Tackleholic

I bet you will like the left hand retrieve once you give it a chance.

Not used in close to 40 years? Sounds like something I would do.

Agreed, I used to have the same problem. I now use a golf score counter and simply give it a click each time I catch a fish. When I get home, my OCD takes over and I record everything, I do mean everything, about the day. 100% agree.

Interesting, Bankc; I never would have thought about a longer hook.

I've watched weigh ins on my lake where fish obviously have the bends and are released belly up with no attempts to fizz them; makes me very angry. It is also my observation that tournament participants who do not call this lake Home, care much less about needlessly killing fish than do the locals.

I have a lot of wake baits, but yesterday I was throwing a Berkley Wakebull and 6th Sense 4" jointed whatever the name is. I have the problem with most wake baits due to the straight up and down short lip; sooner or later that front treble hangs up on the lip.

I fish a lot of wake baits; prefer them to most forms of topwater. The only downside I have is the front treble often hangs up on the lip of the lure, especially in windy conditions. Do any of you change out the stock front treble to a shorter shank or even a single hook to prevent this? I would like to hear about your modifications, if any. Thanks y'all.

Took it out today for a trial run, paired with a Zillion SV. Did not try it with a jerkbait, instead I used a couple of small cranks that I would only throw on a spinning rod; it bombed those lures way, way out there. Impressive! If you want to sell your rod for the same $75 I paid for mine, I'm in the market for another.

That brings up another question : Are the Edge Rods by G Loomis comparable to the original G Loomis rods? Is Gary Loomis really designing them?

Found a Loomis rod in a garage sale today, felt like a good jerkbait rod, bought it for $75; can't find anything wrong with it except a couple nicks in the cork. CBR783 6'6" medium Crank Bait Series mod-fast action, bronze color. I tried to look it up on ALF, both new and used rods with no luck. I'm curious for any info.. I really like the action and think I got a good rod for a good price.

I used 15# Trilene for years but became suspicious of it having too much stretch; at times when I was forced to break off, it was extremely difficult to do, also missed too many bites on long casts. I finally bought one spool of Sniper 16# to try and compare. There was no comparison; I'm now all in with Sniper.

Lots of good advice given, I could add a couple of "maybe" suggestions : Be sure your drag is tightened down. Shorten your monofilament leader or eliminate it. Also, heavy cover jigs are generally intended for short flips, pitches, and casts; if you are making long casts, your hookset percentage will probably go down.

Well said. My "just a dog" is the only thing in my life that takes precedence over fishing.

I have my first BFS setup on back order; Daiwa PX series rod and reel. Going to begin with 6# Tatsu and plan to drop down once I get the feel of things. I'm accustomed to using light setups, but this should familiarize me with ultra light. Something to do when things get tough or boring.

This first attempt was a guaranteed backlash; 2nd one should be ok.

I have a rod from that same series, 7ft light and it is not for sale. It's always on my boat with a jerkbait attached. I love it's action and the grip really fits my hand.

Nearly 40 years ago most of my fishing was wading small creeks, rivers, and streams; much of the time I was on the bank or had my back up against it. Totally frustrated with some of the difficulties, I went to a rod maker and asked him to make me something good. The result was a G Loomis blank, MF, cut down to 5'6". I caught nearly 1,000 smallmouth on that rod, using 1/16 and 1/8 oz. lures the first year I used it. I still have that rod, and it is not for sale. The guy who made it now lives near me and still does a few as a hobby.

Zoom Z-Craw Jr., color 420 California. No contest for me.

For deep cranking, I consider the reel and line as important as the rod; the wrong reel speed and line choice may contribute to sore arms in little time. My deep setup is a 7'11" MH rod with a Daiwa Catalina reel 4.9 speed and 12# fluorocarbon. I would tire in a hurry with a medium rod and 7 or 8 speed reel, using other line; probably not get as deep either. That's just me.

When wet wading sometimes I would get Leeches on me, even had them latch on to the leather on my shoes. Nasty.

Betcha your ankles itch.

Different from crabs, they are tiny ticks. I've had both, crabs are the hardest to get rid of; seed ticks and crabs come from different sources.

I'm about to order a Daiwa BFS rod and reel; my first venture into this. I'm looking for line suggestions. My first thought is 8 or 10# braid with a 6# fluoro. leader. My second thought is straight 6# fluorocarbon; straight braid is not an option due to ultra clear water. Any helpful suggestions appreciated.

Over the years I have had two places like that to fish, sure do miss them and the many smallmouth; wish I could go back.

Bowhunter63 is right. I have a couple dozen of these but have not used them in about 16 years; don't know why, they always produced.