vikingbear8

Going to be trying something a little different this winter with an umbrella rig and need one that will not break. It seems like nearly every rig I read a review of people talk about breaking arms being fairly common, that just won't cut it. The only one I have not been able to find to much bad about is the hog farmer. So which ones do you guys that have put a lot of time into them trust?

He makes more from his soft baits than hard baits, but I think I recall saying he was making more that would be available later this summer

Personal preference for San Diago area California? uhhm let me think……gonna have to go with 8-10" swimbait lol Seriously though go buy a huddleston or any other proven big bait and catch a teener man, you are in arguably the number one big fish area in the world, leave the sissy baits at home and chase the ones most people will never even have an opportunity too catch.

I have used all of the loomis swimbait rods pretty extensively (except the IMX) the BBRs, GL2, and SWBR series what are you wanting to know exactly? The GL2 is more moderate action than the SWBR but not as much as the BBRs. The GL2 957 is my workhorse for larger swimbaits anything from 6-10oz it handles really well. It does well with both hard baits and soft baits because its action is in the middle.

With 30# and 50# braid you are absolutely right. But 30# and 50# braid is a very far cry from swimbait line.

OP If you are really serious about catching a DD, you really need to explore outside of the piedmont area. Not saying there are not lakes here that kick them out, but the vast majority of the lakes here are dead. Yes lake jordan has a 14 and change record, but that was 20 years ago when 40lb bags where not uncommon there. Now it only takes what 12-15lbs to win there usually. Maybe during the spawn 20-25. There is a lake in cary that puts out a handful of DDs every year, and I was lucky enough to find a 4 day window this year where they were extremely active. On that lake during those days there were 5 fish over 9lbs caught. I have not got a single good fish on that lake since that week though and that was in February. There is a guide on Falls that has 27 DDs and the lake record at something like 13, but he has caught them over 20 years or so. Now if you talk about western NC fishing, its a whole different game. That is where the state record is from, and there are multiple lakes out there that put out teeners every single year. The water stays cooler out there, and oh yeah there are this little bass snicker bars running around everywhere that fly fisherman call trout. There is less pressure, cleaner and healthier water. Just all around better trophy fisheries. Not trying to discourage you, there are places here that are good for big bass too, specifically the Bragg ponds, and the city owned drinking water impoundments, and some way out of the way places that all the yuppies are afraid to take their Prius. If you are serious about big bass though, you might want to consider some trips into the smokeys, besides it is beautiful country out there, you don't need an excuse to go, wives love the Biltmore house and Asheville, and you get to fish, its a win win haha. Then again, I am from the mountains and moving out past Asheville this fall so everything I have said may be slightly biased.

If you ask me it may work but it is far from ideal. I have tried it and can d**n near spool the thing with any bait over 2 oz., especially if the wind is to my back. Something else you have to remember that a lot of people don't consider, is because it does have such a small line cap, on the end of your cast you will be reeling in several inches of line per turn less than say 10ft out, so you will have to start fast and slow down to keep a steady retrieve.

slammer and another slammer

Dark Trout and Purple Nitro have always been my favorite slammer colors, I also have some light trout and baby bass though too. It really doesn't matter, just get a color you will be confident throwing.

For me largemouth > 10lbs. Smallie > 7lbs.

This is exactly what I was going to say, I know the sick fish is cheeper but there is a reason it is cheaper, the original trash fish is leaps and bounds better. If you buy good soft plastic swimbaits you will rarely have a need to boil them.

That place is a gold mine, for one its only an hour to harris/jordan if you want a big lake. But super clear ponds that are crawling with huge fish are literally all around that place. I am not going to hand you a golden ticket, but I will give you a place to start. Go to the wildlife center on post where you have to get your Ft. Bragg fishing license, and look at the fishing trophy book.

1. Huddleston 2. Hiroshima Custom 8.5 Glide 3. MS Slammer

Navionics has a free web app that is pretty hard to beat.

I am not a fan of the mini, too small. The 7" and 9" both get blasted though. You cant beat a slammer

Yes it is

Wayne that Hinkle looks awesome, I have been kicking around the idea of trying to get one, I love my deps and hiroshimas though. I always think about hitting you up before my trips to PA when I make them and toss some swimbaits, I always end up targeting other fish species up there though. Oh and speaking of new additions this one came today

Here is what I do, I dont use traditional tackle anymore so I have a closet full of that stuff too. Where the magic happens Rod Rack

I only buy two reels, Shimano Calcutta 400B's and Daiwa Luna 300's (A lot of people dont know this but the Luna 300 has the same line capacity as a Shimano 400). So those are my personal suggestions for reels. As for a higher end reel performing better, I will disagree with what has been said and say they definitely do. A friend of mine has a Cardiff, he also has a Calcutta TE, they are not even comparable in all honesty. The TE outcasts the cardiff by a mile, as do my calcutta B's (all super tuned) and Luna's. Also keep in mind that the cardiff has a really light drag for swimbait fishing. its 10-11lbs. That is not nearly enough in my opinion to fish big swimbaits for trophy bass. I am not knocking the Cardiff, it is a fantastic reel for the price, and especially for someone just getting into big baits, but if you have the money and are going to be throwing big baits a lot, I would definitly look at something else. Also learn how to super tune your own reels, it makes a ridiculous difference and really is not that hard at all. My super tuned B's can outcast my buddies TE which is quite impressive for a $180 reel. and if you shop smart you can get a Luna for $50 more at $230 and it is worth every penny in my opinion at that price.

Awesome thanks a lot!

Are photos okay? I dont know how to do a screen shot or if my unit even can (I doubt it can) Lowrance Elite-7 HDI and more gizzard shad than you can shake a stick at

17 is more than enough for the baits you mentioned as they are quite small. I would stay away from braid with swimbaits with a few exceptions the main one being a mission fish

It is pretty under the radar but Savage Gear also has an 8" model of the glide swimmer, I have only seen a few pics of it and not sure when it comes out but looks good. I have had my savage gear glide for a few days now but today was the first day I was able to throw it. I is definitely very similar to the S-waver. It seems to have much better hardware than the stock hardware on an s-waver. also the joint is a LOT more free even on my favorite s-waver which I modded to be a lot more open. That should translate to a wider glide but not always. I only got to fish it for about 30 mins on the bank in stained water so I can not say to much on the action. The one thing I really dont like is that it has rattles in it.

If you are in the market for a cheap swimbait rod an Okuma Guide Select is about the only thing I could recommend. A lot of guys with extremely high end rods and custom rods will still use them, plus they have an amazing warranty. If you are thrifty you can get some used Dobyns and Loomis rods for that price range also.