Rodney Smith

If you go to a resort like Angler’s Inn, you will be safe and not have a problem. If you choose to ignore the advice and wisdom of the locals and venture into places you shouldn’t go, you are just violating common sense and might run into trouble. As far as catching a 10 pound bass at home, you are missing the point. The bass at El Salto are the fastest growing bass in the world. The bass there are young and mean A 5 lb bass in Mexico will fight like an 8 lb fish in the states. I also doubt you can catch 60-100 quality fish a day in the states (with the opportunity to catch a monster on every cast).

Good idea. i have had one of these before.

I have good foul weather gear, so I don’t mind fishing in the rain. However, I don’t like for my tackle bag to get soaked. I have to worry about rusted hooks. I have a Cabela’s Advanced Angler Large tackle Bag. I know it can put a garbage bag over it, but I had rather have a real solution. I could buy waterproof boxes, but that would be expensive and they might not fit. I had a Bass Pro bag before that had a built in rain cover. Any ideas?

I am considering getting some of the us to use for cranking on a casting reel. I currently use 30 lb. braid with a 9 foot or so leader. I am thinking that this line with a little more stretch would help me. I could use it as my mine line, but generally hate straight fluorocarbon. Also, most of what I throw is 1/2-5/8. Does anyone have experience with this line and if so, should I get the 10 or 12 pound?

Metanium MGL XG.

I would recommend the the 843c if you are fishing wishing baits primarily 3/8 or less. If you want to throw 1/2 and heavier, I would get the 844c. I have both and the 844c is my main jig and worm rod. You can throw a 1/4-5/8 jigs with trailers on it with no problem. Both rods are versatile. The 843c can throw a spinnerbait, top water, Red Eye Shad, etc. You can throw a hollow bodied frog on the 844c.

https://www.cornfieldcrappiegear.com/product-page/copy-of-cable-save-r-for-terrova. i have this and it works great.

I have a lot of jigs and fishing a jig is my favorite way to catch a bass. I just ordered my first 1/2 tungsten football jigs (Evolution jigs). I was shocked at how much smaller the head it compared to lead. Of course, the downside is that tungsten is more expensive. I would love to hear from someone who has actually fished tungsten jigs to get real world feedback on whether or not it is worth the investment.

I do disagree with the assessment above. I can’t comment on a Zbone, but I have had an Orochi Flat Side Special. It isn’t even in the same ballpark in terms of sensitivity. The Orochi’s are pretty good looking rods, but they are pretty heavy, lack a hook keeper, and only have a 3 year warranty. Maybe a Destroyer would be a fairer comparison.

It isn’t so much that younger guys are more tech savvy and the older guys are not. I suspect they all are. It is that the new guys are not so stuck in their ways. For instance, I watched Kevin Van Dam fish a drop shot last week on Major League fishing. He was fishing with a 1/2 weight and moving it fast. He is the greatest fisherman of all time, but he will be a power fisherman until the day he dies. The game has gone more finesse. The guys who are winning can do both. It isn’t that the older guys can’t do both, they just don’t want to. With that said, I agree that it doesn’t mean as much to them as the young guys. They were all hungry once, but most have made their money and priorities have changed.

The one word that comes to mind is stubbornness. The same thing that makes me throw a jig most all day because I want to. The older we get, the less we adapt and change. Not so with younger people. They have vast amounts of knowledge at their disposal and a willingness to try new things. For some of the legends, it seems if it has been working for 30 years, it is still good enough. A young person would put a new wrinkle on an old standby and use it outfish the older guys as a result. I would say a little loss of passion and stubbornness...

I had this same problem. Mine was still under warranty, so I returned it to Shimano. It came back and developed the same problem. I had Chronarchs MGL’s that did not exhibit the same problem. I eventually sold it and replaced it with another Chronarch MGL. If you do a search, you will find other people who had experienced the same problem.

I have been to Angler's Inn in El Salto and it was the one of the most memorable events in my life. I have a chance to go back to Mexico with my son for another trip this year. I can go back to El Salto or the sister lake, Lake Picachos. I was hoping to hear some feedback from someone who has been to both.

All of Aaron Martens reels but one are 8.5:1. You can always slow down. I would say they are great for everything but crankbait fishing. I am a jig, worm, and top water guy. You want a fast reel for those applications to take up line quickly.

I looked at the StormR gear a while back and it looks awesome. I don't have any experience with that brand, but I do have all Gill gear. I was able to get it at a discount so the price wasn't terrible. Their products are very high quality and I would highly recommend anything they make. Since it has gotten cold, I have used mine every week. Rain, snow, you name it. I think it was a good investment.

One nice thing about the Conquests is that they are lightweight in spite of having a full cork grip (which some like and some don't). I like a full grip on a casting rod. They also have full size guides with Torzite inserts. I have owned ALX rods and they are nice rods with loyal following. Most rods with a similar weight as the Conquest will most likely have a combination of a split grip, no foregrip, and probably mid or micro guides (which is a preference thing also). The Conquest feels very "substantial" and strong for such a light rod. To put in perspective, I knew the NRX was a strong blank, but it did not feel as nearly as sturdy as the Conquests do. With that said, they have a very high price tag to justify all the technology. I would still choose it over the other high end rods in question.

Anybody fished these? I am not an Alabama rig guy or even much as spinnerbait guy. I do throw underspins. This new bait looks intriguing. There are a lot of size options though. I was thinking 3/8 medium size would be a good starting point. Any thoughts?

Tom, I think the 843c is 3.9 and the 844c is 4.2 ounces. The Conquests are 10% lighter than the NRX, which for a Loomis fan is all we need to hear. My 842c spinning rod is 3.6 ounces. It isn’t just about the weight though. They are designed to be stronger than an NRX. After fishing with them for a while, I am convinced they will be. Lighter and stronger than an NRX is pretty impressive in my opinion.

Shimano GL Conquest 7'" Heavy 844C MBR. I have one and love it. Many people love customs. I have gone that route before and I wasn’t happy with the result. If you don’t like it, you will take a big hit if you decide to sell it. By contrast, when I sold my NRX to upgrade to the Conquest, I got almost what I paid for it after using it for 5 years. I agree with the reviewer who said the NRX wasn’t perfectly balanced or all that comfortable. The Conquest feels great in my hands. It is very sensitive and incredibly light. There is a lot of great technology in this rod. You don’t have to pay full price and in my opinion, if there is any place you want to spend your money, it’s on your jig rod.

Chronarch MGL. I had a Metanium, but it seemed “geary”. I eventually sold it and now I have all Chronarchs. I could have just had a bad one, but it was sent back to Shimano once for repairs (after a month of use). I also wish the Metanium was a little smaller. If they tweak in the future, I would try another one.

This is another vote for Loomis. Buy you one at a discount and I promise you, if you don’t love it (or want to trade up down the road), it will hold it’s value and will be easy to resell. I did try a Megabass Orochi XX and found it heavy compared to my G. Loomis rods. If I were to try anything else, it would be a Destroyer. However, I find it is easier to get a good deal on a Loomis rod.

The “best” Loomis rods are the new Conquests. I have the 843C, 844C, and 842S. I sold my NRX to upgrade to one of these and I think they are the best rods I have ever fished. That includes customs and the NRX. I know they are expensive, but you don’t have to pay full price.

I have had similar experiences (wife accidentally broke two in a car door). People on these forums ask why should you should spend G. Loomis money when there are so many other good alternatives. This is a big reason why. I consider G. Loomis more of a long term investment. I’ve tried a lot of brands, but I always come back to Loomis.

I have used Nanobraid on spinnng reels and it is very good braid. It is very strong for the diameter and extremely supple. I had the Camo color. The only reason I moved to something different is that when it faded a bit, I could no longer see the line very well. I went to something more “hi- vis”.

I did a google search before posting on here and there are only a few reviews, all of which seem to be positive. The product is not widely available, so there isn’t a lot of info out there about people’s real world experience. I’m hoping to hear from someone who has used this braid.