Out of all the setups I use regularly, only one is a casting rod. The rest are all spinning rods. All the pros and most of the people I see online have the exact opposite arsenal. I like spinning reels because they don't backlash, I can lend them to people who don't have baitcaster experience, I can throw lighter weights easier, and I can get a good spinning reel for less than what I pay for an equally good baitcaster. (With that said I have a Daiwa Fuego CT on a 13 Fate Black rod and I love using it as much as my spinning setups, I just don't have an entire lineup to match)

I don't struggle to catch fish (at least not that I know of) or have fun fishing using spinning gear, but I can't help feel like I'm doing it wrong. Is only using spinning gear wrong? Do baitcasters make that big of a difference?

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by PearlTrade

Went fishing yesterday, been fishing this 10 acre lake 35 years. Rare to catch a fish, none on fish finder. Was in my small Bass Hunter, when got to bank, had to step out in edge of water (about a foot). Got home & my legs were burning, very uncomfortable, could not find anything that stopped burning. (happened last year, just thought I into poison ivy, no where near as bad. Funny things that I think about now- no fish/ typically great lake, water was crystal clear, has always been dingy The bottom if lake in shallow areas looked like copper. Typically lot of Canadian geese & ducks-- none ---have not been there since last time that similar happened. Any ideas

I am a big fan of Minn Kota and this is just about a problem I had.
Boat came factory with 45 lb thrust TM, upgraded to a 80lb thrust and used the quick mount.
Hit a submerged tree or branch.
As you can see in the photo, just a 6"x 4" block is all that is actually bolted to the boat, all the torque and forces are concentrated on that small area. This was a problem, causing 2 cracked welds and 2 cracks in the bow plate.
If you own an aluminum boat with a small area to mount a trolling motor, you may want to do some reinforcement first.
My boat is at the welding shop now getting the cracks repaired and a piece of aluminum plate welded in.
Like I said, Not a problem with Minn Kota, this is my fault, just wanted to share what happened.