NorthernBasser

Just kidding. I bet you really love that reel now, tho. ?

Hearing "bass will eat anything", and then going out and getting skunked, sure is a nut shot to the 'ol ego.

The spinnerbait would've gotten hung up more in the stuff I was fishing. And a regular jig isn't as streamlined to come thru that stuff. I will say tho, I did throw a flipping jig for a little bit and did get 2 on it. But the swim jig was the ticket on that particular day/location.

This 100%. The other day I was fishing this particular swim jig (Santone jig with 4" Largo Shad) along weed edges and even through some thick vegetation. Many times either after ripping it out of weeds, or when I would just kill it, it would elicit some ferocious strikes. I like running straight braid on a 7'3 heavy/mod-fast rod when doing this. This 5 pounder (ok, actually a few ounces shy) was the biggest of the bunch. I love the Largo Shad. It has a little tighter shimmy to it, but if you want more thump, just tear off that thin flange you see in the first pic.

Sierra 734 (micro guides) is sooo good.

I never punch with a skirt. I'm worried the other fishermen will laugh at me.

For that price point, these look great. TW does have some models in stock already. Another GREAT one coming in at only $130 (cheaper on sale) is the Ark Randall Tharp Honey Badger Series. Definitely should be priced higher IMHO.

Has anybody ordered rods from Sierra before?

Yup. I mentioned that in my previous post. That's what got my attention.

If you have any tears in the frog (up here pike can be pests) Mend-It works well to repair the slices in the plastic.

Thanks. I think Ben Nowak uses them but he's also "sponsored" by them. I was just curious because they're regular $200 but Sierra has them marked down to $100 right now.

I'm always looking to try new rods out. I was on TFO's website looking at their rod specs. Their 7'3 med-heavy Tactical Elite casting rod is listed at a mere 3.9 oz. By comparison, my 6'11 med+ Poison Adrena weight 3.7 oz. My 7'1 med-heavy Kistler Helium weighs 4.11 oz. I'm just finding this very hard to believe. Anyways, has anybody uses these rods by any chance? Thoughts? Thanks!

This thread almost dropped all the way to page 3. Can't have that. Academy has '$10 off $50 purchase' and '$20 off $100 purchase'. Must be logged in to see discount in your cart.

This sounds like an infomercial.

Gives me anxiety to be honest.

Little off-topic, but I just got the Tharp Hammer casting rod. I've been wanting to add a few "cheaper" utility rods to my lineup. And man, this rod seems like it should be priced much higher than $130 ( I think I paid $110). If feels great in hand and looks like a much more expensive rod.

Buying line when you don't need it is on a whole different level of sickness. At least with baits you get that instant gratification of taking it out and admiring it, like you would a G.I Joe figure or Matchbox car when you were a kid. ???

Not sure what Tackle Tour was talking about then. 5.3 oz does seem quite heavy for a rod with that rating/price. Just so you don't think I'm lying/crazy/dumb/blind/younameit.

Tackle Tour gave these good reviews. Well, specifically the 7' med-heavy. My only issue is the weight. It comes in at 5.3 oz, which is quite heavy for a rod that size. They do say it feels more like a heavy power rod than a med-heavy, and that it balances quite nicely FWIW.

I have no idea what you're talking about. ?‍♂️This is all mostly reserves. Needless to say my buddies come to me when they need something. The amount of plastics I have in the Sterlite containers alone is probably enough to last me a lifetime. (wait, that'd mean I'm not catching much...haaha)

Oh really? Good to know.

With a code you can get 15% off at Omnia all the time. Don't think it works for rods/reels tho. Midway USA is another good one.