fishwizzard

I got really excited about finesse cranks last year and bought a pile of them off ebay. Sady the only ones that have ever produced for me are J5 jointed Rapals or 1/8oz Sebile lipless cranks. I should really clean out the rest of them as I don't think I am gonna fish them much anymore.

I have some of the 8lb chartreuse on my finesse spinning reel and so far I like it. I have 15lb Suffix 832 on my other spinning reel so I can compare them a bit. The J-braid is far smoother to the touch and is incredibly quieter on both the cast but especially the retrieve. Knot strength seems good, tied to a 8lb floro leader I was able to drag in a very large branch into retrieve a lure and I was amazed how hard I was able to pull. I have fished it on some super windy days and only got a single wind knot, but it pulled out very easily. Casting distance is great and feels like I can get as far (a fence section in my yard) with a lot less effort than it took to get there with straight 8lb floro. The only downside is the bleed. I mainly care because I switched back to braid because I fish a ton of weightless plastics on my spinning combos and I was having trouble seeing the floro lines I had switched too. It also stains really fast, I fish a very tannic pond and the first 20' feet of my line are taking on a brownish cast to it. I am going to try using a bright green sharpie to touch it up, as I really like it otherwise.

If you can excuse a filthy Marylander snooping around this this thread, I wanna say thanks for the info on the Cut-Rs and the hook issues you were having. Bought a pack or two over the winter and just tried them the other day. I t-rigged them with a punch skirt to use as a weedless swimjig type thing. I was using twistlock flipping hooks and despite a few solid hits, I could never make a hook set. I will give it an other go with a wide gap hook. Is there a specific size you have found works best? I have a pile of 3/0 Moanar weighted swimbait hooks, but I really like the look of it as a fake-swimjig and want to give that an other go.

Cool, thanks for all the intel. I really should drag my yak up there but I am a big baby about leaving it on my car unattended for hours.

Now a box like that, but as stand alone unit that could be bolted to a truck bed, that would be something.

Yea, I am guilty of looking at the scenery as well, but once you get used to the tip dancing in your vision, it is easy to keep it there and still be able to zone out.

If you mean BFS, it stands for Bait Finesse System. Using casting rods and reels to throw very light weight lures that are traditionally thrown on spinning gear.

Well, sure, tiny 1/16 to 1/8oz ones. I would put those two lures against any other WP lure/bait out there.

Honestly I liked the XL so much I am giving mono a shot on a few other reels as well now. I have never lost a fish due to line breakage that wasn't a pickerel bite-off so until that starts happening I am not going to worry too much about line strength.

Copy, that is my usual plan, speed hike a mile or so from parking, then start fishing. It's just hard to resist good looking spots closer in, but I rarely regret walking a bit further. I am thinking about parking at the boat launch by the bridge and working the coves to the east, does that sound reasonable?

eh, I do sometimes fish a t-rigged senko a bit like a fluke, working it across pads and letting it fall into holes. They are a bit fragile for it though, the stouter stick worms like the Keitech or BioSpawn one's work a lot better for that use.

Do what I tell all my non-fishing friends to do when they want to come out with me, which is "when you are walking with a rod, keep the tip at eye level and in front of you all the time". That way if you are paying attention to where you are going, the tip can't hit anything.

Hah, I think you were the one (on TT) who suggested that I try 4lb XL when I was complaining about BFS line woes. I might give braid a try again once I can go a couple of trips without a major backlash.

I have this rod. It is more on the L side of things and is very very soft. That being said, it handled this guy; who was rude enough to hit a spinner I was throwing for white perch.

I am still learning to skip with a casting reel, but I use old, already fished on a t-rig, Rage Menace Grubs as my trailers. They are a good trailer in general and while they do rip a lot, I don't mind as they have already gotten me some fish. I just cut maybe an 1/2 inch off the nose and they hold on the jig fine under normal use.

The first time I learned this was very disappointing, the fish that hit my very distant lure right as it hit the water, it looked like someone threw a cinderblock in there. I have never given senkos much time, but am currently playing with them on an L action casting rod and a small finesse reel. Rather than go for distance, I am working on accuracy, trying to be able to hit a dock piling at 50-60' on every cast. I know I don't have the gear to pull a large fish through much if any cover, so I need to be able to hit spots where I have a clear lane to land a fish. I have tried to see how far I can fling one, I can get it down to the backing on my spool, so around 40 yards or so. But that is a long bomb cast with the brakes way way looser then I would ever really try to fish it. The first time I learned this was very disappointing, the fish that hit my very distant lure right as it hit the water, it looked like someone threw a cinderblock in there. I have never given senkos much time, but am currently playing with them on an L action casting rod and a small finesse reel. Rather than go for distance, I am working on accuracy, trying to be able to hit a dock piling at 50-60' on every cast. I know I don't have the gear to pull a large fish through much if any cover, so I need to be able to hit spots where I have a clear lane to land a fish. I have tried to see how far I can fling one, I can get it down to the backing on my spool, so around 40 yards or so. But that is a long bomb cast with the brakes way way looser then I would ever really try to fish it.

Right now I have 6lb XL on a PX68 that I use with an UL rod and 8.4lb Seaguar finesse fluoro on a sv105 on a L action rod. I like the XL, but am going to step down to 4lb next time I refill I think. The Seaguar Finesse is decent, but seems weak, but it is very thin and manageable. I am going to try a few more low poundage floros and see which one I like the best.

I use KVD Line Conditioner on all my non-braid reels, a heavy application while spooling up, then a good spray the night before I take a reel out. I have a pair of UL/L spinning combos that I really only use for perch and panfish. I only fish for them every few months and the difference in line behavior (I have used YZH, Treline XL, Stren Mono, and a few cheap floros) is huge when I spray it the night before compared to when I don't.

I was wondering if a car-top ski box might be an option if your truck had a ladder rack/cage? Something like his Thule: https://www.thule.com/en-us/us/cargo-carrier/car-top-carrier/thule-motion-xt-xl-_-1691181 Some quick math makes it looks like a few 7' or slightly over rods should fit;

This coming Saturday I am going to meet a friend at Little Seneca for some hiking, but not until the mid afternoon. I plan to get there very early to get some fishing in. I have never been up there before and would love a nudge towards a good spot to start out. I will be on foot, but don't mind walking a bit to get somewhere decent. In terms of lures, I was going to plan on swim jigs and spinnerbaits to cover water, and senkos and fat ikas once I (hopefully) find the fish.

Check out the Papataso Valleyly Stream Park. Lots of good spots to access the river and there are some decent smallies in there. Piney Run is supposed to be decent, but I have only seen a little bit of is so I am not sure how the shore access is. There are a couple of small lakes in Columbia, which isn't too far from Bmore.

What rod covers are those?

Huh, well never mind then. The only thing could think to try would be to make the belly slit on the lure deeper to let to hook pop out more easily.

Are you seeing the bass hit your lure? I ask because I fish smaller (3-4") paddle tails a ton and have found that small, I mean like 4-7", pickerel will grab the lure by the middle and run with it for a bit. It feels like a decent bass is on for a second, then the pick lets go and then there is nothing. I only figured it out when I switched to a open hooked jighead and managed to catch a few of the little guys.

I used to work with steel aircraft cable all the time and it was essential that one pull it from the bottom of the spool. No idea why, but it was a nightmare whenever someone did it wrong and the spool dumped. A backlash in 1/4 GAC is a wonderful way to waste an afternoon. When I got into fishing I would spool my reels by feeding from the bottom and it seems to work fine, what's the argument for doing it one way or the other?