expensive equipment isn't required

[nitroderrek]

i am pretty good proof that expensive fishing equipment isn't required to catch fish.
i probably use the cheapest equipment in this club, and i don't think anyone will doubt that.
i use a rod a reel combo that is cheaper than what most of you have paid for a single lure.
i can spend around $13 for the rod and reel, and be quite successful with it.
granted, that is getting the stuff clearanced, but that is what i look for. 

i know the high dollar rods and reels are top quality, and probably help your fishing a little bit, but for me, it isn't worth the expense.  a couple extra fish a year isn't worth spening $200 more on a single rod and reel combo.  then you need 10 of them so you can have all your lures rigged up.  i just can't afford that.

the one place i don't skimp on is line.  i think that is one place where people lose way more fish than they should.
i always hear about people breaking off fish.  and of course, they are the big fish breaking off. 
i know you can't always prevent all breakoffs, but most can be. 

all i fish with is 15lb powerpro line.  i know the line is more visable than flourocarbon line, but it doesn't bother me.  i know i may get one or two less bites in a day, but when i do get a bite, i can horse the bass to the boat, and not worry about getting the fish getting around a log, or getting into the thick weeds. 

i don't think i broke a single fish off in a club tournament the entire 2008 season.  that is a big deal to me.  i don't think that breaking off a 4 lb bass hurts you just 4 lbs of weight.  i think it can hurt you much more than that.  if you break off a 4 pounder, it puts you in a negative mood.  i think it may affect your fishing for the rest of the day.  i know it has cost me in several tournaments.   breaking off one one fish might keep you from catching another bass, or two, or three, because you can't get that one lost fish out of your mind. 

nitroderrek

[sntsteve]

I got all most all my stuf on sale I got my boat six years ago for free. My poles 35-45 dollors . my sonar 75 dollors, Thanks to Dave he gave me some stuf and yes I cought fish on the stuf So you dont have to spend lots on fishing .All my cost is gasoline for my truck.

[jdunckel]

do you use a leader when you fish that 15 lb. braid?  although, i suppose it doesn't matter when all you throw is that damn black frog!   

[nitroderrek]

i use a leader for about half of all lures i throw.
don't use one for frogs.
use one for jerkbaits,,  drop shots, etc.

[jdunckel]

do you use a barrel swivel with the leader or do you know a good knot to connect mono/flouro to braid?  how long of a leader do you use when drop shotting on braid?  it has to be pretty long I would think.  i do like the upside on not having to change your line nearly as often when using braid, which probably evens out the higher up front cost as well.  i've found I can keep the same spool for at least two seasons (if not more) with power pro.  fireline seems to fray a little easier by the second year.

[nitroderrek]

i do not trust any knot to connect different lines... i always use a swivel.
i use about a 2 foot leader for most applications.
i will still change my power pro about twice a season for a reel i use alot.
if you do not fish that often, then probably the power pro will last a whole season.

[jchirri]

Justin, a uni to uni knot works great for brain/mono or braid/flouro connections. I use it all the time and it's a very strong knot. Although there are times when it is better to use a barrel swivel.

[jdunckel]

Jamal- i think you should post a video of how to tie that uni-to-uni knot!  I don't like the barrel swivel because you have to leave too much room between the lure and rod tip when casting (although not a problem when fan casting tubes or vertical jigging in the river).  I'll assume the knot you propose will slide through the rod guides easily when fishing a fluke, etc?  Thanks for the info guys!

[nitroderrek]

when i fish a fluke, sometimes i only have a 6 inch leader... that doesn't affect the casting at all,,,  the swivel acts like a pivot point, and actually gives the fluke better action... from what i have seen.  nitroderrek

[jchirri]

http://www.powerpro.com/using/uniuni.asp, thats a link of steps on how to tie a uni to uni knot. The knot is pretty small and usually doesn't affecting casting ability at all. I agree with what Derrek says about using a swivel with a fluke, it does give it better action by being a pivot point, and it keeps the bait under the water a little better.



-Jamal

[jdunckel]

thanks for the link.  i actually went to YouTube and found a ton of different videos on various knots.  it's a lot easier to watch/learn on video than to try to follow an illustration.  i wonder if there's also a YouTube video that can show us how to catch fish on that damn black scum frog like Derrek does?

[nitroderrek]

if you have ever seen the show "Bass Pros", there is a section with rick clunn every week with the "art of angling".  one of my favorite things he said on there was discussing gimick baits.  he talked about the frog as being a gimick bait, in the fact that it does has specific times where it works well, but it takes significant experience with it to catch fish on it consistently.  he mentioned dean rojas when talking about the frog...  he said that dean will throw just that frog for 3 straight days prefishing,,, and 4 days in a tournament...  that is 7 straight days of throwing the frog... multiply that by how many tournaments he fishes, and the hours using the bait is what makes him good at that frog. 

anybody else can use the frog, and catch some fish on it, but to truely master the bait, you need to fish it for 12 hours a day, for months, or years.  if you do that, i can almost guarantee you can catch as many fish as i do on the frog. 

nitroderrek