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Event Article:
2008 ISE Sacramento |
The ISE Sacramento show continues the rise of the big bait trend with bigger
sticks (continued)
Dobyns
Rods: What happens when you put a professional bass fisherman developing his
own line of rods together with a TackleTour editor testing out a potentially hot
new bait on said rods? We caught up with Gary Dobyns who walked us over to his
2008 Ranger tour boat so he could show us what he’s been working on since our
trip to Clear Lake where he first saw the bait and actually ended up going home
with Cal’s Black Dog Baits Lunker Punker test lure.
The Black Dog Lunker Punker was
the inspiration for the newest big stick from Dobyns rods
So enamored with
that bait is Dobyns, yet frustrated over not being able to find just the right
fit in his lineup to throw and work that and other similar big, topwater
swimbaits, he’s fast at work at a new creation. Right now, he’s calling it the
795ML Mag Topwater because it is basically his 795ML swimbait rod with the reel
seat moved back to create a 9” instead of 13.5” handle.
The stick features EVA grips and a
shortened grip for a balance of casting leverage and proper movement for
imparting action on topwater lures like the Punker
Code name for this work in progress is “The Punker
Rod” because that bait is the sole inspiration for this new stick.
The final version of this rod
may end up being a tad shorter to facilitate that twitch-twitch cadence needed
to work big topwater plugs but he’s going back and forth on that decision.
The stick
features a hook hanger to hold big baits
His expected release date is
March or April of this year, and it is set to retail at $199. When asked if the
rod will come with a complimentary Lunker Punker in celebration of his affinity
for this bait, Dobyns chose not to comment other than to say, “No Cal, you’re
not getting yours back!”
Gary holds up his new stick armed with the lure it is intended for
Daiwa:
We caught up with Daiwa again to check in and see what was a top seller in
between the San Mateo and Sacramento shows and was surprised to hear that the
number one seller was their Megaforce reel which comes armed with their
"Twitchin' Bar."
The
Daiwa Megaforce offers a lot of
features for not a whole lot of money
This composite
based baitcaster offers anglers a ultra high speed 7.1:1 retrieve and Daiwa's
revolutionary Twitchin' Bar at a price that will suit any angler's budget. A
simple touch of the thumb lets you pick up seven inches of slack line instantly
or impart a subtle twitching action to a jig or plastic worm.
We caught up
with Frank who explained how well the Megaforce was being received at the shows
The retrieve is so fast on
this reel that it is possible to actually work topwater lures with this reel,
and bringing life to baits like spooks has never been easier. The Megaforce may
not be as refined as it's popular baitcasting siblings but it is hard to argue
what a good value the reel is, and with a price point of only 59 dollars for a
5BB+1RB reel I guess it really isn't that hard to believe that the Megaforce has
been flying off the shelves.
A final look
at the affordable Megaforce, the only 7.1:1 reel with so many features and a sub
60 dollar price point
Next Section: Optics and Optical Illusions
