FishTank

I would get the Steez AII. I have two as well. Great reel. One for soft plastic and the other is crankbaits. At the JDM price, you can't go wrong but the Zillion is probably the better value.

The stuff from Lucas works for me. I wasn't a big fan of the reel oil but the cleaner is good.

The rule of thumb I was told is 5 years unless there is mold, broken hardware or a tear in the fabric, then it should be replaced sooner. Also, the foam should not be brick hard. Squeeze a new one and compare it to the old.

The Bantam would be my choice. I would also pass on the co-poly. Not a fan of it for crankbaits.

Stopped by a local shop today and was surprised they had some stuff from Evergreen. I can't believe I bought a rat. I also picked up a new knife to use on the kayak. It's a Kershaw Auto cleaver. I found a really good deal on it. It's probably the highest end knife I own. Once I held it in hand, it just felt right.

A big ribbon tail worm is one of my favorite baits this time of year but it can be tough. All fish species seem to hone in on small baits. It is not uncommon for big blue gill and crappie to nail those big baits because of the tail, especially in stained water. My fishing buddy always has a Berkley Power Worm tied on in various sizes. He misses fish constantly this time of year. I have seen it season after season and he will not switch up. When this starts for me, I go to a small crankbait or a wacky rigged senko.

For me, it's the rod. It's part of the equation that communicates the most with you.

@MiceNReets I have been using Sunline Invisible for a couple of seasons now and it has become my go to fluorocarbon line. It is some how different from Sniper and Shooter. Regular Sniper seems softer and Shooter is harder depending on which pound test you use. Invisible seems more durable and longer lasting but still casts easily. I have caught several 5lb+ largemouth on 5lb line with a BFS setup and I have also caught a 25lb+ catfish on 10lb. This line continues to hold up well after each catch. The odd one from Sunline is Sniper BMS. It too is different from the everything else. It has a sight marking system that lets a portion of the line shine out of water and its really bright with polarized sunglasses. Under water, it's pretty much invisible. It's slightly stiffer to me and a little less durable.

I fish a lake that is like this. Grass grows in the same area as the lily pads in early spring. As the temps rise, the lily pads take over. When they start to block out the sun, the grass dies. This leads to the fish having dead grass, warm water, and possibly lower oxygen levels from the decaying grass. All of that causes them to vacate the area. They sometimes can be found on the edges but otherwise they don't go near it. I also have some arthritis in my hands and forearms. I find a frog to be easy to cast but hard to work. I have better luck with heavy jigs on braided line but you do need the right rod and reel to make life easier on the hands.

I have owned several of both over the years and both have been great, with a slight edge going to Shimano. I have reels from Shimano that are pushing 20 years old. I can't say that about any Daiwa I have owned but it probably comes down to how well they are maintained over the years. For me, as a general rule of thumb, if it's made in Japan, then the quality is better. This not always the case but it has served me well so far.

I have used CXX in the past and it started out OK but after awhile it became a nightmare. In the Mono realm, I like two discontinued lines, Sunline Machine Gun Cast and Deifer Amarillo. Both lines feel a little like co-poly but have none of bad characteristics. Both cast well, hold up well, and are somewhat sensitive compared to regular mono.

Cool but not for me.

The San Diego Jam has worked for me. No issues with it. It's easy to tie and works on just about everything. For leader I use the Carrot knot. It can be a pain to retie in the wind but not impossible. I use regular fluorocarbon leader material, either Seaguar Gold Label, Seaguar Grand Max or Seaguar Grand Max FX.

Went out Sunday on my kayak and had a blast. The weather was perfect and the fish were active. I caught 15 like the one bellow and handful of wipers and crappie. I brought 6 setups, each with a different lure. I caught fish on all of them. Just an awesome day all around.

I just started using Almight one of my BFS set ups and it is really good. It's one of those "you don't know until you try it" things. I will give it some time and see how it goes long term. I paid $10 for it at a JDM site so I thought why not at that price.

Might take one musky fishing.

Not exactly a monkey purchase but I was given a $50 Amazon gift card through my health-care for getting a physical. So I needed some line and saw this on Amazon for $58 for 200 meters. Digitaka sells it for $78. Crazy price for line. I wouldn't pay that much for it but for $8, I think I can swing that. This is supposed to be the best YGK makes. We will see.

I picked up some bullet weights and a pack EWG Ned Heads. I ordered them from Amazon. Instead of receiving a 5 pack of EWG Ned Heads, I received 5 packs of 5. Amazon said I could keep them. They have been pretty good so far.

I don't feel much difference in weight. The C2000S Twin Power is 6.3oz and the Certate 2500 DH is 7.2oz. The rods I have them on seem to balance OK with them. One note on both of them, the drags seem tight at first, then loosen. So hook sets are immediate. I have actually snapped my leader a few times on each even though the drag is set lightly. Once engaged, both are smooth, with a slight edge maybe going to the Twin Power.

@ConnorC I took them both out this evening. I caught a ton of fish in just a few short hours on the water. I stopped counting at 20. Most of what I caught were dinks but I did catch a few good ones. For me I think it's still the Twin Power but the fun factor of the 2000 size reel and Megabass P5 Whippet kind of skew my preference. This combo is just outstanding at throwing little paddle tail swimbaits. I have the Certate 2500 on a G.Loomis NRX+ 872S JWR. This setup is nothing but Senko fishing so far. I would also agree with @bulldog1935 that the line lay is better on the Twin Power. Both setups have braid to leader.

I have both and both are great. I personally like the Twin Power better. It might be slightly smother but not by much.

Find a crankbait that goes to the same depth as you jerkbait and fish it the same way, just like a jerkbait but a little quicker. Another option is to go to a Shad rap style bait that suspends.

Realistic looking baits. The ones that try to mimic the exact patterns of fish. They just don't seem to work for me. Like this guy from Storm. Every color I have tried from them seems to work but this one.

I have a couple of the lures mentioned above. Casting those baits a mile can be difficult even with the perfect setup and under the best conditions. With light line and light lures, I have found rod length becomes less of factor. It has to do with how well the rod loads given the lure weight and the type of line you use. So the rods I have liked best so far, Megabass P5 Six Eleven, Megabass P5 Z-Crank (my favorite 110 Jr rod), and for really light weight baits the Kistler Hunt BFS. For line, I use 5lb Sunline Invisible.