GetFishorDieTryin

No, its not going to go away. I really don't even think its peaked quite yet. I dont think its going to replace spinning gear, but its just a really fun alternative. The biggest market will likely be the guys who wet wade streams for trout and smallmouth.

Its a real easy fix and if you dont want to do it yourself its very inexpensive to have it done at a tackle shop.

Like it or not, I bet this is a peak into the future of the sport. It doesn't appeal to me, but I can see where you could get some really useful data, if it works as advertised. I can see it now, "KK is junk its trying to tell me I can only cast my 110 60 feet when I know Ive been casting them at least 40 yards for years."

Never used an Okuma BC, but have used some their older spinning reels like the Epixor, which was a really solid reel for the money. Okuma usually does a good job with product quality and value, especially with rods.

I think you get a little more torque, drag and capacity at the penalty of more weight. I think they're trying to market it as a small swimbait, A rig and deep crank reel that can throw lighter baits, kind of like more versatile 200k. Throwing an MGl spool in a reels is just a cost effective way to put a new product on the market. Its kind of like that Simpsons episode when they just repackaged an old Malibu Stacey doll to compete with Lisas doll, and when she points that out, Smithers goes "BUT SHE HAS NEW HAT!" and all of a sudden no one wants Lisas doll anymore.

BG has good knot strength and is pretty tough. If it wasnt or left in the sun or exposed to something that degraded it, maybe its just a bad spool, it happens.

Theres a big difference between good FC leader and FC mainline. The vast majority of quality FC leader is harder, stiffer and thinner in dia then FC mainline, leader material has less stretch as well. Its great to have and you definitely pay for it, but its not always necessary. Ive seen SS's FC test vids and they appear to be doing things right, but I had very different results IRL. I used nothing but good leader material for years. There are loads of pickerel around here and while I was using FC leader material there were years where I would have 1 or 2 bite offs in FW and with as much time as I put in, it made bite offs incredibly rare. In the winter of 16-17 I wanted to concentrate on improving my DS game by using only DS rigs. As fast as you can blow through 30yd spools with DS rigs, I started to mix in FC mainline. Once I went to using mostly #8 and #10 Red Label and InvizX I had more pickerel bite offs in 1 spring using mainline then I had in 3 years using FC leader. Most of the bite offs occur when I'm using small baits, like 2.5 and 3" swimbaits, ned rigs and DS. With bigger baits there isnt as much as contact, but bite offs still occur. Bass can fray a line up, but I don't think I've ever had a bass break fresh line with just his teeth. You just have to be on the ball when it comes to checking the line, which is the case for leader material as well. It doesn't matter what kind of line it is, if you're fishing frayed line you're asking for a problem. Mono actually holds just as well or better in some cases, but I like FC with using those really light tiny baits because the higher density helps me get the bait down and the smaller dia helps keep it down. Not leader materials are the same either. Most of it is really stiff and harder than a mainline where some can be stiff but have a soft outer layer. 2 of my favorites, Yo Zuri HD and Blue Label are very different in how they feel. The BL is hard on the outside where the Yo Zuri is soft. Both have less stretch then a minaline, but the HD has noticeably more stretch then BL. which I kind of like for walking and twitching baits. I think the soft outer layer helps gives you better knot strength. I used to think Blue Label had the HD beat in abrasion resistance. This spring I landed some stripers jetty fishing with #15 HD that I didn't think I had a prayer at, some over 20lbs. I love #15 InvizX, it's my do it all line in FW, but it wouldn't have stood up to that kind of abuse.

What you gain in distance you lose in accuracy and to some extent ergonomics. Youre not gaining 7" in length by going from a 7'3-7'10, as the real seat is going to be at least a few inches higher due to a longer handle. I would go with the 7'1 Mojo. I wouldn't be surprised if you see the new gen of Mojo bass on clearance within a year. SC really took a gamble and made the new ones with a triangular shape grip. A few companies have tried them before with heavier SW jigging and popping rods and while they feel nice in the hand just picking them up, actually fighting fish is a different story.

Ring Craws are sleepers in every size, but the 3" is probably my favorite. Reins makes some high quality stuff, but the prices have really gone up since the bat flu. You ever try a Riot Minima? Theyre the best little flippin jig Ive ever used, about same size as a bitsy. They almost doubled in price when they went to tungsten, which I have mixed feelings about. I wish they still offered them in lead.

Definitely better to replace the skirt and sharpen the hook then just buying a new one. I dont know wth happened with the previous reply. Can a mod please delete? TYIA

Yeah, everytime I say it in my head it either comes out like borat or Patrick Bateman

Used to have that problem with rage toads. You can either use a heavier hook or keel weighted hooks. Double takes work really well too.

lol, I said that myself as I was reading the post.

4" is pretty much standard for a full size swimjig, with 3-5/0 hook. I'll go down to a 3.5 swammer, but thats as small as I go on a full size swinjig. For clear water or spooky fish ill use this greenfish chibi swim jig with a swimmin super fluke jr. The fluke jr is 4" but most of it is tail and the profile is real small. The hook is so sharp and fine you hardly have to set it at all, close to 100% hookup ratio. IME when they hit a swimjig they usually choke it, especially the bigger fish. The hits you were feeling were probably smaller bass.

When I striper fish I smash all of the barbs and I don't notice any difference in landing % compared to when I dont smash the barbs. Keep in mind the barbs on these hooks make the ones on FW bass hooks look like a joke, which is why they cause so much damage. As long as there's pressure on that hook, its not likely to back out. In 9 of 10 cases when I do lose a fish, Im confident that a barbed hook wouldn't have made a difference. The only situation where a barb could make a difference is when a fish jumps. I think 10% is a little high, but even if 20% of my losses could be curbed with a barb I would still crush them, as IMO a healthy fishery should come before the sport and personal benefit. The barbs on FW bass hooks have continually gotten smaller and smaller as time goes on. I think the primary function of the barb is to retain the position of the plastic on the hook while minimizing damage to the bait. Given my experience with the barbs on the siwash and inline plug hooks, I cant see the absence/addition of the small barbs on FW worm hooks significantly decreasing/increasing landing ratio.

Like a Salt Craw? Conquistador has a 3.5" thats similar, its salted and really soft. Its a little closer to chunk then a Salt craw but works fine by itself. Yamamotos fat baby craw is one to check out as well.

IME FC mainline just doesnt have the knot strength of mono or braid. FC doesnt have the elasticity that mono does either. FC does stretch, but I dont think it retains it strength like mono. I cant prove it, but I suspect when FC is stretched beyond a certain point it weakens the line. As for knots, Uni, Improved clinch have done fine for me.

Ive got a buddy who broke a Swimbait Fury on a Bluefish last year. He warrantied it, got the replacement and broke the replacement within weeks of receiving it.

Don't fish History doesn't mean, never fish the same place twice, that's just absurd. Its more to do with conditions and variables then waypoints and settings. The idea is simply to avoid allowing past experiences and conditions to take precedent over the ones you're currently facing as no two days are exactly the same. Kind of like playing the cards you're dealt.

Ive wrenched some good fish out of wood with 12lb BG, surprised to hear the 15lb breaking like that. Maybe its just a dud spool or sat in the sun?

It may not appear to be the case, but its more costly in the long run to use FC over braid. I might get a year or slighty longer with a filler spool of InvizX, where I can get at least 3 years out of a filler spool of braid. I only use 60-70 yards on of braid on top of backing. As the first 20-30 yards wears out after a hard year of fishing I just strip the braid off and flip it over and repeat the process after that end wears out, which takes time. A good option is 10lb x9. You get 2 80 yard fills out of it and make it last quite a while. If you use a 10-14' leader on top of that then you rarely have to use up any mainline for tying connection knots.

The GCX's like other loomis rods are light in power. I had both the 852 and 853 in my hand the other day and the 852 would be way under gunned IMO for what you want to do, with the 853 being bare minimum in power. The MB rods are surprisingly stout, in the Orochi line anyway. havent seen the newer levantes, no ones carries them around here. I would say the Whipsnake is about even power wise with the 853. Just from handling the GCX I'm not really impressed for the price point FWIW. I would 100% go with a MB.

Premiers, Avids, Avid Inshore, Tidemaster, Mojo Bass and Legend Elite. A good number of my SCs are older and it seems like the newer blanks are a little softer, but they still work. With topwater you cant react to the bite until you feel the weight of the fish.

All the time. Been using SCs 1/8-1/2 ML power rods for smaller poppers and spooks for years. I would recommend using braid with MLs. The stretch of mono and even some FC makes a ML feel underpowered at times.

You either want a stout MH F-XF or H F with a rating of 1/4-1oz or slightly more than 1oz. Really the wire dia of the hook is what dictates the power of the rod.