right combo for the lure

[bamabassman]

ok, seems like i have not got my rods/reels matched for the lures i am putting on them. at least i think that,lol. here is the rod and reel i have;

original abu garcia ultra mag I with 30# power pro braid rod is a 6' medium-hvy action berkly phazer with pistol grip handle. i use this to under handed flip/cast under brush,trees and such. use mostly worms,jigs and such.

next is the abu garcia 521 xlt plus flipping reel with 30# power pro braid line on a 7' abu garcia medium fast rod. used for open grass and lily pads worm and same as above uses.

ok, here is where i think i am truly confused. or not,lol.

abu garcia silvermax reel with 14# cajun red line. set on a 7' medium casting abu tournament grade rod. what i use it for is cranks and such. right or wrong?

next is a abu garcia pro max with 12# trilene super strong green. set on a 6'6" medium casting barkly cherrywood rod. ok? or not. used for topwater, spinners and such. ok? or not?

next is a abu garcia pro max reel with 14# cajun red line set on a barkly lighting rod, medium heavy action 6'. used for heavier spinners and some worms, also larger cranks and such. ok? or not.

;ast is a pinnacle inertia finesse reel with 20# stren high impact clear line. set on a berkly 6' medium heavy casting rod. used for worms, heavy spinners, cranks, jigs and deep diving baits. also sometimes i use it in clear lily pads.

ok...that is the setups i have. i can't go out and buy anymore rods or reels right now so tell me if i should swap around or switch lines and if ya'll think i am using the right baits for the setups i have. thanks gang!!

[zooker]

to be honest bama 6 foot rods are good for top water baits but that is about all i would use them for..

the 7 foot medium rod is a good rod for cranks not sure how fast the abu silver max reel is anything in a 5.1 or so gearing is good..

the 6 foot medium heavy is a definate no no for deep cranks as you have a lot of slack line that a 6 foot rod will not pick up when you set the hook.it is a ok rod for a blade..

one thing i do know for certain a pinnacle reel will cast like it's buts on fire. how ever ya need to lighten up on the line test.. that pinnacle reel is designed to toss light t-rigged finesse worms with ease i would make sure the #20 stren found the great grey hole. and loaded it with 12 pound cajun red. you will definatly see the differance in preformance in this reel..

question i know you fish some definate weed lines but why 14 pound test can ya get away with lighter line??

14 pound test would be ok on a spinner bait set up..

imho you need to stop the random set ups on rods/reels. from your tell my guess is you do alot of t-rigging.. i would set up 2 t-rig rods, a jig rod, a blade rod,a topwater rod,and a cranking rod...





don't ya love how he spells Berkley®??


zooker

[bamabassman]

sorry bout the spelling zooker,hahaha. thank you for your honest opion. i figured i had everything wrong,lol. so i will for sure change things. did i get ANY ok? lmao. i do love to worm fish, just don't get to do it as much as i have rod set up for,lmao. grew up worm fishing mostly. that is why i want to learn the "proper" rig for the proper lure. thank you ALOT!!!

[zooker]

of all the rods i currantly use-25- only two are shorter than 7 foot. a broken 6'3'' mid handled beast that use for top water and a 6 foot spinning rod i skip docks with..basicly i prefure the longer sticks as i am a big tall guy and like the rod tip near water level..

zooker

[Bob Smith]

Alrighty, John! You're probably going to see some similarities between ol Zooker and I. I am going to list my ideas in blue right under your descriptions.


original abu garcia ultra mag I with 30# power pro braid rod is a 6' medium-hvy action berkly phazer with pistol grip handle. i use this to under handed flip/cast under brush,trees and such. use mostly worms,jigs and such.

ABu Garcia Ultra Mag, spooled with 14# green mono of some kind (who cares who makes it!?), on the 6' Berkley Phazer Rod with Pistol Grip handle (man, is this a relic?). Should be good for Topwater baits like spooks and Sammys, Yellow Magic, Pop R, Skitter pops etc. Might even consider some 3/8 oz spinner baits since you like to pitch cast under the vines and trees.

next is the abu garcia 521 xlt plus flipping reel with 30# power pro braid line on a 7' abu garcia medium fast rod. used for open grass and lily pads worm and same as above uses.

Pretty decent balance the way you have rigged right now. This combo should fare well with jigs and worms used on Flipping and pitching docks and under trees, as well as in the pads and drilla.

ok, here is where i think i am truly confused. or not,lol.

abu garcia silvermax reel with 14# cajun red line. set on a 7' medium casting abu tournament grade rod. what i use it for is cranks and such. right or wrong?
I would go with 10# or 12# clear mono for the cranking on this rod. You will soon see that I, like Zooker, favor the longer sticks. If this rod is pretty soft, it should do good with cranks.

next is a abu garcia pro max with 12# trilene super strong green. set on a 6'6" medium casting barkly cherrywood rod. ok? or not. used for topwater, spinners and such. ok? or not?
Up the line size a bit and use this rig for casting froggies, toads and buzzbaits around the grass and pads.

next is a abu garcia pro max reel with 14# cajun red line set on a barkly lighting rod, medium heavy action 6'. used for heavier spinners and some worms, also larger cranks and such. ok? or not.
Not sure what to tell you on this one, I am not a fan of short heavy action rods. Can't think of a really good use for this rod. If you like what you are doing with it right now, stick with it.

;ast is a pinnacle inertia finesse reel with 20# stren high impact clear line. set on a berkly 6' medium heavy casting rod. used for worms, heavy spinners, cranks, jigs and deep diving baits. also sometimes i use it in clear lily pads.
Like Zooker said, this reel will perform 10 times better with a 10 or 12# line. The problem is the action of the rod. I think I would put this reel on a different medium or lighter action rod (maybe the 6' 6' Berkley Cherrywood Rod would be a good trade off?). When I come over that way, I will throw a couple of my spare rods in the boat for you to try out. If they work for ya, I'll make a deal ya can't refuse

There you have my choices. Hope it helps!

[bamabassman]

thanks bob. now you HAVE TO come over,lmao. can't wait till i can get things straihtened out. i truly want to thank ya'll. i too think that the 7' rods would be better for me, now just have to convince lisa. hey.....maybe i can give her a couple to butter her over? hehehehe.

[zooker]

umm john i find that pretty, shiny, lil rock. to have a GREAT influance on your takle buying buget rein...

zooker

[bamabassman]

hahaha you are right zooker, but the last (first) truly bug heart shaped solitaire 3/4 carat rock i got her..........stone came out and is lost forever. she said she don't want another one to lose. so now she gets to go on trips to whereever she wants. and she is going again real soon. hahahaha. whatever baby wants, baby gets,lmao. that way i can get what i want too,hahahahaha.

[zooker]

oh poor old sot.. how the heck did you weasel the boat out of that type..

zooker

[bamabassman]

hehehe, i'll never tell. naw she promised me the boat 15 years ago. took that long to for me to get a good un.

[bamabassman]

oh yea zooker, have seen the new basscats in person. SWEEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!

[zooker]

there nice but rather have dis one in yellar and white

http://www.phoenixbassboats.com/2100specs.html


nuff said

zooker

[bamabassman]

now where did i leave that winning lottery ticket..............hahahahaha.

[Abbeysdad]

I jus use the pole from the carpet ma ordered cut down to 7 foot or so. Tied on some twine, cork bobber from one of pa's wine bottles and a hook I got from the general store. I catch me all sorts of fish with this rig and it only cost about a dime!
LOL

[Fish2win]

I want to say this. Most of what we buy was designed to catch fishermen not fish. I use 3 different rods for spinnerbaits. 1 is a 6 ft 1 is a 61/2 ft and 1 is a 7 ft. It depends on the type spinnerbait and cover i am fishing. They are all medium heavy action. I use a 7 foot medium action rod for top water because I fish clear water a good bit and the 7 foot rod casts further. I also use a 7 foot rod for flipping because it is th right length for me. The 7 1/2 footers are just to long. I use 7 foot rods for most worm related technigues and they are always spinning for this unless its a Carolina rig. Many of the lure specific rods were designed by a guy that likes that action length and grip but may not be best for you. Experiment a little and find what works best for you. In bass fishing there are no absolutes and the fish dont care what you rod, reel or line is..Fish2win

[Wishing2BFishing]

Here are my go-to set-ups . . .

Spinnerbait - a 7' Medium Cherrywood with a Shimano Chronarch Mg

Stickbaits - a 7' Kistler "Senko Special" with a Shimano Chronarch Mg

Pitchin - a Carrot Stk. with 65lb. braid spooled on Shimano Chronarch Mg

Crankbaits - a 6'6" Kistler composite rod with a Shimano Chronarch Mg

Note: I will soon be adding a 7' Medium Fritts Titanium rod for mid-range cranks and at some point will add a 7' MH glass rod with a Daiwa Crazy Cranker reel for deeper cranks (thanks Zooker for the information on the American Rodsmiths Rod)

Anyone have any thoughts on these combos . . .

[bamabassman]

well i am updating this a bit. after reading and re-reading, i am gonna just have to ask da mrs. if i can let da monkey out for x-mas, lmao. the way i see it i gotta do what everyone here has said and MOSTLY just try out a couple of new setups before i settle. i have been "trying" out some different rods at a couple of places (wally world, acadamy, bps). gonna wait till the new bass pro opens in leeds and go there and really look at their rods. gonna probably get 2 new rods. yes bob and zooker, they will be 7 footers. i like the longer ones as well i KNOW the much. as for the reels.... most of mine are 6 or 7.2.1, so i MAAAAY buy another reel. just gonna have to see what the banker (lisa) has to say about it, hahahaha. again i thank ya'll fo all the input.

[Fishing Fanatic]

I love shorter rods 5'-4" to 6', while fishing the river. I'll give up the distance which I don't need anyway, for accuracy. I feel that is much more critical for me cuz I fish faster current most of the time and tight cover. The shorter rod allows me to put my cast dead on. I use BPS Extreme and Pinnacle baitcasters. Zooker is right about the Pinnacles... they are outstanding reels for light weight T-rigged finesse worming. River bass love em.