Boomstick

Due to lingering side effects of chemo (that may or may not ever go away), my hands and feed are cold and numb and I really can't do anything below 45 or so. So as a result I have an even shorter season. As I tell my girlfriend, there are two seasons, fishing season and the season I sit around, order lures and plan where and what I'm going to fish next fishing season

A few weeks ago, I checked out one of my common fishing spots and it was starting to thaw out. And with today having a high of 64 degrees, I figured today would be a great day to go out and give it a shot! Unfortunately the water level is still super low, I had an old birds nest in some line on one of my reels that I pulled out over a weed and had to cut my line off, ended up getting completely skunked and lost a lure between some rocks, but it's awesome that I got out to try in the month of March up here in western Massachusetts! Last year, our lakes were still frozen solid in late April! 2019 is already off to a better start than 2018!

I do not own one but have held some in stores. They felt pretty nice to me. A bit on the stiffer side - the M/F was more like a MH/F and the MH/F is a MH+/F. If I had to pick an application for each, I would say the M/F would be a good weighted soft plastic rod and the MH/F would be a good rod for jigs in lighter cover situations. I can definitely do better for $100, but I probably could find a HMG for a bit less as well.

I spent $100 on the rod and $90 on the reel. I also plan to use the same setup for a jigs in cover as as well, so I'll get my money's worth! I already know the spot I'll be fishing a jig this year, one of few spots that has cover I wouldn't touch with my MH/F rod in a small lake where someone once caught a ten pounder. If it was just a frog rod, I agree. If it's a non-sensitive stick, that's fine as you don't want to set the hook too early with a frog anyway -- it would probably help me in that particular scenario. Now if I add a shorter frog rod to walk the frog (and maybe one of my kids could use it for frogs too), I'll get something cheaper. Which will probably happen at some point.

Thanks. This is pretty much what I always do. Good advice on casting past the target -- I got my largest bass last year after getting a nibble and missing the fish, then casting as far as I could past the spot and got it the second time.

Nice bass! Congrats on your PB! I hope to someday join you in the 7 pound club.

Are they still making them? It seemed that everyone selling them had them go out of stock and finally get removed from their website. I was able to buy some on very nice black friday prices from fishusa.com last year, but they are no longer listed on their website. I haven't got to use one yet, but I've always heard they do last a bit longer, so I thought I'd give them a shot.

With the exception of the glass rods (regular is more MF), this is very spot on.

So I have the 7'1" H/F Tatula, a 7.3:1 gear ratio Tatula CT and 300 yards of Daiwa Jbraid Grand on the way. This gives me a fairly complete rod lineup. I'll take a family photo once it arrives

No worries you just helped me realize I should be fine. I'm definitely not one to set any records casting either and if I was going to try it would be on something like a crankbait or a spinnerbait to cover more water, not a frog or a jig. Plus once I realized that I was running marginally thicker mono on a smaller spool without issue, I solved my own dilemma.

The fluro is what's going on my MH/F rod which I've been using braid on for frogs. I will be using 65lb braid for frogs. And I'll continue to use both rods for jigs, just depending on the conditions.

I found the 55/130 right on Daiwa's website. If I had to put money on what Daiwa calls 14lb mono, it would be right about inline with Berkley Trilene XL. But anyway you did convince me to go with the Tatula CT, I'm just looking to see if I can find a 8.1:1 for the same enticing $90 price tag I can find the 7.3:1 at, otherwise I'll just get the 7.3:1. I have ran 17lb sufix siege on a Tatula SV late one season when I was fishing a lot around weeds which is probably similar to 65lb braid and never managed to spool it either, so I'm fairly sure I'll be good.

I would give that a look but there is no way I am going to be able to fit that in my truck. I believe you were the person who told me the 7'4" did not get the best distance on lighter frogs actually, then I read the same thing from several others. Sounds like it's a solid rod for larger, heavier frogs though, if I lived down south where the cold didn't stunt the growth of the bass population I would be all over that. As for line capacity, I am fairly sure they are estimating capacity with thinner mono, where 65lb braid would be the equivalent of 20lb mono (The Tatula 200 lists 180 yards of 16lb mono and 130 yards of 55lb braid). So I expect to be able to hold 70-75 which could potentially spool me on a good cast if I get a mondo bass that runs with it. But, I normally keep my casts within 50 yards.

I'm constantly mixing up power and action unless I use them together, but I am aware of the difference. I'm not too terribly concerned about gear ratio, I figure I will go for a reel at least 30" IPT, but am more undecided if I should get a Tatula CT or a Tatula 200. I figure a 200 holds around 110-120 yards of 65lb braid and a CT might hold 70-80 yards. I have a '14 Sierra. My 7'2" rod barely fits as it is, and I think I would really need to use a full on 45 degree angle to get anything larger in it. I probably could make it fit, but it would be a gamble. And when I go camping and bring the full arsenal plus the kids rods, that makes it harder to fit all the rods having to put it at a full blown angle. Most of my frogs are LiveTargets (2.25" and 2.625" in size) and Booyah Pad Crashers, so between .5 and .75oz. I imagine I'd be fine on the .75oz frogs but was told the .5oz frogs did not cast very far. I might also throw a 3/8oz jig on it as well.

15 would probably be more ideal as that will be more soft plastics, but I will use that rod for skipping jigs under docks still since I have the Tatula SV paired with it, so I'd like to be able to do both. Also there may be some days I only bring one of the two with me.

I'm using 40lb on the MH/F rod now for frogs, and will use 65lb braid on the heavy rod but once I get a heavy rod, I want to go back to mono or fc on my MH/F rod, so the 17lb fluorocarbon was for the MH/F rod.

Hey guys, I'm about to finally invest in a heavy power rod for frogging and jigs in heavy cover, which will give me a nice full lineup of rods for bass fishing (minus a swimbait rod which comes after I buy a boat). I'm fairly set on the rod. I was originally planning on getting the Daiwa Tatula frog rod, the 7'4" that is rated between .5oz and 2oz but first I am not 100% positive I can fit it in the cabin of my truck but the bigger issue is many users have told me that it's so stiff that you need an abnormally heavy frog to get any distance out of it. So I'm leaning towards the 7'1" Tatula instead which is rated for 3/8 - 1.5oz which should be perfect for both techniques and I know I can fit that inside my truck without having to rig up any rod storage in the bed (which I haven't done yet). So I'm pretty set on the rod, but have some questions on which reel to buy. I am torn between a 8.1:1 gear ratio Daiwa Tatula CT (although might go with a 7.3:1 ratio because they're around $30 cheaper) or a Tatula 150 or 200 in a 7.3:1 gear ratio. Is there any real benefit of the deeper spool and higher line capacity reels or should I just save the money and go with a 7.3:1 Tatula CT? Bonus question: I have some 17lb flurocarbon sitting around, would that be good on my MH/F rod which I will use for soft plastics and jigs. I have seem people use 15-20lb line for these presentations but have always used 12 or 15lb line myself.

^8

If I have to recommend one brand and model, it would be War Eagle's with a trokar hook in mouse and sexy shad colors. You can get them in 3/8oz, 1/2oz and with willow/colorado or dual willow blades. But overall, I'm less concerned with the brand of the spinnerbait and more concerned with the blades, colors and weight. If it holds up, I'll buy from that brand again, if not I will try someone else the next time I resupply. I haven't had too many issues with any one brand yet. Here is what you need to know in a nutshell. Weights Generally, 3/8oz will catch the most fish. If you need more depth, are targeting larger fish or are fishing later in the year where you can fish faster, try a 1/2oz spinnerbait and if you're really targeting mondo bass, 3/4 and 1oz spinnerbaits can be quite effective. I normally keep a 3/8oz and 1/2oz version of each spinnerbait on hand. There is also a use for smaller spinnerbaits as well. A few lakes around where I live have a healthy supply of chain pickerel, and on days I am having no luck with bass, I will throw a 1/4oz or 3/16oz spinnerbait and catch a chain pickerel every 5 minutes or less, they absolutely hammer those smaller spinnerbaits. Dual Willow Blades Dual willow blades put off the least vibration, but the most flash. Typically, they are the best for clear water when the sun is out, but they usually catch me the most fish in cloudy water as well. Colors and sizes I normally keep with dual willow blades: White and white like colors, White/Chartreuse, Sexy shad. Willow/Colorado blades Essentially interchangeable with dual willow blade spinnerbaits, a small colorado blade will add a little vibration. I tend to do very good with this blade configuration fishing at dusk and dawn and in cloudier water. I would use the same colors as dual willow bladed spinnerbaits. Colorado Bladed spinnerbaits There are a few blade configurations I am encompassing into this group, single Colorado bladed spinnerbaits, dual Colorado bladed spinnerbaits and spinnerbaits with a large Colorado and smaller Indiana blade. I fish these largely in two scenarios, cloudy water and cold water when the fish aren't chasing too quickly. They generally tend to catch fewer fish, but the fish you will catch quite often tend to be larger. Colors I normally use for colorado bladed spinnerbaits: White for cold water, white/chartreuse for dirty water and black (or mostly black) for night time fishing.

You're supposed to post a song now, but I guess I will to keep it going.

^9. Great song. Any love for Iron Maiden?

I have seen this before. Apparently it only works in a Delorean DMC12 going 88 miles per hour!

I just realized he's from New Hampshire. I never fish in New Hampshire, but I fish in Vermont and for some reason as soon as I cross the Vermont border, they absolutely hammer spinnerbaits up in Vermont.

I'm primarily a shore fisherman too but I do rent some canoes or rowboats as well. Until this year, I was using the 3650-sized Cabela's bag and a few extra 3650 storage boxes I would leave on my porch with overflow baits. This year, I got the bass mafia tackle bag three bass mafia 3700s, a 3700dd, a 3700 Plano spinnerbait storage box and a plano crankbait storage box for deep divers and an open compartment Plano (I can fit two more on top if I choose to, but then I have to take them out to get to the ones below if I do). I would say they are worth it because they are generally waterproof and they withstand being ran over, so it's safe to say I will have them for many years. I then have a waterploof plano box that I often load up for the day to take on a canoe or rowboat, or if I'm fishing somewhere I don't want to bring the full bag with me.

Nothing against reel snot, but I have always used KVD so +1 to KVD from me.