ironbjorn

That defeats the entire purpose of a buzzbait. Might as well put trebles on a frog too.

Warranty and replacement programs are already factored into the price of rods. Most companies will always find a reason and a way to raise prices. If a multi million or billion dollar company is willing to replace something for me whether it was my fault or not, I'm taking them up on it, personally. They laugh at your pride by refusing, and they're glad you did.

Get a 3 power Dobyns Maverick and pair it with a Daiwa Legalis.

Why not just create another account using another email?

I promise you'll be perfectly content at 8 or 10 lb

No $15 rod on the planet will ever be any good, and the best part about an Ugly Stik is it's ability to withstand a nuclear warhead, and that's about it. It has no sensitivity. For truly decent entry level bassin' get a Daiwa Aird-X. That's a great starting point.

I have a friend from my childhood who, over the years, has become a total flake in all aspects. He just flaked on my family again Wednesday. It's a 90+% of the time thing. So I have completely cut communication with no explanation and blocked him from everything. Do you homie.

Floating line doesn't matter with a WP. The line is never even in the water during the retrieve.

Her: "I bet he's thinking about other women." Him: "Why are those pipes sticking out of the water?"

I don't do this on purpose, no, but there might be some merit to it because I've always found that chewed up soft plastics get more bites and I'm not the only one who has noticed this.

I'm sorry for you loss. I tell people all the time, especially in regards to plans, that things are only as difficult as people want to make them be.

Can't drag that weight on a muck/slime/mud/dead veggies bottom.

Spinnerbaits tight to cover and Flukes under overhanging trees and bushes has been the ticket at the moment

You said as water temps rise as if it's spring. Water is crazy hot at this point.

There is no rising anymore per se. Everything is 80+.

If it's like every pond I've ever fished a Carolina rig is frustration waiting to happen

Yep. They get lost to a snag long before they're ever worn out.

It started raining so I did the thing only logical to bass fishermen and grabbed a spinnerbait and hit the pond for 45 minutes or so. Caught 4, the best is pictured. There's been something really special about this one 20 yard stretch of bank on this 6 acre pond over the past week.

Burning and especially waking a spinnerbait has never worked for me either. I've been on a really good spinnerbait bite this season and last, but it's almost entirely on a slow, steady retrieve along the bank close to cover. Burning and waking must work though or nobody would talk about it.

A 1/10 oz Ned head and TRD is like 1/4 oz total weight. This would be like 3/8 oz total weight which is different than, say, a 3/8 spinnerbait or chatterbait which only counts the head weight, but 3/8 nonetheless. Kind of heavy for finesse to begin with.

Morning has historically been much better than evening for me. 5:30am-9:30am has been really good to me this year in particular, with the best fish coming before 7:30am. Historically I've had killer days at midday when it was stinkin' hot and sunny, so don't discount that. True evening has never been all that great for me. It's been hot as hell all day long up to that point. I've found a setting sun doesn't magically make things any better. Sometimes the dinkers will turn on, but the big girls are still out there, somewhere, doing big girl things, while the dinker bucks go ADHD. Whereas for the morning bite, the water has cooled all night long and the darkness gets the big girls active and they stay active until the sun is really blazing down on the water. Then it settles and gets real quiet until at some point midday, whenever they feel like it, a window opens up and you can really hammer them again for a short time.

4 power Sierra

703c is a better, more versatile rod. It's great for squarebills, and serviceable for 3/16 oz - 5/16 oz spinnerbaits. The 705cb is pretty noodly and makes a better jerkbait rod imo. A 704c would be a better choice for your 3/8 - 1/2 oz spinnerbaits and chatterbaits, and is still a good squarebill rod. Dobyns runs a power lighter than you would expect. The 703c labeled MH/F performs more like how you would expect a M/MF to perform, and a 704c labeled H/F performs more like you would expect a MH to perform. This is very important to know when considering Dobyns. Personally, I exclusively fish Dobyns rods these days.

Another good one this morning, again on a 3/8 oz Strike King Banshee Spinnerbait, but this time in White. Caught along an overhanging bush. This sucker tore the willow blade off.