5by3

How do you fish the Huddleston swimbaits, specifically the 68 special? Recently got into these baits and have been fishing them with a sort of “slow rolling” the bottom technique with no luck, although water temp is still pretty cold here. Also, do you add an extra treble hook? The stock hook on the top of the bait seems pretty small for the size of the bait. thanks

Dobyns 705cb glass (or graphite if you prefer). Can throw anything from squarebills to medium divers to spooks, poppers, and smaller whopper ploppers. I also use it for jerkbaits in the spring.

+1 dobyns fury. Best rod in the $100-110 price range imo.

Hmmm who made it political?

Sometimes I think we overestimate the intelligence of creatures with a brain the size of a pea ?

Dobyns fury 795. Great rod for the price, especially if you don’t want to drop $200-300 on a rod you may not use as frequently as others.

I own the fury 705cb and think it would be good for the baits mentioned above. It is not the most sensitive stick out there but it has that characteristic parabolic bend which is great for any bait with treble hooks. I use mine mostly for topwater baits now that I own a champion 705cb.

Correct - I was told you cannot upgrade through G Loomis directly. Recently broke a brand new Mossyback rod (discontinued) and was given the IMX pro as a comparable replacement. Lucky for me it ended up being a slight upgrade anyways.

Hey guys, wanted on your opinions on which Huddleston I should buy for a clear reservoir fishing about 10-20 feet deep? I’d like a 6-8 inch bait as that’s all my gear will allow me to throw. I’d like to be able to crawl these about a foot off the bottom. Thanks in advance.

I’m curious if your s-wavers sink at all or fish more like a wake bait? Mine seems to run only about 1’ under the surface in what I feel like is a slow retrieve.

Looking into throwing more football jigs this year. What rods, reels, and line are you throwing yours on?

I’d personally get the 160 size. The small ones (12 in) still viciously attack it and it gives you a larger profile for those big girls. I only own one one and it’s the lite trout color. Works here in Ohio and my local bodies of water don’t even have trout in them.

They are both brand new. I wouldn’t say they are grinding hard, but they make more noise than I thought they should have. I will try to oil the break drum and see if it solves anything. If I recall correctly, I think I’ve heard Shimano reels are notorious for coming packed dry and need some lube right out of the box.

Recently purchased two brand new curado 70 reels. Spooled both with line today and they cast like a dream. However, they sound kind of noisy when i reel, almost like a grinding or rubbing sound.l when the spool turns. I noticed that the sound occurred only after I put line on the reels, and both reels make the noise. Does not seem to affect the performance of the reels, but is this normal?

TC bass would you mind posting a picture of your homemade spro frogs? I’d like to try my own. The Teckel frogs aren’t awful imo, but they’re a bit pricy for modest durability and hookup rate. That being said, it’s caught some good ones for me...

I’ve researched this quite a bit myself lately... from what I understand, a lot of people use the 704cb for jerkbaits and smaller, shallower cranks like you mentioned. Most people use the 705cb glass for squarebills and traps and maybe some small-medium sized topwater walking baits. I’ve heard it described as a little bit stiffer initially than the graphite 705cb, but you feel the characteristic glass taper once you hook into a fish. Imo, the graphite 705cb is the most versatile of the 3. The tip loads nice and transitions into a strong backbone towards the butt end of the rod. The rod is labeled for use with jerkbaits, crankbaits, traps, and spooks.

iRod genesis II Fred’s Magic stick. Fairly affordable rod at $140 and can be used for pitching/flipping, light punching, frogs, and small to medium size hard swimbaits

Thanks for the input guys. I ended up buying two new curado 70s from eBay. They were marked down to $160 plus an additional 20% off promo code for Presidents’ Day! Got them for about $130 a piece

I’m in the market for a new reel and I really like shimano products. I have several curado I’s that I really enjoy fishing, although lubing them every month or so sometimes is annoying. That being said, I’m looking to get something newer, either the curado K or the curado 70. Both have similar price tags, which do you like more?

McCoy mean green is a good balance of strength and castability. Big game is also a good choice, as well as Sufix elite

Looking to add another “multi-purpose” cranking stick to my collection. Would like to use it for topwaters, jerkbaits, and shallow/medium diving cranks. I have a fury 705cb that I really like, but I’m looking a champion series 705cb and 705cb Glass. How do these rods stack up against each other? Is it necessary to make the jump from fury to champion, or should I save my money and just buy another fury 705cb? thanks in advance

Imo, I probably wouldn’t throw a spinnerbait on my fury 705cb. I’m not saying you can’t do it, but I think there are better options like a standard MH/F rod. The 1/2oz spinnerbait might be a bit too much for it.

For me, the spinnerbait is the odd one out of the group. I have the dobyns fury 705cb (MH/MF) and it handles jerkbaits, topwater, squarebills, and medium diving cranks just fine. Pretty versatile rod.

Honesty, I have the dobyns fury 705cb, which is graphite, and I don’t feel like it’s strong enough to effectively rip traps from grass. It can work in a pinch, but I think more power might be ideal. It does throw shallow to medium cranks and topwater very well though!

War eagle