bendem

Welcome from another Richmond bass fishing newbie!

Thanks for your feedback about the Pflueger reel size. I agree that a size 35 is likely larger than needed. I bought that reel before I had specific plans for Ned Rig fishing. For what it's worth, I heard from one of the primary contributors to Ned Kehde's MWF articles that he fishes with several anglers who use size 35 President reels for the Ned Rig, so I'd guess that size is not a hindrance as long as the balance feels right.

Thanks very much for your suggestion. I've seen videos that show the feathering technique, and that's something I'm looking to practice. I'll probably sound like Mr. Dainty Fingers for asking this, but do you run into any issues when applying pressure with your finger against braided line? That sounds like it could hurt. Or can you apply pressure against the spool lip instead of the line?

If a manufacturer recommends 2-6# mono for a given reel, what's the heaviest test of YZH you'd recommend for that reel?

Thanks for your input. I went out today with a couple rods and reels; one had 10# Power Pro and the other had 6# Trilene XL. Both were well-behaved when I made shorter, sidearm casts and kept the reel tip down. I haven't heard about Senshi before ... Will keep it on my radar screen. http://www.lineandlure.com/info/instructions/ Hmm. The "bad advice" came from the product's website: Apply during new line spool-up. Spray Line & Lure� liberally to a small piece of synthetic cloth (e.g. old dress sock--don't use paper towels, cotton or wool). Fold the cloth over the line as you guide the line on the spool. Reposition cloth or refold every 10 -15 yards to assure that the cloth is distributing the liquid evenly and removing any contamination from the line.

Thanks for your suggestion. I'm going to look to get better with the braid I've already got on one rod and reel and also replace the YZH copoly with mono as a "plan B" option in case the braid keeps giving me grief.

Thanks for your feedback. It looks like the Daiwa Exceler 2000, for example, has capacity for 8#/160 yards mono while the Pflueger Trion 25 maxes out at 6#/90 yards.

Thanks much for the feedback. I've seen a bit of guidance from Ned regarding wind -- think he was talking about how it's seemingly always windy out there -- and at the time I wasn't noticing my own problems with braid and wind. I'll track down these suggestions and look to implement them.

Hi - So I've been fishing for a few months using spinning gear (medium and ML rods, size 25 and 35 Pflueger Trion reels). Mainly Ned Rig and similar finesse-y stuff. I'd appreciate some insight into line selection. I've been primarily using my Trion size 35 reel with 10# PP braid and a leader of 8# Yo-Zuri Hybrid. That's worked OK, but as a bank angler, I got fed up with wind picking up the light braided line and blowing it into nearby trees and shrubs. So ... I thought I'd try 6# Yo-Zuri Hybrid as my main line. I tried it on my size 25 reel and was surprised at how bad its memory was. Seeing there's been a lot of love for YZH paired with KVD Line and Lure, I thought I'd pick up the KVD L&L and use it to respool with 6# YZH. So I applied the L&L on a microfiber towel as I spooled the reel, and when done I gave the reel several squirts before letting it dry overnight. The next day, I took some line off the spool to run it through the guides and tie a jig on, and again the line was showing lots of memory. For what it's worth: My reel spins counter-clockwise, so I made sure the line was coming off the line spool counter-clockwise when adding it to my reel (think that's correct). Am thinking these are my options: Stay with the size 25 reel size but try mono instead (less memory and wind issues), maybe with a cheap fluoro leader to help the lure sink better and reduce visibility? Stay with the size 25 reel but try fluoro with KVD L&L (does Invizx have less memory than YZH)? Move up from size 25 reel to size 35 (wider spool = less memory problems) and stick with YZH plus KVD L&L? What do you suggest? Thanks!

I got out to that pond today. Had a nice LMB on my line for a while and got its head out of the water to see it shake shake shake and then spit out my lure. It probably would've been my personal best. Now I'll have to get back there to take my revenge. I was using my Pflueger Trion spinning combo today, and I afterwards I noticed that it appears to have a slow action. Most of the instruction I see for finesse and other bass fishing is for fast action rods, so I ordered a fast action rod and am hoping that will help at least a bit with my hooksets.

Sam - Thanks very much for the info. Regarding the Richmond Bassmasters, is there a certain level of experience and / or gear that you see as a good fit for new members? For instance, I've only been doing this for a few months and primarily throwing Ned Rigs and other soft plastics and light spinnerbait on spinning gear. As a bank angler, I figure I'd be able to open up a lot more options in weeds and other cover by getting a heavy baitcast rod and fast reel set up for flipping and pitching. So that's what I've been looking to get in the next couple weeks. Regarding the pond behind the old Martin's, I noticed some no trespassing signs by the office buildings next to the water. Do you know if it's best to hit that place up on the weekend?

I bought a Pflueger Trion combo 6'6" M at BPS that's treated me well for Ned Rig fishing. Since then I've bought a similar light combo for my daughter, plus I picked up another Trion reel to go with a BPS Carbon Microlite.

Welcome Jason. I'm another Richmond resident (Glen Allen to be specific) who's only been bass fishing since this summer. Over the last month or so, I've fished the banks at Lake Rooty in Innsbrook three times, Echo Lake in Glen Allen once, and Lower Powhatan Lake once (from the fishing pier). Bites have been hard to come by, and the last LMB I caught was a little guy in Powhatan. I usually throw Ned Rig / Midwest Finesse lures but caught my last one on a Beetle Spin. Let me know if you want to meet up sometime.

I'm looking to get my first bc rod and reel soon, too. Am leaning toward Daiwa Tatula or Lew's Custom Speed Stick.

I've started with finesse on spinning gear. Next purchase will be a baitcaster and learning to flip and pitch.

Welcome from another Richmond newbie!

Thanks for the additional feedback and video suggestions. I had watched them both previously but am watching them again. Need to give them some more attention so they sink in. For what it's worth, I went back to the same spot on Saturday and extracted my revenge from the previous day! ;-) At least I was able to land a bitty-sized bass. He may have been the one who I couldn't hook the day before.

Thanks very much for all the feedback. Re. sharpening my hooks, that's something good for me to keep in mind. Haven't picked up a hook file yet but will do that. Re. my rod selection, like what was mentioned, I wouldn't be surprised if a medium light rod might help me a bit more than my current medium rod. When I pick up my next rod, I'll look to go that route. Lastly, re. the barbless hooks, I had read that a lot of the Midwest finesse / Ned Rig anglers use them because they are easier on the fish, and I understand it requires additional skill to keep the fish hooked up without the barbs. As a new angler, maybe I'm making things more difficult than I should by going without barbs at this point. Thanks again for the tips. Appreciate it!

So I'm essentially a newb with fishing. Today I was out for a bit working on the Midwest finesse approach. I felt a couple good bites but wasn't able to bring anything in. Would appreciate any guidance regarding setting the hook. Regarding the hook set and finesse fishing, mostly I've heard that it's pretty subtle, and that's what it was like when I caught my first largemouth a few weeks ago. At that time, it took me a while to even register I had something on the line. When I got my first bite today, I just tried to keep the pressure on the line and guide him in similar to last time. But he let go after a couple seconds. When I got my second bite a few minutes later, I figured I'd be more aggressive and give him a good sweep. This time I got to play with him a little longer, maybe five seconds. But he still got away. Have any suggestions for a newbie as to the best way to set the hook with the the Ned rig approach? Here's my set up: I'm using a Pflueger Trion rod and reel combo. The rod is 6'6" with medium power, and the reel is spooled with Power Pro Spectra 10# with a five foot leader of Yo-Zuri Hybrid 8#. Today's bites were on a Super Finesse worm on a Z-Man 1/15 oz Finesse ShroomZ jig with the hook's barb removed. Thanks!

Hey. I'm a little less of a newbie now. This morning I went out to Echo Lake in Henrico County and caught my first largemouth (about 18"). Woo-hoo! I've been reading up on the Midwest Finesse techniques on the In-Fisherman site and used a junebug-colored Yum Dinger on a red mushroom jig. It's beginner's luck but I'll take it.

Thanks, all, for the greetings and tips. Much appreciated!

Hey folks! I've been looking through this site the past few weeks and am really impressed. Thanks to everyone for contributing the great info. Figure I might as well create a profile and say hello. After taking 20 years off from fishing, I'm looking to start up again and drown some worms. Went out a couple weeks ago with my kids to the pier at Amelia Lake and got skunked but am ready to try again. For those familiar with the Richmond area, I live just down the road from Innsbrook and Echo Lake. - Mike