jimmyjoe

One way to stop that is to use a judiciously sized plastic bead ahead of the leader, swivel or other metal obstruction. Any color is OK, but I use grey or purple for concealment. A little story: About fifteen years ago I was fishing in the Mississippi with an ultralight. I threw a 3/16 oz. Li'l Cleo spoon in Redhead, parallel to the bank. Water was about 2 feet deep. As I retrieve the little spoon, a dark shadow comes from my right side. Pike! It intercepts the spoon ..... tug ..... and no more spoon. That pike came in from at least 8 feet away. It knew exactly where that little spoon was, and it went directly for it. I use larger lures myself, and I occasionally use noisy lures. I think they tip the odds in my favor. But I don't believe that you absolutely need them. Pike can target many different lures, different in size as well as design. If pike want your lure, they'll get it. If they aren't interested, it's as if they're not there. Good luck! jj

Use braid with a minimum diameter of 11 mil (.011). Personally, I go slightly higher. Also spool your braid TIGHT. These two things help prevent dig-in, which gives results exactly like you have described. jj

I will not use barrel (Crane) swivels. They are not useless, but not far off from it, either. I use only ball bearing swivels. In the last 20 years, quality of ball bearing swivels has dropped, and consistency has gone by the wayside, so I can't give you specific brands, but I usually get good results from VMC. That being said, nothing .... and I mean nothing .... can TOTALLY prevent twist between in-lines and braid. Spinners have too much residual friction and braid has too low a resistance to axial twist. All you can do is reduce the problem, not eliminate it. jj

I have a friend who has to keep moving all the time. Some people are just like that. jj

Medium fast (written M/F) means Medium power and fast action. Moderate fast (written MF) is a description of action ONLY. So you could have a M/MF, or a MH/MF, or a H/MF rod. It wasn't always this way. Many years ago, before graphite, there were some descriptions of rods using "medium" for action (what we now call power) and "fast" for speed, (what we now call action). What makes this confusing is that some regions of the country still use this terminology, and some flycasting aficionados still use this terminology. So you need to be really, really careful; know who you're talking to and how they use the words. If you're confused, and someone says they have a medium action rod, just ask them, "What speed?". If they say, "fast", you know where you stand. It won't happen all that often. jj

^^^ This! ^^^ jj

To me, they're worthless. I'll use only ball bearing swivels. jj

I wonder where that merchandise is coming from. jj

I've been catching bass for a month now on spoons (could ya guess? ? ) low and slow, right after ice-out.. One week ago they started to hit spinnerbaits, low and slow. Today I got my first crankbait bass of the year on a Rapala CRR5, higher in the water column but still fairly slow. I remember other years, and this pattern seems to be fairly typical. jj

You might look into the Daiwa BG2500. jj

Retrieving a moving lure creates resistance, and smaller diameter line creates less resistance. It makes no difference that the line sinks; that only makes a difference when your line is dead, as in bottom contact, jig fishing, senkos, etc. I use FC on moving lures because I can get better sensitivity than nylon on slow retrieves in dicey situations, like riprap. I use 12. lb test InvizX. jj

On paper, that's the same as my 7'-02" River Runner. I use 4 lb. test mono and throw 1/8 to 1/4 oz. lures for steady retrieve. I'd never use a rod that light for bottom contact where I fish. In cold water, I've caught bass on small spoons pulling them in slow, just above the bottom. That rod would also be awesome with the Rapala Ultralight cranks and small spinners. You just need to keep it away from junk and cover. jj

The glass rod I have (Mojo Bass Glass 7'-02" H/M) is actually advertised as a chatterbait rod. And it's advertised as 100% S-Glass, not composite. I've used both braid and nylon on it, and it performs as well as I could ask for all the moving lures I use. They make a MH/M, but I don't like MH in the weeds. I wanted something with the authority to come through for me in the pinch, yet still work open water well. I thought the Slop-n-Frog would do well for that with nylon, but I really didn't like it for braid. There are very few of those Glatech Daiwa rods around that I've seen, but the few guys that have them love them. That should be a good pair. Good luck! ? jj That rod, a TranX 300a and 15 lb. Big Game throwing 1 oz. Dardevle Weedless and 8/10 oz. CopECats or the big Johnson Silver Minnows ........ I'd be in heaven! ???? jj

Probably not. The low tension and loose loops off a spinning reel spool would make a mess of your line. You could do it against a VERY low drag setting, as long as you didn't heat up your drag (unlikely). But why go to that trouble? Walk it off (literally), then return to the start and re-spool the line. Easy-peasy. Less chance of twist, too. Then go fishing and have fun! jj

I have a NASCI 1000. I keep 4 lb. line on it. I tried some 6 lb. lines, but only 6 lb. Magnathin was OK. I liked the 4 lb. lines a LOT better. Surprisingly, twist wasn't an issue with the 6 lb. lines. It was distance and line lay. jj

Once I bought some cheap hooks off the 'bay. They were all that way. Never again. jj

My name is Jim, not Bob. ?? jj

You heard right. I haven't used some other brands (like Dobyns) because my retailers don't handle them, but for frogging, I'd rate the Mojo very highly. I see other guys out with some other rods, and nothing the same price class has impressed me as much as the Mojo for frogging. Admittedly, the other rods are older, but not that much older. I went fiberglass for versatility; I had other stuff I wanted to do, too. If I hadn't gone that route, I would have gone with the Slop-n-Frog. jj

I don't have one of those DAYS, I have one of those LIVES! ? jj

Hmmmmmmmm .......... Something to think about. I remember the old bead chain swivels that were used by trollers. They used spoons and spinners, too, so they had the same problems. I don't know why I didn't think of that, but I'm going to try two swivels and see whether it makes a difference. If it doesn't work, can I blame you @michaelb? ??? jj

No matter the season, no matter the weight and power of my rig, there are two lures that I always have. One is the Dardevle, from 3/16 up to 1 oz, The other is a spinnerbait, from 1/8 oz. to 1/2 or 5/8 oz. I'm not saying that I always catch fish on them, or that they catch me more fish than some other lure on a certain day. But all year long, day in and day out, they are the most reliable and repeatable lures that I've ever used. jj

I used (past tense) powerpro on my spinners, too. It worked OK, which is why I went to it when I wanted to try braid on a baitcaster. I quickly found out that there's a difference between 10 or 15 lb. braid and 65 lb. braid, I'll tell you that! ? I'd hate to run a Baby Girl or Giant Killer off a spinning setup. The resistance would give me arms like Popeye. ? jj

Yes, I know. I should be young and handsome, too, but I'm not. ? I've used about every brand of swivels I can get locally except Sampo. No one carries Sampo. They tell me they're too expensive and won't sell. The best I've used so far is VMC, but they only delay twist buildup a little longer. jj

I don't need to worry about ripping the hook out of their mouths. I have a fiberglass rod (moderate action) and other than the #5 Aglia, these have 3/0 trebles. My only problem so far is the twist build-up in the line. It's got me flustered. ? jj

Bomber Long A 13a, 14a OR 15a, in Chrome/Pink/Blue or Chrome Prism/Black Back. Rapala Countdown CD9 or CD11 in Silver works also, but you have to be on top of it and not let it run too deep. jj