yesterday.  wow.  just wow.  TWICE!!!  I am respooling today.  

 

first time, I saw a juicy spot just at the far spectrum of my talent with respect to distance and accuracy.  I swung for the fence.  what I didnt see was a obstruction 10 feet in front of my face.  my bait smacked it a full velocity and stopped cold.  GRRR..I let the tidal current wash me downstream and my friend eased into my casting spot.  

 

second time, a power backhand cast.  my bait caught the side of my kayak, and my net.  the resulting BRRRRRRTHHH sound:  I knew it was a good one.  current didnt offer me my usual 15 minutes of cussing and picking.  I risk washing into trees (and flipping), so I tried a tiny bit and just started cutting.   with my 3/4 spool, my distance was anemic, but I still got into the fish.  I still laugh every time I empty my PFD pocket of that wad of line.  

 

backlashes are humbling to say the least.  brings me right back to solid earth.  all part of the fishing experience.  you full time spin-casters, are not entirely wrong   

3 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

you full time spin-casters, are not entirely wrong   

Nah, they are. We deal with backlashes every once in awhile. They deal with poor drag, no winching power, poor gear ratio, line fraying, and looking like a 6 year old all the time.

 

(Spincast not to be confused with spinning)

@ironbjorn  right. Opps.  Spincast is a whole other subset. 

When you're drifting downstream watch out that you don't drift into a hornets nest.  I've done it twice.  Last week was the last time I've had a professional override. 

Last fall I was bank fishing a pond with an inclined bank. I was at the waters edge at the bottom of the incline. At the top of the incline was a Megabass Xbites with a Zillion strapped to it. On my back cast my spinnerbait managed to hook around the rod and fling it into the water in front of me while simultaneously blowing up every bit of line on my reel. Luckily the rod didn't go too far into the water and I was able to reach it without getting wet and it didn't end up getting damaged. I did have to cut off every bit of line on the reel I was casting. I was there alone so at least nobody saw. lol

8 hours ago, Jrob78 said:

Last fall I was bank fishing a pond with an inclined bank. I was at the waters edge at the bottom of the incline. At the top of the incline was a Megabass Xbites with a Zillion strapped to it. On my back cast my spinnerbait managed to hook around the rod and fling it into the water in front of me while simultaneously blowing up every bit of line on my reel. Luckily the rod didn't go too far into the water and I was able to reach it without getting wet and it didn't end up getting damaged. I did have to cut off every bit of line on the reel I was casting. I was there alone so at least nobody saw. lol

How’s that x-bites?  About to pull the trigger. I’ll probably top it with a Bantam. 

My worst backlash's usually occur the same way.  I'm going down a bank, with a buzz bait.  I have a light wind at my back, and lots of water to cover.  I'm casting the bait a country mile with my new real, and feel like a pro.  Of course I have to try and improve on my distance, so I start backing the break off.  Now I am really zinging it.  Every cast is on the very edge of disaster, but my confidence is going through the roof.  I'm getting some big bites, and I am on top of the world.

     Then I hear a huge splash behind me.  I'm sure it is the big bass I have been fishing for all day.  As quick as a cat, I turn around, and fire the buzz bait straight in to the wind as hard as I possibly can.  All of a sudden, the only resemblance to me and a pro is, I am a professional at picking out a backlash.

7 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

How’s that x-bites?  About to pull the trigger. I’ll probably top it with a Bantam. 

The X-Bites is a weird one for me. It's very light and very sensitive but I feel like it is the least versatile rod I own. It is perfect for 3/16th-maybe 1/2 oz t-rigs and finesse jigs but outside of that range, it just doesn't work well for me. It feels like it doesn't have a ton of power but it has a stiff, fast tip so anything light doesn't load well and anything heavy that gets past the tip, overloads the rod. It is a fantastic finesse jig rod though and when you stay in its range, it's hard to beat. 

1 hour ago, Jrob78 said:

The X-Bites is a weird one for me. It's very light and very sensitive but I feel like it is the least versatile rod I own. It is perfect for 3/16th-maybe 1/2 oz t-rigs and finesse jigs but outside of that range, it just doesn't work well for me. It feels like it doesn't have a ton of power but it has a stiff, fast tip so anything light doesn't load well and anything heavy that gets past the tip, overloads the rod. It is a fantastic finesse jig rod though and when you stay in its range, it's hard to beat. 

I’m trying to target a great 1/8oz t-rig (total weight would be around 1/2) and 3/8th jig rod.   I do own some 1/2oz finesse jigs.   I was thinking FMJ, but I was told that’s for heavier stuff.  So I started thinking x-bites. 
 

Full disclosure:  rod I’m trying to replace is a simple Fury 733.  It casts them great, but sensitivity is lacking, unless im actively dragging the bait.  
 

thanks for sharing your thoughts!

1 hour ago, Darth-Baiter said:

I’m trying to target a great 1/8oz t-rig (total weight would be around 1/2) and 3/8th jig rod.   I do own some 1/2oz finesse jigs.   I was thinking FMJ, but I was told that’s for heavier stuff.  So I started thinking x-bites. 
 

Full disclosure:  rod I’m trying to replace is a simple Fury 733.  It casts them great, but sensitivity is lacking, unless im actively dragging the bait.  
 

thanks for sharing your thoughts!

I wasn't a big fan of it with anything below about 3/16 oz weight for t-rigs. I didn't feel like the tip loaded well with 5" Senkos, which are pretty heavy. 3/8oz jigs should be in its wheelhouse though. I ended up breaking mine (my fault) so I don't have it anymore but I considered buying another one. What it does well it does really well. 

4 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

I’m trying to target a great 1/8oz t-rig (total weight would be around 1/2) and 3/8th jig rod.   I do own some 1/2oz finesse jigs.   I was thinking FMJ, but I was told that’s for heavier stuff.  So I started thinking x-bites. 
 

Full disclosure:  rod I’m trying to replace is a simple Fury 733.  It casts them great, but sensitivity is lacking, unless im actively dragging the bait.  
 

thanks for sharing your thoughts!

 

For kayak fishing, I have been using my Megabass P5 Super Destroyer more often. It's almost a complete junk fishing rod. Meaning, I can cast just about anything with it. I have a Bantam MGL on it with 12lb Sunline Machine-gun Cast. I can throw a weightless senko and up to a 6in Magdraft on it. It's great for 3/8-1/2oz jigs especially around docks. But out of the rods I own, it wouldn't be my first choice for a jig rod. I have also thrown 3/8oz - 1oz cranks on it.  All have been great. Its also a pretty sensitive rod. My only complaint is the handle. It's made out a slick carbon plastic. It takes some getting use to.  

I usually do pretty good casting and not having real bad backlashes, but if I am tired or distracted and not paying attention, the spool will surly let me know.

   I recall having to teach myself to cast a baitcaster when I was 10 or 11. An abu garcia ambassador Lite, my first real reel. The first couple days were rough. Many re-spools, many cuss words and lots of line cutting.  Eventually, I got good enough with it to have fun fishing again. That took about a week. Thank God I am much better at casting now. I am also much better at picking out backlashes when they do happen.