Getting the rods all ready for a new season, with Seaguar lines.  Who else is getting their gear ready?

 

Way ahead of you friend. I bought seven 200 yd spools is red label from bass pro on their Presidents’ Day sale a a couple weeks ago. 

I gave Tatsu another shot because the 10-lb gave this ML spool just the right capacity.  A spare spool for the same reel got PE#1 22-lb YGK X-braid from the last time I stocked up on Japan line. 

 

Had already loaded my Team Pro SP with this same PE#1 X-braid, and really enjoyed fishing it last weekend - it would sail a light lure farther than I needed, and no problem with line dig on big fish.  Fished it side-by-side on heavier rod with 20-lb Sufix 832, which is PE#2 diameter - both performed flawlessly, but the the thinner braid is a boon with lighter lures on baitcaster.  

 

For this diminutive XUL spinner, tried a charge of 4-lb Toray Exthread fluoro, and it's the most Tatsu-like line I've found in other fluorocarbons - extreme low memory.  

Think I've become spoiled with braid especially on spinning reels, because of its limpness combined with total lack of memory.  

With both the Tatsu and Exthread, the low-memory fluorocarbons want to spring off the spool - great for casting, but kind of a pain when you're doing anything else without line tension on a spinning spool.  

  

Most recently charged another inshore/offshore 4000 spinning reel with X-braid Castman, and this may become my favorite braid of all - I like the stealthy gray color, sensible line markings, red every 10-m, and green every 50-m; 30-lb-test in PE#1.5.  

Almost done. All 3 BC’s and two spinners are respooled. Just need to respool one spinner with 20 lb Sufix 832 with a 6 lb FC leader. 

All but one of my spinners are spooled up - 1 straight InvizX, 1 Smackdown with InvizX leader.

BCs are next - 3 will have FC - 2 AbrazX, 1 Tatsu

Locked and loaded,  just waiting for a break in the weather.

 

32 minutes ago, roadwarrior said:

Locked and loaded,  just waiting for a break in the weather.

 

It’s comin’. March next week! 

We are dealing with a massive shad kill on the Tennessee River, but the region is

expecting more than 5" of rain over the next several days. Hopefully the river will

cleanse itself and the bite will recover. Our next issue will be flooding.

Well I finally sorted that box of new lures out as best I could. My soft plastics went into three open compartment 3700 trays that can come with me on camping trips. One is anything I would use as a jig trailer, two is anything I would typically throw on a EWG hook and the third is finesse with as little overlap as possible. I need to get one more to pack with me on the kayak for day trips so I don't have to carry all three, although I can grab a few bags and throw them in my storage tray under my seat.

 

I'm waiting until the lakes to thaw before replacing last years mono so it wont freeze on my porch. Most of my reels with fluoro should be good and late in the season I hit a telephone pole and birds nested horribly so it already has the line off of it.

I also cleaned out my double deep 3700 box that I keep spare line in and bring with me on camping trips in case of birds nesting. For the first time ever, it's real clean.

I typically remove all of my line every other year on baitcasters.  Except for 2 Aldebarans which have small capacities, if I want fluoro, I use braid backing and only spool around 60 yards of fluoro.  It always amazes me when I see co-anglers with reels 1/2-3/4 full because they broke off and are trying to milk the remaining line.
 

On spinning reels, I never use straight anything.  All my setups have 15 or 20lb high vis Smackdown to 6-10lb fluoro.

4 minutes ago, RDB said:

I use braid backing and only spool around 60 yards

Doesn't matter what line I'm using for mainline - neither if it's spinner or BC. I put on 60-70 yds of mainline over cheap mono backing - 10# Big Game on the BCs, 4# Sufix Elite on the spinners.

8 minutes ago, RDB said:

I typically remove all of my line every other year on baitcasters.

Mono goes for me every other year, braid and fluorocarbon when it runs low, and if it's fluorocarbon and three years old or was showing signs of aging or bad memory, it gets replaced I can usually get two years on a spool of fluorocarbon.

 

My Discount Tackle order from Thursday arrived today. Will be spooling up a few later with some Sufix Advance mono. I'm going out to a couple local ponds tomorrow for the first time this year. 

35 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

Doesn't matter what line I'm using for mainline - neither if it's spinner or BC. I put on 60-70 yds of mainline over cheap mono backing - 10# Big Game on the BCs, 4# Sufix Elite on the spinners.

I guess to clarify, I don’t use backing on spinning reels.  I use a full spool of hi-vis braid with Sniper or Tatsu as a leader.  Backing quality or size doesn’t matter because you are never going to get to it.  I prefer braid but it really doesn’t matter.