Hooligan

Most of my upland hunting is for Sharptails and Prairie Chickens. I used to run bird dogs but since growing up and getting a real career have found it harder and harder to justify it. It isn't fair to the dogs if I can't run them daily, so I now have one broken down old pointer that used to be a hunting machine that lives in the house with us. Best house dog ever, too.

My fluoro leader is a 75 yard topshot.

The two biggest differences are profile and movement. A pointer 100 has a slightly larger profile than does an Xrap, or a standard Rogue. The Xrap has a very wide, very erratic path when worked in comparison to a relatively narrow path of a Pointer. Most suspending jerkbaits have a fairly tight wiggle with little roll, which is most often associated with cold water techniques. That said, we fish jerkbaits year round on various bodies of water. They're great any time the fish are lethargic for any reason.

Three times, Johnny, three.

It's the density of the line that acts as a transmitter, opposed to other lines being too limp and not dense enough in various situations. When braid is under bressure, because it has zero stretch, it transmits excellent. When it is loose, or slack, it cannot transmit any vibration. Mono is much the same, but the biggest factor that effects the sensitivity of mono is the stretch it has.

If you're straight up flipping- 25lb Abrazx. If you're pitching jigs and plastics to moderately heavy cover 20lb Tatsu.

Northstar Jig and Rage Craw Smokin' Rooster Grass Pig

The LE is a different rod entirely than the LTB and Avid. Granted the difference between the Avid and LTB in the 6-8 MXF can be perceived as being considerable but n the of the primary differences is strain of graphite. SCIV has a much higher recovery rate. The SCV has an even higher rate than the SCIII. The Avid compared to the LE is like comparing an NRX to a GL2; IE there's no comparison. The power comparison isn't in the butt section, I've caught hundreds of brown fish up to the 7lb mark on my Avid and LTB, and used everything from grubs to Senkos to do it. What it does not excel at is throwing 1/8 and 1/4 oz TX rigs on light line. The power in the butt section is not what is in question, it's whether or not the tip will handle the baits without overloading. Having fished the LE, I'd argue that it's as powerful as most of the MH casting rods on the market, let alone many. I'd give it a couple at best. For me, the Avid is a much more powerful rod in the butt section, it has a tremendous amount of lifting power in the blank without being too unforgiving. If you want a spinning rod with a tremendous amount of power, fish the NRX. Easily the lightest, most powerful rods that I've ever had in my hands. The 802 will blow the LE out of the water in every way; casting distance, accuracy, sensitivity, feel, components, power... That said, it still isn't my preference for every situation. That's the beauty of having access to different manufacturers and rods. You can be in love with one for one technique and use an entirely different rod for another. Each has benefits and drawbacks based on whose hand the rod is in. Again as the primary rod for light T Rigs, I'd be looking at a MHXfast or MHfast opposed to a medium, regardless of manufacture. Most MH rods are going to perform better with even 1/8oz weights and plastics than are their MXF counterparts. Without a doubt the MH rods are going to give you a better feel for working the bait if you are consistently fishing 1/8oz and heavier weights.

That's not a bad idea, but I never find myself needing anything other than the two light brakes I have in the "On" position. I've taken the other four all the way off on a couple reels to no adverse effect, so I don't see a problem with the suggestion. However, like originally stated, there's likely no reason you'd ever need the difference.

I'm more and more impressed by the Veritas as time goes on. They're incredibly light weight and seem to have excellent characteristics. I've been fishing a couple of them as review rods lately, and am not at all unhappy with their performance. I'd very likely spend the $100 on a Veritas before I would a Carbonlite. Also, don't jump in and buy the first thing that you get your hands on. You'll see some great rods for a reasonable price as the season winds down. I have four or five, possibly six or seven even, that I know I'm selling. There are others that will have some quality gear for sale, too. Keep your eyes on the market place and see what comes up. Most of the people are going to be willing to deal a little on the rods, sometimes you get a great bargain in the Marketplace.

Until you fish Tatsu. Tatsu is so superior to invizX that it's incredible. For that matter, Sniper is better than InvizX in nearly every way and I'm a total and complete Seaguar w***e. Tatsu has less stretch, greater sensitivity, better casting, better abrasion resistance, and better knot strength. Not to mention the longevity of Tatsu is superior to that of Invizx.

I'm positive you're incorrect. Heavy is black, grey, and green. Light is red, blue, and clear.

And yet, if I tie a knot that doesn't slip it eliminates the extra step of gluing it. Glue is a crutch, tie better knots and you won't have to deal with it.

Nice read, JF, and a great way to stick up the win. We're headed to Erie next month, fish out of Port Clinton. Strong, strong work, fellas!

They glide and settle really nicely. They're essentially a "Do nothing" sort of bait.

Excellent article as to the what's and why's of rod action here: http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/rod-actions-power.html I knew it was around, just had to look a bit.

I slipped a palomar twice on it. Lost one frog, and on the next left a longer tag to see if it was, indeed, slipping. Landed about a three pounder and the tag had almost pulled through.

That's a double edged sword, really. It boils down to preference. I prefer to fish all treble hook lures on a Moderate/moderate fast rod. There aren't really any exceptions for me. I fish my jerkbaits on two different rods, mostly med/mod. Another reason I prefer the action on a crank rod is that it helps with moving baits, the rod loads more allowing a bait to bang off structure differently, it's also easier on you, the rod is working in your favor when you're huckin' cranks and plowing furrows. The rod loads through the blank creating a lot greater potential energy making hooksets easier, and fighting fish easier and more effective. I fish topwaters on a glass rod, too. When I switched I lost a lot fewer fish. In reality, it's preference. Only you are the one that can decide whether a crank rod is going to benefit you. Every person on the forum can post their preference for rod actions and baits and you, personally, won't be able to tell which you want to go with until you fish it. I've purchased literally dozens of rods on the recommendation other have made, only to find that I like some and hate others. Recently I purchased three glass rods on the input from people here that have fished them. Two of the three I'll keep in rotation, the third is a piece of junk that will find its way to the flea market sometime soon, yet it's a rod that MANY here have spoken very highly of. What I like and how I fish isn't going to translate to what you're going to like and how you fish every time. You can get input from every source but until you try it, you will never decide which is for you or why. Edit: There's also some misinformation in this very thread. Just because a rod is a Med Mod doesn't mean that it doesn't have a fast enough tip to work certain baits, and the inverse is true as well. There are plenty of "moderate" rods with more than enough tip to work a topwater effectively. I'll also use the Crankin' Stick as an example. The rods are moderate across the board, meaning they flex well into the blank and have more than enough power in the butt section of the rod to handle big cranks; yet at the same time, they have a fast enough "tip" to work jerkbaits and topwater baits effectively. Don't get hung up on the "tip action" as that alone is significant of nothing.

Very good point, I always forget that I use them specifically for Senkos and Flukes. Whole reason I bought the hooks. The 2/0 is PERFECT for the 4" Senko.

The single, most important thing that I've found with it is to tie a San Diego or Pitzen. I have had the knots slip with it when I tied other knots. Tie the SD and you're fine.

Drop shot and C-rig.

I can't stand Guiness in the States. It tastes so much different than in Ireland; I was ruined for it when we were there. Lately, I've been on an Oatmeal Stout kick. Hayden, it's understood what you meant. There are still laws in the US that allow a minor of 16 to have an alcoholic beverage with their parents. Enjoy the new rod, Dobyn's don't suck at all.

Really? Logo is still up on the side.

Nice, I found a Sustain for $165 last week. I'd buy that one all day long, too.

Ha! Excellent.