jimmyjoe

I've never seen either one for sale, but one salesman told me that the Defier (green) is soft enough to be used on spinning reels effectively. Have you found that to be true? jj

If they tell you bass don't bite on big stuff right after ice-out and that you have to use small lures, don't believe them. I caught a nice bass today on a 1 oz. weedless Dardevle spoon. ? jj

^^^ 8 ^^^ More Ringo ....... indirectly. ?

You could have had a problem not related to bearings. Contact Shimano for more info. You might want to PM me. jj

Do you know about the Mister Twister "Top Prop"? It's supposed to be weedless. I'm not recommending it, just mentioning it. I've never used it. It's the only one I know of other than stuff like Whopper Ploppers, which aren't weedless. jj

You're welcome! jj

Easy answer: don't do that. What you've described is exactly like a kid who learns to drive, and then goes racing down the street. Speed kills. It takes time. Don't push it. You'll get there, don't worry. Rome wasn't built in a day. I think you get the idea. And one other thing about longer casts; follow-through is everything. If you play golf, you know what I mean. Good luck! jj p.s. - make sure your rig is balanced. For right now, don't try to cast a weight greater than is recommended on the rod. It'll help.

Here's my viewpoint. Spinnerbaits usually weigh 50% (roughly) more than they're advertised. The advertised weight is the lead head, not the total. (J-Mac musky spinnerbaits are the exception). So you're looking at 1.5 oz. weight, minimum. There are spinnerbaits on the market for bass (not musky) that weigh 2 oz head weight, probably close to 3 oz. total. That's swimbait territory. I'd get a swimbait rod or a light musky rod (3 oz. max weight suggestion.) As for the reel, I have a H/M fiberglass rod that I use for frogging and other stuff (trying to be versatile) and I have a TranX 300a on it. I get good result with 15 lb Big Game nylon and 65 lb. PowerPro braid. For what you're talking about, I personally would never go with a 200 size Curado. I don't believe it would last very long. And yes, I've ruined gears before. ☹️☹️☹️ Maybe get the 300 size Curado? Sorry to rain on your parade, but spending $$$ for equipment and then finding out it doesn't do what you want or doesn't last very long can be frustrating .....and expensive. Whatever you decide, I hope you have good luck! ? jj

Cast out your line in a long cast, whatever is "long" for you. Mark the line at the tiptop with a sharpie, then turn the reel handle one turn. Measure how far the mark moved in towards your reel. That's your IPT at low spool, which the IPT that I think is the most important. Feeling what's happening, controlling the lure and setting the hook are hardest at the end of a long cast. IPT helps you gather line and set the hook, so IPT at distance is very important. You'll probably be surprised at the measurement you get. Good luck! jj

I use the VMC ball bearing swivels to attach a leader. I only do this on light line, with the smallest swivel (#0 or #1?). And yes, I'm careful, although I have two rods with stainless guides. Don't have to worry about those two as much. jj

Oh .... heck ..... YES! I've been catching them on the 1/4 Spinnie this last week, with a few on the 2/5. Today I went out with a red-and-white 1 oz. Weedless, but no dice. I have about (4) 1 oz., maybe (10) 3/4, (6) 2/5 oz., and just a few 1/4 oz. Best color is Purple Rain, followed by Pearl, Pearl Clown, Grey Ghost, Black Betty, Hammered Nickle, Hammered Nickle & Blue, Red/White and Chartreuse w/red dots. I have tried Pumpkinseed and Crawdad, too, but no dice. I also tried the 3/4 oz. Klicker, but that was a disappointment. I twitch them, also called pulsing them, 90% of the time, whether I retrieve high or lower in the water column. I also use the CopECat, 1/3 to 4/5, and the 1/4 DevleDog. I have heavier DevleDogs, but they retrieve too slow and too low for where I fish. Like someone said, their biggest competitor is the Johnson Silver Minnow, which I also use in 3/4 and 1-and-1/8th. I favor the Eppinger because they have more colors, which to me means more degrees of contrast, not inherent color. I'm so glad you asked! ??? ??? jj

U R A Genius! ??? jj

So true. So true. jj

Depending on the length of your rod, you might want to use a slip bobber:

Never used a net. Never had a net to use. AFAIK, never lost fish. jj

Ahem ...... ??? How about Port Orford cedar w/ 130 (I think?) gr. Deadheads from a 54" Pearson Predator, 55 lb @ 31"? I never saw an aluminum arrow until after 1970, and even then only used them target shooting and not hunting. You're making me feel old here. Y'know that, dontcha?

Cost. jj

I hurt just reading that! ? jj

Perhaps yes, perhaps no. If we're talking about true 100% fiberglass, then I think that the material has limited "energy transference", if that's a phrase. ? If we're talking about graphite-glass composite, then I think it depends on what percentage of graphite to what percentage of glass the manufacturer decided to use, as well as which modulus graphite. You can see from some of my posts that I use fiberglass. I like fiberglass. I learned on fiberglass. I'm familiar with it, both the strengths and the weaknesses. I'm comfortable using it for some things that many people would not consider, like frogging. But I'm not an evangelist for glass. I don't push it. I'm aware that it's not really popular, especially with the "gadgets" crowd. Do I wish people could see it the way I see it? Well, sure I do! I think everyone wishes that other people would appreciate the niche products or techniques that they hold in high regard. But realistically, I know it's not gonna happen. So where are you without this life-long association with fiberglass? You're kinda out in the cold, aren't you? You're probably curious, but at the same time kinda put off. I think there are a lot of younger fishermen that way. And I think that there are some manufacturers that will up-price their glass products to take advantage of that. I think the solution for you is to get hold of a good quality but less-expensive glass rod and see what you think of it. I'm not talking about the old e-glass monsters, but more like the Mojo Bass Glass series. Those are not a lot of money, and they're true glass, not composite. If you don't like it, you can re-sell it without losing a lot of money. And as far as you thinking that some 100% glass rod at three times the price might be three times as good ..... well, don't get suckered in by that kind of advertising. Try it. I hope you like it. And if you don't, my feeling won't be hurt. And you'll have your answers. ?? jj

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/YGK_G-Soul_OHDRAGON_WX4_F1_SS140_Sinking_Braided_Line/descpage-OHDRAG.html or https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/YGK_G-Soul_SS112_Sinking_Braided_Line_Yellow_164yd/descpage-YGKGSSB.html jj

Somewhere on this site there's a mention of a study of bass done professionally. Maybe in Texas, I can't remember. It stated that there were two sizes or ages of bass; "cruisers", which are bass below a certain size and age, and more mature, territorial "ambush" fish. Cruisers tend to group together, albeit loosely. The ambush fish, or Big Mamas, are loners. From what I understood, cruisers will chase your lure. Big Mama doesn't. You have to go to her. You have to find her within her territory and zoom right in on her. And sometimes she's hiding where sonar doesn't tell you she's there. That's when you have to hit the "likely" territory forty different times from forty different ways, hoping you'll strike paydirt. After reading that, I tried to put it into practice. I got two good-sized fish, one from under an overhanging rock in the river and one from under a tree in a lake. But since I'm a shorecaster, I can't target locations with all due diligence. So ...... I've gone back to hitting the cruisers. YMMV. ??? jj

This is how I buy rods and reels .......... and live happily.

??? Your comment was funnier than the joke! jj

My personal opinion is that they're trying to be "cute". It's just fashion. jj

All strange humor aside, I think we have two different problems here: 1) A bass strikes at the spinnerbait and doesn't get hooked. A trailer helps this. 2) A bass "bumps" the spinnerbait. I've felt this often, but seen it only very rarely. Sometimes it's not a bass that does this. My personal opinion is that a bass (or any fish, really) that does this is trying to find out what the heck this "thing" is. From what little I've seen, they're not hitting the rear of the bait where the hook is. Instead, they're "bumping" the lure. In this case, I doubt a trailer hook does any good. What I've tried to do in this case is change to a lure that they attack straightaway, with no hesitation. Sometimes I've been successful. More often, I haven't. Just my 1/50th of a dollar. jj