Category Archives: Fishing Tackle

Rods and reels to live bait

Abu-Garcia Orra SXHS Reel Review

At an outdoor writers meeting over a year ago I bought a Abu-Garcia Orra SXHS reel and teemed it with a Abu-Garcia Veritas medium action rod I got at the same time. The reel lists for about $100 but I got it way below list price. This is a great reel and it still works well even though I have not cleaned it. I spooled it with 12 pound P-Line monofilament since that is strong enough for fishing topwater in open water and the lighter line gives me more casting distance.

I can cast a Lucky Craft Sammy a very long way with this outfit, and the high speed reel helps a lot when taking up slack when a fish hits. Bass often run toward you when they hit and it is hard to set the hook effectively if you can’t catch up with them, especially with a lot of line out after a long cast.

The reel is very smooth but my only complaint with it is very minor. The antiblacklash system is hard to access, you have to loosen the thumb screw located on the top right of the reel then turn the cover on the left side to get to the adjustment. You may have to use a screwdriver to get the screw loose enough to turn with your thumb. And the antibacklash is not magnetic, it is centrifugal. There are tabs you move to increase amount of spin on the reel. They are labled to help you adjust to how you are using the reel. The Pflueger Purist reel is much easier to access and adjust.

In all honesty, I had to figure this out when I started this review since I have never adjusted the reel. With nothing set, all tabs off, I have never had a problem with blacklash on this reel or the Revos I use. They have the same kind of antibacklash. So this is a very minor problem.

Even at list price this reel is a great one, about as good as the Revo. And you could buy three Orras for the price of two Revos!

Abu-Garcia Veritas Medium Action Rod Review

Veritas Rods Picture

Veritas Rods Picture

I purchased a Abu-Garcia Veritos medium action rod at an outdoor writers auction and teamed it with an Abu-Garcia Orra SXHS reel that I got at the same auction. Both were bought for well below the list price. I have had this rod for over a year and I like it so much and it has held up so well I bought another one this year. The reel was spooled with 12 pound P-Line monofilament line. The outfit is my favorite for casting big topwater plugs like a Lucky Craft Sammy. The Orra is a good match for this rod.

The rod lists for about $100 and has micro guides. I had not tried these guides until I got this reel fearing they would not hold up and might be bad when using older line that had curled. But I have had no problems and those guides may help with casting distance. I can cast a Sammy a very long way, a big help when trying to reach schooling fish or fishing clear water when you want to stay well back from the area you are fishing.

At a recent tournament a school of fish came up about 150 yards from the boat. I put the trolling motor on high and headed toward them as I picked up this outfit. I could reach them long before my partner could. I caught a two pound striper from the school before they went down, and it hit before my partner could reach them.

The medium action on this rod is just right for casting a topwater plug and fighting a fish. It has good backbone but a light tip. The six foot, six inch length works well but you could get more distance with a longer rod.

After over a year of heavy use and many fish caught I have not had any problems with the rod or guides. I did put a piece of pipe insulation in front of the reel and taped it since I hold a rod there when fishing, and it is much more comfortable with a cushioned grip. The open rod blank where the reel seats helps with feel and by gripping the rod in front of the reel, rather than palming it, I can easily pinch the line between my thumb and finger to have even better feel.

This rod is a great addition to any fisherman’s arsenal and the price is low enough that it won’t break the bank, even if you buy several.

Fishing Lures Are Made To Catch Fishermen

Niles Murray and Flint River Shoal Bass

Niles Murray and Flint River Shoal Bass

In last Sunday’s comic strip “The Lockhorns,” the wife and husband are getting out of a boat with fishing equipment in their hands. He has a very disgusted look on his face and his wife says “The fish weren’t dumb enough to go for that lure … but you were.” I know how he feels!

I have said many times that fishing lures are made to catch fishermen, not fish. Walk into Berrys Sporting Goods and there is a bewildering array of plugs, spinnerbaits and worms in any color you can imagine, in many shapes and sizes. And I have a couple of most of them in my boat.

Any lure will catch a fish. But does a fisherman really need all those different combinations? And why is a lime green plug better on any given day than a chartreuse one? It probably isn’t. But us fishermen keep hoping for some magic lure that will make us catch fish, no matter how or where we use it.

Professional fishermen hype their favorite lures and colors constantly, and many have plug series and colors named for them. They have a vested interest in those lures selling. After all, the companies making them pay the pros a good salary or stipend. And every lure company is competing with others for the fisherman’s dollar.

Don’t get me wrong. I have my favorites. And I keep trying new stuff that seems to come out every week. Some day that magic lure or worm color may be invented, but I doubt it. The place you use a lure and how you fish it is much more important than other factors.

Other members of the bass clubs make fun of me since I normally have about 20 rods and reels on the deck of my boat, all rigged with different lures. It is much easier to pick up a different rod to try a different lure than to cut the one you are using off and tie on another one. That is, it is easier and quicker if you don’t have to untangle six rods to get to the one you want.

I could probably have four rods and reels out to use in a tournament since I seldom fish more than four or five baits during a tournament. But I want to be ready just in case. In the last tournament I fished I used a spinner bait most of the day. I also fished a buzz bait, topwater popper, jig head worm and crankbait. But I had at least 15 more outfits ready just in case I wanted to try something else.

A jig head worm, or shaky head, is pretty much my “goto” bait when fishing is tough. And I use one color of worm 90 percent of the time, switching to a different color only in real clear water. But I have over 100 bags of worms in different colors in my boat. Some day I may find one of those weird colors, like Tequila Sunrise, is just what the fish want.

Bass eat a lot of kinds of food, but most are basic, subdued colors. I have never seen a bright red shad but I have bright red shad plugs. No orange worms exist in our lakes but I have bags of worms ranging from a dull, drab orange to bright, fluorescent orange. Sometimes when fishing a floating worm it helps me to see the bait if it is a bright color, and the bass will eat it, but why do they eat it? They don’t seem to care about the color at all.

I often hear after a tournament that the bass would hit only a purple worm with a pink tail and gold flakes, or some such combination. But then you can talk with other fishermen that caught just as many, or even more, fish on a completely different color. And as often as not I have been fishing the purple pink gold worm all day without a bite on it!

In any big tournament the pros do well with a wide variety of baits fished in a lot of different ways. I fished at Hartwell on Wednesday with a fisherman that had won a tournament on Clark’s Hill the previous Sunday. He and his partner had five bass weighing 22.99 pounds and had big fish with a 7.8 pounder. He told me they caught them on a small crankbait and a white jerk bait.

On Thursday I was at my boat club on Clark’s Hill and talked to a bass fishermen while we took our boats out. He said he was having a tough time catching bass but he heard about a tournament won on Sunday. The two guys were using a big crankbait and a chartreuse jerk bait and had 28 pounds, with a 7.8 pounder for big fish. After a little discussion we realized we were talking about the same tournament, but the weight had gotten heavier with the retelling.

Funny thing, he had been using a big crankbait and chartreuse jerk bait all day without a bite. But he was fishing way up Little River where the water was stained while the tournament was won further down the lake in much clearer water. But he thought the winning fishermen had discovered what the bass wanted so he fished it all day. It was a little funny that he had heard almost the right info about the baits but was convinced enough to use those baits, even if they were the wrong ones.

Us fishermen are crazy. So when you go to the store, be sure to pick up some of the newest, hottest lures and colors. The manufacturers and retailers will appreciate it. And the fish may even hit it!

Abu-Garcia Revo SX Reel Review

Revo SX Reel

Revo SX Reel

The Abu-Garcia Revo series of reels is one of the best on the market right now. The SX lists for $160 but I got mine for much less than that at an outdoor writers auction. I teamed the reel with an Abu-Garcia Veritas rod I love the outfit.

I have six Revo reels and all have held up well to heavy use. The SX is extremely smooth and the drag system handles big fish. You can set the reel anti-backlash with an easy dial adjustment. With mine set at about half way, I can cast a 3/8ths ounce jig and pig on 15 pound Sun Line a very long way without any backlash problems. I can also pitch a jig easily at this setting. If I want to skip the jig I turn the magnetic anti backlash setting up a couple of notches to avoid the backlash.

The reel is very light weight and low profile. Although I don’t palm my reels, I hold the rod in front of the reel for better control and hook set power, I like the low profile reel. And the black reel with red highlights is pretty on my white Veritas rod!

Although the reel is fairly expensive, it is well worth the price. Abu-Garcia has a reputation for producing quality, durable reels and the Revo SX follows that tradition.

Abu-Garcia Veritas Medium Heavy Action Rod Review

Veritas Rods Picture

Veritas Rods Picture

I bought a Abu-Garcia seven foot medium heavy action Veritas rod at an outdoor writers auction at a greatly reduced price. The rods list for about $100. I have been using the rod to cast a jig and pig and it does a great job with a 3/8ths ounce jig with a twin tail trailer. I can cast the jig and pig about as far as I want to with the Revo SX reel I put on the rod and spooled with 15 pound Sun Line

The rod is sensitive and has good feel for the jig bumping rocks and wood. I can also detect strikes easily. The medium heavy rod has great hook setting power and the seven foot length helps get a good hook set.

The one op piece rod is light enough that I can fish with it for hours without fatigue. The one drawback for me is that there is no comfort cushion in front of the reel. I hold my casting rods and reels by gripping the rod in front of the reel. I do not palm the reel since I think I get more control holding the rod, and I can let the line run between my fingers while fishing. Without a cushion of some kind it is very uncomfortable so I sipped a six inch piece of pipe insulation on the rod, got it in place and taped it with electrical tape. That works well for me.

Since the rod has the rod blank exposed just below the reel, my palm rests against it and that increases the feel.

This is a good mid-range price rod and the two I have are some of my favorites.

Alabama Rig Inventor Andy Poss

The Alabama Rig and its inventor Andy Poss

The Alabama Rig and its inventor Andy Poss

Man Behind the Controversial Alabama Rig

By Brad Wiegmann
from The Fishing Wire



Every angler has an opinion on the Alabama Rig. Even bass tournament trails are divided on sanctioning it for use during tournaments. For or against it, the Alabama Rig has changed the fishing industry, bass tournaments and one man’s life forever.

Andy Poss, lure designer and inventor of the Alabama Rig, couldn’t have fathomed the controversy that his lure would create. Professional bass anglers are taking sides either steadfast for or adamantly against it. The debate rages on every fishing website with the naysayers claiming it will be the doom of bass fishing while other anglers point out there is no legitimate argument that it harms bass populations.

For Poss, the Alabama Rig was a lure that he had designed to catch fish like stripers, smallmouth, largemouth and other gamefish once they start feeding on shad. It was so effective that Poss once won 19 of 21 bass tournaments he entered. “Most anglers were bringing in 15 pound stringers and we would have around 28 pound stringers. We hardly ever had less than 25 pounds,” recalled Poss.

All the controversy seems strange to Poss over the Alabama Rig. “When I was 14 or so my Dad, Houston, a well-known lure designer and builder, would drop me off to go fishing in the morning at city lake and pick me back up in the afternoon. Everything about fishing was uncomplicated back then,” said Poss.

Later, Poss would make a living diving for mussels on the Tennessee River. During this time, he learned about rivers and how fish related to structure, cover and bait fish. He would use this knowledge to design and build the Alabama Rig.

Life for Poss all changed in August of 2009 when he built the first Alabama Rig–although he didn’t sell the first one until July of 2011 for $25. “I filed for a Patent on December 12, 2010 and officially filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on February 12, 2011. We met with Mann’s Bait Company in November of 2011 and signed a three year OEM Licensee and Trademark agreement on December 4, 2011,” recalled Poss.

Also influenced by the Alabama Rig phenomena, Seeker Rods began producing the technique specific official Alabama Rig rod with input from Poss and professional bass angler Paul Elias on the rod design.

Before signing the contract with Mann’s Bait Company, Poss and his wife Tammy did everything when it came to producing the rigs–building, taking orders and shipping. It consumed their lives and over took the house. “The house was the command center where we would build them, take the orders and package them for shipping,” explained Tammy.

Family members and friends pitched in to help out. At the peak of the selling frenzy, Poss had ten people bending wires and even that wasn’t enough to meet the demand.

Demand for the Alabama Rig brought about unbelievable prices on EBay and soon other lure builders were capitalizing on Poss’s invention.

“I saw some being sold on EBay from $99 to $600 at one point Sunday night after Paul Elias won the FLW Tour Tournament on Lake Guntersville in Alabama,” noted Poss. Through it all, Poss never changed the cost of the Alabama Rig, keeping it at $25, and built in the USA.

“We never jacked the price up to take advantage of anglers like others did during that time. We even went up to a Kentucky Lake Everstart tournament and sold them to anglers at $25 insuring that they weren’t going to be taken advantage of by tackle stores selling them at a high price,” acknowledged Poss.

Once the Alabama Rig took off, Poss put his fulltime job as a pipe fitter on hold. A union worker with all the benefits it was one of the biggest decisions he would ever make.

Now Andy and Tammy are waiting for a decision from the United States Patent and Trademark Office on the Patent they applied for back in 2010. “It’s really taken a toll on me, my family and friends. Really it’s just the uncertainty of it all that has me concerned,” Poss continued, “everyone assumes that if you designed a lure that created such a demand you would be rich or would get rich, but that’s not the reality of it.” Copycats and knock-offs in the fishing industry siphoned substantial potential and future income from Poss.

Knowing what Poss knows today, he would approach it differently next time. “If I had to do it all over again, I would build 250,000 of them along with a line of jig heads, soft plastic swimbaits, hats, shirts and other items we could sell,” insisted Poss.

Poss noted that the boost in sales directly related to terminal tackle like snaps, jig heads, swimbait hooks and swivels was just the jolt the fishing industry needed. Sales of terminal tackle was rivaled only by soft plastic lures that anglers were rigging the Alabama Rigs which require multiple swimbaits or spinnerbait blades to rig.

If Poss is issued a patent, the next phase of his life will be extremely challenging, but that’s another matter all together. Right now all Poss can do is pray and wonder while waiting for the patent outcome.

For more commentary and fishing tips, visit Brad Wiegmann’s website, http://www.bradwiegmann.com

How and Why To Fish Riprap Banks In May

Riprap banks hold bass

Riprap banks hold bass

Don’t Overlook Riprap Banks for Bass In May

By Lawrence Taylor

from The Fishing Wire

Bass anglers often fly wide open right past one of the best locations on almost any lake, and it’s so easy to see that even non-fishermen know where to find it. It’s riprap, those rocks and chunks of concrete stacked along shore to prevent erosion, and there are a bunch of reasons bass love it.

Riprap creates a great spawning site for shad during the late spring, and produces the algae these baitfish feed on during summer and fall. Other forage such as crawfish and aquatic insects also makes their homes in the rocks. Just the food factor alone makes riprap a productive bass fishing hotspot.

“What’s neat about riprap is that bass use it multiple times throughout the year,” said Alabama guide and tournament angler Jimmy Mason. “I start fishing riprap in winter and catch bass off of it throughout the year with the exception of the hottest summer days.”

Mason guides anglers on Guntersville and Wilson Lakes, and said that he may spend less time fishing riprap on his home lakes than when fishing a tournament on a less familiar body of water. That’s because each stretch of riprap features only a few hotspots, and once these sweet spots are located they can be quickly fished.

Mason is currently leading the Points Race in the Weekend Series North Alabama Division, and placed 4th and 2nd respectively in the first two tournaments of the year. The tournaments were held on his home lakes of Guntersville and Wheeler, and he mined riprap areas in both tournaments. He weighed in a limit of almost 29 pounds at the Wheeler event and logged a bass weighing 8.94 pounds at Guntersville.

“At the Guntersville tournament I started on what is probably the least productive riprap bridge area, but I didn’t have the competition there like the other stretches of riprap,” he said. “I caught all of my fish on a Flash Mob Jr. with Mud Minnows, and in the next tournament (at Wheeler), three of the five bass I weighed came on the same thing.”

Mason knew the riprap areas like his own back yard at these tournaments. When fishing an unfamiliar stretch, however, he first idles along the entire length and checks it out with his electronics to identify potential sweet spots. He pays special attention to areas with a steeper grade than the rest, as well as larger-than-average boulders, points, corners and other “different” structure.

Mason says that bass pull away from the edges of riprap and start schooling and holding in deeper water when water temperatures rise above 70 degrees, but come back in fall as the temps hit 75 and falling.

“Once the bass spawn and the shad spawn is over, I become much more deep-water oriented,” he said.

The shad spawn is a key time to focus on riprap. All of the cracks and crevices in the structure make for a perfect spawning areas for the baitfish. Because shad spawn in the early morning, he’s sure to make riprap his first stop. When the sun hits the water the spawn is pretty much done for the day, so he’s quick to move to other areas or pull off the bank to deeper water.

Three lures excel during the shad spawn on riprap banks. Mason says that a wacky rigged 5-inch YUM Dinger in Watermelon Red or Bream is a key bait. Not only does it allow him to thoroughly fish an area slowly, but the rig’s attitude in the water keeps it from slipping into the rocks and snagging. He selects the Watermelon Red color if the water is clear, and Bream if there’s some stain to it.

He also throws a ½-ounce Booyah Blade double willow leaf spinnerbait in Snow White or White Chartreuse, again selecting color patterns depending on water clarity, Snow White in clear water and White Chartreuse in stained. He says he knows when he’s in the right areas when he feels the shad hitting the bait on the retrieve, or sees shad following the bait to the boat.

“You’ve fooled those shad into believing your spinnerbait blades are other shad and they’re trying to spawn with them,” he said. “When you see that, you’re fixin’ to get into them.”

His final lure for this time of year is an XCalibur Xcs100 square lip crankbait. Later he adds a small topwater popper like the Zell Pop to his arsenal. Then, when fall kicks in and brings cooler waters, he may throw a shaky head with a 6- or 4-inch Mighty Worm.

“In wintertime, it’s the 4 ½-inch Suspending Rattlin’ Rogue in Foxy Shad or Foxy Momma, depending on water color,” he said, “or a 5/16-ounce Bed Bug with the smallest size Craw Papi as a trailer.”

At times, all other lures take a backseat to the Flash Mob Jr. Mason throws the rig from fall until the fish are ready to get on beds in the springtime. He rigs it with YUM Mud Minnows or the new 2 ½-inch Money Minnows.

Of note: Mason says that in the Tennessee River impoundments he fishes most, riprap comes into play during the actual spawn. Many marinas and bays are protected by stretches of riprap, and bass find the calm waters on the inside of these bays perfect for building nests.

“In our area when you’re fishing for bedded fish you can’t see them,” he said. “Those areas protected by riprap are high-percentage areas for bedded bass.”

Mason’s lure selection for these bedded bass is the same 5-inch YUM Dinger he throws for post-spawn fish on riprap.

What Is Pitching When Fishing?

Boyd Duckett caught this nice bass at Demopolis when I fished with him

Boyd Duckett caught this nice bass at Demopolis when I fished with him

What is pitching?

Bassin’ With Boyd: Pitchin’
by: Boyd Duckett

If a bass could build its ideal habitat, the specs would be something like this: shallow water, in or near heavy cover with quick access to deep water nearby. While the nearby deep-water access is good news for anglers (you need some place to float your boat), pulling bass out of water in or near heavy cover can pose some access problems.

Safe and secure in its ideal surroundings, the bass has an ideal ambush point should it decide to feed on baitfish or crawfish. This bass isn’t going to have a very big strike zone, so don’t expect it to come charging out from the cover to devour any fast-moving bait that just happens to be in the area. You are going to have to put this bait right where the bass lives. You may have to get the bait in through an opening no bigger than a coffee can or under low-hanging trees — all the while making sure not to spook the fish by causing a big splash with every cast. You are going to have to pitch.

What Is Pitching?

Pitching is a similar technique that anglers have employed for centuries when they tied lengths of line to the end of cane poles. It allowed them to guide the bait to a desired location. They did this without the high-tech rods and reels we now have at our disposal. It worked fair then but it works even better today. Whether it’s getting your bait in a small opening near heavy cover, under low-hanging limbs or around boat docks, being a proficient pitcher can make your days on the water much more successful.

Ideal for using in off-color or muddy water (as most lakes tend to be this time of year as they are stirred up by the wind and hard rain), pitching is best for targets between 10 and 30 feet away and provides a very quiet lure entry. Standard equipment for me is 25-pound test Berkley Trilene 100% Fluorocarbon line and a 7-foot-6-inch Flippin’ Stick (at least 7 feet in length is a must for a casting rod). It’s a heavy rod with plenty of backbone to wrestle big fish out of cover with a moderate action for easier strike detection.

What To Pitch

A must for anglers who use jigs, nearly any single-hook bait can be pitched, but my all-time favorite bait is a [link url=http://www.berkley-fishing.com/dyn_search.php]Berkley PowerBait Chigger Craw[/link], either as a Texas rig or tipping a large jig. With this Texas-rigged bait on the line, I face the target, depress the line release trigger and let out enough line so that the bait is even with the first guide. With the bait in my off-hand and about waist level, I lower the rod tip toward the water and put some tension on the line. In one smooth, quick motion, I swing the rod tip toward the target and upward, letting go of the bait in my free hand. This is all controlled with the wrist – arm movement is not a factor. As the bait moves beneath the rod tip, release the line and continue raising the rod tip and control the spool with your thumb. The bait should fly just above the water’s surface and should land in its desired location through a combination of line tension and rod movement. Stopping the bait just before it enters the water almost always ensures a smooth, splash-free entry.

Pitching has been a go-to technique for anglers for years. But it takes practice. Set up some drills in the backyard or anywhere else you have room. Even if you can’t be on the water, you can still be sharpening your skills to make the next trip a success. Learn to make accurate, quiet casts and pitching will likely become one of your favorite ways to target big fish.

What Do I Do To Get Tackle Ready for the New Season?

Getting your reel ready for the new season

Getting your reel ready for the new season

by: Glenn Walker

Its time for getting your tackle ready for the new season

With spring right around the corner for many anglers, the cabin fever has set in for many of us. Some anglers have had the opportunity to already wet a line if their lakes don’t freeze over, but for many anglers like me, our favorite bodies of water turn into ice shanty towns and we are still a month or so before we can make that first cast of 2013.

All winter anglers spend their time tinkering with tackle and looking at all the hot new baits for the year. There are a few key items that all anglers can do to not only prepare their tackle

Tip #1: Evaluate Your Tackle Storage System

Keeping your tackle organized allows you to quickly find that fish catching lure, but it also helps keep your lures from getting wrecked throughout the year. By properly keeping your tackle in a Plano Waterproof Stowaway, you won’t have any worries about your favorite topwater plug getting wet and rusty. When organizing your tackle, this is also a great time to see what all you have and if there are some lures you haven’t used in years, then put together a grab bag and give it to a young inspiring angler.

Tip #2: Spool Your Reels with Fresh Line

An anglers fishing line is the key connection between landing that trophy and just having a fish story for your buddies at the dock. Putting new fishing line on your reels is very important and isn’t something that should be put off until you have your line break. Any time I’m spooling my reels up with fresh line, I’ll always spray the spool of the line and run the line through a rag as it goes on the reel that has the KVD Line & Lure Conditioner on it. Doing this will help you get the maximum performance out of your line.

Tip #3: Put New Treble Hooks on Your Crankbaits

Whether you got a batch of new crankbaits underneath the Christmas tree or a bunch of your favorite cranks need some TLC, putting new treble hooks on these baits can help increase your hooking percentage tremendously! The stock hooks that come on crankbaits out of the box aren’t very good and after a year of fishing your favorite crankbait could let you down when you hook up with that big bass. Using a good split ring plier, I spend a good chunk of my winter making sure I have sharp treble hooks on all my baits, and if I don’t, I’ll put on a pair of the new Trokar Treble Hooks. These treble hooks are super sharp and will help you get more crankbait fish in the boat!

Tip #4: Protect Your Investment

Keeping your expensive fishing gear safe happens on two levels, the first is the immediate impact it has, such as keeping your rods and reels protected from damage and from collecting dust when not in use. Using products such as The Rod Glove to cover your rod will keep your rod blank and guides from getting damaged. The second and larger scale way to protect your investment is to do an in-depth inventory of all your tackle, rods and reels, this list, along with photographs will help you recoup your loses should you need to make an insurance claim, due to an unforeseen incident.

Tip #5: If It Don’t Fit, It Sits

Staying warm, dry and safe on the water is the number one goal every angler should have and this doesn’t start when you arrive at the boat ramp, or even the night before a big fishing trip, it starts now. Take the time to make sure your life jackets fit you and your fishing guests properly and that there are no holes or rips in them. A good rain suit is the key piece of the puzzle to staying dry and warm, especially when fishing in the early spring. All winter I keep my Onyx Pro Tech Jacket and Bibs hanging up so they will be ready for my first trip of the year.

Who knows, maybe by the time you are done reading with this it is time to go make a cast and take advantage of every fishing opportunity you have this year!

To read more fishing tips and see informative videos, check out fishglenn.com

What Is the Most Important Bass Fishing Equipment Development?

The modern bass boat is full of amazing developments

The modern bass boat is full of amazing developments

What is the most important bass fishing equipment advancement in the past 100 years? Is it depthfinders, that allow you to know what is under the water? How about monofilament and fluorocarbon line, or braid, all a great improvement over old lines that broke way too easily and were hard to use. Or is it modern reels and rods? How about electric trolling motors? GPS? Lures or plastic worms? Fancy bass boats? The list goes on and on of things fishermen did not have 100 years ago.

I started fishing in the mid-1950s – about 60 years ago. When I started standard equipment was a cane pole, length of line, split shot and hook and a can of earthworms. My uncles used knuckle busting baitcasting reels. There was no free spool on those old reels, the handle was attached directly to the spool so the handle spun backwards as you cast, hitting unwary knuckles.

Line on those reels was a form a braid, nothing like modern braid. Rods were often steel or bamboo. All broke often and were not reliable.

Boats were wooden and you paddled them. Some anglers had small gas motors that were hard to crank and would leave you out on the water way too often. To fish you skulled the boat with a paddle, stopping to fish, or had one person in the boat paddle or skull while the other fished. If you wanted to know the depth of the water you stuck your paddle down or used a sounding line. But few fished for bass deeper than a few feet deep.

I got a Mitchell 300 spinning reel in 1966 – one of the first available at a reasonable price. And it was a big improvement.

Now I fish out of a 20 foot bass boat with a 24 volt trolling motor and 225 HP gas motor that is very reliable. I have about 25 modern rod and reel outfits, including spinning and baitcasting outfits. And I use modern braid, mono and fluorocarbon line. There are hundreds of bags of plastic worms of any color and size you can imagine and I don’t want to count the number of crankbaits, topwater plugs, spinnerbaits and rattle baits I carry.

But to me the most important item is the foot controlled electric motor. With it I can maneuver the boat quietly, hold where I want to fish and have both hands free to cast, work baits and reel in, allowing me to pay more attention for bites.

What do you think is the most important fishing equipment development? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.