Bigassbass

Super nice guy you are! Thanks for being a true gentleman and helper.

I believe this is true, 3 days or more of warming trend is good to fish!

I've been catching good size fish for the last week, here in N.C. the temps are in the 60-70's for good ten days. Today some small bass were hanging in the shallows cruising, crazy weather. The first days of warm up I caught them on night crawlers, then I changed over to hard lures jerk baits and lipless cranks. Been real fun catching fish in December. Move south then you don't have to worry about ice out.

Falcon lowrider super nice rod, guaranteed for life, looks good, fishes great check them out at Tackle Warehouse.

I have caught a lot of fish on cheap reels and rods, after I replaced them with some super nice stuff 200-300 set ups I still catch a lot of fish but the rods and reels I have now perform well, don't break and are super nice looking. You choose what you like and can afford then USE them, fishing is a skill you get good at the more you practice and if high end stuff makes you more confident then go for it! But you don't need it to catch fish it's all choice.

I have fished for panfish using this technique for years. You can use any bobber you choose but I like to use a rattling cork, helps attract fish! Attach the cork at least 3 feet deep or longer, or shorter tie on the jig or fly, move the cork, this isn't bait fishing you got to have some movement. No smallmouth were I fish but lots of largemouth bass which I don't fish this technique for, but I have caught bass on this rig while fishing for panfish. I think it would work, don't know why you want to use it for bass though because there's lots better techniques for catching them than this. I never use jigs I use rubber flies. This technique would work well in moving water.

Whenever someone says "bang for the bucks" it usually means cheap. You should buy what reel you want to use that you want. One that reels in fish smoothly, casts easily, brakes like a sports car and looks good. Why would you want to waste money on Cheap when you can have best or finest!

I bought a President 25 love it, use it for panfish, bought a President XT and sent it back, it's not as smooth as the smaller reel and it has a lot of slack in the take up. You couldn't give me one, I'll take a Shimano or Daiwa any reel, any day. I'll keep the little President reel and wear it out but I'll never buy another one. Buy a Shimano Sahara, Sedona, or any of the Shimano reels beat Pflugher any day. Academy sells some nice reels way under 100 bucks!

Like I said start having tournaments with a weigh and record guy and the problem is solved. Big money tournaments have gone to this.

Tournaments need to be run with a second man to weigh the fish, record the weight and return the fish back into the water were it was caught. Some big pro tournaments are already doing this! No more killing fish, small time tournaments the person running the tournament is the one making the money and most times they are not worried about dead fish. Until enough people care and demand this kind of action there will always be dead fish at tournaments. I posted these same thoughts to a group here in NC and of course they just laughed at me. The Game and Wildlife need to get involved and mandate this, pay out the nose or fix the problem.

I made a mistake in the length of my Zodias rod it's a 6'8" light for sure ordered it from Japan, it's not the older type it's new, Asian Portal has rods no one else has. I wouldn't mind having a ML but I already have 2 ML in other brands.

People are the same wherever you go good and bad, ignorant and foolish. On the lake triple all this!

I bought a zodias 6'9 light spinning rod last week for my 2500 CI-4 reel. Love it super nice, caught some small bass on it already it has enough backbone to handle small fish but IMO you need a heavier rod for larger prey. I think the ci4's are finesse reels so this setup will work for me. I love light stuff for fishing!

I will not buy a Vanford going to keep my original Ci4 1000 disappointing to buy a new reel and it has one felt washer in the drag stack. Honestly I don't think the ci4 line or the Vanford reels are that fantastic, what they got going for them is they are very light.

Extra Wide Gap hooks are not good for much of nothing, get some straight shank or one with a little biddy bend at the top I think thats called offset. Soon as you feel the tap crank up the slack and set the hook. You really need to be quick on the draw to fish soft plastics and hook a big bass well! Some people drop their rod down and let the fish have the bait but that's a green horn way to fish, set the hook instantly when you feel a tap, and use the sharpest hooks you can buy. EWG leave too much play in soft plastics.

Chaos yes, I lightly oil mine, the shields keep out dirt and trash they stay cleaner longer, I think they spin plenty fast but the open bearings are rated to be the fastest, they get dirty quicker and you might have to clean them more often. I've never used open ones don't want them, I clean and service my reels maybe once a year don't want anymore work.

I have ordered bearings from three different companies, vxb, boca, and some from a knob company. The boca and vxb are smooth as silk, I put them in the spool, worm gear and knob handles of all my Shimano spinning reels, I love the free, smooth rolling feel. SS shielded they cost about 10 bucks a piece the ones from Boca were made in Germany and they had ABEC advertised ratings of 7 so it's hype and marketing but some bearings are better than others. I would buy VXB anytime they tell you what they sale and are a bearing company for most anything not just fishing reels.

I lost a huge bass a few weeks ago, wasn't equipment failure or me not knowing how to land a big fish, she was a smart big fish, ran into the weeds at the bank and bumped the hook right out I watched as she slowly swam off, she didn't even say goodbye. It happens to everyone, the thrill of catching another huge fish will come!

I've read opinions about this till I'm worn out, but the engineers and experts in ball bearings seem to agree you get smoother turns and wear in most anything mechanical using bearings, but you have to maintain them. Reel makers put bushings in reels because most people won't service their reels and of course it's cheaper. Bushing filled with a big gob of grease will last a long time, bearings with fine oil will out spin bushings any day! I've replaced the spool and worm gear bearing in my 2500 Ci4 Shamano and I think there is a big difference. Some opinions online are you would never know the difference in bearings or bushing but I don't believe that is true. I bought my bearings from Boca Bearing, they are expensive but not as much as a new reel.

Shimano Soare rod with a solid tip. Look at the a-jing rods from Japan super nice and you'll throw little baits a mile!

You can catch fish on most any rod and reel, it's fun to have a super nice bass rod but it's not necessary. I once caught a 30lb carp on a tiny little zebco under-spin on a black ant. The reel was burnt when I got the fish to the bank and of course when I reached to touch it the line broke. Real story, not a fish fable!

So what brand of reel did you end up buying, and I do understand the hype about brands and mechanical objects. lol I wish I would have taken my Ci4 back while it was under warranty.

Thanks for that info, makes sense all of it. I have cleaned up the reel and given it another chance, Ci4 reels are light and fun to fish with, I like my 1000 better than the 2500, maybe thats my problem.

Well this really is an interesting topic, I think all brands of fishing reels have the same issues. My take is not to take them apart and look at how they are made cause then you'll see they are not the jewels you think you bought, they are just fishing reels, some good, some not so good. I'll take your word on metal wearing as BS.

I've read carbon drags over time wear the metal off the spool and small reels really don't need this kind of drag. Also high end reels like Shamano Stella have felt drag washers if felt isn't good which is what you're saying why would Shimano put felt in their high end reels? I think felt is used so reel repair people make money fixing and cleaning reels but I know for sure some metals against others will wear away and work like a fingernail file, what's your thoughts on this? And if the bearing under the spool doesn't affect the drag what does it control, the line take up?