DubyaDee

That Megabass SV3 is my go-to spinnerbait. The white viper color with some nail polish on the blades for cloudy days, the hiyu for clear and sunny, and the ayu with some chartruese nail polish on the small willow for slightly dingy water.

I catching them on a jerkbait 5 days after ice out on a small Canadian smallmouth lake. I figured I'd try and get them to hit a spook since the jerkbait was crushing them. It took 2 casts and I caught one on the spook, water temps about 40 degrees.

This summer I caught them in 45 feet on the Big Rideau up by you in Kingston. Prior to that trip, I've never fished that deep.

You don't need to spend much for this rod, action is more important than anything. I use an old Zell Rowland All star top water special. You can pick these up used every now and then. It has a perfect mod/fast tip, and regular size guides so a leader knot is never an issue. If you're a Dobyn's guy, the DC 685CB would be a good option.

It's all season dependent for me. Early spring/late fall- Blade bait Spring- Jerkbait Summer- Drop shot Fall- Swinghead Those are my #1's, my #2 is always a tube regardless of season.

It's a great line of rods. If you know that your super rough on your equipment I would stick with a cheaper line of rods. The Zodias has equivalent actions and is a bit cheaper. You can even step down to the next line if you break rods as often as you might be.

For your budget Fenwick Aetos 7'6" Med Fast is a great rod.

I have a couple of the scorpion 71's because they look killer on my poison adrena's and zodias. The combo's look and feel made for each other. Confidence is most important!

I know you'll be fine. Marcell is one of the best out here, but you really don't need the best for pre-spawn on St Clair. Any guide will be able to get you on good fish during that time. I'm sure most of them are filling up fast. Summer and fall are a little more difficult, but not hard.

My tube rod is an Alpha Angler Tac Mag, it's 7'6" Medium Fast. It's got a ton of power in the back bone. I usually throw a 3/8 ounce tube and need to cover lots of water quickly. This rod will set the hook form a mile away and still keep the fish pinned all the way to the boat. A ned rig rod should be medium light and between 6'6" and 7'. I could throw a ned rig on my tube rod, and a tube on my ned rig rod...but I wouldn't want to. One is too heavy, the other is too light.

I've got technique specific rods for my drop shot, tube, jerkbait, and ned rig/spybait. They all require their own specific action, power, and length. But if I were trying to combine those all into one a, 7 foot medium fast would do the trick. It would be pretty nice to have the 7 foot medium fast Daiwa steez AGS as my only spinning rod.

Am I the only one with a wife who doesn't let them out on the water alone? Granted I fish Lake St Clair mostly and it can get pretty hairy at times. Even though my fishing buddy is always 30 minutes late, he doesn't contribute to gas money, makes lousy sandwiches... I enjoy having him there. He listens to me when I tell him what to throw, and it's like I'm casting two rods at the same time. We can cover water quickly and figure them out.

If you're looking for some broad info like this, I'd suggest keeping things as simple as possible. Get a 7 foot Med Light rod and you can cover 90% of smallmouth presentations. Tubes, grubs, jerkbaits/flukes, dropshot, spybaits, ned rigs, poppers, baby spooks. You don't need all of these, just pick what suites your style of fishing. If you're a jig guy, bring some tubes. If you're a frog guy, bring a few baby spooks and a popper. Fish what you've got confidence in and you'll be fine. Some of my favorite days are when I only keep my tube rod on my deck. Keep your lure wet, and cover lots of water.

I've got a medium Shimano Zodias 6'10" that's 2 piece and covers most of my bases. It's my travel rod and the rod I keep in my truck in case I find a pond that needs to be fished for a few minutes.

This is my Tuffy 2100 w/ Evinrude etec g2 300. Perfectly equipped for chasing Michigan's big water smallies. I'm spoiled rotten with this rig and the water that I'm able to fish.