softwateronly

This might be true, but the 734 is worth trying in my opinion. @Turtle Angler Some outlying winners for me in very similar water; Heavy swim jig (1/2-1oz) w/ a 4-5" paddle tail. I set up in the deep water, cast 5-10yds into the weeds preferably the bottom is the depth they are suspending at on the outside edge. I swim it with reel bumps when it can get through. When I hang it, I shake it with increasing force till it pops free. Do this till the boat, I'm after the fish that are eating panfish, and they tend to be the big girls up north. 5 power Dobyns is one of my faves. 5/8oz preacher jig. Set up in deep water, and in my mind's eye, I'm trying to pendulum/tight line/ surf it down thru the weed tops as they descend down the break. When it lands, it's probably still in some weeds, I quickly lift up and reel as fast as possible 2-3 turns and repeat the glide. Usually, this breaks free of the weeds, but @WRB told me about a cps spring and piece of trick worm over the hook point to help stay weedless. This gets hammered with weight, the most tell tale tick, or there's just weight when you go to reel. 4 power loomis mbr action is my fave. I've also had good luck late summer doing this with a 7" flutter spoon though I tend to work it faster to stay higher in the column. 1/2oz jig. Fish it downhill as well, and I usually forgo my dragging and work it with double pops upward. Things are best when I hang up in the weeds often. I shake and shake till I can pop it. Basically, stroking a jig in the cover instead of open water. 1/8oz 4-5" jig worm. This is more finesse and needs a small hook to be able to pop free of the weeds, a #1 or #2 works best for me. It's basically a slightly larger ned presentation. I'm usually more of a 45 degree or parallel to the deep edge. This year I've moved away from this technique toward the next one... jighead minnow, mid strolling shake retrieve that is also downhill. 4-5" straight tail fluke style bait. Two tone colors seem to be best; ie top green bottom clear, etc. Owner range rollers and Gammy horizon heads have been my favorites. Something in the 1.8g-3.5g, #2-1/0 open hook. Between the small hook, light weight, and constant shaking this is surprisingly weedless. With a slow retrieve but vigorous shaking it will dance over their heads, slowly descending, rolling back and forth, like a scrounger in suspended slow motion. I've also been playing around with a large version, mostly retrieving uphill, though both work. This is a 6-7" jerky J or spunk shad on a 5.2g horizon 2/0 LG head. I cast 15-20yds past the weedline, give it about half the slack it needs to hit bottom, then start shaking after 5-8 seconds. Once on bottom, I continuously shake as I slowly reel in. If I hang, I keep shaking and pull hard thru, it's better than 50/50 that I'm still weed free. If the shake weight feels different a couple hard snaps can free it and or trigger a bite. A 6'9 M/F, 6'10 M/RF, and a 7'8 M/RF have been my best 4-5" combos, and a 6'6 MH/F has been the best with the 6-7". You want a tip that can reverberate enough to not tire you out on the shaking. I'm basically fishing electronically blind, so I can't say how they're positioned prior to my casts. But I catch a lot of decent fish like this. I really need precision and feel, so I do best when anchored. Often I cycle through the techniques in one spot. The swim jig and hair jig will attract the active feeders, and the jighead minnow seems to entice the lazier ones. Good luck! scott

@Rockhopper if you’re unaware and interested in lmb health post release, there’s been studies that conclude we can damage a bass’s jaw by holding them horizontal without supporting their weight with our other hand. The best practice for continued catch and release angling is one hand vertical or two hand weight supported horizontal. Nice catches! scott

I agree with Tom, here’s a major craft rod I’ve been very happy with from a reputable jdm website. $126 is a steal for the quality in my opinion. https://www.digitaka.com/item/29/6/5/4573236260310 scott

2 more votes for digitaka and asian portal fishing. Nothing but trouble free for multiple orders over the last 4 years. scott

I'm still new to spoons, but assist hooks and maybe counter intuitively changing to a single hook has benefited me. But yes, still not a great landing ratio. scott

Playing around with this the last couple times out. One bite is all I've managed so far, been trying the "dirting" action. A med-slow cadence of half reel turns and rod pops, 7/16oz weight. I'm thinking I'm 15-18' down on a 25' flat based on what it takes to return to the bottom when paused. I don't know if I've been putting it in front of fish yet, but open to advice on techniques to try. scott

I fish and enjoy a lot of longer rods, 7'5-7'9, but one my newer setups is a 6'6 MH/F MC bottom contact rod. I was slightly nervous at first since it's from overseas and difficult to return, but it is an absolute assassin with jigs and worms. A nice short tip that can finagle a bait through cover with precision and deliver a quick hookset, is definitely changing my mind. scott

I don't know the answer but a handful here put me on varivas, and the pe1.5 on an alphas 800S is a perfect match for me. Manages, casts, and has proven to be consistent and strong. scott

If you fish braid, you can turn the question around and ask why is a 200 sized reel ever needed. 150 for cranks, 300 for swimbaits, and 70 for everything else. scott

SDJ as well. scott

@A-Jay Is it you or the Zona/Van Dam live episode that found this lake? scott

Steez AGS Power Pitch 1/4-1.5oz delivers what it claims. scott

The 3 rods I have that could do it in the order I think they'd be best at it; Steez AGS 7'2H Power Pitch Dobyns Xtasy 755 Expride 7'3XH scott

I'll third the Decoy KG and Ryugi Infiniti hooks. They have a lot of similarities with the Gammy G-Finesse but in smaller sizes. scott

@August For the future, fg knots are the only way to deal with the TWS on diawa and make it a viable option. Like @PhishLI it can sometimes catch while reeling it in, but I've only found that to happen on my tat 200 w/ 65lb pp to 20lb mono. The TWS w/lighter braids and leaders has yet to hiccup for me. The tat300 with the same line combo as the 200 is as smooth as the lighter setups. With what you're looking at buying, I think the CT is a great choice. scott

I've spent most of the last 2 week playing jighead minnow games. It's been a blast, 3"- 7" straight tail "worms" and I'm catching in open water, mid column through the weed tops, and even dragging/shaking uphill through the slop. I can't believe these #1-1/0 open hooks can get through most everything clean. It's been all ML-MH casting gear, but spinning would be easier for some of it. Owner range roller and gammy horizon LG heads and lots of experimentation with straight tails. Spunk shad, jerky j's, raid rollers, and deathadders were the main ones. I've hooked and landed; LM, SM, northern, crappie, walleyes, and shell crackers. scott

My trolling motor is fried for over 2 years now. I bought more rods/reels so I can try everything from my anchor position. I should no tbe trusted with this question. scott

The scott canterbery compact flipping is my choice if you ever want to downsize your profile. scott

I think the fat ika is worth trying, reverse rigging your fluke might be nice to backslide in and poop style and bull flat baits should work as well. But I think what you did would have been fine, I think there just weren't many active fish. scott The free rig is really coming alive for me the last year and a half. I think the separation, any separation, allows for the speed change. I think that is the trigger, fast down, then that deceleration to a little slow glide to the bottom. In my mind, that's what gets them to come over and investigate. scott

I will certainly leave or not bother with sub 3lb fish if that’s all I’m catching or seeing. My water has enough 17”+ bass that I don’t skunk very often. But mid July to mid September is when I need to improve the most, especially in the daytime. I’m gonna say that makes me a 6.5. scott

My last 5 rods have been MC. They punch way above their weight in terms of cost. I’m gonna buy the Days 6’9MH/RF next. The 2 piece ships from digitaka for $135. I have the 6’9M and the 7’ swimbait rod from that series and love them. scott

I think all your assumptions are the same as mine, I somewhat break it down into dark/light, flash/no flash. The more aggressive the fish are, the more toward light and flash I move. I fish Michiana as well, don't overlook 6-7" flukes. They don't scare away the 1.5lbers and they tend to get the 3lb+ fish's attention better. Also, nail weights and or free rigs can help you fish deeper weedlines more effectively. Here's 2 from last weekend... scott

Like they need any help! scott

The TB is well balanced so all the reels felt balanced, the tat 200 included. The small trigger on the TB feels best with the zillion platform, my extra medium size hands, and the way I palm my reel. The rod feels like it needs a lob cast @ 3oz to me. The chad shad throws great except for the cartwheeling that happens, especially because I tend to sidearm it. scott

Fished the ghost perch on that rod this morning for only an hour, the slow chopped/twitched got nothing, but burned got followed right to the boat. She was a tank! Didn't bite, but even the follow is exciting. So don't forget to burn, slow swim, and chop it. Get that reel and get to throwing! Oh, last year this was a tremendous bright moon, night bait. I've paired it with a tat 200, bantam, and zillion hd, the zillion hasn't come off once I tried it. Good luck! scott