MontclairDave

Amazing feedback as usual. Leaning towards getting another Falcon, probably the Finesse jig model in Cara line, since I am curious to see gain in sensitivity over Expert. Also thinking of Expride but a bit outside the box: the 6’ 10” Medium, which the TB boys say of course is their fav jerkbait rod but could also double as a finesse jig rod. Anyone use that model for finesse jigs? Or I can save $$$$ and just hand-line for bass 🙃

A tad lighter than the Head Turner. Compact/finesse jigs up to 3/8 ounce.

7’ is my preferred length cause I fish out of a kayak and beat the bank in close quarters mostly. Reel is a Zillion. Preferred line is straight fluoro (Abrazx 15-17 lb) but I sometimes throw braid to leader (40 lb PP to 15 lb Sunline Sniper). Ha! I have a Falcon Expert Head Turner and it’s a pretty sweet rod. More of a moving bait rod that bottom contact though. Always wanted to try a Cara.

What do you guys think are some of the best bang-for-the-buck bottom contact jig/T-Rig rods for around $300? I know Shimano Exprides get a lot of love, as do MG Orochi. Deserved? Others?

Just curious: I see you’re selling your Sierra 682. Did you try it for 1/16 or 1/8 and the lures you mentioned? If so, how’d that go? (It’s rated low end is 3/16 so I can see that could be a tad too much power for what you’re wanting to do?)

That is true. But “partnering” means different things to different people. Their partnering with those companies (Daiwa notwithstanding) involves them helping to design products based on market gaps they saw that needed to be filled. So there’s arguably some innovation there, and yes profit-sharing, which is totally appropriate. My issue is with some YouTubers whose partnerships just means they contract to promote the company’s products to the exclusion of others, and agree to do x number of vids or mentions about those products per week or month, etc. The latter channels are what I have tended to move away from. That’s just me; everyone of course is free to watch what they want based on what they find informative and entertaining. (Another non-starter for me: drama and negativity. And stupid click-bait titles like “96.7% of people fish this bait wrong,” blah blah blah. Silliness.)

Got my first swimbait rod (Shimano SLX 7’ 3”) and I have a River2sea S waiver that I’ve caught a few nice bass on. So I want to take the plunge and get a more $$ glidebait. Can’t decide between Baitsanity Explorer Gill or Spro KGB Chad Shad. One of my local lakes I fish the most has no shad; bluegill is main forage. Other lakes I travel to have the more usual mix of shad and BG. Leaning towards the Baitsanity. Anyone have experience with these baits and could offer an opinion? Also, fav color for each? The bone Chad Shad looks pretty sweet to me.

I’ll take the Lew’s 6.8 if it’s still available.

I’ve got the JDM Zillion and I’ve used a buddy’s US Zillion. You’d be surprised at how noticeable that .5 ounce weight difference is on some (but not all) rods. Love my JDM Zillion. Only gripe is I fiddled with the supposedly zero adjust tension knob and it was all of a sudden a bit harder to dial in. I think I figured it out and it’s casting again like a dream. No idea if the aluminum vs brass gears over time will make a difference. But I can’t go back to 7+ ounce reels on my lighter rods any more because of the Zillion, they just feel unbalanced. Maybe it’s the bait monkey telling me that but I am definitely going to pick up a few more of these reels before the rate goes in the wrong direction.

Prefer 2014+ upgrade but would consider older model. Loving the one I just got off fleabay and want more! Thanks.

GF = gluten-free? Finally, a reel manufacturer that takes my dietary restrictions into account! 😊

Went out to local pond, wind honking at 25-30 mph, big drop in water temp the night before, figured a skunk for sure is coming. Lo and behold got 10 fish on my new fav Senko color #901, watermelon white laminate. 4” size is killer on small ponds, wacky rigged with my fav hook: VMC Weedless Neko 1/0 size. Most were dinks but this one was about a 2 lber. Definitely not ready to hang it up yet for the season; not with the 75 degree weather coming in next few days around here. I sense a kayak outing in my future….

Got my new Shimano Miravel pretty soaked in salt water during a kayak outing in a back bay after I set rod and reel down in kayak to fish with another setup and completely forgot to wash it down when I got home. It sat for a week unused and when I next fished it, very loud raspy sound on retrieve and drag sticking. Is this worth sending out for service or is it a total loss?

Got these in my tackle already so gonna try all of em, thanks!

Was afraid someone would say that! Not my fav technique, but probably one I need to get better at. Thanks!

Found a pretty sweet spot on a local river that has steep bluff walls with a deep drop off. Picked a few fish off there with finesse jigs and tubes but wondering if there is some other bait I should be trying? (Not sure I am getting deep enough.)Water clarity varies from pretty clear to chocolate milk, depending on amount of rain and runoff. Have spinning gear and baitcasters on kayak when I fish this spot. Thanks!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/225785070030?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=wipZmm28RI6&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=rb6IwPjaQx6&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

My # 1 goal was to fish with my son, who is by far my best friend and fishing partner. Did just that this weekend on the Delaware. And I also had the goal of having more fun on the water by slowing down and enjoying the scenery and I did a pretty good job of that. I did catch my first bass this weekend on a technique I’ve read about and tried a bunch of times but had no luck: retrieving a swim jig through lanes in Lilly pads. Nice 3 lber. My next goal is for the off-season: getting the bait monkey off my back. I’ll let y’all know how THAT goes in the spring!

The Delaware was fussy and all the fish I caught were on finesse stuff on spinning rod. But yesterday I got on a private lake with one of my fishing buddies up here and caught this 3 lber on a 3/8-ounce white/chartreuse swim jig/Largo shad trailer I swam through lilly pads. The 783 had no problem horsing that fish out of cover. Great rod—soft tip for accurate casts, with more backbone than I expected. In fact I was stressing about getting the 783 versus 784 but now feel I made the right call. Love bass fishing in the fall!

Just got my first G. Loomis rod, a classic MBR 783 IMX, before the IMX line was upgraded (and way before IMX-Pro). So maybe about 15, 20 years old? Rod came yesterday, looks like it’s in great shape, a few minor scrapes here and there. Perfect cork and guides. Fishing the Delaware this weekend, gonna throw some tubes, finesse jigs, small jerkbaits, topwaters. Junk fishing at its best! Will be a good test I think of the MBR action, which is supposed to be well-suited for all-around stuff like this. Hopefully the smallies will cooperate.

I just picked one of these up from flea bay. Always wanted to try the MBR action so this is an affordable way to do it ($145). Can you (and others who fish it) tell me a bit more about what you liked throwing on it and why? Any line preference for the rod? Thanks!

It certainly does, thanks! Glad to hear you all take that unbiased approach. I will take that into consideration when I read product reviews on this site. It does, Glenn. Thanks for taking the time to share your approach to these situations.

I’ve been using the Kaden 713C for 1/4-ounce Mini-Max. Haven’t had a bass come off yet. Using 12-lb Fluoro which is a nice pairing with rod, since it does have a bit of a faster action than dedicated chatterbait rods.

St. Croix is an advertiser for this site. Glenn owns the site. Glenn reviews their rod. This strikes me as a conflict of interest and makes it hard for me to consider such a review unbiased. Same with his posts about St. Croix’s Seviin reels and various other advertiser products. Not trying to be a troll, and I love all the great information and peer support on this site. I really do appreciate what it’s done for the bass fishing community. But this one aspect has always bugged me. (I work in publishing and I know the separation between editorial and advertising can sometimes be a challenge. But this obliterates it.)

I just bought out what was left of 3/0 Haymakers at Omnia. Sorry not sorry ?