MediumMouthBass

Weightless texas rigs weigh more than most people think, i mainly fish the weightless stuff on my Tatula CT with 10lb YZH on a MH/Fast rod, which is a bit too much rod and line for that type of bait. But i have fished weightless flukes and senkos, then went to fish a 1/2oz lure on it without changing a thing. I keep spool tension and brakes set the same for most of my Tatula reels and it really doesnt matter if im fishing a weightless t rig or a 1/2oz lure, same settings and it casts far with no backlashes. But some of my other reels can be more difficult and need to be tuned to the exact bait being thrown right then, so for those reels a medium rod or one that is moderate fast would have enough give to slowly let the bait load the rod up, and those rods also would probably match the baits weight better than a medium heavy. Also 8lb-10lb line depending on the reels tolerances (some reels can get smaller lines stuck in the sides), or 30lb braid. For the reels that i have to set to the exact bait, i keep the spool tension just so the bait slowly falls and tend to go a bit higher in braking than usual.

@newbiewannabe are you talking about Cowanesque Lake? Near the PA/NY border with Hammond Lake and Tioga reservoir within a few miles?

Some people use tungsten weights for everything because they like how sensitive it is, but if you have a good rod and use braided line lead works good enough. I personally dont use tungsten in the lighter weights because of its higher costs, however i will use tungsten when im punching 1/2oz or heavier through grass/lily pads (only because it has a much smaller profile then the lead alternative). Any weight from 1/8-3/8oz is very multi purpose, with 1/16oz or lighter being for very shallow water or a extremely slow fall. and 1/2oz or above for fishing deep waters or flipping/pitching for most lakes and ponds. 3/4oz and above for punching heavy grass lakes or if your bass just like a super fast rate of fall.

I recently got a Garmin Striker Vivid 5" CV and its IPX7 water rated (so it can withstand getting some water on it or be submerged for a certain amount of time at a certain depth). Heres a little story and then my question, at the main lake i fish i have to go from the boat launch to the other side of the lake. I cant go right through the middle because of how many people on jet skis and speed boats use that area. So i stick to the no wake zone that follows the edge of the lake, but many times these guys on the jet skis and boats go very fast in the no wake zones and come right towards you, they sometimes even go the wrong direction (even at very high speeds). So i am usually having to paddle as fast as i can to avoid them, and when doing that my kayak and everything on it get soaked. And i mean soaked, every area of it gets extremely wet from the paddle throwing the water forward. I found the area i want to put the fish finder where it wont interfere with my paddle or casting rods, but still anywhere i can put it will get an extreme amount of water on it. I did some research on the water proof rating and yes it can withstand water for some time, but this is my first fish finder and i had to spend alot of money on it and want to do what i can to make sure it lasts a long time. (And just because it can withstand certain amounts of water doesnt mean it should for a prolonged period). So to those of you who have any Garmin Strikers or another brand with the same rating on a kayak, how much water splashing on it can they actually withstand for long periods of time? or do you put a bag or something waterproof over it when you are going to be in rain, rough conditions, or like me and paddling fast. I appreciate any advice or comments, thanks.

Have any of you tipped the Johnson Silver Minnow spoon with a live minnow? (or a gulp minnow just for the scent) this technique works good in my lakes for pike, think it would be good for bass too.

The 3 steps you took will help you with the hookset and if the fish go into the lily pads, but you need something to help during the fight (the fish jumping to be more specific). Ive had better success with keeping jumping fish hooked by using a Moderate/Moderate Fast rod depending on what lures im using, this isnt for everyone but works for me for some of those fish. Also a fast reel (7 or an 8 gear ratio) to pick up that line when the fish jumps, i lost a smallmouth yesterday because i didnt reel up the slack quick enough when it jumped.

They replaced it with the Max X, but some places still sell the Black Max's they have left in stock.

DSG isnt a kayaking shop, they are a shop that sells kayaks. The people working there dont know much about most of the things they sell. The one time in the fishing department i asked one of the employees where the Dobyns Fury casting rods were, he gave me a spinning rod and when i said no, i need the casting rod he told me the spinning rod will work good with a baitcasting reel. So you're done shopping their because they wont give you a refund on a kayak that you drilled holes into? (To a manufacture or a business like DSG you basically destroyed the product) really nothing either company could do or should do. Its not a defective product. This is why several people always recommend starting out with the kayak completely stock, then if it works for you modify it. If you really dislike the kayak put it for sale, you could probably get 80-90% of the price you paid for it back. Then do research and buy one you would be happy with.

To me they are both great reels of high quality, but the only thing i could think of that would make the Fuego CT feel cheaper is the paint. The Tatula CT definetly has a nicer finish on it, and since i have so many Aird X rods the Tatula matches the same color on some parts of the rod.

Thank you to those who gave me some good information, i appreciate it. I will try giving the smaller finesse stuff a try with what ive got now, i usually throw big baits but this year the fishings just not the same, the lakes i fish are under an extreme amount of pressure so maybe the more finesse stuff will work good. I know the actual BFS gear will do a much better job (whether it be casting distance, line control, etc), but my allocated funds for fishing this year are beyond exhausted so next year i plan to get a real BFS setup.

Congrats on your reel! I also just opened up my Zillion box the other day, its much smaller than my other reels and not sure what its purpose will be yet. What do you plan on using your Zillion for?

Some of the lakes and ponds near me have more grass in them than water. Im serious about that, a few of my favorite lakes/ponds arent fishable currently due to a complete grass take over, so most of my fishing is done in grassy/weedy areas. Topwaters (you already have) are great options not sure what ones you have but a popper, plopper, spook, and a frog. Maybe some wakebaits too. Depending on how the grass is at that place bladed jigs are good to rip out of the grass, but definetly a swim jig if its more of a pressured body of water. You said you have lipless crankbaits, well my biggest bass ive caught came from ripping one out of a grassy pond so thats something to think about taking with you to use. T rigged big worms (10" or larger ribbon tails to be exact) 1/8oz weight fished slow on the bottom, sometimes the grass gets stuck on the weight but just pull it off if it happens. Wacky worms as well as senkos (weightless or weighted t rig).

Ive said it several times on here i think BFS is really cool and i think it might help catch more bass in the high pressured waters i fish on slower days. I dont have tons of money to spend on it so i thought maybe the same lures would work on my spinning gear and made this post to ask if anyone on here did it and if it works for so many people using actually BFS gear why wouldnt more people use the same lures on their gear that they already have? You think the lures have nothing to do with BFS only the reel does? I know you BFS guys take this stuff very seriously, sorry if i offended you with just asking about trying out something that works for other people

This forum has tons of very good information but the Bass Resource youtube channel has alot of good videos too. But are you sure the fish finder is actually showing fish? Idk what that fish finder you have is but i went on a 6 hour + trip a month or 2 ago and we thought we had hundreds of fish under us the whole day, but only caught a few. Learned a few weeks later that arches dont always mean fish, could be air bubbles among other things in the water, picked up a new garmin after that with the 2d on one side and the clearvu on the other and this shows how inaccurate arches we think are fish, well arent fish.

Yamamoto has more colors and also a faster sink rate, but i dont think the fish care what brand or that you payed a premium price for a bait. So the Yums work great (especially for the price) and if you want them to fall faster then put a nail weight in it. The Strike King Ocho is also a great option if you can get them on sale.

@casts_by_fly that was exactly what i was asking, i know some people do use it on spinning gear but it doesnt seem like a large portion of anglers do (or atleast not many talk about it), which is odd since it could be a good option on a day with tough conditions or in high pressured waters.

They are really good craws for the money, in my experience they provided so much action you could feel them vibrate when reeling in faster. Also they make them in PB&J so theres a plus. Idk about weightless but maybe try a 1/16oz.

I dont have it either, cant justify the cost right now. But seems fun so why not utilize it more using spinning gear.

@TnRiver46 ??

They sell alot of their Mach series, suprisingly. They market them to target new people to fishing, give them some bright colors and make them cool, the people go on youtube and have dozens of people talk about how "everyone in tournaments uses them and they are great, worth atleast twice the cost" they then go to the store and buy them. (not knowing they can get more for less, but they are extremely over hyped)

I know, i know theres been 50 posts this week about BFS rods and reels. Like the title says this isnt exactly about that, well it kind of is but isnt. Alot of you have either gotten into BFS or are thinking about it, it seems really cool to cast such light and small lures with baitcasters and alot of you are catching good bass on them too. Now this isnt a BFS vs non BFS argument im just curious about something. Using ultra finesse, finesse baits for spinning gear? Same/similar baits and lures but on spinning gear (since BFS isnt in everyones budget). Ned rigs, small paddle tails, tube jigs, and the drop shot are usually the smallest/finesse type of baits we use for bass with spinning gear, but why not throw those smaller and lighter BFS baits on them? The guys using BFS seem to be having success with quality/quantity since well its not a overly used bait for bass in most lakes/ponds and therefor should work great in high pressured waters. I think we are severely under utilizing these type of lures and baits on our spinning gear (for those of use who dont have BFS gear that is). I know the rods for BFS arent comparable to a UL spinning rod because they are actually designed for bass fishing, but there are several companies and rods that have lighter spinning rods that would hold up very good for bass, so to those of you who dont have BFS gear or cant justify the extreme prices of getting into it maybe we should give this a try? Maybe some of you are already doing this with your spinning gear, and if so please comment about your fish catches with using it, and also give some recommendations on the rods that would work well for this along with the baits and lures that work for you. (To the BFS guys i know your specifically BFS made expensive rods and reels will do a better job of casting these lighter baits but its not in everyones budget like i said a few sentences above, but the whole reason for BFS is more about fishing for bass using very small and light finesse baits, not about which type of rod or reel you use correct?) (To moderators i put this in Tackle because even tho this is talking about BFS for spinning gear its more about using the BFS lures and baits so therefor tackle).

I have fished several different types of lines so far since i started fishing, heres my opinion on what ive learned. Fluorocarbon isnt good as a mainline, without taking proper care of it it becomes a mess. And it gets very expensive when you are respooling frequently after cutting the line and breaking line (The budget fluoro usually isnt good so to get the better stuff it gets more expensive, and replacing it over and over again starts getting expensive). Braid mainline and a Fluorocarbon leader this works great if you can get your knot small enough that it wont interfere with the reel (if it has a TWS) or the rod. You can also cut the FC leader off and use the braid for frogging/fishing lily pads. But you will always have to bring extra leader matieral with you, and it takes time to retie the leader every 30 minutes. Hybrid/Copolymer this is my favorite line to use if using it for a mainline, it has the best of Mono and Fluoro but without the mess or the high costs. Works good for fishing bottom baits and also moving baits.

All the Mach series are graphite frames and more expensive then the other models with better components, i thought the Mach stuff was cool and i wanted to buy the Mach 2 combo for awhile. Went to a local store and they had it on sale, picked it up and then put it back on the rack, i now know what all the people in the reviews on several different websites were talking about. The rod was made like it could snap just by throwing a weightless fluke. The reel felt cheaper than my Abu Black Max. (If you check the reviews the rods are some of the weakest on the market with how many of them break). These combos are super hyped up by their youtube "influencers", after this it made me not want to buy Lews, because i couldve bought a great reel from Daiwa or Shimano for the same price or a couple dollars less. But since then i gave Lews another try and bought several of their better made rods/reels totaling over $1000, my mind has now changed 100% and they are now my 3rd favorite brand (behind Daiwa and Shimano). Their BB1 Pro is an amazing reel for the money and one of my favorites (in between my Zillion and SLX MGL 70). The BB1 Pro is only a bit more than the Mach's btw. But its ridiculous the price they charge for anything with the Mach name on it, cheap rods/reels without quality or durability but sold at a insane price because of how many guys on youtube claim its the best combo ever made. You could get a really nice Lews combo with good components, quality/durability and an aluminum framed reel that has great reviews for the same price (or around $20 over/under).

I talked to the guy at my local kayak/tackle shop the other day, he has lots of knowledge about kayaking. Dont know how true this is but he told me a wider kayak doesnt always make it more stable he said the hull design is what makes it more/less stable.

You cant call them, youll have to buy the matching reel that has tech support built in.