roadwarrior

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard!

Spinning tackle: Stradic 2500FH Baitcasting: Curado 200DHSV (2007)

Why? I fish both spinning and baitcasting equipment. Spinning tackle is MUCH better suited for lighter weight lures.

Pointer 78's are an all-around favorite (Rapala X-raps #8 are also KILLER), but if you want to target bigger bass, the 100 would be my suggestion. I fish the 128...Go big or go home! I have caught WAY more fish on the 100, but my PB on an artificial lure was caught on a 128. I fish the 128 more, so I'm going to catch more fish on that lure. My general response to your question is to fish the Pointer 100. Baby Bass and Original Tennessee Shad are my favorites, but The Bait Monkey made me buy a number of other colors. American Shad is probably most people's favorite, and yes I fish it, too!

You know I'm just playing... I didn't know Brent was your roomate or that he was even coming. I look forward to meeting him, too.

Don't worry about LBH, he will be fine...I'm bringing some extra Senkos for him! 8-)

Original Yo-Zuri Hybrid is easier to find. I HIGHLY recommend #4 in green. It is almost invisible, much more managable than fluorocarbon and significantly stronger (8.5 lb test).

The key is boat control. Ideally, you want your boat and your lure/bait moving downstream at EXACTLY the same speed so that from the perspective of your retrieve, you are in effect fishing "flat" water. This improves EVERYTHING about your presentation. My partner runs the boat wiith the trolling motor, bow facing upstream, into the current. We try to maintain a constant speed in current AND casting distance from the bank. Casts are made perpendicular to the bank or slightly upstream, NEVER downstream. For the most part, I fish live shiners on a split shot rig. Current determines the size of the weight. Ideally, you want the weight ticking the bottom. Suggested artificials would include the following: 3 1/2" tubes, grubs, Hula Grubs, jerkbaits (soft & hard), hair jigs and sometimes, topwater.

Poor machining. At the pricing point ($119), I was comparing it to a Shimano Stradic, but there was NO comparison! The U.S. Reel was sticky, with noticable rough points, unbalanced (wobble) and awkward to use, especially the retrieve. Although the president of the company, with whom I had spoken, eventually sent me a component used for backing, it did not come with the reel initially. The spool is WAY too deep for light line, I talking about (maybe) 300 yards of #4 or even #6.

Happy Birthday!

The extra $ for the IMX is well worth the money.

Their original reel was built a few years ago in conjunction with Ray Scott to offer a new combination for light tackle fishermen. The original combination was something like $120 for the rod and the same for the reel. I purchased the original "system" direct from Ray Scott. The reel was awful and I didn't like the rod. I would rate the combination a weak 3 on a scale of 1-10. I subsequently gave this combo to my dad who still fishes it. However, I would NOT recommend it to anyone.

Welcome aboard. As you can see, I have moved this thread to its appropriate Forum.

Whenever bass are hitting topwater, they will hit jerkbaits. A fluke (Slug-Go) or hard bait would be my suggestion.

Welcome aboard! The best water flow below Pickwick Dam is 80,000-110,000 cfs, but anything over 20,000 works as long as the water is STEADY or RISING. Regardless of the gross amount of water release, falling water is ALWAYS bad, the fish simply turn-off. I DO NOT fish the river with flood gates open. If the water turns to chocolate milk, I don't fish at all. Otherwise, with gates open, we fish the lake, not the river. Regarding depth, the smaller fish (bank runners) are always shallow, the bigger smallmouth are usually deeper and on structure. Right now however, big mommas will be staging near gravel flats and may be found almost anywhere even if there is no obvious structure. Right now they are wandering, in the process or getting ready to spawn.

Wow! Catt, That's the kind of detail a fella just doesn't expect everyday. Great post! Do you think that is the line-up for lures we should be using next month at Fork, too? What about jerkbaits?

Zonked, Welcome aboard! I have caught as lot of HUGE blue cats on cut bait (skipjack) on the Mississippi River. My PB (58 lbs) was caught a few years ago, very near the New Bridge in downtown Memphis.

Wow! I should have mounted those fish!

C'mon dude, you live is San Diego where the average house is in excess of $300,000, maybe $400,000. You can't drive ten miles anywhere in the region without passing a few dozen Lexus, Mercedes, et. al. Why would you think there wouldn't be a market for a $800 fishing combo. There's plenty of people, particularly in southern California that spend more money than that on dinner! What's a weekend at La Costa cost these days? Last time I was there a round of golf, drinks, breakfast-lunch & dinner, and spa time for the wife was something north of two big ones. I would rather have the rod and reel, even if it's the WRONG brand :. At least I'd have something to show for the money.

Big fish can be landed on ultra light equipment in open water. Which means, it might be possible for you to boat a few on stucture, but you will never land a decent fish in cover. Without the ability to "move" a fish, they usually seek shelter and you will lose ALL of your best fish.

Bud mentioned Sunline Defier a couple of posts up on this thread. I fished it a little on his equipment and liked it... A LOT! I don't know whether BPS carrires it or not, but you can order it from a number of online stores. It's a little pricey ($40/ 300 yards), but it seems to be some fine line.

Are those girls on the "Welcoming Committee?"

luv2fsh33, Welcome aboard

Yo-Zuri #6 is .010" diameter, exactly the same as Ande Premium and many other 6 lb test lines. The original Hybrid has some memory but at any diameter, I would rate the overall comparison to other monofilaments and copolymers in the middle. Yo-Zuri Hybrid Ultra Soft is a horse of a different color: In use, Ultra Soft has very little memory (virtually none in warmer weather). The major attributes are resistance to abrassion, impervious to water and UV light, extraordinary strength, lasts indefinitely and it floats! I fish #4 (.009" diameter, 8.5 lb test) for smallmouth and the line is nearly invisible. When fishing larger diameters on baitcasting equipment, I am usually using reaction baits or fishing for largemouth bass where visibility is not an issue.