GetFishorDieTryin

Ive never used an CDM products other than BKK. A buddy of mine is really into BFS and he says their spools are decent, but I dont think he uses their bearings. What do you think of Roros bearings? Do they compare with ZPI?

Honestly, very few anglers truly master more than 1 or 2 baits. It might not seem like it, but a simple bait like a jig has so many variables that it can literally take a lifetime to even come close to mastering. Jerkbaits are really hard as well, you have color, size, shape, depth, buoyancy and action. For now, just try to concentrate on getting confidence with a few different key baits that produce fish at different times of year. It would really help if we knew what part of the country you were from. Ned rig/shakey head-all year with the shakey head being the most effective pre spawn to spawn IMO small swimbait (3") on a light (1/16 or 3/32 head)- All year Texas unweighted and weighted/free rig- pre spawn to fall swim jig- pre spawn to fall with the best time being spawn to mid summer bladed jig/spinnerbait- prespawn to spawn and fall with prespawn being the most productive for size and numbers/prespawn to late fall, particularly when it rains buzzbait- can be productive in prespawn, but generally most effective for me late prespawn through fall with smaller buzzbaits being better mid to late fall Jerkbait- prespawn and winter squarebill- prespawn and fall lipless cranks- very effective prespawn and small lipless cranks in the fall, slow falling lipless in the winter.

Im sure its great cover, but unless those fish are super spooky, they should be willing to come off that wood a few feet in the dark, particularly if its holding baitfish. Depending on how heavy the cover is, I would throw a blacked out cavitron, Top Toad, or rage toad once the sun starts to set and into the night. I fish a lot of log jams and beaver dams with 3 basic baits used in tandem. A T/Free rig, swimjig and a weightless t rig or backsliding bait on spinning gear. With a spinning reel I can leave the bail open and let the bait glide as far into the cover as it can. A high viz braid and a spinning rod with some power in the lower end is a must for me, so I can see the hit quickly, set the hook, and point the tip down and winch her away from the cover. Spinnerbaits are great too, but you have to have the right one in cover. Zorros Short arm aggravator works pretty good. The shorter arm helps keep the profile down which helps it in tight spaces. It has 2 wire guards on the head as well which help the bait slide off cover if it happens to turn sideways.

I did some guiding on an upland preserve, where you set birds out and worked on charter boats. For the most part people are reasonable as far as expectations go. If you have tourists to take advantage of then you can really do well, especially in Maine. It may sound strange, but make sure to let the clients know that they cannot drink on the vessel or prior to the trip. My worst experiences were with intoxicated clients, in fact they were a Judge and Sherriff. Didn't a group of guys claim to get abducted by Aliens fishing the Allagash?

The Black Label Cliff Pace Bug should is like a carbon copy, IDK how they got around the patent.

Duo Pencil 65 Baby Pop X BFS Malas Karashi (while not a topwater, it fishes like a sub walk and is a blast to use)

It sounds like Sunline is having some serious QC issues. Those hookup guys are hardcore Sunline fans and for them to address it means somethings going on for sure.

Its a Duo sinking minnow bait. They have all kinds of sizes and styles for everything from micro streams to inshore fishing. Duo makes some great products. I think the hooks can go toe to toe with Gami or Owner as far as sharpness and quality go. I wish Duo would import more of their baits to the US. Their surf and inshore baits are awesome.

Very nice....now let's see Paul Allens' bladed jig outfit.

I would have to go with the 20 MetB for casting. Was blown away by the SolMQ, its like a Vanford, except it has more power.

Ben thinks its the same a the D braid, which I really wish SL didnt Dcon. I was going to go with the sinking Xbraid, but the color looked like a super light yellow, almost a glow color. I figured it would stain and get nasty real fast so I went with Almight. If there's any kind of weakness it the Almight, ill find it pretty fast.

I was usually stick with .08 for ML-M gear, but I stepped up to #1 for Almight. It should be here tomorrow. I'll see how it handles fishing tight to the jetty.

Its pretty hard to deny the effectiveness of MaxScent and even harder to deny Gulp. Gulp is running $10 a pack at smaller shops on the coast, yet they can't keep certain colors of baits in stock.

Before the ned rig got big there were limited options for high quality smaller heads. The sucess of the ned rig increased demand for smaller hooked lighter heads and which saw an increase in price. Recently the popularity of strolling smaller baits in concert with FFS has flooded the market with endless options of small 90* eyes heads that demand a premium as far as price goes. I use heads that vary quite in a bit in weight and style inshore and surf fishing. The weight and style of head depends on the artificial, depth, tide and technique. Its nice to see quality heads available for any scenario you can imagine, but $3-$4 per head adds up fast when you need pretty much every size from 1/8 to 1/2 in multiple hook sizes and head styles. what's it look like?

Thats a sharp looking reel

Was going to go with the glow colored sinking Xbraid, but figured it would wind up stained and dirty looking like crystal colored lines, so went with Almight instead. I dont care what you think of me, pink looks great on a reel, especially dark reels like Tatula, Back Bay, Exsence, VR 50 and so on. My local tackle shop owner says the orange Siglon is the best outstanding as a budget line and he offers it by the yard for a good price. My buddy got a bunch of reels filled there. He likes the color and the way its casts. The line so thin a small abrasion can cause the line to significantly weaken and him being used to 832 and 4xPP, he had to get used to avoiding certain hard cover, like bridges and rocks when possible.

Grommeted elastic bands are the way to go IMO.

yep I think that's all they make it in, no chip or raw.

The smallest weight that you can get reliably is 1/96 and a bunch of companyies make them. Reins, Eco Pro, Ryugi and im sure there are more. TW carries all of those brands, and I would bet money that you could find 1/96 and 1/64 on their site.

There are so many on the market it can be overwhelming. My favorite subtle small craw is the 2.5' Ring Craw, but there are many other good ones. Reins Bubbling Craw (awesome free rig bait) Damiki Air Craw Xzone stealth craw GYCB Fat Baby Craw Biwaa Armored Craw Yum (formerly Gene Larew) Salt Craw and Hammer Craw XZone Adrenaline Craw (Looks more like a creature bait, but they call it a craw) Bizz Baits Bizz Bug Craw

Elastomer and plastisol baits can handle heat without melting. They do become more pliable and take a slight bend or kink if they arent stored straight. You can bring them inside or turn the AC on in the car and take a drive and when the plastic cools down the bends can set. Plastisol is any easy fix, but elastomer is much harder to straighten as hot water can warp the shape and or melt the elastomer. Elastomer baits do fine inside my jeep during the summer, but you must keep them in the bag and out of direct sunlight. Elastomer can react with certain plano/plastic storage boxes.

My favorite swim jig trailer is a swammer. They have more roll than a D walker and more colors. The only drawback is they are made of a soft plastic. You can get a handful of fish until you need to patch it up with mend it. Dont over look the swimming super fluke, they have a ton of roll as well. As far as durability goes, the D walker is one of the best and it has a good amount of roll as well.

Ive used quite a few different brands. I've had trouble with 2 companies having poorly polished weights that chip line up, Eco and TD. Swagger made great no chip flip and bullet weights, but for whatever reason TW doesn't carry them anymore or they went out of business. Woo is a god alternative. Picasso has always made good quality tungsten. You get good feedback with their slick core weights, and they also offer insertless. My favorite tungsten brand is Reins. Their tungsten weights have inserts, don't know how they do it but they have as much sensitivity as any other bran without them. Always loved the sliding football heads. If they weren't so expensive I would probably just use them.

The brush hog is a good bait, especially the baby brush hog. They make a ton of good colors and sizes. The full size brush hog hasn't done to well for me in comparison, but I didn't put a whole lot of time in with it. I like the super hog more than the brush hogs. They're the perfect size and profile. I like SKs game hog over zooms brush hog too. I like SKs plastic, scent and colors more than zooms. The game hog also has a body that's about the same dia as the super hog. Gene Larews hoo daddy was a good hawg style bait as well. Its like a 4.5 brush hog with a ribbed body. GL stopped making them 7 or 8 years ago, but Yum must have bought the molds from GL, because theyre not just making the hoo daddy. They're also making the hammer craw, biffle bug and OG salt craw. The only 3 baits theyre missing are the tattle tails, inch worm and what is my favorite lizard. The lizard has a hollow body that would help its buoyancy. You could also fill it with a rattle and or pro cure/megastrike.

Spro Baby Fat John Ima Bill Lowen SB PH Customs Flat P/Sub P PH Customs P1 SK KVD HC Shallow Shad Rap/Shallow