Big Easy Bassin'

Thanks. I haven't read any negative reviews on them either, and at that price point I think they're worth a shot. Thinking about doing a spinning crankbait rod and giving the MicroWave guides a shot. I've heard great things about them

Check out New Wave Soft Plastics. They've got a 5.75" Crawler that is very similar to the old fashioned Zoom Finesse Worm, but I love their 5.25" Shaky Worm. The head is flat and it's tapered down to a pointed tail. Great action on a shaky head

Anyone have experience with Liberty rod blanks? Just finished my first build and I'm looking to do another. I used an MHX blank on the first build. The Liberty blanks seem to be a little cheaper. Just looking for some opinions. Thanks in advance guys

So I just completed my first rod build and I'm already looking into starting number 2. My MHX 6'10" white dropshot rod came out beautifully. Probably gonna sell that one down the road and build another with some better guides and EVA grips. My next project will be a crankbait spinning rod, and I need a little insight from you guys with the blank selection. Won't be throwing any deep divers. Mostly lipless cranks (1/4oz - 1/2oz) and some squarebills. The areas I fish are full of submerged grass, so lipless cranks are my go to option. What type of rod would you recommend for this? I like a medium heavy for the most part when fishing crankbaits, especially lipless cranks. Makes it easier to rip it out of the grass. Having trouble deciding between straight graphite or a blend. I've basically put a glass rod out of my mind, but if someone has a good enough argument to sway my opinion I'm all ears. Thanks for any advice in advance

Took a ride out to New Orleans City Park yesterday afternoon to do some bank fishing. Bluebird skies with temps in the 90s (feeling like 100+) with absolutely no wind. When I say bluebird I mean not a cloud in the sky. Hit 4 or 5 spots without a bite. Figured I'd try one of my favorite and most productive spots in the park and finally got on them. Water was low and the fish were much farther out off the bank than usual. Caught 3 LMB. All over 2lbs. Biggest was right at 3lbs. Lost 2 near the bank, one of which I think would have been a new PB. At least a 6.5 pounder. Still a good day.

I started looking into aluminum boats as well simply because of the significant price difference. Anyone have any suggestions as far as manufacturers or models when it comes to a good aluminum bass boat?

Thanks for that piece of info. Missed that when I was going through the specs and features and whatnot. That's definitely a deal breaker. Now looking into the Z-7. It has port and starboard rod lockers for rods up to 8'. It comes with a 150 OptiMax but I might upgrade to the 175. Not much of a price difference online between the 2015 Z-7 and the 2016 Z-18 which is surprising. Wondering if it's worth waiting until the beginning of winter and try to save some money. I was figuring between $5-6K for electronic upgrades and that would put me right at the top end of my budget. Maybe just over with taxes and all that. Might have to start thinking about expanding the budget to $40K lol. I feel like that extra 5 grand would help me out a lot.

I was looking at the Nitro Z-6 online. They're selling for $22K. It's 17'4" but I'm thinking that will do. Comes with a basic Lowrance unit, but I will definitely be upgrading that. Anyone have any experience with this model boat?

So for a while I was looking into buying a kayak to start fishing from, but since I'm getting more interested in trying tournament fishing, I threw that idea out the window and started looking at boats. I'll be fishing mostly as a co-angler on the bigger tournament trails, but I'd like to start fishing as a boater on the smaller local trails as well. Plus having a boat would be great for practicing in the tournaments I'm going to be a co-angler in. So here's what I'm looking for... Definitely fiberglass between 17 and 20ft. I'd like to buy something new just because of the warranty, plus I've had bad luck with used boats in the past when I was a saltwater guide down here in south Louisiana. What size would you guys recommend? because I know some tournaments will be held on bigger lakes where a shorter boat will not be able to handle waves. And what are some brands I should look at first. My budget for this is about $35K Thanks

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm pretty pumped about getting the opportunity to fish some tournament on the Open series. Didn't know so many guys who fish the Elite series still fished the Opens. Looking forward to learning some things and hopefully doing decent in the tournaments.

Thanks for the advice. I know fishing as a co-angler will definitely be a learning experience. I was looking at my calendar and I don't think I'm going to make the tournament at the end of August, so my first one will be the end of October. Down here in South Louisiana, depending on when the first cold fronts roll through, that could still be late summer type weather. Hoping it's more of an early fall type situation though. Either way I will be as prepared as I possibly can. And a big thanks for the rod glove tip. Gonna have to order some of those and also gonna get some lure wraps too just in case.

You pretty much just hit the nail on the head for what I was thinking, except for me they're all spinning combos lol. I'm a strictly spinning guy

X2. I only use spinning gear and my crankbait rig was stolen out of my truck. Needed something fast and cheap just to get through a tournament and I bought the Lew's American Hero combo from Academy. Pretty decent little rig. Only problem I had is I got a MH because I like my rod a little stiffer when throwing a crankbait, and it was definitely on the heavier side. If I could do it again I'd get a M. Same goes for Abu Garcia rods. They're normally on the heavier side of the given power rating.

I'll be fishing in my first series of bigger tournaments at the end of the summer and into the fall as a co-angler. Just wondering if you guys had any advice as far as being a co-angler in tournaments?

I will be fishing in my first big series of tournaments as a co-angler at the end of the summer and into the fall. I'm limited to 6 rods. I know every body of water will be different, but if you were only able to use 6 setups all the time, what would your 6 be? Not necessarily looking for anything too specific. Just general setup ideas. Thanks in advance for the advice.