BassinBrett

I can’t imagine how someone on BR would portage the Range bass boat into the lake you go to! 😜 The picture are so so but what an amazing day for you! Maybe I will head north next year.

If I go fishing on Friday I could be an extreme angler too. It is going to be -22 degrees here. I normally don’t go when it is much below freezing. It is not worth the trouble. I did go fishing once in AZ when it was 114 out. I got to the lake at 3 or 4 in the afternoon and fishing to midnight. It never really cooled off. I also found out lake humidity makes it feel worse.

I had a few failures with the Alberto knot and so made up my mind to tie the FG knot. I found that you need a way to have consistent tension on the braided line. So I got some help from gravity. I use a smaller size spring clamp from the hardware store clamped to the tag end of the braid. I put my rod in a rod holder behind my kayak seat and adjusted the clamp so it dangles a foot or so below my chin. That puts the line at face level which helps with bad eyes. I found it easier to tie the FG knot with the line come down over my back as well. I hope this helps.

I like a full grip. I have one rod with a split grip that I bought because it was on sale. It would be a much better rod if it were a full grip. Split grip are uncomfortable to cast two handed. I now make my own rods and they are all full grips.

With the right tools and some practice I got pretty good at tying the FG knot. I think it is the best knot for braid to leader connections. I like that leader tag end is pointed towards the braided line as I have had issues with tag end tangling with the Alberto Knot. If you want to tie the FG knot get your self a small hardware clamp for the braid tag end tension. Tools

I have a very similar kit minus the rod and have been using it for a few years. They work really well. Buyer beware!! The start up cost are low but after you order 12 blanks and guides the cost go up quickly! Also check out North Fork Composite for blanks.

Seemed too good to be true.

Has anyone used cooper custom reel handles? Any good or bad points to know about? If you have a reel handle form them how do you like it?

I like less stuff on my kayak. I only run a helix 7 and DI only. But if you wanted FFS it makes sense to have a dedicated screen. I have seen a few boats with way too many screens. I thought to my myself they should have gotten a bigger boat.

I learned changing batteries sucks. I got a power bank now so hopefully I can film all day with out changing batteries.

@Darth-Baiter first off Idaho is beautiful country. Secondly Dworshak Reservoir has massive smallmouth. There are lot of other fisheries too but I don’t have enough time for them all.

Welcome! I have been happy with the old model ST Croix Avids. I would look a ST Croix victory or avid lines. I have move on to making my own rods with North Fork Composite blanks now but St. Croix makes hood rods.

I like to use my shiny new combs and like to get a fish on them. I may not use them the whole day but a will give them extra time.

I have been ice fishing a few times. Bring lots of beer and a BBQ. I when ice fishing once sober and it was awful. Remember safety is important too.

I am lucky she is a good sport about the whole thing. It is funny. I have 2 weeks to fish in Idaho. Dworshak reservoir and Cascade lake are on the list. I feel like a should add another lake but can’t decide which one. Maybe Prisst Lake? Any ideas?

More crankbaits than I will ever need in a day.

Reaction Innovations Double Wide Beaver 5.20

Three or for years ago I asked my wife ( pronounced “High Command”) can I take 2 weeks off and go fishing in Idaho in 2026. She said sure. I have been explaining all of the details of the trip and planning it for years. I have saved up PTO and bought a new Vehicle to tow the boat. I have talked about this trip a few times ( hundreds) but I am sure sure the glazed over look in her eyes means she might not listen as well as maybe she wanted too. Well today I made a reservation for my campsite for 2 weeks. My wife was like wait you are going to be gone two weeks! it is kinda fun watching my wife recall in her mind all the times she said sure that sound good!

I have the Megabass Z crankbaits and they cast great!

I have been fishing the Mississippi River north of the twin cities since August with my kayak and Torqeedo travel ultralight. It is supposed to be a 6 horse motor. I can run up the Mississippi for 2 or 3 mile and still have 50% batteries. I could maybe go further if I was more conservative with the throttle. Depending on the flow I can go about 3 miles an hour up stream for short bursts. I do some times pull the motor up and paddle if the river is too shallow. I thing the fluxjet will be awesome but I also don’t want to be the first guy to try it. i would like to know the real world fully load speed up stream it can do.

I have both a kayak and a boat. I like to fish out of the kayak it is fun. I fish because I think fishing is fun. I put a Torqeedo motor on my kayak so I could go up dive on the Mississippi. I would never take my V hull Lund on the river. Also MN has a lot of little lakes and the kayak work well in them. the other side is Mille Lac lake and the boat is way better! kayaks and boats are tools there is a best fit for each tool.

I have build 6 or six BFS rods. They have all turned out really nice. I use two Curado reels with them. I built mostly on NFC blank. None of the have been truly ultralight blanks. NFC P700 is the lightest power and it is more like a light power rod. Trying all of these rods are okay as casting rods. But they are not as good as a spinning rod for finesse setups. I may change out the spool on the Curados to help out. But they are still difficult to cast light lures around 1/8 once. I use both spinning rods and bfs setups but spinning is far better for finesse fishing. BFS performs poorly if there is any wind or if you need casting distance and if you need the bait to free fall.

So I am not very good with a bait caster setup. But I have learned a few things here about casting. Here are some points I would make to help you decide. First off spinning is easier to perform well with if you use braided line. You get less line twist issues and more distance. So you should use your spinning rod when condition are less than ideal. Make sure you have a spinning rod that will cover all your techniques. I have spinning rod from ultra light to heavy. Currently I use a NFC 736 MB I built as a spinning rod. I use it when I need heavier baits to go into the wind or a long ways. Same goes for finesse technique like the Ned rig. I think casting gear has some advantages if you need to make cast quickly and accurately. Casting just takes less time fire off a cast than spinning. When I am drifting in the kayak I need to make a lot of fast cast before the current take me away. I would up the weight of your lures if I were you. Or build your casting setup around the lighter lures. I think a lot of the guys on Bass Resources are super good with a bait caster and lighter lures are okay for them but you and I might benefit from more mass when casting. Medium light casting rods are available but hard to find. I like the St Croix premiere 7’ medium light casting rod for cast weights under a 1/2 once. hope that helps

I am not a big yearly goal guy. But I came up with a few. 1. New PB smallmouth bass. I need one longer than 21.5 inches. 2. Use more of the lures I actually have. I have many lures that have never been wet. 3. Explore more waters. Between the kayak and boat I should be able get on some new water. 4. Hide from the bait monkey.

I went to the Mississippi River on Monday because it looks like that was the last nice day of 2025. Sunday would have been better but I work weekend sometimes. I used a NFC P700 I built earlier this year as a bFS setup. I ended up catching 10 or 20 smallmouth but all were 12 inches or less. Still fun.