Logan S

Another MB Ronin fan here...I still prefer casting gear for most jerkbaits, but I use the Ronin when throwing the small ones like Pointer 65's. The Ronin is awesome as a JB rod and could easily be used for full size ones if someone wanted to.

Sorry to say...Fishing is currently illegal in MD unless you are specifically fishing for food. https://news.maryland.gov/dnr/2020/03/31/frequently-asked-questions-about-governor-hogans-stay-at-home-order/ Obviously lots of people are fishing for food right now. Don't know what enforcement is like....But I know several guys that have been out and none have been stopped or questioned about their intentions. Rumor is that sometime in early May when MD 'opens back up' the first phase will remove this completely asinine restriction. I know we have an easy loophole, but it shouldn't come down to that.

Perfect Pitch is great, though for 'regular' jig fishing like casting/skipping/etc (not pitching/flipping) it's a bit more powerful than I prefer. I really like the Tour Versatile as an all around casting/skipping jig rod, it's basically your standard 7' MH/H jig rod (IMO is a touch more powerful than a traditional MH). The TV is a really good all-around jig rod, the PP would also work well, but it leans a bit more toward the heavier applications. Can't speak for the Expride as I've never used one, but I have used many St Croix LTB and LE's - They are great rods as well, but I prefer the Megabass XX series over both...It's a win-win decision though, no bad choices. FWIW, for years all my rods were Legend Tournaments and Elites, I've since switched to all MB rods except 1 (mostly XX). I'll say this about the St Croix 7' MH/F (or 7'1" now, across any of their models), IMO it's the gold standard that I compare all-around jig rods to in terms of length/power/action. Both of those reels would be awesome. I use a 1st gen Exsence DC on my main casting/skipping jig rod and love it, the new one looks even better. I don't have any 2020 Mets, but I have several Met MGs and newer MGL and they are great. Flip a coin . Having said all that, my real advice its to knock $100 off your reel budget and apply it to the rod budget - And get a MB Destroyer FMJ with a Chronarch, Curado, Scorpion, Tatula SV, etc for a reel.

The rods aren't a true moderate/parabolic action...Usually it's a Mod-Fast or even a Fast action if it's glass (like the Dobyns 736CB). Similar or the same as what a lot of people prefer in a spinnerbait rod or a beefy squarebill rod. It's more about how the bait performs and not really about hooking/landing fish. A little bit of rebound changes how the bait stops, starts, rips, etc when fishing though heavy grass. IMO it's specific to that application not specific to chatters universally. If it's a straight retrieve without ripping through grass, the rod doesn't really matter. I see it as more of an optimization and not a requirement....If someone fishes bladed jigs in shallow, grassy water a lot they will probably gravitate to it eventually.

Depends on the rules in your state, they are all a bit different right now. Here in MD, the MD DNR revoked all tournament permits since recreational and/or C&R fishing is actually illegal in MD under the Governors orders. People can still fish as long as it's for food, but tournaments are a no-go until things relax a bit (looks like June for us). Before things locked down here our club was preparing to hold tournaments while doing the social distance stuff....It was going to be a de-centralized launch and catch-weigh-photo-release. Weigh in results were going to be by conference call in the parking lot (while we were in our trucks). It would have been a little different but we could have managed. Even though most states still allow fishing, I think an organized tournament would probably ruffle some feathers with authorities...So whatever you do, tread lightly.

You're never going to get people to not post fishing reports or fish pictures online. Even just fish pictures will out a spot if the background is identifiable. If you let it upset you, you'll never be happy. My point was more that fishing pressure is universal and it doesn't mean you can't be successful. It's more in your head than anything else.

Some of you guys would flip if you saw the normal fishing pressure at the community holes on the Potomac and/or Upper Bay....It's not a new thing. 20 to 30 boats in a single area is fairly normal and anytime one leaves another pulls in. You want to talk about blowing up a spot? Wait til BASS or FLW comes to a body of water you fish....Any place featured on the live shows (not just the winning spots) end up crammed with boats the rest of the year, with everyone claiming 'they've fished it for years'. It is what it is.

Been a fact of life for many years on waters small and large...There are no secret spots anymore unless it's private property and even then it's probably not really a secret. Right now with so many waters and boat ramps closed, the stuff that is still open and/or accessible is getting slammed more than it typically would....Especially with nearly everyone at home and either teleworking or not working. This is probably the real reason it was super crowded.

The bills will break if you smack them on something hard enough or if you dig them into hard bottoms enough. I've broken a few, always been my fault though. It's not an issue IMO, they don't just fall apart...Something has to happen to cause it. If it does happen, Megabass will replace them for you if you send them in, I've done it once and have several friends that have as well. I've never heard of them not replacing a broken bill if someone sends it in. If you want a more durable 110, try the 110 FX Tour - the one with the folding lip. The folding lip is very durable.

I'm a self admitted Megabass junkie but I use the Daiwa Zillion frog rod (7'4" H) as my primary choice....It's literally the only non-Megabass rod in my rotation of 20+ rods. It's just slightly more powerful than than the Perfect Pitch, but not significantly. I do really like the Perfect Pitch as a frog rod and will often use it with a 2nd frog in the summer. I don't ever feel like it's underpowered personally, but everyone's different. I could use this as my primary and be happy...I probably would be if I had never tried the Zillion . You mentioned pads and grass, no issue for the Perfect Pitch there IMO. Another MB rod I really like for frogs that doesn't get mentioned often is the Tour Versatile. I love the TV for the sprinker-type frogs and toads. It's definitely on the lighter side though and I use it in that role (among many other things, it's name is fitting ) I have a Valdivia which has been mentioned too, but like many others I think it's a better suited for other things. I use it for big jigs, pitching, carolina rigs, and other bottom contact stuff.

Smallies and Spots can wreck the stock hooks on a 110, even smaller ones. Largemouth obviously can too, but it's way more common with smallies or spots. They are light wire hooks, it happens. I prefer the stock hooks and when they get bent I replace them with the same. I've heard good things about the Gamakatsu Finesse trebles in #5 (they supposedly run small)....When my stock of Katsuge #6's runs out I'll probably give those a try, but it'll be a while before I run out. I use casting gear and 10lb flouro FWIW.

Wrap your line around a pair of pliers or anything else that's sturdy and you can hold in your hand to pull on....Use that pull on your line instead of the rod or bare hands. Something will break or come loose and then you don't leave line in the lake. I always use pliers because I have them handy and close by. With braid the line should be OK, with Flouro the excess stretching will ruin everything from the pull point to the bait....Flouro doesn't like being overstretched.

Speaking for myself...I have the remote in my truck and if I'm alone I'll just back it down right next to the dock, when it starts to float off I hit the down button...Poles go down, I pull out and park, walk back and hop on boat. Heck I do this with a partner most of the time too, it's so easy and fast. Obviously you have to realize there is a chance for something to go wrong, so I only really do it when it's a bit warmer out and not too crowded in case I need to swim for it . Even just in general for docking if alone, you can pull into a slip or dock and drop the poles before getting out of the driver seat, so you don't drift away while getting up to tie off.

Best accessories on my boat, would give up a lot before I gave them up. You'll love them. To use the cliche...They really are game changers in shallow water fishing .

Nah, I'm OK with barbs.... Fun fact though, originally the center hook on the Megabass Vision 110's was intentionally made barbless - The reasoning (supposedly) was that it allowed the bait rotate a bit more in the fish's mouth, hoping to snag the side of the fish's mouth/head with the front or rear trebles for a better hold...2 or 3 trebles hooked in the fish instead of just 1 or 2. Some of the JDM ones still have it this way - I have a couple, see below. These are the only barbless hooks in my inventory.

FYI, related to the new restrictions announced yesterday....Sorry to be the bearer of bad news https://news.maryland.gov/dnr/2020/03/30/dnr-issues-guidance-on-governor-hogans-stay-at-home-order/ No boating and apparently the only fishing allowed is for sustenance (4th paragraph).

I made a horizontal wall rack with some scrap wood, cut up dowel rods, and some semi-accurate drilling ...One day I'm going to make a new version that's actually 'nice' but this has been working so well that the project keeps getting put off. I keep the reels on the rods and usually they are all rigged up because I typically fish year round - Unless there's a deep freeze or a global pandemic . Most of the time the rack only has a few rods on it with the rest + tackle being in the boat. I like the horizontal rack because I can get them off and put them back up really easily, plus reels and baits I have tied on are all at eye level instead down on the ground. Makes it really convenient to sit at my tackle bench and rig stuff up. Tackle is stacked under/around the bench.

It's a Megabass X4 711, not sure what the specific material is, but I think the X4 was 46 Ton Graphite? I'd be lying if I said I knew what that truly means though . It definitely acts like a Fast until you put a heavy load on it though, you don't realize it until winching a fish out of the heavy stuff.

I think it's a combo of power, taper, and length. Longer length makes a fast rod a little more forgiving. My flip and punch rod is a 7'11" Fast taper rated up to 2oz. Under load it has a deeper flex than you might expect, due to it's length...But when flipping it still acts like a Fast taper. It behaves like a mod-fast when hooked up in the slop. Longer length gives you power while retaining some flex under load. It's harder to get that balance in shorter rods IMO. The same power and taper in like a 7' or 7'3" would probably feel and act like a broomstick.

I haven't been, but a few guys from the club have been and said it's been nuts...Very crowded. Nice weather, no work, most other lakes closed, nothing else to do - Everyone's got the same idea.

BH is open and per the park manager last week, there are no plans to close. Subject to change obviously...

15lb Tatsu has diameter of 0.33mm 14lb Sniper has diameter of 0.31mm I know that doesn't seem like much, but in FC lines it's enough to notice a difference....The thicker line will always feel stiffer than a thinner line....And much like rod ratings, line ratings can vary from brand to brand - You need to look at the diameter to compare apples to apples. 15lb Seaguar and 16lb Sunline FC lines are almost always have the same diameters FYI....Both are 0.33mm. Just to show how much it can vary brand to brand, Trilene 100% FC is 0.38mm in 15lb (which is thicker than 20lb Tatsu and Sniper).

I seriously doubt there's anything wrong with the reel, but it's pretty easy to check...That issue would only be caused by an issue with the worm gear and line guide so as long as the guide is travelling back forth without any obvious hang ups, it should be perfectly fine. Since it's your first time spooling up yourself it's probably just some user error. Always a learning curve doing things the first time . I would just pull all the line off and start over, making sure to keep constant pressure on the line as you reel it on. I spool my stuff using a pen/pencil in the spool and hold it against the carpet with my toes and just reel it on that way (spool spins against the ground, you can apply more or less tension by how hard you press on it with your feet). I would also put the reel on your rod and put the line thru all the guides, having it go thru the rod lets the rod flex and hold a constant pressure as you spool. Fill the spool up until its about 1/16" from the top of the spool (where the flat side transitions to the round part on the top of the spool wall).

Different strokes, different folks Sometimes the heavier weights are the only way to get through the cover I'm fishing, in MD and elsewhere....But as we all know there's always multiple way to catch fish on any given day. I guess you could call a lot of it punching, but I sort of roll that into the universal 'flipping' term too....FWIW when I'm flipping I usually also have a rod rigged with a lighter weight to flip the edges too. No wrong way to attack it .

If the cover is heavy grass or pads I use 65lb braid, if it's pretty much anything else (rocks, docks, wood, lighter grass, etc) I generally prefer heavy flouro (17 or 20lb)....I know not everyone wants to have multiple rods for it though, so if doing it all on one setup I'd say go with braid. In grass/pads I like using a punch rig (even if not actually punching) or a regular texas rigged bait, they come through the thick grass and pads a bit better than jigs. For other cover it's sort of a toss up between jigs and texas rigs. The one time I almost exclusively flip a jig is in clearer water around laydowns, I've always preferred a jig there. 1/2oz is pretty universal and will get you through just about anything until you start seeing sparse matted grass on the surface or bigger pads...You'll want 3/4 at that point. When its a full mat of grass then you need the bigger 1+oz weights. You might also want more than 1/2oz if fishing brushy wood since it's a bit more 'grabby' on your bait. Any craw, creature, or jig should work in general so I'd just flip whatever types of those baits you already like. Keep in mind that the compact profiles and appendages will squeeze through thicker stuff better, so like a beaver style bait will do better at getting through than something like a rage bug with it's flappy arms . Other than that, straight-shank, heavy-wire hook and a pegged weight are what I prefer as the final equipment pieces (if not a jig). Since it's already been brought up, I use the terms pitching/flipping interchangeably...Most of the time I'm technically 'pitching' but it's all just flipping to me.