jimmyjoe

Good doc! I wish you well. ??? jj

Possibly: Powell Endurance 7116 CB, H/MF and 1/2-3 oz. jj

I fish one (large) pond that has a large area of shallows, and when I fish there, I throw a Strike King Mini Pro Buzz on an 8' M/MF rod based on a Batson IP963F blank. That rod is only 1/4-5/8 oz. But ....it gets me fish when a 3/8 oz. Pro Buzz on a 7'-01" MH/F won't. Basically, I just experiment with whatever the heck I can, to find out what works. I've done that for several years. Sometimes it's frustrating, and sometimes it's gratifying, but it's ALWAYS educational! ? jj

The Mojo has 8 guides, the Avid-X has 9, plus the micro guides on the Avid-X are smaller and lighter. So sensitivity should theoretically be better with the Avid-X, which would be important to you with the bottom-contact techniques mentioned. However, you asked about the value of the $80 difference. That's something that, unfortunately, only you can answer. jj

Spinning or casting? jj

Full descriptions can be had by clicking on each lure. http://www.luckycraft.com/luckycrafthome/default.htm#Products Good luck! jj

Yes, you can't catch fish on them if you don't throw them! ??? jj

That's the way I feel about all high tech gizmos, not just automotive but appliances, fishing equipment, security devices, smartphones and more. Makes you wonder how our parents' generation accomplished all the things that they did, huh? jj

I'm gonna steal that, because there are some days when I'm DEFINITELY gonna use it! Thanks! ?? jj

I've experimented with grub bodies and even cut-off parts of Senkos. Although they caught fish, they never proved to be more productive than the original, which surprised me. This was in dirty water, though, so that might have had something to do with it. jj

I don't know exactly what you mean by "handles like a bass reel", but I have the TranX 300a and I love it. I used to use the 5000 and 5500 Ambassadeurs, but I developed arthritis and couldn't use them anymore. The 300a is the ONLY 300-size reel that I have found that fits my grip and doesn't trigger the pain. (I hate pain.) I fish for bass where there are pike and musky, and it works great. Even though it's a low profile reel, it's a 300-size low profile reel, so it ain't no shrinking violet. That's why I wondered what you meant by "handles like a bass reel". But if you want an authoritative reel for musky in a compact size, I think it's the way to go. I know what you mean about the Avet and Accurate reels; they're not easy to handle. This one is. Good luck to you, and I hope this helps! ?? jj

In a word, "No!". Not that some I've gotten haven't been good spinners, but some in the same package were not. It seems that one of the things you're paying higher prices for is consistency. I still play the cheap spinnerbait game, but I've given up on cheap in-lines. jj

I use a wake bait over shallow (Less than 6') water, and I fish it SLOW. It's pretty effective considering it follows a spinnerbait in my methods. The only one I use anymore is the 5/8 Mann's 1 Minus. jj

Or you can follow my method; proofread before posting, proofread after posting, then delete post. ? jj

Yes, still using them. Still catching fish on them. My favorites by far are the 1/2 oz. Mepps spinners. High or low, fast or slow; their versatility is wonderful. I can use them in rivers, or I can use them in lakes. They just plain perform. jj

If you've handled them both, the decision is yours to make. If you haven't handled them both, then I suggest you find a way to do exactly that. In the end, you're going to have to satisfy yourself, not other people. Good luck! jj

https://ofags.com/how-to-ripen-green-tomatoes/ https://www.farmersalmanac.com/ripen-green-tomatoes-home-28846 I use the paper bag method. An apple helps rather than a banana. One year, I tried to take the plant up and hang it in the garage. It worked, but some got rotten rather than ripe. You have to decide what you consider an acceptable risk. Good luck! jj

The greatest distance results from the greatest energy storage and release over the least amount of time. This translates to highest velocity, the same as a higher velocity bullet goes farther than a lower velocity bullet, all other things being equal. The greatest tip velocity in a rod results, therefore, from a cast which has the least time from full rear deflex to full forward release. If the caster cannot push the rod forward quickly enough to match the rod's energy release, velocity will not be at the maximum level. Look at it this way: Take a rod. Any rod. Put the max rated lure weight for that rod on it. Set up as if you going to cast, but instead of going through a regular cast, just bring back the rod ever so slowly, and then bring it forward ever so slowly. You just went through the motion of a cast, with the arc of a cast and the weight of a cast, but if you released the lure weight at the end of that cast, it would just plop on the ground. Now do the same exact thing; go through the cast again, but this time a little faster. You'll notice two thing: one is that the tip of the rod was deflected by the lure weight, and the other is that the lure weight now travels a greater distance. You have imparted greater velocity to the lure. As you go through this same motion every time, but faster and faster each time, your distance will be greater and greater ..... up to a point. That point is when one of two things happen. Either 1) the rod is so "floppy", like a willow stick, that it can't release more energy on the forward portion of the cast, or else 2) your reflexes and muscles are so slow that they can't force any greater velocity on the forward portion of the cast. If #1 is the case, you've reached the maximum energy and deflection speed of the rod, and you won't be able to force it to give you any higher level of results. If #2 is the case, only a longer rod will produce greater velocity, because for the same casting stroke, a longer lever arm has greater tip speed, resulting in greater velocity. But .... look at #2 another way. Let's say you have two graphite rods. One has faster deflection and energy release than the other one, but they both store and release energy faster than human muscles can move or react. Theoretically, one can cast a lure further than the other one. In reality, they will cast the same, because no human being can exploit the difference. It's not difficult to manufacture a fishing rod where #2 applies. In fact, it's easy. Very easy. Just a stiff carbon-and-epoxy shaft, like a stiff pool cue. I imagine you've seen them; cheap graphite rods from China, puffed up in advertising to be "wonder rods". but in actuality not very useful for fishing. Will they give you great distances? No, they won't. They're too fast for your body's muscles. So the best rods for use by human beings are those that match our reaction speed and muscle control for acceleration. I apologize for the long post; I hope I made things clearer! ??? jj

I generally need 2-pc rods for security reasons. I had an 8'-0" casting rod made on a Batson Revelation IP963F blank ("F" denotes 2-pc.). It's rated M/MF, 1/4-5/8 oz., and it casts a country mile. I suggest that 1) you consider a 2-pc. rod, and 2) consider a custom rod. Now that I've said that, there's one more thing. Have your reel professionally cleaned and re-lubed, and include a note when you send it in that you want the reel lubed for distance. On the rod I mentioned above, I have a Shimano Curado 70 that's been cleaned and re-lubed. The distance I get is noticeably greater than what I got when I used that reel brand new, right out of the box. The other benefit you gain from a professionally re-lubed reel is ease of casting. In other words, you may not be going for the greatest distance, but the effort you need to put into the cast .... any cast .... will be less. And when I read what @Delaware Valley Tackle wrote, I went back to your original post. You never mentioned whether you were thinking of casting, spinning or either one. I didn't notice that. ?? My bad. He's got a very good point about the spinning gear. Hope all this helps you. ? jj

There are going to be many replies to your question. If you watch pro distance competitors and their videos, one thing will surface time and time again; technique, technique, technique. The reason is simple; almost anyone can use a rod to cast a lure, but only very few people with rigorous practice can get the full benefit of the rod's potential into play. In other words, it ain't easy. Bass rods bear little resemblance to competition distance rods. Still, you might be very surprised what normal, everyday rods can do in the right hands! One other thing that @Bankc and @Dens228 touched on: to really get improvement in distance, your lures will need to be aerodynamic. As I've said before, you can't cast tissue paper very far. Good luck! jj p.s. - For most people, a moderate or moderate-fast action yields the greatest distance. This has absolutely nothing to do with the rod. It simply matches the reactions and coordination of most people, that's all.

Good question. Is it possible that the vast majority of them were killed? Any that survived are probably hiding and EXTREMELY wary of any larger forms of life that are around, because the safety net that they formerly enjoyed (the trees) are gone. jj

I don't fish at night. Up until this year, I hadn't used spinnerbaits with black skirts. I now have two; one with a black blade, one with a nickel blade. I was very happy this spring, because I got fish on both. I haven't gotten anything off them post-spawn, though. Clear or muddy water didn't seem to make all that much difference. We'll see what fall brings. jj

I'd say that a person's satisfaction rests mainly on what their expectations were. That being said, I have two Stradic Ci4+ 2500 FA reels. Although I've used them with braid and mono, right now both have 6 lb. mono on them. I've also tried the (still-current) Ci4+ 2500 FB, and own the (still-current) 4000 size in the FB series. I really like the FA series. I don't think much of the FB series. I have absolutely no idea what the new Vanford is going to be like. But I do know one thing; manufacturers are in a race to lower the weight of spinning reels, and they're using any and all technologies at their disposal to do so. This includes some outrageously expensive technologies, for which they charge what are (to me) outrageously expensive prices. These technologies include (among others) lighter and lighter alloy gears and shafts, and plastics that are ever thinner, with greater and greater percentages of carbon fiber to compensate. Some people are eager to jump on this bandwagon. Not me. I think they've gone too far. The reels lack a feeling of solidity, and they don't hold their smoothness for long periods of time. That's if they're smooth to begin with. Oh, well. I guess I'm just an old fart who doesn't appreciate progress. ?? jj