Off season chores

[John Bales]

Every winter when we can't fish, I bring in all my rods and clean up the reels and oil them in the right places so they work well and last longer. As I was finishing up with the baitcasters, I put the reel back on the rod and realized this was my favorite baitcasting rod. I really like Dobyns rods and have several models in both spinning and baitcasting. My favorite baitcasting rod is one of the cheaper priced rods and it's the fury model. For me, this rod will cast spoonplugs, jigs, blade baits and about anything from 1/4 oz up to 3/4. For the money (119 bucks), it one of the best rods I have. Its the 733 which means its 7ft. 3 inches long and called a medium heavy with a fast tip. It's a little softer on the tip which I think makes it better for casting and actual feel. Just wanted to let you know that this is a really good rod for the money. John

[Jim Shell]

Hi John!
I have the same exact rod too! (or I should say Casey does).
My 2 cents for someone looking to purchase one: Buy it from Dick's. They have a GREAT extended warranty plan, worth the extra money. I believe they will replace the rod if broken once a year, for 2 years! The tip broke off last fall, 15 minutes later I was walking out the door with a brand new replacement.

[John Bales]

I love that rod. I am sure Casey does too. Got some questions for you Jim about Old Hickory and if you answer them on the forum, some of the guys going there can benefit from your experiences. When you were on Old Hickory, when you trolled the delta's , how bad were the hangs, trout lines ect? I am going to pour up some 3/4 and one ounce football jigs with weed guards just in case we get into some snaggy casting situations. Brett and I have been talking about the trip a couple of times a week. We are excited about the outing and the location. John

[CHAMP]

Are you guys only planning to fish old hickory?

[John Bales]

I will stick to Hickory. John

[Jim Shell]

John.. I don't recall that the snags were that bad at all. I did not run across any old trot lines. Some snags, but I've seen far worse. I only fished a small portion of Old Hickory, not sure if it is consistent throughout. The top of the delta is very shallow (less than 8ft to just below the surface). I was working the deeper breaklines, 15ft/24ft. The side feeder streams I fished were pretty clean, occasional snags. All bass and saugers came on bottom bumping lure (spoonplug), all of the stripers I caught came on the 3-way trailer, twister tail.

I spent a very short time on Percy Priest. It seemed to have a good population of bass. Reports online suggest there is also a good population of wipers too. Percy Priest is not built up and was a very scenic place to fish. I think both lakes have great fish catching opportunities.

Great thing about it, you have a delta flatlander and a lowlander. Lots to learn and a lot of spoonplugging history on these two lakes...
I can't wait either!

[John Bales]

I can handle a snag now and then. Kentucky Lake was a nightmare with snags and trout lines. I was just thinking how many plug knockers to bring. John PS. And that is interesting that all the stripers came on the trailer.