T-Billy

Come fish Ohio for a year. It'll make you feel much better about your home lakes. 1-2k acre impoundments that get pounded from April till October. You either learn to catch pressured fish, or take up golf round here.

Have you tried rigging it with junebug worms? ?

Well... That's a new one on the rig!!! Lol. I catch 'em on other baits all the time. My favorite lake is loaded with these snails.

3.8 Keitech Fats on the corners, 4.3 on the center. Shad pattern of some sort.

At least you have the satisfaction of knowing you caught it. No where near a record, maybe a pound and a half, but I caught a bullhead when I was a kid that was coal black like they are when they're babies. Guess it just never lost that pigment. To answer the OP's question, yep. The only records I have a realistic shot at are muskie and saugeye. Both are stocked fish in our lakes, and the lakes are HEAVILY pressured anyway so revealing the location wouldn't matter.

XF has a softer tip that transitions into the backbone faster. My favorite rod for weightless plastics, light T rigs, and 3/8 and under jigs. Works great for skipping too, that's the original reason I bought it. I really liked it and quickly added a second to the lineup.

Flukes are a great bait for skipping. I throw 'em on an ARK Invoker 7' MH XF, Daiwa Fuego with a shallow braid spool, and 20# 832.

Umm... Those five tricks catch you more bass than the rest of us soo...... ? ?

I'm coming full circle. I've tried and have lots of stuff, but I'm getting to where I just roll with a handful of confidence baits most of the time. From now till ice over it'll be an A - rig and the mighty Sweet Craw getting most of the work.

Great Blue Heron.

40# braid on the 7'11". That's what I run and it allows me to straighten hooks out and get my snagged rig back. It'll also work well for pitching heavy cover with braid.

Sure is. I bought an HD 1000 and after fishing with it once, I ordered a second. There'll probably be a couple more coming after Christmas. I like my BB1 but, the Zillion HD 1000 will outcast it, is smoother, FAR less touchy to dial in, and the Daiwa braking needs no maintenance. I won't be buying another BB1, but I'll probably have four HD's when I hit the water next spring.

I like a jighead with a little lead keeper on the shank. Add a tiny drop of loctite gel superglue and you're good to go until you lose it, or need to put it on a new jighead. Bait stays in place better, and gets twisted around the hook less, than with wire keeper jigs in my experience.

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The cold water seasons are my best time for bigguns. My PB and #3 LM came a week apart in april 08. Caught my #2 LM last Dec. from 40 degree water. My PB SM was caught in Sept. at night, but most of my big brownies were caught March/April and Nov/Dec. Mid 50's on down is big fish season for me, and I really get focused on 'em when the surface temp starts with a 4.

Same here.

Thanks brother, I appreciate ya. I've been thinking about picking up a Go Pro. Couple inches of rain coming Friday, then our unseasonably mild temps are gonna crash. I'm off Tues - Fri next week. I'll be spending a bunch of time with the rig in my hands. Man that thing is addictive. I caught several LM on it yesterday on windblown rip rap, then those musky today. You're comment recently about retrieving it at a speed where it kinda floats stuck in my head, and though it's only two trips (small sample size) it's working for me, with most bites coming right after a HARD crank.

Yes. So much so that I bought a second one.

Roll Tide!!! I got off to a good start this morning on the Bama Rig. Caught two musky, had one come off, and three follows that wouldn't commit. First one was a 39" that hit on the figure 8. Whole buncha fun on a few feet of line. Second was a fat 45" that absolutely SMOKED it clear out at the end of the cast. Put on a great show. Tail walked twice. Just an inch short of my PB, and beautifully marked. Angry Musky + A-Rig + Net = TRAIN WRECK!!! Musky bite shut down once the sun got high, but the laydowns were full of LM. No bigguns but a bunch of these guys. Didn't keep count but a couple dozen or so. High 30's to start, but light winds and lotsa sunshine. Mid 60's by noon. Gorgeous day on the water. Goin back tomorrow. My days off next week are forecast for lows in the 20's and highs around 40. Fur hat weather for sure!!! ?

Yep. Time on the water and diversity. Most of us fish a handful of local waters. Those guys fish a wide variety of lakes all over the country, and learn to break them down quickly.

Same here. Pike and Musky love it as well. Landing a big Esox with a face full of Bama Rig can be interesting to say the least.

If you haven't purchased the rods yet, I'd suggest picking up a couple Ark Lancer Pros. Lighter, better balanced, and far more sensitive than either of the rods you mentioned. They're having a BOGO sale on their website right now. You can get two delivered to your door for $120. It's an absolute steal of a deal, as these rods are an outstanding value at full price. You'll get lots of suggestions on reels, and they'll probably all be good ones. Hard to get a bad reel at that price point. Definitely consider JDM. With the current exchange rates, all of Japan is on sale, and Digitaka has been fantastic for me. I've recieved my reels from them in 3-4 buisiness days, and it's an easy shopping experience. To say I've been impressed with my JDM Zillion HD 1000's is an understatement.

Not done yet, but it's been a good year size wise. Numbers are below average but only because I focused on catching bigger fish. 3 LM over 5# so far, and 5 over 4#. That's a pretty solid year in my neck of the woods. Got off to a slow start. Didn't get one over 4# until june. No big smallies yet, but a few between 3.5 and 4. Put my wife on her PB musky at 44" a couple weeks ago. That'll be the highlight of my season no matter what I catch going forward. Caught several nice saugeye including my PB at 6-14. Overall, a really solid year and the water's still mid 50's. Looking forward to it dropping into the 40's. Every swing could be a monster in those temps.

Hooksets have cost me a few rods. Set into a bridge, an unnoticed overhead limb, and lost one to a high stick. Also had a musky bite me off on a sweep hookset, and the rod unloaded into the trolling motor.

Another option that's absolutely on par with the XT is the Ark Lancer Pro. They're having a BOGO sale right now, and you can get two shipped to your door for $120. An absolute steal.