kikstand454

yeah, i just read the other thread down there that had gary loomis explaining im ratings and it explained alot to me in the sense that it wasnt really the rods fault that the owners before me may have accidently mistreated them and didnt even know it. ive owned graphite rods before a long time back and didnt have any problems that i remember but i went along time with durability being more important to me than sensitivity. like i said on the other post i feel more comfortable about the entire situation now. it didnt help my self esteem to know that millions of people only use graphite rods and dont have the issues i did. now i feel more confident that i was in fact right all along and the problem had nothing to do with me!! : : :

awesome read. glad i saw this. this puts to rest some issues ive had with graphite rods and i feel much more comfortable with purchasing a new one. good stuff.

everytime i use a graphite rod it ends up breaking. hooksets, hangin up on a lilly pad, casting a spook- just some of the crappy ways i have broken them. these were all rods givin to me... and a few years old. but they allegedly had no problems. just old. and not cheap stuff either. had a st. croix break casting a spook jr. pathetic. i have to get a graphite rod for worm/c-rigging and frankly im terrified to spend more that 50 bucks on one. i am NOT hard on my equipment and baby most of my stuff obsessively. i have not bought a graphite rod until now cause i was normally in a gheenoe or canoe and didnt want to put them through it. now i spend more time co-angling on a bass rig and know its time to step up in some areas. think im getting a lightening rod or something. not spending 100 bucks on a shimano that breaks on a lillypad. :'(

two things of advice. read all the articles on here that relate to the lure you want to learn and read through the forum archives. youll start noticing a pattern of brands and colors and techniques and favorable conditions to use them. secondly- most importantly- on a suitable day- take that lure and only that lure (in a few sizes and colors) and throw it. throw it all day wheather youre catching fish or not. you will learn how to present it and cast it. you cannot catch fish on a lure you never throw. just my 2 cents............

i have a quantum kvd BC that is nothing short of awesome. i got it on sale for $80. quantum incyte spinning reel that i got 2 years ago for $70. it is the best reel i have ever owned. diawa 100h that is solid and strong and smooth and it was $80. i have little to no plans to buy a reel over $100 anytime soon unless its a saltwater accurist. u can do great things with $100 if you look around.

lmb- 9.4lbs- black and green 1/16oz beetle spin..... no really! smb- approx 5lbs. - black and gold 2in. original floating rapala. redfish- 34in.- rootbeer redfish magic spnrbt. speec trout- 26in -sardine colored xrap

how many lures? ha. last count i have 10 370size utility boxes and 5 shoe boxes of freshwater lures... and 6 utility boxes of saltwater lures. i could open a store. and i kinda need to go again this weekend to pick up some stuff. lol. its not that the lures arent catching fish for you....its that youre not using them properly to catch fish. any lure you buy has been made and marketed because someone somewhere has caught fish on it. u can too!

eh... if you bend the arm on a bzbt to one side or another you can totally change the way it tracks back to you. this is good. i like to use this to my advantage when fishing stucture like docks or cypress by fishing the shady side or down current and tracking the bzbt towards the structure. itll run right up under a dock, or bang right into that line of trees..... over and over every cast. this is really good when you have a flooded shoreline and can posistion parallel to the flooded timber or whatever and bang the bzbt all the way down the line. killer. try taking a sharpie and writing "L" or "R" on the blade so you know which way it goes. get several. black or white/chart. also if you beleive the "squeak" hype- take some pliers and squeeze the grommet down behind the blade of your bzbt. make sure the grommet is tight and doesnt spin. itll sound like a mouse in a blender. good luck. dont forget that trailer hook!!!

strike king zulu too, with weighted ewg 4/0.(fluke-soft jerkbait) rapala x rap (hard jerk bait) any popper in shad color strike king red eye shad- "sexy shad" color. and dont forget the little george...............

YEAH... wait till you accidently hitt something you didnt see mid-cast. like a motor behinnd you or a tree branch above you. man........... that is fun.

maybe its not your rod. why dont you try to move to a hybrid line like yozuri or even go to pure flourocarbon on your spinning out fit. these lines dont stretch as much or at all and can double your sensitivity. also..... esp if yout t-rigging......why dont you go one step heavier on your weight. that will drasticly improve the sensitivity of your presentation. next time you go- see what your buddy is using weight wise. if youre fishing 10ft or deeper chances are hes throwing a 3/4oz. lead at least on his baitcaster. just some thoughts. step up the rod too if you can find it on clearance. im going to.

i dont know. old school- bill dance. new school- mark zona. best theme song.....without a doubt...jimmy houston. "well its late in the day and the suns gettin low...." thatll always be imprinted in my mind.

i agree with the yozuri. mayb go too 15# so its easier to manage/ pick out a backlash. that stuff is great.

i love it. 15lb. on both my c-rig annd my spinnerbait rod. glad i made the switch.

i love my kvd. there i said it. when it goes on sale again for 80 bucks imma get at least one more. i think the code is the cheaper version of the kvd which is a cheaper version of the accurist pt. *shrug*

i think its more a personal hand preference. i like lp and round. for what its worth..... hank parker strongly prefers round reels. ;D

hi everyone... im new. ive been exclusive to uglies for years now and i love them. the lites are much better than the standards. however.... recently ive been desperately wanting a good graphite rod for worm work/c-rig. i think that that level of sensitivity is all the ugly stick lacks. well.... that and the embarrasing amount of weight. i still plan to use them exclusive for cranking and topwater/ spinnerbaits. and my spinning rod for drop shotting. im just gonna move my 6.6 mediums over to inshore where they can really shine and put an accurist or two on them. originally buying the uglies cause i did alot of canoe/john boat fishing and didnt want my rods to break....i still think its hard too beat them for the price, esp for use as backup/amature rods.