timsford

The bluegill in my area do not have the black flap on the top of the gill. The first is a longear or pumpkinseed, the second two look like bluegill mixed with shellcrackers to me, but all these species interbreed, so it's hard to tell. I'd try throwing some bluegill imitating swim baits and crank baits around that area. If you just can't buy a bass, try the ned rig, wacky rigged senko, and dropshot. If you can't catch something on one of those three techniques, you should probably change locations in my experience

I hear you. I feel the same way when I look at all the pics of weedbeds and lilies. There isn't a single sprig of grass in the lake I fish most, and only a few tiny beds of emergent grass in very shallow water in another lake. I love fishing the bluffs for smallie though, so it's worth it I guess. Nothing quite like a smallie coming up from nowhere and crushing a spinnerbait burned just under the surface

The drop shot works good, but swimming and hopping smoke and chartreuse grubs will always be a part of my smallie arsenal, especially when they are on the bluff banks and stair step ledges

I tried using Nanofil in on a shaky head/light trig ml spinning rod. I broke off about 10 fish on hooksets, even when I set it with less force than my 5 year old uses it still broke. It wasn't knot failure or abrasion either, just a clean break. I've been wanting to try gliss on my lighter spinning rods, but haven't picked any up yet

I use a ml rod for small jerkbaits that weigh between 1/16-3/16. I like a 6'3" rod, but length is just user preference. I haven't used the maxim but the recon 2 rods fish lighter than rated to me. My buddies ml recon is about the same action and power as my St Croix light powered trout rod.

I'd definitely save about 10 more bucks and get a tatula frog rod from Sportsmans outfitters. More sensitive and way lighter than the dobyns. I use mine for about any technique with lure weights from 1/2-2 oz in cover or open water. If you can't come up with the extra 10 then save a few bucks and get the tatula xt version of the same rod for 80.

I've heard lots of guys saying they get good casts with the daiwa air reels with under 3 gram lures. It all depends on the rod with bfs

There are tons of different jigs but 90% of what I use are arkie heads for all around use and footballs for dragging deep structure. There are lots of specialty heads but I can use an arkie for skipping, flipping and pitching, casting, and swimming. For swimming in grass I prefer a more pointed head style though. I have lots of colors but black blue and variations of green pumpkin are really pretty much all I ever throw

Around 80 bucks either get a tatula xt from Sportsmans outfitters or save just a little more and get an aetos if they are still on sale on the Fenwick site or a regular tatula. The tatula XT is a really nice rod that retails over 100 though and it would work fine. The new fate chrome rods from one three look good at your price range, but I don't think they have been released yet. Some models of the *** *** by the same company are on flea bay for 80 also. If the length you want is available at that price, it's made by the same people that make the *** rod but has better blank and components. If you could deal with a shorter length, the powell max 3d 684 is a great rod for target casting about any single hook bait including jigs, and I use mine for square bills and lip less too sometimes. Its probably the most versatile rod i own. The aetos is definitely the best deal though imho. Super nice sensitive rod with a clean build, titanium guides, and a lifetime warranty.

They stock them in the tva lakes like tims ford where I fish most of the time. When it's hot like this, the best place to go is the river that feeds the lake. I like to fish right below the dam in the current. I still love largemouth, but there's nothing like hooking an angry double digit striper in heavy current, especially if you are using normal medium and medium heavy powered bass rods. That's why I never buy reels with shallow spools and all my spinning reels are at least 2500 or 3000 size. I've almost been spooled several times with 120 yards of line

If I had the means to stay a month on any lake it would be stick Marsh, toho, or the big o down in Florida, guntersville in Alabama, Toledo bend, lake fork, falcon lake or amistad in Texas, or somewhere in Cali, but it's too crowded there so most likely one of the others. I'd spend the whole month throwing swimbaits and magnum cranks and hopefully finally catch a 10lb largemouth

There are lots of good sites. I've used jpangler, japan tackle, digitaka, plat, and ichiban tackle. If they are too high look at some used ones on ichiban or tackleberry. You have to find someone in japan to actually get the reel and ship to you off tackleberry but most of these shops will do it if you ask. Yahoo japan also has good stuff but it is like ebay here. It's several buyers and sellers so buy at your own risk. The only problems i ever hear of are with customs fees and delays on rods and the occasional bad packing job resulting in a break

Drum are always a fun surprise but I'd have to say carp. There's been a few days when I couldn't buy a bite from a bass and a dough ball made from oatmeal I keep in a ziplock saved the day. People may not like them but carp sure know how to put up a fight

Even if it is a loomis, I'd rather have a premier than an Im6 blank and guides with 20 year old technology

Lunker city grubster and the big hammer ring hammer work good also.

Wow that's a fat smallie! We have an 18 inch limit here. With a belly like that I could catch a 5lber in a tournament and have to throw it back

Depends on the brand as far as how good they work and also the mood of the fish. I use the original if it's a tough bite or tournament time, but I also use yum and big bite baits quite a bit

Better not come to my area of Tennessee and fish for smallmouth, stripers, or hybrids. Sometimes the fish fight you til the point you are exhausted

If you keep losing fish try braid or switching to a faster action rod. Maybe you aren't getting a good hookset. Even though it's reeled steadily like a crankbait, it's hard to set the large single hook of a buzzbaits with a medium power moderate action rod. Sometimes they just don't eat it. That's why I keep a rod rigged with a baitfish colored senko and a super fluke to cast back to the same spot. If I miss a strike with the buzzbaits I usually don't even take time to retrieve it. Just drop the rod and pick up the other rod and fire a cast right where the strike is. I've caught a some nice fish doing that that I never would have caught on the buzzbait.

I agree with @Bluebasser86 on that one. It definitely depends on the size of the plastic and also the jig head or hook you are throwing it on. I throw paddletails on medium powered spinning rods, mh-xh casting rods. I use a fast action rod for any single hook moving baits as i dont like an extra fast. I could deal with moderate fast depending on the manufacturer, but i dont use braid much. With braid id probably be looking at mod fast that way the rod could compensate for the lack of stretch and give the fish just a little more time to take it good. Also what's your budget on a rod? What kind of cover do you usually fish? It's hard to recommend any specifics without knowing a few more details.

Center hill is a little north of where I live, but I've fished it and Percy priest a few times. I've fished tims ford my whole life though and for bass heavily since I was about 9 or 10. Most of the time when it's hot, nighttime is the only time I go to the lake. We just had the first real cold front of the year so the bite will get better from here. Fish are usually shallower during the night than during the day. The fish will come up into coves and Creek arms after the cold snap and I usually don't do as well on the main lake. Try fishing flats, points, and drop offs with black jigs, black spinner baits with a single Colorado slow rolled, black chatterbaits, black 7-10 worms with either ribbon or paddle tails, black buzzbaits, and black jitterbugs. If you want to catch some walleye, stripers, and hybrids as well as bass then try fishing jerkbaits at night. I only use albino white or black(or purple, as long as it's dark). If it's a bait like an f11 floating rapala that doesn't have those colors, I use something shad colored. Try reeling in steadily with floating bombers, rapalas, rogues as well as twitching them. I use rattles with everything at night. Seems to help the fish find it. I catch twice as many on worms or jigs with rattles. As the water cools more and it gets into fall all the shad will come back into the backs of Creek arms and the game fish all follow.

I buy from eBay and forums all the time and I've rarely had an issue and when I have had one, it's always been resolved

I would quantify sensitivity as the rods ability to transmit vibrations from the guides to the area on the handle where it is held. Lighter is good, but the quality of graphite and material of guides and the handle material and style all matter and weight isn't everything. There are lots of rods lighter than an nrx but not as sensitive. And I know sensitivity is relative but anyone who says they can't feel more after using a high end rod like the nrx or k2 or edge black widow than they can with a lightning rod or even a 250 dollar rod like a Dobyns champion needs to go to a dr and have the nerves in their hands looked at

If its the newer white one its a daiwa designed reel with a hex shaft that goes through the gearing and then attaches with a screw under a cap or a screw made into the cap depending on the reel. Either way the cap will screw off if you turn it counter clockwise.

That reel has the older shimano system like the curado/chronarch e instead of the newer one with the race to oil like the curado I. I'd pop off the palming side plate and see if maybe a brake popped off the pin somehow. Check the spool tension know and make sure it isn't too loose and then if that doesn't fix it I'd send it back if it's under warranty or to mike at dvt for him to check and clean and relube it