jimmyjoe

Don't worry. I will. I love seeing what new stuff and new techniques can do .......AFTER I convince myself to try them, that is. One sand pit is open here, and one lake only has about 12' of ice on the shady side, so you'll be hearing from me fairly soon. ??? jj

I've been thinking this over. Are you sure that the factory didn't say twenty to fix it OR fifty-five TO UPGRADE? They used to have the fifty buck upgrade program, I guess for a good few years now. You have a Premier break, then for fifty you can upgrade to an Avid. Break an Avid, and fifty gets you a Legend Tournament Bass. And so on. It almost sounds like this is what they were saying and possibly were mis-understood. Maybe? Or no? jj

That's where I think I'm going. Like ......... tomorrow. ? jj

Odd. Just this last year I sent an Avid spinning rod in for cracked tiptop (Kigan Z-guide). I paid to send it. They replaced it and returned it on their dime. I wonder what's changed and why. ? jj

For 5 years (about 9 years ago) I had arthritis so bad that all I could use was an ultralight. I used 4 lb mono, usually. I thought, "There's no big fish gonna hit those tiny little lures!" Hahahahaha! So I learned the hard way. Pike on a UL ain't easy, but it teaches you what a light setup really can do. But I know that I'm sooooo lucky to fish unobstructed water. If I had had to deal with slop, I'd have had to give up fishing. ?? jj

Yeah. Makes me like and respect the guy even more. Too many people today think they're leading when they're actually following. jj

Sibilance filter. jj

I'm old and my memory is bad, but something about snagging bass on a crankbait is real important. That bass 1) didn't see the crankbait as a threat, 2) wasn't interested, and 3) didn't move. Yet they hit jigs and plastics. Hmmmmm....... Plastics move slow. Low oxygen, maybe? jj

Oh .... you've met my mother-in-law? Seriously, I take a cot any night. I do not like sleeping on the ground .... and I've done a lot of it. I do not nor have I ever used the kind of tent that doesn't leak under the skirt in the rain and wind. I've even taken pallets to put inside the tent, so I don't get up and step in the mud. The cot legs rest on (4) 2x10 blocks, whether there's rain in the forecast or not. And yes, this is "primitive" camping. Less noise, fewer drunks, better sleeping. If it's cold, I use a self-inflating foam air mattress on the cot. If it's so cold that that doesn't work well, I stay home. jj

Good review, and thank you. I have a question, though: if you were to sling 1 oz. spoons all day where there were pike, would you use this 300 size or a 200 size reel, with nothing said about line or rod? jj

Welcome! I love that grin on your son's face! jj

These are the Exude ones. But I've learned a lot here, and I now know enough to go whichever direction I need to go. Thanks. jj

Uh-oh. This might be the second time in my life I'm a Zoomie!! ? jj (If you're not old-timer military, you won't get than one. Ask the bus driver to explain it.)

You're right, @The Bassman. And I just woke up to the fact that the OP didn't tell us whether he was using casting or spinning equipment. I, too, have a love/hate relationship with braid. It stems from the fact that I use it on spinning gear for twitching small spoons and jerkbaits. Those techniques build up twist in the line, and more in some brands than others. But I got stupid and crazy and discovered a way to stop SOME of the twist. My twist is always clockwise. In other words, I have to re-twist the line counterclockwise as I hold the rod and look down it. So took an el-cheapo spoon and bent it with a pliers so that it always twists CCW. When the twist builds up so that I can see it, I put this spoon on and cast out a couple times. That cures 90% of my twist. Now I'm not saying it cures ALL the twist. There's some left right next to the reel on a loooong cast. That twist, way down in the length of line, has to be taken out the hard way ..... by hand. When I say, "... when the twist builds up that I can see it ..." I mean that I hold the line up to my eye and look straight down it. The twist will be obvious. As you work the line and the twist increases, that will be obvious, too. I use braided line that this twist is obvious. I haven't used all the braids out there, and I don't intend to try. Some might not show this twist as being obvious. I use braid on only one baitcaster. Haven't had any problems there. Then again, I use that setup differently. One bad thing I found out: once braided line takes a severe twist, it seems to re-arrange the relationship between the filaments, as if it changes the friction mechanism between them. And then, the line will take a new twist ten times as easily and ten times as quickly. At that point, new line is in order. Oh, well ....... the fight goes on. jj

I help other people when I can, and other people help me sometimes. I always figured that's the way life is. I don't keep score. Unless I'm in a friend's boat and we're skipping senkos under tree limbs. Then I keep score. jj

I will try this. This morning. If they don't come around I will ........ Thank you all! jj

I've never used fluke bodies. Never. So for this spring I got some RT Slugs from Mr. Twister. I figured I'd try this fluke stuff. (I'm trying to prove that you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!) Dang! Those things are as tough as tire rubber! I had thought they would be the same consistency as worms. I was wrong. So I gotta ask .... are all the fluke bodies hard and tough? Or are some of them soft, like worms and senkos? I can't see how the bass is gonna hook himself with these things I got now. I can't see the hook moving, and it's a 5/0. Thnx 4 the advice. jj

Yes, he did. I saw him. And he was chuckling an evil chuckle all the while.... The trouble with braid is in the fiber. If you got some Dacron braid, it would behave better. If you could get the old black nylon braid, it would behave better yet. But the allure of the Dyneema and Spectra fibers has driven those off the market, or relegated them to trolling. I've found the total answer to all the problems of braid, though: I use monofilament. ??? jj

Thnx. I'm in Iowa, and the river hit flood stage today with at least 4 feet of rise expected. That'll take awhile to work its way downstream. The bad thing about our members in NE is the old saying, "One foot up, a hundred sideways." At least no tornadoes where I live .......... yet. I sure hope our Southern friends make it through okay. jj

I'd say that means you're tying a good knot jj

I know exactly how you feel. I had always been taught that if the bite shuts off, it's the fisherman's fault. And in the river, that's pretty much true, because of all the different circumstances and species involved. But lakes are different, and it took me awhile to understand that. The only transition bait I've found is soft plastic, and that doesn't work consistently, maybe only half the time. I've just come to accept that sometimes ... BAM! ... the bite is gone. jj

Don't kick the sleeping rabbit dog. jj

If you're not throwing over 1/4 oz., see whether your market has the Daiwa Spinmatic D trolling rod. It's a casting rod built on the same blank as the Spinmatic D ultralight spinning rod. It actually has a fast action. And it's priced very reasonable. I have a Curado 70 on mine, and I can cast 1/8 oz. lures with accuracy and good distance. In your market, Kuying has some lighter power rods, too. jj

That's one heckuva nice swimbait ..... and the lure looks interesting, too! ?? jj

Welcome to the madhouse! You just know you're gonna love it! jj