Westcoast

I’d upgrade your tip top to something with an ,at minimum, allconite ring.

Best bait of the year, as I fished a lot more smallmouth, was an x-zone slammer and finesse slammer. A great little softbait with lots of action and great colours. Other than that, I only largemouth fished a few ponds and it was all about the Senko.

I’ll give them a try. I like a bargain and zoom has a good colour selection. I like the senkos but durability is less than stellar. They are heavy but that’s not always something I want. That’s where I bring out the yum dingers for the softer presentation and slower fall and the bass I fish for, like them just fine.

I’ll probably pick up a couple nfc blanks when they have a good sale. May need a reel or two to go with them. Nothing high end this year though.

If wanting a light sensitive rod, I would go for an nrx. Lots of models in what your looking for, the 901,902,852,etc...

Shimano bantam mgl, it’s a great frogging reel, metal one piece frame has it feeling solid as a rock. It’s smooth out of the box and drag is plenty tough enough for anything you’d want to use it for.

That’s what I do. I use schedule 40 pvc pipe. If you’re only taking four rods go for something smaller than the 4” as it gets pretty heavy at that diameter. I’ll glue threaded caps on and wrap the rods in bubble wrap or rags so they don’t bounce around.

For me it depends on cover. I’ll t-rig and toss them on a mh exfast bait caster when fishing in heavy cover. And I’ll finesse them on a spinning rod or ml baitcaster in more open water and pressured fish.

I keep a lot of gear around the house. Out on the water in the kayak it’s 4-6 all dedicated to where and how I’d like to fish that day. Banking is three max, any more becomes cumbersome to move around. Sometimes I find I almost have too much gear and it gets to be a pain to decide what to bring without bringing too many or wishing I’d brought more. I find as I’m buying and selling and building more rods that I’m opting for rods that are more versatile. Except for my bottom contact which I want extra fast and extra sensitive.

My choice would be and is a 2 power loomis. I have both a 852c and a 802c and they both get finesse jig duty with max total weight of 3/8oz. Any more than 3/8oz total I go up to an 3 power.

I have two of them a 69mh and a 69m. I use them both for treble hooked baits and the do the job well. The soft top casts well and has lots of give fighting the fish. But you can still pull hard into the power of the butt on hook sets for single hooked moving baits too.

I’ll vouch for the mhx suggestion, I just built an sj871 for tossing Okashira heads and other small swimbaits for smallmouth. Not too expensive and you end up with a decent rod. Definitely something to consider for a first build.

I’ll pick the Abu 5500 or 6500. Even with no mods just some fast oil, long rod and a spool of 15# maxima you can heave and oz a long ways. Second would be a Calcutta 400. And if it wasn’t only bass reels, a tricked out 6500 or 7000 blue yonder can throw a couple oz to the middle of next week.

I don’t even put a wrap in the tip top anymore, it was just decorative anyways. Just a little bit of finish on the rod extending to the tip, serves to the same effect.

I just picked up three more X-ray blanks from the sale. Can’t beat $75 a piece. I got an Sj703,sj736 and the mb736, plus the carbon grips to go with them. I really enjoy building and fishing the blanks and have never had anything but great service and prompt shipping. Did anybody else take advantage of the sale?

I have the yak attack park n pole on order. I was using garden stakes but they were too flimsy in the wind.

Pretty sure I spend more time prepping than I do actually fishing. Good thing I enjoy the anticipation too.

When I learned to build rods I was shown to use tape arbors and have used nothing but since. I have the gamut of rods from 12wt fly rods for tarpon, 3wts for trout, gear rods for 30# plus chinook and teener steelhead, and lots of bass rods, never have I had a tape arbor fail.

Nice flies guys. I’ve spent most of my fishing as a fly fisher for everything that swims. Only recently I got into the bass gear fish game which I’ve found is addictive. I still like getting coho off the beach and brown trout on tiny dries. But getting a swamp donkey to slurp a giant frog back in the pads is pretty great.

I’m really liking the nfc blanks I’ve built on now.

It will be just fine. I tend to always use a slightly larger tip ring size anyway, I think it slightly helps to keep that leader knot from hanging up

It could go either way depending on how well it’s bonded to the blank or butt. Could try and put a slice with a razor blade where you’d like it to separate. But having to redo the thread and epoxy is not the end of the world and is pretty easy with minimal investment in materials and time.

Should be able to pull it off fairly easily. Hold it in boiling water for a few minutes and give it a twist and pull. Or as dvt says cut it with a Dremel or hack saw and peel it off that way too. Definitely an easy diy rod repair.

Big six inch worms in cerise fished under a float are a deadly late winter wild steelhead bait.

I’ve been through a few generations of the Revo sx now. I always used them as salmon steelhead reels. They get banged around on rocks on the river bank , bashed around in the boat, fell on while hiking into coastal canyons and covered in roe goo. Yet haven’t had an issue. Perhaps just lucky.