Big Hands

I have owned and been around 2 stroke outboards all of my life, from 15 hp to 200 hp. I'm pretty comfortable with them and mixing gas is not a huge deal for me. But I have to say that my current motor (2017 Mercury 40 hp four stroke) has been outstanding to own and operate. I change the oil and filter once per year (30 to 40 hours) and I'll have the impeller on a every other year schedule. Takes about two seconds to start. No choke or special throttle procedure. Reach down and turn the key for two seconds at most. Let it idle while I park the tow vehicle. I go often enough that I feel no need to run it out of gas. The best part is that it practically makes it's own fuel. I use 1 to 1.5 gallons per trip. It uses less fuel than the 15 hp 2 stroke it replaced. I bought the motor for what it retailed for new with two hours (according to VesselView) on a four year old motor (hadn't even been broken in yet), so you could say I overpaid for the motor. But, it came with a free 2017 Tracker Grizzly 1648 MVX, a trailer, a Minn Kota 24v Trolling motor, 3 batteries and gas tank.

The Fluke is such a versatile bait and there are several ways to fish with a fluke, and many different rigs that can be used. M/F or ML/F spinning rod for weightless jerkbait, and use three different sizes (Super Fluke, Super Fluke Jr. and Tiny Fluke) of the fluke and for lightweight bubble and feather (fluke) technique for throwing at boils MH/F casting rod for Carolina rig and bubble and feather (fluke) Moderate action casting rod for swimbait or weighted hook I will use the two smallest sizes for dropshot baits (Super Fluke Jr. and Tiny Fluke) I also use them for spinnerbait trailers

Thanks for the thoughtful response as I was genuinely curious.

According to the St. Croix website (looking at 7' M/F spinning rods which it seems the OP is headed for something like this or similar), the Mojo weighs less (4.1 oz vs 4.3 oz) and has a higher quality blank (SCIII vs SCII). And the one piece Premier 7' M/F spinning rod has an MSRP $20 higher than the one piece Mojo 7'1" M/F spinning rod. The Premier rods have full cork vs split cork, but that is arguably a subjective attribute. Unless they wanted full cork and were willing to weigh more and have a lower quality blank, is there a good reason to pay $20 more for the Premier? What am I missing here? ==================================== If we are strictly adhering to the stated budget, I'd go with either the Daiwa Tatula 7'1" M/F ($149) or St. Croix Mojo Bass 7'1" M/F ($145) with either a Daiwa Fuego LT2500D-XH or Shimano NASCI 2500 ) both sell for $99 which puts you right at (but not over) your stated budget. The Fuego is 1.6 oz lighter than the NASCI and I prefer lighter in most cases if all else is similar, but YMMV. I'm sure there are other combos that compete. I would prefer a better rod at this overall budget and for a meaningful jump in reel quality, it would cost significantly more than I would be willing to sacrifice in rod quality. JMHO.

The simplicity factor in my fishing . . . . 'program' . . . . seems to ebb and flow and it is something I think about regularly when ruminating about all things fishing. The more we have dialed in, the more we should be able to take a single rod/reel and only the amount of baits that could fit into our pockets and have everything we need to have a great session. When I started bass fishing, I could only catch them using crankbaits and thought catching them on plastic (rubber) worms was largely fiction. Times have definitely changed, and I have come to the point that I can usually catch at least some fish with plastic baits pretty reliably. Not necessarily the most or biggest, but reliably. I have also been trying to pare down the number of plastic baits I need to be able to figure out what is needed on a particular day and have something with me that will get the job done without having to keep a ridiculous amount of tackle on board. I am basically only competing with myself, and trying to have fun in the process. If I was fishing to put food on the table for my family, things might be different, but most anglers are not doing that. This is for fun and recreation. Serious fun and recreation, but fun and recreation none the less and above all else. But, what is old often becomes new again and I have also been trying to see if I can get similar confidence in moving/reaction baits. Right now, I carry a single 3700 box (out of five total) that has all of the crankbaits I take with me on a given day. We will see what pressure comes to bear on that situation. I am in the process of constructing a thread that examines how we get from owning just a single 'fishing pole' to having a very complex 'quiver' of rods and reels that to the casual observer looks ridiculously redundant and overly complex. I think it's possible for us to live somewhat in both worlds, sometimes even concurrently. The graphics I have chosen are taking some time to construct so I am not sure when I will be able to post it. Maybe I will wait until we are a little further into 'silly season' (winter).

I have both of the rods you mention as well and both have the Curado BFS reels. For your intended usage, I would go with the ML. If it was just the 1/16 to 1/4 stuff, that might be different, but the 3/8 and 1/2 ounce baits will be happier with the ML.

I used to either fish them, or go down to watch the weigh-ins in the morning. Many of those early night fish events went until 5:00 am instead of 2:00 am. Saw many throw down 40+ lb sacks. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ On my recent trip to Texas, my buddy gifted me a light he found on Amazon called the Cosoos Headlamp. They come in a 2-Pack; lucky me. It's certainly interesting and I am anxious to try it. It has the LED strip across the front, and a beam light on the side. Each light has two brightness levels. You can't have both lights on at the same time, so 4 different light settings, plus an SOS mode. On top of that, you can enable it to turn on and off by simply waving your hand within 10 cm of the control so you don't have to get 'stuff' all over it just to turn it on and off. Of course the weather was crap that week, so I will not be able to truly test it until late spring 2023.

That looks great. I hate having to choose between a light and a cap at night. ========================================= I do use one of my headlamps for retying and rigging baits, and maybe to net a fish if other lights are not helping, so I always have one on or nearby. I haven't found that having some lights on is a noticeable deterrent to catching fish. I too use a light in the water when my guests want to. I made one of my own with parts from Amazon that works great. We call it the 'Bite Sabre'. I recently got a rechargeable Thermacell repellant system that works surprisingly well, but only need it when the air is still or close to it. If I didn't use it then, the insects that are attracted to lights would drive me off the lake. On the rare nights we are granted permission by our benevolent dictators to fish, there are a lot of participants, so it's not anything like we're the only ones out there by any stretch. Imagine a reservoir of 1500 to 2000 acres, with an armada of 50 to 100 boats, many lit up like Christmas trees, all leaving the same (currently only) launch area within a period of an hour just as it's getting dark. Some folks use something that can only be described as 'stadium lighting' with poles mounted in their seat pedestals, which I don't find necessary or pleasant, but I do like some light being cast toward the shoreline for reference on super dark nights.

At $49, the Daiwa Aird-X rods have to be one of the best rod bargains for budget rods, and they're not horrible by any objective standard. I have fished with both the Aird-X spinning and casting models. My biggest grind with them is the hypalon grip, but if I wanted to get a budget rod, that would be my go-to, hypalon or not. And they do sell them at Academy Sports.

The fish may be on to a different pattern than they were previously. They may be feeding differently too.

Fun to ponder, but it seems like a CLM (career limiting maneuver) for the pro. They either get embarrassed or flex on an amateur. And they don't get to use the gear they're paid to promote, so if they do well on some other gear, it's not a great look for their sponsors. And it's on TV. If I was a sponsor of theirs, I would have to ask what the heck they were thinking accepting such a proposal.

Most days, I have a M/F spinning rig and a MH/F casting rig with me in the boat. The other two to three rig could be anything, including duplicates (or very similar versions) of the first two, depending on what I plan to do. Some days, I never pick up either of the first two to fish with them, but I generally have them with me to fall back on if I want to. I rarely bring more than four or five rods total with me. Too much clutter is worse to me than not being able to cover what I need for the day with four or five rods. Do I regret not having more choices occasionally? Yes, occasionally, but not enough to constantly have to deal with the clutter of having more rods in the boat 'just in case'.

I didn't fully appreciate the full cork grip on my Tatula 7'3" MH/F "All Around" casting rod until I reared back with a Carolina rig (on another rod) and snagged the Tatula rod just as I let fly with would have been a super bomb cast. It snatched the Tatula rod and Daiwa SV TWS reel from where it was laying in my boat and flung it about 30 feet in front of the boat and into the 50 degree water, much to my horror, LOL. I can "LOL" now because, the cork handle was buoyant enough to float the rig with the handle just bobbing at the surface long enough for me to get to it and rescue it from what would have been a certain premature death with a less buoyant rig. When I originally bought it, I remember thinking that I wished it had a split grip, but I am now thankful it didn't. It is my absolute favorite rod of that type (of which I have owned and fished many).

All of the iphone 14 models are supposed to have an emergency SOS GPS feature become functional this month. They also have a crash detection feature that can alert emergency services and contacts of your choosing.

IMHO the tip of the c-clip spring has to find it's way into those detents (teeth) that hold the adjustment of the cap. If you're not feeling them when you adjust the tension of the cap, then the tip of the c-spring isn't engaged in them. Not sure I see an easy way to make that happen. I think I would try tightening the cap enough to gently force it into those detents. If the part just above the detents is angled/chamfered, then it may get a little tight, and then ride the chamfer into place. Key word: "gently". Disclaimer: I do not work for Quantum, nor did I sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night, so follow my suggestion at your own risk.

Caught some nice fish on both of those last week in Texas. I think they often eat things because they can, not so much because they should.

Excellent write up. Thank you for sharing that with us.

Probably the weights more so than the bait/hooks if there isn't much brush/trees. I like the hooks seen in my avatar (Owner Wacky Weedless Hook - Camo Green) for nose hooking dropshot baits in areas with brush, weeds, and trees. That little plastic thing sticking out really helps.

The dropshot generally doesn't need for you to impart the action. When I first started using the dropshot, I wasn't having much luck with it. I was getting frustrated one day and cast out my line, and reached into my cooler for a sandwich I had packed. I took a couple bites while contemplating why this supposedly great technique wasn't working out so well for me. Finally I got back to tending my line, and there was a 2.5 lbs smallmouth giving me heck on the other end. That was a revelation for me. I will move a dropshot to get it to a slightly different spot, but not so much to impart action. . . . . generally speaking. . . . . for me. . . . . If I do impart some action, it is usually much more subtle than if I was fishing a texas rig worm. Sometimes they will eat it as it falls. Sometimes they will eat it right after it settles. Sometimes you wait for them to finally chomp down. They will often eat it in a similar way on a given day. If you're snagging a lot, I would suggest keeping your line kind of taut so it doesn't let it slide into rocks and snags as easily. That definitely makes a difference for me. Truthfully, there are many different ways to effectively present a dropshot. Vertically, cast it out a ways, suspended, I recently watched a video for a specific lake that said they were having success using a heavy weight and dropping it down to the base of a tree, letting the weight stay on the bottom, and then letting the bait settle to the bottom and then popping it up just far enough to get the line taut, but not move the weight from the base of the tree. Kind of jigging it up and down. That's a new one for me. The point being that are likely a lot of different ways that could work in a given situation, but to get going and get some fish in the boat, I would say that using less input to entice the fish has worked well enough.

Like many, I loved fishing as a kid and fished a fair amount as a young adult. Then when I got married and had kids. I had a nice Ranger and fished a LOT since I lived in Castaic since 1987. I moved here to be near the lake and could fish weekday evenings for three or four hours, and that sounded pretty good to me. The outboard on my Ranger messed the bed at about the time when my kids got to an age when they needed me to be more involved around the mid-90's, and I cut way back on fishing. Even going long periods with no fishing or only when I would travel to Texas to visit a couple of fishing buddies. Now my kids are adults and finished with college and I still have the interest. I have the time and since was able to get myself back into a boat of my own, it has become my primary leisure activity once again. My kids are also enjoying it when they have the chance to go with me. When I got the boat I have now (and the one before it that I only had for a year), I thought that nobody would want to go with me, so I got a boat that is quite spacious for one, but can certainly handle two, or even three and have found that I don't fish solo nearly as much as I thought I would. If I move again when I retire, it will again be to somewhere that has quick and easy access to decent bass fishing, hopefully year round. If I have my way, it will always be a major part of my time left here on earth.

10 lb braid with 7 lb leader is on at least four or five of my spinning combos. 'Wind knots' do happen occasionally, but I have found that I can minimize their occurrence by being deliberate when I move the rod at the end of a cast. if the rod tip bounces around at the end of a cast, that is usually when the line fouls at the tip of the rod.. Some rods are worse about this than others, but it's the price I pay to have less wind resistance on my line when it is blowing. I would trying top modify my technique before trying different line, JMHO.

My favorite TV show growing up

nvm

I had a co-worker that recommended a spot to me where he had caught fish recently. He also told me that his wife had broken one off. I caught fish there and one of them had a hook in it. I took the hook to him and he confirmed that it was the exact same type of hook she was using.