Bass Rutten

I love my kistler heliums, the 73mh is light (3.5oz) yet still balanced and plenty sensitive, a step above st croixs and the daiwa elites imo. If you sign up for the newsletter you'll get 15% off first order. They're currently at $249.95, after taxes and shipping you'll probably be at about $250 out the door.

I have a very old original mojo lures kit and use the weight peg threader for this purpose, you can also find threader needles at any hobby store real cheap instead of expensive jdm "tools". This little mod slows the fall and lets you "float" the ned, and it kinda looks like a dragonfly.

With a $300 budget I'd put $200 towards the rod and $100 to the reel. The rod is the heart and soul of a spinning setup and the more important of the two. Sensitivity is key for finesse and comes from the rod not the reel which is just for line management.

I’m surprised this thread hasn’t been posted yet, it has some good solid foundational information.

Are your confidence lure types bottom contact (jigs, worms) or chuck and wind lures(chatter/spinnerbaits, crankbaits)? Fast for bottom contact, moderate for chuck and wind lures.

I totally get it, I'm in a low budget fishing trend at the moment too. Brian11719 mentioned the glass daiwa reaction rod, it's in the same vein as the 706cb with a little more power and half the price, I had a first gen and wish I would've kept mine, it didn't feel nearly as dead and heavy as other glass rods.

I’d look into the champion xp 706cb, it’s a sleeper in the dobyns lineup. Great for trebled baits under 2oz, with enough power for jighook lures too like chatter/spinner baits and swimjigs.

Big jigs can be one of those high risk high reward approaches kinda like big swimbaits, you might only get several bites a day but one might be the one you really want. Now prove to us you're committed and only take one rod

29-30ipt for both lipless and shallow cranking.

I haven't used tatsu but yzh in 4lb and 6lb has been tested for average actual break strength at 8.5lb and 11.9lbs respectively. If you are breaking those easily you're asking for it fishing 6lb fluorocarbon which as a whole has less knot strength than copoly. Sounds like you might need to step up to 7 or 8lb fluoro. How are you breaking off?

Can you confirm it's got a larger hook then the original mini?

The 3.5" spunk shad is a significantly bigger chunk 'o plastic, 5.0gm vs 3.3gm. The action on the ned bomb I would describe as less erratic, it does seem to make the mini run a little deeper.

I get you and agree their marketing is quite cringey at times, but the "hyper digigear" is the way the gears are machined are the main reason the zillions are crazy smooth and durable.

The 3rd gen tatula 100 is a whole different animal in terms of ergos compared to the previous gen. I was so impressed with it (ergos and casting performance) I bought a 2nd one in lieu of a zillion for my frogging/buzzbait rod. Long term we'll have to see, but my hopes are high with the new digigear drivetrain and metal sideplate.

Me likey!!! As an aside, after trying many trailers I've found what has become my favorite minimax trailer, the missile baits ned bomb. Perfect body thickness and length right out of the package, great subtle fluttering tail action, and pretty durable too.