Brian11719

I like the swamp lord in black or mf bluegill...which is basically a white bottom with an orange spot near the head.

Fair amount of daiwa and st croix stuff at 30% off at tackledirect O.O

https://6thsensefishing.com/collections/crush-series-squarebills/products/crush-series-shad-burst ^ they do have some colors w/ the 'xtra rattle' https://6thsensefishing.com/collections/crush-series-squarebills/products/crush-series-wild-shad ^ others don't the faint rattle is the one I've been using and it's worked well for me (even when the water isn't as clear)

I actually like the crush 100...bit bigger profile so you get a little more drawing power that way...plus it's 5/8oz which I usually end up getting a significant amount of more casting distance with vs the 3/8oz model.

The 705CB is a mod fast action...similar to their other crankbait rods. Some people think moderate action is the best for a bladed jig. Others say it's fast. Ultimately it comes down to preference but in my case I've found a moderate fast action does well in terms of keeping them pinned but still having enough to drive the single hook through and rip through grass. I actually own a KD 735CB and a DC 736CB GLASS. While I use the 736 as my primary rod, in the 735CB also does very well as a bladed jig rod especially with lures that are just a little lighter. Not going to try and convince you why any action is better for a bladed jig than another (there's plenty of info on the subject out there), but if you look at the Evergreen Combat Sticks that were designed by Brett Hite they also have a more moderate action...

Since we are doing trailer pics I'd argue the 3" zakos were a good fit w/ the original ones

Staying in the Fury series: FR 705CB - crankbaits and a bladed jig (I'd use a 3/8oz bladed jig instead of a 1/2oz since a 1/2oz evo or thundercricket w/ a trailer is just short of an ounce while you can get away with it using a 3/8oz would probably help a bit). FR 734C - jig rod...could also go with the 7' model if you want. FR 702SF - a drop shot / shakey head seems like it would work. Having said that you can pick similar sizes / lure ratings and go with different rods and IMO it might be worth paying a little more for the finesse rod. Not sure what your budget is but I personally like the Poison Adrenas the best in terms of bang for the buck...but even going up to the Sierra series for the second spinning rod would be a noticeable improvement over the Fury series.

Almost gave in when I saw the email but told myself I need to use the couple of mini maxs I haven't even opened yet before I pick one up. My willpower seems to be holding so far but if they do another 20% off sale all bets will most likely be off.

Looks like I beat Glenn to posting this video: Pretty much spot on IMHO and 4 is what I take in my kayak although I could fit 5 if I really wanted to... Since you already have a couple of Dobyns rods I'll throw in what I'd do if it were me. KD735CB - all purpose crankbait rod...great for a lipless and can also throw a topwater walking bait like a spook or a bladed jig with it. KD745C - good for frogs, pitching and flipping, spinnerbaits and small swimbaits. If you want to pick up a fifth one I'd suggest 1 of 2 routes depending on what you tend to throw more. If you want to get into punching or heavier swimbaits you could get something like a KD735FLIP and use that for a punching rod or throw heavier single hook swimbaits like a 6" magdraft freestyle with an owner beast in it. On the other hand if you like trebles more instead of the KD735CB you could go with a 6104CB and use that for smaller stuff like jerkbaits, squarebills and poppers and then go up to a DC736CB for bladed jigs and medium - deep crankbaits. No reason to stick to all Dobyns I just used these as an example because I'm familiar with them all (and own most of them). A third option for the fifth rod would be a second spinning rod if you find yourself throwing a lot of finesse stuff.

If it were me I'd go with the Sam Sobi 724c on their website over the Fury. Same price since it's on sale right now but it's basically a Kaden blank from what I've read which is a noticeable step up from the Fury line...

Do you have any more details on why you want a moderate rod for this? Generally speaking they have rods with stinger tips for this type of thing and most of them are fast or extra fast so just wondering why you are considering a moderate action rod. Having said that if it were me I'd probably go with one of the new Adrenas or an Expride for a strolling rod but it's hard to say in this case. Is there a specific lure or lures that you are looking to throw?

I have not tried an SLX but recently picked up a Curado 200 and a Tatula 100. The Curado is ok and as good or maybe a little better than the previous favorite in my lineup (Lews Tournament Pro) but the Tatula 100 is already my new favorite reel...by far. The handle and the brake dial are both a little too small IMO but aside from that it's been perfect. To be fair the Tournament Pro came out several years before the latest gen Curado or Tatula and it should be interesting to see what they replace it with if / when that happens, but at this point I'm leaning heavily towards the Tatula line for future reels. Hopefully they will make a bigger brake dial and increase the size of the handle a bit at some point if not I can live with it (or just replace the handle). I still like Shimano the best for spinning reels, but it's looking like Daiwa might have converted me for casting setups.

I personally don't. A senko with a 1/0 hook in it usually comes out to about .35oz and generally speaking I don't like to throw anything less than 1/2oz on a casting setup. I also like a senko or a fluke around docks and with a spinning rod you don't need to worry about hitting the dock and dealing with a backlash.

+1 for this ^ suggestion for Dobyns. They also have a similar model in the Kaden line if you want a faster action but I prefer the Sierra line for spinning rods and you can usually find them on sale at some point and get the price down to below $150 and the difference between these lines and the Fury is worth it IMHO. Right now in terms of bang for the buck my favorite line for a spinning rod is the Poison Adrena series since I don't like foregrips. That will cost more but there is a significant step up in terms of sensitivity and I really like the handles and overall feel of them. If you want to stick to that price range and prefer a rod that isn't a foregrip, then I would recommend the Sierra line. On that note it might be a good time to take a look at how you actually prefer to hold a spinning rod as I've seen a few people buy one based on advice / internet videos only to find out they prefer a different style grip. And since it's your first one it might also be worth going to a local store and holding a few different ones since you can get a better feel for the different options out there than you can by just looking at pictures, reading articles or watching videos online. I haven't used it but the Falcon Lowrider also seems like a good rod and either the medium or medium heavy looks like it would also work. Interestingly enough that one also has a foregrip and the handle is above the reel so again in your case it might be best to try holding a few in person if at all possible.

Congrats @Chris at Tech I'm actually in a very similar boat as I also gone one a little while ago and paired it w/ a Tatula 100 and it's already one of my favorite rigs. This one is actually the 3rd Dobyns crankbait rod I own and I throw a bladed jig a lot, but aside from that I also like it for crankbaits in the 1oz range...in my case a few specific examples would be a 6th Sense Cloud 9 C15 or a Strike King 6XD Elite or a Rapala DT20...you could also probably get away with a Berkley Dredger 25.5 on this one if you wanted to get down a little deeper... But that said I really like this one for 1/2oz Evos and Thundercrickets with a Spunk Shad or a Zako as a trailer.

+1 for owner x strongs and if it helps here's the chart I got of their website a while back that I use for swapping them out: I usually swap them out if I'm in my kayak...probably wouldn't if I was going to fish in a tournament but that doesn't happen very often. FWIW most of the treble lures I get are around 4 (small) or 1 (big) so I usually just go with size 1 for smaller single hooks, or 2/0 for larger single hooks. No real difference in hookup percentage that I've noticed aside from the ones that just slap at it and end up getting fouled.

The 3-5 foot range seems to be the most saturated market in terms of different options that are out there so I don't know that you are going to get an easy consensus like you would for say a 1/2oz bladed jig...in my case I like strike king and 6th sense in this range...lucky craft is also good and fwiw not all their squarebill crankbaits are silent and I actually prefer the ones that aren't since I tend to throw these in a huge lake with a lot of background noise...the bill lewis 2.5 atv also looks good but I haven't actually tried one of those.

Mine seems to be purchasing bass fishing tackle...although sometimes I do get a chance to go out and actually fish for bass with some of it...

Haven't used this one but I got the VTC72HM on the ALF sale a while back and ended up selling it. Awesome lipless crankbait rod but I had gotten it for a bladed jig and for that I personally found the action to be too moderate. Great quality rod but ended up landing on a couple of Dobyns rods that I like more for those type of lures. Still own 2 in the Victory line (7'3 MHF and the 7'4 HF) and love those. Ultimately from doing that I learned I like St. Croix fast action rods but for crankbaits and bladed jig type stuff I personally prefer the action in the Dobyns Kaden / Champ XP lines. Also had 0 issues selling it on FB marketplace for just about what I paid so getting to try it was worth the 'rental fee' IMHO. A lot of this comes down to preference though and if you like more of a moderate action you could end up liking it...for me I've learned that I personally like mod fast or just fast action rods and don't really like moderate or extra fast action...although ironically I really like St. Croix's take on extra fast but that's a different conversation...I imagine the medium heavy moderate would be about the same experience for me. ^ also for this the chart on their site shows they suggest a few lures for it (although I'm not sure what a spin head is): https://stcroixrods.com/pages/st-croix-rod-victory-technique-chart but if it were me I'd be using something like this for a lipless crankbait over a bladed jig and if I was throwing a bladed jig I'd probably be using straight braid w/ this rod. As an aside I also prefer / use the MH F and H F rods for spinnerbaits...but again I tend to like a faster action and those rods are already a little softer than a fast action rod from a different company.

Based on what you described I'd actually be looking at 30lb sufix 832 to a 10lb yo-zuri hybrid leader. If you want to spend more on the leader material you could look at something like 12lb sunline fc leader. Would go with the improved alberto knot that was suggested to me a while back on this forum to tie the two together: I go down to 20lb sufix with an 8lb yo-zuri hybrid leader sometimes in similar circumstances but if it were me I'd probably start with 30lb braid...but if you wanted something that breaks off a little easier the 20lb setup might also be a good option. FWIW sufix 832 diameter: 20lb => .009 30lb => .011 and yo-zuri hybrid diameter: 8lb => .011 10lb => .012 ^ so even then the braid is higher but these two line up / tie together pretty well...I used to break off a lot on my alberto knots until I tried the 'improved' bit...since then this has been a pretty good setup. The advantage that with going to a more expensive leader line is you get more lb test for less diameter so as an example that 12lb sunline fc leader is also .011 but notice you get an extra 2lbs of test and if you happen to be fishing something you want to get down deeper like a deep crank or targeting giant fish the fluorocarbon would help otherwise if you are fishing topwater or don't care (which I probably wouldn't in that spillway) a copoly line should be fine.

I like a 7' dobyns sierra for mag flukes and similar lures. Weight on it comes out to just under 1oz (same as a mag ultravibe and an ol monster comes out a little less than that) so a 704 is what I've been using and I've been happy with it as it still has some sensitivity but also gets the job done if there's grass around. You could probably get the same rod in a casting version if you prefer a baitcaster but I personally prefer a spinning rod for flukes.

Shimano Vanford, Stradic or Ultegra...2500 or maybe 3000 size depending on how deep the water you are fishing gets. Sufix 832 braid (whatever color you prefer) to an 8lb yozuri hybrid leader. The 7'1" will do nicely for a wacky rig or a texas rig worm / craw or a shakey head or a fluke or a 3.8" keitech. The 7'3" will do nicely for a drop shot or a ned rig...as it turns out st croix makes the only xf action spinning rod that I like and in this case I think their mlxf blank (once you get into the mojos or above) is one of the best ones out there. I prefer the 6'10 but they are about the same and the longer one would be nice if you want to cast further.

Not sure I ever would...one of the things I like the most about bass fishing is trying different things out. Also at this point I probably wouldn't even be able to settle on one brand for a 6" straight tail worm...on one hand I like roboworms for a drop shot...but then I also like xzone deception worms for a shakey head...oh and I also really like a yamamoto sensei in og junebug...so yeah probably not going to be a thing for me anytime soon.

When I started out yes since I figured casting reels weren't worth the backlashes...years later don't really backlash much anymore and even if I do I can usually clean it up. Plus there are some rods like a heavier crankbait / swimbait / flipping / punching setup that I pretty much wouldn't recommend throwing on a spinning setup...even if you could technically get away with it chances are it isn't going to be ideal and your hand / arm might be sore after a bit... I'm actually in the 'both' camp. Own 5 spinning rods and 6 casting rods. Aside from a few exceptions anything over 1/2 oz gets thrown on a casting setup and lighter stuff gets thrown on a spinning setup...haven't gotten into BFS and not sure that I ever will but I do lean heavily towards finesse lures at several of the spots I fish at since they see a lot of traffic / pressure. If you aren't going to throw really heavy stuff you could look at a rod line like the Dobyns Sierra and get away with most things on a spinning rod, but my experience has been as long as it's 1/2 oz or over I don't have much of an issue throwing it on a casting setup...I suppose one exception would be around docks and in that case I prefer a heavier spinning setup sometimes since you don't have to worry about backlashes. ...also if you find yourself fishing in heavy wind...in that case a rod like the Sierra SA 704SF can really come in handy.

I prefer straight fluorocarbon on a casting setup for crankbaits. The lb test depends but I would say most 'not cheap' options out there are pretty good. A lot of people like sunline fc sniper...I personally like YGK G-Soul or Sufix Advance and McCoy Fluoro100 has also done well for me if you are looking for something a little less expensive. Having said that regardless of what brand or even what type of line you choose I would say the two things I would pay attention to are depth and abrasion. For example if I'm only throwing squarebills I don't know that going up a little higher in lb test is really going to make you lose much in terms of depth...but fair chance there are going to be more rocks, wood, etc. so a higher lb test might be better. Alternatively if you think you might get into medium or deep diving cranks at some point then there's a good chance the difference between 12lb and 15lb test will probably be a little more noticeable. Anyway...if I'm throwing a crankbait there are probably going to be zebra mussels around so for me it's usually 15lb test but I also get why a lot of other people typically use something like 12lb test. So my answer it depends on where you are and what you want to do. If you are going to go with fluoro I would also point out that there are some good options out there like McCoy that are a little less expensive, but there is a difference between 'less expensive' and 'cheap' and I'd personally stay away from the cheap stuff as it seems to get replaced quicker anyway so you don't really save much but you do get some bonus frustration thrown in if you go that route.