abkeenan

I will expand a little on my comment above. If you are wanting to work the bait quickly or shallow the 115 would probably be a good choice as it floats. If you are looking to throw a jerkbait in the cold water months where pauses in the retrieve are necessary and twitching the bait targeting suspended fish the 110 is what you would want to get.

The 110 is a suspender and the 115 is a floater. So depending on what you are looking to do that should answer your question.

Bigmo, If you want light A-Rigs you can find plenty on Ebay that either have a lightweight plastic head or no head at all (brazed). That alone will cut down 1/4-1/2oz right there. Instead of using a hook and cutting the shank you can reduce weight again by using hitch hikers. They are just screw in metal corkscrew clips and weigh next to nothing. Screw them into whatever "dummy" bait you want threw the nose and you're good to go. Then just use whatever weight jighead you want for your "live" baits with the hook. Don't know your goal as far as exact weight but you could have a fully rigged A-Rig weigh about 1/2oz-3/4oz including plastic baits if you really wanted to.

Found On Road Dead? Come all we're all friends.

Can't believe I am agreeing 100% on Foreign Reel Policy with a democrat.

Mobile ice shanty pontoon on soft water, I like it. Just need a 70 inch flat screen, satellite, a weber and some brews and you're in business. If you make one count me in.

I do the same thing even with drinks. Forget to drink water or gatorade. I am reminded of that when my wiz is stronger than battery acid. Maybe TMI there.

Do they rig it on your hook too for the catfish?

I have size 2 death traps on mine.

Dave shield your eyes from this or you might have a mild ned heart attack with this kind of talk.

Healthy fish. Even fat as the base of the tail. Another month might be pushing 5.5lb +.

Nice report. I may or may not have that mag wart in my tackle box.

Blind, Bass Pro now carries Lew's reels so your $100 BPS Gift Card could go towards one of your choosing. They have the Lew's Speed Spool LFS for $99.99 which is a great little reel ( I have a couple) but doesn't have the dual braking system like the Pro Qualifiers, it just has magnetic braking. The BPS Pro Qualifier I see online they have on sale for $85 now which is a fair price. If you purchase in store sometimes you have to show them their own online sale (smart phone) to get a price match. If you are headed to Table Rock next weekend and go through Springfield I believe they have refurbished Pro Qualifiers in their outlet store for around $50. Again we don't know your budget but if you are wanting to walk out the door with a combo rod and reel that may be a good wallet friendly option. IMO nothing wrong with a factory refurb reel. May not be a 10/10 cosmetically but should be a 10/10 mechanically. Take that extra $50 and put it towards a 7' medium heavy rod which will cover the most amount of different baits you can throw on your new setup. There are a lot of nice rods in the $100 price range. The Falcon BuCoo and Duckett Ghost rods are two of my favorites right at $100. Duckett's I think lack a little on the finish and durability but I think they are second to none for the price point the way they fish. St. Croix also has a Mojo line of rods that they just revamped this year to be lighter (was always the complaint about the Mojo series they were a tad heavy) and are also right at $120. St. Croix makes a dang fine well built rod that will last forever if you take care of it. Good luck with your shopping and venture into the baitcaster world. You'll never look back.

I saw an interview with him before day 1 and he said it was like his 12th tournament he's ever fished. Talk about OVERWHELMING! That is like a kid playing peewee football one year and the next year he is in the Superbowl. Had to a lot to take in on top of the very tough conditions against the worlds top anglers. Doesn't really get any tougher.

Pretty sure Christie knows what he is doing. Just got beat by one of those magical days like when Howell did it at Guntersville the 3rd day in 2014. Stars align and stuff beyond your control just happens. Hindsight is always 20/20 and Monday Morning Armchair Quarterbacks always have a passer rating of 158.3.

Before you go buy anything maybe let us know your price range or budget you have allotted for a reel and we could further help you out with recommendations. Reason I say that is there are reels like the Pro Qualifier (very nice starter reel IMO) that are around $80-100 depending and also used reels both here on the for sale boards and BBC (Bass Boat Central.com) reel sale boards that can be had for very nice prices. Sportsman Outfitters has just unreal pricing on some reels like Daiwa Tatula's and a BUNCH of different Lew's models.

Blind, You could throw lipless cranks on spinning gear. Shouldn't be a big deal although I would recommend throwing them on 14'ish pound test line and that is usually more than what people here throw on spinning gear (6-10lb typically). As far as the baitcasters......absolutely, positively, 100% you must learn to throw them in order to be the best you can be on the water. Using spinning gear is fine for some applications and using Zebco 33's is fine when you are young. But, not using a baitcaster is limiting yourself big time. It's a must. There's a learning curve to throwing one but just like anything else practice makes perfect. Reel's now-a-days are so good that backlashes are few and far between compared to reels of the past. My grandfather when I was around 10 or so handed me a old Shimano Speedmaster baitcaster that probably had never been oiled, cleaned or lubed in 15 years with a 5'6" pistol grip Shimano Speedmaster Fightin' Stick and said go down to the bank and just start throwing. No tips, lessons, hints, nada. I sat there and threw that thing for an hour before he came down and showed me a thing or two. It was rough to start but that's how you learn. Go get yourself a moderately priced baitcaster to learn on that has both magnetic and centrifugal braking systems and you should pick up how to throw one rather quickly. The Bass Pro Pro Qualifiers would be a good choice to start on and will last you years. They aren't just for beginners either as I have a few I still use regularly as do a lot of anglers out there.

Nice report. How were you working that Red Eye? Steady retrieve? Yoyo? Hop it up off the bottom and let it settle?

Nice report. About time someone puts up something on the dam area. Thanks for sharing.

Very nice report.

KVD was skunking until about 1pm today. Finally boated a fish just a short while ago. Goes to show even the Pro's have days where even they can't catch'em. Makes everyday Joe's like me feel a little better about my terrible outings.

Kalin's still makes the Mogambo grub. I have a couple of packs but haven't really given them a shot in years.

I think I've said this before here but my Uncle (who NEVER FISHES and uses Zebco's when he did in the 80's and early 90's) caught our Table Rock family record in a 8.5lb largemouth in early JUNE full of eggs. Caught it on a weightless Kalin grub swam on the surface. Just saying.

I think for the most part color is overrated. I think people get attached to a color because it worked one time then the confidence level goes up in that bait and you fish it better going forward because you trust it. Sure I think natural colored baits that match natural forage in the body of water is the way to go, especially on clear lakes such as TR. Conditions dictate what colors SHOULD be best, dingy water vs clear, overcast vs sunny, etc. Action of the bait and getting it in front of active fish is 90% of the battle. But at times color DOES MATTER as I have been spanked by my brother throwing an Ozark Smoke 5" Dinger (in the back of the boat no less) while I was up front with the same bait only in Green Pumpkin. In the end it's fishing and there is never a clear cut definitive answer, which is what makes fishing great. Fishing is a blank canvas and it's up to the artist/fisherman's interpretation of how he/she wants to go at it.

Storm likes missing boats too much for that to happen.