NavyVet1204

832 Sufix did that to me when I bought the neon yellow braid in 40lb last year. I don’t think the color lasted more than three trips.

No sir nor will I. My season will be cut short due to my little boy’s due date at the end of august (which I don’t mind at all!) and I have since been buying a pack of plastics here and there along with tackle and such. As of right now, I think shakey head jigs are about the only thing I “really need” so still need to get some more.

It’s been at least ten years since I have seen an ad or advertising for spider wire. Seaguar red label is my go to for FC as per word of mouth from friends as well as YouTube and online reviews. No one except one very distant relative has mentioned spider wire to me in the last 10-12 years.

Yes! The COVID situation last year really hurt my inventory big time with not being able to replenish much at all.

I’ll take your suggestions to a T, but would remove the crank bait in favor of the trick worm. I’m too addicted to shakey head to do without it!

I’ll admit that my addiction stems from FOMO or “fear of missing out”. Every time I say enough, I find a deal somewhere that is too good to pass up whether it be rod and reel or tackle. It never fails. At this point I’ve accumulated six combos of bait casters and only have three spinning combos. Plenty good for what my wife and I do for fishing. However…….BFS is my newest excuse to acquire that next combo. I don’t mind though, my family is taken care of as well as bills.

So far my only bad experiences have been bird nests that were bad enough to make you wanna bury your face in a bowl of acid type of bad lol

Which version of their mono do you use exactly?

I remember years ago when you couldn’t find spider wire on a shelf anywhere. Period. Being expensive as it was when I was a teenager wade fishing the Tallapoosa river with friends, I was itching to try it but couldn’t justify the price or even find it. Now it’s like a lot of people rag on it or turn their noses up at it. Personally I have found the Spiderwire Stealth braid to be pretty darn good especially at the $12-$14 price point. Now, it seems like nobody but me uses it lol

Sorry to hear about your troubles friend. Glad you were able to catch fish at least.

Gear alignment maybe?

I’m glad to see someone is catching fish on those ploppers. I’ve got three of them in my tackle box and have only caught two fish in a year on them.

That is generally the understanding my wife and I have as well.

I second this. I paid $139 shipped for mine last year and it’s been dead nuts reliable and was easy peasy to dial in. I have it paired with an Abu Vendetta 6’9” M/L for my shakey head rig. Love this setup. edit: I also have it spooled with 12# Seaguar Red Label. I haven’t tried braid on this one and doubt I will as I have a Lews Tournament SLP that carries braid for top water only.

I use it for everything. It has become my sweet spot for the perfect # test line for FC as it gives me the best cast ability for my favorite techniques wacky, T-rig(weighted and weightless), spinners/buzzbaits, etc. I will use 15# in its place if I cannot find it in 12# which isnt very often, but it does work just as well. Anything over 15# and anything less than 12# gives me issues. I’ve only been bass fishing the last couple of years though so others will chime in with more experience. edit: braid is top water only for me in 40-50#.

That’s where this rod and reel is going to go as well.

Glad to have you aboard top! Welcome from Dixie!

Fair point. They will be allowed…

My work supplies me with plenty of clothes(maintenance tech) and I get to re-up them once a year with three shirts and three pairs of pants. They are flame retardant so new they are a little thick, but by the time they are broken in and out of spec they are really comfortable for fishing. Problem solved and good enough for me. Clothes just aren’t something that I care to spend a lot of money on. Work boots are a different story. My redwings run me $150-$200 a pair but I also get a good couple two or three years out of them. Most of my clothes are gifts. Well, most of my “good” clothes are gifts.

Catches like that are always worth the elements endured.

My wife asked me the same thing in Academy Tuesday when she wanted to look at clothes that were on sale. I had a little over $30 worth of lures/plastics in my hands and no interest in clothes. I can justify that much money and MUCH more in fishing gear, but I have no room in my budget for clothes lol

I know most of us feel this…:)

I appreciate all the info guys. I definitely have more to go on now than before regarding this. I only have one graphite framed bc and that’s my wife’s Mach 2 combo reel. It is a great reel in its own right and I just wanted to make sure that it would last. I also know that it’s longevity depends on the person and the use too.

In my ever expanding and evolving quest for knowledge in my favorite thing in the world to do, I have to ask.... What exactly are your experience(s) with graphite vs aluminum in bait caster frames? What I specifically mean is, Have you ever actually “worn out” a bait caster because it had a graphite frame that was shot? I know aluminum seems to be the preferred stock and it makes sense, but have you ever actually had to retire a reel due to the integrity of the graphite frame?

I looked at them just long enough to nose my way over to the fishing side of sporting goods. Just so happens.....the clothes she wanted to look at were across the aisle from the soft plastics. As soon as she had to go to the restroom, I some how managed to find myself holding all the lures I listed previously. It was almost like it was premeditated.