BaitCaster
Well-known member
Forgive me if someone has already gone through this exercise. My main quarry are Large Mouth Bass. Here is my arsenal:
1. 6' 6" medium heavy St Croix worm and jig rod; Shimano Calais DC baitcast reel; 30 lb PowerPro braid. This is my worm and jig rig. It is my go to set up and gets the most use. I mainly throw senkos or texas rigged worms with it.
2. 7' 3" extra heavy Bass Pro Nitro flippin stick; Daiwa Tierra baitcast reel; 50 lb Spider Wire Invisa-braid. This is the broom stick for the heavy stuff. I use it for scum frogs and flipping jigs. I love fishing over the tops of lilly pads with frogs.
3. 6' 9" medium heavy Bass Pro Carbonlite rod with an extra fast tip; BassPro Johnny Morris baitcast reel; 14 lb mono. I just bought this set up to use with spinner baits, soft plastic swim baits and Carolina Rigs. Haven't used it yet, but it is a sweet set up for around $250. The rod is super light and the reel is the best I have ever seen at the $150 price point.
4. 7' medium Bass Pro Crankin' Stick; Cabela's Prodigy baitcast reel; 12 lb mono. This is my crankbait rod. It doesn't get a lot of use. don't fish crankbaits as much as I probably should. I am usually fishing in or around fairly heavy cover.
5. 6' 6" Cabela's Prodigy spinning rod; Shimano Symmetre spinning reel; 12 lb PowerPro braid. I use this mainly for skipping tubes under docks. I also use it for finesse presentations, drop-shotting and occasionally for top-waters. It's a great set up and feels really nice.
6. 6' Daiwa Spinmaster ultra light spinning rod; Team Daiwa spinning reel; 4 lb braid. This is the ultra-light rig for Crappie, panfish and when the bass bite is really tough. I have also used this rig wading on rivers for trout.
I really like the feel and sensitivity of braided line. I also like the fact that it has virtually no line memory which really annoys me on mono and fluoro. I will sometimes use a fluoro leader if the bite is shut down or in clear water. I always use a fluoro leader on a Carolina rig or for drop-shotting.
Finally, all but 2 of my rods are split handle grips. I like the balance of a split grip along with the reduced weight and the feel of the exposed blank.
I carry two tackle boxes and a binder when I go out. The two boxes are the Plano Bill Dance models with the see trhuogh orange top lid - a large one and a medium sized one. The medium one is filled with plastics and s selection of hooks, bullet sinkers, jig heads and beads. The large box holds all the crankbaits, top waters and spinner baits (it has a great hanger system for spinner baits and buzz baits). The binder is a Cabela's binder and I use it mainly for terminal tackle. It has a zippered pocket for a small Plano box in which I keep all of my tubes. I also have a Plano box filled with down-sized finesse baits and tackle. I don't always take that box with me.
So far this system is working okay, but it is continually evolving as I discover new techniques and baits.
Cheers,
BC
1. 6' 6" medium heavy St Croix worm and jig rod; Shimano Calais DC baitcast reel; 30 lb PowerPro braid. This is my worm and jig rig. It is my go to set up and gets the most use. I mainly throw senkos or texas rigged worms with it.
2. 7' 3" extra heavy Bass Pro Nitro flippin stick; Daiwa Tierra baitcast reel; 50 lb Spider Wire Invisa-braid. This is the broom stick for the heavy stuff. I use it for scum frogs and flipping jigs. I love fishing over the tops of lilly pads with frogs.
3. 6' 9" medium heavy Bass Pro Carbonlite rod with an extra fast tip; BassPro Johnny Morris baitcast reel; 14 lb mono. I just bought this set up to use with spinner baits, soft plastic swim baits and Carolina Rigs. Haven't used it yet, but it is a sweet set up for around $250. The rod is super light and the reel is the best I have ever seen at the $150 price point.
4. 7' medium Bass Pro Crankin' Stick; Cabela's Prodigy baitcast reel; 12 lb mono. This is my crankbait rod. It doesn't get a lot of use. don't fish crankbaits as much as I probably should. I am usually fishing in or around fairly heavy cover.
5. 6' 6" Cabela's Prodigy spinning rod; Shimano Symmetre spinning reel; 12 lb PowerPro braid. I use this mainly for skipping tubes under docks. I also use it for finesse presentations, drop-shotting and occasionally for top-waters. It's a great set up and feels really nice.
6. 6' Daiwa Spinmaster ultra light spinning rod; Team Daiwa spinning reel; 4 lb braid. This is the ultra-light rig for Crappie, panfish and when the bass bite is really tough. I have also used this rig wading on rivers for trout.
I really like the feel and sensitivity of braided line. I also like the fact that it has virtually no line memory which really annoys me on mono and fluoro. I will sometimes use a fluoro leader if the bite is shut down or in clear water. I always use a fluoro leader on a Carolina rig or for drop-shotting.
Finally, all but 2 of my rods are split handle grips. I like the balance of a split grip along with the reduced weight and the feel of the exposed blank.
I carry two tackle boxes and a binder when I go out. The two boxes are the Plano Bill Dance models with the see trhuogh orange top lid - a large one and a medium sized one. The medium one is filled with plastics and s selection of hooks, bullet sinkers, jig heads and beads. The large box holds all the crankbaits, top waters and spinner baits (it has a great hanger system for spinner baits and buzz baits). The binder is a Cabela's binder and I use it mainly for terminal tackle. It has a zippered pocket for a small Plano box in which I keep all of my tubes. I also have a Plano box filled with down-sized finesse baits and tackle. I don't always take that box with me.
So far this system is working okay, but it is continually evolving as I discover new techniques and baits.
Cheers,
BC
