JMac603

FWIW - Venom tubes have a ton of awesome colors. Melon with chartreuse tail and GP with purple tail are some favorites of mine.

Looks like a Venom Tubes Broom-Sand Killer color! https://venomlures.com/collections/tubes/products/salt-series-tubes-venom-lures-fishing?variant=40224221069449 Guess I didn't notice the chartreuse tails...

Unfortunately I'm mental and CAN'T not use the same reels, rods, and line. It's a burden but it gives me agita if I bring different branded stuff out.

Motor oil curly tail grubs destroy smallies up this way.

Never experienced any issues fishing em with it.

#12 mono is more than enough. There's a lot of overkill line diameters/weights on this forum (not an insult) and that's what works for them. #12 mono is plenty strong enough and (depending on brand) more than abrasion resistant enough.

I have the 6'10" MLXF and the 7'1" fished them for the first time Sunday. Catches weren't big enough to really put them to test. I paired them with Daiwa Tatula 3ks. Anxious to pull one with some size to really try them out, but sensitivity was stellar. Fished a drop shot and a tube.

I've got a 7'3" GTS Bass from TFO in MH (precursor to the tactical bass). This is my chatter bait/spinner bait/smaller swimbait rod. Definitely a standout rod for my collection. TFO fast is more moderate fast to me but I've had very good luck with TFO. The pro series are great rods for $100 but are definitely moderate. I use their 6'6" pro series in MH for jerkbait with #10 big game and that's quickly becoming a new favorite setup for me. They can take a beating - I'm not hard on my stuff but they get bumped around sometimes and have held up well. I too fish from a kayak so 6'6" is perfect for jerkbait and the 7'3" is great for dinging moving baits OUT there.

This 100%. I hate killing fish accidentally so I do crush my barbs and accept the ones I lose. If I'm fishing to eat, the barbs stay. I don't lose many barbless, though. When they do die, I'll eat them if the water temps are low enough but otherwise just accept that something else will. I still get bummed out, but not enough to stop fishing. It's like taking any other animal for food - I still cry/tear up almost every time but I don't want to lose that as I feel connected to what's giving me sustenance.

Say it louder for the people in the back!

Another #12 Big Game vote here. I get the braid argument for tying on different leaders for different baits too...I just hate braid-leader on casting gear personally. Launched far too many jerk baits and tungsten into the great unknown on an over run and the connection knot snaps. I realize this is a "me" problem haha.

Open hooks - yes. It would be strange that I land the same bait on a rod I'm familiar with and a HIGH percentage not with a different rod. The only thing - if this is the case - that I could think is if I'm feeling more with the Avid than what I'm used to and trying to set too soon. I tend to overthink/over analyze these things.

Lose them almost immediately. They're "on", start reeling, then they come off when they realize they're hooked and really start the fight. I've never had such a fast tip rod.

I put straight .009 ultragreen on and landed all I felt. Too early to say for sure but I think you're right that I'm letting up during the hook set. I'm not someone who swings for the fences as I truly prefer fine wire hooks and finesse presentations. With what I was used to (braid and the TFO) a tug and reeling down on em sticks em good. I'm sure it's me now based on the replies. I enjoy the feel of the Avid X though it's not their best rod, its my best rod

I find Abu to be stiffer than others. That ML will do just fine. I'd really tune the drag for ned rigs.

Being self employed in a service business means constantly being attached to my device - texts, emails, phone calls any hour of the day and having to go fix an emergency issue at any given time. I have every other weekend that my tech is on call and I send the phones to my answering service. I get out on the water and hammer moving baits for a while (moving fast like my brain still is) and when those aren't what the fish want, I slow myself down (and my brain calms down) and really get to relax. I really LOVE finesse fishing - was raised on it, really - but I'm hammering big plugs or buzz baits until I can settle in.

I'm a spinning reel guy. My favorite is the Daiwa Tatula LT.

Another fellow Granite Stater here. Is it me or is the bite 100% on or off this year?! I'm new on the forum

I really like Venom tubes…50 packs of each ?‍♂️Just got the melon/chartreuse and GP/purple in Tuesday.

I'll be trying straight mono on the spinning setup to see how that does me. Curious to know if I just don't know how to hookset and work a fish with such a fast rod. It's ALL tip.

I get ya. I land the vast majority of them on the TFO mod-fast rod so I think my hook set is fine as I'm not setting any less with the xtra fast St. Croix. It's just that when they fight or jump they seem to shake it easier with the St. Croix. I really don't know what a quality guide is versus a substandard. I have an Avid X in a casting rod I run with mono for most moving baits and have had few issues. The spinning rod with braid to leader (my tube rod) is where I'm losing them. What should I watch for on the guides?

Ahh yes...both are Medium power. The TFO is 7' and the Avid X is 6' 8".

Hey all. New here so forgive me if this topic has been beaten to death already. I'm newer (4-5 years) to bass specific angling and really paying attention to rod actions and specific presentations. I've noticed (and would like to know if this is true because I'm a newby, true in general, or if it's just me) that mod-fast rods with braid to a leader pair VERY nicely for catch rate VS fast/xtra fast rods with braid to leader. I found TFO rods a couple of years ago and really enjoy their Professional series. I wanted to try moving into a better quality rod and found St. Croix's Avid X series at a local shop. I fish tubes a lot so throwing a tube on either rod with braid to leader was my litmus test. I lose quite a few fish on the St. Croix (xtra fast) and land the overwhelming majority with my TFO (mod-fast). I don't do much buying online and am pretty fortunate to have a local shop that carries these two companies (though it seems they stopped with TFO now). I've yet to try throwing straight mono on the St. Croix to see if I need more "give" in the setup to land them. Am I cooking with heat here or just stirring a cold pot? Jon