Glaucus

I took a chance on Dobyns for starting a new fleet of rods for my kayaking needs, and so far I've had nothing but questions or problems. I ordered 5 of them and 1 came with a bent eye and upon closer inspection cracked epoxy. I noticed another was bent at the top 1/3 of the rod. Some people say that bend is normal, but none of the other rods have that, and I've noticed in other brands some rods will also have that bend (like they were left to lean against something for too long and took that bend) while the vast majority of the same model do not. And now I have another issue, and one that I've never seen before. On the 2 spinning rods, the screw lock doesn't not lock down all the way on either rod with the Presidents I put on them. There's a good 1/4 inch that doesn't screw down at all and leaves a gap over the blank itself. Is that normal for Dobyns? One rod I would call it a defect, but two rods I call it an issue (maybe?).

Oh, yay! Let's open it and see what it says... ...

I was on Old 66 in my neck of the woods in Illinois and the damage this winter did to it is unreal.

I think Tom is wrong. I've never had a spool feel completely smooth. You're getting a bunch of normals with 2 people saying otherwise. Either we all have bad line and bad reels or 2 people are wrong.

I got a bottle and used it tonight after I spooled up some of my setups. I haven't even fished after using it yet but the difference it made is already extremely noticeable. This stuff is legit. One question though. There's no chance it can mess up my reels right?

I used to use their Omniflex mono years ago. I never actually had many problems with it. Memory was pretty bad though. Now I have many old spools that I use for backing.

On the 8th day God created squarebills to combat this.

Sorry to hear that your parents won't help you. In today's world, if a kid says they want some fishing gear and that's the hobby they choose, we adults should be all over it. It's hard to get some kids outside and keep them out of trouble. SMH As far as rods, I don't have an SLX but I've heard they're great rods. I looked into them but their selections are so minimal that I couldn't find a use for any of them. I either already had something better or I didn't like the rod action. Since you're just starting out you should easily find something you need and the selection should look quite large.

I should clarify that when I said MF I meant moderate fast, not medium power/fast action. Power is really subjective to area, but a moderate fast action is the most versatile action there is - not fast action imo

I always refute the claim that the universal best starter bass rod is a 7 foot MH/F. It's not. MF is by far more universal.

The answer to every tough fishing condition is the Ned Rig.

Congrats. Don't worry, the couch can teach you some good life lessons.

I did bend it back upon advise. Looks like some epoxy peeled back with it. Slight crack. Seems very strong still. I'll just clear polish the tiny crack and fish it til I have to drop 10 bucks for a new guide. No big deal.

Nothing we do to these fish is a good thing. We just try to make it suck for them as least as possible.

Oh yeah look at this "spring"

I looked it over and it is cracked a little. Bent it back gently and it peeled slightly. It's not too bad. I'll use it until it's dead and then replace it. Might just replace it now anyways since fishing in the North isn't a thing right now.

I got a shipment of new Fury rods in yesterday. I quickly looked them over and everything looked fine at a glance. Today I was spooling everything up and noticed my 705CB has a bent guide. I've seen this many times before in stores. I always assume they were improperly stored, handled poorly during shipment, or handled poorly by employees or customers. When I order online I always order from reputable dealers (usually TW, that's the case here too) with priority overnight shipping. I figure good dealers know how to store and handle rods, and if I ship overnight it cuts down on the handling. I've never received a messed up rod until possibly now. I say possibly. Maybe this isn't the issue I've always assumed it was? I very lightly pressed down on the guide to see if it wiggled at all. It does not. The epoxy/wrap appears in good shape too. Does the guide need replaced? Would you replace it? I can get it done cheap so it's no big deal but if this is not the abnormality I've always assumed it was I'd rather keep the factory settings so to speak. PS I don't pick the wall colors in this marriage.

If you find a true Heavy in the 6'6" range let me know!

Also 735C is probably my next purchase down the line.

I love Tatulas. I'm a Daiwa fanboy and biased towards Tatula. At best I can only ever find them at 100 bucks. At best. Compare that with finding Fuegos at 60 and that's quite a bit saved going that route after paying full price for the Furys.

I didn't mean to open up that can of worms. I've looked into Spoonplugging a few times but I've always come across people saying it doesn't apply and much of the information is not correct. To be clear, I only wanted to know for myself because I may get the book.

No. I could target pike, muskie, and walleye too. Can't believe I forgot about them.

Definitely introduce them to Mr. Ned (Rig). The goal is to catch a bunch of fish. Senkos too. I wouldn't mess with anything else other than maybe inline spinners. The irritation of snagging crankbaits can ruin it for them.

Every country/continent/region has its own sport fish. I'm glad ours is bass. The only other fish here in the US that I would care to intentionally target is catfish and crappie. Carp gross me out so much. Drum too. If I accidentally get one my body is repulsed to have to touch it.