The minnows themselves worked just fine. Those hooks that came with them were terrible. I laughed when my cousin bought a kit, but they worked. 

Wacky rig rings. I'm relatively sure they do little to nothing in terms of me spending less on senkos...but I do like the way the hook rests on the worm w/ them as it makes it a little more weedless rather than just going through the middle of it and since I throw them around grass a lot I continue to use them...also I think the tool was like $2 and the rings are not much either so I suspect there are worse gimmicks to have fallen for...

I’m thoroughly convinced fluorocarbon line is a gimmick for the fishing industry. Snaps off lures like no other line, mainly talking large expensive swim baits, everytime you snag something or stretch it you have to respool since it doesn’t have memory and is then much weaker then the rated lb/test. Knot strength is awful, backlash again respool. About the only benefit it has is it sinks.  

To add to the post above. The invisibility factor of fluorocarbon is also a myth that has been driven home by manufacturers.  Of course it’s less visible then braid but compared to mono there is no difference in underwater testing. Doesn’t matter the poundage.

Crankbaits

10 hours ago, IntroC said:

I’m thoroughly convinced fluorocarbon line is a gimmick for the fishing industry.

 

I hated it the first time I bought it.

 

I hated it the second time I bought it.

 

I hated it the third time I bought it.

 

Three strikes.

 

I'm out.

10 hours ago, Brian11719 said:

Wacky rig rings. I'm relatively sure they do little to nothing in terms of me spending less on senkos...but I do like the way the hook rests on the worm w/ them as it makes it a little more weedless rather than just going through the middle of it and since I throw them around grass a lot I continue to use them...also I think the tool was like $2 and the rings are not much either so I suspect there are worse gimmicks to have fallen for...

I started using double o rings x’d with a wacky rig hook last year. I noticed a big difference in the longevity of soft plastics. I don’t think affected hook up ratio one way or the other.

I was a fluorocarbon hater of epic proportion for the first 10 years I occasionally used it. Now I fish straight fluorocarbon on about half my rigs. Uniform sink rate is a big reason why. Also it does stretch as much or more than mono/co-poly… but less so on the initial hook set, then if it stretches more near the boat helps keep the fish hooked. 
 

I’m a tad stubborn and it took me time, but I changed my mind, so there ! 

11 hours ago, Brian11719 said:

Wacky rig rings. I'm relatively sure they do little to nothing in terms of me spending less on senkos...but I do like the way the hook rests on the worm w/ them as it makes it a little more weedless rather than just going through the middle of it and since I throw them around grass a lot I continue to use them...also I think the tool was like $2 and the rings are not much either so I suspect there are worse gimmicks to have fallen for...

The vmc crossover rings save me tons of money. 

On 1/6/2025 at 11:53 PM, MediumMouthBass said:

I bought 2 SV spool reels, i was amazed by how highly praised these reels were. After 10 minutes i realized they were either on par or subpar to my other reels.

Another gimmick i tried, im in the same boat with you on this bait.

 

 

For me however the biggest gimmicks have been "you need a certain rod for this bait or technique or else it wont work and you wont land the bass". This was mainly for crankbaits and jig/Texas rig rods. Ive caught 1-2 dozen bass ranging from 3-5-10lbs (and even more under 3lbs) on cheap fast action rods for both techniques. Sadly i spent alot of money and bought about 10 expensive cranking specific and Texas rig rods combined before that. I honestly do not believe any of the more expensive , or technique specific rods "that you need" to fish a certain bait wouldve caught me any more, or any larger bass. But the higher end rods sure look and feel nice, and i do love the more expensive rods i have, especially my Dobyns.

 

Another thing was Fluorocarbon, i used to buy it in big spools too. I was told by everyone who fished for trout and bass that it was sent down from heaven. To say its got a cult following is an understatement. It was nothing but a sensitive pile of a rats nest, it broke off on any and all snags (even with going through the extensive process of making sure the knot was tied correctly). If the wind blew the wrong way the spinning reels would be a mess. It casts poorly with my casting reels too. Abrasion resistance? Rocks would chew it up, Zebra mussels too. Sensitivity? Sadly i never found the titanic with it while dragging bottom. Or much else.

And the price is awful.

Most of my reels are Curados, but last year I added an SV to my arsenal. I have great disdain for that reel and it may end up on a shelf this year.

On 1/16/2025 at 8:47 AM, FryDog62 said:

so there ! 

 

I can't believe you so-there'd us! You must have forgotten that our Kung fu is strong. 

The PowerPak lure. It was a hoot to fish with.