GetFishorDieTryin

I had heard that the Kages were essentially the same as the Tatulas but the Tatula has a cork over the locking nut so maybe the blank is just the same. I really like the feel of the Tatulas, I got to use the 7'3 MH F for a few hours. I only got to throw a handful of baits on it, but it handled all of them well, its a solid all around rod. Take a look at the Loomis E6X, they offer standard actions and Mag Tapers which have a tip with some flex but a strong spine so you can throw a bunch of different baits on them.

There good rods, I had 3 of them at one time. Unfortunately they had an encounter with automatic windows, after that they ranged from 6'- 6'7. Watching the window close before I could do anything was traumatizing. Penn really did a good job with there newer spinners. The line lay is worlds better then it was with the reels from a few years ago and they feel smooth and precise, not Shimano smooth but not a coffee grinder. The drawback with the Penns is the weight. The 2k Clash is around 8oz and the Vis, slammers and Battles are 9-10oz. I like the way the 7' ML balance with a reel about 7oz. If its just going to be a finesse rod look at the Fuego or Exceler, only difference between the 2 is the Fuego has Magseal.

X Raps are good JBs and I catch alot of fish on them. I think the x rap biggest weakens is the hooks and casting distance. They arent cheap either, some places charge 12$ for them and you still have to change out of the hardware. For a few more dollars you could get a Duo or LC and both of them have better hooks and colors that are as good or better. If you can get them for 8 or 9$ then they are worth it. I throw x raps in places I wont throw a MB or Duo or there are a lot of pickerel around, because if i lose the X rap is no big deal. The MB is just a better all around except maybe for durability. I like MB for late fall and winter when the water is at its coldest. They are really close to a true suspend out of the box and that important when your pausing for 8 and 10 seconds. MB Vision 110 MB Sexy Shad GP Sexy Shad Deadly Black Clear Laker Western Clown

I dont like big paddle tails on my CBs either, especially with the Zman Customs. I think the bigger boot tails can have a negative effect on the action of the bait especially the wider kicking baits. The majority of the time im using a fat as a trailer they're 3.3 or 3.8. The biggest fats I throw are 4.3s on Picassos bladed jigs because they have a longer shank then the z mans.

XF rods can be a little more sensitive then F rods at a lower price points. Once you get to the mid level or flagship rods the blank quality closes that small gap. XF blanks do a little better casting weights at the bottom or below the recommended range distance wise when compared to F blanks. Actions can vary depending on the brand. The Japanese companies seem to make rods with slightly slower actions compared to rods made in the U.S. You could probably pick a random rod out of the options and be happy with it, none of them are losers.

The SLX and Curado DC are great reels without question. Having said that, they aren't the end all miracle reels that some people make them out to be. The Daiwa SV spools are nearly as effective at preventing overruns then the DC systems. The only bad backlashes I've ever was from skipping a bait into something under a dock I didn't see or clipping a tree on an over head cast. If you run the reel with a lot of tension you can cast without your thumb, but casting distance suffers. I think the best part about the DC is they can cast lighter baits into the wind without backlashing. The DCs are versatile as well, you can change baits and get decent distance without dialing the reel in to weight of the new bait. DC brakes do add a considerable amount of size to a reel. If you compare the size of the SLX to the SLX DC you will see what I mean. The DC spools have a little weight to them so they don't perform great with baits under 1/8 in total, but will throw them in a pinch. Your thumb is the most important brake on any reel. I run my DCs loose like all of my other casting reels. I always have my thumb just over the top of the spool so if it starts to get squirrely I can just feather it to correct itself. There are different types of DC systems that Shimano uses. Ivw only used the I DC4 in the SLX and Curado, so i cant comment on the difference.

Everytime i try t order theyre out. they look like they would work really well.

I used to use ishads, but havent since I found these. They have a bigger profile then crazy tails or ishads and the 3.5 pairs up Zmans CBs well. TB is great, but when they recommend something it can be hard to get, so I wasn't thrilled when they mentioned these.

The biggest difference between the Avid and Avid Inshore is the components do a little better with corrosion. You going after schoolies or cows? Where you fishing from the sods, bridges, boat or all of the above and with what? If your just throwing flukes or catch 2ks for mostly bass under 20lbs the ci4 should be fine. You shouldnt have any issues with "flex" at all if your drag is reasonably set. I cant say how the Vanford compares to FL but the stradic fk is a little more durable then the ci4, but if your careful you shouldnt have issues. I would recommend using a soft micro fiber towel and cool water to wipe the reel down opposed to rinsing it. If you do choose to rinse it, a gentle mist is the best way. Hard blasts of water only drive salt, sand and debris deeper into the reel. After you get done rinsing it, make sure to crank that handle for a little while to force out any water that ma have gotten under the rotor. The FLs are great but they definitely aren't bullet proof especially in a salty environment. As far as size goes I suggest at least a 3k for ML or M. You may be able to get away with a 3k on a MH depending on what and where your fishing, but the 4k would give you a little more take up and possibly a slightly longer cast. 4-5k for a H power rod. Deep spools are fine, just use backing. on 3and 4ks I like 15 or 20lb test. 30-40lb on 5ks.

Check eBay, the prices have gone up considerably since the rona outbreak because demand is so high. You can often get JDM versions for a lower price, but keep in mind you dont get any kind of warranty that's valid in the U.S as far as I know. So if oyu do get one from Japan, make sure you inspect the reel closely. Defects and damage is rare but it happens from time to time. The XTs arent bad rods for the money, but IMO spending another 20 or 30$ will get you a considerably better rod. TW has some good sales this month, check and see if you cant find a rod to match what your looking for in an all purpose.

The ferule adds a little bit of weight to the blank. Depending on the action of the rod and the quality of the blank a 2pc may not load as well as a 1pc. There is a noticeable difference between my 1pc Avid ML and my 2pc Premier MLs, but that is to be expected the blank on the avid is a little higher quality. As with any rod its important you get 1 that is spined correctly, you would be surprised at the amount of rods in the 100$ and up range that want to twist in your hand under load because they arent spined. Each piece in a 2pc rod has a spine, so if they aren't lined up correctly the rod wont feel very good.

Hair jigs tend to stick together when they get wet and they look far smaller. What I do is I cut a thick grub the length of the shank of the hook and thread it on. That way when it gets wet the hair cant contract smaller then the girth of the grub. I like to use work out zman grubs because they are bouyant and much lighter because most of the salt is gone. When I don't have any used grubs I just soak new ones overnight in water to get the salt out and use them.

Mend It saves me 100$s every few months in Keitechs alone. I can repair most baits 2 or 3 times before it is destroyed after a fish or 2. For baits with blown out backs I used to use a toothpick or the applicator on the little brother bottles to open the tear a bit and apply a small amount with the brush. Straws work as well, but the best tool ive found for that are the Pyrex eye droppers that come with E liquid bottles or liquid supplement bottles. Small amounts seem to work better then saturating the tears. If you actually flex a soft plastic so that the tear opens up, the mend it can melt all the way through ruining the bait.

YEP...The budget Diawa LTs are better reels as far weight and precision goes from 50$-200$. Once you get over 200$ its down to preference. The Daiwas fish different then the Shimanos IMO. I like the Daiwas for lighter baits especially the smaller ones with the short handle. I like the way Shimanos feel for throwing JBs and shad raps. I want to say that Shimanos feel more refined and the Daiwas feel more rigid, but thats not true because I've beat the hell out of FKs and Fuegos in salt and sand for years and neither of them have failed. I havent had enough time or experience with Daiwas higher end casting reels to make a comparison. I will say that the 20 Met and Bantam are game changers with the frame designs. The 1 piece frame Daiwa spinners have been as impressive being lighter, more resistant to water and debris intrusion as well allowing for larger main gears to be used. Both companies clearly had some kind of agreement Shimano would debut the 1 piece casting frame and Daiwa would debut the 1 piece spinning frame. I could be wrong and it could just be a coincidence but I don't think its likely. It will be interesting to see if Shimano will develop 1 piece frames on future spinners and if Daiwa will develop 1 peice casting reels.

It does everything better except cramp your hand. I dont know if its correct to call it a paradigm shift but its definitly a game changer with the 1 peice frame. Older magnesium reels have a hollow feeling, not quite as bad as the 1st gen ci4 material but by did they feel solid. Ive caught some good fish on my 20 Mets and have never felt any flex or vibration at all. One of the better selling points is they replaced the aluminum main gear with brass. Fishing frogs, punching, spinnerbaits, big jigs or anything that you would lock down your drag when using can take a toll after a few years of hard hooksets. Brass is heavier, but its much harder, more dense, stays smooth longer and takes much less damage then aluminum.

It depends what you want to do with them and which company is making the lenses. If your fishing big water like a bay or out in the ocean in sunny conditions I like blue lenses, they darken everything and cut out glare. On the other end of the spectrum you have ambers and yellows that are still sharp in cloudy weather. Orange, red and copper do better in brighter conditions then ambers. Gray lenses are good all around, they dont make things as dark as blue but they do a little better with lower light then blue. Green lenses are my proably my favorite all around lenses for fishing, they do well enough in cloudy overcats days and they are great in the sun, if I had to pick 1 it would be green.

Take the 7, far more versatile. You could take the 7'6 but the odds are higher that it wont stay 7'6 for very long if your bank fishing. If you have ever split wood with an axe, its a good idea to use the same method for a safe swinging space with a rod.

Electronics make life much easier, but you definitely don't need them to find fish especially fishing from the bank. Im a few hundred miles north of you where the water is a bit colder and the excesive rain has made things tough. The fish are still acclimating to the temp drop. Bite was inconsistent untill day b4 yesterday, you could find them but the window when they would eat was short, roughly last 2 hours b4 sunset. Fish are lazy this time of year, they want to get the maximum amount of food while burning the minimum amount of calories. Fish usually want to relate to structure thats close to deeper water because the deeper water is warmer. Bridges and spillways usually have a channel running under or 2 them. They also tend to have hard bottom which can be key as well. If you can find a ledge where shallow water drops into a channel in casting distance from the bridge, odds are fish are going to be there at some point in time. The drop doesnt have to be dramatic, your only looking for a few feet of difference and if you can find any kind of wood or structure close to the ledge fish will be there. Take a day and just scout around for spots like that. That way if one spot isnt paying off you can jump in your car and shoot to another spot quickly. I use what's called the hour rule. An hour being the maximum time spent fishing at a particular spot without getting a bite. Once the hour is up, its time to go, even if you smashed them at that spot yesterday. Also, if your up against sunset make sure you have at least an hour to fish the last spot of the day on you get there. Be decisive, avoid saying to yourself ill give it 5 more minutes b4 I leave, that quickly turns into 30 mins. Start with simple baits, they are often the most consistent. So I swear by 3" easy shiners on a 1/16oz jig head with a #1 hook. They are consistently as or more effective then ned rigs because anything will take a shot at 1 and they cover water far more efficiently. 6'10-7'4 XF or F ML rods with a 1000-2500 smooth dragged spinning reel spooled with braided line are best. All you do is cast out and reel as slow as you can with the rod tip at 9:30 or 10:00 keeping semi slack line and shaking the rod gently. The goal isnt to impart action its to keep the bait as slow as possible without sinking. Every now and then stop reeling and drop the rod verly slowly for 2 or 3 seconds then pick up the extra slack and go back to reeling it very slowly. If a fish is following that bait and he sees it stop and start to sink slowly, odd are he's gonna eat it. Its called tight lining and im sure someone else can explain it better then I can, but trust me its a fail safe method anyone can do and its a great way to locate fish. Once you find them with the 3" keitechs you can really slow down and throw ned rigs or jigs and try to get the fish taht wont chase. The other option is to get a reaction bite. The JB is the best tool for that in the winter. Especially on the ledges and points you will find around bridges and spillways. Just be careful, good JBs like Duo Rozante 77s, Duo JB 85 sp, MegaBass 110 JR are all expensive so losing one a snag will sting, so know the area your casting to. The #1 rule that cant be broken is to at all costs have fun and enjoy the day. Its not a job, and if your fishing to for food its far cheaper to buy fish outright then becoming an angler. I hope this helps, if you have anymore question don't hesitate to ask. GL have fun.

A z drop is a leach or half a creature style bait. They work pretty well, and for nose hooking they arent bad cuz if you loose a bunch from catching smaller fish its no big deal. Ive caught fish on them, but I like cross tails over z drops. My buddy only carries a few bags of soft plastics on his boat and z drops account for 1/4 of his total baits. He throws them on a SH the majority of the time, they pendulum back to you reel well on the drop.

All rods use some kind of locking nut. The difference is most use hoods in conjunction with a locking nut. The ones I have are solid and they don't back of at all. I have some issues with rear locking reel seats coming loose on a few of my spinning rods. I could use teflon tape to sure it looks tacky. I've only used aluminum framed reels with the metal nuts and just a little bit of teflon prevents damage. I think a lot of people damage the feet from really locking the reel down. The tape gives you a snug fit without having to tighten the nut too hard. I was just curious if anyone had a better way and their experiences with magnesium reels.

For sure. Pointer 78s are great but IMO the Rozys beat them in just about every category other then color options. The Duo 85 are excellent as well.

Essentially he's saying his outfit performs better with that reel as opposed to the other one. The old reel exceled in casting weights that the blank was not designed to throw. Now he's using a reel that is customized to cast weights that fall into the range of the blanks "sweet spot," combined with the use of thinner PE line allows him to cover more water with less effort. Hes not saying that his combo is better then another, hes just saying he found a combination that outperforms his old combination in a tangible way, being distance. I think the whole key here is the question in the original post is grammatically flawed. I don't believe he thinks his new reel improves the quality of the blank or turns alconite into torzite. I think he phrased it that way because that's how it is phrased in the title of the topic.

Are they made specifically to fit Abu reels? Will they fit on Shimanos?

I'm seeing more and more companies using metal locking nuts instead of hoods. I like them for the most part, I think they look good and so far I haven't had any issues with them backing off. I think by far the biggest drawback is they can mar the reel foot, especially if its magnesium or a composite material. For that reason I'm hesitant to use my Met B on rods with metal locking nuts. I've used Teflon tape to protect my aluminum reels from damage and it has seemed to work. The Met B comes with a thin piece of plastic that is supposed to prevent damage, but I'm not confident that will protect the foot. I've heard of people using shrink tube for protection, but I've never tried it. How do you guys protect your reels? Has anyone damaged carbon composite and or magnesium reels with metal locking nuts? How effective are the plastic foot guards Shimano includes with some of their reels? Thank you for your time guys.

Ive fished some quarrys with blue looking water and the fish reacted the same to the naural and opaque colors I usually use. It was naturally like that so I guess its kind of different, I haven't fished in treated ponds that turned that color. I did notice that the fish could be line shy in that water so keep that in mind if the visibility is way up.