Ozark_Basser

Its just used to fish soft plastics. Some have a screw lock to hold the bait and the hooks hidden, making them weedless. Some are rigged like a regular jighead.

Football jigs are best around rocks. Arkeys are good around everything. You can be completely covered if you have arky, football, and swimming heads.

Bottom contact baits: braid/fluoro leader. Added sensitivity with the braided mainline. Less visibility/more abrasion resistance with the leader. Flipping/Pitching: Braid/Heavy fluoro leader. Same as above. Less visibility. Excellent abrasion resistance around wood with fluoro. Punching: Braid. Better knot strength, sensitivity, and raw power to pull fish out from mats. Cranking: Fluoro. Has plenty of stretch and gets your cranks a little deeper due to fluoros density and the fact it has a smaller diameter compared to mono in similar # tests. Top water (not frogs): Mono. Allows your bait to stay on top of the water when you're working the bait because it floats. Has more stretch than braid for treble hooks. Frogs: Braid. Allows you to walk the frog and gives more power on hooksets. Also allows you to pull fish out of some nasty stuff without worrying about break offs. Just my opinion. Some people, of course, will have different opinions on which line is best for whatever technique.

PUMPED!

I understand the lack of rod torque advantage, but what are some others? Casting distance? I'll be using micro guides on my build, so will the spiral wrap effect how well a leader knot passes through the guides?

Start in areas where they could spawn and work your way out from there.

I wasn't aware they legalized marijuana in Indiana.

Everything you mentioned except for the DT 10 would be right in the wheelhouse for a medium powered rod. You could still get away with using a medium powered rod, but it might feel a little overpowered for casting DT 10s. I personally rarely fish crankbaits that weigh less than 3/8 oz, and I fish a lot of cranks that weigh 1/2-5/8 oz, so I stick with a MH. If you are going to be fishing with cranks 3/8 oz, I'd stick with a medium. If you are going to be fishing cranks within the 3/8 -5/8 oz range, I'd get a MH or a rod rated 3/8-1 oz.

What kind of knot do you tie? Sounds like knot or line failure. Fifty pound braid shouldn't break at the knot that easy. Either way, if it was me I would feel more comfortable with 65 lb+.

The DT 10 and other ~10 ft diving cranks is a bout the cut off where you need to step up the rod to MH and lower the gear ratio down. Smaller, shallower divers can be fished on the M with any gear ratio.

I'd go with a 7'MH Moderate or Mod fast. You could probably find a pretty good one cheap on eBay for 50-60. Pair it up with a Curado I for 140 on ebay in 5.5:1 if you plan on throwing those dt10's a lot.

I have this one, and it works great.http://www.mudhole.com/Rod-Building/Dryers/RDS-Rod-Drying-System-9RPM-110V

Find some deep pools with no current. If they have boulders or any wood cover, you should find some fish. I've been doing all right on jigs fished SLOW.

Just get a drying motor and a stand from http://www.mudhole.com/

Haha I'm guessing you meant lure weight rating. My mistake. I was looking at blank weights right before I saw your post.

^^^^^ Agreed.

Find whatever cover you can and fish as tight as possible to it. When its cold, bass will hug up to those trees and boathouses because they hold warmth.

A 7'3" H blank with a weight of or less than 1.5 oz would be hard to find. I'm not sure one exists. However the NFC IM 739 would be a good choice. It weighs 2.94 oz. I'd look at Phenix K2 if you were wanting something lighter.

Anything you would normally use any other time of the year just slower. They usually won't chase a bait in those temps so it helps to put it right in front of their face.

Its hard to say if bass care that much about the visibility of braid. I doubt it will deter a hungry bass from getting what it thinks to be a meal unless its learned to correlate the long strand of visible braided line with an artificial bait. I'd say this is possible in clear, highly pressured waters. It depends on the bait for me, but I always have a fluoro leader tied on for bottom contact baits.

^^^this or get mike from DVT to make you a custom out of NFC's 705 HM. Its the same blank as the older MB 843 IMX.

No takers?

Baitcasters handle bigger baits better once you get the hang of them. You can control your casts easier, and they do better with larger diameter lines unless you have a large spinning reel.

Braid with a leader. Braid reduces line twists; therefore, its easier to manage. Also, it is very sensitive and easy to set the hook from long distances due to no stretch. I like a fluoro leader for added sensitivity compared to mono and abrasion resistance. I'd choose 20-30# braid with 10-12# fluoro as a leader if you just fish around moderate cover.

It is impossible to tell if bass mind the braid or not. I personally would rather go the route by saying they do and tie on a fluoro leader, just in case.