could find was 1oz in MH crank bait rods and a actual swimbait rod (or at least the ones that are labeled as swimbait rods) just seem like overkill unless I'm throwing big huddlestons... Which I don't plan on throwing as I don't have money for them and I'm not fishing in Florida or California and we ain't got any bass that would probably go after those big swimbaits

Power pro spectra is my go to also. Not a huge fan of the super slick 8 either. I go with power pro spectra mostly but when I can get suffix 832 on sale I will get it those are the only braids I use. However I have been wanting to try the Berkeley trilene professional braid... I may give it a try this year. Tried the seaguar smackdown braid it was good but in the 50lb size the power pro is smaller so I like it to get more line on the spool and still just as strong

Would you guys throw squarebill sand lipless cranks on the typical Med/Mod crankbait rods or would you use something else? I ask because where I fish according to my local DNR website the waters I bass fish have a max depth of 8-10 ft so that is the deepest I will be cranking so it's not like I will be throwing 8 or 10 xd's. From what I can gather the typical crankbait rods of Med/Mod with a slow 5.4:1 reel only really help with deep crankbaits (not saying they don't help with all crankbaits but they really shine with the deep cranks)

Anybody tell me the differences and if the more expensive reel is worth the extra cost. I have 3 lews reels I'm looking at. BB1, Tournament MB, Tournament Pro G. I have been using the lower end laser lews reel and enjoyed it but it's time for an upgrade so I was looking to stick with lews and have narrowed it down to these 3

Going through my tackle last night and noticed I needed to change out some hooks on my cranks. What do you guys think about putting feathered trebles on the back of crankbaits? I wish I could just do it and try it but it's not really the time of year and weather that constitutes crankbait fishing. Have any of you tried this? Would the extra material on the back treble inhibit the action?

I'm looking to get into rod building if I can talk the wife into it. whats the best starter kit out there? And by best I mean comes with everything you need to start rod building not necessarily the cheapest. I search rod building and the one that pops up all the time is mudhole... are they the leader in the rod building market? This is all so new to me I don't know about what companies are good and what to stay away from. From everything like blanks to epoxys to components I don't know what's good and what to stay away from. Any direction on this new adventure would be much appreciated

I wouldn't worry about using Abu oil/grease for an Abu reel. When I go to clean and lube my reels in the winter I don't even use anything that is marketed as a fishing reel oil. i use balistol to clean all the old grease and oil off then use the same stuff I use for my guns. I either use Rem Oil or Hoppes (side note I love the smell of Hoppes), or I use CLP (the same stuff we used in the Marines to clean our rifles. Or if I want to use a grease I use otters gun grease (I actually think it's called otters choke tube grease for shotguns). i put oil/grease in the same spots it was from the factory... if there was grease there originally I put grease if it was just oily I put oil. Been doing it this way for a few years and never had a problem

Braid: Power Pro cause it's readily available if I'm on the road and at Walmart I can pick up a spool. And I've tried a few others such as suffix and spider wire I just prefer the feel of power pro Flurocarbon: Seaguar Invisx. Haven't tried many Fluro line just this and p-line. Like the seaguar better... might try sunlike this year Mono: Berkley Trilene.... Used it since I was a kid fishing for bluegill and channel cats so I've just stuck with it

Yea I still need to make it on the other side of the bridge. I wind up heading east to Cabelas more often the. I do west over the bridge. And Cabelas didn't have the Crucial. Unless they had it tucked away somewhere

Missile Baits Shockwave

Jigs followed by trailers for said jigs

For those of you that was following my other post about the Mojo vs Abu IKE series. I was able to get to Cabelas and get my hands on the Mojo and I like them but was just a little stiffer then I cared for. The other rods I was looking at was the Shimano Crucial. Anybody have any experience with the latest series of Crucial rods? (With the Cork handles) i liked the exposed reel seat as i palm the spool(as I assume most of you do also) so my fingers will be touching the blank and the reel has less plastic between it and the blank to have a better feel for bites. The only thing I wasn't a fan of was I saw somewhere it's warranty was only a year where as the st.croixs were 5 yr to lifetime. And I can't find anything about the Abu IKE series warranty. But anyway... does anyone have experience with these? Are they worth it? Are they sensitive? Durable? Have a good selection of powers and actions for different techniques? Are there better rods for the price or cheaper? Thanks for any help

I will probably just go with graphite

Really looking to make it my twitching rod for anything that requires a twitch or jerking motion. So I guess I'm trying to say I'm going to be using jerkbaits,spooks,poppers

What do you guys prefer in a jerkbait rod glass or graphite? What power and action do you look for I was looking at Med/Mod or Med/Mod-Fast and 6'6" or shorter. As long as it has a shorter handle Also just a question it's a little off topic but instead of starting a new post I'll ask it here. Im looking to upgrade my current rod selections with some st.croixs. And I keep reading and hearing that they tend to be stiffer then there ratings. How much stiffer are we talking about is it a while step up so a Med feels like a MH or is it just slightly stiffer so a Med just feels like a Med+ but not a full blown MH. Ive never been able to really tell a difference when checking them out in store when I'm fishing I can tell a difference between a M and a MH but I just go off what the rod says. I have never been able to pick up a M power rod and say nah it feels to stiff to be a M. I just always go with what the rod says

Another good know to try is the palomar knot I use the double palomar for all my braided line. its real simple and very strong. Don't quote me on it but I believe it's one of the if not the strongest knot. Out of the knots I use it's the strongest I know

The more wraps you put in the knot the more friction there will be on the line you were wrapping it around. 15lb test can take a lot more friction then 6lb test

On my ultra light setups I use 4lb test mono and I use 5 or 6 wraps anymore then that and I tend to break my line when going to cinch it down. For my other rods with mono I have anywhere from 8-12lb test and with them I use 7-9 wraps and it's worked well for me

I use a Pfluger President on my ultra light setups for trout and panfish. I am going to be getting a new spinning reel for bass. I enjoy my President a lot and it seems that it is well accepted here and was wondering if it is the best bang for buck spinning reel out there or if I just spent an extra $20 or so I could get something better

There prices are great to. Looks like everything is $10-20 cheaper then tackle warehouse

I just started using them last spring they caught my eye in bass pro and figured I'd give them a try. I also got 3 I bought the yellow perch, clown and I can't remember the last one but I caught some nice ones on them last spring

When you guys are trying to match the hatch what do you guys go to? I guess my question is what baitfish are in your area? I'm over on the Eastern Shore and we have a lot of bluegill, and yellow perch, and Herring those are the main ones we also have carp that the bass I guess will eat the small ones and some of the lakes stock shiners. I haven't seen any type of shad or talked to any DNR guys that have confirmed there are shad in my local fishing areas

I've had success with the yo-zuri jerkbaits