Brian11719

Now there's an ambitious fellow...this thread was actually a fun read and some of the pics still work although you seem to have to download them. I haven't seen this happen personally but one of my favorite lures is a zoom mag 2 and if you rig it so the 'j' of the hook lines up with the 'j' of the tail of the worm it looks like a baby snake swimming through the water. Pretty much my favorite worm to texas rig these days although I'll also still use an ultravibe speed worm sometimes.

I'm around a lot of grass so I like a shakey head and prefer one with a 4" hula stickz over a weedless ewg ned rig (or a smh or deception worm for a traditional shakey head). Similar thing with senkos I still like to throw them but a wacky rig gets hung up a lot so I've ended up going with the 3/0 owner twistlock. Actually read about throwing a senko with that hook from an old post on this forum and that's actually the hook Gary Yamamoto suggested for the senko a while back and it still works great for me. Also haven't gotten into the free rig...if I want to throw something like that it's probably going to be a drop shot or maybe a carolina rig or an unpegged texas rig depending on what I'm trying to accomplish.

First lure I caught a bass on and still one of my favorites to this day. I personally like a medium heavy fast action spinning rod for a fluke rod and currently have a Dobyns Sierra with an Ultegra reel. As far as lures go I'd echo what @IYAOYAS said and say that I like a bit of weight with a Zoom Super Fluke so in my case I like to use a 4/0 Gamakatsu Superline spring lock hook with a 1/16oz weight. This adds some weight, makes it easier to cast, and gives it a bit of a tube / spiral action and works well when bass are more active. You can also swap to a 4.3 Keitech with this same setup if you want to cover water a little faster. Sexy shad is a great color to start with for both lures. If you want a slower fall then I'm with @TOXIC and really like the Yamamoto DShad on a weightless 4/0 hook. This one is great when you are throwing it under docks or just want a slower presentation that acts more like a Senko. Big Bite baits also makes a good one similar to the DShad...I don't like their packaging as much but they do have one color that I prefer more when they are feeding on bluegill and I want to use a weightless hook. I've tried a lot of other brands but these are the ones I'd recommend. Also have a pack of OSP DoLive lures on the way but haven't used those yet so can't say whether or not I'd recommend using them. The Sakamata shad is another one that people seem to be going crazy about and I've had my eye on, but I've not used it yet and it seems a bit expensive to me. I'll probably end up trying it out at some point anyway but for now my main choices / recommendations would be the original Super Fluke or the DShad. Also looking forward to seeing if the DoLive is any good...

The reaction innovations little dipper is my favorite right now and green pumpkin watermelon does well around bluegill. Labrat is also a great color if you are around shad. Also ordered some of the micro citizens last weekend but they haven't arrived yet.

My Lew's TP1-Black. Have the 7'4 HF paired with a Speed Spool LFS and 50lb braid and it's definitely not the most expensive setup out there but I really like it for frogs and flipping, pitching and light punching. I also normally don't like wynn grips but in this case since I'm usually swinging for the fences on the hookset I actually like the grip. I even went and bought a 7'4 HF Victory and told myself I was going to replace this rod but ended up keeping both. Love the Victory for spinnerbaits and 5" swimbaits but prefer this one for frogs and texas rigged creature baits so kept both and one has a reel w/ braid on it and the other has a reel spooled w/ fluorocarbon. The new replacement one is ok and there are a couple of details about that one that are a bit better, but the blank is a little lower modulus so I'm glad I got this one when it was available as I was able to notice a bit of a difference when I picked up the newer one in the store.

^ this is why I don't even care about 'limited lifetime' warranties that say they'll replace it if it's their fault. I suspect these were fine years ago when integrity was still a thing but since most people / companies just seem to care about profit these days I suspect this is what happens a lot of the time when you try to return one and it wasn't your fault. I personally like warranties like Dobyns, Cashion, St. Croix that will replace the rod regardless and are upfront about their fees. On the other hand I'd also be open to a rod with no warranty whatsoever but would expect a lower price. But the ones with this type of warranty where the language is vague but people online are like 'I called and they fixed it for me' don't mean much to me as it's not guaranteed that you will get a similar experience. I've also been eyeing Stealth Stixx lately since some of their rods look nice. And in that case it's a limited lifetime but they will at least replace it for 50% and they are up front about it. I don't really damage a lot of rods so a replacement fee isn't too much of an issue for me anyway as long as they are upfront about what it's going to cost if it happens.

I like secret lures and dry creek...and zoom. The local DSG usually carries those although the color selection is less than what I would consider to be ideal.

I've never treated the flourocarbon on any of my casting reels, and don't prefer straight flouro on spinning setups. As long as you don't buy cheap stuff I'm betting it will be fine.

I like a 4.3" Keitech Swim Impact Fat OR a Lucky Craft LV 500...both for their versatility but for different reasons. In the case of the Keitech I can put it on a 4/0 1/16oz swimbait hook and cover water pretty quickly and then if I find a spot where I think I might want to slow down for a bit I can use the same hook and just swap over to a 5" fluke. On the other hand the LV 500 is nice because you can retrieve it anywhere in the water column or yoyo it off the bottom...so if you aren't sure where they are depth wise it can be a great one to start out with.

If I'm on a spinning reel for a standard size texas rig (eg. a mag 2 with a 3/16oz weight) I'd opt for something like 20lb suffix 832 with a 12lb sunline fc leader. .009 diameter for the braid and .011 diameter for the leader has proven to be good for me and as long as you aren't using a cheap leader in most cases you should be ok...on the other hand if I was using a casting rod I'd just throw straight fluorocarbon...personally like YGK G-Soul or Spro Gouken currently.

Heddon One Knocker Spook Mini Rage Rig (google rage rig then picture a slightly smaller version) Bladed Jig (I like an evo or a thunder cricket w/ a zako trailer)

Agree with whopper ploppers, buzzbaits and ned rigs. Although I think ned rigs would do well there's too much grass around me and it just gets frustrating trying to use one, and I prefer a shakey head with either a hula stick or a smh worm as an alternative over the ewg weedless neds.

This is the 'main' board: I also have a bag in my office where I put the stuff I've 'benched' (bought but don't really use that much).

Currently my choices would be: drop shot - roboworm 6" straight tail (hard to decide between this and a yamamoto sensei) 5" senko texas rig - zoom mag2 mid size rage bug on a 1/8oz 3/0 owner weighted twistlock cps ('the mini rage rig'...trust me) bladed jig (either an evo or a thunder cricket with a zako on back) 3/8oz matt herren flippin jig w/ a 3.5" adrenaline craw 5" fluke hog farmer 3 blade mini a-rig w/ a 2/0 core tackle tush and a reaction little dipper lipless - lucky craft lv 500 shakey head (very hard choice between this and a squarebill for the last slot...this wins since a squarebill is a bit more seasonal)

Love the 610mlxf legend xtreme I found used a while back...one of my favorite rods in my lineup. OH you said 'talk you down'...sorry.

Reverse tariff sale today and tomorrow at the hookup tackle . Spend $100 get $24 back as a gift card.

^ this is actually very true and why I didn't suggest a kaden 735cb. I'd still suggest a dobyns cb rod for what OP described over a sierra though...and as much as I like the two sierras I own I personally wouldn't use that line for this type of application, but it could certainly be done and that's the thing is action preference varies depending on the individual. In my case I've found dobyns rods seem to be really good at exactly what they recommend them for (more so than other manufacturers) so if a dobyns rod says 'crankbait' on it, the ones I've used have lined up with what I seem to like for a treble hook lure...another thing I like about their rods is the fact that their actions are mostly consistent across different lines...and the balance on them is also notable.

+1 for the ultegra (or any shimano reel w/ x protect). This is one of the main reasons I suggest the ultegra over the lower end reels...never know when it's going to rain. ^ The last gen ultegras were a steal at one point I got one for $75. You can probably still find one for well under your budget.

Yeah that one looks like a shallow spool. I'd personally want a regular spool. If you can't find a comparable stradic in that price range there might still be some last gen ultegras around and on sale and that is a great reel and not much different from the old regular size stradic (I use both).

footage of what that will most likely look like: I love the action on dobyns crankbait rods in the kaden and champ xp series but at the moment you would have a very hard time trying to convince me not to go with that Daiwa DXB. Also agree that the closest option from St Croix (for me anyway) would be the LTB (composite model) and honestly that one is ok but in terms of bang for the buck it wouldn't be my first choice. If you read through some of the older posts on this site there are a lot of people that swear by that last gen Daiwa and for the price I'm not sure anything looks better right now... On another note...glad I bought all my rods for the year a couple of months ago from the looks of it...

I have a few Dobyns crankbait rods and a couple in the Sierra series. I wouldn't personally recommend that rod for those techniques...also shame to see their prices are higher for these rods. The closest match I have would be a medium heavy rod and while I like the action on it a lot but I wouldn't use it for treble lures. If it were me and I wanted something for heavier lures like the trace around that price point one option I'd be looking at is the Daiwa DXB Glass Reaction rod on TW. The previous gen has some really good feedback from this site and while I haven't used it based on what you are describing that would be one of the ones I'd be looking at...or maybe one of the crankbait rods in the champion xp series but that might be a bit more than you were looking to spend.

I used a 1/0 ewg for a while but I've been getting away from ewg hooks lately. My current favorite is actually a newer one called the Armor Point Drop Shot Long Shank by BKK and I like the 2/0 size. It's fairly light but still heavy enough to not bend out easily and I feel like these type of hooks do a little better than an ewg. The other one that I've found that is pretty good and similar is a 1/0 vmc redline finesse neko but that one is more expensive and I actually like the BKK better because reasons. For lures I like Roboworm. 6" straight tail in tequila sunrise or margarita mutilator. Also like their alive shad when they won't bite a worm. Or if the water is darker I've had a fair amount of success with an og junebug sensei from yamamoto. 1/4oz weight almost always but might go to 3/8oz if I'm in deeper water. I've also noticed line can be a thing. I am beginning to see why some people like @TOXIC like straight mono but apparently I prefer to light my money on fire so I like 20lb sufix 832 to a 12lb seaguar grand max leader...or maybe the gold label leader...I'm actually convinced those 2 are the same but for some reason the grand max seems like it's on sale more often so I tend to find myself looking at that. I should also point out line / leader size will vary depending on what type of cover you fish around but if you are looking at a good amount of grass and/or zebra mussels I've found these lines do better than most of the others I've tried.

Pointer 100 is still the best bait

I prefer shakey head lures that stand up straight like an x-zone deception worm. For a neko rig I just use a senko with a nail weight in it but honestly I don't use one that much and typically just throw a senko on a 3/0 twistlock light...might be a bit old school for some but it seems to be what works the best for me. For drop shots I like a yamamoto sensei or a roboworm. The roboworm has great action and I'm honestly not sure why but something about the sensei just seems to get bites over most of the other worms I've tried. I prefer a spinning rod for all of these techniques. In terms of which one to get I'd say the same thing that I've been saying for a while now which is to pay attention to how you actually like to hold the rod and then pick one based on that rather than just doing that the internet says to do. Medium fast is what I'd suggest for these for the most part...maybe an extra fast if you are looking at something like a st croix or a cashion but for most other manufacturers I'd probably suggest a fast action. I personally use a st crox 6'10 ml xf for my dropshot rod and would recommend anything at or above the mojo line. For other stuff if I was going to buy another spinning rod it would most likely be a poison adrena and that 7' medium regular fast or that 7'2 medium light fast both look good to me. If you want something a little less expensive the dobyns sierra 692sf is a solid choice. For reels I like the shimano ultegra, stradic, or vanford. The vanford is noticeably lighter but all three are very good reels. 'Budget' choice would wait for the next Dobyns sell whenever it is and pick up that sierra and you can still find the previous gen ultegras on sale. Those two also pair nicely together color wise.

I use the freestyle w/ a 8/0 owner beast since there's usually a fair amount of grass / cover where I like to throw them. I think the daingerous does a little better in terms of the range of speed you can retrieve it and get a good action. I also like that one since it has a single hook on top...also picked up a couple of shadtrons but haven't tried them yet...hoping to get to that one this month. I still like the magdraft freestyle but to your point it does seem to have a narrower range when it comes to the retrieve speed. Also found this video a little while ago and thought I'd share since it has some good info on the freestyle (and no irony whatsoever):