Dinger0306

Daiwa Regal LT 2000D on a 6’6” St. Croix Premier ML/F, 8lb Trilene XL.

I agree with the replies from @GreenPig and @BrianMDTX. Before you delve into nuance, you’re going to go through a learning curve of using casting gear. Buy a cheap spool of 12lb Big Game from Wal-Mart and spool both reels with it until you get the hang of it. Also I’d drop the finesse setup to 10 or 15lb braid if you like braid, 30 is a bit overkill IMO. To not over complicate things: MH/F setup - single hook lures. M/MF setup - treble hook lures. Spinning setup - finesse lures. Line: MH/F setup - Line diameter depends on the amount of cover. Fluorocarbon has less stretch so could be beneficial and sinks quicker for bottom baits. 12-17lb test. Braid could work here as well in equivalent diameter to 10 or 12lb fluoro. M/MF setup - Monofilament has more stretch and doesn’t sink as fast (topwaters), so could be beneficial. Thinner lines = more Crankbait depth. 10-12lb test. Finesse setup - Braid is the most sensitive, limpest line for spinning reels, less stretch so it can make up for the ML rod for hooksets. Fluoro = less visibility for finesse and will help with abrasion resistance. 10-15lb to a 6-8lb fluorocarbon leader.

I took it out once with a 2500 Sienna on it before I got my Regal in, and I dig it. It replaced an old 6’6” M Lightning Rod that had the handle falling apart, and casts lighter baits better tenfold. Just gotta wait till I hopefully get into some bigger smallies this weekend and see if I can still get a good hook set with that light tip on plastics. The decreased weight compared to the old Lightning Rod/Sienna is enough for me to justify the price difference, ha

New stream/river smallmouth setup. 6’6” ML St. Croix Premier split-grip with a Daiwa Regal 2000D LT, 8lb Trilene XL mono. Gonna take duties for 4” wacky senkos, 1/15oz Ned rigs, Teeny pop-rs, whopper plopper 60s, etc. ?

I ordered two 60s, ended up losing one, in the “monkey butt” color. Not worked as well as I’d thought for creek smallies, only got a few dinks and a 14” pond largemouth on it. Better luck with a Pop-R this year, but I’m not giving up on it

Right when I wanted to learn to use a baitcaster was the same time I got interested in bass fishing, so the first reel I’d have ever thrown something like a crank or spinner on would’ve been a baitcaster so that makes sense. I still like throwing wacky rigs on a baitcaster better, for that same reason I’d imagine.

Different strokes for different folks. I do throw 1.0-1.5s on spinning gear but I haven’t thrown a larger sized crank in forever, when I did I always liked casting gear better. Something about feeling that wobble or the vibration of a spinnerbait on a spinning reel just didn’t feel right to me. Maybe I’m weird lol

S 1) Heavier treble hook lures (think medium sized swimbaits, mid to deep diving crank baits) 2) The workhorse, but with it being a higher end setup I’d reserve it for t rigs and jigs to take advantage of the rods sensitivity 3) Lighter to moderate treble hook lures (square bills especially) 4) Finesse. Wacky worms, drop shot, trick worms, whatever finesse tactics you use. 5) Spinnerbaits, buzz baits, lightish frogging But really, you don’t have to limit yourself completely. I’ve set the hook on bass with plastics on moderate action ultra light rods thought it’s not the best rod for it. You have a good chunk of choices for fishing lures, if you ever got into heavy cover pitching, flipping, or frogging maybe you could add/swap in a Heavy action rod.

Baitcasters (or hell, even a spincast reel) have one big pro when it comes to fishing specifically plastics to me, and that’s the ability to always be able to hold your index finger under the line as it’s coming out of the level wind to feel for a bite while dead sticking, shaking, twitching, etc a plastic bait. I do this with a spinning reel too, but I have to have the bail and line roller matched up so it’s closest to the rod and it can be a hassle to do that/make sure of it every cast. Other than that, it’s just so much easier to fish a heavy hard bait with a baitcaster. Once you fish a spinnerbait or crankbait on a casting reel you’ll irk at the thought of tying one to the end of your spinning rod. I say all of this but I still fish primarily spinning gear. I’m on a river smallie kick and the majority of my fishing is done with light plastics or lures well under 1/4oz which I find spinning gear to excel at. All in all, I’d advise to get a baitcaster and try it out but it’s not a necessity

Ended up scoring a St. Croix Premier 6’6” ML split grip, took it out today and loving it so far! Light, much better casting distance with those 1/16oz neds and Teeny Pop-Rs. Perfect action, just wondering how it’ll do setting the hook with plastics on those 15+ inch fish. Hopefully will find out this weekend

I have not even considered the Omen, thanks for the heads up! I’ll have to look into those. The Mojo I have checked out, know a few that fish them and like them but I honestly don’t know how a 6’10 will fair in a lot of the places I fish. If they made a 6’6 ML in the Mojo I probably would’ve never made this thread tbh haha. A 6’-6’3 would really be ideal but I’m considering more so a 6’6 strictly for versatility That sounds just like the type of setup I’m looking for. How you like the HMG? I’ve been running 8lb but I’m thinking of downsizing to 6, I’ve never had break off issues as is and I think I’d get better casting distance with the stuff I throw The Avid’s look so nice. If it works it works! I fished a Daiwa baitcaster ($130) on a Berkley Cherrywood ($25) for a long bit as a broke teenager lol

I cast all of the baits I listed with a moderate fast, medium power Lightning Rod already. Some of those 1/16-1/8 rigs aren’t really light when you factor in hook and plastic weight. But then again I’m not making bomb casts at all, I’m casting <30 yds almost always. I most likely won’t be able to handle any of them. Yeah there are definitely huge differences in different rod manufacturers power ratings, if I can find something that’s similarly “whippy” but lighter and more sensitive than my LR I’ll be content. That’s why I’m leaning more towards a medium light, since A) if it runs heavier than an ML, maybe better hook sets but less casting distance B ) if it runs lighter, better casting distance. I’ve fished medium spinning rods that feel more geared towards spinnerbaits than finesse lol. Thanks for the insight on the HMG seems like they get pretty good reviews

The first scratch or bump is always the worst. I guess that’s just a sign it’s getting used haha An Avid/Stradic combo is great I’d bet. I’m glad to hear the ML’s still have good backbone, the fish I’ll be catching will all be between 12-18 inch range, but the current can be a game changer. How do you feel about the handle length? I’ve not checked into the HMX’s, the HMG seems like it has a long-ish handle compared to most rods

Most of my fishing lately has been wading small creeks for smallmouth and I think I’m ready to upgrade my spinning outfit. I’m currently using a 6.5’ M Lightning Rod and a 2500 Sienna which has been a terrific outfit for the application and price. I’m definitely thinking an ML fast to extra fast, since my Lightning rod was quite light for a medium and most MLs are rated the same line and lure wise. I’ll be throwing wacky rigged senko 3-4”, 1/20-1/10oz Ned rigs, 1/16-1/8 t rigs, small rapalas, teeny pop rs, 60 whopper ploppers, 1/8oz bitsy bugs and spinner/buzzbaits, amongst other things. I’m leaning towards a 6 1/2’ cause that’s what I’m used to, 7’ is a no go cause of overhanging brush and while I think a 6’ would be perfect I want the versatility for casting distance in case I wanna use it for finesse largemouth lake fishing, or casting further in larger creeks or rivers. For reels I’m almost dead set on getting a Daiwa LT series, probably a Regal in 1000 size as I’ll run 6-8lb mono. So far I’ve looked into: St. Croix Premier St. Croix Triumph Dobyns Fury Fenwick HMG One other thing is since it will most likely be dunked at times, I’m thinking cork > EVA. I’d imagine EVA gets slippery or “soggy” (haven’t dealt with high quality foam so don’t know) and prefer cork but I’m open to the idea. Leaning mostly towards the Premier, but is it really worth the extra price compared to the Triumph when the blank material is the same? The HMG’s lifetime warranty I like since it’s not going to be pampered all the time, but the handles look a bit long and may get in the way. For the fury, I’ve heard good things but still very undecided. Any suggestions or insight on the ones listed above would be welcome as I don’t have any outdoors stores near me where I could try them all out, or insight on what you use for wading creeks. Thanks!

I use a 7' M Veritas and it's perfect for wacky rigs. I honestly don't see how people think Senko's are light.. a 5" Senko weighs 3/8oz. Anything 7' or over M or MH/F or XF works fine. I think a Loomis MH fishes closer to an Abu M so that's what my choice would be.

I've only ever held/fished the Shock, but for the price (esp finding it for $30 at Walmart) it's a good rod.

My dad had fished for a while for catfish and such, but got away from it for some reason while I was growing up. I think I was 11 or 12yrs old when our grade school class went on a field trip to a local lake to fish. Didnt catch anything but a few of my classmates caught bluegill and I wanted to catch something. So when I got home I asked my dad to take me fishing the next day. We went out in his little storage building and found some old push button reels, grabbed the two that had hooks still attached and a sinker on the line. The line had to have been 10yrs old and the hooks were pretty d**n rusty. Went in the backyard, dug up about a dozen earthworms and headed down to a local creek. Thats where I caught my first fish, probably a 12" largemouth bass. After that day I was HOOKED on fishing in general, and my dad got back into it too. I think I learned about bass fishing from TV or the internet. Caught a few bass here and there on random lures like grubs or small plastic worms but nothing any big. Ended up saving up $70 to buy a used baitcaster off of the fishing flea market from this site (good deal on a barely used $130 reel) and told myself I'd learn to catch bass. Gander Mtn had a free shipping no minimum order deal and I had a few bucks on a debit card so I bought a 3/8oz White House brand spinnerbait from there mainly to get rid of the $3 that I had sitting around. Caught a 17" bass on that spinnerbait and that's what really got me hooked. The rest is history...

You've given me an idea for a travel rod. Looks like it'd work well as a small stream smallmouth setup too.

No idea, I love fishing UL gear. I've caught some pretty nice fish on 4# and UL gear including about a 7lb walleye.

Looks like the guy is obviously affiliated with Kast King in some way. I'm sure they don't make a "bad" reel but give me a Lews 101% of the time.

Looks like a sweet little setup.

12# Stren on BCer 8# Trilene XL on Spinning Probably not the "best" but inexpensive and hasn't let me down. If fishing heavy cover maybe bump it up to 14 and 10.

I have the first gen 7' M Veritas and it's a bit too long for working top waters. I prefer a 6' - 6'6 rod (and usually spinning gear). However, it's one hell of a weightless Senko rod. Tip loads well at about 1/4-3/8 and fishes closer to a MH.

I forgot all about these reels, never got to use one but looked like a cool concept. I see that their website is still up but that's about all I can find. Out of curiosity, does anyone know what happened to the company?

I only own one casting setup and it's a medium, although it is an Abu rod which runs closer to a medium-heavy than most. I love using it for weightless stick baits, 3/8oz< spinnerbaits, 1/4oz< jigs, shallow diving cranks, 1/4oz T rigs, buzzbaits, buzz frogs, the list goes on and on. I know most people say that a MH/F rod is the most versatile, but there's a lot of stuff you can do with a M/F. Only thing I won't/don't like doing with it is 1/2oz+ jigs and spinnerbaits, and punching. I barely do that stuff so it's not a big issue.