GetFishorDieTryin

Try these Gamakatsu Aaron Martens G-Finesse Heavy Cover Hook - Tackle Warehouse Theyre another 2$, but IMO its well worth it and they come in any size you need.

My favorite by far is the G finesse heavy cover finesse. The 2/0 works on jr size craws/creatures and has plenty of length and gap to work on full size creatures in clear water. Stupid sharp and strong for the dia, havent managed to bend one yet.

I look at a swimjig as being closer to a spinnerbait or chatterbait then a swimbait, just a little more subtle without the flash and vibration. If the conditions are too bright or calm for a chatterbait or spinnerbait then I throw the swim jig. Swimjigs are great for fishing in places that others baits will get hung up or bogged down. In the past I used to go to a swimbait over a swimjig in open water, but recently Ive gotten away from that. There's a reason why several companies are putting out compact, "finesse" swimjigs all of a sudden. They do a great job at imitating small bluegills or shad with that bigger profile. I feel like I get just as many bites with a smaller swimjig as I do a swimbait, but I feel I get better quality bites with the compact swimjig, particularly in water where bluegill are the primary forage.

With the striper population taking a hard hit on the East coast, its best to use single replacements when possible, or at least swap the rear treble out for a single. They dont beat the plugs up, have a better landing ratio and are safer for both you and the bass. The drawback is that some swimming plugs, especially the older ones that were designed to be used with open eye trebles wont swim right. The loss of resistance causes some plugs (mostly lipped swimming plugs and possibly darters) to have a tighter action. Some of the older plugs designed to use open eye hooks (instead of split rings and a closed eye hook) wont work properly with the added weight of split rings. It looks like only 1 of those plugs may require open eye hooks. VMC 4x perma steel O Shaughnessys are the best bang for the buck. If you can find older stock you should be able to get 25 of them for about 8$. I would recommend 2/0 as it fits the standard size plug like a 6" 7/8oz bomber or 6" 7/8-1 1/4oz SP very well. You could bump up to 3/0 if you wanted too, but the 2/0 work fine for me. Since the VMC are very cheap you could buy a 6 pack od each which would run you about 5$ in total. Then order more of the size that you feel would work best. As for single replacements the VMC Coastal Black 4x in 2/0-3/0 would work for plugs and tins as well.

I would have to go with the 80, but IMO I wouldnt use either for chatterbaits unless I absolutely had to. I throw 15lb FC and have found a 6 speed 150 to be the best tool for the job that I have at my disposal.

All the junk that BPS/Cabelas is pumping out cheap crap and it wasn't always like that. Johnny new bussiness model is skewed towards in store foot traffic instead of the mail order hunters/anglers and outdoor enthusiasts that helped make BPS and Cabelas into household names.

Ive landed quite a few stripers over 30lbs with an improved clinch in heavy tide on 20lb Ande. As long as you tie the knot correctly you shouldn't have issues.

IMO its best late winter to late spring. The grass gets so thick around here mid june they arent as efficient. Theyre is a good bite in the fall as well, but its not as consistent as the spring. You may only get 2 or 3 weeks in the fall where the spring you can have 6 or 7 weeks of a good bite. It all depends on the weather and if I can find healthy grass.

Ive done really well with traps in the winter around stumps. If thats the predominate cover then the bite is likley there in the spring as well. I go a swim jig and squarebill 1,2 once the fish really push in.

I find M power casting rods to be extremely versatile, so obviously I would say keep it. You really should get some confidence in JBs, def one of the best bites there is IMO. You need the right rod though and this one could possibly be it. I don't own any Falcons, but the few I've actually handled impressed me.

Ideally 1 rod and a small shoulder bag, no more then 7 or 8lbs is best. Often I take a ML spinning rod and a M+ or MH casting rod, but just having 1 rod is best. Carrying a big tackle bag or backpack and a bunch of rods just slows you down and in most cases makes one hesiatant to move. Take only what you need or are very likely to use and put in a small shoulder bag. Keep duplicates and a bigger selection of tackle in your vehicle. Every time you move to a new spot and have to set the bag down and find a place to rest the rods, just increases the odds of spooking fish in the immediate area, particularly the better fish.

Go with a DC or SV. The DC will cast a little farther and the SV is better with lighter weights. With a DC you just set the brake setting for the type of line you are using and you use the spool tension to fine tune.

Def not VMCs biggest fan, but their Boxer heads have worked well for me in SW. Not my choice for bottom contact, but for just swimming they are tough to beat for the money. I think VMC has increased the from about just under 5$ to 6.50$, but there are still retailers that have old stock and are selling them for around 1$ per head, which is really good. I over 1/4oz they use a 4/0, but 1/4 and under Im fairly certain they use a 3/0 which is perfect for 4" ES or SI.

3" Easy Shiner 4" Swammer GP Blue Flk GB Airtail Trophy Hunter Riot Cyclone Bass Assassin 5" Straight Tail

I fish it until the memory starts to become an issue, which is probably about 1 every 8 months or so depending on how much use and what kind of FC is on it. For certain outfits, like ones for JBs ill put new line on in November right before the fall JB bite really picks up here.

I think I know the video you're talking about. Essentially what it comes down to is the smaller bait will get more bites vs a bigger bait. Although the smaller bait, jig in this case is likley to get more bites then a bigger one, he starts out with a bigger bait because hes looking for a better fish. The jig just gets steadily smaller and the action of the trailer gets more subtle as he becomes more desperate to get bit.

Depends on the shank length.

The chatterbaits with rounded blades have that wider wobble compared to the hex or coffin shaped blades. The Picasso Dredgers hunt well with every trailer Ive used so far, some just need a little more speed to get that action going. Spunk shads will hunt well, but they create a substantial amount of lift compared to a fluke.

As far as color goes I keep it simple. GP, white and black is all you need IMO. Component wise I favor certain features. The head shape and eye placement/angle is most important. Not just a good hook, but the right hook, is a must.. Its got to have enough length and gap, but the gap cant be too big. The shank shouldnt be too long either, realative to the trailer you plan to use. Obviously the hook needs to sticky sharp. Next is the brushguard, or how effective it is. If the guard isn't stout enough to actually protect the point, you may as well cut it off. I would rather have a jig with a guard that's too stiff. I can always make it softer, but I cant make it stronger and keep it the same length. This is where a too big of a gap comes into play. If the gap is too big then that guard has to be longer to protect the point and typically the longer that guard has to be the softer it is. Swim jig needs to have an effective keeper, especially if you skip them. Sliding the trailer back up the shank every other cast drives me crazy. An effective keeper will save you money as well, because you will go through less trailers. IMO the skirt material and the way its tied is important. I want that skirt to breath and pulse well, a good quality silicon makes a big difference. Taught wire helps give the skirt body and holds up abuse better then a rubber band. Wire holds better too, which is big for me, because I like to trim out the inner layer of my swimjigs. There are a lot of good ones out, but out of the pack, Greenfish is my go to for standard and open water/finesse SJ

When I'm fishing some 3/8 and heavier, I like a 1x strong 2x Short, the KVDs triple grips are pretty good and are cheap, in comparison to other trebles. I just wish they set the hooks in foam or something instead of having them all loose in the pack. The exception is when I'm fishing stump fields in the winter. I will swap out the belly treble for a Ryugi Duo hook and replace the tail treble with a smaller standard shank light wire treble. If I do get snagged, I can bend that hook out and get the bait back. I feel like the EWG short shanks resist snagging a little better then a long shank round bend, but once you stick one of those EWGs into a lily root or stump, that short shank doesn't give you much leverage to bend the hook out.

Theyre a good bait, float really well and the flat bottom helps them glide really well. The downfall is that they're fragile, particularly in the tail. I wouldn't surprised to see Berkley discontinue them tbh, as I dont think they sold as well as they thought they would.

I like the flick heads too, they use a really strong hook. I use light gear which the Owners work just as well or better with and they are less then a 1/3 of the price. I took some of the FS heads, tied a keeper on them and used them for stripers.

7' M F Tatula 7'3 M XF Victory 7'1 M XF Invoker Pro

If you're not purposely fishing for musky or lake trout I don't see capacity being an issue at all. I put 60 yards of braid on my smaller (sub 3k) that will largely be used in FW. If its a 4k that I may be using for lighter striper pluggin I'll put 90-100 yards on top of the backing just to have some room in case I do run into bigger fish unexpectedly. Aside from a drawn out fight, I dont see the advantage of a larger capacity. If you put 150 yards of braid on, 120 yards of that line isn't going to see the light of day, unless you flip the braid after wearing out the first 30 yards or so. The advantage of the larger dia spool is increased casting distance and line pick up. The handle length comes into play as well. When you go from a 2500-3000 Shimano or Daiwa, generally you get a longer handle, which IMO makes it easier to pick up slack line in a hurry, before you set the hook. As far as lb test, youre better off staying under 10lb. There is a noticeable difference in casting distance when you from 15lb to 10 or 8lb. The lighter the bait is the more noticeable the difference in distance. 10lb braid is strong, breaking close to 15lbs which is more then enough for a lighter spinning outfit.

I prefer to fish weightless senkos on M casting gear, but spinning gear is just more efficient. One of the best senko rod I ever had was a 7' M MF Penn Prion rod I got for Xmas when I was 11yo. It wasnt the most sensitive rod, but action wise it was perfect. The softer tip combine with a semi stout midsection allowed me to cast a 4" senko about 100' in less then ideal conditions. The midsection and lower end of the rod had plenty of power to set the hook at the end of a long cast without having to swing for the fences. Although I haven't been scouring the earth, I haven't really come across another rod quite like it. I think the graphite was of a lower quality, which made the action a little softer. The power was kind of unique as well, compared to most of the current M powers today. It was great with artificials from 1/4-3/4, but did well with bucktails to 1oz, kind of like an inshore M+ or MedMH.