Jon Morris

I'm frugal on the border of being cheap. I love my 2 Black Max casting reels for general purpose fishing especially for the price. I've caught literally hundreds of bass on both of them and with minimal upkeep they work just as well as the day I bought them. I'm looking for a spinning reel that is comparable to that in the $40-$80 price range. Any suggestions?

Moved here from Pittsburgh in July and while it took a little bit of a adjustment period I'm starting to figure out some spots locally. Found a nice pond in a business Park the other day and pulled 5 of them out within a half hour, including my personal best. With the weather warning up this week I'm going to start hitting the bass scene hard. How is everyone else doing in Duval?

It might seem crazy to anyone else, but I HATE the spawning period. Now I live in the Pittsburgh area and don't own a boat so my experiences are probably very different from many of yours but spawn time is yawn time for me. Without a boat I can't target beds (illegal in PA anyway), and spawning bass in this area have absolutely no want to feed on anything not laying in the middle of their spawning bed. I always hear guys getting excited for this time of year. Me? Besides the absolute dead of winter the spawn is the worst time of year for bassing IMO.

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Adult bluegill might be the top predator in those lakes.

This may be a stupid question but.... Are you sure there's bass in there at all? If you've done all the things you say you have and there's not some insane variable giving the fish lock jaw (ridiculously cold temps, weird algae bloom, chemical spill, etc....) then the simplest explanation is that there aren't any bass in that body of water. My advice? Switch locations. Fortunately you're in Florida and the you can throw a rock in any direction and hit a bass pond. Get on Google maps and turn the satellite mode off and search for bodies of water near where you're staying. I do this every time I visit Florida to find quick little spots to fish. Oh, and don't turn your nose up at tiny ponds and even drainage canals. You can literally catch bass from storm drains in Florida, bass are everywhere...... dont waste your time banging your head against the wall.

Ha! I have the $3 pair from Walmart. El Cheapo right here.

Just wondering if anyone had any experience with how long these reels hold up?

Almost every bit of lake/pond water in my area is filled with the stuff,.... wether it really is snot grass or just algae basically most of my retrieves produce a pond booger on the end of my line. There is no dragging a Texas rigged bait or jig slowly across the bottom........ And the idea of using a bait with a treble hook is laughable. Just wanted to know what you guys do to best deal with the issue?

Living in the NE I have never seen a blue or even red crawfish. Most here are the brownish greenish variety with a hint of orange on the tips of the claws (maybe). But I've always seen these colors attributed to crawfish and wanted to see if you have these color patterns in your area or if anyone has a picture of a blue crawfish they caught. Have seen blue ones in aquariums but didn't know if they were a designer animal or if you can naturally catch one that color?

Abu Garcia blackmax. Nuff said if you're dipping your toes into the baitcasting world. You can get a rod/reel combo from Walmart for under $60. If you decide you like baitcasters then move up from there, at least then you'll have a backup reel for either another pole or in case your upgraded on breaks. As long as you're not pulling 15lb bass out of the thickest vegetation there's nothing that you can't do with this reel and honestly I would consider it stupid to spend any more without knowing if baitcasters are for you. My buddy who actually got me into bass fishing is one of the most knowledgeable and experienced anglers I know and he won't touch a baitcaster........Me? I picked up my first blackmax combo and haven't thrown a spinning rod since. So spend the >$60 for both rod/reel instead of investing $90 on the reel and $50-70 more dollars on the rod of a setup you may use one day and decide that you never want to touch it again.

The local gander mountain is closing and everything is 40-60% off. Was going to pick up another baitcasting reel but the only ones left are the gander mountain brand. Anyone have any experience or issues with them?

Had a wisdom tooth removed today. Went straight home, grabbed my rod and headed to the golf course for some relaxation. In my mind this is completely sane. My entire face is still numb so not in pain yet, and I actually have the day off with no kids to watch..........So fishing of course! Wasn't until I was walking back to my car after fishing for about 2hrs I wiped off what I thought was rain running down my face only to pull my hand back COVERED in blood. My gause had shifted and I had started bleeding but was so numb I didn't know until I probably looked like a vampire that just had finished feeding. What's your favorite "not sure how, but I found a way" fishing story? PS... Caught a decent one too!

Took advantage of the $20 off orders of $100 or more from Dick's. Have a cheap rod and some hooks for the horny toads still coming.

That's depressing. Seriously you'd think they'd be a little more motivated to get a store open there. St John's being one of the best known bass fisheries out there.