the reel ess

I've been using the Calcutta cheapskate specials for probably the last 3 pairs (I lost one) and they've been fine. They look like Costas and get the job done. People look at them and think they're higher quality than they are. But it looks like next time I will need some with the reader lens in the bottom to tie knots. This is getting harder and harder and I actually use readers just for reading. So it looks like I'll need a high dollar pair next time.

I throw all my bigger treble lures on a 6-6 M/MF Lightning Rod. It's light and has all the limber tip qualities you want in a CB rod but still has the backbone you'd like to be able rip a lipless bait out of the grass. I use mono on it. http://www.berkley-fishing.com/berkley-rods-casting-rods-berkley-lightning-rod/berkley-lightning-rod-casting/1365017.html#prefn1=ZZSERIES&prefv1=Berkley%20Lightning%20Rod&start=2 I paid $30 for it about a decade ago. I also use it for topwaters. I know it's cheap and I'll probably replace it with a better rod, but it has served admirably. I own another MH one for spinner and buzzbaits. I have a 7' MH/MF Falcon LowRider "Big Cranks" rod, but I use it for T rigs because it's so dang sensitive. I bought it used for $50. http://falconrods.com/lowrider20.html Feeling a bite on that thing is like getting a little electrical shock registering all the way to the elbow. I couldn't waste that sensitivity on cranks, but it sure would make a good one for Traps. It's 20% springy tip and 80% backbone.

I live near Lancaster and I've been catching bass at the local reservoir on gold Rat L Traps, a few on spinnerbaits, some on an 1/8 oz. Rooster Tail and Zoom Trick and Finesse Worms, weightless. That water's warming quickly.

I have 2 of those reels and I've never had a bad backlash. He has it set wrong or he's trying to cast a fly with it. Just keep it and use it for its intended use and buy another if you need a different ratio. If you hate it, resell it and use that money for the one you want. I use the 7.5:1 for topwaters and lipless cranks and I have another for frogs and flipping/pitching.

I don't know, but the Tourney XT is good. I have the frog model. The reviews on the Tourney Trail look good enough.

Of course, Jimmy Houston is sponsored by Blakemore, but he claims a Road Runnder will catch fish anywhere and 1/8 oz. is his go-to when bass ignore everything else in the box. I'd like to add 1/8 oz Rooster tail. It was the best lure in the box last time out. It was bumble bee color with gold blade.

I go with my buddy in his Tracker and make him fight the wind or I go to smaller bodies of water with the kayak or I go to a couple ponds I have access to that I can walk the bank a little. Or I just do something else.

If you're only going to be flipping and pitching with it you can pull off a little more than your longest pitch and put tape around the spool. That will make getting backlashes out a lot easier. That's a trick one of my coworkers used to use. He pitched about half the time in tourneys.

Yeah, I love me some Big Game. Just check it often and retie after a big fish or when one chokes the bait and it should never do you wrong. I use this and braid. I hate fluoro. Yes. Do that. Not because it will scratch the spool, it won't. But because it's way cheaper. Use a double uni knot and you won't feel the knot on the spool. Just don't use so much backing that you cast all the braid off. I did that once.

Try a crappie tube jig under a float. Bubble gum or red/white are some favs. Throw it out and let it sit a while. If no takers, slowly reel and see. If still no takers, reel-stop-reel. My buddy caught a 9 pounder in winter on a crappie jig. It'll also catch crappie and big bluegill. If still no takers, tie on a Zoom Finesse Worm in a neutral color or black, weightless. Let it sink and just barely drag it. My #1 winter bait has been a lipless crank. It had been the Trap, but I just switched to a Super Spot because my buddy flat wore me out one day. They were on sale at BPS 5 for $10 and he gave me a couple in gold. Reel as slowly as possible without getting caught in the weeds if there are any on bottom.

I caught a couple on a black one with a black Colorado blade a month ago. It was actually cold then. I got two bites on two casts. Jimmy Houston says if you see turtles sunning, it's warm enough to use one high in the water column, like a double willow blade. I haven't had much luck with that yet, but i'm still trying. It'll get them in early spring.

A good argument for heavy braid: You should be fishing with the drag very tight in this situation. If you're in heavy slop abd you set the hook and drag a big fish out of it, your line will dig into the rest of the line on the spool. The thinner line does this much worse. And I would definitely recommend a metal framed reel. You'll wear out a graphite framed reel ripping fish out of cover with heavy braid. In fact, I'd bet you can't cinch down the drag on a lot of cheaper reels.

I agree with all the Booyah Pad Crasher fans. I own a bunch of frogs, but it's the one I keep tied on when the frog bite is on.

I have a Cabela's Tournament XT 7'3" Frog model rod and a Lews Tournament MB reel spooled with 50 lb PowerPro braid for frogs. I used a 7' MH Falcon rod before that and caught fish, but when i got in some real slop the Hvy/fast action of this rod was needed. Now this is my dedicated setup and I'll use it for jigs when the water's too cold for frogs. Oddly, I'm already hearing frogs now in Feb. This has been a very mild winter. As @Imbfisherman says, you can get a away with a cheaper rod as long as it's quite stiff. The heavy/fast 7' or longer rods excel at this technique.

A Carolina Rig is the poor man's depth finder (and a pretty good fish locator). If it's really weedy, go lighter with the weight and use spinning gear.

7' M rod. I'd go with 15 lb mono to give some stretch factor Lew's Tournament MB 7.5:1. I liked this reel so much I bought another Trick worm, probably bubble gum. Gold lipless crank A topwater. Probably a Pop R because it works the longest portion of the year for me, though I'd rather use a Spook, Chug Bug or frog.

No, my balance, or lack thereof, would preclude me from using this to fish. I have a hard time putting on socks while standing.

They generally don't have half of what I want, or they don't have the color I want, or they're out of it and don't know when they'll get it in. I went there looking for a boat plug, which they carry. I drove 20 miles and they had an empty box on the shelf and no idea when it would get refilled. I was fishing the next day, so i rigged one up myself with washers, a bolt and a nut. Point is, I can't count on them for anything.If they want to put one in your neighborhood, it would behoove you to fight it. You couldn't have a worse neighbor, to revise the Paul Harvey quote. Of course, we'll make our own judgments, but some things are worth paying a few extra dollars for. Grocery stores are shackled with the cost of Teamster rates, but Wally World has their own trucks and drivers. They force mfg's to make inferior products if they want to sell in their stores. Lots of the name brand Rebel and other lures that you see in their "bargain" bins are these inferior products that don't run true and never seem to catch anything and end up in the bottom of the box or at a yard sale. I have rid myself of all of these now that I'm able to afford decent tackle. I normally buy what I want from Academy or Amazon Prime.

I went yesterday to my buddy's pond and caught 15. The fish are stunted so they're smaller than average and he wants me to take all smallish fish. Well, they were fat and full of eggs. They've been feeding up, but there are no beds yet. I don't ahve a temp gauge, but I think it was so warm, I wouldn't worry about hypothermia if I fell in. Yes, I wore my PFD! If the warming continues, they may spawn a month early. Generally, April is the month when most of the spawning occurs here, with the biggest females going first. March might end up being the month of stable spring temps or they might split into march/april. The bass were deeper yesterday, but the wind was out of the northeast. I wondered if they'd even bite before I went, but I feel confident of getting 10 bass every time I go there.

I kinda hope it doesn't go through. I despise WalMart and these two would probably merge to become the WalMart of the outdoors biz. They will force companies to make cheaper than average products if they want to sell there and call them store exclusives when they're really cheap knockoffs. As mentioned several times in this thread, competition benefits the consumer and the lack of it benefits the corporation that comes out of this with more control over the market.

A crooked guide will want you to pay up front and won't show up.

I use a M 6-6 Lightning Rod for cranks and trebles. It's a $40 rod because sensitivity isn't important with trebles. I mostly use it for Rat L Traps, but it's a catch all for treble lures, including topwaters. I'd probably take your M rod for this purpose and get a MH for the single hook applications and the frog if you're not going to get a dedicated frog combo. I have a Cabela's 7-3 Hvy frog model rod for that purpose.

If I could have only three combos they'd be: 7' MH Casting...your 7-3 will cover that base and will give you some help with jigs and frogs as well. I like 30# braid on it, but that's a personal choice. 6'6" M casting...a good all-around casting rod for trebles, spinnerbaits and buzzbaits. I like 15# mono. Again, a personal thing, but it floats for topwaters and allows some stretch for the trebles. 7' MH spinning...spinning rods are usually a little "whippier" than casting rods of the same rating. you can do a little of everything with lighter lures. I love 20# braid for spinning because it doesn't twist nearly as much. In fact, I have those combos and a couple more. I like fast casting reels because I'm getting old and lazy. If you're compromising, a 6.2:1 will cover more techniques. For spinning, that Trion is alll anyone needs. I have one and I'll have another or a President when I need to replace a reel. I guess that's 4 combos, but then I usually take 7 in the truck and possibly 6 on the kayak. I can't decide.

I don't like leaders for that very reason. I still catch bass, and big ones with straight braid. I think bedding bass can see you so the line is not of major concern. Who knows about the jig. But bass are pretty crafty when it comes to backing hooks out. Hopefully it works the jig against something until it's loose and falls out.

Thanks. I already am subscribed to all those you mentioned. When you get your channel going, let me know the name. I've learned a lot of my bass yakking knowledge off YT.