roadwarrior

Welcome aboard! 8-)

Welcome aboard! 8-)

We spent Saturday on the Tennessee River. We caught eighteen small jaws, all 3-4 lbs except Bryan's 5 1/2 lb brownie and PB! For the most part, minnows on a split shot was the ticket, but my big fish of the day was fooled by a Sworming Hornet with a LFT Live Magic Shad trailer. I initially thought this was a World Class smallmouth, but during the fight she morphed into a 20+ lb dumb-dumb... Sunday morning found me back home and on the pond: custom GMAN 1 oz football head jig, stand-up hook, black skirt and a Rage Tail Lobster for the trailer. After thirty minutes without a tap, reversed direction from shallow water to the deeper part of the pond. The first cast was over a hump, out from shore about fifteen yards. The theory is to move fish in, or at least not to scare them out. Second cast was well over the hump, out from the bank about five feet and worked VERY slowly to the hump, then dead stick while I had a smoke... The next move was subtle, an attempt to just jiggle the Lobster claws. No tap, no nothing... but the line mysteriously started moving out to the middle of the pond. Reeled down quickly, snap hook-set and the battle was on. As usual, she looked to be about 22-5 when she came up the first time, a little bigger the second time! Great fish, huge mouth and fat. Maybe 8, but 5 or 6 for-shore. The Rage Tail Lobster strikes again! 8-)

Congrats to San Diego, that was a great game for your guys. The Giants seemed to dominate...except when it counted! This game put the Chargers "back in play". Tonight's MNF should be a good one, too. 8-)

Jon Gruden if you can get him to the "Frozen Tundra". 8-)

Great pics! You had quite a day. ;D ;D ;D

The only LFT I have fished is the Live Magic Shad as a trailer for the Sworming Hornet. I'm not totally convinced that the trailer actually makes a difference with this presentation, but this bait has lots of action. I think fishing it on a weighted hook, as shown on the package, might be killer, too. 8-)

That was not my intent. Bargains can be found in better quality gear. Buy them one at a time. As I have often stated, all your fishing can be done with one rig, three are all you really need. This thread is about poor quality Quantum products. They have that reputation and it is well deserved. This thread simply serves as a warning. On a lighter note, I admit, I am a Tackle Snob... I'm the Sheriff of the Shimano Posse, fish Shimano reels. 8-)

I'm sure we have some members that work at Cabela's and Bass Pro. I wish they would chime in. Although they might not want to state this on an open forum, I suspect the reels most often returned are Quantum. In-house brands are probably a close second, or may even lead. I also suspect that the vast majority of the lower end reels, especially Zebco/Quantum, are purchased by guys that rarely fish. Durability isn't much of an issue if you only fish two or three hours on a summer vacation.

Oops! Didn't mean to overlook your offerings: http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1257252010 Great prices, too! 8-)

Not really odd, but catching smallmouth on a minnow and finding giant claws sticking up, out of the gullet is striking. Talk about greedy! These fish are completely stuffed, but can't resist another easy prey. 8-)

Well, it seems that G.Loomis is the standard by which all other quality rods are compared. It's always "almost as good"; "as good as" or "better than" a Loomis. It seems to me the only issues are "price" and "value". Price can be addressed as it has been on this and other threads. Value is subjective. :

The Natural's rods for sale: http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1257233305 8-)

This is my choice, too. The Curado 200E7 compares favorably with much more expensive Shimano models. "Smooth, strong, silent and reliant" 8-)

I don't own this rod, but among those "G.Loomis guys" that do, it seems to be the overwhelming rod of choice. As Lucky Craft Man stated, "The ultimate Senko rod". 8-)

Speaking for all the Administrators, Thanks! That's a "Thank You" to the entire membership for making this a community. We think of it as "family". Try to remember when things get a little rough, we're about fishing and BassResource.com is suppose to be fun! -Kent a.k.a. roadwarrior 8-)

Ouch! I think your right. Let me rephrase... GO SAINTS! New Orleans is off to the races. Good luck! ;D ;D ;D

Gotta produce some 10's before there is any chance at a World Record. The waters of the Great Lakes region are the #1 smallmouth fisheries, no doubt, but they will never produce a World Record. Tremendous numbers and VERY nice size, but no 10's, which is still a long ways from 11-15. 8-)

A lock for the playoffs. Then one game and out. Saints are still the Aint's, don't throw your bags away just yet. 8-)

Here's what I think: http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/smallmouth_record.html ;D ;D ;D

I totally understand and suspect the vast majority feel exactly the same way. However, I have a different take. For "moving" lures, I fish moderately priced rods (St. Croix Avids) matched with higher priced reels (Calais, Core, CH50MG, etc.). For soft plastics and jigs, St. Croix Legend Elite and G.Loomis GLX. I match these with comparable reels (Stella, Curado, Scorpion, CTE200GT, etc.) So, the reel is always most important to me, but the rod comes into play big-time for techniques requiring a subtle feel. 8-)

Quality reels make fishing more fun! 8-)

Drop shot is the perfect application. Rarely a gut hook and almost never a thrown look. No need to worry about "feeling the bite" either. More generally, other soft plastics are usually nose hooked rather than rigged wacky. 8-)

Buy a few Sworming Hornets and Lake Fork Tackle Magic Live Shad trailers. You fish them to imitate dying shad. 8-)