BrianMDTX

Fair question. But is a $125 or $150 rod a Chevette? Maybe a $19.95 or $29.95 rod is a Chevette. Truthfully, I don’t think that’s a fair example. One doesn’t buy a Corvette for the same reasons as a Chevette (which was a horrible car). You don’t buy an econobox to drive like a high-performance machine or a luxury sedan. But you do buy a $125 rod to catch fish the same as you do a $525 rod. So what does $400 more actually get you?

Just my take. After fishing for a while and gaining experience , you pretty much can discern the “tap-tap” of a strike vs the feel of a T rig hanging up on structure. If I feel what I believe is a strike, I set the hook. Like you said, hooksets are free. When I was inexperienced I thought every hang-up was a strike lol. But I think after you’ve reeled in several fish on a TR, you can tell the difference between a strike and a hang-up the vast majority of the time. Maybe not 100%, but most of the time.

I have no clue as I have no experience with upper echelon rods. But can you tell me what you get with a $425-$525 spinning rod vs a decent $125 (or less) rod? I assume components (seats, guides, grips) are higher quality, as well as the blanks and finish. But in actual fishing, is there that much of a difference that makes one noticeably better over the other when in use? Trust me, I am not denigrating high-end rods and reels. I do not want to say how much I have tied up in some guns, bows, etc. I’m just wondering if the increases in sensitivity, casting distance, whatever makes that much of a difference to any but the most skilled of anglers. I say that as in my case, I do not think a $525 rod would make me that more successful of an angler, but it may in others.

Ouch! Good luck.

That is a gorgeous bass! Congrats!

This pond has a lot of algae. Have to clean the hook on almost every cast. But they hammer WR so well it’s worth the hassle. I tried rigging it weedless (not a weedless hook, but turning the hook back into the Senko), but IMO it changes the action too much. Besides, 95% of my catches are on the initial cast. Most times I cast, let it sink and if no strikes I reel it in and cast again.

I feel ya. A week or so ago I felt like I was hooking a bass on every other cast. Lately it’s been a few dinks. But I did catch five this morning, including two that were 2 lb’ers. I do not see a wacky rig in your list. I switched from green pumpkin to a watermelon 5” Senko WR and it made a difference. Try a WR and switch up colors.

My wife and I will be together 33 years next month and married 32 years in December. You guys were married when I was four. I am humbled, sir. Congratulations to the both of you.

For the size of this pond that is not stream-fed, I am surprised at the overall health of the fish. Other than catfish, all I have seen are bluegills and minnows. And way more bluegill than minnows. But there must be enough (plus crayfish and frogs) to keep them well-fed.

Slowing down my mind is something I always strive for when bowhunting. You are going to miss deer if you do not separate from the hectic day-by-day and allow yourself to immerse in the natural world. Somehow I have a feeling being 20’ up in a treestand, wearing full camo, and sitting as quietly as possible with little to no movement, makes that task easier than fishing from a bass boat, a kayak, off the bank, etc. Even so, it takes me a few days to “let go”.

For $49.99, I have 0 complaints!

Slow morning again after the pond Rose about 5”-6” after the heavy rain earlier this week. But did catch 5 bass. Three were dinks, but one broke the ice on my new Daiwa Aird X MHF for Texas rigs. Almost decapited the poor guy (it’s ok). The other two were 2 lb’ers on a wacky rig.

Well, it did what I wanted it to do. And then some. It was a slow morning with weightless Senko and Zoom trick worm TR, Senko WR and no topwater action. I walked to a different spot with my finesse rig (it’s very brushy with little casting room) and caught four bass on a wacky. Went back to my start point and starting working a 5” weightless watermelon Senko TR. Had a few light strikes which I could detect well. I made my “last cast” before heading home and starting reeling it in very slow with pauses. I just started the retrieve when I felt a strike. I set the hook, and I mean, I set it. It was a dink but if I had driven the hook home any deeper I probably would have decapitated it (it’s ok, but he was not jumping that hook). Just what I was looking for going from a Med to a Med Hvy. And pleased with the sensitivity.

When you sit on the current seat, your weight is distributed across the entire seat into the support structure of the hull. If you bolt or rivet a pedestal directly to the seat, your weight will be distributed to the fasteners supporting the pedestal. Every time you sit, bounce, etc, you will flex the metal of the seat until it cracks, unless it has additional support to spread the load.

I’m a semi-curmudgeonly getting-old fart. But I remember spinnerbaits in the 70s with painted blades. I had some with white and chartreuse blades. I believe I only saw painted Colorado blades. I don’t recall any Indiana blades painted. Speaking of which, does anyone know why the blades are called Colorado and Indiana? I looked online and didn’t see anything.

You’d have to make a doubler likely above and below the seat in order to prevent it from oil canning and cracking.

My God that bass looks like a science experiment gone awry lol!

Yeah, I’ve caught some hopping it, but not too much after the first or second twitch. Working it all the way back doesn’t seem to be very productive. That first cast is normally the deal-winner.

Tie a ball bearing swivel to a tree limb. Tie your line to the other end and walk back until 90% of the line is spooled off the reel. Close the bail and put tension on the line to stretch it and hold for 2-3 minutes. Reel in while keeping tension on the line. Passing the line through a lint-free cloth saturated with KVD is even better. It will remove the twisting.

Dens, when I fish a wacky rig Senko, I think it’s more semi-finesse. I used to cast, let it sink, if no strikes flick the rod tip to raise the stick bait, let it sink and repeat until back to the rod. I don’t do that anymore. At least for me, I’ve discovered that if I don’t get a strike on the initial cast (which is 95% of my catches), I’ll work it once and then reel it in and recast. I'm no genius and still relatively new at this game, but I think the Senko hitting the water followed by it sinking triggers way more strikes than simply working it up and down once it has sank. I’ve caught way more bass on a weightless TR Senko working it after the initial cast than I have wacky style. Heck, most of the time if it sinks on the cast with no takers, I reel it in and recast. So I’m working it relatively quick.

Over 6 lb largemouth. It was 8# mono, on a 5’ Cabela’s Black Lightning UL rod (mid-70s vintage) and a Shakespeare 2052 reel from 1970. One a #6 hook. I was fishing for panfish but hooked this bass instead. It was a fight!

I’d say yes...and no. Sometimes you check something out in a store, seems ok, you buy it, and after a use or two determine it’s just not a good fit for you. I’ve bought hunting boots that were the proper size, but after some walking they just didn’t feel right. I took them back.

Cherry Max are aviation “pop” rivets. The actual nomenclature is blind rivet. In sufficient diameters for the material and the correct grip length, they are very strong. The only issue is that you can install them with a pop rivet gun. Bucked aluminum rivets are even stronger. But you need a pneumatic rivet gun and a bucking bar for that. But if you had access to that tooling, it would work great.

Or (as he has a rivet gun), install nut plates. But you need quality rivets, not standard pop rivets. Bucked rivets would be best, followed by Cherry Max rivets.

Unless it’s a Yugo, free is hard to beat!