jimmyjoe

That's the best lesson any of us - of any age or background - could ever learn. jj

It's funny how much our satisfaction and happiness depends on choosing the right combination of compromises. That goes for fishing, and a heck of a lot of other things, too. jj

This is the best time a person can spend at a new lake. Bass are creatures of the margins, and this walk up the shoreline will tell you more than any sonar. jj

Most of the advertised characteristics of Advance can be explained by its larger diameter, which provides more volume for chemical treatments. jj

Correct. My bad. Not so. The line lay problem that is exhibited under erratic-retrieve conditions is worse with very fine, soft braid. I don't know why, but it is. jj

@WRB got it right! It's all about line control, and you can't control line going onto a spinning spool. I retrieve jerkbaits and spoons with a very erratic motion. Baitcasters always work better, no matter which type of line I use. I wish it weren't so, because I'd love to use my strong side rather than my weak side. But it doesn't work that way. Spinning reels are essentially tight-line machines. jj

One of the basic precepts of modern fishing is, "Slow it down!". This wasn't a problem with 3.7:1 gear ratios of the past, but it is now with 7.2:1 gear ratios and up. That being said, there's a heck of a lot of difference retrieving a 3/8 oz. Wally Diver (yes, it's a great bass lure!) versus a Norman DD22. With the DD22 (or even larger lures) you need the lower gear ratio to save your arms in addition to creating the correct presentation. Good luck! ? jj

I don't think the blade design makes any difference; I've had good results with both. What makes a difference is putting the spinnerbait where the fish is. ? jj

Evidently you're not fishing in waters that have a lot of cover. Light power is too light to "horse" the fish out of cover. As for the L/F premier ....... it's NOT too light for bass in unobstructed waters. I've used lighter, and had very good luck ..... for years. jj

I have a set of lures I call "giant killers", and among them are the 1/8 oz. Rapala Ultralight cranks and the Mini Fat Rap, and the 3/16 oz. Dardevle spoons. Knockout on BFS! jj

This topic (or aspects of this topic) has been discussed here before. No matter what anyone says, the solution is always the same: try it and see. If Horton does something, but it won't work for you no matter what you do, then you have your answer. Line dig-in is worse on erratic, jerking or snapping retrieves, and it's worse on long casts. What the true diameter of that BPS braid happens to be is anyone's guess. Not only that, but some old-fashioned fishermen (not to name any names here ?) still use their thumbs as primary control during a cast. When you do that, the friction loosens the supply base of the braid, making dig-in somewhat more likely. Other people have taken advantage of the advancements in spool braking technology, and set the brakes higher. That's a different animal entirely, and if you set it up correctly, can give you better results with braid. The most obvious example of this is the Lew's Team Pro SP reel. Although marketed specifically for skipping, the reel does wonders with braid. jj

My feelings exactly, deal or no deal. jj

Not only that, but 12 lb. Big Game is more like 18 lb. line. Quite a few nylon lines are de-rated to make them appear stronger than other lines. It's marketing. jj

My personal opinion of those rods is that they're great. For crankin' rods like that, I try to hit about 24-25" per turn. A Shimano Cardiff 200A works just fine with 1`2 lb. test Big Game. jj

I see. I'd keep trying. They're the correct source of info. jj

You're asking the wrong people. Ask the authorities. Our opinion means nothing; theirs means everything. jj

Pflueger (per se) does not exist. The name was purchased by Pure Fishing, and they can put that name on anything that they please, including sweatsocks and microwave ovens. Pure Fishing was purchased by 1) the chinese, then by 2) some other entity, and is now back in the hands of 3) the chinese. This is per a source at Spirit Lake. All Pflueger products are made under contract by third-party manufacturers. It's obvious contracts are let according to profit margin. The Western concept of quality control, with its attendant test standards and rejection rate, is foreign (literally) to the mass-production factories of the chinese. If they produce 10,000 units, they sell 10,000 units. If their customer wants the lowest price, then their customer deals with the rejection ratio. If their customer wants vetted quality levels, then they can do that, but they charge more ..... and sell the rejected units on a sub-market. High quality is available from the chinese. It doesn't come from the mass-production factories, and the price is much higher. jj

Does SO. CAL not have Redear Sunfish (shellcrackers)? They love snails. jj

I have one 1000-size reel. It has .008" nylon line, and has an extra spool with 4 lb. test braid. I also have two 2500 reels, one with .007 nylon and one with .009" nylon. My 2 rods are 7'-02" L/MF and 7" ML/F. The 2500 reels do everything I want to do, so I no longer use the 1000 size reel. What @papajoe222 said explains it perfectly. jj

If you search the web, you'll find several comments on this for Daiwa reels. I saw some comments last year about one-or-another Lexa engaging mid-cast. I used to have a Fuego CT100 that did it really bad. Hard to tell whether it's a rare, freaky-reel-thing or not. One thing I do know for sure; there are a lot of happy Daiwa reel owners out there! That's gotta count for something. ? jj

It's much more important that the rod has been designed well and the guides have been installed by someone who understands the rod. The idea is to distribute stress. Higher priced rods usually qualify for that. Cheap ones, perhaps not so much. jj

Where in Iowa? I live in the SE corner, and our lakes have already turned over. Cold rain makes it much worse. I have seen no active bass in shallow water, although walleye, pike and musky are still active. A couple days of slightly warmer weather, bright sun and low-or-no wind, and that could easily change. Our lakes show a little drop, but nothing drastic. Have yours dropped drastically? Or are you fishing rivers, because the rivers are totally different. With no thermocline and no turnover, rivers hold pretty close to pattern right up until hard freeze. However .... the rivers are the ones that have dropped drastically. I'm still catching bass, but the patterns have "exceptions" now. jj

I like those heads, too. But just one time, I snagged up while using 15 lb. InvizX. I wrapped the line and pulled, figuring the line would snap. Instead, the hook snapped off! It appeared to be glass-like break, as from brittleness, rather than straightening out. I didn't expect that. So now I'll be on the watch for more hooks snapping. Could have been a one-time thing, though. jj

That makes sense. Normally, this sand bar has 7-8 feet of water over it. There's no way that baitfish could find shelter. Neither could bass "corral" them. But at two feet of depth? Oh yeah. Too bad the upper Midwest had to go through such a drought to create conditions in the river like this. ? ? ? jj

You mean kinda like white bass schools? True. Bigger bass are ambushers. Then again, so are pike.