KCFinesse

I'm not a big swimbait guy, but I do mix in some soft swimbaits. A 6" mag draft doesn't amount to a much bigger profile/water 'push' than a spinnerbait, and I'll throw them in similar situations. I think there is a point where big swimbait fishing becomes 'bear hunting', but I think that stuff in that 6" - 7" range has a place in the regular rotation of an average joe. -Jared

The nice part is that many of the conservation lakes fish completely different than the big highland reservoirs. There's a lot of options to fish what you like at any given time (or fish to the conditions). - Jared

I use tru-oil but do a lot of burl grips. I got started with it when I ran out of U40 one time. It adds a lot of character to everything. I haven't had any issues with it. - Jared

I've built a handful of Strykers and I've had a lot of good experience working with their people; they've worked with a charity I support so I generally try to support them. I understand that there is nothing fundamentally 'new' about the blanks given the rogue connections. I wish they felt a little more 'crisp' to me and I like having options. I saw the Carbon One blanks at ARW and at Janns and was hoping to get an idea of how they might compare to others of a similar price point (Stryker just being an example). -Jared

I stupid rig the little gitzits with the vmc weighted wacky hooks. The ones with the weed guard help to keep the really soft plastic in place. - Jared

Has anyone built out a carbon one blank? How did they compare with some of the other domestic blanks in that price range (stryker, etc.)? - Jared

Some fish will follow bait to the backs of creeks, I usually think this happens early to mid October. I always think the creeks that have consistent moving water are better for that pattern. I'm not great at this pattern, but it's a numbers game- the boat guys will run a lot of coves in general. Not all fish follow the shad back. I think some shad stays in open water especially in the lakes and areas that don't have moving water creeks. My thought is that the shad relate to oxygen, which draws them back to moving water creeks. Windblown main lake stuff can also have stirred up water too and shad around that are less likely to sprint up a creek (I think). Once things cool down more, shad start to move back towards the mainlake... it always seems like the movement back out is quicker than the movement to the backs of creeks. At some point when the water temp hits low 50s, the fish start turning more towards crayfish. Sometimes you can find the shad deal and crayfish deal at the same time on mainlake bluff points and that can get fun. Not all the Ozark lakes seem to set up the same in the fall. Pomme is harder (for me at least) I blame the lack of consistent moving water creeks. A lake like Stockton gets interesting- the south end has a lot of the moving water creek and shad in the backs deal, but the north end has a lot of the windblown stuff. Fish can spread out and get tough but they're generally hungrier... covering water helps, and sometimes the ugly flat pockets hold more active fish than the stuff the looks 'fishy'. Slick sunny days are hard for me- the conditions seem to dictate slowing down, but it's hard to slow down until you locate fish. Good gray days with a little wind are a lot easier for me! Good luck! - Jared

As far as finesse stupid tubing goes- a vmc weighted wacky hook fits super nice in the gitzit chub. It's 3" but a slimmer profile. - Jared

I built a bushido CB72/6-12 specifically for wiggle warts, rock crawlers, and small cranks in the Ozarks... I put pac bay minima guides and made a big knobby burl split grip for it... That rod fits so well for the application... A sneaky one I really ended up liking was a custom rod components AHX72H in teal with large black camo EVA split grip. It was an inexpensive build, it looks kinda obnoxious, but it has just the right action for a big worm. - Jared

I like the feel of the mvt's a lot and they are close to the top of my list. To me- there are a lot of uncomfortable casting seats out there (weird trigger shape, etc.), but the mvt and fuji ecsm are hard to beat. - Jared

To me, whatever keeps the line off the rod to the greatest extent reasonable is the best number of guides. You definitely don't want to feel the rod fighting to flip over under load. I'm usually pretty indifferent on acid/spiral wrapping, but I do think this is a good application for it! -Jared

I've been using 10 or 11 and acid wrapping the guide train. 14 seems like a lot to me- but with micros and without spiraling the guide train, it may take more than normal to keep line off the blank. -Jared

I use voodoo a lot these days- they are awesome to work with and have both standard and unique parts. Lure parts online/anglers workshop is nice too if you need some tackle at the same time. -Jared

I've usually just got mine off Amazon or at one of the big outdoors shops dealing a lot of firearms. I've done a handful of rods with Stryker-the blank speeds run on the somewhat more slow/moderate side to me. Ive fished a ds692 as my primary ned rod for the past year and have really liked it. The customer service is unparalleled (between these guys and the folks at voodoo). They donated a blank to my bass clubs charity and they are an American made product. They aren't heavily geared towards bass, but I do like supporting them. -Jared

I've been doing tru-oil on most of my builds. I think it looks good (darker/'richer' than u40), but it may make the grip a bit more firm (I generally prefer it). I've been going through some Stryker blanks I've ordered this winter for personal rods with my latest being a ds703 built out with microwave guides. Pro tip- glitter finishes are a lifesaver for anyone with a basement shop and a toddler upstairs 😁 -Jared