HookRz

My main problem with banded skirts is the rubber rots. And rots away PDQ when using some scent products. From what I'm hearing wire ties done right will save me the time I spend re-wrapping my own jigs.

For years I've retied banded skirts with braid by sliding them down, making my wrap and hitting the knot with a drop of super glue. my question is about the new "wired skirts". Some I've bought last, others slide down or simply fall apart. Are they worth the expense or should I continue to re-tie my own? Haven't ordered fron Seibert. Should I?

I like the question as is one I never thought about. I use short flouro leaders that never pass through the guides. My reason is abrasion resistance, not the "invisibility" of flouro. Naturally I don't many re-ties. Generally these spinning setups are used for light hair jigs, finesse tubes and Ned's and I have a small file snap at the terminal end for quick bait changes. I love the idea of being able to have pre-tied leaders ready to loop on. Living on Erie and catching 100 Smallies a day this time of year should make this a quick experiment. BTW. I've tried snaps pre-tied to leader ready to affix to a tiny swivel at the end of my braid. Works great for 1/4 ounce jigs but hurts sensitivity on the really light stuff.

No idea. But looking at the pic it seems to have a 1000 on a 3000 size reel. Goofy.

Not quite ultra light, but the St. Croix Avid 6'6" light spinning is a classic. Super light tip, enough backbone, and no noodley wobble after the cast. Super versatile I use it for every thing from Bluegill to uber-finesse bass. I can throw 1/32 with ease on 5# braid. Better yet get a custom build on this blank with K style semi-micros and a Tennessee handle. That should take some weight off either end and maintain balance. It's in my plans. Should be sweet.

Tube.

The waters I fish are usually clear and somewhat pressured. So I guess this would be it. Most any spinning rod labeled mxf to mlxf 6'6" to 7', light jig head, 1/8 th oz. tops but usually less, small plastic with minimal action, tube, or sometimes hair, 10# braid, 6-10# flouro leader depending on cover. To to some it might sound like the Ned, Slider, or a light jig worm. I used to call it finesse jigging before the term came to mean something else. Once you learn it, I mean really learn to feel exactly what your jig is doing and where it's at all times, it beats the DS. Takes a while though. For me it took years. If if it's windy, forgettaboutit. Go to the DS rig. That's why most of my weights are 1/4 to 1/2 oz.

They are usually labeled walleye rods but a 6'3" mxf works for me. Mine is of the St. Croix denomination, but others make them.

The same here, other than color. Mine is chartreuse all over, heavy weight, small blades. Colors over rated anyway. The important thing, like A-jay says is burning it. Rod tip down bait bulging the surface, even breaking it every few yards. Brings them up from 12'+ water on Erie. I learned the technique from guys on Lake Winnipessaukee over 20 years ago, and have been using it ever since on Erie and Raystown. I still call it the "Winny Special".

that 6'9" Avid X might be the ticket. I have both and they fill separate niches. Besides you seem to like rods with an X in their name. Edit. I didn't see the end of your post about wanting another cranker. I always think of the kayak advantage as being stealth, and thought you needed a true finesse rod.

He seems like a salt guy. If you look at what he actually reviews it salt water models.

I'm a slime rocket fisher that never tried center pin...but you maybe just changed that! I like the point you made...when back reeling you not only have control, but the ability to "counterpunch", that is constantly adjust, to wear out the fish faster. That a big part of backreeling.

I'm talking light line or at least light leaders. I use heavy line on baitcasters. Little chance of a northern bass breaking my 15# plus line. Today's lines are strong. Battles are toe to toe, or maybe toe to fin is a better phrase. Winch'em and swing'em. By the same token I always use the drag on both trolling and spinning reels when fishing for Salmon and Steelhead. You can't back reel fast enough to keep up with a slime rocket. I tried it many years ago. No way. I lost. Every time. I'll concede today's skirted spools (my old Cardnals didn't have them) make adding finger pressure to the spool in order to slow a fish down a lot easier. But back reeling allows you to slow-down and then turn the fish. That's a different thing entirely.

The only people that don't understand the total control over a fish you get by back reeling have never learned to do it right. I appreciate today's drags...and have mine set to "disaster" setting. Many don't realize the amount of force it takes for a fish to take drag depends on rod angle. My drag is set very very high and if it begins to slip I lower the rod tip making it easier for fish to take line. That's when I flip the switch, raise the tip, and take complete control over the fish. I think reliance on the drag puts the fish in the drivers seat. You can't have have that using light line around cover.

Some body help me! I can't stop buying more Keitech! But when the bite is hot Zman has some elaztech offerings that do the job. Super-glue them to a jig head and they're good a day on Lake Erie this time of year or 50/100 Smallmouths, whichever comes first. On a really, really, good day you might have to re-rig for the evening bite.

I hear Loomis is coming out with a line of chicken rig rods at ICAST.

The only time I use a swivel connection is when throwing a fluke, with a very short leader.

I dislike dropshot fishing, preferring finesse jig tactics. In my mind it take more skill. But there are times early in the year I use it. When I do I go off way the plantation, and the bait is usually a FLY. Yup, maribou streamers, big wooly buggers, bunny strip leeches, and especially a steelhead pattern called a purple egg sucking leech. Works, and with a good tie you can fish the same bait all day.

Ditto small buck-tails. White Musky Vibrax in particular. Back up baits would be 8' Senko types.

The deadly Nedly.

Tubes, 3" Senkos, Fluke jr.s , rebel teeny wee-craws, inline spinners, original floating Rapala, and small Pop-Rs make up my starting line up for creeks. Then there is all the other stuff I've just got to carry but probably won't use. Learn to read the current, don't be afraid to cast to cover and you'll have a ball. Wading creeks is my favorite fishing on weekends, when waterskiers and the tournament guys are churning lakes to a froth.

8# Braid to 6#-8# flouro (leader material, not line) with a small drop of liquid lock-tite on the leader knot. Tiny snap at the end. I know, the snap is heresy, but I can switch between different colors of pre-rigged shakeys, tubes, grubs, small swim baits, Ned's, and sliders in a flash. If I break off on a snag it's at the snap. I can get about a half dozen re-ties out of a 3' leader. Works for me. Never broke off on a fish and we catch 6# smallmouth pretty regular up here on Lake Erie.

Learn to fish plastics/ hair on light jigs and you will soon realize the rest of the rigs are excuses and shortcuts. Caution: This may take a few years. Might never happen at all unless you are willing to work at it or started really young. It is an art.

Not much fun for an industry designed to take money out of your pocket and put in their bank account for sure! Party pooper!

This thread has opened up my mind quite a bit. I still won't sight fish, I hope you can respect that, but I'm willing to bet in hyper-productive fisheries the harm is minimal. I also believe selective harvest of smaller bass can be a good thing in small natural lakes. I often do so myself during the hard water season when bass flesh becomes more palatable. Frankly I don't bother keeping Crappie after early spring. My southern based fishing brothers won't understand but their texture when caught from warm water Crappie are like eating fried cottage cheese when compared to Yellow Perch or Walleye. But I digress. It is 100% personal choice within the confines of the law. But I would implore you, when weighing scientific evidence to bolster your arguments confine yourselves to studies published in high ranked peer review journals. Forget self published university reports and what you read on a blog or in a magazine whose job it is to sell fishing stuff. Follow the money. Think about your own fisheries. If they are good, could they be even better? The the fisheries are all different, the $$$ reaped by local economies vary, and that largely accounts for the lack of consensus among biologists not submitting their papers to respected journals. Not only that that but the bass are different. In particular Smallmouth in Northern climes and riverine environments have been shown to suffer more from spawn fishing and tournament fishing in general. I'm glad to see them protected. I grew up on Lake Erie where forty years ago a Smallmouth Bass received no more respect than a sheepshead (freshwater Drum) and were routinely smacked on the gunnels and thrown to the gulls because they ate Perch and Walleye fry. Protecting them shows how far we have progressed as sport fisherman and how far respect for the bass has come. Tight lines brothers! I can say one thing for sure. For the most part the best folk I know, the most concerned about the health of our waters and and the fish that swim in them, are you. Therefore I can respect each of your thought out decisions as to the stewardship of your waters. Floridas economy is effected by tourism, partly boosted by the influx of bassers looking to catch the trophy of a life time. Which journal reviewed, gave approval, and published this paper?