Darth-Baiter

hahaha..i had a Phenix Recon that put the hook keeper in the perfect location to do this. as the lines spiraled off the spool, it would sometimes grab the hook keeper and make me look like i couldnt cast at all. i am not proud to admit, i took my pocket knife and shaved the wrapping and took it off. i put a wrap of black tape around the shaft to hide my abomination of a solution. that rod is my Striped Bass magic wand. but that hook keeper was not working for me. great thought on this topic..great thought.

probably my next reel when the time comes to convince myself i need another reel.

pronghorn live in a specific type of terrain. my 257 Weatherby fits terrain, and the 100-120 grain bullet fits the animals size. i think for elk, the 300 win mag covers the bases. having said that, i would sell everything and buy a 270 to hunt everything i wanted to eat for the rest of my life. (well, not squirrels and bunnies or birds..)

100% i gotta ask. OP. can you cast other rods further? this your only rod?

i always approach a new lake with Blind enthusiasm. Bass all follow similar rules of life no matter where they are. i always use google earth to find a kayak launch spot anyways, so i will look at historic images to hopefully catch some drought times where i can find juicy looking spots. i wil also google the lake and read fishing reports or even watch a few videos for clues. i have basic fish finder, so i will know general depth and stuff. i love that new lake smell, and catching a first fish on that lake is sweet. i love it. BLIND ENTHUSSIASM works for me.

oh..that isnt far at all. your spinning reel is fully loaded with line?

great question. i fish 12lb flourocarbon on my light bottom contact stuff like the f-jig. if i'm being honest, my first light jig rod was a Fury 733 and i got LOTS of fish. lots. buying the X-Bites was like discovering the world isnt flat (my wife says i exaggerate), but truth be told..that fury was a fun being blind to the fact of higher end rods. that higher end Dobyns DX744 isnt a Fury. my bud and i traded rods for a day and i loved that particular Dobyns. i let him use my P5 FMJ, which he didnt love. it is closer match to my X-bites. really close. he paired his 744 for a Bantam. which i felt was a tad heavy for that rod.

I sealed everything on mine. Moot point if I leave the door opened:)

my friends wife went to Johshuya in Tokyo. i think it is a chain? not sure, but she bought me a Zillion from there and brought it back to me. friend got a Zillion and a Triza rod.

what do you consider "far".? or not far?

Dobyns DX744 throws those awesome. i use an X-bites, but i cant come up with a reason the it is better that the DX744,

X-bites for sure for me. it is my favorite rod of my humble arsenal of rods. super sensitive. really sensitive. and it is a great casting rod. very accurate. it is my go to Free-rig rod. or finesse jigs. dang it is fun. yesterday i casted out and i 4.5 grabbed it on the drop. i felt the vibration on fairly slack line.

i have a Hobie Outback kayak. it has a storage box right at my feet. it has become somewhat my "junk drawer". i need to change that. yesterday i was fishing Clearlake (1st time 2025!!) and we had meandered into a cove that didnt suck. (more on this later in another thread). i was pulling baits to try from the junk-drawer, and i heard a bass boat go by in the distant main lake body, we could hear it slapping waves. WAVES? we both look out and it is whitecaps. we headed in before it was to get worse. i entered the main lake and we nose dipped waves all the way back. it was went i took a right turn to head to the ramp, i noticed my boat was kinda sluggish....i get back, drag it out and i can hear water sloshing. i got it home and tilted it to drain to the nose. i noticed immediately. i never latched the hatch door!! i was taking on water! if the ramp was further, i would have been in real trouble. the 20 minute run, put about 1.5 gallons into my kayak. double or triple that distance,,, capsize city. lessoned learned. dont make the hatch a main storage area, and if i use it lock the d**n door. hahahha..

my good bud lives in Rochester MN. he has been finding open waters..he is crushing trout.

the most tailored caliber for any game is: 257 Weatherby Mag is the perfect Pronghorn match.

with a kayak, we have an extra consideration. if we fall out mid-lake we have to climb back aboard. a huge screen may be a hinderance. you have to leave yourself a landing area to slide back in. I went with a 7" screen, A Garmin unit and it has been awesome. I am on my third unit. Striker 1st, some 5" Lowrance 2nd (it started failing), now the Garmin is working out.

a Hunker is not a squat! having said that, I can still hunker like a pro. its my go-to move to...errr...evacuate in the woods.

killer deal!!! I'm investment is along the same magnitude and I am floating around on a dumb kayak!!

new only, or freebie hand-me-downs from my baller friends.

I think you will overload that rod. lob casting for sure. the Magdraft is fun, but it only has one speed. you have to find the one speed to retrieve it.

is Levi even around?

the 110 is a bait that requires a gentle tap. I use straight flouro. most of my braid seems to want to float, so while that makes it awesome for topwater, not so awesome for the 110 for me. I never go heavier than 12lb flouro, and I focus on simply slapping the line slack out, watching a 110 in super clear water helped me get the power and cadence down.

if I'm being honest. my sleep is my superpower. more often than not, I can go to sleep as needed. if I am waking up at 3:00 am, I can trudge off the bed at 7 and fall asleep. and I can wake up 5 minutes before the alarm goes off. my wife thinks I am weird.

my fishing superpower is being, normal.

so the hook is in line with the hula body?