SFL BassHunter

I started buying the H2O Express stuff from academy. They are nice looking cranks, and they run true. The hooks are sticky out of the box and they have a HUGE selection. I've got a few Livingston cranks with flashing lights, and sounds, that were in the 15-17 dollar range and have yet to catch a fish on them. Not that they aren't good, but they just haven't produced for me.

That is strange, I have that same combo as far as rod and reel. Mine is a MH/F rod, and a Sienna 4000. I use it for saltwater fishing because it's just too heavy and not sensitive enough for my bass fishing. I think maybe you just had a defective rod.

Good choice, you're going to like the Tatula line. I have basically switched to all Tatulas. Tatula SV TW, Tatula CT, Tatula Type R, and Tatula Tactical. All great reels.

I would use the 6.8:1 for Spinnerbaits, and Jerkbaits The 7.5:1 for Worms and jigs. So which technique do you see yourself spending the most time on? Even as an all round reel. That is how I would pick the speed. Either way, you'll be able to do all those things regardless of which speed you get. My all round bank fishing reel does everything I need it to do. But I mostly fish worms, jigs, frog with a fast retrieve and sacrifice a little cranking power for the Spinnerbaits.

Received my Tatula SV TWS this morning and I can't wait to fish it! As I expected it looks amazing, it is slightly lighter than the CT and it is the same size. I got the 8speed in lefty. The reel feels solid like the other Tatula's do. It looks very impressive. I suspect it will perform in an impressive manner as well.

What are you going to be throwing on it as far as lures?

Throw a watermelon red 4" stick bait in there. If that doesn't work, go find another pond lol.

Good luck! Yeah if all else fails the shiners should do the trick.

Big Game isn't the most manageable line out there, that is for sure. But it doesn't mean you picked the wrong line. It may just take longer getting used to. It is a strong line. Before you rip it out of your reel get yourself some KVD Line Conditioner and condition the heck out of it the night before taking it fishing. Then condition it again an hour before fishing. See if that helps. I condition all my Mono, Fluoro, and Copoly lines, it really does make them more manageable. I personally use Sunline. I have used big game (still do for saltwater on my spinning gear), suffix elite, suffix siege and a bunch of others. I find Sunline and Senshi to have the least stretch out of the ones I have used. Sunline is more manageable as well. Also a lot of people use Fluoro for their cranks and jerk baits, BUT you can throw it on mono. I do because I also do topwater on the same rod. Also I fish fairly shallow waters for the most part. So I prefer the buoyancy of mono.

Brand is going to be opinion based. There is no perfect brand that every single person will agree on. Fact is as with just about any other line it will all depend on what works for you. You can go with an expensive braid like Suffix and get good results. You can go with a mid priced brand like Power Pro and find good results (this is what I use). Or Trilene (also I have used and is a good strong braid) You can go with a cheaper brand and perhaps get good results like KastKing (has good reviews and I am not mentioning it just because it is a site sponsor) or one of the other Chinese brands (there are many). In this variety I would stick with Kastking because it is the most known of the group. These are generally rougher braids as they don't have any fancy coating unless you go with one of the Kastking models that do have coating. I have personally had bad experiences with Spiderwire, and Stren. My bad experiences have been related to the line breaking far to easily and inconsistently and not at the knot. But there are people that swear by Spiderwire. Just like I am sure there are those that swear by Stren. Like AJ said 10 to 20 lbs works well on spinning gear. I've put 30 Trilene on my dads spinning outfit because of the vegetation we fish in down here and he had no issues.

What he said ^^^^^^^^

I've only been to that canal once and it was on the bank. But I fish clear water in other areas. They shouldn't get scared off all the time. I think it depends on their mood that day. My preference is always worms. But that's just my style of fishing. You could try a crank with no rattles in it and natural colors, or even translucent colored cranks. If you like to fish fast you could go with a soft plastic alternative like a U-Vibe. Or you can always try the trusty senko. Or a fluke. Watermelon Red is my go to color anywhere here in South Florida.

At 50 bucks it is probably the best deal you could get on a reel. It is miles ahead of any reel in that 50 dollar price range.

I like the reel covers from TW. They have good padding and fit all my reels well. As far as rod covers I bought some from amazon. I absolutely do not think they are a waste of money. Ever since getting reel covers my reels have been kept in prime condition. The reason I got rod covers was specifically for the car. Putting the rods in my car sometimes can be a pain. With the rod covers the rods slide right in, and don't get hung up on each other or anything like that. Keeps my guides from getting bent.

If you are going to fish for peacock with a stick bait, don't work it like a stick bait. Work it like a fluke. A 4" stick-o in watermelon red weightless working it like a fluke should get you some peacock strikes. They don't like when the bait stops though. Bass will hit when you stop a bait. Peas will turn away and go home.

Don't think you will disappointed with either brand.

I have a trion 25 and it is absolutely perfect for bass fishing. Now it also all depends where you are fishing. If you are fishing very deep waters maybe go bigger. I have no need for a bigger reel.

I agree with scaleface on this one. You barely have any hook showing. You either need a thinner grub or a bigger hook. I think a bigger hook would be a better choice. I'm sure you can find something similar with a bigger hook somewhere.

Academy seems to have good customer service. I would attempt a return as well.

I hear the stradic is awesome, but never used one. I can highly recommend the Okuma Helios! It is a lightweight reel, with good cranking power, its smooth as butter and has a VERY smooth drag. Because it is light I went with one of the bigger reels so I could have plenty of line.

The Rage Tail products are great too. A little pricier but if you want a lot of action, they deliver. I have been using the Rage Tail Menace and it's been very productive for me. I also like the Structure Bug which is more of a beaver style bait.

I've caught fish using them like worms, I've caught fish swimming them down the middle of the water column, pitching, punching.

Dobyns are great rods. Carbonlites are also great blanks. Components are decent. Daiwa has some real nice rods. I have a Pflueger Trion 25 reel and it is a great lightweight reel. Smooth reeling, smooth drag. Good for finesse stuff and they are cheap. Can't beat it at 39 bucks. It would leave you with a good amount of money for a good rod.

Well that is what I do for the most part. I set my spool just tight enough so there is no side to side. But I don't work down from 20 cause I've already dialed in the right brakes for what I do. Just a matter of wind where my brakes will be set between 2-8. Once I think I went to 10. But never needed to go higher.

Yeah sounds like it. Or they just missed. If you leave it there sometimes they will come back for it after a miss. Don't know if you've got Gar in your waters. Down here we have them and they will grab the frog take it down for a short period then let it go. Or when you set the hook you just miss because their mouths are so thin the hooks don't land right. We also have a load of exotic cichlids and they pull the frog down by the skirt. Quite annoying.