fin

That’s a nice looking reel, but do all Okumas feature those funky screws? ... When people talk about how well their Sienna has held up, it’s important to note the design of the reel has changed. There are now bushings where there used to be bearings (see red X in illustration). I don’t know what all else has changed. I had one of the old ones and it lasted 4-5 years, well worth the $29. The part that wore out was the oscillating gear, or more precisely, the axle it rode, which is part of the reel body, which is some type of space-age plastic. As the axle wears out, the gears no longer mesh. The axle cannot be replaced. When mine wore out, and I saw the new ones had been redesigned, I spent a little more for a Pflueger President, because it has a bearing that rides on that axle between it and the oscillating gear, in addition to like 8 other bearings in it. Plus the President has a stellar reputation. After using the President 3 months, the bail spring broke. The moral of this story is you can research all you want, but it’s pretty much impossible to find a definitive answer on which is the best reel for the money. Illustration showing the difference between the OLD Sienna and the President:

The only reason I know it is because I had to shop for a new reel.

I use lots of cheap mono backing.

You'll get wind knots with that much line. The reel in this picture has about the right amount of line on it - the line should not come above the level of that bevel in the front of the reel. Wind knots are one downside of braid on a spinning reel. They call them wind knots because you get them casting into the wind, for one thing. They're caused by line twist and not keeping the line tight when winding onto the reel. You can cut off the extra line now, or wait until you have a knot that forces you to cut it off. A lot of newer reels have a coating on the spool that makes backing unnecessary.

Hiring a guide might be good for you, if you can afford it. Of course there are good and bad guides, but if you can spend some time with a good one, it can change everything for you. I haven't seen anything on this site about guides, but if you search around online you can find some. Be careful with those kids out there.

I've used 10# a lot on baitcasters, 8# once. I hate Spiderwire though.

Well I’m not real proud of that comment. I was cranky after a day of not catching anything. What I said may be true, but it’s kind of rude and unhelpful. I apologize to @clemsondds He just bought a new boat and all the trimmings to take his 3 kids fishing. He’s dealing with information overload and is trying to get a handle on it.

They're marked down online to like $35, but it's very limited selection. You can do free pickup. I'm curious how the clearance pricing works at Walmarts - why there's such wide latitude in pricing. The one near me that used to be best for fishing had a guy that worked in that department, he was there all the time behind the counter where the guns and stuff were, and there was a clearance section with good deals. He disappeared a couple years ago, and so did the good deals. I wonder if there is a sporting goods department manager in these stores with the good clearance deals like the one @Maxximus Redneckus mentioned.

Yeah, I was afraid it was going to jump out when I opened it and not be able to find it or maybe it would be a nightmare to hold in place while trying to close it back up, or whatever, but it's a pretty simple design. Maybe with an original spring it might be more difficult.

Just opened it up and found the spring was broken about 1/8" at the end. I stretched the spring out a little and we're back in the race. ?

That's a good idea. Definitely worth a try.

It's only $3 for the spring from the site you linked. Who knows how much for shipping. Driving to DSG is risking my life, potential damage to car, couple hours round trip. I dunno, I think online sounds a little better.

Bought online from DSG. They have a local store, but it's a nightmare to get to with traffic.

You can go straight braid, but if you get hung up a lot you will have to re-spool sooner than if you use a lighter weight leader. I use the Alberto myself. It took me a while to get the hang of it - it's important that you pull the right tag when tightening. If you don't do it right, you may send your favorite lure into orbit like I did. I only loop 4 times, not 7 like the illustration. It gives you a smaller knot and I've never had one break at the knot. After you get used to it, you'll wonder why you ever used anything other than braid.

I’ve had this President for about 3 months and I started noticing a clicking noise when retrieving light-weight baits, like a weightless fluke. It doesn’t make the noise if I cut the line and just turn the handle. I finally noticed the bail is loose, wobbling around. There's no resistance at all. The screws on each side are tight. It looks like the bail spring must be worn out already. Is there a way to fix it without buying a new spring? Maybe cut the spring or stretch it? (I haven’t opened it to see how it works.) Add a paper thin washer? It’s still under warranty, but I can’t return it this time of year. I’ve been throwing a lot of spinnerbaits lately, the heaviest is 3/4 ounce total weight. I’m guessing that’s the cause. My Shimano Siennas could handle that. They have a little play in the bail, but they’re like 5 years old and not as much play as the Pflueger already has.

It wasn’t that many years ago that the only way to learn was through word of mouth, learning from your father or family and friends. Someone might teach you something after you buy them a case of beer and fill up the gas tank of their truck and boat. Now you can go on the internet and come to a site like this and learn anything about fishing you want and even watch a video that demonstrates how to do it. And that’s not good enough? You want a flow chart that tells you what to do in any possible conditions? Wow.

I've seen some variations in the hardness of plastics from some manufacturers, but very little variation from Zoom. A hard fluke is no good. That hook has to go through a lot of plastic. Don't waste your time with those.

I just experimented with this the other day. @Jigfishn10 knows what they're talking about. What I did was drill two holes all the way through the middle weight and one hole through the front weight. I removed the BBs from the center section. I didn’t think to weigh it before I put the dowels in. I did weigh it afterward, and it was only about 1/16 oz lighter, but it helped the action a lot - it didn’t sink like a rock. I think they’re way heavier than they need to be. You have to be careful though, because if you remove too much weight, it has no action. Also, if you remove all the middle weight, it will go vertical. I recommend 3/16” drill bit. I tried 1/4” and cut through the side a little. I used hot melt glue. I haven’t fished with it much.

That sounds like my walmart, except it would be Reg $6.48. Clearance $6.49. There must be a lot of people that buy stuff marked "clearance" no matter what the price is, because that walmart has a whole aisle dedicated to "clearance" stuff that is the original price, and there are always people there rummaging through the stuff.

Chlorine or bleach would be another.

Apparently this is related to research done by a professor at LSU, Dr. John Caprio. Back in ’92, he was involved in a product called “Gotta Bite”, which "contained amino acids". He was involved with the BioPulse Lure System, which won best hard lure at ICAST 2008. By 2012 he was involved with Attraxx and their Sci-X™ feeding stimulant. I'd say stick your tongue out and taste one and see if you bite.

I have to say, I'm a little disappointed in you, Allen. You're not the tinkerer I thought you were. Seriously though, I may end up going that route. The weather is starting to improve. You're not kidding. I dug through my pile of junk lures and found these to practice on. Looks like I have a floater in the back there. The SK's sink like rocks and lay on their sides. The Cordell and Traps sit nose down on the bottom. I can hold the floater up to the light and see it's only got one weight in the front instead of 3 like Team9nine posted. I can see through one of the SK's too, and it has two separate chambers of BBs, one in the tail and one mid top, and it has two separate weights, one on either side of the front hook. I've got a bunch of junk SK's, but they look like they'd be tough to modify.

In the other thread I started about this, and in an older thread, it’s explained that the flat surface on top of the head serves as the lip that forces it deeper. Retrieving faster makes it go deeper to a certain point. https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/213988-suspending-lipless-crank-baits/

You gave me the idea in the first place, but drilling sounded iffy, so I thought it was worth a try to ask about opening. After seeing the picture that Team9nine posted, I can see drilling would be easier. It sounds like you have done something like this before. You think removing just rattles is enough? I would think at least one of the lead weights would need to come out. Any idea what size those lead weights are? Would a 1/8" bit be about right? I think I have some small dowel I could use instead of a pencil. Pfft. Too easy. If I pull this off and catch fish with it, I'll be on cloud 9.

I want to see if it's possible to make it float/suspend. I have some I would be willing to sacrifice for experimentation, but I'm not even sure how to start to crack it open. Maybe cut it apart with a heated Xacto knife? I don't have a dremel.