PhishLI

There's zero benefit to having the tension knob set to allow any side to side play. Zero play, or neutral tension, will allow just as fast a lure drop as a spool clicking back and forth. I think this idea came from the Ehrler vid on the Tat SV From 5 Years ago. It's nonsense. There's no circumstance where any amount of slop in a drivetrain is ideal, whether it's under load or not. Go to any store with Daiwas in stock and you'll find that the "factory" Zero Adjuster tension setting is all over the place ranging from neutral to sloppy.

That rod is a pretty stout medium. Should be just fine with a somewhat heavier gauge hook. You can just stick with the lighter wire hook and slip a tungsten pagoda weight into the fluke.

You're a brave man. My spidey-sense told me no clicky the linky.

If you'll be primarily throwing your own plastics in that weight range then losing them to occasional backlashes with braid isn't a big hit. When you begin losing pricier hard baits that way it'll be much less fun. Shock at the knot during even a small over run and lock up is the biggest issue with braid and heavy baits. A few weeks ago I blew off a 1/2oz chatterbait on 50lb braid. No big blowup or birdsnest, just one loop around, lockup, then seeya later. I fish with a few obsessed big bait guys, including my brother. He finally made the transition from braid to heavy mono after he casted off a brand new custom painted 6" Bullshad on the first cast using 65lb braid. The look on his face was priceless, and I needed to bite my cheeks and hold my breath to avoid busting out adding insult to injury. If he was a cartoon character the top of his head would've blown off from a steam jet accompanied by a train whistle. I'm wiping tears just recalling it. I've witnessed another fishing buddy cast off so many expensive baits...you really wouldn't believe it. Insane. He finally smartened up, made the change, and I haven't witnessed him casting off a bait since. Don't doubt the strength of heavy mono or fluoro. Even 20lb mono is remarkably strong and it's knot- shock resistance is great. Step up to 22-25lb and you're not breaking off easily. Combined with a fast-ish heavy power rod you'll have no problem setting hooks and just the right amount of delay which will help from ripping baits free and losing fish when they shake or throw slack Very big pickerel up to 30" are a problem here, but not an everyday problem. I've been lucky so far, but I've had close calls. This past summer I would've lost a 6lb bass without a doubt had I not grabbed my bait and tested my 20lb Big Game by stretching it after a pickerel catch. I fingernail tested it first and felt nothing, but it popped on the pull test. I retied and bagged that bass on the next cast. Good thing because it would've been gone for sure along with my Gantarel Jr. If you're dealing with pike on a consistent basis then I advise searching out short wire leader posts by @A-Jay. He found something he trusts. Perhaps he'll chime in.

I'll second @Bassjam2000's recommendation regarding rod power for that size hook, and length at 8'. Have you considered your line choice? If you're thinking braid to leader then exclude any rod with microguides. If you're thinking straight heavy mono or fluoro then I suggest you take a hard look at the Daiwa Tatula 300. Once you get up to the larger diameter plastic lines the T-Wing, while not essential, is a difference maker, IMO. It's a powerhouse reel that's better suited for heavier plastic lines than any of the other big bait reels I have including the Tranx line. Paired with the Daiwa DX or the Fury 806sb you'll be right near $400. P.S. Have you tested your bait without a keel weighted beast hook yet?

KVD isn't just a pro. He's viewed more like a deity. He's in a different category. I guarantee non forum readers would admit to buying what he endorses in a heartbeat. I've witnessed it in person. I doubt a regular forum reader here would admit to buying or using a Favorite rod, but have you seen their pro staff? It's pretty deep. Some real hammers. If KVD got on their staff you know how that would go...sales through the roof, especially with non-forum readers. Recently an esteemed member here made a list of implements he'd prefer to use ranked in order above their rods. I believe one was a coat hanger or some such bull pie. Perhaps instances like that are the real reason forum readers are chilled out of admitting more than a few things.

Having spoken to enough pros at manufacturer's booths at shows and watching their YT vids it's clear that the gear they use is at best incidental for the most part, except for how it feels to them. I've seen more than a few describe a spool tension knob as a centrifugal brake and a dial on a reel is nearly always called a mag brake even if it isn't. The vast majority could care less about the tech and how it actually works and what that might mean to me. However, I will pay attention to how they're working a specific bait, or their body mechanics when casting, pitching, or skipping.

ECO Pro Tungsten swing head jig with a 7" BPS worm,

MF casting,10lb Sufix Advance copoly usually, or any copoly you like. Braid gets fouled in the hooks too often for my patience when the bait lands, but I've used it plenty with jerkbaits and have adjusted my drag to compensate.

A 6" GY senko in watermelon black flake rigged on an Owner 5/0 Twistlock hook has caught me a ton of bass from 6" to 7lbs, but they get torn up simply swimming them through the pads around here. It's easy to blow right through bags of them. Otherwise a killer bait that can be cast to the moon. Pushed in a corner I'd go with a 5" Strike King Caffeine Shad in green pumpkin which has been just as deadly here, but it comes through pad fields mostly unfazed. Rigged for conditions on either a 5/0 Owner Twistlock or an Owner Twistlock Light 6/0 3/32oz weighted hook it's a versatile, compact bait that casts like a bullet, even without added weight, and has great action on the fall.

The county I live in has a no boats policy with the exception of a single 100 acre lake that allows kayaks only. It nearly dried up 18 years ago and needed to be re-stocked. It's pretty lame there, even on a yak. It, like every other water body here is tree lined with occasional cuts. Those areas get the most fishing traffic from bankbeaters. The fish have adjusted, so fishing these spots during normal hours is brutal. I've adjusted by spending a ton of time by wading. In this case wading is just glorified bank fishing. In most places I can only get far enough out from the bank to avoid overhanging branches on the back swing, but it makes all the difference. It allows me access to long stretches where the bank-bound never drop a lure. Besides a few rare flats, that's as good as it gets. None of the remaining lakes are much larger than 30 acres, and some are much less. I've pretty much figured out where to be and when to be there in places I've put the time in, so I do OK. Not many dinks, plenty of 2 pounders, but I've bagged my fair share of 5- 8lb bass. I can't complain, especially because I'm well plugged into the local hardcore scene and I know what others are catching for the most part. In my imagination there's a sleeper-type hammer out there quietly bagging giants. I'm sure there's a part of me that's trying to be "that guy". My brother lives one county over and boats are allowed, but electric only. The largest lake on this island that's also in his his county is a 240 acre glacial kettle lake. We grew up less than a mile away from it, and it's where I caught my 1st bass. We had the highest hopes when we put together our jon boat for this place, but it has whipped us badly. Endless acreage of weeds right up the surface, so electronics are moot. We end up rowing often as the prop gets fouled with weeds constantly. Just a killer place to fish, in a bad way. We'd do OK if we bed fished there before the weeds explode, but it's illegal, and we have no taste for it whatsoever. We do ok in most of the rest of the small public water bodies that allow boats, but nothing great. They get hammered constantly by poachers and fishing pressure. The exception is the east end private resident-only lakes. We know a few people out there, so we can get in with our boat, and the fishing can be great at times. We rarely see other fisherman in these spots because the DEC really cracks down. We get carded often. Getting caught by a constable gets you an appearance ticket in front of a judge and fines. Besides the private lakes, which we don't get the opportunity to fish all that much, it's mostly tough sledding when boat fishing the remaining very shallow weed choked public ponds that we call lakes around here. It's not unusual for me to wade one of my local haunts after a meh day out on the boat with my brother in order to claim a little redemption. It works out for me most of the time. When it does I'll send him a fish pic, then he replies with a crying emoji and says he hates me. So for me, where I live and these waters, it ain't even close. The bank wading thing wins big, especially for better fish.

Plenty of big Pickerel around here and the occasional swimbait eating Crappie or Bluegill. They have a thing for the Shellcracker G2

The last generation Zillion SV is being closed out for a bit over $200 right now. The SV air brake will help when dealing with lighter cranks in wind due to the fact that it brakes more midcast. Shimano brakes are on in the beginning of the cast then quickly turn off. Add to that the Curado has a heavy spool, so it wants to keep spinning which forces you to be thumb heavy with lighter wind catching baits with bills. The Zillions full spool is way lighter and a real benefit here.. Don't believe anyone who claims this reel can't bomb lures. Once you adjust your mechanics to its braking profile it'll zing baits out there nicely. You'll also appreciate the T-Wing line guide especially with stiffer fluoro line. The line guide aperture is way wider than anything else out there, so there isn't a choke point that causes greater resistance which leads to line fluffing with light baits and stiffer plastic lines. Also, if you're not the greatest skipper this reel will open up that option nicely.

I just left a place very similar to this. These temps have extended the weed's life way past usual. They're half dead but standing tall still, and it's still a royal PIA to throw anything with trebles. My fingernails are green from picking off algae. Didn't matter much because a flock of ducks and more swans than I've ever witnessed there just kept blowing up my spots. People must be feeding the swans because they kept swimming right up to where I was wading and staring me down. Like 5 feet away. I lasted an hour then split. My best guess is that if magic is to be found it'll happen on Sunday because of 3 straight days of high night time temps. Supposed to be some decent wind too. Good chance the rain all day on Saturday will blow that up though. It's often a bad omen here. Shuts 'em down the following day most times.

Hope to get out today and the next few days. 6" Trash fish 4" Hazedong Shad A few different colored G2s, Gant jrs, and 5" Bull shads Rapala Shallow runners, Rip Stops, and Shadow Rap Shads Bitsy Bugs

I just got an IDX email from TW showing a card I'd used might have been compromised, but it was an emptied Visa gift card. edit: Just checked and my Paypal is still clean. Did you get an email confirmation from Paypal when the hacked sale went through? Mine comes through instantly.

You'd have to buy a current Zillion platform to get the build elements of the Advantage. If you're touchy about weight, the Advantage is a tad heavier than the latest stuff at about an ounce heavier than a Curado K.

If you're used to casting and setting hooks with a spinning rod using your right arm and cranking with your left hand it shouldn't be much of stretch to adapt to this using a casting rig, if you want to. Whether you do or don't it's in your head.

I fully agree if we're talking about these particular casting rods, but I'm recommending the XT spinning rod in this case. I realized he was asking about a spinning rod and not a casting rod once he mentioned his reel. It's true that the MF Tatula XT spinning is a crisper M, but unlike the casting version it doesn't lean up into MH much at all.

? Tatula XT MF. Both on worms.

Do you cast with your right arm already?

It depends on the line and air temperature. If I'm spooled with straight fluoro and it's below 40* I'll have 4 brakes on and skosh of spool tension to try to keep the line tight on the spool. Mono or copoly is less likely to want to jump off at these temps, but can still get squirrely. Again, I adjust accordingly depending on temp. 3-4 brakes on in really cold temps for plastic lines is a safe bet. 2 brakes on for braid and external settings are dependent on how the bait loads the rod if I'm tuning for max distance. Otherwise, external's usually stay at about 4 for mindless casting.

It was actually captured on video including the guy to the right who was also rolling at the moment. The pics I uploaded here are screenshots. I've watched it 50 times. Still amazed.

This year I've taught 4 guys how to use a bait caster who were previously spinning only guys. They had 6 reels to try out on two identical rods. Here's what happened without going into all the details: All agreed the Curado K was the smoothest reel. All either had over runs or backlashed the reel with maxed out brakes.. All had little to no issues casting the Fuego CT. Three guys bought a Fuego CT, but one who thinks of himself as a "Shimano guy" bought a SLX. I had to do additional hands on work with him to correct some of his mechanics and it stuck for the most part. He's used to whipping spinning rods, so he still backlashes once or twice a trip, The guys who got the Fuegos became independent quickly and haven't had to trash a spool of line yet. It's a forgiving reel to learn on and to fish with in general. I don't doubt any of the experienced guys here who are pleased with and who've suggested a Curado K. However, experienced baitcasting reel users are not the same as new guys coming over from spinning reels.