the reel ess

I bought a Cabela's Tournament XZ Frog model, Hvy, Fast today for this purpose. It'll be my frog rod when that's happening and jig the rest of the time. I'll review it when I've used it a couple times.

I almost bought one, but spent a little more on the Lew's LFS Tourney MB. I had a Daiwa since '83 that I finally just had to retire. That's 32 years on one reel using it very often. It was my favorite crankin' reel. Daiwa's quality is ridiculous. They even sent me parts for free three times, no questions, no postage. ABU doesn't even respond.

OK guys, I get it. TN handle is not a gimmick

You don't need that kind of negativity in your life. Forget 'em.

I bought an LFS Tournament MB and used it for the first time yesterday. I reviewed it earlier today in this forum. There is a real buzz about this line of reels. Expect prices to rise a bit. I thought mine was on par with reels in the $175 range. I got it for $122 off Amazon. They retail for $139 at Cabela's & BPS.

Do you still use one? I was too young (broke) when they came out to have technique specific rods. I had one MH 5'6" and one M 5'6" BC combos to cover all my fishing. And we don't hve super clear water here so we usually just overpowered our bass back then.

How about those spinning rods with the "Tennessee handle" I think they were called? Weren't you supposed to tape your reel on? I think they were technique specific.

Probably the most expensive one is the best. But I have the LFS Tourney MB. I reviewed it earlier today in this very forum folder.

I know a guy whose favorite technique was pitching and flipping. He'd tape the line down on his pitching reel at about 20 yards to avoid a deep backlash while trying to skip. He said it can save a day of fishing or at least valuable time during a tourney.

I probably should have said "in heaviest cover" because I don't do that most places and I don't fish a LOT of slop either. But I do set it higher on the frog rod with braid. I'm in the kayak, so I can go get a bass anywhere. If I spook them, I just paddle past it and come back later. bass have a short memory for sure.

My bro-in-law asked what I thought of that. I had the feeling he was fishing for Christmas gift advice. I told him it was garbage for sure. That cat loves a late-night info-mercial.

. The 5.6:1. larger capacity reel has the 95mm handle. I guess this one's for cranking. I noticed the smaller capacity spool didn't really seem to have 120 yds of capacity-probably more like 100 yds. I reeled the braid off the reel I was replacing so I would be using the unused line on the new reel-old cheapskate trick. I had mono backing on the old reel, but the new one filled up before I got to the backing. A money saver for braid for sure.

Or EXTREME. I hate that word.

I almost bought that Daiwa. Spinning reels with the bail flip lever. They invariable fail if used a lot and removing one screws up the whole rotor's balance. Flippin' switch on BC reels. I have one on an older ABU reel with a composite or graphite frame. If you used this reel for flipping or pitching much it would warp the frame quickly. I know because I warped the frame with regular use and it'll only cast half a decent distance. In fact, I consider a composite frame on a BC reel to be a gimmick designed to lure unsuspecting first time users. I've owned two and was sorry both times. If I bought one as my first reel, I might have quit using BC's.

I lock it down on the frog with heavy line and a good rod/reel combo. If I had a questionable (cheap) combo, I'd set it a little over halfway. The fact is you can't set a drag on a BC reel higher than the break strength of 65# braid. But you can lock it to where almost no bass you catch will take it out so you can drag the bass and the salad they accumulate out of the water. Everything else I set it about 3/8 of the break strength if I was using mono line. But that's just a feel. I don't get out a scale and check it.

I just bought a new Lew's reel and tried it out yesterday. I wanted to catch a day with temps in the 50's and direct sun. I took it to my friends' pond and got it dialed in. I found it on Amazon for $122. They are about $139 most places. This is my first Lew's reel ever and I have to say I'm impressed. I haven't bought a new reel in quite a while. The first things I notice are how low-profile it is with the gears positioned lower than I'm used to (that seems to be the latest trend) and the swept handle. It's very light, small and low-profile. It's the smallest, lightest reel I have, weighing 6.7 oz. It has a skeletal reel foot as well to cut out some weight. The frame is 1-piece die-cast aluminum and it has 10 ball bearings. I bought the 7.5:1 model (they actually have one faster) with the intention of making it a dedicated froggin' reel when that pattern is in full-swing and a jig combo when it's not. I intend to get a heavy/fast rod the next time I can get by Cabela's. I'm leaning toward a Falcon BuCoo because my old LowRider has been such a good one, yet I don't really want to throw more than $100 at a rod right now. The reel has a 4-pin centrifugal brake that's really easy to set and a magnetic brake. Right now, I have 2 pins "on" and the mag at about 1/3 and it casts a floppy Colorado blade spinnerbait just fantastic. I know I can tinker more with the brakes because this reel didn't even hint at a backlash yesterday. It has a very smooth carbon drag with an audible click and the cast control knob has an audible click as well. The gears are smooth and quiet. I could really feel the spinnerbait's vibration in my torso when I held the rod close. It actually transferred audible noise. I know some of that's the rod, but it was a $40 Lightning Rod. In short, it's a lot of reel for the $$$. I would certainly recommend it based on yesterday's performance. BTW, no bites . I tried a T rigged craw as well. But we've had cold front after cold front for weeks. That water was chilly!

A lot of weekend anglers don't like the tourney guys because they can really get in your way and pressure the fish on the only day of the week you have to go fishing. And I don't like to go compete with them on Saturdays because I've had my run-ins with some of them as well. But I've learned a ton of info from what I've seen of them on TV and YouTube. Now I mostly just fish private waters but I put their lessons into use everywhere I go.

Every month when I pay the Dish Network bill I'm astounded at what I pay for TV and can't find a thing to watch. But what I'd miss most if I cut it all out is the fishing shows. You just don't get many of them on cable. It's how I pass the time in early winter.

Cold in SC, by SC standards anyway. One of the things on my bucket list is to go ice fishing in MN.

We have no smallmouth within one hour drive of here. I don't have that good of luck regarding topwaters. It could be the water usually being off-color here. There are days the topwater doesn't get me anything even if I start at dark. I usually try it anyway.

Yeah, that! I use a 6'6" M BC combo now. But when I started, I was using a 5'6" with a pistol grip. And you don't have to maintain the cadence all the way to the boat. You can start with two twitches, three twitches, four twitches... See what the fish like. They'll hit the thing sitting still if it angers them enough. Floating line, like heavier mono, say, maybe 15# or 17#, will help the action as well.

Try a walker that also splashes like a Chug'n Spook or C'NS, Jr. It's less important to get the twitches timed correctly. Fish will see it as a struggling prey on the surface. Walking a bait isn't that difficult. Just keep the tip down and practice. It'll come. It's easier with BC equipment. Watch YouTube videos on the subject.

I'm not arguing with you, but there are probably crawfish everywhere there are bass. I fished a local lake for decades and was convinced it didn't have crawfish because I never saw one. Then one day i caught a bass with a claw hanging out its posterior-I helped the poor fellow out by removing it. I asked a DNR guy at a sporting show and he told me they're everywhere there are fish.

Look for signs of bluegill and minnows. If they're there, their are probably bass. If you don't see them, try a t-rigged worm or craw in the deepest part of the pond. If it's cold where you're fishing (I assume Erie is cold now) even the minnows may be inactive. If I'm wrong and it's warm, minnows and small bluegill will be swimming around the edge. I fished a farm pond last Saturday for about 45 min without seeing as much as a ripple. I cut my lost time and left for another pond I knew had bass in it. Good luck!

Something I like about the buzzbait is that most curve and you can aim it at a tree, stick, rock, pier piling, etc. to entice a strike.