Banor

Spring and Fall the smallies are stacked in the timber on the east shore by the channel. Spinnerbaits and square bills are the ticket. B

I was the boater/volunteer/guide for one of the Illinois teams. That was a brutal couple of days and very cold. The cold snap did not help the bite much. Unfortunately I have zero spots on the U.S. side so I was not of much help to the boys. Everyone from Michigan will be happy to know the MSU team won! They had a couple teams who came in with 17+ bags. The weights dropped off after that. B

Are you looking to pay a professional guide for a day? If so there are plenty in the yellow pages. If you are just looking for a ride out on the water with someone who fishes Erie alot, there are several of us on here. You still havent narrowed anything down, pig smallies can literally be caught on a majority of the lake. What's your definition of a monster smallmouth? B

If you sell them all and pitch in about 100 bucks you could buy a St Croix or Loomis rod. ;D Kidding aside, listen to Bass-Brat and RW. Now is the perfect time to narrow those down to just a few rods that will do the job exponentially better. If you can afford it. If you can't afford it I'd say you could make due with the bottom half of the list starting with the Browning and retire the top half of the list. B

I think now this discussion is going in the right direction thanks to Paul and RoLo. That direction being what affect different lines have on the presentation of the bait. I posted my experience relating to this a while back in another thread but I'll recap it and try to keep it short. During a tournament my co-angler and I were fishing a drop shotted fluke. We were using the exact same bait presenting it in the exact same unique way, which was snapping the bait twice once it hit bottom to cause a reaction strike. It was a very effective presentation for my co-angler who caught close to 40 fish and I caught exactly 3. We narrowed it down to everything being identical except for the line. I was using braid and he was using fluoro. I of course immediately attributed it to line shy bass and concluded that the smallies were line shy so I should never use braid when targetting smallies in clear water. The very next day I went out with newly spooled fluoro and caught several fish in the same area. After comparing the two lines side by side over the next couple weeks with the same presentation I had an epipheny. Braid tends to drag much more in the water and as a consequence same weighted baits will fall much slower with braid (or even larger diameter line for that matter) than 8 lb fluoro. The net result was our presentation was targetting a reaction bite and the thinner fluoro was causing the bait to pop up and fall much faster. The fish were getting a much longer look at the bait with braid than fluoro. Take that lesson for what it's worth. It definately turned on the lightbulb for me. B

Thanks for the input guys. Deputy Dave that's a good find, thanks! I just ordered from them and am now stocked up. B

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D BPS XPS flouro is made by SEAGUAR !!!!! Makes you wonder who to take advice from eh? B

I've voiced my opinions on this before and am in the very small minority. I just do not see the benefits of this stuff. I wont go so far as to say it hurts my line performance but I definately have not realized any noticeable benefits. I've given it an honest try too. Used it several outings and just nothing different about my line. B

Just tried this bait for the first time a couple weeks ago. I must say the action is pretty nice. I failed to get any blow ups on it or even followers but I am going to keep it in the line up and put it to good use. Definately has potential. I'm a big fan of the Rage Tail line and this one will stay on the list. B

Couple things... Stretch compared to what? Braid, yes. It stretches alot compared to braid. Been using Invisx for 3 years and really havent noticed THAT much stretch to be a deal breaker. Breaking off... again 3 years of use and can count on one hand how many fish I've broken off. None of those break offs were line failure. I meticulously set my drag correctly to ensure no break offs. Not abrasion resistant? :-/ Just dont know what to say to that. Beating a dead horse in the last 3 threads I've posted on but an entire day of flipping buck brush with 20 lb test and landing several fish in the 4-5 lb class without retying... well I guess I'm lucky and got the correct spool in the batch. I mean no offense to anyone, maybe I'm just the lucky one - but I wonder what other variables might be causing people to have problems when I dont. I'm particularly hard on equipment and tackle. B EDIT: FYI braid is less abrasion resistant than most fluoro lines, it's just stronger and, well, by definition - braided. So if a few braids are nicked it still retains a majority of it's strength. Don't justify braid over another line (regardless of brand) because of abrasion resistance. Now if you are speaking of stretch, then yes braid owns all other lines.

I have used the Senko rod for 3 years now and when it wears out I will buy the exact same rod to replace it. I use this rod for senkos and only senkos. I would not use this rod for flukes. Any jerkbait, but specifically a fluke type bait is best presented with a spinning rod in my opinion. You just cant get the action a fluke requires with this long of a rod and the mechanics of retrieving a baitcaster. Now, for senkos - you pair this rod up with a chronarch mg50 and you are in business. There is no better combination. I pitch my senkos for accurate casts and quiet entry and this combo makes it flawless. Good rod but fluke = wrong presentation in my humble opinion. B

Thanks Bass-Brat. RW, I cannot see myself ever going to anything else for baitcasters. Seaguar is just IT! If Seaguar could come up with something that competed with Ultra Soft I'd buy it in a heart beat. I have that much faith in them. I posted a report on AbrazX in someone else's thread I think a couple months back. If you ever flip heavy cover or rocks that stuff is just plain impressive. I nearly wrote a letter to the company after a full day of flipping with it and forgetting to retie. I landed 2 fish over 5 lbs and several over 4 that day flipping Kentucky Lake buck brush. Just goes to the quality of Seaguar. I've never had the "bad spool" experience you hear about in other posts about other brands. As for the 6# I used that on my drop shot and never broke off. This includes numerous smallies in the 3-5 lb range. There was not as much management problems with the 6# but I still noticed line twist. I absolutely do not want to go down to 6# for tubes out here on the Great Lakes in order to get the managability back. Just too many zebra muscles and rocks you drag the tubes over. For 8# and above I have to stick with the Ultra Soft. With your skill and ability with spinning you can probably do the 6# Seaguar and be happy with it without any line twist. If you can do that, it will rival the ultra soft for you personally. B

Copy, I did see that on Yozuri's online dealer link, however I've not had much luck with online orders from them. I'll just drive to the Cabela's an hour and a half away. Thanks guys, B

Ok, I'm a die hard Seaguar InvisX user. I love the stuff. Hands down I think it's the best line out there. I'm not asking for opinions really, this is not the intent of the thread. Based on RW's recommendation I had been using Yozuri Hybrid Ultra Soft on my spinning combos up until this season and for various lazy reasons I ran out of Yozuri early in the season and decided to just use Seaguar since I have alot of it in bulk. After giving it nearly a full season of chances I have come to the conclusion that there is no comparison between the two for spinning reel applications. Ultra Soft is the way to go. Mind you I had no break offs or anything like that, no lost fish, no line shy fish problems. What I did have was managability problems. I will admit that I am terrible at line management with spinning rods and I really prefer not to use them. You just can't justify not using them on the Great Lakes for drop shot and tubes (which is mutually exclusive almost on Clair and Erie). The point is I had a lot of line twist and knotting and line just spooling off in big clumps all knotted up. I dont have any of these problems with Ultra Soft, so for obvious reasons I'm switching back. Ultimately the point to this thread is just a thumbs up for Ultra Soft on spinning gear and an apology to RW for questioning his sound mind and judgment and being too lazy to stick to it. B

RW, Where are you getting your Ultra Soft these days? I ran out on my bulk spool I've had for 2 years halfway through the season. It seems Ultra Soft is getting hard to come by. Can't find any at my usual online stores and the Gander Mountains around here dont have it. I'd like to get a couple of bulk spools. B

Been saying this for a long time, glad someone else feels the same as I do. Rejuvenade actually stresses the fish out even more, bounce all over the walls. But anyway, I digress... I think the 3 fish limit is a good thing. I think that this is just going to be an opinion based issue with no supporting facts or statistics to argue either way. It really doesnt matter which side of the fence any of us are on and there can be compelling arguments for either side. So I'll just weigh in and say I'm for it, without giving any details. B

Drop shot, octopus hooks, circle hooks - all require the same "hook set" whether you are fishing them drop shot or wacky rigging a senko with them. You need to just let the rod load up. A hook set will just pull the hook right out of their mouth. I use drop shot and senko rods designed with a softer tip to allow the rod to load up. Once the rod has loaded up and I am sure the fish is on I will give the rod a quick snap to drive the hook deeper and ensure the fish is not getting off. Faster/Stiffer rods and hard hook sets do not go well with drop shot and octo hooks, bottom line. B

It's up. B

Seaguar InvisX and AbrazX exclusively. AbrazX cannot be beat in heavy cover. I flipped with 20 lb on Kentucky Lake in buck brush for 8 hours without having to retie and did not break off. I nearly wrote a letter to the company I was so impressed, and I am generally pretty critical by nature. InvisX in every other situation that requires fluoro. I have not broken off a fish yet this year and I am notorious for forgetting to retie. B

I am a boater travelling from Michigan. Need a co-angler travel/practice partner to split expenses. I will be leaving Saturday 26th. A few of us have a cabin rented for the week at 87.00 per person for the entire week. Heck of a deal. PM me if interested. B

WTRDOG, you were being sarcastic right? Everyone gets the flu in the Fall right? It's not possible any other time of the year... B

I've owned 8 Airrus rods in the past few years. I have zero complaints. They are great rods and come at a great price. I still use 3 of them but have replaced 5 of them over time with GLoomis rods (who wouldnt?). I dont think you can go wrong with an Airrus rod, and the warranty is very good. B

Google "Okeechobee fats tackle bag" and you'll get 1000's of results. I'd give you a few specific links but I cant browse the pages here at work due to proxy filters. B

Ok.. I am pretty religious about replacing hooks on new baits even out of the box... it's just something I do. Doesnt matter what claims or what hooks most companies put on their baits, you need to change out the hooks with Owners or Gammies.... however... I took 3 Wake Shad out of the box yesterday and the hooks were not even sharp enough to leave a mark on my thumbnail let alone dig into it. I love Strike King's baits, I think I spent about 200.00 dollars so far the past month on them but man if I'm spending 21.00 on a bait you'd think I could get a sharp hook. B

Great info guys! Appreciate it. I realize alot will change between the trip and my trip as far as location/depth and such, but some lakes can define themselves with a specific color or pattern throughout an entire season. Of course you all know that. So thanks for the great info!!! I really wish I could have been on the trip with you guys. I had planned on going but when they announced the Air National Guard Tournament I had to choose between the BR road trip or fishing with my National Guard brothers. I never miss the chance to fellowship and fish with my fellow Guard members. Any of you guys who are locals to the lake are welcome to drop me a line and hang out. I'll be down there from 21 Apr through 30 Apr and staying at the Kentucky Dam Park. PM me contact info and we can do some fishing! B