GetFishorDieTryin

Its not a big market in comparison, but in the past 2yrs the BFS market has more then tripled in size with the introduction of budget BFS reels available in the USDM. For a while TW couldn't keep Curado BFSs' in stock and Zephyrs in stock and they still move pretty well.

So glad they didnt make the Fuego and Exceler into the stupid ZV MQ frames and they cut some weight off both of them. After 6 years Daiwa finally gave in and made the lower end Lts in sizes bigger then 4k. The USDM Sol was a budget rod, nice to see they brought the Aus ver over and gave it the AGS train.

Tough one. I love so many different baits it impossible to pick just one. All jigs are fun, but I really enjoy fishing finesse football jigs, because I dont get to do it alot. There's very little hard bottom around here and its only clean from Dec-March. I love jig worming and SHs are a blast. Pitching T rigs is a favorite of mine as well. Im really starting to like the free rig, more so then a T rig for pitchin around moderate cover. I love getting a reaction bite, ripping cranks/chatterbaits, deflecting squarebills/swingheads, so much fun. The most unique bait IMO that I cant go without has to be a JB. Ive found spybaits and suspending cranks will catch when theres a JB bite, but nothing is like fishing a JB. Trying to match the mood of the fish and color to the water clarity can be a challenge, but its so rewarding when you figure it out.

It depends what you're fishing for, what you're fishing (bait or lures) where (jetty/seawall, beach, inlet) what kind of water/structure youre fishing (rocks, pilings, open beach) and how youre going to fish (from the sand, wet wading, off the rocks) Fishing off or around jettys/bridges you need stout gear to stop the fish before he gets you hung up. Your not just fighting the fish you're fighting the current as well, which makes a big difference if you're fishing inlets or even close to one. Open beach you can get away with lighter gear as long as you have the line capacity to wear the wear the fish out before he spools you. You don't want to go too light, especially for those bigger breeder fish as the longer the fight is the smaller chance that fish will recover, whether you revive them or not. Where im at the beaches are sandy as flat as pancake, but if you know how to read the wash you dont need to cast far at all, whether youre throwing bait or plugs. I just dont see the need for a rod over 10.5' unless you want to throw more then 4ozs. Either way, I would urge you to forget an ugly stick and spend another 30$ and get a an Okuma rockaway if you want to go with a Surf rod. They feel almost as good as my Seauges as far as weight and loading goes, which are more then double the $. If youre strictly bait fishing, then it doesn't matter as much and a Tsunami Trophy 2 or Airwave are good. A BG 3500 is a stout reel, you could put it on a 10ft M power if you wanted to. Honestly, I have the most fun using gear thats comparable to a M or MH 7 or 7.5' FW bass rod with a 3-4k reel. You can fish for trout a couple days on end and not feel like you just pitched 9 innings on short rest. You would most likley be throwing 1/4-1/2oz jigheads or slightly heavier plugs/tin under 1oz. Thats the direction I would advise you go, but thats just me. Tsunami makes a carbon shield 2 thats about 100$ if you dont want to salt up a nice bass rod.

I really like Bomb Shots, they look great in the water and you get a bunch for 5$ or less. That super soft plastic gives them great action, but makes them susceptible to being pulled off the hook or torn up after 1 fish. If I only have a few left, ill put a CPS spring in the head and that significantly the # of baits you go through. Since they're really soft and in a crowded pack, they're really susceptible to kinking. Its not a big deal to straighten them, but its a hassle. No matter how hard try to keep them from jumbling up in the bag it always seems to happen. I would much rather pay the same amount $ and get 10 if they came in a clamshell.

With lighter drag settings (FW spinning gear), I dont notice much of a difference between felt and carbontex performance wise. Ive heard people say that felt is actually better then carbon with lighter drags, whether its true, I dont know, but I dont replace the felt stacks in my smaller spinning reels, as my drag is rarely over 3.5lbs. Although I much prefer carbon to felt in for casting reels, its not because its smoother. If I leave my drag locked down there's no compression, like there is in felt.

Havent had an experience with SGs reel seats, but I found their guides to be pretty good and theyre 20-30% cheaper then a comparable Fuji Ti guide. I like that SG offers colors, which isnt a big deal, but they look pretty good on a custom rod. SGs double foot SS Hero guides perform well, but they are on the weighty side. If you spend a little more for Ti guides you can shave at least an oz off the total weight of the rod, depending on length. Although its improved since it first opened, SC is still having QC and manufacturing issues with some of the lines out of the Fresnillo, Mexico location, which I think is the real issue. Right now the biggest problem SC is having is that an extremely high % of the SC3 Inshore Mojo blanks were breaking and the replacements they sent out were breaking as well.

The only combo I would even think about recommending would be an SLX and that would only be under the condition thats its on clearance. You don't need a super sensitive rod for JB or cranks, you just need a crisp tip for the JBs. As long as you aren't throwing heavy mid depth cranks a M power will work well for both Jb and cranks, while being able to handle lighter jigs and swimbaits. The more detail you go into about the weight of the baits and specific cranks you throw, the better we will be able to help.

I dont like the way the max scent baits sit in the water on a DS. I actually like the flatworm on a small jighead more then a on a DS. Theyre dense and just kind of hang there, but theres no denying how effective they are. The hit worm doesnt look great on a SH, its kind of just lays on the bottom, but its gets bit a ton. It doesnt help that the max scent baits dont last very long. Gulp minnows are really good DS bait. Ive consistently caught fish on them during the coldest part of the winter in viz under 6". I rarely hear anyone mention them, because I think their worms get the most attention. The Roboworm Alive Shads are one my best producing baits on a DS. You dont get all the color options of the worms, but they make all the colors you need.

What kind of braid is it?

If I were looking for a rod in that price range, I would really be tempted to grab one of those Okuma X series. Okuma doesnt get as much attention as Shimano or Daiwa, but they know how to build a good rod

The only reels I had bad luck with or jus didnt like were Penn Battles (1 and 2). The line lay was so bad, I couldnt use it in the dark unless I wanted to turn my lamp on and check the spool every half dozen casts. If you didnt do that often you would make a far cast, get an epic wind knot and break the plug off. As for rods it a tie between 7 MH F SLX and 6'10 ML Victory. The SLX is just a super stiff pool cue thats incredibly tip heavy. Its fairly sensitive for the price though. The 6'10 Victory feels great, super light and has a good action. The tip is softer, but there is more power on the lower end then previous SCs. The issue with the 6'10 is that it has very little sensitivity. I can hardly feel a tungsten DS weight on gravel and being a finesse rod that's just unacceptable, especially with the price. Its not much better then an ugly stick feedback wise. The 7'3 M doesnt have that issue. I think SC put too much glass in the tip and it just dampens all that vibration. Its not relegated to JB and crankbaits.

You can mitigate twists by rigging the worm at its balancing point, or center of gravity. Try to avoid reeling the bait in quickly as that can cause the bait to spin as well.

Sharpening hooks is so easy, its foolish not to do it. If you fish around rocks you need to start to be cognizant of how sharp that hook is. Forget rocks, if youre fishing around wood, you need to check that often. This is one of the reasons people struggle with chatterbaits, because those hooks take can take a beating. I cant see throwing out a jackhammer or even a TW custom just because the hook is rolled or dull, it just seems stupid to me. Trebles are a little different then single hooks, but the concept is the same and you get what you pay for. The cheap VMCs work, but the difference in quality and sharpness is significant when you spend more a little more money. Jerkbaits, especially in the winter are the only baits I need a hook that sticky enough to hook a fish without me putting any pressure on the line at all. The g finesse gamys and Duo nanos have the right bend and are sharp enough to hook a fish that just slaps at the bait or hook the fish when she tries to spit the JB out. Since it happens on slack line, you wont feel the bite, even if you did, they can blow that bait back out so fast you dont have a chance at a set. Theyre a whole lot more then .50$ though. A better hook holds a sharper point much longer and are generally much stronger then the 3rd world budget VMCs.

IMO the rod is the is more important than the reel in most cases. I feel like you get more of a return on your investment with a rod then a reel. I would get a JD zillion or 20Met and spend the rest put the rest into a rod. For 700$ you have some good option. The real question is whether to go custom or not.

The only practical differences are the shorter handle and the 100 size spool.

No that's unusual, at least IME. Ive never had InvizX jump off the spool like that, but have complications when trying to get a few more days out of old 15lb Red Label in the winter.

They developed a nice jighead, but didnt come up with the technique. It definitely works really well when fish are in a neutral or negative mood. I think the way the weight is distributed along with the location and angle of the line tie, it gives the bait a more realistic look.

When I tie a leader on, its on until the leader is damaged or too short. With longer leaders that are constantly going through guides every cast I imagine it takes a toll on the knot, its just hard to say how much the knot is weakened if at all. I use 12' or longer leaders all the time, and I only retie when the line damaged too close to the connection knot or I run out of leader. Ive never experienced a knot failure that I could attribute to damage from guides. I have heard of guys that fish the flats using glue to help protect 6 and 8lb blue label because they need that line to be 100% if the run into a bigger bass.

The Avid Inshores are one of the last lines they still make with the older style actions that I much prefer to the newer ones. The M power works great for 1/2 and 5/8 jerk and twitch baits, it will handle 3/4, but IMO its not ideal. If 1/2 is youre absolute lowest weight then consider the MH. SC has supposedly ironed out the breakage issue with the Mojo Inshores. It was allegedly a bad batch of blanks that was to blame. They use the same blank as the Avid, but the Avid is Made in the US, which means the builds are a little more consistent and you get upgraded Titanium guide frames which fare better with SW and are much lighter in weight then the sea guides used on the mojos. The M power Avid and Mojos are very close in weight, almost the same. Its not until you get to the MH over 7ft that you notice the difference with the rod in hand. The weight of the heavier duty, double foot sea guides, adds about an oz of weight, which affects the balance a little. So if you are considering the a M power Avid the Mojo may be worth checking out, if youre going to go up to a MH then go with the Avid for sure.

Ark rods are decnt, but once you get to that 150$ price point compretitio ngets awful stiff. I havent had the opportunity to to get a Invoker Pro in my hand, but own an Essence. Essence is nice, its not the lightest and the build quality doesn't blow me away, but if there is an issue Ark will fix it...eventually, it might take time, but they will try to make it right. I haven't fished the new XTs, but they sure feel much better balanced then the older one that I had fished. Next to a Lancer the Daiwa is going to look much better IMO, but as far as performance is probably close. Now if you were to upgrade to the Tatula (not XT), then personally I would have to go with the Daiwa. I would suggest if you do go with Ark spend a few more $ and get a viper or tharp, but thats just me.

For a full size swim jig I like a 7'3 MH(1/4-1oz) F. The slightly longer rod gives you a softer tip, which I dont really think is necessary for working to the bait, but it helps with casting. I like to use 15lb FC, but if you like to use braid you could get away with a shorter lighter power MH if you wanted to.

I use a M for those 1/4 and under compact jigs and it works well. The picasso tungsten footballs use a 2x gamy and my M F has enough power to set it well.

A fun way to power fish plastic is to throw a knock a swing head through a rocky bank. Its like a combination of a squarebill and football jig. You can use just about anything on them, but I really like the OG biffle bug and adrenaline craw. Z man pametto bugs and their 7" finesse worms work great on mojo and free rigs. They float up off the bottom and seem to get bit when not much else works, especially in the case of the finesse worm on a free rig.

I dont buy it for one second. All of my best baits, soft plastic or hard, seem to work better when they are beat to hell, especially jigs.