Big Bait Fishing

i think your best choice would be the Phenix 7'6'' med. lite . that rod has an extra fast tip that will fling rooster tails and small Kastmasters a long ways and would work very good with an Alpha spooled with 4-6 lb. line

a good line for bluegill and maybe perch , for crappies , i think you would be wise to go up to 15 lb. power pro . for bass fishing , that is walking a fine line ( ;D ;D ;D) and would not recommend that thin of line . that size line will REALLY dig into your spool , even a spinning reel !!! what do you plan on using it for ???

give me a holler if you need any input

then by all means , spool up that 1000 size reel and catch some fat smallies !!!! by your post i think that people will tell you their opinions and line preferrence for a reel that size , so take it for what it's worth . it is like asking " hey guys , how do you feel about me spooling up a Core 50mg with 80 lb. Power pro " , most people will tell you tyo only go with 30 lb. PP at the most , more than likely , spool it up with 6 or 8 lb. mono or floro . but then telling everyone that that is what you want (to put 80 lb. braid on the Core 50mg) so you are at a quandry , ask for opinions or just tell them what you are gonna do , see what i'm saying ?? so if you are gung ho on 20 lb. braid on a 1000 size spinning reel , then i guess we have to leave it at that .........

i would say that fish weighs between 6-7 1/4 lbs. i have a picture just like that of a 7 1/2 lb. bass i caught last summer ....

you can actually feel them shaking !!! ;D

good interview and kevin is so right about the pros being easily approachable , at a bass tackle show here in southern CA. , i got to talk to quite a few pros and was amazed at how cool they were to talk to and ask questions .i must have talked to Greg hackney and Scott Martin for a total of 2 1/2 hours !!! i love this sport we are in

here is a funny video my mom sent me in a e-mail , hope you enjoy -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FBnoqbAElg

if you are gonna get a Powell , get the 804c , it's a 8' glass rod that is light and has an excellent taper to it for shallow, medium, and even deep diving crankbaits . another good choice is the dobyns 'Randy McAbee" 805cbrm rod . if you have never fished with a 8' crankbait rod , you will are in for a treat !!! you will not want to fish with anything shorter , trust me

i think it all comes down to feel of the reel in your hand , i personally use all REVO baitcasters (SX,INSHORE, and the TORO), they feel alot better than the curado's with the curados being wider , they don't palm as comfortable and the revo's have a tad bit more line capacity and a alot better drag .....

in my opinion one of the best flipping rods are the Phenix super flipping rods , namely the 7'11" med heavy . it has a strong back bone is very light for a rod it's length . would be perfect for medium grass and punching mats , pads , and tulies . http://www.***.com/Phenix_Super_Flipping_Rods/descpage-PSFR.html

i just feel , and i said this in another post a week or so ago , that St.Croix could of made this rod really stand out with alot better guides and charged a couple of dollars more and people would of payed it and not complained . even Pac-Bay guides with the hard chrome inserts would have made this rod alot better , St. Croix should re-do this rod for 2010 or it will be passed up by the other rods in the $100.00 price range ......

for me , the best crankbaits for cold water fishing are deep diving crank baits . i like to get down to those suspended fish that are not that active and retrieve them REALLY SLOW with little jerks and speed ups once in awhile to trigger bites from them . i like DD22's , Bomber fat free shads (BD7's) , Spro Little John DD , and strike king series 6"s . all costing well under $10.00 except the Spro at $11.00 .

dang it !! , i wanted to go tomorrow or even sunday but it aint gonna happen :-[ > guess i will have to wait till it comes to San Diego in a week and a half . not gonna be as good as the long beach show ... and Tyler isn't gonna go to that one ...

those Dobyns 8' cranking rods are sweet , checked out Randy's at a seminar at a local marine and tackle shop down where i live ( anglers marine in santee ,ca. ) and the rod really felt balanced and like it had good backbone with a good tip . Randy fishes Norman DD22's alot and says these rods really excell at the deeper diving crankbaits .....

you forgot that people also hate the crappy guides used on them : btw , that's probably why it is so tip heavy !!! .....

1 lb. mono !!!! ( .005") pretty much like sewing thread ;D

those are some nice baits !!! i love realistic shad baits !!!!!

on the third rod and sixth rod down(with the eva split grips) is that rear grip(below the reel seat) a stock eva grip piece or did you turn it down by hand ?? i want one of those on my next swimbait rod and would like to know where to get one , that is if it is a stock piece . btw how long is it , or should i say , what are it's dimensions as in dia.x length x inside dia. ??? thanks , those are sweet rods , love those FUJI ACS reel seats with split eva grips !!!!! :(

that is it exactly . my swim bait rods (rainshadow blanks ) are made of rx6 ( im-6 graphite), rx7 (im-7 graphite)and glass materials . that is to get the actions you want in a rod , by using different materials in different parts of the rod you combine aspects of each material to what would perform best . for example , alot of crankbait rods are made of graphite from the bottom of the blank to about 2/3 of the rod then glass is used for the top 1/3 for the soft action of glass . hope that helps

here are some more finesse casting rods http://www.***.com/AdvSearch.html?search=args&sref=&sref=40&Minprice=&Maxprice=&RodType=Casting&x=33&y=8

not in your price range , but take a look at the Cumara reaction series 7'6'' ML rod , rated for 1/8-1/2 oz. lures , that would be a sweet set up !!!!!

carbon fiber is a weave of cabon thread run in different directions and sandwiched between plastic resin making it alot stronger than just solid graphite and also alot lighter .

if you are looking for a stock rod , look into Mattlures rods , phenix ultra swimbait rods , okuma guide series swimbait rods ( they have a 7'6'' heavy rod you might like ) Dobyns 795ml rod is also a VERY nice rod that fits in good for the baits you want to throw , they cost around 240 bucks unless you can find a good deal on one , powell max swimbait rods are pretty good as are shimano crucials (the handles are a little to short for alot of peoples taste tho) . so look around and research these brands and see what fits your stle and comforts , you are bound to find one . if you don't like stock rods , go custom !! i myself will probably never buy a stock swimbait rod ever again !!!!

i have a rod that i really like for baits in the 2-6 oz. range ( will throw baits as small as a Mattlures hardgill to a ROF 16 8" Hudd ) it was made by G-blanks , you can have it custom made to how you want it . talk to Larry and he will go over every thing you want for the rod . i would suggest a 15"-17" handle (measurement from the bottom of the reel seat to the bottom of the blank , get some split grips , fuji reel seat , american tackle guides and yo will be set . the blank (ISWB945) , made by Baston/Rain shadow comes 7'10'' but can be cut down to your preferred length , i suggest you keep it 7'10 !!! the rod is pretty light and very strong . it costs about $160.00 plus shipping . i live in san Diego , ca and it cost around $20.00 to ship . you will really like this rod , here is a picture of it (the one with the REVO SX on it , the other one is also a g-blanks rod rated for 3-8 oz. baits with a REVO TORO on it ) here is G-Blanks web site - http://www.imaginationbassin.com/gblanks.htm