GetFishorDieTryin

Everyone throws super flukes here. Sometimes I rig them sideways to get a different look.

The 6'10 Vic is a ML so there's some give in the tip, but definitely not "flimsy." Being a 6'10 the tip section is fairly short, so you get to the backbone of the rod really quick on a hookset. If you like SCs XF DS rods you will probably like the ML Vic.

Octopus hooks have a bigger rounded gap. The point facing the shank of the hook at a 90* angle makes it a circle hook. I think the Octopus Circle is just the most popular today. The first ones I used years ago for floating bloods were Mutu lights and Nautilus circles which just had a different bend.

I use an underspin when there are a lot of baitfish around and I want my bait to stand out which more often then not is in the fall when theres a lot of small bait around and sometimes late winter early spring.

Those Kento jigs are great arent they. I do wish the skirts with heavy fleck like the GP red werent as stiff, but the quality of the straight colors like black and blue, spanish craw and colors with less fleck like wild craw is great.

I would think comparing the Zodias and Levante would be similar to the Expride and Orochi. Your going 1 tier down in price point for both rods. I dont think you can go wrong, both lines are great. In my mind the only drawback with the Orochi is the availability.

You think the 6'10 Zodias is heavy?

Booyah Pond Magic spinnerbait or a Bluefox minnow spin. Both cast fairly well in the wind, are easy to use and catch fish.

If you want to save a few $ check out the 13 Omen Blacks, there awesome and @130-140$ theyre awful hard to beat. The 36T blanks they use are really light and sensitive, IMO they feel and fish like SC Avids. I got the 7'2 MH ModF last fall and its like a swiss army knife. It has enough tip to keep trebles pinned and to get good casting distance, while at the same time it has enough backbone to fish jigs. Dicks carrys them, so if you have one near by stop and check em out. If you buy one of them you would save enough to get at least one JDM Bantam.

Ive been using braid to leader with wacky rigs for years. The only time I ever had issues with setting the hook was when I tried the Ike approved VMC wacky hooks because they were on sale. I couldn't keep a fish hooked to save my life. I went to a smaller worm with a smaller Gami wide gap and I came to the conclusion it was the VMC hooks that just didnt work for me. About 20 years ago a law was passed that you were only aloud to use circle hooks for the stripers when they run up the Del river to spawn. At first I hated them, I lost more then half the fish I hooked. Eventually I figured out if you waited for the fish to move and hook itself the land ratio was close to 100%. Personally I found a size 1 or 2 neko hook to stick em in the roof everytime. If I want a weedguard the Owner Jungle hooks with the titanium guards have been awesome. I found this out by accident but the 2/0 and 3/0 Owner Mosquito hooks work really well with a reel set or sweeping the rod.

I tie flies with the 1/64 T mag. heads and Ive caught bass up to 5.5lbs on them. You don't have use a bait exactly how its marketed to be used to be successful. As long as you have a smooth drag and enough room to wear the fish out your good. I agree about the Hayabusas, great keeper, effective weedguard, sharp hook, head wont chip and realativly inexpensive the Brush Easy is just about perfect head for 2"-3" baits. The Beat Roller and Baby Shooters are great too.

There are quite a few different baits I use with them. The 2" and 2.5"swing impacts, 2"easy shiners, 2.5" live impacts and 2.5 spider from the same company work well with them. Reins makes some of my favorite baits to use with them. The 2" G tail fits them really well. Its a twin tail grub that has alot more then bulk then the ktech 2.5 spider grub. The 2.5" ring craw can work on the guard jig because of the bigger hook, but I think it can hinder hooksets on the mono jig. The 3" bubbling shakers and rockvibe give you a similar look to the live impacts and swing impacts respectively so its a matter of personal prference on which one to use. Ive done well using tiny paca chunks on them, it gives them a different look. Missile Baits makes a little craw Imation called the drop craw that matches up well, havent really fished them a whole lot, but I dont see why they wouldnt work. Last but definitley not least the Tiny Brush Hog. Depending on what you do to the brush hog it can look a little bit like everything.

I admit it, I initially wasn't going to bite on SCs latest attempt to jockey for position in the lower mid range rods. Unfortunately circumstances and the degenerate tackle junky in me couldn't resist the cheesy promos from SC. The rod didn't arrive until about 0330 EST today which gave me a little over 3 hrs on the water with it today. Normally I wouldn't even think about posting any kind of review until I had at least a few days with it on the water, but I got to put about 2 dozen bass on it today from 1-2.5 lbs with a heartbreaking 4lb+ jumping and throwing the hook + a half dozen slab crappie. After cutting all of the taped bubble wrap from the plastic sheath the rod was packaged in I could tell immediately the rod was light. I've heard it referred to as, the "WOW" factor, when you pick up a rod and its way lighter then expected. Well, this rod kind of has it, not to the extent of the Adrena, but still a little "wow." Fit and finish is great, eyes are straight, no bubbles, no dripping good job SC and ALF for keeping it mint. The balance is what I was most pleased with, slightly tip heavy. I had a Stradic FK 3k right within reach of where I cracked the tube and the approx. 8oz reel balanced and would have fished well, though I did prefer the Fuego 2500 because I like to choke up. So, how did it fish? Long story short...good. I was hoping that it would throw a 3" Easy Shiner with a 1/16 Owner Darter Head a fair distance and it did. What really surprised me was on my very first cast as soon as it hit the water a slab crappie choked it, like an outfielder catching a fly ball. After the Keitech, I tied on what is IMO the epitome of small JBs...the Rozy 63 because I knew at the very least I was on some feeding crappie so why wouldn't I use one of the most satisfying kind of baits to fish. After 3 casts I had added another 2 slabs to the total, each about 1lb and I was pleased with the way the Victory threw the 63. Crappie gave way to small bass which slowly got bigger as as bites became more occasional. At the end I felt as if I had enough of a feel of the rod for a fast and loose version of my first impression of the 6'10 Victory. The XF action of the rod is different from the Premiers, Mojos and Avids. The tip section of this rod is somewhat short and loads into surprisingly rigid mid section at the what I think is the 4 or 5th guide, off the top of my head. That makes this rod load and unload faster then any other SC I've ever had, which can be good or bad the way you look at it. I had a few fish come unbuttoned, most notably the 4lb heartbreaker, which is in no part the rods fault, I think was due to me smashing my barbs in tandem with a blank that can recover exceptionally fast. The other unique characteristic of the rod I noticed felt different for a SC was the felt length. SC went with a different style handle for the Victory spinning rods then they have used in the past. The longer fore grip which I like, makes the 6'10 fish a few inches shorter to me. So in hand it fishes closer to a 6'6 in length. There nice, but do you need one? That's for you to decide. Im happy with the 6'10, but I don't envision another "Victory" for me... unless they come out with a 7'4 then SC wouldn't have to twist my arm. My apologies for the essay, I had just been looking for reviews of this particular rod for the past few days on BR and hadn't noticed any. I felt if one person could benefit from this post in any way then I would be all the better for writing it. I must add the typical BR disclaimer in that this is but opinion and nothing but opinion. Fin

It all depend on the line and its dia. The thinner it is the more turns you need. For 15-20 lb braid to 10-12 FC or Mono 7-8 turns for braid and 5-6 for the leader.

The one thing that makes all the difference in the world that you need when fishing ChBs IMO that I see rarely mentioned no matter the gear your using is good file or hone to keep that point sticky sharp. Every half hour or so make sure that hook bites into your finger nail from every angle. As long as that hook is sticky it doesnt take much pressure to sink it, especially with braid. I found that waiting a half a beat after feeling a good hit then setting the hook gives me the best hookup ratio. Whether you use a softer rod, mono or just have the mindset to let them take it before you bow up on them its up to you.

When things get tough small swimbaits are a great option, they draw lots of bites and allow you cover water from top to bottom depending how you fish them. I use the lightest JH I can get away with usually 1/20 or 1/16. My favorites are 3" Easy Shiners and Swing Impacts, the weight of the dense plastic helps casting distance. 7'+ ML F or XF is ideal, but most ML DS rods will work well enough. If I can get away with I like to use 8-10 lb braid - 6-10lb leader. If you want to go with a FC mainline 6 or 7lb is ideal.

I agree, I think it has more to do with the gear and the way your fishing the bait, using precision over power.

Lol, as soon as read the OP the Taty was the first rod that came to mind while simultaneously seeing your post. I kno BPS is overpriced but 150 for a premier is high. I have the 7'1 ML F Taty and my ML Vic should be here by wednsday. Im curious to see how they stak up.

Without question the Boga Grip is the best. My #15 is about 20 years old, it still feels brand new and the scale is spot on. Yeah there 120$, but they last a lifetime as long as you don't drop it overboard. The #15 is the one I use the most, its really compact and light. They make a 30, but the increments go from 1/4lb to 1/2 and its considerably bigger then the 15.

For me it comes down to the bait, where Im throwing it and what Im throwing it with. EWGs are good for short stocky baits like tubes and cover craws. The extra room in the belly of hook gives you a bigger bite then a straight shank when the bait slides down the hook. You can also texpose an EWG, so theres very little plastic you have to punch through which can be important if your using lighter gear. I think baits can last a little longer with EWGs since there isnt a keeper to blow out the core of the bait. I like straight shanks for fishing around heavier cover. The smaller gap can come through wood or grass with less resistance. The point of the hook is also buried so you dont have to worry about catching grass. When you snell a straight shank on a T rig the hookset causes the weight to slide down to the hook and kicks it out on an angle which gives you a really good set. Matt from TB likes EWGs for flippin, but Tim likes straight shanks for the same bait. So it comes to personal preference really. The only time I sharpen hooks is if I blunt or roll the point. Its awfully hard to get a hook as sharp as it was when it was brand new, but as long as that point bites into your finger nail and doesn't slide its sharp enough.

I snell my straight shanks on my mojo and T rigs. I think having the tag parallel to the hook shank crates a smaller cavity when the bait is knocked up the line compared to a knot with a perpendicular tag. I'm not certain if it make baits last longer but if I think it helps ill do it.

I think it can make a difference. Adding scent if nothing else gives me a little more confidence in some situations. I think the fish may hold onto the bait a little longer and that can be the difference between getting skunked or just having a rough day. I can say one thing for sure, when Gulp first hit the market the difference in number and quality fish was signifigant when compared to standard plastics, especially with fluke. Gulp even outperformed live bait which really surprised me. So there is definitely something to scent and or flavor. For freshwater I think gel scents are the way to go. It stays on much better then liquids or sprays and if stored and handled correctly wont make a mess. MegaStrike and Gene Larew's Bug Juice are the 2 I use the most for LMB. Neither of them are foul smelling which makes life easier. I do use Pro Cure in saltwater, which is more of a naturally flavored scent and it works great on bucktails. The cons to Procure is its smell, some flavors are worse then others. The biggest drawback IMO is its somewhat perishable due to the natural ingredients so its best to keep it in a cool place. All 3 of the scents I listed also come in good bottles that wont leak easily.

Absolutely. You can fish a ned rig anywhere and like a senko there isn't a wrong way to fish them. You may lose some, but thats inevitable.

I really like Biffle Bugs and Hammer Craws but if money and supply were no object I would use the Dolive Beaver Creature more often. The action is really something else IMO.

Im pretty sure Bass Patrol are lead, well at least the few that I have are. They arent bad for the price, but I think Dobyns FB jigs have them beat for the price if you buy them in 3 packs.