Getting Ready for Crappie Fishing!

It's been a while since I've posted but I'm returning to say this year I am doing something I've never really done much of.  I'm going to go fishing for something other than Micropterus Salmoides.  I am going to go Crappie fishing this year in an attempt to get better at it and also to fill up a freezer.  I have a couple buddies and a brother in law that are experts in the catching of the white perch.  So hope to have many stories and explanations in the future.

Review of Powell 703CB Glass

This is my review of a rod from the Powell Max line up.  Just a real world view of what I think about it. The rod is the Powell Max 703CB Glass crankbait rod.  Powell's website lists its stats as: Length: 7'0" - Power: Medium Heavy - Power Rating: 3 Line Wt: 10lbs. - 20lbs. - Lure Wt: 1/4 oz. - 1 oz. - Action: Mod-Fast. 

I have had the rod for around 2 years and have a good bit of experience with it.  The rod is super light to be a glass rod and it is is very good for a wide range of applications.  Mainly it is my first choice for squarebill crankbaits.  There may be some better choices out there, but this one works perfect for me.  It handles cranks from 3/8oz up to 3/4oz perfectly.  The rod says it will throw lighter as well as heavier lures but I like a little more rod for lures at the 1oz mark and for the lures around 1/4 I like a little shorter and lighter rod.  The rod is forgiving with the moderate-fast action to help with fighting fish but it has a good solid backbone for moving fish away from cover and grass that I fish these lures in and around.  The rod also doubles as my go-to rod for lipless crankbaits.  If I'm fishing sparse cover or grass and open water this rod is perfect to throw lipless cranks.  That same slower action helps with keeping the fish hooked with those treble hooks but it also has the power to muscle fish in.  Typically I'm throwing 1/2oz lipless cranks on here.  If I go any heavier or if I'm fishing more grass and heavier cover I usually throw the lipless cranks on a Powell 705CB Glass (available exclusively at Tackle Warehouse) with 30# Power Pro Braid.

Since this is a review of the rod I'll give my setup that I used to test and use every day.  I have an Abu Garcia Revo STX 6.4:1 reel spooled with 15-17# Vicious Fluorocarbon usually.  Sometimes the brand changes but I like line in the 15-17 pound range with sometimes going up to 20# if the conditions call for it.  When throwing squarebills my lures are typically the new Strike King KVD 1.5, Lucky Craft BDS 2&3, Luck Craft RC 1.0 up to the 3.5 (soon to be replaced by the Lucky Craft LC Series) and various other squarebill cranks.  These range from 3/8-3/4oz.  When throwing lipless cranks I stick to the Strike King Red Eye Shad and Lucky Craft LV-100 and 500s.  Most all of them are in the 1/2oz weight range with the LV-500 being slightly heavier.

The reason I like this rod so much is that it has an awesome tip to throw lures a long way but still retains the stiff backbone for fighting the fish.  It's super light so fishing all day with squarebill cranks in stump fields is easy.  And when it's cold out crawling the lipless cranks doesn't wear you down.  I've read some reviews that say they think it is heavy.  I think it is very light for a glass rod and have no complaints in that department.

This pic is from early last year.  I was using the 703 to crawl a Lucky Craft LV-100 in American Shad color through dead hyacinth and brush piles.  Water was still in the upper 40s and fish were barely moving.  Worked great that day.  It was sensitive enough to feel a light bite in the cold water.  Sometimes you don't feel a tick you just feel the weight and I was able to tell when fish were on.  Casting the 1/2oz LV-100 was a breeze.  It probably weights a little less than 1/2oz but the rod couldn't tell.  Loaded up and threw it with ease to my targets.  The 7ft length makes it easier to work the bait around cover as well as give it good distance on the cast.

Those are just what I use it for mainly.  Many people have used the rod for much more than that.  From spinnerbaits and mid divers to topwater.  It works pretty great for larger mid depth divers but I don't use them all that much.  I usually stick to squarebills in shallow and then I use a different rod for deep divers.  I have used it for spinnerbaits as well.  It was once the only rod I used.  But I have gone to the 704CEF for normal spinnerbait use.  I had a chance to use it for some mid depth divers at Pickwick Lake last year.  This shows the versatility of the rod as I threw many different lures including lipless, spinnerbaits, jerk baits and diving cranks in the 5-10ft range.

I only have two negatives with this rod.  And they aren't significant at all  The first one is the lure ratings.  The rod has on it 1/4-1oz. Although these are just suggestions for the rod, I found that lures in the lighter side (1/4oz) were a little too hard to accurately cast to targets with ease.  I am able to do it but it takes more work than with lures in the 3/8-3/4oz range.  It feels like these weight lures just fit the rod better.  It handles heavier lures OK but best suits lures in this range for me.  And that isn't even a big deal most of the time as the lures I use are in the 3/8-3/4oz range anyway. The other thing that is odd to me is the hook/lure keeper. It's positioned behind the handle. It makes an awkward place to keep lures with treble hooks. I usually just end up hooking them on the reel. Not a major thing but just something I noticed.  Some of the newer model rods are having the hook keep relocated to the front.  I know some of my other rods from Powell have been moved.

Overall this is an outstanding rod from Powell.  Keith Bryan is the owner of the company and a great guy.  I have never been treated anything but great when calling the company or emailing.  And 9 times out of 10 Keith is the one who answers calls and emails.  I plan to have many many more Powells in my rod line up.  I've had nothing but good luck with the product and the company since finding them a few years ago.

This is my first product review on my new blog.  A little sketchy but it gets the job done.  I'll have more reviews and posts soon.

Trip to Pickwick in October

Well my deposit has been sent and I'm getting ready to book the room to stay.  Drew and I are heading to Iuka, MS to go fishing with Roger Stegall.  Mr. Stegall is a premier guide and pro on Pickwick.  This will be my second trip to fish with him on Pickwick and Drew's first.  I'm going, as I do every trip to Pickwick, to try to catch a trophy smallmouth bass.  I've caught Northern largemouth, Florida Largemouth and spotted bass but the bronzeback has escaped me every time.  Last year we just couldn't get one to bite.  So this year I'm going back in October to see if we can get one!

We are leaving on Sunday, October 2nd to stay the night.  Wake up and fish with Mr. Stegall on the 3rd.  Stay one more night and head back on the 4th.  I am hoping the good weather as last year when I was there in March it was COLD!  We actually had snow and rain mix on the morning of our day on the water.  We waited it out a while in the Hardees in Iuka but we finally made it out.  Had a great day catching fish on football jigs, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, crankbaits and a good many on shaky heads.  Last year I went with my buddy Hunter.  Drew had plans to go but was unable to make it.

I'll keep updates coming of the status of the trip and also have a post of what I plan to use to catch them that time of year.  I can imagine it will be a good time none the less and that's what you hope for anyway!

My Boat

This is what most of the fishing will be done from.  It is my Skeeter SS 90 SP.  A 16 foot fiberglass boat with a 90hp Force by Mercury motor that will crank no matter what.  I have had this boat for 5 years or so and have never had a problem cranking it unless it was something stupid on my end! (I have left the kill switch on before and after days of trying to fix it my friend Brad said, "Hey man, have you checked your kill switch?" Of course that was the problem!)  This thing cranks in below freezing water or if it has set up for months at a time.  I have a 54lb thrust Motorguide trolling motor but sometime I would like a little more power up there, especially in open water.  I've put a Lowrance HDS5 at the console and a matching HDS5X up front.  Working on getting them linked and getting structure scan for them.  It's not the biggest boat but it is perfect for what I need.  I can get in smaller places and shallower places than people with larger boats and it is plenty fast for me (40-50mph) to get around to different holes I have in lakes.  One day I'll get a bigger boat maybe but for now this one is perfect.

HDS5X up front.  I got it because I didn't need the GPS and maps in this one since they are going to be linked together anyway.

HDS5 at the console.  I have this one mounted on a RAM mount to help with bouncing and vibrations when making runs.  It also get's it more eye level to easily see what's on the screen.

Just an introduction to my boat.  I'll have some more posts up soon.  Hope to get on the water Friday or Sunday if I get my boat out of the shop by then.  I had some electrical problems after my dog Tripp chewed on some wires!