Kdizzle

I think the HMG's are the best workhorse rods on the market. I have 5 spinning models and one casting. I adore them.

When people demand jigs be armed with hooks that wouldn't be out of place on a tuna boat, you're going to have to swing pretty hard to penetrate that much steel into a fish's mouth. Youtube influencer culture and its heavy bias towards brohs doing broh things is having a pretty big effect on the industries move in that direction. If you are fishing open water with little or no vegetation, just rocks and boulders, and you are using a heavy action rod with a jig with a heavy wire 5/0 hook and giant weed guard, you deserve to be made fun of, because the person who taught you to catch bass is an idiot, and by extension you've allowed yourself to become one. And yes I've seen that exact scenario several times.

The BBZ 1 rat is pretty d**n good one. The size 25 and 30 are more crankbaits, so you have to go up to the larger sizes to actually get one that actually wakes, but they are really good at catching fish. Especially in rivers that border big grass fields, which have a steady supply of small rodents crossing from one side to the other.

Medium powered Fast action. I leave my drag pretty loose so I really don't have problems with fish spitting hooks.

For anything under 1/2 oz I use a 6' Medium powered spinning rod and reel, spooled with 10 pound braid and a 1 foot mono leader. This is mainly for fishing out of my kayak on the river. Great for hitting tight spots with super spook jrs and poppers. For bigger walking baits and prop lures up to an oz, I use a 6'6" casting rod and reel, with 30 pound braid spooled with the same foot long leader. Whopper Ploppers and my personal favorite Yo Zuri 3DB Pencil are great on this setup. For the big ones like the Strike King Mega Dawg I just use my football jig rod with 60 pound braid on it.

I have three major lakes within 70 miles of me(Truman, LOFTO, and Pomme De Terre), plus two major mississippi river drainages within 30(Gasconade and Osage Fork) so I can get to fish pretty quickly, Yay living in the Ozarks!!!!

Daiwa Tatula. Great reel and doesn't(really) break the bank. 300 is the size I usually go after.

I've done terrible, no unspeakable acts for gear money, but I'd do it again in a second for that sweet sweet Steez and Legend Extreme money.

TRD's, and the Big Bite Baits 3'' Yo Mama are really the only two trailers I use on finesse jigs. Mostly I use the Green Pumpkin Goby on Dark Watermelon, and Orange Swirl on a Dark Green Pumpkin jig. Im getting to the point where I'm thinking any color TRD is the best trailer for any finesse jig, especially if you are targeting Smallmouth.

Once you actually put in the time to correctly tie knots, especially the FG with heavier line connections, you realize that braid to leader has advantages that far outweigh any of its downsides.

Paradoxically, sizing up and I mean way up on top water can weed out the little fish on a heavily pressured body of water. A Strike King Megadog or something similar(will require heavier gear) can do the same as sizing down. You may not get a bite, but the bite you do get is gonna be the biggest d**n fish in the pond.

I don't throw it into timber or weeds so don't really need one. Plus it gets better hookups that way. And yes it produces much better.

Small skirted football jigs(lacking a weedguard) have always resulted in a much higher quality of fish for me when fishing a rocky bottom in a river. Of course it takes a heavier than average weight to fish a river because of the current involved, but you can still find jigheads with a smaller hook. Owner football jigheads have a great 1/0 hook on their 1/4 and 3/8 sizes. I powder coat them and tie on a skirt. Dark watermelon and dark green pumpkin are the only colors I really use, and they work great. Fish it like a ned rig is supposed to be fished, as in dragging very slowly, and inches at a time. You will see a higher quality bite.

Im partial to my Quantum Smokes.

I'm one of those rare weirdos that can cast more accurately with a spinning rod and reel than with baitcasting setup. I put it down to being all around awesome and stuff. But seriously Im more comfortable with it. Ever since I've discovered braid to leader, I've just fell in love with the medium light to medium powered setup. I grew up in the ozarks, so fishing that way in our many streams, rivers, and lake systems, has brought me so much happiness. The sound of a spinning reel peeling with the sound of a five pound bass on the other end is the platonic definition of bliss for me.

Not enough to enter the degenerate addict zone, so far just in the extremely over enthusiastic hobby zone.

I buy football heads in bulk from a local guy, paint them, and then tie a 13 or 26 strand skirt on them. He uses Mustad 32746's so they are pretty light. I only use it where you would throw a tube, which is open water, with rock.

#30 Yo Zuri Super Braid to a #10 to 15 Seaguar Basix Flourocarbon Leader(testing it out this season anyway). Mine is more of a heavy mojo rig though. Bobber stops, bullet or cylinder weight, glass bead, more bobber stops. I like to keep my knots to a minimum.

Ive used the #6, 8, 10, and 15 this Spring and early Summer for leader material. I will say that its a bit more abrasion resitant, and more friendly to knots than Top Knot.

Ive caught 5 pound smallies with 1/2 oz finesse football jigs with ML XF spinning rods, and accidently caught a couple very large catfish on the same without issues. The only real difference will be the length of the fight.

I would switch to a good braided line and learn to tie knots to a serviceable degree. The FG isn't too hard to learn if you spend a good saturday afternoon, tying it forty or fifty times.

Ive been doing great with a split shot lately. Actually an 1/8th oz bullet or cylinder weight rig. Rage Bug and the Ultra Vibe Speed Craw have been the money makers for me.

I think the FG is just a bit too much overkill for anything below a 12 lb leader. Just pulling the knot tight can cause a lot of damage to lighter line. The Albright or Uni to Uni are really more of a fit for that type of leader connection.

Could be a custom job someone was selling on ebay, or sometime type of prototype from zman.

I use Pline Flouroclear. As leader material of course with 30 to 40 pound braid. 12 for lighter wire jigs like Hayabusa make or 15 to 17 for heavier wire jigs like Dobyns make. Its cheap. It works. I'm not a tournament guy so that's enough.