Logan S

The same thing that stops (or doesn't) them from getting info currently, their own actions... However, "Did you add any data to your electronics after the official data reset?" Is essentially yes or no, unlike the current, "Did you obtain or solicit information during the (up to) 6 month period where it was prohibited?"...Where a comment from a dude at a gas station 3 months before the event could theoretically be considered against the rules. There's significantly less grey area and essentially zero chance of accidentally breaking the rule. (Also please don't pick this apart as if it were a fully fledged idea, it's just a conversational version of the idea) No practice is interesting, but personally I want to see the pros have a chance to practice... You're getting the best level of competition that way IMO.

This was FLW - now MLF - and not BASS. Tony is the DB Cooper of bass fishing, don't think anyone will know exactly what happened, how it happened, and why it's so secretive...I really want to know though! If there's one thing I've learned about information, cheating, and tournament fishing is that there's ALWAYS more to the story....Herren's seemed innocent then you hear he failed 4 polys....Scott's seemed innocent then you hear about some mysterious video and an ultimatum. Most have been like that... The NPFL one was caught live, so there was nothing to hide. People underestimate just how little information it takes to help a good fisherman. Something as simple as, "north end is better than the south end," is immensely helpful to an angler who knows what they're doing but has a limited practice window. Knowing if your roommate is catching them can also help you in many different ways, as others have pointed out. It's why the information rules are tricky and also why enforcement is and should be strict (if they are going to have the rule). I personally now think they need to scrap the info rules and instead completely wipe all gps data the night before official practice begins, maybe again after practice ends too. They can get all the information they want, but when it's go-time they still need go out and find things for themselves. Guys will still cheat and try to sneak things in or whatever, but at least it will be more black and white.

A few companies make similar handle assemblies... Though not exactly like the Shimano version. I don't know how the exprides are made but if it had to be exact, you could potentially buy/find a broken one and remove the handle assembly and rebuild with a new blank. That's all easier said than done though, if it's even possible.

Hold strong @A-Jay . My home lake, 20-minutes from my driveway to floating, is electric only...Getting around there easier was a big reason for my upgrade.

I prefer (by a wide margin) the cable steer trolling motors that were standard issue for decades before the GPS-enabled models came out....But I can't discount the convenience of spot lock and almost equally the heading-lock (or whatever the "keep me going this direction" button is called )....So I have an Ultrex now. They've become yet another crutch, boat control and positioning is becoming a lost art.

Not sure what route your taking...But if coming down 95/85 corridor you're going to pass a few good lakes on the way to Charlotte too.... Gaston and Kerr on the VA/NC line. Gaston is primarily a spotted bass lake now but still has big LM that are more catchable in the spring. Kerr is an amazing lake, primarily LM but last few year the spots have been showing up and right now it's the part of their invasion cycle where you actually catch big ones (I caught several 3 and 4 lbers last season). If the water is high at Kerr its some of the most fun bass fishing you'll find (IMO), flooded brush, shallow fish, power techniques. You could fish both of these lakes if you stay in the area, I'd stay in the Gaston area over the Kerr area, lots of rental houses on the water. The Raleigh area lakes obviously are known for big fish, Jordan - Falls - Harris. I can't offer any insight on these though. My understanding is that these lakes hold big fish but are tough to figure out. As to the lakes on your list, Norman is a spotted bass lake...High Rock is a LM lake and probably the best bet of what you listed at a big LM, though not the easiest to figure out (for me anyway , but obviously I'm not local to it so I only have a handful of days on it). Don't know Badin, but have heard good things, also LM only I believe. Hope you enjoy your trip to the area, I'd say if you're going to be in the area you should try to catch a spot, they are super fun...Like smallmouth but angrier .

You can not like him, but I don't think he's ever been wrong about this type of stuff

For a casting rod, a "standard" 10 guide setup of Alconites would run you about $27, vs about $22 for FazLite. Most people would spend that $5 to get the Alconites. Same 10 guide setup in SiC is about $63....Ti/SiC about $93... Torzite about $113. You can't buy AGS guides but NFC makes carbon framed guides that are similar and would likely run you around $150. Obviously the jump from Alconite to SiC is significant, and huge to Titanium or carbon. If I'm building to a certain budget, I always recommend Alconites first on the theory that the money saved can be put towards a nicer blank since that would deliver a higher performing rod than using premium guides on a lesser blank. Picking guides for a custom rod is not the same as evaluating the guides on factory rods though (IMO). I personally wouldn't let the guides on a factory rod be a huge part of my purchase decision, most rods will have appropriate guides for their price point...But there are exceptions, for example the Daiwa Rebellion line was $200 but came with polished SiC guides, which made them stand out against other rods in the $200 class.

Not sure which lake you're going to, but in most the NC lakes that have spotted bass in them you'll more likely have to try not to catch them if you favor largemouth.

Our club has boater and coangler divisions. A boater can fish as a co, but they are at the back of the wait-list for priority and also still compete against the boater division anglers if they do fish as a co. We won't do 3 in a boat for a lot of reasons, so if there are more coanglers than boaters for a given tournament we use a wait-list based on tournament payment date, except for boaters who want to go as a co which is last in line as noted above. This is one those things that clubs need a clear rule on so everyone knows the deal ahead of time. With no rule on the books it's just one guys opinion on what's right vs a other guy's....No matter what decision is made, someone is going to feel like they got screwed. We average around 70 members a season, close to 50/50 split in terms of boaters and cos...So we have more padding if a boat or two is unavailable, but it does come up from time to time on popular bodies of water where tons of cos sign up.

It's the weight not the material that really makes a difference....And most blanks probably can't take advantage of the miniscule difference between say an Alconite and a SiC or Torzite. However on a high mod, lightweight, premium blank it might be enough to notice if you're really tuned into your equipment. The use case for a premium guide IMO is a lightweight, high mod blank you plan to use for techniques with fluorocarbon line. Braid would make it overkill and mono/nylon would make them a waste. It's a bigger deal on spinning rods with the larger frames and rings, but with braid to leader being so common these days for spinning techniques, it's a little more of a case by case basis as to whether it's worth it or not.

They don't do things as quickly as others, but in my experience they always do the right thing.

The need to just scrap the rule and instead completely wipe the data from all electronics the night before the tournament begins. Let the inferior anglers beg for local spots as much as they want, the exact waypoints and trails would get wiped before they can compete. It's still far from perfect, but it seems that the current version of the rule only seems to catch guys who get unlucky with coincidental or otherwise minor things ...And the (presumed) guys who are actually "gaining advantages" are avoiding punishment. It's a shame that a guy has to rudely cut off other fisherman at a boat ramp or gas station who are just excited to talk fishing with a pro and don't know the rules.

My first bass, I caught it on my very first cast. I was maybe 8 or 9 and a family friend moved to house with a pond in the back...While exploring the pond I saw some panfish swimming around and it sparked the idea that I want to try fishing. I had been fishing a handful of times before and caught some panfish, but this was the first time where I decided that I actually wanted to do it on my own. So dad digs out an old rod and reel and we head to the local tackle shop where he picks out a few things, one of which was a Mepps Comet. Next time we go to their house, I head out to fish. I cast that Mepps Comet straight out to the middle of the pond and after a couple turns of the handle it gets heavy, then all of a sudden a big fish is jumping and splashing and I'm trying to figure out what the heck to do. I get it cranked in, figure out how to unhook it, and not really knowing what else to do now that the catch is over, I slide it back in the pond and watch it swim off. It was probably only about a pound and half, but compared to the handful small panfish I had seen and caught before it might as well have been a whale. I didn't have any deep or profound philosophical thoughts about it...Just sort of a, "wow, that was really fun" feeling. That's when I got hooked on it.

It's lame and greatly oversimplifies bass fishing. I have FFS on my boat and know how to use it. I know this is a troll post, but it's 20 degrees and might snow tomorrow...Got nothing else to do 🤣

Lightweight, sensitive, balanced, ergonomic, well made, and they looked pretty good too...They were also significantly better than other rods in their price point ($275-$300) at the time, my opinion of course, but if you disagree you'd be wrong . I think the only reason they weren't more popular is because MB decided on a full cork handle at the peak of the era when your rod HAD to have a split grip and/or a funky color in order to be 'cool'. Most importantly, they had models with powers/actions that just really fit incredibly well for what I consider all of the 'core bass fishing' techniques. It was the perfect mix of dedicated technique rods that were perfect for certain things with versatile models that could do a lot of things really well. You could cover everything you need at a very high performing level to fish anywhere in the country with any technique using only XX models - Something that is surprisingly rare. I don't know for sure, but my guess is that the reason the series was a homerun was because Aaron had a big influence on them and Megabass listened. The time they were released was probably the most diversified time in bass fishing history and Aaron was at the top of his game too. They even added a couple models very shortly after release to fill some holes, that no one asked for, meaning it was likely Aaron and the other MB pros giving feedback. The 2nd Gen XX were fine and I know on paper or whatever they were the same or 'better', but they absolutely did not have the same 'it' factor. IMO the 1st to 2nd gen XX was like the E-series to G-series transition for Shimano reels. I did like the 2nd Gen FSS though, but overall they were 'meh'.

My favorite high end rods before I started building my own were the Megabass Phase 3 Nautilus and the Phase 3 Bearing Down. The 1st Gen and 1st run of XX rods were also some of the best production rods ever made (IMO). The Perfect Pitch and Spinnerbait Special were amazing...But really the entire 1st run lineup of the XX series was incredible...EMTF, DSR, TV, Swingfire, Jerkbait special, Ronin, and Shakeyhead were also all homeruns. If they didn't mess with that series of rods I'd likely still be using them. I wasn't as impressed with the Valkyrie I had, but I only ever had 1. Similarly, I wasn't as impressed with the USA Destroyers. The one grail rod I was always looking for but never got my hands on was the X7 Simoom.

This summer we went down to the Outer Banks and I wanted to finally have a dedicated beach rod. I sort of copied one of Mudhole's build kits on the blank, because otherwise I wouldn't have considered it - But it's spot on. MHX CB905 - I built it with split cork and an SK seat with a longer handle length, Mudhole OEM guides, and finished it off with some silver trim and Justace Aurora pearl thread. Sort of a simple no frills build in a 'salty' style. It was awesome. It wasn't meant to be a surf rod, more of a walking around making casts and hanging on the beach rod. I used everything from leadheads with swimbaits, big saltwater jerkbaits, and bottom rigs up to 1.5oz and caught plenty of fish.

1: NFC Delta CB705 Hybrid - Any crankbait from a small flatside to a DT14/16, lipless, topwater (with a reel/line change) 2: PB731HXF - Any bottom contact, light flipping, 'standard' swimbaits like a 6" Magdraft, frog (with a reel/line change) 3 & 4: PB701LXF X2 - Anything you need to do with a spinning rod, jerkbaits (since I'm not dedicating a casting rod to it) I could get by with that pretty nicely, but that's no fun...I'd much rather have 24 than 4 . If someone were a co-angler, that would be a pretty awesome fleet of rods...Simple, versatile, and effective.

I'm not arrgoant enough to think all of my big bass were because of my outstanding skill at catching them....Or even the majority of them. I think for every big bass you catch there's a ratio of skill to luck, because even with things like FFS or sight fishing, you never REALLY know what's going to happen when hit the water that day. I can feel good about a handful of big bass I've caught that were much higher on the skill side of that ratio...And it also feels good when I just happen to bonk my jig on the head of a 6lber on the 87th dock I've skipped that day.

It's actually the most correct answer to this thread.

This was originally about aesthetics, IE the overall look and style...Not about thread work or finish. The overall, general look of Loomis rods is fairly consistent and many people who use their rods appreciate that I'm sure. I'm a rod builder, I've repaired many Loomis rods. I'm aware of their issues with threadwork, but they are not alone in those issues...Most mass production rods have something or another you can nitpick at, just how it is with high volume products.