Infidel.

I had the same problem with titanium so I start heating it before bending it and it helped a lot.

Very nice! I think it is time to get some crappie swimbaits!

Awesome fish. I caught a big one like that (44") on a blue runner that I was dropping for Jewfish at Sebastian inlet.

Sounds like a fun trip. So does the old lady not like to fish? Making me miss California already. :-[

Welcome to the board! Similar posts have come up in the past and Roadwarrior's reply is very sound.

That is going to be sad. They play the reruns every night on Adult Swim

That rod will be fine. I had the heartland glass cranking rod but it was pretty heavy. I'm sure this swmbait rod will be as well, but for $45 it seems like a good deal. If you can save up a little longer, I would get the Okuma

I still keep a 1/6 oz silver baitfish patterned Roostertail with me. There are times when fish are busting on small bait and the typical fare doesn't get em going. Toss in that Roostertail and it works most of the time. Can't say I fish the old Daredevils anymore unless I am trout fishing.

There are many things you want a swimbait to look like. From a dead fish just sitting there to a fish that is high tailing it out of town and everything in between. Hope the bait ends up working for you.

I'd have to say that my go to topwater is the Spittin Image. We can't say which is the best to try because we don't know a thing about the water you are fishing. Too many unknown factors you know

My wife just said that I am on the fourth floor. I thought I should be on the fifth floor but I guess all of the fishing trips trips were not as romantic as I thought! ;D

I have used that Powell though I haven't fished that same cumara, I would be willing to bet that it is stiffer than the Powell. The Cumaras have very fast worm/jig type actions where the Powells have a more "all around" action. You will be very happy with the Powell.

I can't imagine it having anything to do with your setup. I think it is just the bait. Od that it runs true at high speed and not at low speed though, normally it is the other way around as Bassin_Finatic mentioned.

It would be way too short for my liking but to each their own. I am guessing that your 5500 is not the latest version and if that is the case I would upgrade the drag disks on that to carbon fiber. They don't cost much at all and will make a huge difference on that reel.

LOL!!! I took you seriously for a second and my wife almost cried. Thanks for the tip. I bought some of that last night, very good!

If you bed fish they will work great. They also work well swimming them on a football head. I have never done any good crawling that color.

One other thing is to make sure your rod has some give in it. I like a 7ft Med with a little give in the tip, not a crank rod, but not a jig/worm rod either. That is as long as you are not in very heavy cover.

Well I made my move to Oklahoma and despite all of the negative things about this neck of the woods, Blue Bell Ice Cream makes up for it! It's no Thrifty Ice Cream but just about as good, and cheap too!

I have a few and they are not my go to crank by any means but I have done well with them when other cranks weren't producing.

Well I'm glad yours is better than the two that I have. They both have play. Both reels are very nice but I voted for the STX. I've had my STX for 2 years now and it is still smoother than the E5 that I have only been using since March. I got an E7 in May and I like it but not as much as the STX.

Hookeduptackle.com has been selling the bull shad for a number of months now. I have the 6" three piece and it is a great bait. http://www.hookeduptackle.com/7.html?m8:cat=/Swimbaits/Triton%20Mike%20Bull%20Shad

LC Killa, I have a flap slap and will agree that it is just an over priced shallow crank with a fancy paint job that doesn't hold up... but it does catch plenty of fish and there have been days when it seemed to produce better than other flat sided cranks. The Vision 110 on the other is a great bait and I have had plenty of days when it flat out catches a ton fish for me when other jerks only produce a few. In regards to your comment about how it rests on a pause and how it is "unnatural", read a description of what a Staysee 90 does on the pause. The barbless middle hook has never been a problem for me. I don't lose any more fish on this bait than I do with other jerks and in fact it makes it easier to remove when the fish is at hand. And in regard to you straightening out the others, what are you fishing these on? They are not the strongest hooks on the market but they are just as strong as the hooks on a pointer 78. All that being said, an angler has a ton of control in how a jerk bait acts. Some guys have styles that work great with certain baits but poorly with others. I'm sorry you don't like them but your bad experience doesn't make them a bad bait, it is just a bait that doesn't jive with your style of fishing.

I say one and a half Avids Honestly I would go with the LT. You'll be a lot happier in the long run. I have 4 and just love them.

Depending on the condition you can get $75 to $100 for each.