Hook2Jaw

I know.

I don't have any heavy casting outfits, and this sucker is rated from ⅜-1½, and I want something for pitching ½-¾ ounce jigs, but also want it to handle Carolina rigs with ¾-1 ounce weights. I'm hoping it'll handle wobble head jigs as well for probing deep. I can get on for 80 bucks from SO, and stick a Daiwa Tatula 100 8.1:1 on it and not go over my 180 dollar safety bonus from work. I'm worried that since it's designated as a flipping, close combat oriented stick, that I won't be able to cast the aforementioned presentations. Thoughts before I pull the trigger, BR? Alternatively I might grab the 7'3" Heavy Fast that isn't designated for flipping and dabble into a beef stick for frogging. @Hammer 4 has already advised me, but I'm nervous. I don't know what to do.

I'm so, so very sorry, Tom. I can't imagine.

That the world record tie was caught in an oxbow in the state of Georgia.

DSG is the K-Mart of sporting goods suppliers.

While the amount of drag you're adding with a transducer arm is pretty negligible, it is drag and I would rather have a Berley Pro cover than deal with another accessory inside my kayak. That area is for waterlogged snacks and discarded plastics.

Not at all. Your drive, kick up fins or not, will stop you first. The BP on my 2017 PA14 barely went past the bottom of the hull.

BerleyPro transducer covers are tough as nails. Go with one of those.

I'll do that, @spoonplugger1.

@Lyman X, it was the stuff that Mudhole sends. I think it's called ProKote. I don't have the ability to dry it at 85-90 but I believe on this next go I'm gonna crank the house temperature to 75.

Thanks, Tim. I'm going to wrap her up again this weekend and try the epoxy again. I'd rather do it and it last than have it crack and discolor.

I'm about 25 minutes from the Altamaha. I always forget about it and need to go stick a bass in there.

It never fully dried. I ended up removing every single guide, cleaning them, packing everything up and driving back to Georgia from Texas. Man, seeing this thread is depressing. I am now scared to attempt it again. My wraps were decent, my guides were aligned well, and I had a good looking rod to call my own. Or not. Screw epoxy.

I've got two hours to Juliette, my favorite, as well as 2 hours to Clark's Hill, Sinclair, and Tobesofkee. The worst part of my lake runs is staying up the night before and rigging followed by not sleeping due to excitement. This year, I plan to hit the Ogeechee river a bit more.

I know a guy about your size who fishes a Hobie Outback, for what that's worth. I believe it's a bit small for a man of that stature. I'm a little over 6', so moving into my new boat wasn't an issue, but for a big man these are the boats at come to mind for me. You'll note I only suggest boats capable of being pedaled if they're in your budget, you said they were. Hobie PA12 if you're looking for roomy, open decks with a large weight capacity, and excellent stability. Hobie PA14 if you're looking for what the PA12 has to offer but require more speed. Native Titan Propel 12 if you're looking for roomy, open decks with that same weight capacity and stability. The Titan is, from all reports I've ever read, slower than the PA series. Do not underestimate how much a boon instantaneously going into reverse is, however. Native Titan Propel 13.5 if you're looking for the above with more speed. If you've got decent balance, the Native Slayer Max 12.5 Propel is also a viable option and if you've got good balance and don't mind the idea of maybe rolling one day, the Old Town Predator PDL(my boat) is a speedy, speedy pedal kayak. I haven't read about the Nucanoe drives enough to suggest those, but the base boats are excellent, stable, open, and incredibly customizable. They're one of the few kayak brands that offer a hull prepared to handle a bow mount trolling motor or an outboard on the rear.

Kastking reels seem to be a hit or miss proposition. I hear good things and bad things. The only Kastking reel I've handled seemed to have some serious issues. It screamed like a banshee when I casted. That reel was a Kastking Speed Demon. I'm not going to say don't buy Kastking, they serve tons of people well. I think the chances of getting a bunk reel is there. Personally, I would look at other companies.

You're killing me, smalls. I'm going to have to pack up a YUM Swimmin' Dinger in Green Pumpkin because I can fish it as a reaction style bait or with a more finesse approach. It works great swimming, it works great on the bottom, it works even better wacky rigged. I can burn it for topwater. Cut it down to size and match the hatch. Clip off the tail and it's a YUM Dinger. So, yep, YUM Swimmin' Dinger 5" on a 1/4oz bullet and a 3/0 EWG for largemouth. Since I don't have smallmouth, I'm gonna go with a Berkley Drift Walker for spotted bass in Sexy Back. That little walker is deadly.

@SuperDuty, I'm not here to recommend a rod or reel for your son. I just wanted to say that you mentioned going with the Tatula CT. I would recommend you either move down to a Fuego CT or Tatula 100 unless you're opting for a Tatula CT in the 5.5:1. My reasoning is that the Fuego is almost the same reel at the Tatula CT, can be had for 30 dollars less, and the 100 is more reel and can be had for 10 dollars more.

I want to be a good crankbait fisherman, but I'm not. My local waters don't really allow it -- too much vegetation in my local ponds. The lake I frequent is also chock full of vegetation and is very, very clear. I feel like there are better presentations available to me there. I'm going to start fishing my rivers again. They have far more sandy bottom and tons of wood for me to snake squarebills through. That said, I prefer fishing hard plastic and wire baits before pure soft plastic approaches.

It's gonna be a huge hit, but everything I've heard about the models that were at iCast was bad. Flimsy hulls. The amount of time it's taking them to get them out worries me, as well. Vibe has thin plastic in their hulls, less than my Old Town, and my boat has a thinner hull than a Hobie. You're going to need a very built up area around the drive well in addition to a lot of plastic around the seat. Kicking puts tons of torque on those areas. Hobie Outbacks are having problems with cracked hulls every now and a again when people purely use the high seat positions. If that can get past Hobie's QC, with years of experience building pedal drives, I worry for Vibe trying to get it right. The Pelican Hydryve, the first Mirage Drive copy, had loads of issues. Those steel fin spines have to bend or break before the drive itself does, and I have one friend who's Hydryve gave up on him about 3 times. Vibe is being forced to toe some fine lines with the Shearwater. I hope they get it right. I've been a proponent of the Seaghosts for years -- awesome paddle yaks at that price point. I just have little faith when it comes to getting a new boat right with the very first run. Perhaps that's why it's taking so long to be released. Native Slayers, Old Town Topwaters, and Hobie Compasses occupy that same general area as far as dollars go. I would look to those before I'd buy a first run Shearwater.

I just acetone my reel and spool bearings, then add a single drop of oil and fish it.

I would never touch the Shearwater. That boat is going to be a bust, mark my words.

My current kayak is an Old Town Predator. It is the fastest kayak I've ever owned, and that's saying something -- I sold a Hobie Pro Angler to fund it. Switching from forward to reverse without input from my hand is a boon. The kayak tracks well, and that coupled with forward and reverse motioning keeps me in a very stable position. Speaking of stable, it's very stable. Casting to the left or the right while standing is a breeze, and I can jack a jig hookset with ease while on my feet. The kayak only feels like its slightly tippy while leaning into a turn. The Predator turns well. It turns as well as or better than any Hobie I've owned. I was worried about the radius upon purchase, because the rudder is narrow. It completely distracted me from how long it is. It moves a lot of water and puts you in the direction you desire, quickly. It's 13'2", if I remember correctly, and has a good bit of well thought out storage. The integrated tracks on the cockpit plates as well the tankwell plates make mounting accessories quick and efficient. The front plate is gonna conceal my through hull fittings for my electronics, which I like. The hatch inside my drive is great. It's water tight and makes my drive float should I drop it. The tankwell width is a complaint. Overall, I am very pleased with the performance of the Old Town Predator, and would recommend it to anyone.

I recommend a 7-7'3" Medium powered spinning setup for throwing light lures, a 7'1" is what I use for weightless plastics, shakeyheads and lighter hard baits. Fast action, 12# braid to various fluorocarbon leaders depending on cover, clarity, and lure type. I use a 7'1" with a 2500 sized reel for that purpose, and it has landed a lot of fish when power fishing tactics would not earn a bite that day. My other spinning setup is a 6'10" Medium Light and it is specifically for drop shotting. It currently pulls double duty as a Ned rig rod, thought I'm pretty horrible at that technique.

I'm a huge fan of the Vibe Seaghost 130 and I am impressed. Your 110 looks very nice!