MassYak85

Long term forecast for Christmas day is looking very nice. I will definitely be taking the kayak out in the afternoon after the festivities if it holds.

Trying to figure out which models cost what with TW's new interface is like pulling teeth. I shouldn't have to click through every single combination of rod length and power to see the prices. They were all nicely laid out in a table before. That said, looks like the 7'2" ML Zodias is 129. Pretty solid deal for anyone looking to put together a finesse setup.

Another thing to check... Reel it very slowly, is the clicking rhythmic? If so, how often is it clicking? Is it every handle turn, or more frequently? If it's synced up with the handle rotation then it's probably something with the main gear stack, if it's more frequent I'd look around your pinion gear first. Another random thing to check, I don't know what kind your reel uses, but sometimes the retaining clip that holds the spool bearing on the handle side can come loose and cause problems. Not likely but I have seen it happen.

My only goal is to break 7lbs in New England. I've caught three 6lbers in the last two years after never having caught one before, so I'm getting the itch to hit that next benchmark.

Next weekend's weather looks very tempting...

Did you actually remove the entire sideplate on the handle side of the reel? If you did, my first thoughts would be one of the two small springs that allow the pinion support to actuate in and out could have come loose. If not, it's possible you lifted the entire gear stack a bit. Sometimes reels have a keyed gear below the drive gear that acts as a backup to the anti-reverse bearing i combination with a small pawl. If that lifts up and becomes "unkeyed" it won't sit as low as it should, and will prop up the entire gear and drag stack, which can cause the gear to misalign with the pinion gear, or cause the main gear to rub on something else. Third option could be the keyed sleeve that rides in the anti reverse bearing did the same thing, and popped up a bit. Also make sure you installed the pinion gear in eth right orientation....ask me how I know haha.

The cape is a far drive from Nashua but if there's a good day for it I will let you guys know for sure. If not, definitely next year we should plan some sort of meet up.

Nice work @DogBone_384! Fortunately for you, and unfortunately for me...It's looking like another year without ice in December.

Nice one! I've been itchy to go again with the milder temps too. Seems like this week is gonna chill down quite a bit.

Thanks @Delaware Valley Tackle! Anyone else used any of the Phenix lineups?

Currently tossing around a few rods for a jerkbait focused rod. Might also throw some blade baits/finesse jigs on it but jerkbaits are 90% the focus. I currently fish jerkbaits on an OG Daiwa Tatula which is a 7'2" MHR. It works well but the "snappiness" of the tip always felt a little off for jerkbait fishing. The rods I'm currently considering are: Shimano Expride Phenix Feather Phenix M1 Phenix Recon I'd like to go with one of the Phenix rods but I could be persuaded to pull the trigger on the Expride. Anyone have any experience/recommendations with these? In terms of balance I will be pairing this with a Daiwa Alpha 800H, likely fishing braid to leader.

Uggggh I thought I was gonna get away with not listening to you guys but that Alpha's reel is too tempting. Gonna order one and figure out the rod later.

Thanks! I also just noticed it's got the shallow SV spool. Anyone use these with 30 or 40lb braid as mainline? Curious how close to the end I'd be getting on a cast.

Hmmmmmm. Anyone know the difference in gear ratio between the H and xH? I assume one is a 7 speed one is an 8 speed? Very tempting. Might throw this on an expride and finally make a dedicated jerkbait setup.

I'll fish in cold, I'll fish in rain, and I'll fish in wind. I won't fish in all 3 haha. 2/3 is my limit. If it's below 50 degrees the wind and rain make it miserable if they're not biting. Now if they ARE biting that's a different story 🤣. I'll fish till my hands go numb.

Even if it's rated for it and can handle it I think throwing a 3oz bait on that short of a rod would wear you out a lot quicker. I fish the Swaver on a 7'11.

Braid as mainline is less about strength and more about matching the diameter of your leader and minimizing how much it digs into itself on the spool. I prefer 40lb mainline for most applications including what you're trying to do. Lets me go between 12 and 20lb leader. But 30lb should still work for you.

Usually the first time I service a reel is the riskiest. They are tight from the factory and sometimes have some loctite. Definitely gotta have the right screwdriver set and make sure you get a good bite before breaking them free that first time. I've stripped that same screw before.

Same, almost pulled the trigger on a Revo Beast X reel to replace one of my swimbait reels, but decided I didn't really need it. But yea overall very dissapointing. I buy from 3 or 4 different sites usually, they used to be the first on my list but not anymore.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I've got an Ascened FS-10 sit-in. It comes with 2 molded in rod holders. But I've modified an old milk crate that I bolted a piece of that PVC board onto, and then attached PVC pipe rod holders to. I can fit 5 rods on that board (6 if I forego a net), for a total of 7 or 8 rods. It's way overkill for such a tiny kayak but definitely turns some eyes at the ramp haha. Wish I could upload a photo but it's way over the size limit.

These are what I choose when I want tiny hooks for like underspins. Crazy sharp. For normal sizes like 5 or 6 for jerkbaits I lean towards the Gamakatsu G Finesse, and for swimbaits I do like the Owner ST-35's because they come in big sizes, have that unique offset that helps them sit flatter against the bait, and are stupid sharp. There's a reason they come stock on the DRT Klash series. Only downside is they are brittle hooks, they will break before bending. But I've only had that happen once after it got lodged hard in the jaw of a 5lber and I snapped it with pliers getting it out.

I'd say a 6. Certainly a lot of people in my area that catch more and bigger fish. I feel like I have so much to learn. But I feel like I'm very dialed in with tackle and techniques, and usually when I have a bad day, so did everyone else at the ramp.

Thanks I'll keep that in mind! I think that 1st weekend in December I'm gonna help my dad winterize his boat and next weekend will be busy with Thanksgiving plans. Lowkey hoping for a good ice season but if it's not meant to be I'll take another warm December.

Got out today for one last hail mary for the season. Gave it everything I had with the big baits, but they only wanted the Tiny Klash. I got 7 bass and a big pickerel (3+lbs) and lost another of similar size. Biggest two bass were 3-10 and 3-3, with the rest being cookie cutter 1 to 2 lbers. I certainly can't complain for this time of year but I did leave a little dissapointed. 3lbers wasn't quuuuuiiite what I was hoping for but it was nice to have a numbers day on swimbaits. Water temps 42-45, 60 degrees and very windy. All my fish came in deeper weeds that were still hanging on. I tried some bigger trout baits with no luck. Was hoping the bigger fish might be out deeper so I dragged a Hudd down the deepest point in the lake, but no takers. They only wanted the TK for some reason, although I didn't give any glide baits a shot. I had it rigged to perfectly suspend and I was fishing it like a jerkbait, two twitches and a 5 seconds pause. Seemed to do the trick. Good luck to everyone that is still getting out. I will be keeping an eye on the weather for sure (I still have my kayak racks on), but today may have been my last day out this year.