Fat-G

Thank you. That makes a Rage Thumper and Rage Hawg a major possibility for this VA boy. 8-)

My favorite weather to fish in is when it's raining. I don't do as well when it stops, especially if the winds stops. I could this fish last year in the rain.

Wow A-Jay, those are gorgeous dogs. Really, really gorgeous.

I wouldn't worry about bending the hook, especially now that you have the braid. PowerPro is some gooooooood stuff.

Gangley has an HD, I PM'd him and he said he likes it alot. I want to get one or two just to try. I would get them for reaction baits, as I like more expensive rods for bottom contact baits due to the sensitivity.

Reel should be fine. Braid or Flouro would help your hookup percentage. The rod is an all-around deal but obviously a faster tip or more sensitive setup would help a ton. If that's not an option than I would try braid / Fluoro / Copoly and maybe a straight shank hook. x10. Your problem is you're using a short rod, very stretchy line, and a big, thick hook for a lure with A LOT of plastic to penetrate on the hookset. I would recommend a longer rod (7'+) and braided line. With braid you can literally just come set on a fish and be fine, all though I wouldn't recommend it. When I say come set, i'm talking about loading up the rod without reeling down and snapping back. Braid will also make your setup much more sensitjve. There's no doubt you will notice it.

Good suggestions so far, I'm going to be throwing a jig a lot this year. I'm talking more along the lines of weightless plastics rather than dropshots. I guess I'll just post my list up, that makes the most sense. I have fished the Trick Worms a lot, and they have always produced. Everything else is new. Jackall Flick Shake (5.8 and 6.8) Fat Ika LFT Live Magic Shad Rage Hawg Trick Worm Rage Anaconda

This year I have some personal goals. One of which is to key in on the big fish. If this means fishing a whole day for one big bite, that's fine. I need some suggestions on some baits to throw this year, stuff I've never tried. Here's a rundown of my big fish ponds. They are well-fished, the fish won't hit a spinnerbait or crank unless it's a "special occasion", meaning very rarely. I SMASHED 'em last summer on t-rigged Rage Craws, but I want to try other things. I'm gonna go with more subtle, finesse baits this year. I already have a handful of plastics to buy and try, but thought it would be interesting to see what others thought. Just throw ideas out. Plastics you've had good success with on the bigger fish.

I really like the TT forums. It blows what happened. There are some INSANE people on that forum. Like insane. People spend $500 on a Steez, then spend another $500 getting it tricked out. Crazy! But, it's just like people that deck out their truck, collect guns, cigars, or play golf alot. Just another hobby. I did notice it started to make me want to paint reels and stuff of that nature, but then I took a step back and realized that was beyond "fishing" and somewhat took the fun out of it. I found I would be so focused on the "perfect" rod or reel I wouldn't think like my little bass mind normally does, which catches a whole lot more fish. Heck, I want to get a Dobyns DX744, but when I "take a step back" and look at it from the perspective of "I just fish ponds, and I'm 17" it seems ridiculous. I caught my PB on a $70 combo. I doubt a ~$500 combo would catch me any more fish, even though it would be 3 ounces lighter and a lot more sensitive. -rant-

If only it was legal, man! ....... ;D ;D ;D

Go with the 7'6, you'll get better leverage.

The rig I have the Big Game on is for spinnerbaits and lipless cranks. I will get a spool of copoly for it sooner or later. I use braid on my contact bait rigs, and will try some flouro as a leader this year.

You mean that's too heavy? If I didn't have 50# PowerPro on my jig rod it would be 20#-25# flouro or copoly. I fish my jigs where no jig should go.

I never made that connection ;D I think their casting lineup will see the CI4 technology this year. It would be a very logical step for them, and would be a big leap in the industry.

Whoops ;D I know what yours is so far this year! It's interesting to see what, when, and how people utilize different techniques to catch fish in different parts of the country. For instance I haven't thrown a lipped crank since I started fishing and was in the stage where I threw everything Bill Dance endorsed. For other people it's their most important technique. I'm sure it's great, I just despise it. I mostly fish in smaller lakes or ponds, and target big fish. So, I throw bottom contact, big fish baits most of the time. The Baby Craw was a surprise for me. Used correctly, it can catch some hawgs. Honorable mentions go to a Zoom Trick Worm.

Forgive me if this is just plain stupid, or if it is already happening, but could a company make a reel's frame out of carbon fiber? I held a carbon fiber handle without the knobs the other day. It was crazy light. If you can use it for a handle, couldn't you use it for the frame as well?

What are your top three most productive lures to throw? Not really by season, just in general. My top three, in no specific order: 1. Spro Frog 2. Rage Tail Baby Craw and normal Craw 3. Jig and Rage Craw

WOW! I got out to a neighborhood pond today with the spinning rig spooled with the 6# CXX. I REALLY like that line in the 6# test. It handled extremely well, way better than Hybrid 6#, and had a lot less stretch. I caught about a handful of dinks on a t-rigged Baby Rage Craw with an 1/8 oz. tungsten weight. The only downside was the rod, my 6'8 Tec Spec. I love the feel and sensitivity, but the handle is way too long. Oh well, I'm getting a new spinning rod next, no big deal. I would HIGHLY recommend the 6# P-Line CXX for a spinning rod. I just replaced Hybrid for sure. Now we just have to see if it gets coily in the long run, which it probably will.

I'm changing my suggestion to the Tec Spec. I have the 6'8 MXF spinning rod, and it is a VERY sensitive rod. It feels more sensitive than my Cumara. Granted the Cumara is a very stiff rod and is meant for very different things, that says alot. I will add this to avoid getting destroyed for saying that, the fish I have recently caught on the Tec Spec have been dinks on 6# test. Dinks in general are much more aggresive so that could play a big part in the rod feeling more sensitive. However, with the way the $60 rod feels, I can't imagine how sensitive the Cumara would be in that length and action.

Vendettas are great for the money. I have one I got for free and I actually like it a lot.

Yeah whenever I use mono or copoly I go out back and stick a hook in the fence, walk about 50 yds. away and pull to straighten out the line.

I had to make an emergency run to Dick's to pick up a spool of mono for a trip this weekend with my buddy. The only thing they had that wasn't flouro or CXX was a 900 yd. spool of Big Game, so I picked it up along with a spool of 6# CXX for my spinning rod. I hate the line twist that mono brings to the table, but it really is way better for reaction baits. The Big Game will convert to a backing spool when I get my hands on some Yo-Zuri. I will admit it casts SO much more smoothly and effortlessly than braid.

Before The_Natural's demise, he said that the Zillion rods were every bit as sensitive as the Steez models. I would like to try one, it's just not on the top of my list at the moment.

Try a Cumara...you won't be sorry. I've heard nothing but good about the 50e.

It really wasn't "mud", more like wet ground with some puddles. I floored it and the wheels spun, thus the sides of the car covered in mud. Either way, it was fun as hell. The fastest I went was probably 25 tops. It was more of just trying to keep the car in control. I would get stuck VERY fast if the mud had been deeper than an inch, but it wasn't.