KYntucky Warmouth

A friend has the 7'6"H Carolina Rig rod and seems to like it now. When he first got it he contemplated returning it, which he probably would have done had he not bought it on the Internet and had to pay shipping. His rod seems really heavy and unbalanced and I think the sensitivity is lacking as well. He has grown to like it for C-rigs and Ledgebusters but he has added a few ounces of lead tape to the butt to balance it out.

Last year I would have said jigs and ragetail baits but I have done very well on jigs with baby craw trailers this year. I will have to say spinnerbaits and hard swimbaits. I've caught exactly one spinnerbait fish and none on hard swimbaits. I have had several follows on the Mattlures hard gill and woody but no takers. Other baits like the magic swimmer, spro bbz shad, and TT baits haven't produced the slightest bite.

For me, a tube gets thrown anytime I'm fishing regardless of conditions, location, or water temps. A tube was one of the first baits I learned to fish with, second to a junebug power worm. I prefer a small, single dipped 4" tube like a BPS Tender Tube or Cabin Creek Critter Gitter, to the larger, beefier double-dipped or flipping tubes. They have a small profile that gets bit by smaller fish but resemble a forage that is sought after by larger fish.

I have a pack each of the spoontail miki and finesse miki. I've not fished the spoontail much but the finesse miki is a really nice shakey head/dropshot bait. I don't know what scent they use but I really like it, it's kinda weird. I'd like to try the hydra though.

cheap blanks

What kind of pflueger

I like the Powell Max rods but the Dobyns Savvy rods are better. Just think of it this way, Gary was in on the development of the Max series, I feel like he took that and developed the Savvy series to be better. They are lighter and balance better than the Powells, both are great sticks but the Savvy is better. As for the Champion, If it's in your price range, there's no doubt in my mind that it's gonna preform better than the Powell rods. They are lighter and balance better than the Powell, I've not fished one so can't comment on sensitivity.

Same thing happened to me Saturday, went out for a few hours in the morning. From 7:30-10 they were actively hitting cranks but were back hooked and I lost a few. decided to slow down a bit with a suspending jerkbait and the next one absolutley choked it, hooked sideways with two trebles in each corner of the mouth. With the crank, it felt like they were just swatting at it and not actively inhaling the bait. I think they were able to take it in without expelling too much energy in the cold water.

The knobs should be removable, the ones on the regular patriarch are. If the are just get a set of regular knobs from pure fishing, assuming they fit.

I love that reel seat, bet it's unbearable to fish in winter months though.

The slower action will load more and transfer more energy into the cast, resulting in a longer cast. However, there seems to be a point where the action causes the tip to be too "whippy" and you loose power on the cast when the bait weight increases. I had a G-loomis CBR843 for a little while and felt like the action hindered the power and had trouble casting baits in the upper range of the rating for the rod

80mm I believe

of course not, they're on the wrong side ;D looks awesome but I have felt that handle and I'm not fond of the knobs either

http://www.***.com/E21_21_Carrot_Gold_Stix_Casting_Rods/descpage-E21GCC.html 7'10''M Carrot Stix Gold great for throwing cranks of all sizes....I threw an Owner Cultiva 78sp rip'n minnow, Cordell big-o, Rapala DT10, and SK Series 6 today on mine, handles them all very well

Personally, I am a huge fan of CXX, I feel that the positives out weigh the negatives. There are some manageability issues but I never felt that it effected performance. I find that about 6 long casts allow your line to get wet and relaxes the coiling. I've used KVD L&L on it and absolutely hate it, it makes the line feel stiff and brittle when it drys. The absolute brute strength of it makes it a very good line for me when fishing cranks and such in brush. If you are picky about line management, you're gonna hate CXX, I find it no less manageable than BPS FC or Seaguar Red Label.

that's right....southern style

pearl white, white/black flake, and white/blue flake

I was throwing it on a MH Zillion rod but I think it has 17lb Flourocarbon on it so I have a feeling it was the line, threw it on 20lb CXX with no problems so I think that was the problem.

I prefer split grip w/ no fore grip but I really like fore grips that cover the locking mechanism like the Fuji Quick Lock The Zillion has one of my favorites

http://www.tackletour.com/reviewjackallpoisoncrank.html

I'm gonna go the other way with this and say that if it's in reality to get a higher quality cranking rod, then do so if you plan on crankin much at all. I had two Crankin Sticks and while they are great rods for the price, I'll never touch one again. I would recommend them to anyone looking for a good crankin rod at a great price but sensitivity matters, even in fishing cranks. With a Crankin Stick, if you hit something, you know you bit something but aren't sure what, bites are very tough to distinguish until the fish starts to fight. With a more sensitive rod, you can learn the difference between rock, wood, and grass and feel and recognize the bite sooner.

My crankbait setups are: 6'10"MH-F Carrot Stix Gold/Daiwa Sol/10-12lb floroclear 7'MH-F Lucky Craft cranking rod/Curado e5/12lb CXX 7'10"M-F Carrot Stix Gold/Sol/10-12 floroclear Now, all my rods are labeled fast but all fish closer to a MF and the 7'10" is close to M. Any one that has fished the golds knows that they are overrated in power and action and the Lucky Craft is a composite rod with a soft tip but plenty of power for deep divers and fighting fish. I like a little faster action for cranks, had a g-loomis cbr843 and hated it, to whippy and noodley. Just felt like I didn't have any control with it. I also fished a buddies 7'MH-M Avid, liked it better but wouldn't want it for deep divers, I hear alot about the M-M Avid but wouldn't want to go less than the MH.

Never had a problem with it

The only one I could speak for is the magnesium, I had a 7'MH and 7'H. Unless you are dead set on a 6'10" or can get a deal on one, I would look for something else. They are good rods but there are better for $160. I replaced mine with Dobyns Savvy rods of the same specs and like them much more than the Kistlers. I felt the magnesiums were very close to the Powell Max rods but at a higher price.

I put Carbontex in my Daiwa reels this year and really like them. They at least feel more consistent now.