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Year of the Crank Bait Review: Rapala's Clackin' Rap
The Rapala Clackin’ Rap is
a rather unique lipless crank that, instead using a series of brass rattles, has
one very large knocker in the middle of the bait that creates a very distinct
sound. Measuring a very common three and one eighth inch length, this bait
weighs a hefty seven eighths of an ounce! |
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Go clean with the
Simms new StreamTread enabled G4 Guide Boots
Simms has been introducing more boots featuring StreamTread Vibram based soles which are designed to offer the grip required to
remain upright in streams and lakes but are easier to clean as well as help
prevent the transmission of aquatic fish killing diseases. |
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CB Rod Wars Part
14: Launch a Crankbait With Quantum’s Tour KVD
It is no wonder why Quantum
tapped KVD to help design and brand some of their products. Right
in time for TackleTour’s Crankbait Rod Wars is Quantum’s Tour KVD cranking
sticks that’s designed with a blend of fiberglass and graphite to KVD’s exacting
specifications. |
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Wake Up Shallow Water Bass With ima Japan's Shaker
The ima Shaker is a two and three quarter long, flat sided, plastic crank
featuring a circuit board diving bill and Owner ST-36 hooks. This bait feels
like wood, but is stacked right from the get go with current day, top end
components. |
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Exploring Exciting
new Grips with American Rodsmith's President Bob Brown
American Rodsmiths is a fast
growing rod manufacturer that makes use of innovative materials both in their
blanks and their grips and Bob Brown the President of the company takes time out
of his busy schedule to give us the inside scoop on the company and their
upcoming products. |
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2009 High Speed Reel Shootout : And the Winner Is...
The moment of truth. We've thrown all the scores out the window, tore each reel apart, compared components, put them back together, mounted them on identical rods and compared performance statistics head to head. The winner of our 2009 High Speed Reel
Shootout is... |
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It's Not Just About Rods For Upstart Damiki
Damiki made a big splash with us at ICAST
2007 with the introduction of their exciting lineup of bass rods. What’s gotten
lost in the mix since that time is this new company from Korea is not just about
rods. |
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Mythical Creatures, Legendary Baits : The Return of Nezumma
Having only been introduced to the big bait scene between four to five years ago, there are a lot of baits that escaped my initial trawl because they were no longer in the market. During the course of my discussion with Terry that day, one such bait by 22nd Century came up: The Nezumma Rat. |
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Fishing Swimbaits for Delta Stripers with Professional Angler Kenny Schmitt
The California Delta has
long been known as an exceptional striped bass fishery and is frequented by both
conventional anglers and fly fishermen hoping to boat a monster. Armed with a
full load of swimbaits we head out with Professional Angler Kenny Schmitt in
some challenging conditions... |
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Low
speed Cranking Reel Shootout Part 4: Energy PT for Power Cranking
Quantum rounds out our low
speed cranking reel shootout with the Energy PT “Power” reel which features a
low speed 5.1:1 gear ratio to help retrieve deep diving long lipped crankbaits.
This high torque reel features many of the features that Quantum is known for
including use of ceramic components.
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Raising the Bar Once Again : Mattlures Hard Bait Bass Series
During ICAST 2008, Matt Servant announced his
intentions to enter the hard bait market by showing us a prototype bait that
promised to be the most realistic baby bass imitator yet. Now, almost a full year later, his hard bass series is finally ready for consumption by the general bassing population... |
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Still Not Sold on Big Baits? How About a Hybrid? : Deps Highsider
One of the few manufacturers in Japan
to get a good foothold in this big bait arms race has been Deps. Last year, we looked at their oversized shad imitator, the Realizer. Today, we look at the Realizer's longer, sleeker sibling, the Highsider. |
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Sometimes, You Just Have To Go Small : TyLure's Kicker Shad
The TyLure Kicker Shad is an interesting little
bait. First off, as with all TyLure products, each bait is hand made and hand
painted by Tyler Ream himself. Measuring in at five inches, the Kicker Shad is
part of his new series of baits that features a hook keeper system that holds
the hook as close... |
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PRODUCTTPREVIEW : Fuji's New K-Series Tangle Free Guides
Introducing Fuji's new "K" Series guides designed to be tangle free and prevent
that inevitable problem of braided line tangles around your guides. |
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CB
Rod Wars Part 13: Taking care of business with the Falcon Rods T7 “Deep Runner”
While some cranking rods offer
plenty of flash and no dash the Falcon Cara T7 Deep Runner while not
ostentatious in appearance delivers exactly what it is designed to do with
confidence.
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Abu gets back into
the Enthusiast Fray with the Revo Elite Aurora
Following on the heels
of our Revo SX review in
the midst of our High
Speed Reel Shootout, I
got wind of a limited
edition, JDM version of
the Revo Elite in Japan,
the Revo Elite Aurora. |
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CB
Rod Wars Part 12: The Cumara Reaction Rods up the ante for Shimano
After a couple months logged
on the water with three of the Cumara Reaction rods we have formulated some
pretty strong opinions of the new series. The Cumara Reaction rods are the
company’s top of the line freshwater rods and are specifically designed for
fishing moving baits in varying types of cover. |
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Round Reel Toughness, Power, and Capacity in the Low Profile
Abu Garcia Revo Toro
Ever since the REVO-lution began, the fishing community has been taken to a greater
level. The Abu Garcia Revo reels are powerhouses, feature packed, and you get a
lot more for your money. |
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Fishing for Rockcod Along the California Coast Onboard the Sportfishing Vessel Tigerfish!
For those individuals longing to get out on the water but are not fortunate enough to own their own boat or know anyone who does, party boats are a fantastic option. Of course, finding the right boat to climb aboard, with a knowledgeable skipper, friendly deckhands, and the like can be a challenge for those not familiar with the party boat experience.
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The lightweight Castaway
Skeleton series goes Camo
Castaway rods is a venerable
name in the custom rod building industry and continues to design and manufacture
rods right here in the U.S., their newest creation is the upcoming Camo Series
which is an expansion of the company’s popular lightweight Skeleton Series.
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CB Rod Wars Part
11: Experience Half Graphite and Half Glass Crankbaitin' with the Fenwick Elite Tech Crankshaft
Since it’s the Year of the
Crank we take a look at the Elite Tech Crankshaft crankbait rod that makes use of the best
of the two materials - graphite and glass - to give the Crankshaft rod the
benefits of both worlds. |
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A New Star Emerges in the Dark Enthusiast Sky : Shimano Japan's Aldebaran
The typical pre-debut frenzy was upon
us and the Aldebaran was
already a pre-release
star dubbed “the Steez
Killer” and
affectionately referred
to as “Bob”.
Well, the time for projection and hyperbole is over. Introducing our review of Shimano Japan’s 2009 Aldebaran. |
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Low Speed Reel
Shootout:
Daiwa
gets Crazy with the Zillion Cranker
Daiwa’s Zillion Crazy
Cranker features an extra low speed 4.9:1 gear ratio and is designed with a high
torque gearbox for powerful retrieves of the deepest diving crankbaits. This is
the most powerful reel in the high end Zillion lineup and now joins the fray in
our low speed cranking reel shootout. |
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Fishing through the algae bloom Clear Lake with Hi’s Tackle
With all the gloom and doom
reported by the regional news about the so called “Toxic algae blooms” at Clear
Lake we decided it was time to see just how the recent blooms would affect the
fishing at the lake. We were invited by Jonah Li, owner of Hi’s Tackle Box to
join him and fish the lake. |
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Shimano Lucanus Jigs: Deadly and Just Plain Fun to Fish
Two seasons after the Shimano Lucanus jigging
system was first introduced we explore how the entire system has performed for
us in comparison to traditional techniques. We also take a closer look at the
actual jigs themselves and see just how they stack up over the long term. |
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CB Rod Wars Part
10: Crankin' with Carrots, That's E21's 21
Carrot Gold
Since ICAST 2007 our email
boxes and discussion forum have been full or requests for review on a particular
product. This product was touted as being the first in the industry with
bio-fibers integrated into the blank to supplement the graphite at a time when
graphite supplies were growing more scarce... |
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