mconn11

In my opinion, of all the things you wrote, #8 is by far the most important, because you'll get a feel for everything else with experimentation. It just takes time and some glidebaits are easier to feel/work than others. if you can get access to a swimming pool or a "clearer" pond/lake on a calm day so that you can see your bait more clearly, start there. Build out to a longer cast and see the results for yourself to understand what impact changes to your retrieve are making. Re: bait action, similar to a jerkbait, if you are working a glidebait, whether with reel turns or jerks (which is how Oliver was fishing on that short dock cast in the video), the glide has to have slack for it to kick out. Oliver is giving that bait a quick "hit" and immediately giving it slack. If you are retrieving your bait on a tighter line (less slack), particularly when it is closer to you, it will straighten out and you'll lose action/restrict your glide. Additionally, whether you have mono or fluoro, there will be stretch in the line and as others mentioned, if you have a smaller spool, there will be a more significant difference in your line pickup at the end of a long cast. For both of these reasons, longer casts mean more handle turns to impart the same action. This is something you'll get a better feel for by starting with shorter casts to start. Rod position - Easy to overlook and it matters. Particularly with glides that nose up like an (unweighted) antidote does, rod position matters and in general, my rod tip is closer to the water. You should see some slack in your line though, regardless of where your rod is, with every glide you impart. Weighting the bait - Oliver is using suspenstrips on the nose, and it sounds like you caught onto that. You could also just upsize your front hook. Line weight - you could use 17 lb test with an antidote and be just fine. Downsizing line will allow for more action and faster sink rate. Line memory - Something to pay attetion to. If your line has memory (i.e. twists) in it, it will inhibit the glide and a lot of times turn the bait back to straight. The barrel swivel deal that Jocumsen/Brandon/apparently Oliver run on their setup, is intended to help reduce line twist/memory, but it isn't a cure-all. Rod power/handle length - important, but your setup will work just fine. I wouldn't get caught up in this for now.

Hey SU, I feel dumb for asking this, but does anyone have tips/hacks on how to completely remove the belly weights from the stock deps 250? I can't seem to easily pop them out, not sure if they are epoxied. I was considering drilling into the lead and threading a screw into them to pop them out but figured I'd ask here in case it's as simple as, "use a different tool, apply more pressure". Thanks!

I've checked with Spanky before, but only to try and order the Ryoga parts. I'll ring him again and see if he knows of an alt. Any other alts in the meantime are appreciated!