Bucks Bass and Bourbon

Well NRX it is. Shipped today. One thing I just don’t do (and for absolutely no good reason) is fish jerkbaits so I’m looking forward to giving them a try with the same rod. Thanks again for the feedback.

Definitely make sure the trailer you’re pairing with your CB isn’t restricting the function of the blade. For smallmouth I like to downsize to the bladed jig mini max but I noticed when I had a trailer that was too big I wasn’t getting the chatter on the retrieve. You should be able to feel the constant vibration from the blade as you reel or rip the bait. For that specific lure I like to pair it with one of the smaller hog farmer spunk shads (a pin tail style trailer) and that works really well. Had a nice smallmouth almost rip the rod out of my hand using it which is proof enough for me. I also only use either the Zman bladed jig or strike king thunder cricket. Those are the only two I know for certain start vibrating immediately upon initiating the return either with the reel or hopping it like a jig. A lot of other varieties have a reputation for lagging before they start vibrating which is a show stopper for me. It needs to start working immediately and I stick with what I know works. I’m sure by now there are others that work well too but I’m not going to play around with a bunch to find out.

Excellent feedback, thank you. I feel your pain on the hook keeper. My go-to utility rod line (like my current bladed jig rod) is the Expride series in both casting and spinning rods. Same issue with those. I’ve grabbed the hook more times than I can count on those rods. I use the Cal Coast Cali Clips above the rod when they fit for that exact reason. I’ll keep the NRX+ at the top of the list until I learn something that changes my mind. I have a pretty solid stable of rods for just about every technique - some mid to high end, some not so much - and a few others that swap duties based on the day. I just sold my old spinnerbait rod and moved up to the IMX Pro SBR, and while I only have a couple outings with it, I’m very happy with it. I have either a bladed jig or a swim jig tied on at all times so having a rod specific to those two techniques is non-negotiable now. Thanks again for the practical feedback.

I'm looking for opinions from guys (and gals) who have experience with either or both of the NRX and new GLX BJRs. I currently use the Expride 7'3" MH/F composite solely for bladed jigs and swim jigs and even tho that is an excellent rod, especially for the price point, I'm looking to upgrade. I don't really care about the price difference since I've garage sale'd enough to cover the cost of either of them. I just want to go with the one that will work best for me. Slowly but surely my gear is getting more and more tailored to presentations and techniques, and bladed jigs are next up. I don't typically rip a lot of heavy cover with chatterbaits and typically throw the 3/8 oz versions, although I do go up to 1/2 when necessary. I seem to have the most success ticking the weed tops and edge lines. The Expride has a pretty parabolic bend to it and my hookup ratio with that rod was excellent, so for that reason it seems like the NRX+ fits the bill a little better, but nonetheless I am interested in anyone's findings. And with all do respect, I know there are a lot of very good options from other brands out there but I'm only looking at these two right now. Not trying to go down any more rabbit holes researching five or six more rods. Thanks in advance.

Well let’s not rule anything out 😂

Hey guys, I have an opportunity to get over to Grand Traverse Bay the weekend after next. Weather permitting I’m going to go after some smallmouth starting early morning until I decide I’ve had enough. I have never fished there before and could use a little general advice on how to get started. Given the clear water I’m thinking natural color dropshots, smaller swim baits and underspins, and some goby imitators in 20-30 FOW where I can find structure. Am I way off on that? Thanks in advance.

If the weather cooperates enough to make it worth it I will happily drive two hours to St Clair. Grand Traverse Bay is on my list and that’s about three hours so I don’t plan to do that until I can make it at least one overnight. Another set of lakes to the north of me is about two. That’s very manageable for me and I’ve done a couple early morning day trips up there for it.

Wow congratulations on a heck of a day and a monster fish. Everything is pointing me to GTB lately and I haven’t had a chance to get there! Soon…

Just saw this post and am interested in how you did. I live in Lansing and am trying to get up there one of the next few weekends now that I will finally have the opportunity. July and August will be very different from the spawn but I’d love to finally get up there after some smallies in summer and into fall. I enjoy fishing a little deeper water structure anyway if I can find some.

Well, I am learning the same thing. One of the first things to understand is that LM and SM are not the same fish and often must be approached differently. Yes there are places where you can catch them both, but to target smallies you have to think differently than targeting largemouth. *Generally speaking* look for cleaner water, hard bottom, current breaks, and understand that smallies may roam more than you’re accustomed to largemouth doing. They’ll often be found in deeper water as well. We have the Grand River here in Michigan where you can find good populations of both species but more often than not you will find them in different sections of the river depending on what the water is like in a given area. I’m a million miles away from being a smallmouth expert but those are a few of the points I’ve learned the last couple years.

Well to close the loop on this one, I hooked a lure around some mesh in my backyard and walked the line all the way out to almost the end of the spool then kept the line very tight as I reeled it back in. Took it out to a local pond yesterday to make a bunch of test casts and the problem is seemingly solved. It was a calm night so I guess the issue could pop back up on the next windy day, but it was calm when the issues started so I’m guessing the original problem was the line not spooled tightly enough. Lesson learned. I make it a habit to run my newly spooled baitcasters all the way out and reel them back in with tension to avoid problems so I’ll make it a habit to do the same with my spinning reels.

Well I used the same braid as two other reels (same spool even) and I always use the same line spooling tool without any issues. It’s possible I over filled it so before I rip it all off I’ll run all the line out and try reeling it in again. Hopefully that fixes it. Such a weird issue.

Thanks for the replies. To answer some of the questions, the line is 10lb braid to an 8lb fluoro leader. The lure was a 3/16 underspin or jig head with a 2.75” trailer with the same rod and reel as I always use for that setup. The line started knotting on itself immediately upon spooling it up, within five casts. I cut the line where a knot was hopeless and retied the leader and yesterday on the water it immediately started happening again. I’m going to tie the line to something and walk it out as far as I can the reel it in and see if it keeps happening. If it does I have to spool it again.

I recently re-spooled a few of my spinning reels with braided line and one of them keeps getting knots in the line. Today it was every cast and the last cast got two. I have to assume I did something wrong when I spooled it up. Can someone tell me what’s going on so I can avoid it when I spool it up again? Thank you!

I have read some informative articles on this topic lately, specifically regarding bass. I wish I could find them so I could link them. Something to consider is how varied a body of water can be from the next and how different the circumstances for a given population can be. There is definitely a stigma in the bass fishing community that seems to shame and ridicule anglers for keeping a catch based on the blanket belief that without catch and release the quality of the fishery will decline. That is simply not true. An overpopulated fishery is harmful to the quality of fish as well. Stunted growth and other harmful impacts begin to show themselves. A fishery that is struggling to repopulate of course benefits from catch and release but that is not a universal rule.