Jeff H

Or, you can order direct from Daiwa, but you'll get a better deal from The Tackle Trap.

No such thing....you will be one of those guys with "too many rods" in 5 years time, you just don't know it yet.

I have stuck with Trilene XT. Never gave me any reason to leave. I have tried Sufix Siege recently and like it but I just stick to my XT.

I don't like 'em! I mean, I REALLY don't like 'em!!

I had a Shimano Citica D do this and just had to clean it out to fix it.

None of us are proud to cripple any of the fish we catch. I'm 52, been fishing since I was 4 and I've unintentionally hurt many fish in my life but you suck it up and drive on.....unfortunately it's just part of the game. Demonic Forrest....Love the Supermoto avatar! I still want one to ride to work!

This is true, have done this for many years and it's always worked fine. I still do it now with my old Shimano CA-200's.

George was 80+ deg surface temps?? That's creeping up there and we got some hot weather closing in on us. I was on Chisago yesterday. 77 deg max. The catching was good but still kinda spread out. I was expecting some tighter groups but never found any. Nothing over 17" either and I expected bigger bites, did lose one that was likely 18+" but he don't count. No solid patterns emerged. It was a matter of junk fishing. I even hit a few docks and I hate dock fishing. I was going to try N/S Center tomorrow... or maybe Green.

d**n straight!

And who are those companies? We should probably know that too.

17 is probably all you need. I have fished 17 for many years and never needed anything more than that in any kind of cover.

The wannabe's I use are 1/3 the cost, last 3 times longer and catch me a lot of fish! No regrets.

I've been using the Tatula 5.4 and it has been solid, but....I don't do a lot of deep cranking so it is not my most used reel.

Shouldn't it be red? Fuego = Fire. I didn't know there was a Fuego baitcaster coming but I've seen pictures of the Fuego spinning reel that's due out soon.

BANG Pure Craw or Anise is what I use.

Yes, basically an abject failure When they were first designed, tubes were not the double and triple dipped salt loaded behemoths we use today and those thick nosed tubes are even a problem for that little clip. The hooks have their negatives but they also do really well at what they were designed for (finesse tubes). Yes, they will tear the nose up on something like a Senko. I guess that doesn't bother me a whole lot. If I get one fish for every bait I use I'm happy, multiples is even better of course! The tip tends to ride up a little bit too and collect more grass than some other designs. I still like them though. I've caught a lot of fish on them.

LOL...nobody likes these hooks? I admit they do need some attention with the hook file but not a big deal to me. It's nice to be able to clip a weight to them, becomes almost like a Zeka rig then.

Anybody else use/like these? I am using them more all the time and find I like them a lot. Now, I'm moving them into use on some smaller finesse baits as well since I found some in #4 and #2 sizes.

Seems like nobody ever considers this. But, this is exactly why I always fish as close as I can get away with. I learned a long time ago that my odds of losing a fish increased the farther away I hooked them. My average cast would be closer to 50 ft and 25 yds (75 ft) is a long toss to me in most situations.

Yup, get the fork ready!

You'll be fine.

Ain't that what KVD was throwing at Bassfest?

When it comes to rods (or anything else for that matter), it's always a preference. I have never met a XF that I didn't like.... for something.

Larry Nixon and Jim Moynagh.

Shimano CA-200 w/hawgtech handle and Winn knobs. ABEC 5 Ceramic hybrid spool bearings and Carbontex drag It's old but I still like it just for this stuff! Love that Instagage bar!