IndianaFinesse

I will sometimes put a trailer on buzzbaits, if they want it retrieved slower or just want a different look. When I do use them, I usually use some kind of toad, often a horny toad or Stanley ribbit frog. I start a day without a trailer hook to minimize tangling and snagging, but if I get short strikes i'll throw one on.

I forgot to mention in the previous post, and just edited it in, that you are right about abu Garcia, they tend to run 1/2 to 1 rating stiffer and faster than rated.

I agree on abu Garcia running stiffer and faster than rated, they are typically about 1/2 to 1 rating stiffer than rated.

Thank you.

Less competition is never a good thing for the consumer.

That's what it's on sale for now, but I was really hoping and thinking that it was going to be an additional 25% off today, bringing it down to a no-brainer at only $45. Oh well, I will probably pick it up anyways. I'll try to remember to come back and post a review once I've had a few weeks of fishing with it. I'll have to wait a while to try it out, the lakes are going to be iced up around here for a while.

Yep, as long as it's fifty dollars or more it qualifys for free shipping, including sale items. In case you didn't know, the current five dollar off code is FHABAQ214.

I thought it was going to be on all sale items, not just some of them. Bummer, I already had the cart ready to go, but i'm sure not going to get as much as I would have.

Oh, I figured you meant that casting as in casting a lure. Thanks!

Thanks for all of the replys. Which color do you use most?

When you say "excellent reels, at least the casting..." have you had any other problems with them? Sounds like it holds up quite well for all of the abuse he puts it through. I fish 4-7 days a week, so my equipment has to be pretty durable to last very long .

Thanks, and sorry I forgot to specify that I was talking about the casting model. Nd thanks for mentioning the longevity, that's an important thing to me because of the amount i fish. I think I'm going to pick up one of them on sale tomorrow.

Thanks, I just wanted to make sure it could handle 1/4 ounce baits. I use spinning gear for lures lighter than that, plus I also prefer spinning for skipping baits under docks and trees. I don't have any problem doing it with a baitcaster, but spinning gear seems to get the lure farther back underneath docks a lot easier.

What do you guys think of the daiwa exceller? Can it handle lighter lures down to at least 1/4 ounce? I was thinking of using it mostly for jerkbaits and topwater.

I'm looking at possibly starting to build my own rods. What supplies would I need just to start out building rods? I've looked around at places such as mudhole, but there's so many different tools for rod building I have no idea what you really need and what you don't.

Thanks for the reply's, can it handle lighter lures in the 1/4 ounce range?

Never mind, TW just ran out of them anyway. What do you think of the daiwa exceller?

Do you think the exceller would be any better? They both have the same retail price, and the specs look similar.

Thanks, I assumed the deeper spool would also mean a larger spool.

The techniques you listed generally work better on at least two different rods, and three would be better. If I had to pick two, it would be a 6'9" medium heavy casting rod for topwater and jigs, and a 7' medium powered rod with a moderate action. An all around rod would be a 6'9 or 7' medium heavy powered rod with a fast action. Check out the Fenwick aotos rod from FFO, it retails for $150 but is on sale for about $73. There is always a sale going on there (right now its 20% off over fourty dollars) in addition.

I haven't tried the VMC weedless wacky hooks, but I have tried several others including the owner weedless wacky hooks. I haven't used any of them since I found an article (written by Wahne P.) about a better way to weedless wacky rig. His method was to use a slightly larger than normal hook, wacky rig the worm like normal, and then push the hook a second time part way thru the bait a half inch or so to one side of where the hook came thru the first time, so that the hook point is just under the skin of the worm or just thru it. The hooking percentage is much better than when using an actual weedless wacky hook, plus it's actually more weedless.

I tried putting some 4/0 hooks on them, but it weighed so much that it sank with the slightest bit of water inside. I wonder if a 2/0 or 3/0 might work?

If you had to replace the hooks with regular frog hooks (not swapping between frogs, I don't have enough to do that) which size would you put on the pocket frog?

Pretty sure the new moerel jig heads are poured on a #1 owner hook.

Not really. A lot of Midwest finesse fishermen prefer gopher mushroom heads, between the weights of 3/32 oz. and 1/32 oz. The most versatile and used weight is 1\16 ounce, and none of the midwest finesse fishermen use heads weighing more than 3/32 ounce, and certainly not a 1/6 ounce jig. Z-man made the heavier jig heads without doing much for research, just trying to jump on on all of the hype surrounding the Ned rig. Some people are buying the heavier jigs because they think that the have to feel the bait, and thinking that the ned rig is always fished on the bottom. But a big part of successfully fishing the Ned rig is mastering the "no feel retrieve", you don't want to actually feel the bait. And counter to popular belief, the Ned rig is usually slowly swam just above the bottom, often while subtly shaking the rod tip. The majority of new comers to Ned rigging are now using the TRD, but the original bait is half of a zinkerz (or SK zero, they're the same bait) with the salt removed, along with several other small baits under four inches. I still prefer and use half of a zinkerz, it is much softer than the TRD which gives it better movement.