Vilas15

A 6'6" to 7' Medium/Fast action would work with that. The Medium would be more versatile than a ML and match the reel better. The 4000 size is larger than I'd like but should be fine if you already have it. I'd use 8 lb mono or a 15 lb braid to 8 lb leader. You'd want to use some backing on the reel because a 4000 will have a large capacity.

and a ML spinning rod at that. A #5 is only 3/16 oz.

They permanently closed quite a few stores and only reopened some. The website shows some more opening this spring and some in 2018.

And what if the fish see it? They'll start avoiding you and make fun of you behind your back!

On a 60" shaft I could see how things would get beaten up with the motor bouncing around if you trailer long distances very often. Can't say I've actually heard of any issues but I've got a ram mount stabilizer that attaches near the head for traveling to prevent any possible problems.

They'll attack any fish that is on the end of a line that acts vulnerable so people have had them try to eat walleye or bass before and thats where the opinion might come from, but those fish are a very small part of their diet. The diet obviously depends on the forage available but I think the largest portions were suckers, perch, cisco, shad, etc. when a study was done.

No experience with the fenwick, but I've got a triumph and premier, both are spinning rods. They're the same SCII graphite so the biggest difference is Triumph is made in Mexico vs Premier is made in USA. I've been happy with both and it's whether the price difference is worth being made in the USA to you. Some people will recommend if you're spending enough for the premier to go with a mojo bass instead which is made in mexico but has the upgraded SCIII graphite which should be more sensitive, also has a split grip over full grip.

Plenty of old-timers who will kill musky/pike because they're "eating all the walleye". Nevermind the walleye fishing may decline partly because they've kept a limit (or more) every time out for the last 30 years.

I'm afraid it may somehow pass if attached to another bill. The real reason behind all of the anti-musky stocking legislation in MN is that lake property owners don't want musky stocked in their lakes so that it doesn't attract musky fisherman who will travel just about any distance for good fish. They don't want more traffic on "their" lakes despite the fact that the fishing may actually improve for other species. I've also heard some about increased regulations and inspections to combat invasive species that are past the point of reasonable measures so in reality they would only be restricting launch access to the lake. Things like high fees, having your boat inspected every time you want to launch, certain launch hours only during the day when there is a crew to inspect, etc. Both are really about privatizing the lakes and restricting access for people who do not own lakefront property and aren't a part of the lake association. The water is public and it needs to stay that way. The DNR should be able to manage the fisheries based on their data and experience, not because some Rep hates muskies and doesn't want more boats on the lake with his property. Sorry to get off topic... In regards to the original post, I wish I had a huge musky problem! I've currently got a small musky or no musky problem whenever I try to catch them!

Where are you located? Do you fish smallmouth or largemouth? What type of water? Based on the fact that you have two rods for vertical jigging I'd say you fish walleye, and also smallmouth in clear lakes based on the baits you fish and the fact that you've made it this far without a baitcaster. If that's correct then I am in a similar situation. I'm working on getting a crankbait rod but my only other baitcaster is a 7' M/F that I use for jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, lipless cranks. I have no need for a MH/F casting rod since there is very little heavy cover to fish and I don't fish big jigs or heavy plastics.

No its a side console with single windshield. Youd have to look at the different cover descriptions because they may specify whether they fit full windshield or not.

I got a Cabelas RSS cover on sale for around $150 I think. They have different ones for bass boat vs deep V so you choose the right type and then by length/beam. It fits a Lund 1650 rebel well enough. It's mainly used for storage inside or if we don't want to push the boat inside for rain overnight. I wouldn't trailer it because its got a lot of straps that attach to the trailer and wouldn't do too well at high speeds in my opinion. It would work for storage outside if you prop it up so that water doesn't sit. We traveled a mile on a sandy/snowy road to a lake last April and had to vaccuum out a couple pounds of sand over the last year so if we ever go back we'll bring the cover for rainy days or wet sand roads.

If you're using a regular internal tube jig only the line tie should come through the tube so that you can tie onto it. The jig head stays inside the tube. Sounds like you're doing it right to me. There are many different ways to rig a tube though.

I thought for sure that would have been the problem since thats how the Curado I worked for me, but judging from the other posts it may be something more. If the side plate is sitting flush then I don't think its the spool tension, which I believe pushes the spool against the side plate to squeeze. In that case the side plate won't quite sit flush when trying to close it, which in turn means you can't latch it.

Took me 15 minutes to figure this out once.

I got the "Cabela's Six-Rod Horizontal Rod Rack" and it has worked well so far. Looks good and rods are spaced far enough apart to keep the reels on, you just need to be careful taking them in/out. The only issue is I had to sand the surfaces that would hold the rods since they come rough just from being cut with no sanding.

I would just lay them flat on the port side and that would be fine, but there is the fuel filler towards the back, and the boat starts to curve towards the front since its on 16.5'. I'd also do what @S Hovanec did when traveling and just lay them down, but the flip up seats/casting deck bounces around and has crushed a rod before. Bascially the rod tote wouldn't work because there isn't a long enough straight section on the side of the boat to accommodate 9' rods unless they were angled up to clear the fuel filler.

I have this same problem trying to carry 9' rods in a 1650 rebel. My idea was to use a sport track mount to Ram mount with a slotted rod holder like you'd put on a wall. I'd put it in the back corner and instead of laying rods flat along the port side, it would incline them and hold the tips up in the air and allow them to hang straight off the back. This would still take up some of the side deck on the port side but otherwise I've got no way to secure 9 footers. I haven't actually tried it yet but I think I'll use a rod strap to secure the butts somewhere along the port side.

Aikens lake is in Manitoba which is pretty far up there. I saw something for Ohio which had 27.5" at 10 years, but thats further south and they grow big and fast in Lake Erie. Again it just illustrates that all fish are affected by the higher lattitudes. It matters for bass since they are primarily catch and release regardless of regs and people want to catch trophy fish where most people just want eater walleye. The regs just need to be improved up north to protect the trophies from certain people who would keep as many 20" smallies as possible which could have a real effect.

I imagine it would also take at least 10 years for a walleye to reach 30", which I would consider comparable to a 20" smallie. Walleyes can reach 15" in 3 years but how long would it take a smallmouth to reach a decent size for eating? I imagine maybe a bit longer but I would be surprised if it's by much. I don't know the limits on Mille Lacs so if you can't keep them until trophy size then it doesnt really matter. I think walleye would be just as "nonrenewable" as bass if they did not stock such a large amount and I'd be surprised to find out they stock any bass in Mille Lacs, bass aren't stocked in any Wisconsin lake that I've seen. Overall I just think walleye are not more renewable than bass, but they get supported through stocking. If smallmouth were fished primarily for eating at smaller sizes and stocked like walleye I think they'd be ok. The slower growth rates up here effect all fish, look at walleye growth in Lake Erie vs Canada. That's why we need correct limits on all types of fish, especially smallmouth which have some pretty lax regs in some places up here.

That's an interesting theory. I've also always wondered if most people's expectation for breaking strength is warped due to companies trying to be stronger than others by increasing diameters and knowing the average person won't pay attention to diameter. Like if a 10 lb line actually breaks at 10 lbs everyone would think it's junk line because they're used to 10b rated line that breaks at 12 or more.

I like this. As mentioned you make no claims about the true strength of any lb test, only the diameter vs the rated strength. I would've expect the curves to be a little smoother, like if a given brand is known for a larger diameter you'd think that would be the case across all their sizes.

I have enjoyed my tournament MB so far.

I initially agreed with sucker but am switching my answer to smallmouth buffalo based on the size of the scales and the long dorsal fin with the longer pointed part towards the front. Also the black beady eyes look like a buffalo.

Casitas graphite frame vs aluminum frame of Revo X is the main difference between the two along with the braking systems as noted above.