Scott804

My brother fishes in a similar scenario with an HMG and he loves it, but I would definitely try to feel one of the rods in store to make sure it is light enough to toss the lighter stuff. He has a medium and it definitely leans a little heavy in my opinion.

Anybody else get in on the TW flatworm restock last night? I bought far more bags than I care to admit.

I start at 20%, but usually end up at a little higher just because I have had so many great guides who have gone the extra mile. I have had guides who have extended the session by a couple hours free of charge just because they did not feel right with how many fish were caught or what had been accomplished. Always make sure to leave a good review for a good guide, it is far more valuable to them than anything else in the modern online world. The only time I have been tempted to not tip was in Florida when the only fish caught were catfish, whiting, and the tiniest snook I have ever seen in my life. But even then I ended up giving him 12%, despite him showing up late and generally just being a terrible guide.

Just weighed mine, my scale said 4.5oz. I have one of the shortest rods in the lineup, so I would probably guess most of the casting rods fall somewhere around 5oz-6oz.

Great post. I always find myself going "Ugh, bluebird skies!" and then end up catching them pretty decent, and always end up fishing post frontal right away and the bite be absolutely brutal and act confused at first as to why I am struggling. Gonna try to start writing down the daily conditions, or at the very least wind direction because I think that could be a gamechanger.

Time on the water for me. I had a long and ugly learning period, but now I feel like I rarely skunk. What really helped me was finding a secret spot of unpressured fish to boost my confidence. Unfortunately, the glory of my secret spot did not last very long, but it lasted long enough for me to use those fish as guinea pigs to learn and then to apply those skills to the tougher fisheries.

If you have clear enough water it could certainly work I think. I think the reason things like hair jigs and jerkbaits are popular for smallmouth is not only because of what lures smallmouth actually prefer but partially just the fact that they tend to live in really clear water/colder water. A lot of the time when fishing a hair jig I just cast it at a rock that looks like somewhere a smallmouth would be holding to and do happen to be there. If you can figure out how to adapt it to largemouth it could be a pretty cool tool to have, I just think you'd have to solve when the proper time and place is for it. My brother does pretty well on those marabou jigs that have a spinner blade attached to them this time of year, so maybe try one of those too.

What warranty issues were you having if you don't mind me asking? Just snapped my favorite megabass rod and submitted a warranty request and i'll be pretty sour if they make me pay money for a new rod.

I haven't really found they give you any inherent advantages on hookup or anything, but they are convenient. I will absolutely pay for them instead of having to tie another dropshot rig for the 1000th time.

You should try the Jackall Rerange. You can cast that thing a country mile. It fishes pretty well as an all around scenario jerkbait like the 110 too. Granted, under specific conditions i've had other jerkbaits perform better, but there is a time and a place for every jerkbait somewhere.

I am not a huge fan of the hitworm. Granted, I haven't fished it since I really learned the dropshot, but overall I just tend to want a bit smaller of a profile than the hitworm has. You should try the MaxScent Flatnose Minnow. Easier to get your hands on than the flatworm and still been super successful in my experience. Bought a bag to try them out and ran through the entire bag the next day. Good stuff.

My folks always ingrained in me 5 minutes early if at the very least. Can't stand not being early.

Shakin' head. Don't be afraid to throw big Shakeyheads on casting, either. Toss it into that brush pile and shake. It almost feels unfair sometimes.

I have some duos, I think they're alright, I just can't figure out where their jerkbait niche is yet. Although I am sure I will find their place eventually. The smaller ones are great on a spinning rod. Right now my current favorite jerkbait is definitely the Jackall Rerange because I can easily toss it on either spinning or casting and still cast a country mile + have similar performance to a Megabass 110, whereas I kind of have to push the limits of my SLX MGL to throw some of the tinier jerkbaits on casting.

Yes. I fish a jerkbait year round, and practically in all conditions. It is probably my biggest confidence bait, even in 1-2 inches of visibility or freezing/hot water. If you have really good visibility a silent jerkbait is absolutely deadly. In warm water, don't stop working the lure and if that doesn't work give it 2-3 pauses to help draw strikes.

Has anyone else seen this jerkbait at iCast or the trailer on youtube? Looks like it might be giving the Vision 110 a run for it's money, especially at the 15$ pricepoint. Designed by Hank Cherry and it is supposed to release sometime this month. One of my favorite aspects of jerkbait fishing is that each jerkbait has a time and a place that it can outperform others but the Vision 110 is still my best performer 6-7 times out of 10. That being said, at 25$ for a single Vision 110, I would not mind being able to replace it with the Stunna at 15$ if it is able to compete. Thoughts?

I've definitely found this to be the case with the dropshot soft plastics. That being said, I do not think they have swallowed it anymore than they have a GYBC Senko. Both Senkos and MaxScent Dropshot plastics of these have resulted in swallowed hooks for me if I was not quick enough on the draw, so I just try to minimize being late on the hookup as best I can specifically to try to avoid letting them swallow it deep. Interestingly, the Maxscent The General has not been swallowed deep for me even once so far, but maybe I will have to be careful with the newer The General.

Welcome aboard fellow Virginian!

To my understanding aliexpress is usually fine, just make sure you pay with paypal. Type your actual card in there and it'll be stolen.

Seconding these. The one with the screwhead has drawn bites from me when I couldn't make a normal paddle tail work.

I don't own that rod, but I have fished with it. I think I remember it being very moderate. Either way, the 13fishing Defy Silver UL would do you well for a rod with fast action.

I like Randy. But I am a Megabass guy so I like all the Megabass pros. A lot of people have touched on him being "whiney" but if it was me dealing with situations where I had missed out on winning thousands of dollars or issues that are directly plaguing my career I would certainly be sharing them with people too. Professional fishing is not exactly an easy way to make a living and one or two tournaments can be economically life changing.

This all day. I've made the mistake of putting 10lb red label on a spinning reel and having a nightmare. The key is expensive thin line, usually 6-8lb and proper rigging. In addition to KVD there is also a trick where you can place the spool in warm water while you spool it to reduce memory. I like sunline for spinning reels. I'm also really surprised nobody has mentioned having to deal with the inaccuracy of braided line on a spinning reel. It definitely takes a bit to get used to but you can be far more accurate with FC line on a spinning reel, although braid will admittedly give you a large distance boost in casting.

I am fairly sure the reason they hold onto Yamamoto plastics is because of high salt content, which could arguably probably be considered scent. I have tried The General with Maxscent & it performs similarly to a GYBC senko, whereas I did not have nearly as much luck with a Yum Dinger. While it is only anecdotal, I believe this is due to scent. I think part of the reason the senko has left the mark that it has is because it was 'scented' before being scented was a big deal.

Didn't see anyone say anything about Nikko Hellgrammites. They absolutely kill, but they do cost a pretty penny. You most definitely get what you pay for though, the plastic is top notch. Can't say I have ever "worn one out" they are Z-Man level durable, if not more. They also hold scent really really well which is super advantageous for smallmouth fishing. They can be a bit hard to find though, and the Strike King hellgrammites are an alright alternative.