randdmart

I picked this up, we'll see how it works.

Which setup should I use? Slip bobber 2 - 1/4 ounce Split shots Regular (un-snelled) Hook or Slip bobber Snelled Hook 1/2 Ounce Bell Sinker Thanks, Rich

What's a good toss it and 'forget it' setup for panfish or trout, I'm going to work my way up to bass especially considering I have never caught a fish before

So, is the Carolina Rig for bait fishing, i.e. casting out and leaving it in the water? If not what works well for doing that?

I looked at the Carolina Rig, seems pretty simple sounds like I need bullet weights and regular, not snelled, hooks but my questions are: Will a snap swivel work? Can a slip bobber be used or is this a bottom rig? Will this setup work for panfish, trout and bass or just bass? Thanks, Rich

If I'm understanding this correctly I would put my bell sinker on first, than my snap swivel and attach a leader via a loop to the other end of the snap swivel and the snelled hook to the other end of the leader, is that right? As I mentioned above worms are a little hard for me due to my low vision, do you have any other bait suggestions? Also, would investing in a second rod/reel exclusively for bait fishing just be easier than retying everything when I want to switch back and forth from bait to lure fishing, in your opinion?

Hello, I have a few questions, so I think I finally figured out my equipment, but now I’m having trouble bait fishing. I went fishing with my uncle who is a fly fisherman and he showed me a very simple bottom fishing rig which is as follows: 1/4 oz. bell sinker on the bottom of the line #6 snelled hook above the sinker I was able to put that rig together in like 5 minutes, no problem. My dilemmas are as follows: I really enjoy lure fishing, but I shore fish and at this point I want to catch something, anything! I have a bunch of different types of lures, crankbait, spinners, and spoons and I have a snap swivel on the end of my main line for that and it works great! I made a few of the rigs mentioned above with a loop at the top to attach to the snap swivel but I’m not sure where to put the rocket bobber? Do I put it above the swivel with a bobber stop or do I just invest another $60 on a second spinning rod/reel combo and use that for bait fishing? Then there is the great bait debate. I have Power Bait but talking to a lot of different people they say that’s only good for trout. I have other people whom casually fish that swear by salmon eggs (a.k.a. fireballs,) I tried putting a worm on the #6 hook but with my low vision it was almost impossible. I have also seen catfish bait and one person even mentioned liver! So, now I'm a little overwhelmed. As always, any advice or thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks, Rich

Here is the pre-made split shot leader I made and mentioned in my last post

After several hours of practice and frustration with lots of light and magnification I could not get the uni knot. I can tie the clinch knot with the cinch knot tying tool and even that can get frustrating at times. For loop knots I use a double over hand, which I know is not a good knot but I use it for my split shot rig leader that I made. I have a snap swivel on my main line and if I want to switch to bait fishing from lure fishing I just hook my split shot rig leader to the swivel and I’m ready to go.

So, the guy I mentioned from Bass Pro Shop that’s been helping me out at the store took me and my wife and son out on his boat early this morning and we did something called trolling, he was dumbfounded that we didn’t catch a single fish, he said he normally catches at least a few Anyway, he re-spooled my line last night at the store and straightened it using the boat. I told him about this specific concern and he said I shouldn’t need to re-spool more than once a season and to just take it to him and he’ll take care of it. He said right now work on getting comfortable with my equipment, relax and have fun

Wow, you’re not being punk’d I’m legally blind and tying knots with thin monofilament line is, unfortunately, proving to be impossible.

Can you send me a picture so I can make sure I do it correctly? Also, does it matter where on the spool the line is when you begin reeling the line on the spool? (Right, left middle?)

I tried to re-spool my own reel but can’t tie an Arbor knot my hand/eye coordination just isn’t there ?

How can this be fixed?

Here is a picture of the spool/reel

Hello, I bought an Ugly Stick Shakespeare 6.5 foot open faced rod/reel combo at Bass Pro Shops and had them spool 10lb test monofilament line on the reel using their machine. I bring it home and do the soaking in hot water thing to remove memory from the line. I put everything back together and try putting the line through the guides and somehow everything gets tangled. I tried it both with the bail open and closed with the same results. Obviously I'm doing something wrong somewhere, this shouldn't be this hard. This problem is why I took the spinning rod I bought 3 months ago back and switched to a closed face reel. After using that for awhile it was limiting and problematic so I decided to give an open faced reel another try and here we are, I'm so frustrated!!! What can I possibly be doing wrong? Rich

Hello, What are the pro and cons as well as the differences and advantages of a closed face reel v.s. an open faced reel? I'm currently using a closed face reel and it seems very limiting and somewhat problematic. Thanks, Rich.

If my hook is on the bottom, what other type of weight can I use?

I'm using something called Power Bait to go after pan fish at the recommendation of the guy at Bass Pro Shops, Greg, has been great in helping me find my footing. He said I can return the spincaster combos for spinning combos at customer service.

Thank you so much for all of your advice. Tonight after work I'm going after 2 spinning rod/reel combos. Any advice on the split shot issue? Also, can plastic worms be used with a size 4 hook to catch pan fish?

Hello, After trying to fish for 5 minutes VERY late on Sunday I'm now VERY discouraged. The wind was gusting in our faces at about 20MPH and casting was nearly impossible. When we would reel in we would get snagged every time. Turns out there was a bunch of discarded fishing net on the edge of the lake. This lake is an urban lake which may have been part of the problem as there was about 8 feet wide by about 6 feet tall weeds surrounding the lake except for a few spots. Bad choice? I want to switch from a closed face reel to an open faced reel but when I first tried an open faced reel it bird nested when I took the hook off the hook keeper. Those who have seen my posts before know I'm still trying to find my footing with equipment and fishing in general. I like the push button reel but it seems so..... limiting. I found a gadget called Hook Eze that will help me with tying my hooks and storing them during transport, 2 things I have been struggling with. That should be here in the mail by next week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pW2JAKSwUus - Hook Eze The other thing that keeps happening is my split shots keep slipping even though I squish them with the pliers as tight as I can. I'm using the Gremlin re-usable split shots #5. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong. I also got a Rocket Bobber at the suggestion of someone here at the forums but because of all of my other problems I haven't been able to get it in the water. The YouTube videos on that are good and the product looks very promising. I'm VERY discouraged but not yet ready to give up, close, but not there yet. HELP!!!!! Thanks, Rich

Casting ROD: Black 6ft REEL: Black W/black button Casting W/ 2 #5 split shots 1: 25ft 2: 23ft 3: 25ft Avg: 24ft Reel is possibly overfilled. Reeling is not smooth ROD: Black 6ft REEL: black/silver W/ black button Casting W/ 2 #5 split shots 1: 36ft 2: 36ft 3: 44ft Avg: 38ft ROD: White 5ft 6in REEL: black/white W/ black button Casting W/ 2 #5 split shots 1: 43ft 2: 28ft 3: 43ft Avg: 38ft ROD: Purple 6.5ft REEL: Silver/Purple W/ gray button Casting W/ 2 #5 split shots 1: 44ft 2: 44ft 3: 34ft Avg: 40 ft

No, what's the best way to measure it? I'm going to try and go back out this coming Sunday.

Yes, that is correct

Hello, I bought 4 push button rod/reel combos for my family that range in length between 5 feet and 6.5 feet. The reels are Zebco. We are getting very little distance on our casts even after switching the line from 10lb test clear monofilament line to 8lb test green monofilament line. Doing some research one suggestion was to use 8lb braid line. What's the difference between braid and monofilament line? We're only fishing the local lakes right now which contain various species of fish. We're doing both bait and lure fishing. Another suggestion was a spray on line conditioner, not sure what that is. Also, we don't really know how to cast despite watching numerous YouTube videos on the subject. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You, Rich