New Reel...

[stumpthumper]

I'm in the market for a new bait caster and was wondering if there was anything decent out there for under $100. Till now, I've alway used Abu Garcia's and for the most part, have been pleased with their performance. Just wanted to branch outside my bubble and try something new. Also, what's the popular consensus on fish attractants such as Yum, Bait Mate, Spike It, etc. Is one better than another or are they all hype and no bite??? I've heard different things and wanted some other opinions. Edumucate me!!!

[fishtale75]

pfleuger makes some good reels for less than 100 and one at about 110 that I like as good as any other I have, for bout 70 bucks you can get a Echelon, I think it is the best reel out there for the money, the Trion is an awesome reel for bout 110 bucks
Hope this helps

[hillbilly1]

you could try pinnacle reels I got a st10 at wally world just on a whim and so far I's Love's it and I didnt have to sell the farm to get it got it for $60.00 8bb's all alum alumin well you get the picture they have other cheaper models www.silstar.com/guide/sentara.html

[gooseman]

Hey stumper man. I got one from walmart for $28. ;D I don't want to sound cheap but it has worked really good for me. It is a Shakespeare bait caster. It has gone with me on a week long saltwater trip and months off freshwater abuse. all you have to do is keep it oiled up with WD-40. The paint is starting to chip but that is all. It ain't to pretty but it works. Caught red fish and bass plus more on it. Got it at the walmart near the lake on bells ferry. Hope this helps big guy.

Goose

[lakehartwellpro]

abu garcia revo s is a pretty good reel for a 100$.

[swimb8er]

What's up Stumpthumper:)?

For your reel, the Abu Garcia Revo S mentioned above would be a good choice. If you can save up another $20, check out the Diawa Tierra. It retails for $119 and feels like a really nice reel. The Shimano Citica also retails for the same price; and is a quality reel. I prefer Daiwa though for "standard" bass reels. The Tierra spinning reel is very nice for the price; and I would imagine that the baitcaster will be just as good. I checked them out at ICAST; and they were very smooth.

As for "fish attractants"; I've just about used them all:)! I have NEVER used a fish attractant that didn't produce bites. I've caught fish on every one I've tried, so in my opinion; they all work to some degree. For the most part, I think fish attractants are confidence boosters more than anything. If anything, they can't hurt.

I use fish attractants on all my soft plastics and jigs. I'll sometimes use them on jerkbaits or other hardbaits; if I'm using a slow retrieve or one with a lot of pauses. But I think they work best on slow moving baits; where a bass may look at the bait for a while before it strikes.

Also, fish attractants can be used for more than just their scent! Oil based scents will make soft plastics slick; and allow them to slide through heavy cover more easily. Gel type attractants can be used on various soft baits as a "lube". This is done a lot with big swimbaits. By applying a gel attractant to the lure; you make the bait slick and harder to grip. This in turn will make it harder for a bass to grip onto the bait with it's teeth; possibly making it difficult for you to get a good hookset. A bass won't be able to hold onto a lubed bait as well, and the bait will move in it's mouth more easily.

There are many good attractants on the market, and like I said earlier; they all work. The ones I've been using lately are Pro-Cure Super Gel, Fish Bites Fishy Sauce; and Berkley Gulp Alive spray. The Pro-Cure is more of a west coast product! I say this because I don't hear much about it; outside of the western US. What's great about Pro-Cure, is that it really is made with REAL BAIT!!!!!!!!!! The crawfish scent is made with ground up crawdads. When you look at the gel, you can even see all the bits of crawfish shells. The Threadfin Shad scent is made with whole ground up Threadfin Shads, etc etc. They even have a Herring scent:)! LOL, even one made out of whole ground up Rainbow Trout. This one is VERY popular in California with the swimbait fishermen. The gel lasts a long time; even on hardbaits. I put some on a crankbait once; and I could still feel it on the bait a week later. I'm not joking! You just about have to wipe the stuff off with a rag or something.

The Fish Bites Fishy Sauce is a product I received at ICAST. It only comes in "saltwater" scents; but one flavor offered is Bloodworm. Bloodworms and night crawlers are so close; that the scent is actually the same. Anyways, it's a good product and seems to work well.

The Berkley Gulp Alive spray is new! I have the Crawfish scent. It doesn't seem to last long on the baits; but I've been catching a lot of fish with it lately. Is it because of the scent; who knows? But I do know that the fish don't mind if Gulp spray in on my baits:)!

Basically, it comes down to this!!!!! I personally believe that using any fish attractant is better than not using one at all. Especially with slow moving baits; such as soft plastics and jigs. I use Crawfish scents 80% of the time, and Threadfin Shad scent the other 20%; along with my everyday bass lures. I use the Pro-Cure Rainbow Trout scent on my soft swimbaits. I personally DON'T like Garlic scents; but A LOT of anglers do.

Check out the different attractants on the market and get one or two that interest you. If they only get you one, two, or three more bites; it's worth using. If it makes the fish hold onto your bait longer; it's worth using. If it will help you in any way at all; it's worth using. It surely can't hurt:)!

Take care and I hope this helps!

[stumpthumper]

Thanx for the info guys. I'll check into the reels ya'll have mentioned, even the walmart models ;D!!! Swimb8er, have you seen the Pro-Cure anywhere around here at all??? If not, should I just google it or is there a website you would recommend. Appreciate the tips guys. Knock em' dead boys!

[swimb8er]

Hey Stumpthumper:),

I'm in California LOL......................blame Mike for me posting here:)!

Pro-Cure is available at almost every tackle shop in Cali. It's a popular product on the west coast; but a lot of anglers in other states don't know about it for some reason.

Google it for sure:)! I don't know their website, but they do have one. It's probably something like www.procure.com or procurescents.com. Shouldn't be hard to find!

I NEVER order from these guys, but USAC Proshops carries the product I believe. Bass Tackle Depot does as well.

Pro-Cure is offered in a few different formulas. They have a gel (Super Gel), a bait butter, a oil; etc. Get the Super Gel if you order. It's offered in two sizes; 2 oz and 8 oz. The 8 oz is A LOT cheaper and is what I buy. They offer a bunch of different scents; ALL made with real ground up bait, amino acids, bite stimulants, etc.

Take care and I hope this helps!

[stumpthumper]

California huh. I haven't been out that far west for several years.... Hopefully the bite in Cali is better than the bite here right now, at least for me anyway! LOL! I'll check out the "smell good" online and give it a shot. Thanx again for the tip.

[swimb8er]

Hey Stumpthumper:)!

The bite in Cali is pretty good right now and is only going to get better. I went to one lake two Fridays ago to do a swimbait session with some new baits; and caught a 8 pounder. I had another fish that was HUGE blow up on my bait; but the fish missed it. Had a bunch of follows as well.

That weekend, my dad and I headed for a different lake. He whacked an 11 pounder; and we caught a bunch of others. Almost all were caught flippin' matted vegetation.

This past Sat, my dad caught a 8.30 from the same lake. So yeah, LOL the fishing is pretty good right now. It'll just get better and better from here on out.

I heard that a few guys are struggling on your body of water; so don't feel too bad. Fishing can be like that anywhere at times. It'll get good again and you'll be back to whackin' fish left and right. One thing you may want to think about is trying something completely different from what you're doing now. If you're not doing well, try something/somewhere else. You may find out that the fishing is actually pretty good:)! No one is reporting the kind of bass that my dad and I are catching at either of the two lakes we're fishing. We're doing stuff that's different, that's effective for bigger fish; and we're sticking to it. Everyone else is dropshotting and chasing schooling bass. All fun, but you're not as likely to stick a good fish doing either.

Hope the fishing picks up for you; I know it will:)!

Take care and let me know how the Pro-Cure works for you if you try some.