voxborealis

That'a funny...so true. Thanks for the advice. It can be pretty strict up here. Fortunately for me, I probably don't catch enough even on a good day to get in trouble! More seriously, I'll just swap up the bait and try tl be careful where I am casting.

OK, that is a weird thread title! As I have mentioned in a couple of threads last year, I have returned to fishing after a l-o-n-g time away from the sport. I mostly fist from the shore, targeting bass but really whatever bites. Pretty simple techniques: sometimes live bait (nightcrawler) but mostly inlines spinners and assorted lures. Last season, I landed some nice bass but also some really nice northern pike on spoons. I also landed a lot of blue gill and perch. So my question. In my jurisdiction, bass season does not start until late June, but I certainly want to throw some lines in the water before then, once the ice melts. My worry is that from short I will accidentally target spawning bass, which is entirely not my intention. What are some strategies to avoid bass in the early season, if fishing from shore? The walleye fishing is supposed to be good here, but I have never had luck. Really, I think my main "problem" is that I have never learned how to target different species effectively. Maybe this is a bizarre question. Any advice for this returning newbie is welcome.

Good thought about the spool size on the President 40. I took a look and it seems to line up well with the first guide, but I'll inspect more closely. I'm using Sufix 832, which (I read) is supposed to be good for casting distance. I have no idea, really, as I just switched to braid this year after a long time away from fishing. I will admit that getting used to braid has been challenging. On the one hand, it is so much more sensitive, and of course stronger by diameter. But it also just feels...thicker...than mono even though the diameter is the same (8 lb mono is about about the same as 20 lb Sufix 832). It's funny; I feel like I am learning to fish all over again. The good news is that this summer of experimentation has not been unproductive: I've managed to land a few good size bass, plus other species. Recent trip to the lake had bass and big blue gills pounding the inline spinners. Now, if I can only figure out soft plastics...

yeah, I meant to write 20# braid. The rod is "rated" (according to the label on the side) for 1/4 to 1 oz, and I do like to use lighter lures (like Mepps #3 spinners, which are 1/4) given the fish I target. But from the sounds of it, 1/4 oz really is on the far lower end and probably not practical to use with this rod. It certainly does cast farther with heavier lures, or if I am using a worm (or nightcrawler) with a heavier weight (3/8 or 1/2). It's such a great pairing otherwise, but maybe the solution is to find a medium that pairs with the reel or save up for a second pair next year (wife will love that!).In the meanwhile, I'll try upsizing my lures at least to 3/8. The 1/2 oz lures tend to be pretty chunky for the kind of bank fishing I'm doing. Thanks for the advice!

I posted once before on these forums, as I have recently returned to the sport. Got lots of great advice on braided line. So here's another newbie question. Background: in the (distant) past, I fished exclusively with medium-light rods, smaller spinning reels, and light tackle, and was able to get big casts from shore by really loading the rod and whipping it. Since I've started fishing again after a long layoff, I have upgraded my equipment and gone heavier at the advice of the local fishing dude. I have a Pflueger President XT SP40 spinning reel (which is fantastic) paired with a Daiwa 702MHFS 7' spinning rod. Reel is loaded with 2- lb braid, spooled properly. The rod and reel are perfectly balanced, feel great, and I have managed to pull a couple of decent small months out of rocks and heavier cover with them. I am using some heavier lures than I used to, matching the wight to the rod recs (1/4 to 1 oz). I'm throwing mostly old school spinners, which seem to be working well. However, I simply cannot get the distance on casts that I used to, especially if I am using the smaller size lures (1-4 or 1-3 oz). Obviously the NHFS is just not as "whippy" as ML rods, and the rod does not really load. I was expecting the braid to "make up" for rod, but it's not happening. I've tried all different techniques to get more distance: snapping the cast, slowing the cast and using a big arc, longer or shorter line hanging at the start of the cast, etc. Every once and a while the line shoots out like rocket, but mostly not. Otherwise, the only way to get distance is to load up the weight, which is not always ideal. I don't think the line is digging into itself on the spool. I'm starting to think that this is simply the product of the rod. If so will make shore fishing pretty difficult especially as summer wears on and the fish retreat further from the bank. I guess my question is, then, am I missing something? Is there a different technique I should be using with a MH rod to get some more distance on the cases? Given that I am generally targeting smaller fish (my biggest bass this summer was about 2 lbs), should I go even lighter with the line, like maybe 12 lb braid on top of cheap backing line? Any advice from the seasoned vets will be appreciated!

OK, great, very helpful. So it sounds like 30# at most, probably a bit lighter. I tend to be good at fishing, not so good at catcher. Maybe my luck will change! Thanks all.

So I have recently gotten back into fishing after many years away. In the past, I always used pretty light tackle: medium light rod, small spinning reel, 6 or maybe 8 lb test, etc. I targeted small bass and pretty much any thing else that would bite in the local pond. Now that I have picked up the tackle box again, I have upgraded my equipment a bit and moved to heavier tackle: 7 ft medium heavy/fast rod, Pflueger President XT 35 spinning reel. The rod is rated for 8-17 lb test mono, and the reel holds 185 yards 8lb mono. I am fishing intentionally in heavier cover that I used to. Mostly from the shore. For this and other reasons, I am thinking about making the switch to braid. My question is really very simple, and maybe answered elsewhere. What test weight of braid should I use? I mean, on the one hand, I could go with 8 or 10 lb, which would be lighter than my monofilament and so case farther for the same strength. Or I could with the same diameter as the mono, which would be (from what I read online) as much as 30 lb test. That gets me more strength for the same diameter, but does this negate the casting advantages? Also, given the relatively small fish I tend to land from shore, 30 lb seems like overkill. Or should look for something in between (like 15 or 20 lb braid), which will be stronger than the mono but also thinner? I guess braid is a whole new world for me!