softwateronly

single hook; t-rig Shimano SLXCX72MH paired with Shimano Curado MGL 7.4:1 trebles; topwater, moving single hook; G Loomis E6X Inshore 843c MF (7ft medium/mod fast) paired with Shimano Scorpion DC 6.2:1 Jig rod/frog rod - what do you fish? I paired your reels up just based on gear ratio/IPT. I like 7ish:1 reels for most everything, but prefer frog and jig on 8ish:1 if possible. But flipping them around for feel always ends up dictating which goes where for me. Being comfortable trumps whether I have to slow down or speed up my reeling. scott

Maybe it's time to break out the XH gear. If it happens again and it's on 65lb braid you can just wrap a stick and walk back till you have a fish and a salad. Sounds like a spot you need to get back to though. Honey hole indeed. scott

You might be overthinking it, you're catching fish. You might be overlooking/underestimating the structure underlying the cover. And you might be missing the cover on the structure. Isn't this hobby fun? scott

The Magnum is just special for slowly getting a big worm through the slop. My hookup ratio has been fantastic and my worms seem to last forever. Might be nice with a large fluke as well. scott

First off, I don't know. But I've thrown a 7" speed worm on a owner oversized worm hook in 7/0 very often, the point is way back there, and I haven't gut hooked in a few years. I swim the worm, hop the worm, and soak/shake the worm. My gear has gotten better in sensitivity and I stopped fishing weightless or almost weightless cross wind. The wind might be the biggest factor for me personally. So my guess is that it might be more related to feel rather than rigging. scott

Can't recall who on here put me on this, but the Fin-Tech title shot is fantastic if dealing with extremely heavy cover, especially weeds. scott

I'm fortunate, zirtek works for me and whatever I'm allergic to that corresponds with the dogwood. If you do find an otc pill that works @WRB and @Kev-mo are most correct, not sure how it's metabolized, but it's much more effective if you get on a regimen before symptoms. scott

I don't get to throw treble topwaters that often, cause we get so much floating detritus from recreational boats that I'm almost stuck with frogs only for a few months, and not quite as affordable as the yo-zuri, but the R2S bubble walker has caught fish for me, even in the low 50's water temp. Easy to get the desired action and produces even dead sticking. So far, good enough for me. scott

I'm following for sure. My attempts and successes have been limited so far with the preacher style in the summer months. scott

Silly Canadian, we only go to the doctor when it's bleeding too long or it fell off... scott

JDM 22 Zillion HD does. JDM Met for $236 is another answer to the original question. Really enjoyed the rant and responses, lots of informed opinions. scott

I misread that, apologies. I agree completely with @Big Rick's diagnosis. Some swimbaits will mistime with the blade and either look or feel weird. Sometimes flipping said swimbait upside down gives a more in-tune look and feel. scott

The LC 100 and Vision 110 are the jerks I use that I need to be mindful of hitting too hard. The MR Rerange and Nishine are absolute killers for me. I hit em as hard as I can on semi slack line, moving the rod tip about 10-12", hopefully the bait is moving 4-8" This has been a killer for me on MI ice out / prespawn LM. I come back around to it in the fall/early winter when the weeds die back a bit. The Vision 110+1 and Stunna 112+1 do well with hard hits for me, but I can't quite haul off on them like my faves, and the nishine is definitely my current fave. scott

Sounds like a good problem to me! scott

Hearing what some of you are saying about hitting the jerkbait has me intrigued. I've done best with hard hits on a semi-slack line. The bait rolls, flashes, darts, and turns but only moves 4-8" in distance, in essence giving a startled/fleeing appearance but remaining basically in the same place. Allowing for attention getting and yet giving the fish time to rise up for it. The cold vs warm water for me has to do with the closeness of the hits and the grouping. Are others having success with a more gentle approach? Slow pulling? scott

3 of the more current "famous" baitcasting jerkbait rods are labeled completely differently, the SC 6'8MXF, MB 6'5 M oneten stick / slow, and the Expride 6'10M M/F. I only have experience with the expride, and what I think makes it good is a soft tip that doesn't immediately shut off but instead has some gradual give till the backbone. The tip seems to help impart the desired action while the delayed shut off helps with hookup/landing. It's a really specific rod choice that seems difficult to quantify and others or your own in hand experience is invaluable in making your choice in my opinion. scott

Day burrito...Night Burrito...and $30 And an obligatory night jig fish... scott scott

I don't punch much, but don't think a 5 power dobyns or the MB TB is the best choice. They'll work for sure, but I find them better at other techniques. scott

It kinda means nothing. A JDM marketing scheme to go with the rod will be tailored to hit cultural markers. The rod itself may or may not be different than anything you find here. In general what I've noticed is that JDM rod makers offer more shorter rods, more high quality multiple piece rods, and they tend to favor a mod/fast taper. The shorter lengths and multipiece rods are probably due to such low car ownership in such a dense country. The mod/fast thing might just be what people are accustomed to. None of these are set in stone though. scott

Japanese Domestic Market USDM is our equivalent

Welcome to BR!! I fish braid to leader for jerks, and like a mod/fast for taper, but also have a fast that works pretty well. Although, I will say don't be afraid to hit those snaps pretty hard, with a touch of slack in the line. I think the magic of jerkbaits is nothing to 100 in an instant. Bass can't resist. scott

I just received mine this afternoon. The size, build, larger handle and round knobs feel great. It really seems like it's a winner, hope to have more info on it soon. scott

I'm in love with night fishing, this spring was my first time getting out in cold water/weather at night and it was just as good or better than summer night fishing. The big girls seem to get shallow and roam the flats and will chase down fast moving baits. I'm definitely hooked. Everyone's comments line up with my experiences as well. @PhishLI is right on if you're on a clear water fishery. The new moon seems best to me. The full moon might be the least likely time to do well, I immediately skip the flats and work the breaks with a jig or worm or slow roll a big swimbait paralell to deep weedlines. I fish the same deeper water I target during the day. I have a tiny, no wake, menderchuck attached to my usual menderchuck, and it's a deep, Bahamian crystal clear water, I think I wanna try a full/bright moon glide bait adventure. See if the size, silhouette, and clack can call them up like midday. Anyone have success with this? scott

I have a few different rods based on size, weight, and hook. Trial and error led me this way for now, but it's currently working. Open hook mid column retrieve is between 2 mod/fast rods, one 7' and the other 7'7". Slow rolling or crawling a top hook is 7'3 or 7'6 XH or my 7'10 XXH swimbait rod depending on weight, weedless has to be the 7'6XH or the swimbait rod. If it's multiple taps, I slightly speed up until weight then rod sweep a hookset, if it's a solid thunk, it's an immediate and violent upswing. I grind hard and fast and drop the tip into the water. My hook up and landing percentage has gone up doing it this way. Here's a deep water burrito eater from Saturday.... scott

My experience w/ Loomis is very limited, but just want to chime in that a 904mbr is a joy to fish. Once I got used to the action, I found all the power needed to throw pretty much anything up to 1.5oz. Might not be the best at anything, except possibly swim jigs, but feels good with everything. If you ever go to the DJ no-jack grass jig or SC flippin jig, the Steez power pitch is my absolute favorite, sensitivity, tip, power. 3/8-3/4 full bodied jig is always tied on and probably always will be. scott