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Thanks, DoubleD! It's really nice to be back with the crew. I truly missed y'all. I hope all is well!

The cams are so easy. No babysitting. Let's get out there soon!

@ I’ll take any kind of bite right about now. Pond sesh included.

@@bassinbaskie I'll take you out to this joint (in this vid) and we can target species. That pond is awesome.

That pond is fantastic. It's got monster Crappie, Gills and Largies. Do me a favor and contact me via email. We need to set something up this Spring!

@@BarryP Absolutely! You gave me your email last year, but I can't seem to locate it. Yeah, I've watched you fish that pond many times. Great spot to scratch that itch!

The Crappie and Gills are pretty special in this pond. I appreciate you, buddy! We should get together in Spring.

Not bad, eh? If I dial it up 3db (something you cannot do with GoPro) I pretty much won't have to screw around with audio at all. These cams are pretty good.

Thanks, brother. Love ya, man! That tail area of where we were on Oct should be a priority in April.

This was a particularly dreary day. The cams lit stuff up pretty well! Thank you for the kind words. Love ya, man! Let's do a live this winter with @Onlyfins.

Nice! I did a stop by Anna on the way back from a convention last winter. I totally wished I was geared up to go give it a try. It was super choppy that day. The little wind happened to be going in the wrong direction. Hit the coves, man!

Zankyou for the insight! 🙃

@@BarryP Haha. Nice video.

@@zankyou101 Thanks, Zank! And thank you for the insight. That certainly makes a lot of sense for certain build materials. I'm going to go ahead and pin this thread.

It's a great kayak and you'll find it to be wonderfully stable. I actually did install a modification to raise the seat, and it doesn't make any difference to the stability. It's the 3rd video in this playlist: ruclips.net/p/PLLdVIS53jYPoI_fc5rgXLSV3D0r4_m6qe The only problem right now is availability. Neither Walmart or Tractor Supply have them in stock, and they are the only sellers. No official word on when they will become available again. What part of the country are you in?

It's a great reel. Paired with the right rod, you can really zing around tiny baits.

Return it and get a replacement. This seems like a rare thing and it shouldn't take any type of effort to get it dialed. A properly operating XCS is a thing of beauty... especially at that price point.

I'd probably go with a high quality 4lb fluoro over anything much larger in diameter if you're going to go that way. You can try a 6, but casting distance might suffer a little bit. It might not suffer, but I tend to err toward the lighter side. If you go with a braid like I do, I use a 6lb Berkley x9 Braid to a 6lb Berkley Professional Fluoro leader tied on with a double-uni. I know that sounds odd, but I go that heavy on the leader side (6lb) because I'm constantly casting around the sharp, rocky bottoms of the Potomac watershed. I haven't had any break offs. You can always use a 4lb fluoro main with a slightly heavier fluoro leader (tied with a double-uni) if you're concerned about rocks or teeth chipping up the last few feet of your main line. Another thing you could do is to utilize the two spools with two different configurations (like a 6lb fluoro on the deep spool and a braid on the shallow spool) to maximize its potential. MAKE SURE YOU GET THE TWO-SPOOL VERSION! I'd also get that Lixada handle. You'll enjoy the reel a lot more with that installed.

You are very welcome. And thank you for reminding me of this trip. It's fun looking back on the older stuff. The channel has evolved quite a bit, since.

@BarryP I'm going to go bank fish on the south branch this weekend with a buddy who has some property. Hope I can hook a few smallies.

@@Iniquity_ty You might want to jig slightly heavier than you normally will. Leaves are definitely going to be a factor.

I've had a huge allergic reaction to ... fall (no kidding... the allergic reactions and hives this year are pretty epically ridiculous, and have been debilitating). I'm also questioning a lot of things about this channel, including my physical ability to keep it going. I do not know if or when this channel will resume production. I might be blowing things out of proportion, but i'm severely disappointed with a lot of factors. I'm trying to figure out where this goes, or if I should even bother with it.

@BarryP So sorry to hear, brother. I was afraid your absence from your channel was heath related. My RA/ long covid forced my early retirement in May, so I think I can understand your dilemma. I've been essentially day-to-day with my capacity to function for more than a year, but things do seem to be slowly improving lately. I know how discouraging it can be to feel incapacitated for extended periods, but I've learned to make the best of it until it passes. I'm still hoping to get on the river with you when we're both on our game. Be well!

@@ri-jm5tn We should try to do so before one of the other can't. LOL

Haha! I am not. I'm here on RUclips only.

I'm guessing you're using a line that has a diameter that can't quite find its way into the sides of the Zephyr spool. The HICC50 is a great reel. I'd definitely recommend the handle upgrade, though.

@@BarryP 20lb Berkeley X5. No I haven’t had that issue thankfully.

I'd definitely recommend the Ned Rig. Z-Man Finesse TRD with 1/16 to 1-32 oz jig head (I recommend Mule Fishing). That's well under your $15 target. Have fun with your new channel. Feel free to reach out if you need any advice.

They are a great pair of pups!

Oh, I did.

Sounds good! I'll get ahold of Mark for some of the details! Thanks you very much for the invite!

Thanks, man! It was great meeting you out there!

... and this happened in mid-June!!!! I certainly won't be ignoring those inlets at that time of year, anymore!

How are you liking the risers?

@@BarryP amazing and i was able to cut down a milk crate to fit under the seat so now i have a really neat sliding compartment for my tackle

@@silvestrepalacios9009 Ah, there we go! Nice work, man!

Hi there! Thank you! I always use braid-to-leader, but whether I use a fluoro or mono leader depends a lot on the water, itself. As you can see, I do mostly finesse in smaller rivers like this. This river is pretty shallow, apart from a few deeper holes. When that's the case, I'll use mono in order to slow down the fall rate a little bit. If the water is deeper or there's more current, I'll lean toward fluoro. I always use fluoro on swimbaits, jerkbaits, spinners, etc, and always use mono with topwater. That's pretty much my recipe for success. I'll be sure to have a closer look at your channel!

@@BarryP thank you for the info!!!! I've been snakehead fishing a lot the past couple years so I am always going straight braid but i know i need to start putting a leader on for the rivers lol!! I do still run straight braid a lot even in Patapsco and catch fish but I'm always wondering if bigger ones don't bite because of the line lol thanks again for the info I appreciate it!

@@MommyOutdoors I wouldn't necessarily worry about braid detracting the bigger fish. For snakehead, they are typically found pretty shallow and the no-stretch properties of straight braid will help penetrate the bony mouth on the hookset. Elsewhere, and with bass, trout, etc, I'd be more concerned with the presentation vs where the fish are. Braid, and it's buoyancy factor kinda acts like mono (pretty "floaty"). If you need the bait to drop faster, a fairly long 8-10ft fluoro leader will help get the bait down to where the fish are, if the fish are deeper or are in current. If you're using heavier baits in rivers (bigger jigs, etc), it shouldn't make a huge amount of difference.

I would definitely go with the Manta over the Outlaw. It's pretty much the same weight, but much more maneuverable. I would argue that it's more stable, as well. You can practically do a waltz on the deck. It's also cheaper!

Thanks Barry

@@bryanbambrick4826 No problem. Feel free to ask any questions.

Awesome! Glad to hear it. Were you out on the Manta?

@@BarryP yes sir! I have part 1 posted. Try to get part 2 of the trip out at the end of the week

@@Ohio_Hobbies_Guy Excellent! I'll check it out this eve! I've got to get out to do some reviews!

Let's get out there, buddy!

@@BarryP Might have a day available this week.

While I mostly lean on finesse on rivers in the summer, there are several factors I consider. Water temp, current strength and depth of water tend to be the biggest factors. I'll actually regularly go to the Finesse TRD on 1/32 oz in stronger (but not necessarily heavy) flows, as they will drift a lot more naturally. In slack like this, I can cover a lot more water with the Big TRD and 1/16th oz without it falling too quickly. It's truly a case-by-case basis as to which I throw in a given area, but always have both at the ready. The general desire is to achieve the most natural presentation as lightly as possible without the bait getting overwhelmed by current or falling too quickly.

@@BarryP Appreciate the information. I seem to have more luck with the standard TRD myself.

Thanks for watching! This was a good representation of how my filming normally goes... minus them damn mosquitos that absolutely destroyed me.

I do... in fact, I got a couple up top in this vid. I tend to stick to a slower presentation in slack-ish water... unless the fish start nailing the slower stuff on the drop.

A little early this year, but I'll take it!

I'll start focusing on the monsters the next time out. LOL

It's purely a heat thing. My cameras stay in "hindsight" mode (IE: running all the time) and the cams simply overheat faster when close to darker surfaces.

Yes. Things are just starting to pick up again. Reach out to me and we will set something up.

@@BarryP ok will do. Is the email in your profile the best one?

@@DoubleDFishingAdventures Yessir!

Have you reached out to Lifetime? That kayak should have a 5 yr warranty.

Glad to hear it!

What exactly are you basing that on?

@@BarryP my opinion of observation.

@@friendlyfishingguy9556 Fair enough, I guess. But for the record, it does very well in swift current.

Thanks, man! No ecoflow stuff. It's a bit bigger than anything I would need in the field.

Lifetime replaced without even batting an eye.

Huh. I just can't see it happening now that I installed the new set. Does this apply to other Lifetime yaks as well, Angry?

@@BarryP watched another review, it basically saw the wheel skegs failing at some point.

Absolutely! This is a ridiculous amount of fishing kayak for the money.

As a canoe guy, I was wondering about the skegs. You'll definitely hang on a lot less rock without them. I finally got back on the Potomac last week. Got some great smallmouth action and a bonus - my first Potomac walleye, a fat 18 incher on a paddle tail.

@@ri-jm5tn That's great to hear, ri! Walleye are a great bonus in our wonderful watershed. Watching your progress is like watching a replay of mine. Always fun, always awesome! Thank you for sharing!

I'm down! Pref upper Potomac but open to either.

@@BarryP PS: I would definitely be up for a Potomac trip.

I personally use a 6'-3" Cadence CR-7, Medium Light, Fast Action. I use a 1000 series spinning reel with 10lb braid and a short (4ft) 8lb mono leader, which is a perfect setup for this bait. If you go any lighter, you're likely to be missing out on a certain level of hook-setting power and will absolutely lose fish. You can launch this bait with a properly set up ML rig, so you can cover a lot of water, but that ML insures that needed hook-setting power on the long distance splash-down, which is where most of the hits come from. I hope that makes sense.

@@BarryP Okay, thanks for the tips I'll have to get one soon!

Despite its weight and odd shape, it's remarkably easy to paddle and tracks VERY WELL. I'm getting ready to shoot a video with the skeg wheels completely removed to see the difference. There are times I'd rather have them off (in heavier, shallow current) as the skeg wheel assemblies could get beat up pretty easily in such conditions.

Sorry for the delayed response, bud. I've been swamped. I actually kinda had the same issue, but thought it was likely a fluke. When I picked up my Manta from Tractor Supply, one of the skeg-wheels completely fell off as the TS employee and I were loading it up on the Jeep. I gathered up all the hardware off the ground and properly set everything when I got home. I really should have R&R'd the other, as it came off during my swift-water float. Lifetime subsequently sent me a whole new set under warranty. My recommendation to EVERYONE is to be home and fully inspect kayak deliveries (whether the Manta or any other kayak of any brand). Refuse delivery if it's jacked up. As far as Lifetime's skeg-wheel assemblies, before you go out, take them off, make sure the pressure fittings are properly in place and re-install.

@@BarryP Minor update. Wrote this on a Sunday, 8/18. On Monday, 8/19, TS put the Manta on sale for $150 off retail ($550). Took a printout of my order in to my local TS and they refunded me $150 to honor the sale price. So i ended up with a $300 Manta! Went through some BS for it but well worth it after all was done