NYWayfarer

I have checked out the Bonafide kayaks website and reviews because of this thread. I want one! the 10' version weighs 60+ pounds and seems so stable for a sit on. I watched someone fishing out of one in Florida. He even loaded it solo on a truck with little effort.

There are so many great rods and reels out there right now. You will never know if you will like something unless you try it. I don't get the fear of trying new things a lot of people have. The only thing that ever scared me was when something says, "new and improved" because I like the old whatever it was and didn't think it needed to be improved. When it comes to reviews I watch or read as many as I can and compare them. For instance if 90% of the reviews say a reel is noisy you can bet it will be noisy. Now do you care about noise is a different story. As far as Favorite goes the only thing on their site that interests me is their Yampa River rod. Fantastic looking trout rod IMO videos and reviews I have seen are all positive. I would wait until they have a free shipping day before I purchased one though.

My Bass are still doing the rip van winkle for another month at least.

For this coming season I have purchased a lot of fishing gear (Rods, reels, lines, terminal tackle and lures) between November and now. That's because this will be my first full fishing season where I have a kayak. I have had to upgrade my arsenal as I found things that work and didn't work fishing from a sit-in. I am a frugal shopper and almost everything I bought was a sale or clearance item. In the end I spent between $400-500 dollars total.

https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/denali-zenyx-crankbait-casting-rod-17drouznyx7ftmcrnrod/17drouznyx7ftmcrnrod Denali Zenyx rod. Dick's exclusive, regular $100 now under $50

I still have my Mitchell 300. The only thing that hasn't lasted is it's paint job. I wouldn't want to fish with it today as it is heavy and noisy (clicker) but it was built to withstand nuclear armageddon.

Sounds like a job for some KVD line and lure conditioner. Trilene XL, XT or Big Game are perfect mono for baitcasters. Just spray them with KVD L&L the night before fishing.

2018 soft plastic arsenal will be my staples, Yum Dinger, GYBC Senko, Z-Man TRD's & Hulastickz Zoom Salty Tubes, Roboworm. I am adding some finesse baits as well. Gene Larew inchworm, Biwaa Patate, ZMan TRD Tubez and Zoom shaky head worms. Hard baits will include staples like Rat-L-Trap, SK red eye shad, Whopper Plopper, Zara Spook and Jitterbug. I will be adding an assortment of Berkley hard baits, the Skinny Cutter, Squarebull, Digger and Flicker Shad.

For the WP 90 I use 12 pound Berkley Big Game or XT Trilene mono. I tie it directly to the lure. I have caught some toothy Pickerel in the 2 pound range and not had a problem. With the WP the treble hooks are crazy sharp. Fish basically hook themselves. I have to force myself not to immediately set the hook with this bait. The stretch of mono helps when my reflexes get the better of me and I set the hook to early. If I had better control I might try braid.

I have never had a graphite reel fail. I have however felt my graphite baitcasters flex while fighting 2+ pound Smallmouth and Catfish. The difference between baitcasters and spinning reels is I palm my baitcaster so I am able to feel the reel during the fight with a fish. Unlike a spinning reel where my hand is in on the handle and reel foot and rod alone. This has concerned me enough to start investing in aluminum framed baitcasters. So in summary, I don't hate graphite or plastic. I just prefer something stronger even if it comes at the price of a little more money and a little more weight.

Thanks. I bought one last night. I would say the description the salesperson gave you was spot on. The reel doesn’t have any flex to it. For $40 it’s pretty solid. It it will be a great reel for pond fishing.

The Source X

I looked at the clamshell package and HTS does stand for high tensile strength. I figure it means graphite as well but the review said it was metal...

I saw a reel I am interested in listed as having a HTS frame and rotor. Does anyone know what material HTS is? Or what it stands for? My guess would be High Tensile Strength? doesn't really tell me what its made of. I saw a Icast review that said it was made of metal. Could it be High Tensile Steel?

I have several free shirts from buy a reel, get a shirt mail in forms. Not really free as you have to pay shipping and handling. Pflueger, Lews and *** all have these offers.

That about sums it up. I check the line after every catch. Running the first 2 feet through my fingers for any abrasions or nicks, then the knot. If there are none I keep fishing. If there is I cut and re-tie.

I am usually not a big fan of combos. However the Lew's Mach series (I, II and Crush) all look great. Both rods and reels look like they are equal quality. Not always the case with combos.

10” of snow here on Super Bowl Sunday. We get a break today then another 8 to 12” on Wednesday. The weekend looks like a wintry mix of ice and snow for Saturday and Sunday.

Like I said logic be damned, Eagles win!!

In NY news: Staten Island Chuck predicted an early spring. However our local Upstate NY groundhog predicted 8 more weeks of winter... Its been real cold up here.

Grats! I wish you much luck.

I have a Cabelas inflatable PFD. It was about half the price of my kayak but worth every penny. It’s light, doesn’t interfere with paddling or casting and its an open back style. That helps you sit properly in your kayak.

I am unable to stand in my kayak. I fish most every kind of bait from it and I would say I have the most trouble with jerkbaits and walk the dog style baits. Not being able to point the rod tip down makes me have to alter the way I move these baits and it is not as comfortable to me. Whopper Ploppers are great when kayaking. I have a 2lb pickerel hit the WP right next to my kayak. Really got the heart pumping.

These are pretty new. I have not seen them yet at my local DSG. I have however used the Berkley Fusion line of hooks and they are a great value option for hooks IMO. Hopefully these halfhead jigs will be of the same quality.

The difference between the Ocho and the Senko is the shape and scent. They are both cylindrical baits but the Ocho has 8 flat sides where the Senko is round. The Ocho has the Strike King coffee and salt scent while the Senko has, to my nose, no added scent.