Your Favorite Setup

[ksfishinguy]

What do you have most fun fishing with? I'm curious what gear people most ENJOY fishing, not necessarily what's most effective. 

 

Include what reel, rod, line, lure, and technique you like most, assuming you're going to catch the same number/size of fish no matter what.

 

For me, I love T-rigging with a 5" senko in cover. Deep timber, brush piles, and weed beds are always fun because there's always that opportunity of hooking a monster.

 

For this, I usually go with something like a Chronarch Ci4, a good MH 7' rod, 12lb fluoro, and work the senko depending on the bite. It's always exciting when you feel that first tug, especially on a slow day, and in some lakes, you might find a gigantic cat or walleye on the other end. It's the surprise aspect that gets me.

 

However, if they're just CRUSHING it, a walking bait or popper can be insanely fun.

 

What about you guys?

[smalljaw67]

I'm one of those function first type of guys that I really like all my set ups but if I could have my choice it would be my finesse cranking set up. Fenwick Aetos 6'6" medium light power, moderate action casting rod with a Quantum Smoke 150 (1st Generation) 7.3:1 gear ration casting reel. I use a few different reels on that rod but lately the bass have been hammering small square bills burned over the bottom, the faster we go the bigger the fish seem to get so that Smoke is what I'm using now and the entire thing filled with line is just a hair over 10 ounces.

[Steveo-1969]

I primarily fish a shallow river for smallmouth with bottom contact baits (finesse jigs, t-rigged plastics and light jig heads/plastics).  If I had answered this 6 months ago my favorite setup would have been 6'10" MLXF spinning rod with 10# braid and 8# fluoro leader.  In April I had a roller-skating accident and hurt my right arm, and I could no longer hold a spinning rod in my right hand.  I tried holding my spinning rod in my left hand and reeling with my right but it felt unnatural.

 

So... I started using a 7'5" MHXF baitcast rod with a right-hand reel that allowed me to hold the rod with my left hand (good arm) spooled with 12# fluoro.  My arm has been healed up for months but I rarely grab my spinning rod any more, I'm just having too much fun with the baitcast rod to put it down!!  BUT the MH power is overkill for the size baits I'm using, so I'm thinking about buying a M power baitcast rod this winter.

[bassbassontherange]

I always spend the most money on my finesse setups, one because they're usually pretty pricey anyway, but two because it's just plain fun. 

 

I usually have a pretty good idea what's going to catch fish, but I'm always going to reach for my finesse gear at least once.

 

50e or Ci4, 10lb fluoro, M or MH fast action rod, weightless fluke, senko, squarebill, or jerkbait. All really fun and versatile. 

[buzzed bait]

a popper for the obvious topwater crash, but a jig for that solid THUMP

[d-camarena]

Id take a finnesse setup all day. I hooked a 5lber last week on a 5'5 ul and that was one of the best fights ive ever been in. Drag screaming and the rod at a 45 degree angle. It is fun

[poisonokie]

Another for finesse. You are always more likely to catch something, and I pull in some pigs that way. Either way, it's more fun with any size fish on the end.

 

Daiwa T3 1016 (sv1000 shallow)

20# power pro super slick

Major Craft Volkey 68L/bfs

Owner Shakey Head 1/16 oz with 6" roboworm

-or-

Duo Realis crank 48sr, spinbait 80, rozante 63

[d-camarena]

My set up is 5'5 light pflueger president rod with a 20x predisent reel.

10 lb pp to a 6lb trilene flouro leader

[iabass8]

NRX894 /w custom full grip balanced perfectly

TD-Z 103ml type r+ /w 7:1 gears

20# sunline shooter

1/2oz dirty jigs no jack flippin jig Magic Craw and superbug D-Bomb trailer

Pitching/flipping into any laydown/bush/hiding spot and yanking them out. 

[FishTank]

G. Loomis 803c with a Shimano Chronarch 51e with 12lb Invisix. 

[fisherrw]

I love fishin my megabass Popmax with a curado I high speed and a phenix m1 MH

[new2BC4bass]

Several favorites, but an older 7' ML HMG and TD-Z 105 H with 8# mono make a fun combo.

[Logan S]

This one:  Scorpion 1000XT/Cumara 6'9" MXF

 

I have 'better' and/or more expensive setups but this one does it's job so well that it makes it even more fun.  Plus, one of my favorite ways to fish is with a jerkbait.  

 

[kickerfish1]

Currently an Exscence DC I bought has me intrigued quite a bit. The breaking is simply the best I have used. Strongly considering adding a another. A close second would be the TDZ 100m and Alphas SV.

For rods either an NRX 873 CRR, the original black Cumara rods or a K2.

Every outfit I have is my favorite. If it wasn't something I like it would have been sold.

Currently I am tweaking things a bit but come this winter I will layout a detailed post of my arsenal and what I use each for.

[S Hovanec]

My favorite setup, currently, is a Stradic 2500MGFB on a SCV 6'9" MLXF with TiSiC guides and a split Tennessee grip. Spooled with 15/4 Tuffline and a 6# Inviz-X leader. It is the best dropshot rod I've ever had in my hand.

I just gave that one to my wife cause I have a new one, which i haven't fished yet. It is a TwinPower 2500HGS on a SCV 6'10" MLXF extended to 7' with Ti/Torzite guides and split Tennessee grip. It is spooled up the same as the other one.

[Silas]

Dobyns 702DX paired with Steez 103 and Griffin Crank.

Cumulus 6'10" with 2004 Purple Alpha and Pointer 78 Sexy Shad.

Jackson Trickster with Zonda 10 and wacky Flick Shake.

Love to cast those 3. Don't have to catch anything to enjoy myself. Seems I'm more interested in combos that cast effortlessly and accurately.

[hawgenvy]

South Florida bass fishing in August and September is always slow for me, and I go light and finessy to coax those few fish that brave the heat and low oxygen of the shallow lakes around town. Lately I've been doing best on my beloved Dobyns Champion 682 (medium wt.) and a $99 Lews Speed Spool with #12 fluoro, tossing Zoom Super Flukes, weightless. Love those Flukes in summertime! Got 20 mostly small LMB today just walking the banks at a weedless lake behind my friend's house this evening. The most exciting moment was a fat feisty 3.4 lb'er that was fun to fight . He was pulling out drag and shaking his big old mug over and over again above the surface. The Dobyns Champ 682 is now apparently discontinued, but I've caught more numbers of fish on it than all my medium heavy and heavy rods with expensive reels combined. Come November through May, though, I'll be dusting off the med heavy and heavy rods and heavy braid, and using my jigs, froggies, swimbaits, and flippin creatures to coax some bigguns out of our thick SoFlo water veggies.

 

(Oh, yeah, almost forgot to mention, I landed a really big Mayan Cichlid today on the super fluke. I had only caught them on live bait so far, so I was pretty surprised. He faught hard, too!)

[Bruce424]

Hmmm?? I'm torn about what is most fun to catch fish. What's my favorite way, its between pitching jigs or shallow cranking.

Pitching jigs- abu garcia revo sx 7.1:1

7 ft Medium heavy fast gander mountain gsx

17 lb mccoy flourocarbon

And love pitching to bushes grass and laydowns

Shallow cranking- abu garcia revo sx 6.4:1

6 ft 6 in Medium heavy bass pro crankin stick

15-17 lb mccoy extra clear copolymer

Throwing them to stumps laydowns

[dcmclassic]

My favorite setup is my Falcon Lowrider20 6'8" AOY with a Curado 200 I and 15 Vicious flouro. It's the T-rig setup for me, and I throw it all year round in any conditions, any cover and depths between 1' to 20'. 

[d-camarena]

I have expensive combos (zodias, stradic ci4+, stella, crucial younname it)

But one of my favorite combos is a 7ft medium fast falcon bucoo paired to a 2500 shimano sahara. They just go so well together. The reel is very smooth and the drag is amazing. The rod is so versaltile ive thrown frogs, jigs, texas, wacky, flukes etc. Thats my go to combo when i go bank fishing and can only take one rod

[olegs]

GLX 854C with Chronarch 201E my favorite setup for Jig + Craw/Lobster

Dobyns DX743C with Chronarch CI4+ 151 for Texas rig

[Mike L]

Pitching with Fenwick Techna Av with a Curado E spooled with 15# Sniper.

Or fippin and/or punching matt's with a H/Xf Quantum Smoke with a Curado G spooled with 60# PP

Mike

[bassbassontherange]

I have expensive combos (zodias, stradic ci4+, stella, crucial younname it)

But one of my favorite combos is a 7ft medium fast falcon bucoo paired to a 2500 shimano sahara. They just go so well together. The reel is very smooth and the drag is amazing. The rod is so versaltile ive thrown frogs, jigs, texas, wacky, flukes etc. Thats my go to combo when i go bank fishing and can only take one rod

Falcon Buccos are seldom talked about on here, but i agree. They're an excellent rod. I have two with $250 Chronarch Ci4's on them. Great setups. I especially like them for jerkbaits and walking baits. Just the right amount of flex in the tip of a MHF for a good presentation and they're remarkably sensitive. 

[Poolshark]

7 ft Med fast at croix avid on a curado I . I use it to throw Texas rigged worms, senkos and fat ikas in which I throw year round down here. My favorite combo.

[John M.]

Daiwa Pixy SPR 68 on a Phenix Recon 2 6'8" Light

and

President 6925 on a St. Croix Premier 7'0" Ultralight

 

Those two rods I have with me when I go anywhere in the country and they have landed me more fish then any of my other combos combined.