softwateronly

JDM 22 Zillion HD does. JDM Met for $236 is another answer to the original question. Really enjoyed the rant and responses, lots of informed opinions. scott

I misread that, apologies. I agree completely with @Big Rick's diagnosis. Some swimbaits will mistime with the blade and either look or feel weird. Sometimes flipping said swimbait upside down gives a more in-tune look and feel. scott

The LC 100 and Vision 110 are the jerks I use that I need to be mindful of hitting too hard. The MR Rerange and Nishine are absolute killers for me. I hit em as hard as I can on semi slack line, moving the rod tip about 10-12", hopefully the bait is moving 4-8" This has been a killer for me on MI ice out / prespawn LM. I come back around to it in the fall/early winter when the weeds die back a bit. The Vision 110+1 and Stunna 112+1 do well with hard hits for me, but I can't quite haul off on them like my faves, and the nishine is definitely my current fave. scott

Sounds like a good problem to me! scott

Hearing what some of you are saying about hitting the jerkbait has me intrigued. I've done best with hard hits on a semi-slack line. The bait rolls, flashes, darts, and turns but only moves 4-8" in distance, in essence giving a startled/fleeing appearance but remaining basically in the same place. Allowing for attention getting and yet giving the fish time to rise up for it. The cold vs warm water for me has to do with the closeness of the hits and the grouping. Are others having success with a more gentle approach? Slow pulling? scott

3 of the more current "famous" baitcasting jerkbait rods are labeled completely differently, the SC 6'8MXF, MB 6'5 M oneten stick / slow, and the Expride 6'10M M/F. I only have experience with the expride, and what I think makes it good is a soft tip that doesn't immediately shut off but instead has some gradual give till the backbone. The tip seems to help impart the desired action while the delayed shut off helps with hookup/landing. It's a really specific rod choice that seems difficult to quantify and others or your own in hand experience is invaluable in making your choice in my opinion. scott

Day burrito...Night Burrito...and $30 And an obligatory night jig fish... scott scott

I don't punch much, but don't think a 5 power dobyns or the MB TB is the best choice. They'll work for sure, but I find them better at other techniques. scott

It kinda means nothing. A JDM marketing scheme to go with the rod will be tailored to hit cultural markers. The rod itself may or may not be different than anything you find here. In general what I've noticed is that JDM rod makers offer more shorter rods, more high quality multiple piece rods, and they tend to favor a mod/fast taper. The shorter lengths and multipiece rods are probably due to such low car ownership in such a dense country. The mod/fast thing might just be what people are accustomed to. None of these are set in stone though. scott

Japanese Domestic Market USDM is our equivalent

Welcome to BR!! I fish braid to leader for jerks, and like a mod/fast for taper, but also have a fast that works pretty well. Although, I will say don't be afraid to hit those snaps pretty hard, with a touch of slack in the line. I think the magic of jerkbaits is nothing to 100 in an instant. Bass can't resist. scott

I just received mine this afternoon. The size, build, larger handle and round knobs feel great. It really seems like it's a winner, hope to have more info on it soon. scott

I'm in love with night fishing, this spring was my first time getting out in cold water/weather at night and it was just as good or better than summer night fishing. The big girls seem to get shallow and roam the flats and will chase down fast moving baits. I'm definitely hooked. Everyone's comments line up with my experiences as well. @PhishLI is right on if you're on a clear water fishery. The new moon seems best to me. The full moon might be the least likely time to do well, I immediately skip the flats and work the breaks with a jig or worm or slow roll a big swimbait paralell to deep weedlines. I fish the same deeper water I target during the day. I have a tiny, no wake, menderchuck attached to my usual menderchuck, and it's a deep, Bahamian crystal clear water, I think I wanna try a full/bright moon glide bait adventure. See if the size, silhouette, and clack can call them up like midday. Anyone have success with this? scott

I have a few different rods based on size, weight, and hook. Trial and error led me this way for now, but it's currently working. Open hook mid column retrieve is between 2 mod/fast rods, one 7' and the other 7'7". Slow rolling or crawling a top hook is 7'3 or 7'6 XH or my 7'10 XXH swimbait rod depending on weight, weedless has to be the 7'6XH or the swimbait rod. If it's multiple taps, I slightly speed up until weight then rod sweep a hookset, if it's a solid thunk, it's an immediate and violent upswing. I grind hard and fast and drop the tip into the water. My hook up and landing percentage has gone up doing it this way. Here's a deep water burrito eater from Saturday.... scott

My experience w/ Loomis is very limited, but just want to chime in that a 904mbr is a joy to fish. Once I got used to the action, I found all the power needed to throw pretty much anything up to 1.5oz. Might not be the best at anything, except possibly swim jigs, but feels good with everything. If you ever go to the DJ no-jack grass jig or SC flippin jig, the Steez power pitch is my absolute favorite, sensitivity, tip, power. 3/8-3/4 full bodied jig is always tied on and probably always will be. scott

Just in case you didn't know, ALF has model A exprides between $215-$231, but the MH is only avail in 6'8 and 7'6. scott

Grab the 4" and try it normal and chopped down. You're probably gonna end up buying quite a few when you find what ya like, so it's a worthwhile experiment. ? scott Edit: I chop rage bugs and beavers for jigs in cold water all the time and don't notice any hindrance in performance.

I might be wrong, but my time with the thick weeds has taught me that the big pike, walleye, and bass all seem to use the same areas, sometimes at the same time. It's probably just the prime feeding location, held by the top predators. I use the steel leader or get twitchy on my hooksets when using mono to try to eliminate the pike bite offs, doesn't always work. If you like a lighter approach for the milfoil, maybe a tokyo rig. That seems to slip through most any sort of weed. I just started trying it last year, still new to me but so far so good. scott

With milfoil that thick, I would peg a 1/2-5/8oz worm weight to punch through and get me to the bottom. I'd lean toward H-XH and straight braid or braid to heavy mono if there's zebra mussels or tieable steel leader for the toothy critters. A flipping tube and a beaver would also be on my try it list because I would think you're opening yourself up to more SM bites. Dirty Jigs punching jigs or SC flipping jig, 3/4-1oz, w/ a grub or beaver has also been effective for me for LM. With the jig, I usually throw past the weedline, and shake and or bulldoze my way through horizontally. The milfoil in MI can get almost as heavy as what your describing. scott

I haven't experimented much, but found the hog farmer spunk shad to be my favorite. I have the 6.5" and bite 3/4" off. Almost all of by bladed jig success is night fishing. Zako, swimmon, and super fluke have also produced for me. The swimmon being the 2nd best "hunt" in my opinion. scott

Funny how it got back up to $385 with a silent killer, boogie back, & tiny bull shooter, d**n monkey. scott

digitaka as well. This is the perfect bait monkey excuse for me to finally try something above a tatula. scott

I know you didn't quote me, but thought I'd chime in with my neurosis. For me, I have more confidence in brass in terms of longevity. It probably doesn't matter, but the added weight is also a benefit for what I know about this particular rod. Thanks for the insight, that's a great comp and set up . I am not dogmatic about ipt, in fact, I fish uphill quite a bit and if I do "speed up" on the back half of the cast, it's probably a benefit. Because of the TB's length, I do want a reel that helps me get some distance. The Bantam is slightly above average at best, most heavier baits get out there plenty, though I wouldn't mind an easier fling to improve accuracy. The TB is a strangely versatile and more casting distance would improve it's perceived usefulness to me in clear water. scott

I have mostly upper mid-range Shimano reels and want to try a Diawa version. Thinking of JDM 22 Zillion TW HD 1000HL, and looking to pair it with a MB Tequila Bacarac. I use a 18 Bantam on it now, but would move that over to a different rod. Is this the smooth, solid frame, long casting, brass geared reel I think it is? I would definitely be junk fishing with medium to large baits, from frogs to glides to swimmers to heavy jigs. I usually throw braid or braid to leader, but might move away from that with this one. Any insight appreciated. Thanks, scott

This was my problem. I do 3 groups of six, tightening/tugging the leader at each interval, to allow the entire knot to cinch properly at the end. This has solved my issue. scott