Fishes in trees

On the bait casting side, If you're going to use the reel for reaction baits, I'd recommend the Curado DC. For bottom contact baits I don't think that you ever throw far enough for the DC feature to be worthwhile - Get the Shimano that fits your hand the best - for me that is a 50 size Curado or Chronarch. If I could afford the more expensive Shimano reels, I'd probably go there, but I can't so I don't. I'm not so much a Shimano bigot when it comes to spinning reels. I got a Shimano NASCI a year, year and a half ago and I don't like it because it doesn't have a manual anti-reverse switch. I'm old school that I do back reel occasionally. In the last year I've purchased a couple of the Pflueger Presidents for a modest amount of money ($60 more or less) and I like them AND they have the manual anti reverse switch. I like the smaller size ones because they are lighter and fit my hand ok - your decision might be different. I see posts where lots of guys like the 30 size reels for bass. The advice of going to your local tackle store to pick out a reel is good advice. I would never buy a reel on-line that I hadn't handled first. If your local tackle store has a limited selection of Shimano bait casters, I'd go to a store that had a greater selection.

Currently I use my Curado 70 on a Falcon 6'10" Low Rider Finesse Jig Special. This used to be referred to as the Eakins Jig Special - and now it isn't any more, but it seems to be the same rod to me. I throw quarter or 3/16 Brewer Spider Slider heads and Brewer Slider worms or any of a number of different 5" paddle tail worms, and the reel is filled with 10 lb Abrazx. I've been know to take an inch or so off the top of the paddle tail worms. Telling the truth, this bait does weigh more than 1/16 oz, closer to 3/8 IMO, but I've never weighed it so I don't know exactly. I'll throw this bait anywhere - weed line edges or directly into much more gnarly stuff and haven't had much issues getting the fish out if I get bit. To answer your question, what I use right now for my Curado 70 is a Falcon Low Rider Finesse Jig Special. As an aside, I've found my Curado 70 to be extremely "touchy" to adjust, compared to the dozen or so other models of Shimano reels that I own. I don't know how much lighter line wise I'd want to go with this reel and I really don't know how much lighter bait weight wise I'd want to go with this reel. I know I tried putting 10 lb braid on the Curado 70 on a Med to ML 6'6" bait casting rod and tried to throw 3/16 oz Shad Raps with it and it didn't go well.

Sometimes I use a bead and sometimes I don't. I think it depends on when I'm digging around the hook box, when I'm retying, if there is a loose bead that catches my eye or not. I'm pretty certain that is why I leave loose beads in my tx rig hook box. If there is a more scientific reason to choose to use a bead on your tx rig or not, I don't know it.

I find it hard to care about this topic. I own several good to great bait casting rigs and spinning rigs. It hasn't occurred to me to know the exact distance that I can throw each one of them. When I'm practicing casting - in the yard next to my fishing shed - I'm pretty much aware I'm not going to get bit. Out in the boat, while I'm fishing, occasionally I throw short of where I want to throw. I chalk this up to environmental conditions (mostly wind) and operator error. For example - my Frog rig. The floating plastic frogs that I throw weigh half an ounce, more or less, within a couple of grams. In the yard next to my fishing shed I can throw roughly half the spool. (Calcutta 250 TEGT & 65 lb braid), using a half ounce practice plug. Out on the water, throwing the half ounce frog, throwing out half the spool doesn't ever happen - even when I'm trying to - with the wind at my back. Classic case of "go figure". Similar issues with my A-Rig set up. 7'9" Fenwick AETOS - Curado 300 - 20 lb Seige mono - I get great distance throwing a 2 ounce practice plug. Throwing an A-Rig which weighs in the 3 to 4 ounce range, out on the the water I get less distance - not quite sure how much less, but less for sure. Probably some areodynamic issues at play here. Anyway, I've quit worrying about this half a decade or so ago.

I have a number of the small Flambeau spinner bait boxes mentioned a few posts ago. They work great. When I was fishing tournaments I liked them because they let you bring a few of the different kinds you might need, but you didn't need to bring the whole spinner bait box. Generally I had a box for muddy water spinnerbaits, one for clearer water spinnerbaits and a third one for short arm thumpers. The boxes don't work for buzz baits. I took a 3600 size box and went to work with my Dremel and cut notches so that the buzz baits would kind of stay in place, and that worked ok.

I would bring money. It is my guess that there are some tackle shops somewhere near where you're going that would have a much better idea of what works and what doesn't. Another option might be to ship gear ahead, and have it waiting for you. I've known guys who went to Canada and that was the best option for them - when they arrived at the lodge, all their gear was waiting for them - and for a modest fee the lodge managers would ship the gear back at the end of the trip. I wouldn't do this with any gear that I would genuinely miss if it disappeared. I've had 2 buddies who went to Brazil to fish for Peacock Bass. Bringing all the gear that they wanted to bring priced out at being just too expensive. The tour manager that my buds booked through told them to ship any gear they wanted ahead of time ( a couple of months ahead of time ). That's what they did and while it wasn't exactly cheap, it was cheaper than traveling with all their gear and their stuff was waiting for them when they got to the Amazon. They each broke a couple of rods on fish, but it wasn't a trip breaker because they had shipped half a dozen extra rods ahead. They shipped a lot of extra line and lures ahead also. It was an extra expense, but who wants to go on a trip of a lifetime and not have all the gear you might want or need to fish with? The only gear that they refused to ship and travel with was their reels. So there is an option - ship your stuff to New Hampshire and at the conclusion of your trip compensate the lodge manager to ship it back.

Call me lazy, but I like a short leader. I know some knots can go through some guides, but you always feel a little "tic" when it goes through, and my thought process says "why bother?" Some guys say that doesn't affect distance or accuracy, but I don't know that. When I do the leader/braid thing I nearly always use a short leader "a foot and a half, more or less" and I don't reel it past the tip guide. I think that the braid/leader set up is more or less a power/finesse thing. I admit that it does save money as braids often last a long time. Having said that, I know that if I want a true finesse approach, in clear water like Table Rock or Bull Shoals, you need to go with 6 lb fluorocarbon, and just put up with the various line issues that sometimes occur. One more thing, my go to rig for throwing jerk baits is a 6'3" spinning rod with a braid/leader set up. I use a short leader for that - again in the foot and a half range or so. I find that using the fluorocarbon leader material rather than fluorocarbon line works better for me. The leader material seems slightly heavier and gives my jerk bait a slightly nose down look when it is suspending, which I like better than a nose up approach.

That might work for some guys, I don't know. I do know that I ALWAYS have too much stuff strung out around the deck for that to work for me. I'd have to be moving 5 or 6 things around on the deck to open a bin lid.

My only comment here is, to the original poster, do not let the fact that you have some decent rods that work for you interfere with any upgrade issues you might have in the back of your head. You want reaction bait rods? IMO a perfect spinnerbait rod isn't the same as a perfect square bill rod, neither of which is the same as a perfect deep diving crank bait rod. Then there are swim bait rigs, frog rigs, top water rigs and I'm certain we're missing many others. The best advice I can offer is to get as many different "perfect" rigs for whatever reaction baits you want to throw as your conscience and your disposable income will allow. If it is in the back of your mind that there is such a thing as a $300 all purpose reaction bait rod - well there really isn't for me, but there might be for you, I don't know.

I find many spinning rods uncomfortable for a variety of different reasons. Either it is the gap between the reel foot seats or the threads ahead of the tightening nut, I've found very few of the numerous spinning rigs totally comfortable as is. I've found that I can make nearly any spinning rod more comfortable by using rod wraps. Cover up the threads - build up the gap area between the reel seats - there are lots of ways to custom fit the rod to your hand. The material marketed as rod wrap tape can get pricey - around $10 per rod or so. Slightly less expensive is tennis racquet handle tape. If you don't mind all your rod handles being blue, it gets cheaper yet - the least expensive racket tape is a blue color. When you are in you local Dick's or Academy wander over to the baseball bat section. Ball bat wrapping tape comes in an assortment of different thicknesses and colors, but it isn't any cheaper than the Wynn wraps, I think Wynn makes that stuff also, come to think of it. Decent bicycle shops carry handle bar tape in a variety of colors, also not much cheaper than rod wraps. I've been spoiled, years ago, when I first realized this problem existed and that I could fix it, 2 Walmarts near me downsized their tackle inventories and I got a whole bunch of the original rod wraps at a buck a package - down from $5 or $6 bucks each. Nearly all of those are used up so I've had to look in other areas. Word of caution - duct tape comes in a variety of colors, but it doesn't work very well for this application and neither doesn't electricians tape. You can get non-sticky silicone tape that once it is applied it fuses to itself and that kinda works but it is the most expensive of all the options mentioned so far. I carry fusible silicone tape in my fishing truck but that is only for when I need a waterproof seal on some connection and can't find the lighter to use the shrink wrap. There you go - my solutions to uncomfortable spinning rod handles. Bait casting rod handles I've only had a few issues, mostly with the trigger underneath the reel seat. My only solution to this issue is to put a fine grit grinding stone on the Dremel and slowly try to make it fit better. ( I only do this on bargain bin/close out rods, Any rod $150 or more better fit right from the get go or it doesn't get purchased

I HAVE to wear knee high anti-blood clot socks so parts of my legs are covered if I want them to be or not. So I wear shorts. I have sun burned my knees significantly a few times over the years, so I spare the bare areas between my knees and where the shorts stop with sun screen. I have a few sun screen shirts to cover my arms &. back. Wear a wide brim had and sunscreen neck & ears. One of my anti-sun shirts has a hood on it and I'm finding I use the hood much more often than not. Cooler weather, I'm not a big fan of long pants when I'm fishing. I find that they restrict my movement somewhat and since I'm more or less naturally clumsy I don't need restricted movement. So I'm a big fan of long underwear & shorts. The long underwear leaves much less fabric flopping around my feet so it doesn't catch on stuff nearly as often. If I have to put the rain gear on, it is just a matter of just be careful all the time.

Should you not want to use a metal leader, I'm thinking you stilll have options. I'd lead off with a leader of 80 or 100 lb fluorocarbon leader. Not fluorocarbon line, but the leader material. I'd like to see the pike/pickerel/muskie that could bite through that.

I'm not an electronics expert, but my guess would be call Ranger and ask what that switch does. Is there a Ranger dealer anywhere near you? The guys I know who have Rangers speak highly of Ranger customer support.

different hooks serve different purposes. For my home made jika rigs, I want a pretty light hook, even though I'm using a half ounce weight (more or less). The weight kinda anchors the bait to the bottom, when a fish approaches and strikes, I want the hook to swing up with the bait , into the fishes mouth, as easily as possible. I think that the hooks on the commercially available Tokyo rig are a little heavy.

While many of Charlie Brewer's principles are applicable to many bodies of water, it is important to understand where this slider system was conceived and perfected - the deep, rocky, mostly clear waters of large Tenesse & Kentucky reservoirs. The point of the flat jig head was to make it easier to "glide" and keep the bait at a certain depth once you had counted it down. I recall one fishing facts article where he described how to take pliers and mash out the flat jig head even more, making it glide different and somewhat easier to hold at a specific depth. Basically what he was doing was slow rolling thermoclines. I haven't had much success doing that but then again, I haven't fished the places where he was doing that successfully either. I don't get down to Table Rock often enough to expand my deep clear water fishing game much beyond the basics.

a few questions . . . Did you call the DNR for an update on if they got the guy or not? As mentioned previously, any clue as to what bait he was using? Where was he fishing? Which brings me to a story. Back in the day (early 80's) I got permission to fish a VERY private piece of property. An older woman lived on the property, went through a period of extreme paranoia, and didn't allow any fishing on the lake at all for a dozen years or so. The result was that the lake was extremely stunted. 50 fish days were common and 100 fish days happened several times each year, the catch was that 90% of the fish were between 10" and 12" long. As part of the deal, we were expected to keep all the fish we caught under 13" and release everything over 13". I'm pretty sure that once or twice someone drove by my house after we'd returned from a trip to "Bass Valhalla" and wondered I don't understand, those are a lot of undersized fish. The point is that I had permission from the land owner to take those fish and over time, me and a few other guys more or less restored the balance to the lake and no one had to use chemicals or nets to do it. I'd want to know the whole story prior to passing judgement on the alleged poacher. In my case, I had permission (and the MO Conservation Dept. knew about it, she was pals with those folks and they approved this plan). Got to wonder about the rest of the story. That being said, I'm not big on taking more than you're supposed to on public waters.

I first read about Slider Fishing in Fishing Facts magazine - mid to late 70's. Slider heads were hard to come by but eventually enough folks asked about them and the local tackle store started carrying them. A professor pal of mine bought the book, basically because he had more disposable income than me at that time. I read it after he got done. I consider it just a basic fishing textbook, I've acquired a copy and refer to it from time to time. Whenever I don't know what else to do, "polishing the rocks" is my go to technique. You don't necessarily have to use finesse gear to polish the rocks - the Biffle Bug is a perfect example of a power version of that.

I'm in agreement with the previous post - your batteries need to be the same age - not roughly the same age - but the same age.

I don't know about you, but I'm not big on ordering rods that I haven't touched & messed with. If it were me, I'd shop local to find something I like. If it takes a road trip to get to a store that has a better assortment than what you've got - do that.

12 foot aluminum boats are, in my opinion, "tippy". I've never felt real comfortable fishing out of one, and it has been a while. I was not as fat, generally in better shape, and I felt that I always had to be aware of my balance. Anyway, I'd take it out once or twice, just to see how it fished, to find out for sure if it had enough room (it doesn't) and if I was ok with that compromise. Just with the weight that is in the boat (motor, trolling motor, gas, batteries, anchors, etc) I wonder if all that plus you exceeds the weight limit of the boat. I'd be very careful where I went with that boat. I can see not paying attention and catching someone else's wake from the rear corner and it might flip or swamp.

I don't like fiberglass rods. They are too heavy. You can look around and find graphite rods that do the same thing and don't weigh as much. A previous post about choosing rod action for various baits is a personal preference thing is right on, IMO. That being said, what I currently use for bigger square bills is a Kistler Small Swimbait Special, it is the olive green one - a Helium I think, but I don't know. I also use a BPS 7'4" Extreme MH to throw cranks, buzz baits, and other reaction baits. ( this rod is rated MH, acts more like a medium and has been discontinued for a few years now ) I have an All Star crank bait rod that works good for deeper divers. It doesn't have any ratings written on it at all, with the exception of a picture of a crank on it and the label "Crank Bait Rod." I have a couple of 6'8" Fenwick AETOS rods that I use for throwing reaction baits - Fenwick rates their action as MH/Fast. I know you're looking for a rod, but IMO the reel is the more important part of throwing reaction baits for distance, and distance is important for throwing reaction baits.

You have to understand that there IS a perfect color out there for YOU. It will catch fish every time, all the time. If that isn't happening to you it is only because you haven't bought the correct color yet. Your correct color is out there. Your correct color isn't necessarily my correct color. Re-evaluate your disposable income situation and get out there and BUY MORE BAITS1. Buy them in different colors and shapes. DO NOT buy just bag of any one color - buy at least two. What are you going to do when you've only got one bag of the perfect color? You'll become afraid to use that color because of availability issues. Keep. this up for a while and you will build up an impressive collection of bags of plastics. You must understand that the perfect color of plastics is only part of the issue. The perfect bait MUST be presented using the perfect rod, the perfect reel, using the correct line and the correct hook. If you're really OCD, musing about different colors is only part of the issue, and a modest part at that.

I recall back in the day that Hildebrandt made a plastic framed spinnerbait, I bought a few one tie when I had disposable income burning a hole in my pocket. I think I might have fished them once - just wasn't impressed and don't remember why. **hours later edit . . .found the baits in a box of old spinner baits in my tackle shed. The Hildebrandt frames look kinda similar but there is no metal eye to tie to and the frame is made of clear plastic. Blade was attached to the swivel with a split ring, not a snap. Smallish willow blade.

Just so you know, there isn't, IMO any such thing as a "great all-around casting rod". By definition, any rod that is "great" at any given technique, will probably be some sort of compromise at some different technique. There is some overlap, so you could in theory use any rod for any given technique if you want to. No one is going to "tattle." Unless you're really rich, fishing rod arsenals are acquired over time. MY advice - take it or leave it - decide what & how you like to fish for most. Then buy a good rig for that. Then later on, as you acquire additional disposable income, get a good rod for another favored technique. And so on . . . I've found that rods that are marketed for one purpose, to me, are better suited for a different purpose. Case in point, years ago BPS marketed a Woo Davis Special, a 7'4" rod in their Extreme line. I attended a seminar where Woo himself bragged about this rod, claimed it was his favorite pitching rod ever, better, in his opinion, than the classic All Star WR1, which he thought previously was the best pitching rod ever. OK, I bought one ( on sale, didn't want to pay list ) and I disagreed. Not in any way, shape or form the best pitching rod ever, IMO I owned several rods already that were better pitching rods. My issue with the rod was too much tip. A couple of years later, the rod has been "benched" for a while and it occurs to me, " I wonder how that rod works on reaction baits?" Turns out it works great, the little bit of extra tip, which I didn't like for a pitching rod, worked great for throwing square bills, Buzz baits, Timber Tiger DC 16 & 13's - lots of different reaction baits. I bought a couple more of that model when it went on sale. That's all - end of rant - I really don't think that there is any such thing as a "great" all around casting rod. Good luck looking for one.

I have a 1998 Ford Explorer Sport (the 2 door model) and it pulls a 2002 LOWE 180 WT ok. I've got 120,000 miles on it, pretty much all fishing miles. I have a different car I drive to work in..