LogFinder

Everyone here is giving good information. The thing about feeling the bottom is you have to view it as data collection. So say you are sitting on the top of a hump and throwing deep. As you drag back up the hump you are feeling for changes. So if you make a 40yd cast and about half way back something starts to feel different then suddenly the line goes tick. Well now you have data to run on. You know what direction you were throwing it and can estimate how far the fish are from the top of the hump. You know if when you drag the jig and it just feels soft, boring, and mushy you have sand or silt. If it’s rapid tap taps across the bottom you have gravel or shell. If it’s kind of chunky and sharp feeling it’s larger rocks, a little more dull but still chunky then wood. So as the data comes in you have to imagine what it may look like. As you start catching more you start to develope a pattern. Now use that data to fish around the rest of the hump.

I don’t own any caras but I do have an assortment of lowriders and experts. In the past I’ve used the lowrider finesse jig rod with zero issues up to a 3/8 finesse jig. Once I hit the 1/2 oz mark I move up to the HeadTurner, Dragger, or Amistad. Personally the amistad is way too heavy for a finesse jig. Generally my finesse jig is on 12-15lb line so a 7 power rod ends in heartbreak for me. As far as action goes I feel like the finesse jig rod falls on the faster side of modfast. It’s just slow enough to load up nice but fast enough to still be able to bury a jig hook on a war eagle heavy finesse. This past weekend I was throwing a 1/4oz Cumberland finesse jig on the expert headturner and the lowrider dragger just to try something a little different(they are a touch lighter weight than the FJR). After ripping huge holes and jumping fish off I’ll be going back to my FJR and sticking with it.

I’ve used the Amistad, HeadTurner and the 734 for toads in the past. Personally of those three I would go with the 734. That rod with braid will skip a toad better than the other two in my hands. It has a soft enough tip to let them really get it but enough juice to bury the hook. Now if you are fishing in the thicker grass you may want the Amistads Horsepower to get them out.

Well fellas I’m a bit late to the party here. I stumbled across this posting after deciding I wanted to go to a higher gear in an SLX DC. After cross referencing part numbers it appears that to go from the 150 to the 150HG I would just need BNT4922(200I 7:1 gear) and a BNT5286 (SLX150HG pinion). Am I missing something or should these work out okay? Note: I also have a 200I carbontex drag washer on hand to fit.

The application I had in mind is a finesse jig, 5/16(max) swimjig, 1/4oz or less T-rig, war Eagle finesse Spinnerbaits, Lipless. Would be fishing braid to leader around sparse cover. Does that make sense?

Thanks man. I’ve got two of them on the way. I have/had both the Bucoo swimjig and the trapcaster. I felt the trapcaster kind of felt like a decent utility rod that would do almost anything. So hearing that the Hud is a tad beefier makes me feel better about blindly pulling the trigger?. The swimjig rod I hated for a swimjig it felt way underpowered for the technique. Truthfully I’m hoping the Hud falls directly inline between the swimjig and the heavy cover jig model ??.

Seems you are one of the few guys talking about the Hudson on here so I have a question for you. How does the Hudson compare to the trapcaster and the swimjig rod?

Alright guys, I’m in a pickle here. Over the past couple years I have been transitioning over to Falcon Rods. I have the Expert Amistad,HeadTurner, and Bayou. The Lowrider Heavy Cover Jig and Finesse Jig. Finally the Bucoo SwimJig. The rod that I’m trying to replace is a Dobyns Fury 734. I love the way that blank fished jigs, Swimjigs and buzzbaits. But I want something lighter and more comfortable to use. The Bucoo is too light power (Falcon-5) and the Lowrider HCJ is too heavy power (Falcon-6). So, what I’m wondering is would the Hudson fit right in between the two in the line? If you have an Expert Hudson, what do you use it for? Or if you’ve held one, what would you definitely not use it for. TIA

I’ve weighed both the Expert line and the Lowrider line of Amistad Expert- 4.27oz Lowrider- 5.0oz also, the Lowrider Heavy Cover Jig 4.6oz Expert Bayou- 4.1oz I don’t know if that helps in your search or not but figured I’d offer my numbers

Honestly I would go with the Falcon Amistad in either the low rider line or for $200 the expert line. 7’3” Heavy, it’s light, crisp and strong. If he is vertically challenged like I am then maybe consider the 6’11” H. The shorter rod makes walking a frog a breeze. The tip on both of those rods is just soft enough that walking is easy but it has plenty of horsepower. My buddy got me hooked on Falcons a couple years ago and I’ve loved every minute of it.

First two had a god awful squeak. Cleaned them lubed them and it didn’t go away. So I replaced the bearing and good as new. This third one though..... man it’s like you have turned the drag off about 3/4 of the way and put your thumb on the spool and started reeling. Just stiff and sluggish. It also makes a noise but not the high pitched squeak like the other two more of a rattle grind. I could see if I was rough on gear but considering cosmetically they still look brand new, no scuffs or wear, I shouldn’t have such a consistent problem.

So I bought 3 of the base model SLX reels 1- 150XG 2- 150HG All three of these reels have given me grief. The Anti reverse roller bearing has crapped out in all three of them. I’ve repaired two of them already and now need to order a 3rd bearing. has anyone else ran I to this issue with these reels or have I just miraculously bought the 3 worst reels that came off the line?.

I love the HeadTurner for chatterbaits. I find that rod is in my hand a lot. If you are looking at the eye crosser, take a look at the Expert Bayou and I think you’ll find what you are looking for. To me it feels almost identical to the Amistad in power and action just a tad shorter. I use the Amistad to flip/pitch, the bayou to frog, and the head turner for any “moving skirted bait”. I have tied a leader on the Bayou and used it to pitch as well and it definitely does the job.