Darren.

I've seen the second video with the Japanese freak-of-BC-skipping-nature. I get depressed after watching videos like these. I have a medium powered BC setup in which the rod loads up pretty well so I should, theoretically, be able to skip it. Reality is a different matter entirely. Now spinning gear?! Heck yeah. I can skip easily. Which is why I use spinning gear more.

You have to use a palomar on a jig head, or a clinch, or any number of knots. I snell all my worm hooks, even size 4 Gamakatsu Wide Gap Finesse. I feel the snell is the best as it wraps the entire shank. When you set the hook, the pull is along the shank and "straighter", if you understand me. Other knots simply pull the hook at the loop. Not saying other knots are bad or anything like that. I used palomar all the time before I learned the snell. I use it today when I tie on a jig or a lure that cannot be snelled (pretty much every single one). Here's a video on the easiest way to tie the snell:

Toothy critters definitely can nick and break your line. No doubt there. Pickerel have done it to me where I live. If your line is old, that can mess it up, too. P-Line CXX is well known to be super-strong. I use P-Line Floroclear 98% of the time as my leader line. Braid for main. Could be a bad spool, known to happen. Only time I use palomar knots now on my spinning/casting gear is for jigs, or other hooks with no way to tie a snell knot. I snell everything for soft plastics now. Love the knot, never break it.

Definitely check your line as SlapShot says, and definitely wet your line. No ifs, ands, or buts. Do it. If you're line has any nicks in it, consider some new line, or run your fingers up/down the line to where you feel nothing. Palomar is a great knot, but for Senko and soft plastics, I tie a snell knot. Fantastic knot. I've tied on palomars and snells, and always do a pull-test before snipping the tag line. If the line breaks, I retie. If it breaks again on the pull-test, I get another hook and test that. I've had Gamakatsu hooks with burrs in the eyelets (rarely) But definitely find this more often on off-brand hooks. Which is why I go with Gammies most often, Owners second.

An absolute answer to your question is nigh impossible. There are so many variables. I see "big baits, big bass" all the time on TV, on the web, from casual conversation with fishermen. Sure it's true. But so is the opposite. Small baits catch big bass. My personal best 7.5lb LMB was on a 5" Senko. I've caught plenty of 5, 6, and 7 pounders on 4" senkos, and 4.75" finesse worms, fewer biggies on smaller baits. Hmm. Perhaps wademaster1 is right ... "you can catch big fish on small lures and baits but you will catch more big fish on bigger lures and baits more consistently", emphasis mine. You can drop a 20" worm in the right spot at the right time, you may just land a 10 pounder. Or a 2 pounder with big eyes and a hungry tummy. Drop it in a school and which bass will get to it first? Do all the little guys get out of the way when a huge bait shimmies down? Perhaps there is science out there that proves otherwise. Fish Chris (trophy bass hunter) has caught monsters on live nightcrawlers. Not exactly a "big bait" per se.... Just have to try and see how big baits work for you. None of us have fished all the freshwater spots out there, so what works at one place may or may not work in another. In fact, another fisherman who fishes the same water as you may say "do this, works for me all the time" and you do that, but it doesn't work for you. Go buy some 7" Senkos, or Zoom Magnum Finesse worms and see how they perform. Get common colors you've had success on with smaller baits. Maybe try a Fat Ika, chunky, not really a "big" bait, but different. May be very productive for you. Good luck experimenting!

Senkos - the real ones :-) - they just work better for me. Always spend $$ trying other brands that just can't compare. Darn expensive in their own right, but Yammies really work well, make the bass hold on tight. Zoom Finesse worms - because these shimmy down like Senkos and catch me a lot of bass and other species when the bite is tough.

I like to describe the water as "green clear" Yesterday it was cloudy green, and the reservoir was high. I couldn't see much over a foot down, if that. In the spring I could describe the stuff on the bottom. It was crystal-green-clear. I fish reservoirs here in the Hampton Roads area. Now when I've fished some very clear water in PA, I used the same stuff. No problems going after smallies, largies, etc. So I don't think there's any negative with the yellow PP at all. And as far as other color (and brand) lines, when I did use them, the main thing was how they handled. Given the use of a leader, I don't think mainline color really matters. And no, not noticed a difference in catch ratio. If I feel there's a visibility issue, I simply lengthen the leader. And I'm using P-Line Floroclear in mist green. Virtually invisible in my waters. And that's comparing it to strait, pure fluoro. Now here I think I do see a difference. I *feel* that the floroclear has been best, and caught the most fish on it (as leader). I know there are folks here who hate the stuff, but I love it and have caught some beasts with it.

I use 10lb PowerPro hi-vis yellow on my spinning setups. Leaders on each, too. I also like the hi-vis orange from Sufix. Have experimented with no leader and blacking out the first 5 feet of line. Caught fish, but still prefer a leader. For one, I can more easily snap the leader if I'm hung up. That way I don't lose any of my braided line, just the leader. As far as the visibility, the older the line, the more the brightness fades. So for the yellow, in some conditions - facing the sun, sun is low, etc., the line can be just as hard to see as any other line. But for most conditions I find it is excellent for watching.

Hey dude, welcome to bassresource!

Nice to have you aboard, Ronnie.

FWIW, I wasn't answering your post, only letting the OP know that I don't experience the same problem you find on your 3000 model. I totally agree with you, to each his own on gear. I only gave my opinion on what I do, and what shapes my gear choice. Wasn't insinuating you were handling your gear wrong (not closing bail, etc.). Sorry if I gave that impression. But I would actually say braid is a reason one can go with a smaller spool/reel. No memory. If I were to go with fluoro or mono only, I'd opt for a larger spool to cut down on line twist.

I've tried several different methods, including empty Rx bottles. Crazy as it is, I've gone back to using the plastic bags the hooks come in. Bought a worm bag at BPS. There are little zipped pockets in each compartment that store the bags perfectly. Plus, it's easier to differentiate hook sizes that way. I suppose it depends on your methods. I kayak fish, so like the method I'm using now. When I was shore bound, the Rx bottles worked easiest (still use that method for some stuff like for big packs of gold, Aberdeen panny hooks). Sometimes I make my own snelled hook leaders and wrap them around a Lindy Rigger Snell Holder. That makes for easy panfishing. Wrap enough around it and you shouldn't need to carry separate hooks.

I've had no problems with my Sahara, but it's a 500FD. My Stradics are 1000FI's. I like small profile reels and see no need to go up to a 2500 or larger. Not encountered a fish I couldn't handle with these small reels (and yes, I've caught a number of 6 pound bass on the 1000 reels). I always close bail by hand, I keep drag at one setting (for most part), and use my "free" hand on the spool if I need extra drag. Never been spooled, either. But unless you're in a hurry, I agree with fishking247, hang on a little longer for the new Shimano models coming out. From what I've seen they're all upgrades over current models, not just cosmetic changes. As for rods, a M or MH is a general all-around action. For me I'm all M with XF action at this point. Will look for a MH down the road to complete my spinning armada. Rod length is up to you. I don't go with the majority who like long rods now-a-days. I like shorter rods. 6'3" is my longest spinning rod. You can throw almost any bait on a spinning rig. And here's where a larger reel would come in handy - if you're throwing big cranks, etc. I don't throw that stuff. I'm pretty much all soft plastics with my spinning gear, and use finesse techniques, which shapes my reel size and rod choices. Different strokes for different folks, to use an old cliche.

Welcome to a fellow VA fisherman!

welcome aboard!

Just curious. Is the (or a) reason you're going for a digital scale so you can weigh to the tenths? I had a digi-scale from BPS that worked great until it slipped out of my hands and down to Davey Jones Locker. Since then I've been using my econogrip spring scale (with a float) and find it to do the job very well. Although it'd be nice to see tenths, I see measurements by the 1/4 lb. The scale I'd take over any digital model is a boca... Dreaming on.

If it were me, I'd use rivets. Find a local kayak store and see if they carry pop rivets, the kind that splice into a flower (crude explanation) when you set them. I've used screws in my yaks, but the rivets are so much easier and they do hold very well, even for anchoring situations. But yeah, the well nuts are the way to go if you're worried about hold. If the plastic is thin, try the well nut - or rivet. My .02.

Finesse is a style. Like in tennis, you have finesse players and power players. Same equipment for the most part, just different styles of play. Finesse players will stroke the ball differently, often play full court whereas power players tend to stay at the base line and power the ball over the net. Stefan Edberg, John McEnroe were finesse, someone like Andre Agassi was power. Although both did all styles, these were their primary styles (IMHO). That said, when I finesse fish, I tend toward lighter gear, softer presentation. I won't normally use my MH baitcasting setup for finessing, though I can. I finesse fish 99% of the time with both spinning and baitcasting gear. For baits, Senkos (sometimes knockoffs, but Yammies work best for me), Zoom Finesse worms, and sometimes when the bite is really tough I'll throw wacky rigged Zoom tiny flukes in watermelon red flake. That'll net me a lot of smaller fish, but I've caught some beasties, too. I'll rig Wacky, weighted wacky, Texas weightless and Texas weighted. If I'm throwing lures I'll tend toward lighter lures, not fist-sized cranks or such. But again, you can finesse those. Hooks: Gamakatsu Finesse Wide Gap #4, #2, #1. I caught my PB 7.5 lber on a size 1 or 2 in thick weeds. These pups don't bend or break. Caught 5+ lbers on the #4 size. These hooks rock. For gear: Primarily Shimano Stradics 1000FI, 10lb braid mainline, leaders mono, copoly, fluoro from 6-15 lb test. Shimano Compre rods, Medium power, X-fast action, shorter (5'9", and 6'3"). Line brand: I use Power Pro yellow, and mostly P-Line Floroclear mist green leaders. Brand is really up to you and what you like. Opinions are all over the place, but the bottom line is use what you like and feel comfortable with.

Vote for Sedona here, but President a good reel, too. Prefer the fact that Shimano reels are fresh/salt capable out of the box. Not a big deal for some, but I'm near ocean and brackish waters so having one reel able to do both is a major plus. Besides that, I've put Shimano spinning reels thru the paces and am majorly impressed with the smoothness and build quality. But that's me....

#1 Wacky #2 TX with 1/8oz weight, dragged slowly across bottom #3 TX weightless #4 Wacky with weighted wacky hook

I love Floroclear and never break on hook sets... I use 6-15lb test and absolutely love the stuff. I know there's plenty of folks in the forum that have had bad experiences with the line, but not me. I use it on both spinning and baitcasting gear - as leader material tied to 10lb PowerPro mainline. My hook sets are not massive jerks, just reel down and sweep. Never break. So I've got two knots in the line, the line-to-leader (Albright), and the terminal knot. I have complete confidence with this setup. That said, I tie ALL my hooks with a snell knot. Only time I will use a different terminal knot is if it's a jig, or type of hook that has no shank to tie a snell (due to lead head or such). The snell knot is by far the best *I* have ever used with FC lines. And I do use the snell with pure FC when I tie it on as a leader (terminal end). As said by others, lubricate the knot before you cinch it down. I tie mine the way does on YouTube. Very simple after a few times practicing, you can do it in a hurricane while on the water with your eyes closed. :-)Do be sure to check the eye of your hook before tying, though. I've had cheaper brand hooks have little fraying of the metal in the eye which nicked the line making it break. Also, once I tie the snell, before I make the first cast, I always do a good pull test. Hope this helps. As for pound test for TX rigging, I'll agree with the first response that it is on the light side. However, I've used 6 lb on weightless TX or very light bullet weight (1/16oz). When the bite is tough, I downsize everything. So if you want to throw a TX rigged worm on 4lb test you can. It's your call. Heck, you can use light line for just about anything if you're confident in your ability to handle fish with it! Just read Craig DeFronzo's piece on light line right here at bassresource.

I've got 5 Shimano spinning reels, two are Stradics (FI), two Spirex, and one Sahara. Love 'em. Stradics by far the best, smoothest. I really like the new 2012 Saros, but as of now I'm on new gear hiatus. So yeah, no regrets going all Shimano. And since I'm on hiatus, I won't be replacing my Quantum BCs with new Citicas...but I want to.

Built my own roof rack. Not the most elegant solution, but it works. Put foam blocks on it for my Native Ultimate 12. Strap it down with two cross straps and all's good.

Howdy! Welcome aboard.

Welcome aboard, fellow Virginian!