2. Decide in advance which type of fish your are after such as pan fish, trout, bottom-feeders or bass. From here consider the type of bait and/or lures you will use. Some lines are designed to sink faster and cast further, such as fluorocarbon, braided or superlines. Monofilament is a lighter line though, absorbing some water, it is prone to stretch. Monofilament is the most commonly used fishing line but for serious fishing and challenging environments it may be inadequate.

3. Check out the water clarity, environmental conditions and preferred habitat of the fish prior to choosing fishing line for your trip. Clear water with few shrubs, rocks and weeds, requires either less conspicuous fluorocarbon or good monofilament, unless you want the strength and expense of a superline. Alternatively, you can opt for the line of your choice and use a fluorocarbon leader.

4. Consider your prior fishing experience, besides technique. Does the line tend to break consistently? Try fluorocarbon or superlines such as Fireline or Spiderwire, the latter is a great choice for novices and kids who get bored with losing fish, tangles and breakage. Is casting distance a problem? Check the weight of the line and its stiffness. Getting bites but failing to set the hook? Know that the slack in a monofilament line may be a problem.

5.Write down the name of your rod and reel or bring it with you to a bait and tackle store. Preferably, consult with a local merchant or at least a fishing equipment chain that hosts experts. Refrain from a simple variety store with a sporting goods section. Ask questions and most of the time you can rely on their expert advice for how to choose fishing line.

6.Opt for name brand quality fishing line rather than generic or discount brands. More often than not the brand name fishing lines will perform better when casting, last longer, knot better, resist premature breakage, and are slower at degrading from exposure to elements.

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Now, with crankbaits, stick baits, spinnerbaits, basically any type of bait other than small plastics, I will surely use a baitcasting outfit to get it out there. When fishing largemouth I always have one in hand. I will finesse with it as well, so long as the bait itself has enough weight to do so. I will flip with a 1/2 ounce weighted rig or even as light as a 3/8 ounce rig with the baitcasting reels. Any less and I will go to spinning gear. Basically, if you spend a little time with the bait cast and get comfortable using it, you will find that you can get better accuracy and sometimes just as far a distance casting as you can with spinning gear.

Spinning gear has some advantages too, so they are always on the boat during tournaments because there are certain types of patterns where bait casting gear will not be practical. Some guys I fish with use spinning gear exclusively and will not go near a baitcasting outfit. They always say the same thing. “How can you use those things, don’t you get birds nests all the time?” I pitch and flip with my spinning gear for largemouth. I find that I am much more accurate doing this with spinning as opposed to the baitcast with light weighted rigs. And when I am fishing in smallmouth waters I will always be armed with spinning gear because drop shotting, tubing, or even dragging small baits along bottom, I think calls for this type of reel.

To use one type exclusively is, in my opinion, ’selling yourself short’. Whether in fishing tournaments or just for fun, isn’t versatility what fishing is all about? I happen to think that being versatile is very important to being successful. When the fish demand a change of menu then you have to oblige or you will be left with a bad case of ‘empty well syndrome’. And in tournaments, that means ‘empty pockets’. Bottom line, for those of you who will not use baitcasting gear. “Try it, you’ll like it!” For those of you who don’t like spinning gear. “You’re missin’ out, big time!”

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The Fibica Hook Removal Tool will make obsolete those clumsy, bulky, and expensive dehooking tools you have used. Beautifuly designed and finished with durable materials and a rugged, polished stainless steel tip, this dehooker safely removes hooks, plugs, lures and flies nearly instantly! Take a look at our Fibicawebsite, buy it at a grate price!!

Best of all, these great tools are inexpensive. At $4.99, free shipping, it’s a better value than the less effective release tools. Simply put, the Fibica hook removal tool is both a better product and a better price!

“…it took unhooking a few fish with the Fibica hook remover to fully appreciate how easy and useful the tool is. I can now remove flies and hooks – which are regularly buried deep in the fish’s throat – in four seconds or less, without damage to the fish or my tackle!” – Jerry, river guide

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First a bit about the frog. They breed in late spring to early summer. This tends to be the time when most bass are entering the post spawn period. When water temperatures reach the low 60’s the frog fishing starts to get good. These amphibians breed in water that is slow moving to absolutely still. They are most active during warm weather and go dormant when it gets cold. After bass spawn, they need some chow. Show them a frog and hold on to your hat. Three frogs represent our study: the common green frog, it’s sub-species the bronze frog and the leopard frog. They all behave the same, but their difference in coloring will help with lure choice. Each species can vary from brown to green to adapt their camouflage to their home. Frogs, and other amphibians, are extremely important members of the ecosystem. They prey on insects, slugs, snails, spiders and even other frogs and they prevent an over population. They provide an important food source to turtles, birds, fish and some land animals as well. To us they offer a great bass fishing lure and you don’t even need to go catch them. There are great artificial frogs that save you from the nasty business of catching and impaling them on hooks. The fake ones are much more weedless too.

When to use the frog

Frog activity begins to increase with breeding and feeding. As the water warms into the 60’s and summer approaches frog fishing comes into its own. Usually from midday to dusk and through a portion of the night is prime time. The sun warms them up and gets the bugs moving, which is their lure. The song of croaking and peeping frogs at night should tell you to go top water frogging. Night fishing with frogs along weed mats and lily pads can be heart stopping. All those soothing night sounds interrupted by a violent explosion is quite a rush! Any low light condition helps fishing, but frog fishing can be different.

Where to use the frog

If bass choose to stay shallow, they will seek shade like lily pads, thick grass and docks during midday. The frog activity is increased with intense sun so head to thick cover or at the edge of it to land those bucket mouths with a frog. Frog fishing with an artificial will get you into some awful places. Skip it right up under overhanging trees and docks. Pitch it into thick tangled weed mats and moss. Any vegetation near undercut banks, or breaks in grass cover along the shore are great targets. There really is nothing complicated about frog fishing and it’s a blast. Look for frogs, try to match their color, and add your own hopper to the mix.

You can cover lots of water effectively with three baits. First, use a kicking soft plastic frog like the Stanley Ribbit to cover the outside edge of lily pads, water lilies, grass mats and pond scum. Cast past your target and work it to the edge with a steady quick retrieve. Don’t let the bass get too good of a look at it. Add a pop to the retrieve every few feet also.

Where to Buy the frog

Fibica bring you the soft plastic frog for different needs.

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Our method consisted of casting lead-head jigs, often tipped with grub tails. We used small stuff, mostly less than one-half ounce, and would often tie in a teaser fly up higher on the leader that was not much more than three or four hairs tied on a hook. Some guys liked to use single tail twisty grubs, some preferred the double tails, and some of us were using the smallest rubber shad bodies we could find.

Then something came along that revolutionized salt-water fishing. Around 1999 or 2000 Storm Lures started making very realistic swim-shad lures with a keel-weighted salt-water hook molded right into them. The lures were available in a variety of sizes and colors and their action was incredible. Most of us put away our lead-head jig molds and were total converts in no time.

It wasn’t long before other manufacturers started targeting the market and at this point there are endless variations on these lures. Tsunami, Berkley, Offshore Angler and D.O.A. are just a few of the others offering rigged soft plastics to fit almost every facet of salt-water fishing.

We’re not just using these types of lures for early spring schoolies but throughout the season. The swim-shads are now available to match all different sorts of baitfish patterns from the smallest silverside to the largest bunker – Storm Lures offers a swim-shad in it’s Wild Eye line that is nine inches and rigged with double hooks. They have also started offering rigged eel imitations in ten-and-a-half and thirteen-and-a-half inch lengths.

You will also find these rigged soft plastics to imitate the prey of many of your other favorite salt-water game fish. Shrimp, crab and lobster patterns are all available, as are a number of patterns designed for targeting southern species like redfish and snook.

All of the lures I’ve mentioned so far are available rigged. If you don’t mind rigging your own the possibilities only expand further. There are literally soft plastic imitations of every kind of bait in every different size you can think of available today.

Additionally, many lure manufacturers are starting to offer hybrid lures – a combination of the realistic appearance of soft plastics and the realistic swimming characteristics of a conventional stick-bait.

If you’re a hold out and haven’t really given any of these “new generation” lures a fair try there couldn’t be a better time. You’ll find an array of soft plastic lures to compliment your fishing arsenal no matter what type of fishing you do.

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A series of rigging tips for soft plastic lures including the TT Lures Hidden…

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I knew baitcasting reels are for pros so I was decided to learn how to use such a thing. I also knew that this was not going to be so easy and I was not aware of the consequences.

The first thing I discovered was that you can cast further with it, and with the proper settings I was able to cast 2-3 times further, compared to my spinning reel. With a bit of practice, a baitcasting reel can also allow you to hit certain spots with very good accuracy. The design allows you to slow down or stop the reel from letting out more line with your thumb. Where as a spinning or spincasting reel, your only options are to reel to lock the spool to stop or tilt your rod up to slow down.

Baitcaster reels are great, because you can use them for various types of fishing. Crankbaits, spinners, top waters are no match for you if you manage to master a baitcaster reel. Basically, it’s great for any lure that is 3/8 oz or heavier, such as crank baits and spinner baits. For plastics and live bait, I find it too light to take advantage of the extra distance and more fitted for a spinning reel. The only exception to this is if you are flipping tubes and other plastics in the weeds. Flipping just doesn’t work well with spinning and spincasting reels as it doesn’t offer enough control, so if you plan to do a bit of flipping a baitcasting reel is the way to go.

There are round baitcasting reels and flat baitcasting reels. I prefer the flat ones as my thumbs fits more comfortable in it.

First problem you encounter when you try to use a baitcasting reel is backlashes or bird’s nest. It is very hard to master and I do not lie one bit. When using a baitcaster reel, there is no obstacle to stop the line from coming off the reel (other then your thumb). When this happens too fast, it becomes a nightmare.

First rule to apply in order to prevent your line from coming off the reel is thumb control. Use your thumb to control the output of the line. By practice, you will learn to control it and feel it very well, but only if you do not get frustrated by it in the first place.

One important advice is to be cautious when using a baitcaster reel in conditions of heavy winds. Even skilled anglers can backlash in such a situation. You can use brake magnets and other feature to avoid it, but it may greatly reduce the distance you can cast. You may also need to make minor adjustments to the reel speed if you are changing lures that weight differently.

If you are used to fishing with another type of reel, always take it with you when you go fishing. Do not rely only on the baitcaster reel at first, because fixing backlashes half the time you’re in the waters is not very fun. If something like this occurs, you will be more than tempted to get rid of the baitcaster reel, by throwing it in the garbage can or, eventually, in the lake.

I won’t recommend someone new to fishing to use a baitcasting reel but, I do believe that the baitcasting reel is the best reel to go if you are serious about fishing.

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Baitcasting reels give anglers more control over lure placement than other types of reels.  They enable you to place lures right up next to logs, within inches of the shoreline, or right in the middle of heavy cover.  Unfortunately, baitcasters also have a reputation for being more difficult to use than other types of reels.  However, with the proper technique, correct reel settings and state-of-the-art equipment, any angler can learn to use a baitcaster like a pro.

The firest step to successful baitcasting is to hold the reel properly.  Many anglers assume they should hold the rod so that the reel faces them in an upright position, but that’s not correct.  After pressing the freespool button, hold the spool in place with your thumb and turn the rod sideways so the reel’s handle faces upward.  The reel should stay this way throughout the cast.

Begin releasing thumb pressure about halfway through your forward casting motion to let line out.  To prevent backlashes in the line, you must apply just enough pressure on the spool with your thumb as the lure flies through the air so that the rotating speed of the spool never exceeds the speed of the line coming off of it.

The ability to apply the right amount of thumb pressure is primarily a function of practice, but you can also reduce backlashes if you set the reel’s braking system properly.  Most baitcasting reels have centrifugal braking systems.  The brakes are activated by the spinning action of the reel’s spool.  The faster the spool spins, the more tension the brakes apply to it.  Think of it as a sort of an automatic thumb.

To set the system, turn the brake knob tightly clockwise, then press the freespool button. Your lure will not descend. Now turn the brake knob slowly counter-clockwise until the lure starts to fall. Fine-tune the knob so the lure falls slowly, without having to jiggle the rod, when you take your thumb off the spool. Remember that you must repeat the process whenever you tie on a new lure with a different weight.

Although a help, the ability of centrifugal brakes to prevent backlashes is limited.

In recent years, however, newer reels have been developed with magnetic spool braking systems that minimize backlashes far better than the older centrifugal systems. Many newer reels have internal magnets that exert precisely the right amount of tension on the spool during a cast. Magnetic brakes are more effective way at automatically increasing or decreasing drag at different spool speeds so the line has less tendency to get out of control.

Like centrifugal brakes, magnetic brakes are adjustable. How much control you should apply depends on your skill level and the conditions under which you are fishing. If you’re just learning to cast, you’ll probably want to set the reel for a high degree of magnetic tension. Once you get the hang of it you can select a looser setting, which will enable you to cast further. Also, if you’re using heavy lures or casting into the wind you might want to increase the magnetic control because these conditions have more potential to create backlash in the line.

Even though magnetic braking systems are more advanced, many anglers still prefer centrifugal brakes in certain situations. That’s why some baitcasters feature both systems. You can operate the reel’s magnetic or centrifugal brakes independently or use them in conjunction with each other. Whether you need tight automatic braking or you want to control most of the tension yourself, there’s a setting for every condition and skill level.

So put aside your fears of using a baitcasting reel and get the tackle that will improve your fishing success.

With the right equipment and a little practice, you too will be casting like a pro.

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OK, you have a new baitcasting reel just out of the box. You have your new baitcast fishing rod (or old one). You have placed the reel on your rod and you have spooled your favorite line on to it. Now you take and add a casting plug to it.

Just a side note here.
This is were a lot of anglers go wrong, in learning how to use a baitcasting reel and rod. Not following the manufacturers ratings. They read so much on the forums about this and that baitcasting reel throwing super light lures and using super light lines. That they tend to forget that you have to use what has been suggested by the manufactures. They are the ones that know the gear that the angler is using and how to rate it. For example if your reel is rated at 14lb. test and you place 8lb. test on it, and, place it on a rod that is rated for max 10 – 17lb. test, then place a practice plug that is lighter than the lure rating on the rod. You basically have an out of tune system.

Now if you take a reel rated for 14lb line spool that weight on it, mount that reel to a rod rated for 14lb test, then add a practice plug in the higher end of the rods lure rating. You would then have a balanced system to learn on. I know that the title of this is Basic Baitcast Reel Setup 101. But you can not setup a baitcasting reel on a system that is all over the placed on what you the angler thinks it should be. Now from this point I would hope that you have taken my advise and setup your system properly.

Ok now enough of that because now you want an answer to Bait-cast Reel Setup. So lets get to it

First we want to cover the braking systems. If you have an old Abu Garcia C when you remove the spool you see the (2) two blocks sitting on the post, remove these for now.
If you have a newer Daiwa reel take and set your magnet dial to zero. If you are using a newer Shimano reel use your turnkey dial to access your spools brakes and turn them off. Now if you are using a newer Quantum reel take and set your brake dial to “Free”

Next we need to set the cast control. That is the knob just under the crank handle.

I would set that tight for now.

Now let’s examine the free spool release systems. On the left is a push button system. On the right is a thumbar system.

When you are asked to hit the free spool, you will push the button or thumbar and slide your thumb down onto the spool to hold the spool from turning.

Disclaimer: This is just a starting point for beginners and is not etched in stone..
Ok you have the reel spooled up and the mounted to the rod, the line is threaded through the guides and you have tied on the appropriate weight practice plug. You are now going to peel off enough line to hang your practice plug 6″ from the rod’s tip. Now you hit the free spool and lightly shake the rod’s tip, and lifting your thumb so that the line can peel. If the lure doesn’t fall to the ground or floor, the cast control cap should be loosened by a half turn and repeat the process.

Now you have re-adjusted your cast control. Set the plug at the 6″ mark again and repeat the process. Do this until you have the plug falling to the ground or floor without the spool turning more than 1/2 turn. For a beginner I would set the cast control tighter so that when the plug hits the ground or floor without the spool turning more than 1/4 turn (that’s pretty tight).
Note: It doesn’t take much of a turn per try to get any adjustment from a properly maintained cast control. If you get the cast control cap too loose you will have to use your thumb to stop the spool from turning (it will be your first experience thumbing or feathering the spool, you will be practicing this next) and causing a birds nest.

Ok once you get the plug to fall to the ground or floor and the spools rotation stops at 1/4 – 1/2 turn consistently (more than once), you have achieved the correct cast control starting place for the weight practice plug or lure you intend to use.

Now it is time to go back to your brakes, whether they are magnetic, centrificale, or other, you now want to set them at about 50%. On a centrificale brake I would set it to an even number to start. On a magnetic brake system I would start at 5 on the dial. For those of you that have to remove the side plate to set your brakes, set them and replace the plate. You should now have the cast control and brakes set for the weight of the practice plug or lure you intend to use.

How To Get A Smart Thumb
The most important part of casting a bait caster is a smart thumb. Your thumb lightly rides on the spool of line and controls it (Feathering), so you must educate your thumb. You can do this by practicing while your watching TV. Tie on a good heavy practice plug or lead weight, and sit down. Loosen up the cast control knob until the weight drops freely, and use your thumb (feathering) to slow/stop it just before it hits the floor. Do this over and over until you get the feel for feathering the spool with your thumb and stopping the weight just before it reaches the floor. Once you feel comfortable feathering the spool and not causing backlashes, reset the cast control knob to the practice plug weight as before. Because now your going to take your outfit outside and start practicing casting it.

Time To Cast Your Practice Plug.
Don’t try to hit the garage door across the street. Don’t try to get the bait to the next county. Easy does it the first few times. Pick a spot or target. Set the practice plug or lure at 6″ from the tip (before every cast). Take your outfit and make a short lob type cast to it. Swing your whole arm, don’t try to snap the rod tip with your wrist. The reason for casting like this to start, is that you want the spool to start spinning slowly and evenly. A lob cast (controlled roll cast) will do this. Using a snap cast (hard overhead for distance) will make the spool start spinning fast from the beginning, almost guaranteeing a backlash.

Keep casting like this until you feel comfortable and are hitting the target you picked, then moving further away, start making longer and longer cast. Gradually loosen up on the cast control knob until you have to stop the spool with your thumb, just like you practiced (watching TV). Once you get confident using the exact to heavier weight practice plug, try lighter weights and learn different ways to cast.

A tip : “The reel should be vertical, with the handle facing up, at the end of the cast”.

I hope this has helped you setup your baitcasting reel, and with casting practice you will be hauling in those lunkers in no time

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