CeeJay

Thanks a lot guys. I'll be ordering a UL as well as a ML rod within a few weeks. I really like this Shimano, but I'll be careful not to get too carried away underlining it.

Thanks. I'll make sure to add some weight to the lures.

Sorry for such a long question, I tend to be detail oriented and provide too much background info Basically I was wondering how much, if at all, I can underline a spinning rod below it's rating. I'm going to go ahead and try out my UL reel on the med. rod with 4lb test tomorrow morning. Then I'll try the 2lb spool and see what happens

I forgot to mention inline spinners, and poppers meant for fly fishing (using a casting bubble float). Traditional inlines can be so frustrating (useless) in the weeds and muck, but worked for me in open water. I have never seen a fellow bass angler casting straight spinners on pressured lakes, so I always figured they would be something new for bass to see and I was correct (for once). Casting large fly fishing bass poppers with a casting float has rarely failed me when the surface bite is on. They have such a different look and feel to them than hard topwater plugs, and can imitate almost anything a bass might be interested in eating. Oh and spoons of all types Fun to fish with and probably not often seen by bass anymore. Very underrated in my opinion.

Hey guys. After about 7 years away from angling I finally got back in the game. Over the years all my good rods were broken, stolen, etc. So after I got my fishing license I picked out a rod. A few things to keep in mind: -I have a limited budget, -am a multi-species "light tackle" angler, -and I still have my old (but good) reels, lures, tackle, etc. All I lacked was a rod. So after examining some of the rods at the local Walmart, I ended up buying a Shimano "Sojourn" 6ft spinning rod. Graphite composite, and a really nice feel in my hand. Cork grips, hook keeper, etc. It is rated as: 6-12 lb mono line. Medium power, fast action. Lure wt of 1/8oz - 1/2oz. I chose this particular rod because it seems that it will allow me to target all my favorite fish until I can upgrade to a few more specialized rods. But, when I was a die-hard angler I would normally use 2-6lb mono line on long graphite rods that were rated as handling those lines. My new rod lists 6lb as it's "lowest". Now here's the question to those of you who are still reading this Do you see any problem with scaling down to 4lb test on this rod? I guess it's called "underlining" the rod? Could I drop down to even 2lb test for panfish? My reels are quite nice as far as drag goes. I've never had to "underline" or "overline" a rod before, so any and all input would be very appreciated. Thanks my friends! -Chris

Same here. I've had the 1/16oz model since 1996. It's by far my most treasured lure I own. It accounted for the first bass I ever caught on a crankbait when I was new to angling back in 96'. It also caught a 3 pound largemouth years later on a very cold afternoon in January one winter on a small lake....I was shocked to catch anything that day on a shallow diving crank, but tied it on when nothing else was working and the rest is history One of my best angling memories.

Thanks my friends It's great to be home.

That's all true. I just enjoy fishing for many different species and releasing them all safely back into the water.

haha true enough...but only as long as that garden includes a carp pond to release them in to live and spool my reel another day

Most bass anglers don't...but I'm a "multi-species" angler so I love them all

Congrats What size tackle were you using? Were they grass or common carp? I love carp and will definitely be targeting them this season on the river.

There's something about having hard copies that I enjoy. I have a stack of old In-Fisherman magazines and others that I like to revisit from time to time. Makes for good reading on a rainy day. I also used to cut out the illustrations of various rigs and techniques to put in my little fishing notebook But basically the written word has become the typed word (internet) which is great...certainly more info on the net than in any magazine...but I still like to have books and magazines for reference when I get tired of staring at the computer screen.

Fishing for crappie is lots of fun. There are nearly as many soft plastics and jigs and crankbaits designed for crappie as there are for bass so it can be confusing. But as others have mentioned the little tubes (that come in about 1000 color combinations, btw) are extremely popular. Also there are those marabou crappie jigs with or without a spinner blade attached to the head. For me, over the years I've caught the most crappie on 4 lures (I still have my daily fishing logs from years ago ) - A streamer fly in the "royal coachman" or "mickey finn" pattern fished with a special casting bubble. - Inline spinners in 1/16oz - 1/4oz size. - Small 2" swimbaits rigged on a 1/16-1/8oz jig head. - My largest ever crappie was caught on a classic Beetlespin spinnerbait, 1/4oz and rigged with the split tail grub trailer it comes with. Have fun

I always enjoyed In-Fisherman. It's been a while, but hopefully they still have the same great info and tips they did 10 years ago or so. Even though they are a multi-species magazine, they usually had great bass articles. I agree about Bass Magazine...too tournament oriented for me. It would be nice if there was a magazine dedicated to amateur anglers who aren't particularly wealthy.

Something worth trying out is what I would do on windy days while bank fishing. The surface chop is perfect for using a float. Whatever plastic you have will look alive as the float moves and drifts up and down with the waves. In these situations I've used swimbaits fished under a small brightly colored float, with a split shot or two halfway between lure and float. Or a jig head rigged with a plastic worm, or a senko rigged wacky style, etc. Perfect float fishing weather when it's windy...but I've always enjoyed using floats so I'm a bit biased towards that method

Thanks for the warm welcome Looks like some great folks here. I'm having lots of fun reading the posts, and hopefully maybe I'll have a tip or two to share as well. It's interesting, the angling world hasn't changed all that much since I cast my last line several years ago. And it's cool how quickly I remember all the things I learned when I was fishing about 30 hours per week. Thanks again everyone.

Thanks guys I'm so excited to be back in the fishing game. I've missed it soo much.

Most likely in the shallower water, but I'm not an expert on carp at all. I used to "sight fish" for them (common rather than grass carp) by looking for the bubbles they would send to the surface while they muck around on the bottom Many times they would be very close to shore. When the water is clear you can sometimes see them basking in the shallows as well. The largest fish of any species I ever caught was a 20 pound common carp that I caught from a small pond with sweet corn a mere 15 feet from the pond's bank. It nearly spooled my real (I was using 6 pound line I think)....those fish will take off when the hook is set.

From my reading about carp, they apparently grow 8" their first year and then an additional 1-1/2" per year after that. (from Kugach's book Fishing Basics). The carp that were stocked in your pond may have been fully mature though...have you been able to see any of them yet? Grass carp are very fun to catch. They look different than the common carp I've usually caught in the past. The grass carp have a barrel-chested, sleeker look to them. Here's what's weird about catching grass carp....all 4 of mine were caught while fishing for bass and panfish on artificial lures! A topwater popper, an inline spinner, a spinnerbait, and a nymph (fly) cast with one of those weighted casting bobbers. The "standard" bait for the regular common carp is corn and candy dough baits and bunches of other homemade stuff But as far as targeting grass carp specifically I don't know how effective those would be.

I absolutely hate retying lures over and over all day so I have a large collection of snaps and swivels. Hmm, I'm trying to remember if I've ever had a snap fail on me. I don't think I have, and I would frequently use the cheapest ones in the smallest sizes. However, I have always been a light or ultra-light angler so my line would likely snap before the snap snapped There are some pretty useful fly fishing snaps out there by the way. They might not be large enough for your fishing situations, but wow they are so discreet when attached to a crank or even topwater plug. Very little weight to interfere with lure movement/buoyancy...but again, they might not be strong enough for your needs. Just thought I'd mention those as an option.

A weightless worm or senko type perhaps? I used to have good luck in similar situations fishing a senko wacky rigged under a very small float...just big enough to keep the senko from dragging under the float. I also remember one day in late afternoon when the bass were nailing my inline spinners. Lack of weeds, but plenty of rocks seemed to bring out the best in inline spinners.

Bank fishing is the only way I've ever been able to fish. I actually enjoy it quite a bit, but of course it would be nice to have a little boat

Hey guys. Just thought I'd give a little introduction I wet my first line way back in 1996. I was born and raised in northern Virginia, and was a die-hard angler for all freshwater lake/pond species up until 2008 when I moved to WV. I'm a mere 3 miles from the Shenandoah river, but illness and other things got in the way so I haven't been fishing in over 7 years. I just kind of drifted away from the hobby. I'll be moving to Colorado next November, so I absolutely must get back into the sport that brought me so much joy over the years. Tonight I'm heading over to Walmart to get my license and new spinning rod (budget is limited, so maybe a Berkley Cherrywood or Lightning until I can afford to upgrade). Over the years I've lost my good rods, but I still have my boxes and boxes of reels, lures and tackle. Anyway I've been enjoying catching up on what's new in the angling world. Look forward to participating in the forums. Thanks for reading my intro - Chris