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Opposite. Use flouro leader material, not flouro line. I used to believe 40lb braid was enough to stop pike bite-offs, until I watched one take a t-rigged worm from me and I barely felt a tug when he sliced clean through that braid. The 30lb flouro has held up to multiple pikes, and will usually just get some nicks in the line. I just retie. Yeah, it's pretty stiff tying but I've been using a trilene knot with 3 wraps and it hasn't let go. This is almost exclusively river fishing for smallmouth in rocky areas. Doesn't make a difference, I'm usually throwing big choppos. 120 size.

Same here, I sent in a request a few weeks ago and haven't heard anything.

I run 20lb Sufix 832 to a 20 or 30lb Seaguar blue label flouro leader on a similar setup for topwater / crankbaits. Too many pike / musky around to use straight braid.

Kayak, almost always on a river of some sort.

Last two weekends. Smallies are on fire up there.

Not moving quite as fast now

Had this guy take a wacky worm this weekend. Thought I had a PB smallie on the hook..

I've had two Bass X rods, one old one new. Old one was great until I managed to break it (my fault). About 5 minutes later on the same trip, I noticed my reel coming loose on the new rod. The front threaded portion of the reel seat had come undone, looked like it was barely epoxied on there. Salvaged it for the day by sticking some flouro line under it and jamming it back down, provided enough friction to hold the reel in place. Thought about sending it in for warranty but it was easy enough to epoxy back in place. Haven't had an issue with it since.

I've narrowed it down to 3: MM 7'2" Mojo Glass for topwater / shallow running lures (most used) MHM 7'2" Bass-X for deeper running / heavier lures MF 7' spinning setup for plastics. Most of my fishing is on a river and have been happy with these.

Went to check out a new smallmouth spot over the weekend. Hit the water about 8am on Saturday, took about an hour to find them but it was go time from there. Ended up being a 50-something fish day between the two of us, with most of the smallmouth between 17-18". At one point I picked up 3 ~17" fish in 3 casts. Lure of the day was a shallow diving 1/2 oz crankbait, with a texas or wacky rigged worm follow up if they missed it. Topwater over weed beds got a few of them also. Did more exploring than fishing Sunday, but got big fish of the weekend at something over 19". Was the best weekend fishing I've had for a while, but am paying for it today with some achy muscles.

Both my baitcasting setups are 20lb Sufix 832, one hi-vis the other dark green. Mainly because I grabbed a box of hi-vis by accident ? I'll probably switch the other to hi-vis, it's nice seeing where the line is. Both go to a flouro leader, either 20 or 30lb Seaguar blue label. My spinning setup has Sufix Promix braid, 10 or 15lb can't remember. Wanted to try it out, liking it so far. That goes to a 15lb flouro leader. This is for plastics. Smallmouth fishing is quite the addiction. I discovered it around 4-5 years ago and they're about the only species I target now.

I target all the usual spots - current seams / breaks, any visible structure. If I don't pick up a fish I'll fan some casts out in the general area. I've picked up some big fish just hanging out in the middle of nowhere.

I've switched all my setups to a braid / flouro leader setup. Mostly Suffix 832 and Seaguar blue label. I carry 30, 20, and 15lb spools with me. Rarely re-tie, if I mess up the leader knot it usually lets go sooner rather than later. This is primarily river fishing. 30lb gets used when I don't want to lose a lure to the hammer handle pikes out there. 15lb on my spinning rod for plastics, a lot cheaper if it gets bit off ?

C'mon guys. It has nothing to do with an actual trailer, just proof of concept engineering stuff. They're having a second vehicle autonomously follow a driven vehicle.

I got my first LMB through the ice last winter, a nice 18.25" one. Was going for panfish when I saw a big red flash on the livescope, dropped a spoon down the hole and it got slammed. Got 2 more after that, must have found their hidey-hole.

Bringing way too much tackle and then using the same 3-4 lures the entire day. Always bringing an entire box of plastics even though I've barely been fishing them this year. I've been paring down as the season progresses but still have work to do on that front. Thinking about the next cast as soon as the current one hits the water. I'm usually river fishing, so I'm scanning for the next spot even on a retrieve. Lost more than a few fish because I was looking downstream for the next hole / rock / log.

Finally got back on the river after taking a few weeks off. Was a little worried about how it was going to fish with the rain Friday night and spotty weather Saturday, and the wind forecast looked brutal. Luckily only one short storm came through and the wind was lighter than the forecast said most of the day. Wake baits seemed to be the trick, had a few hits on top water but they didn't seem to commit to it as well. Biggest was actually on a wacky worm when I wasn't even paying attention. Didn't feel the take, gave it a pop and it took off. About a 19.25" smallie, big one for the year so far. Side note, took a plunge on the micro power pole for the kayak. Worth every penny. It is so nice to be able to stop the kayak with a button. As long as you don't try to use it in too swift of water, it does have it's limitations.

Fished the Mississippi on Saturday.. Not sure what deity I ticked off but boy was it a day. Busted a rod through sheer stupidity, and finally sunk a hook into me past the barb. Buddy got his finger sliced up pretty good by a pike. At least the weather was decent, if a bit windy. Had to pedal downstream in a couple of spots. Caught decent numbers of smallies and way too many small pike, they were really out and feeding. Much different pattern than last week. Not much of a top water bite. Had the most success on square bills and jerk baits. Caught a decent keeper walleye right at the end to take home. Don't usually keep fish but I figured after that day the river owed me one ?

We had some pretty decent fishing last weekend on the river. Of course, my buddy had the lucky catch of the day

I recently made the switch from an Xterra to a Colorado extended cab. The loss of interior storage space is definitely a bummer. I kept rods bungied to the roof in the Xterra, and had built a drawer / sleeping platform. Kept a ton of stuff in the drawers for camping, fishing, mtn biking. Like most others, my rods go in the passenger footwell and diagonal across the cab. No more leaving them in the vehicle, too visible. Easier getting the kayak in the bed of the truck compared to the roof of the Xterra, but tailgate down means I can't put much else in the bed. My fishing crate and cooler at least fit in front of the wheel wells, and the kayak is wide enough that it'll keep them from sliding out. Just have to think more about how I pack things inside the cab, and remember that I don't have drawers with a stash of bug spray and sunscreen in case I forget or run out. Eventually I'll build a storage platform for the cab.

I did once on a smaller lake. Had to use my net as a 'paddle' to push through the weeds after launching, was fine after that. But I usually fish rivers so I don't want to be without it. Few weeks ago I realized I forgot mine after about 30 into heading out of town for the weekend, turned around and went back to grab it.

Nerd rig! I've tried and have caught a few fish on a Ned, but just can't get myself to commit to it. I like covering water and finding active fish, so it's mostly top water and jerk baits for me. Although I've decided to give wacky rigs a try for tomorrow, we'll see how that goes.

Flouro leader material is pretty tough. The 30lb test stuff works really well. I agree if you're talking about normal flouro line, and even 10lb flouro leader doesn't last long.

I'm running 20lb Suffix 832 braid with a 30lb flouro leader, SLX DC and a Bass-X rod. Been working great throwing 120 sized Choppos. 30lb flouro leader is because of all the hammer handle pike that like to smash topwaters. Tired of losing $10-15 lures. Buddy I was with last week lost two ploppers and some other $14 top water he just bought the day before.

Haven't been on the river nearly enough this year, mainly due to how high it was early season. Finally made it out last weekend and picked up quite a few smallies, with a couple 18" mixed in there. Mostly on top water, 120 sized Choppo. Going to head out early this Saturday and try to beat the storms. Yeah, August last year was phenomenal. Did great on both the river and Mille Lacs.