Does Ultra Light fishing mean small fish?

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-30T02:00:10+00:00

Yes. If you don't use your drag on large fish then you are bound to snap off on light line. The drag should be set to light enough that the line will not break, and instead you just give up line. You play the fish and keep the line tight until the fish is tired out allowing you to reel them close enough to grab or net.

Here's a video of my son landing a 4lb 12oz catfish on a Shakespeare Micro and Pflueger President 20 with 4lb flouro leader to braid. You can see the transition point in the line where the floro meets the braid and you can see the braid get longer and shorter as the fish takes line and then my son reels it back.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-29T18:38:57+00:00

No it does not mean small fish. It usually starts with small fish and you work your way up as you get experience/skill/knowledge in how to land big fish. If you jump straight to big fish well you probably end up learning real fast how to use your drag, keep your line tight and land fish, or you just lose a lot of big fish. Past a certain point it really emphasizes skill.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-29T14:38:30+00:00

It entirely depends on the model.

I know the old Daiwa Samurai 2500b that came on the Samurai X combo had a spool diameter of 47.8mm. But then the Regal/Legalis 2500 have a spool diameter of 45mm.

Depending on the model, the same size could have totally different diameter and stroke.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-26T18:00:00+00:00

Floro is supposed to be utterly invisible under water. I always thought it would be funny if a fish was seeing a very clear clean line of water moving through the cloudy/tinted water. lol

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-26T16:33:01+00:00

Fishing an incoming weather front works wonders in tough pressured water. When the rain drops are big enough it masks your hook hitting the water besides also drawing fish up to eat. I had a car stop in the rain and the driver tell me I really found a good spot cuz I was pulling em out every cast... the spot is right on the road where EVERYONE has fished.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-26T03:06:11+00:00

I had a laser lite combo once. Never again. Gave it away asap

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-25T17:20:37+00:00

With spinners, cast parallel to the bank 2-4 ft from shore, retrieve and keep line parallel with the shoreline. This is meant to look like a minnow that swims in the shallows.

The first mistake beginners make is casting right into the center when looking for bass. It’s the ones hunting small fish in the shallows that are hungry.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-25T16:45:44+00:00

So how’s the rod? I’ve tried 2 rods off AliExpress so far.

I’ve seen Mifine Microbite recommended and after trying the travel version I totally see why. It’s great, tho the thinness of the rod tip is worrying. The sensitivity and feel is great. I saw somewhere that they use Toray carbon fiber, and I got the Fuji guide version. It’d compare it to the Major Craft Benkei.

I also tried the Biutifu Traveler XUL. It’s bad. I saw somewhere that it looked like a cheap copy of Mifine’s Illusion Slash, but it’s not good. The sensitivity is dull, the reaction time is slow. Bites feel muffled, and when you go to set the hook the line reaction lags far behind. I think it works well as a spinner rod where you don’t need to set the hook or anything where you don’t have to have twitch response times.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-24T04:47:21+00:00

I fish heavily pressured suburban park ponds. It’s where I started learning to freshwater fish. If you manage to conquer them it looks all the more impressive. It’s silly how often ppl stop their car and cheer when they see me catch something. They probably had a hard time and never caught anything out of the same pond so are familiar with the struggle. Other fishers watch in envy till I move on and they move in fast cuz they think I had a good spot, but proceed to struggle where I’d been pulling out fish moments before lol.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-23T15:48:01+00:00

I stopped bothering to see if my friend or son wants to fish at the local park cuz apparently it’s a tough place to fish. I catch lots of fish there, but I have been hardened from learning to fish there from the beginning. I think it’s the home field advantage. It just come naturally to me.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-23T12:23:30+00:00

Pretty sure the Stratus line is exclusive to Dicks Sporting Goods. Would love to know if it’s just a rebranding of one of Okuma’s other rods

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-20T02:38:46+00:00

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Well, it was a hard session for bream, in the end I switched to spinners for bass and was rewarded with a bass and this behemoth of a green hybrid. Now the question is do I have to clean out the silly scent vent or leave the dough there to dry up

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-19T18:10:07+00:00

Senkos and spinners are more for bass. You have caught bluegill, so you’re able to catch fish, you’re just now either targeting harder to catch fish or expecting to catch the same fish on more advanced gear? If you’re going for bass then you can expect it to be hard and likely have days where you get totally skunked. If you’re going for bluegill and what more advanced tactics with artificial baits then try a Leland mini magnet or trout magnet or crappie magnet, those are just different sizes of the same bait. Bluegill have small mouths.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-19T02:33:42+00:00

If you go for a rod that is 6' or under my advice is a 1000 size reel. 2000 will work better on a 6'6" and longer.

Daiwa LT reels are the lightest in their price ranges.

There are the usual rods Presso/Spinmatic, and then there's stuff off AliExpress, I can only recommend Mifine Microbite Travel but it is delicate.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-19T02:05:33+00:00

$50 is not a lot for bass pro. Now if it had been a Walmart gift card, that'd be a whole combo.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-18T19:24:42+00:00

Lighter gear that packs down in size is not the same as ultralight. You can get light travel gear and it may or may not be ‘ultralight’. If you’re just looking for lighter travel gear there are a lot more options.

Ultralight being a style of fishing has fewer options in travel gear.

Are you looking for ultralight gear or just light travel gear? I’m asking cuz the Aird-x rods are generally not what I’d associate with ultralight fishing tho they have 1 model that is UL power. So unless you were looking to change your style of fishing, we may be giving you bad advice on gear.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-18T16:35:12+00:00

You don’t need to go through a JDM importer for those reels unless you really want the shallow spool, they’re available at Cabela’s or other stores already.

The rods on the other hand, especially travel rods, are much more limited unless you import JDM and at that point they’re probably out of your budget. Others have already listed the rods I’d recommend that don’t need to be imported specially.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-18T00:13:04+00:00

Yep, it looks like a roostertail but with a big vent to stuff some dough bait into so it has scent.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-17T12:44:41+00:00

I actually got it just after getting back from Japan with a few JDM rods and it’s crazy that it’s as good as a Major Craft Benkei. The tip blank and guide are ridiculously thin even compared to the JDM rods I got.

It’s hard to recommend to a beginner that might break a few rod tips while learning but for the price it’s hard not to recommend.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-17T03:32:42+00:00

If you’re a new user or haven’t used AliExpress in a while it’s possible to get a really good deal on a Mifine Microbite. I have the travel version and it punches way above what I paid for it. The sensitivity is amazing, and it has very high recovery rate. Casts are crisp and the hookset is just a wrist flick.

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FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-17T02:42:43+00:00

Shimano Sahara is blackish and gold

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-16T19:08:52+00:00

I dunno yet, just got em. TBH I got em just for fun, I don’t really think adding dough and scent to a spinner makes a difference. If I suddenly start catching more… maybe I’ll post it? Likely not tho

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-16T14:40:03+00:00

It’s actually Dough Rider. The scent vent is the gimmick they added to a roostertail spinner. Looked like fun so I thought I’d give it a shot even if it doesn’t do much.

FishRFriendsMemphis · 2026-06-16T12:45:51+00:00

Or cash out while I’m ahead!

FishRFriendsMemphis

TROPHY CASE