BigAngus752

I am not a highly experienced fisherman so I can't speak to the "feel" as the many experts on here can, but I've been a gunsmith for 20 years and, based on that experience, I can speak to some of the materials that are being discussed. These are some simplified general rules. As you get lighter and lighter (aluminum, titanium, scandium) there are fewer electrons in the outer shell of the atom and the shell is wider, thus you can pack fewer atoms into the same amount of space. Why is this important to a gun owner? The lighter the metal, the less it will readily accept and hold lubricant. Steel holds lube easily. Aluminum less; titanium much less, scandium? - forget about it. Steel packs more atoms into the same space as titanium, thus it weighs more and has different characteristics. Steel is generally 5% stronger but titanium is about 40% lighter. Steel is stronger but titanium is more thermally stable. This also applies to the materials ability to transmit vibrations. The more atoms packed into the same amount of space the more interruptions (damping) there are for the waves of energy (vibration) passing through the material. I would suggest that rather than thinking of a material as "harder" or "lighter", think of it in terms of the number of atoms that are packed into a specific area and understand that less damping occurs with those materials that have fewer atoms in that space. You SHOULD be able to "feel more vibrations" being transmitted through AGS guides than "less rigid" materials.

Yup. There are some amazing fishermen on here and I'm here everyday trying to learn but I certainly can't compete with them. And I'm jealous that you get to fish every week. LOL Keep up the good work.

Nice fish, man! That's great that you've bettered your best so far! It doesn't have to be a numbers game so don't worry about that stuff. It sounds like you and I are on the same page. We only compete against ourselves. I know what it feels like to catch a size up from what you've gotten in the past and I envy you. You got a good one! Keep chasing that next epic fish!

I've never even seen a LM that big in person. I have got to move south. That's an amazing fish! Nice work!

Thanks, this is very helpful. I am 6'4 so using the 7'6 rod I have isn't a problem except when I'm not on the boat. For bank fishing I need a shorter rod to fit in my truck. I appreciate the input. I was leaning toward the Aird just from a price standpoint if nothing else. The Duckett on sale is tempting though.

It's another "frog rod" post! Hooray! I've got a 7'6 Powell for a frog/jig rod right now and I want a second one that's a tad shorter (the 7'6 won't fit in my truck, the 7' Aird definitely would and I could prob squeeze the 7'3 Ethos or Ghost in there if I was careful). My b-day is coming up and my wife wants a verdict. I've narrowed it down to a Daiwa Aird (AIRX701HFB) or an H20 Express Ethos Micro H/F 7'3. I also noticed that the Duckett Ghost (DFGG73H-C) is on sale right now for $79 which is only ten bucks more than the Ethos. If you've had them what do you like or hate about these? Ready.........wrestle!

Hey I am right there with you! I have a Ranger RT188 and until last weekend it had a 12V Maxxum on it. I literally could not go out if there was more than a 10mph wind. A buddy upgraded to an Ultrex and he sold me his Maxxum 80. My son and I put it on last weekend and the wife and I took it out for the first time this morning. I think I can sell the Merc 115 off the back of my boat! LOL What a difference. Smart move on your part going through all the wiring and doing it correctly. I'm lucky because my boat was already set up for it from the factory.

I think you'll find a fluke anchor will grip the asphalt better...

^^^this^^^ I would bet an entire paycheck that no one will every cheat in this situation...but that's not the point. I have been a police officer for 27 years. If I was to receive a $2500 bonus at the end of the week for having the most arrests would I arrest more people that week? Absolutely not. My job is to be fair, help those that need help, and search for justice for all. I do my best to follow 1Thessalonians 5:14-15 every day that I work. At the end of the week if I had the most arrests and I got $2500 cash would that put doubt in some peoples minds? Yes. Most importantly, would it have accomplished any positive benefit? I don't think so. People will want to be marshal's without the questionable prizes. I know I would do it!

You have resurrected an ancient post! This thread was expertly answered by @roadwarrior back in 2011. But the answer to your question is yes, copolymers are good for topwater IMHO. I use 12lb Yo-Zuri hybrid on my topwater rod and I walk a Zara Spook nearly every single time I fish. It's one of only a couple high-confidence techniques for me. I love the Zaras and have great success with them on the Yo-Zuri Hybrid. I use a Tatula SV which is fantastic for throwing light lures and I use KVD Line and Lure on the Yo-Zuri. Never a birdsnest throwing even my old-school Rapala floating minnows. As far as braid goes I found "walking the dog" to be more difficult with braid. Yo-Zuri Hybrid isn't as stretchy as mono but it has more give than braid. I like it with a medium/moderate rod for walking a Zara Spook. Others may prefer something else.

When I was 12-16yrs old my best friend's dad annually took us to their family land in Missouri to rabbit hunt. I loved doing that with them every year. Camping in a barn. Cooking over a campfire. One year my friend's great uncle came to hunt with us. I remember thinking he looked really old. I was sitting with him at breakfast watching him across the fire with a .410 pump action shotgun at his side. I wondered why he had it. I knew you can't hunt rabbits in open prairie and fence lines with a .410. My buddy had a 20ga and I had a 12ga. We headed out for the day and great uncle took the pump .410. I almost laughed. Later I stopped thinking it was funny. He took twice as many rabbits as us. And I don't mean we each had one and he had two. I mean I took 12-14 rabbits for the day and he took 25 by himself. He made kills from a distance so far that I didn't know it was possible. He hit them on a full run. I guess no one told him you can't hunt rabbits in the open with a .410ga.

Central Illinois here. Home lake is about 5000 acres and max of about 60ft deep/average 15ft. It's a man-made cooling lake. Surface temps are about 85 during the day. By the end of summer it will be around 89.

@5by3 is right, you are asking an awful lot from a single line. That being said, I would choose either Sufix 832 (it's braid and it's "neutrally buoyant") and be prepared to use a fluoro leader when appropriate OR, depending on where you fish, sacrifice some "feel" to get more abrasion resistance and spool it with Yo-Zuri hybrid (this gets you a clear line with excellent abrasion resistance and less stretch than mono). I have only 7 setups myself and all but two have one of these on them (the others are mono and a different braid). I also always have Seaguar fluoro leader with me.

Oh man, if you think walking the dog is addicting then you need to get a heavy rod, some 50lb braid, and a hollow-body frog. I love my Zara Spooks but those frogs are the coolest thing in plastic. Congrats on a great morning!

Do you have a Blains Farm and Fleet near you? All lures on sale (my local store is chock full of Rapala) and all fishing line on sale (I stocked up on Sufix 832 for $13.99 per 150yds.) Happy monkeying.

Soooooo....you've met my ex-wives?

These guys are all over it. I just started using baitcasters 14 months ago. My suggestions are practice, use a heavier weight for practice (3/4 to 1 ounce) until you are good at it, practice, get rid of the fluoro for now, practice, and if you want to "cheat" buy a Tatula SV. And then practice some more. You will get good at it. I guarantee it.

I'd like to offer a personal thanks to you for starting this thread. The only bodies of water withing reasonable distance of me all have a ton of wood on the bottom. I'm constantly losing stuff. This thread has restored some of my faith. Obviously not everyone loses a lot of lures but clearly a large percentage of us do. That makes me feel much better. Plus I've taken away some great tips from this thread. I appreciate you bringing it up. Do what I do...stock up from the clearance rack and swing for the fence!

We will say a prayer for you my friend! You will be on the water pulling lunkers before you know it!

Man I hope not! I want a plain Jane that's easy to handle and fix! I really like this boat, though. I'm a total addict now.

You're right and as I've said I could certainly be wrong due to my lack of experience. Challenging me to prove it is pointless when I've tried to explain that I know very little about it and could be making a mistake. And I am the guy that could drive it off a cliff...

Nope, it's a Mercury. But I must tell you this...I could have something set up wrong or not working properly. I'm a total boat newbie. It has told me over 50mph twice but I changed nothing from what the guy before me had set up so if he screwed it up then it's still screwed up. Or maybe I just got an especially good RT188. I know it has an expensive custom prop on it. Honestly, I'm so happy when I get in and out of the water without damaging something or drowning I call it good. Really, really love being out on the water with it though. The "new boater" stress is getting less and less and being out in it is getting more relaxing.

I just started bass fishing again last year after a 30 year break. I find it most satisfying to plan my day around either trying a new technique, a new piece of equipment, or practicing a technique that I'm not good at. If I'm really, really itching to catch fish then I will start out early in the morning and use a technique that I'm already good at. Once I get a good fish in the boat (for me that's 2.5 pounds or bigger) then I'm moving on to my plan to try something new or work on my skills. If I can catch one good fish and then spend a few hours getting better at another technique I'm really happy. If I catch a few dinks along with the practice then I'm thrilled. I don't like getting skunked but if I've learned something then I'm content that it's time well spent.

I have no experience with boats and I was very surprised at the speed of this thing too. I had fishing gear and my wife in the boat and got into a little race with my brother-in-law's ski boat on a perfectly smooth reservoir and I hit 55mph according to our equipment...and shocked my brother-in-law. He confirmed our speed too (his said 54). Maybe the previous owner put a 115 cover on a 150! LOL! I've hit 50+ twice in it (including that one) and had a tiny bit of throttle left but honestly I don't care to go that fast. All our lakes are small so I'm where I want to get to within a couple minutes anyway but it's best cruising speed on smooth water seems to be about 42-44 if I fiddle with the trim. I've had numerous other fisherman comment two things, "I didn't know Ranger made an aluminum boat" and "Wow that pops right up on plane".

I just went through this last year. It can be a difficult learning curve but stick with it. Now casting a baitcaster is almost second nature to me. I don't even have to think about it anymore. I just fish. The pros will chime in here shortly but here's some suggestions from a fellow new guy: 1. What line are you using? Get some 12-15lb mono or Yo-Zuri hybrid. Maybe even use some line conditioner. 2. Too late. Don't watch the reel. Watch your lure. Train your brain to thumb just as the lure is landing. Not before (huge splash) and not after (huge backlash). But obviously thumbing early is preferable to backlash and somedays the huge splash will catch you some fish. 3. He is right. Don't practice with something that's 1/4 ounce. Misery will follow. I readjusted and learned faster by using a 3/4 to one ounce weight making easy casts and gradually increasing in distance and lowering the weight. Also, practicing pitching and flipping REALLY helped my thumb control. Honestly I think that was the game changer for me. The wife and I spent HOURS in the yard pitching and flipping until I could routinely hit a 4in square piece of cardboard from any reasonable distance or direction. Then suddenly I could hurl a lure 35+ yards with no backlash. Maybe that was a fluke but I'm convinced the flipping trained my thumb. Keep it up! You'll be glad you did! I was a 100% spinning reel user. Now I'm 80/20 baitcaster/spinning in just one year. Totally worth the trouble.