smallfry

Average smallie for me is about 3 lbs., but 4's are possible on any given day and I get a few 5's every year (although no 5's on a fly rod....yet). The 8 wt. rod is more for the sinking line and bait than it is for the fish. My fly fishing is actually a lot like what the striper fishermen on the east coast do. Heavy sinking lines, clousers, epoxy flies, etc. I don't think I'd be able to throw a 200-250 grain line on a 6 wt. for distance and accuracy without having a very very sore shoulder at the end of the day.

Sure, just send me your credit card number...

cough...this ones probably just a little bigger than the one my smallie spit out...cough....cough...and maybe just a little bigger than the bait I'd like to see....cough...cough...but the colors right, if anybody is interested...cough...

Yes, 3-5 lb fish will easily eat 6-8" baits (some baits more easily than others). In the last year I have had one 5.5 lb. smallie spit up a 6" perch and another 5 lb. smallie spit up a 7" sheepshead (hint hint Matt, would probably be a good muskie bait in the upper midwest) at the side of my boat. A lot of the "old timers" around here swear by live perch around 6" for catching big smallies. I purchased a Mattlures perch and I've had a few "bumps" on it, but haven't been able to hook anything yet (no teeth marks, so I'm assuming not a pike or a muskie). Admittedly, work and a 10 month old have cut into my fishing time this year so I've been less inclined to either experiment or forsake "quality" fish in hopes of "monster" fish. I think it is much like muskie fishing, there are fewer windows of opportunity for the biggest bites, so you've got to put in the time or you won't have the confidence or percentages to make it happen.

I don't remember the exact name, but it is a Cortland with a sinking head and an intermediate running line. The reason I probably don't remember the name is because I am not that happy with its durability. I just replaced it with a Scientific Anglers Streamer Express in 250 grain, but haven't really thrown it much yet so I can't say if it is better or not.

It is hard to believe that .001 inches makes a big difference, but on a .014 inch cylinder that is very significant. All else being equal, a back of the envelope calculation would suggest a 23% increase in tensile strength, so it makes sense...

I suppose that's the difference between "pure science" and "applied science". Very few scientists in any field are self-employed, and many of them do not go through peer review. That does not make their results "speculation" or "promotional propaganda". If a tree falls in the forest and you didn't hear it, did it make a sound? If George Richman hadn't died trying to copy Benjamin Franklin's lightning experiment would we still say that Benjamin Franklin performed a scientific experiment? Of course, the more info made public the more confidence one can have in the results, but in applied science the scientific process (not the peer review process) is often what separates "speculation" from hypothesis and theory. Secondly, if I remember correctly, most of what was in the book was about biology/physiology and subjects that have been covered in acedemic and gov. studies that usually are peer reviewed (and in some cases were even referenced). For example: he referenced a study that determined that pacific salmon could "smell" a mammal in the water. How much of that book was basic biology info was one of the things that surprised me about it. Very little of the book was about how Berkley uses that knowledge. While we may never see and may or may not beleive the test procedure and data of Berkley, there is lots of science in that book. Thirdly, unless the articles in fishing mags I read were bogus, Berkley has made public some of their testing methods which could be duplicated if one chose to. Not to mention at least one experiment whose method was detailed in the book (the one about crawfish shapes with different or no claws on them).

Actually, the book references many studies by "independent" (is a university study independent? a government agency?) scientists...

Actually, I think my dad's uncle may be partly responsible for the construction of some of those lakes. O.H. Ivie is named after him... I do very well on our lakes using an 8 wt. with 250 grain striper line to fish a brown and orange clouser-ish creation on rockpiles down to 15 ft. Works year round, but with the weeds starting to die they're starting to group up. Should be able to start pulling 10-20+ good fish off each of the "hot" spots any day now. There's nothing like a strip-set hook set and then lifting that long rod against a bronze football. My best on the fly rod so far is a 20"-er. I am definitely making sure that rod is in the boat this weekend.

Now, for a real treat, try it with a 9 ft. whippy stick... Of course those smallies down south weigh more, it is from all the Bubba beer that gets spilled into the water. They got beer guts... On the other hand, while the biggest fish might not be as big, there are probably more fisheries that produce greater numbers of "quality" to "very nice" fish up north...

On my baitcast outfits I've been using 20 or 30 lb. stealth with 3-4 ft of a 12, 15, or 20 lb Trilene Flouro leader (depending on water clarity) attached by a uni-uni knot. I've had absolutely no problems with this set up.

If I am trying to match the small 1.5" bluegills that are common in certain parts this time of year I prefer a lighter color. I find the bitsy bug in smoke pepper red to be very good when those young gills are abundant. It doesn't sound like a good color, but the combinations comes out kind of a pale bluish or primer gray color.

All my tournament limits (3 fish) have been between 8.5 and 12 lbs. But there's always a few culls or short, so I'd say average is about 2.5-3 lbs....

I have a RCN 40 that I use on one of my bigger flipping rods. This reel is very narrow and lighter than the other round reel sizes and can be palmed easily. The drag is very good. I have an RCN 50 on my swimbait rod and loaded up with braid. Casts very well. Only negative: Not as quiet as my Revos but that doesn't really effect their effectiveness. These reels have the large arbor spools with the holes in them and they cast very well. If you load them up with a thick mono and throw a heavy weight you literally can cast all the line off your reel. I don't use them in such applications or I use a braid.

I don't know about Loomis blanks, they may not be shared or they may be. But I once eavesdropped at a tackle show as a guy's heart broke when a rep from one rod company explained that a particular "cheap, mass produced rod" (the words of the guy at the show) was built from the same blank at the same factory as his 3X more expensive "japanese" rod. Was the "japanese" rod worth that much more? Well, as my dad used to say, "It is worth whatever they get for it", so the answer must be yes....

...The Inshore's "X-Craftic alloy frame and crank-side cover for enhanced corrosion resistance" is gobblygook marketing talk to make you think you are getting something different in the Inshore than you are getting in the STX. You aren't. Same reels - different looks. ... Actually, you are wrong there. Different aluminum alloys. With proper care you might not need the extra corrosion resistance, but they are different and not everybody does take proper care. Can't speak for the bearings, don't know. Also, the capacities are different and the in-shore doesn't have the magnetic brakes. Not the same reels... But to your overall point, the STX is very well suited for inshore fishing...

If you have any streams with smallies, you can catch them. Any weighted fly that looks even remotely like a crawdad will work in current. Get some bead head woolybuggers in a brown color with some copper in the tail and strip them through a good eddie or current break. You'll catch some fish...

I fly fish for them. Last year I did a lot, this year not as much. Usually I am lake fishing and use an 8 wt with some clouser-ish flies and some epoxy flies that I tie myself. Nothing like a 19" smallie on a 9 ft whippy stick...

It is true. After having tried several option I had decided there were equally effective baits out there at better prices and I wouldn't be buying anymore lucky crafts. Then I browsed tackle warehouse today: Today's Daily Special Rick Clunn BDS 1.5's $9.99 Bait monkey wins again. Is this the same as the RC 1.5? I though that was exclusive to Bass Pro...

I've been throwing a Mattlures 6" perch swimbait. The last few times out I've felt some "bumps" but nothing I could get hooked up on. Maybe the fish just aren't getting the hook in their mouth, or maybe it is pike, muskie or walleye swiping at the tail (I didn't see any tooth marks). Anybody else have a "bump" but no hook-up problem? How did you fix it? 2 things I plan to try are: 1. Use flouro or mono -- I've been using straight braid. Love the sensitivity, but I'm thinking the lack of stretch may be preventing the bait from being "sucked" in by the vacuum-like action of a feeding fish. 2. I may add a stinger hook.

My guess is that the fish was injured when caught previously in its life. Earlier this year I caught a bass that looked like its back had been broken in 2 places. Aside from looking a little more like a boomerang, it looked a lot like that fish: short and fat. It weighed about 3.3 lbs. I wanted to weigh that fish in the tournament just so other people could see the freak show, but I wound up culling it out...

Fuji has successfully marketed their brand and created an aura about it. It doesn't mean they don't make some good products, but it does explain the difference between their market presence and that of some other equal/better products...

Weight is an important piece of the sensitivity puzzle, especially the closer to the tip that you can take out the weight, which is actually one of the advantages to stainless guides. They are probably lighter than any other guide (except the new recoil guides), definitely lighter than anything you'd find in this price range. This is far better for reducing weight and improving balance than taking weight out of the handle end alone. You'll also never have a cracked guide with the stainless guides. I have some Fenwick Techna AV spinning rods with stainless guides and some of the new ones with Fuji guides. I actually prefer the ones with the stainless guides. I use fireline with a flouro leader on on 90% of my spinning rods (straight flouro the others) and haven't had any problems with wear or tear on the guides. Even had one "spark" as it was hanging out the side of the boat and dragged accross a bridge piling and it still works fine. The new lightning rods it seems they've even taken more weight out of the handle area and they are very light and a faster action. Just my opinion, at their price level they are very hard to beat. On the other hand, who cares about price range? The bait monkey has his eyes on a Fenwick Elite tech drop shot rod with those recoil guides and split handle grip at just over $200...

Oooh, one of my favorite things to discuss. Yep, back reeling is a tradition started when drags were not so good. Some people even put bait casters in free spool and using their thumb to apply tension. I've had many discussions with backreel-ers about the topic, and mostly for them it comes down to a feeling of "I'm not going to lose a fish and $XXX because of the drag. I want the extra control." I understand their point, I just don't personally agree. I've been fishing tournaments for several years and I use spinning reels a lot (maybe 50-75% of the time). In those tournaments I've only lost two fish on spinning reels, and I never back reel. One I was over muscle-ing in because I knew it wasn't going to help me cull, so when he pulled off it was OK by me. The other was because I didn't retie after I'd been wrapped around some dock pilings and the line was very badly frayed. I even rigged up a force guage to test this when a back reeling friend and I got into a discussion. We agreed on a level of tension that would result in a lost fish, and then proceeded to fight eachother. With all his work back reeling, he just couldn't control the tension as well as I could. All back reeling can accomplish is letting a fish play longer. A back reeler will still apply as much tension (maybe more), only it won't be as consistent a tension. In my mind, that increases the odds of the hook pulling loose. By varying rod angle, pressure, etc. I can still have plenty of control over how much pressure I put on a fish and a good drag is there to set the "max" pressure. The human reaction time simply isn't as fast as a good drag (and even among good drags some are better than others). Most top notch drags today will apply a much more consistent force and a faster reaction time than is possible by back reeling. They can perform flawlessly in far more demanding (ex. inshore/SW fishing) circumstances than freshwater bass fishing. Try back reeling with a lot of those fish and you'll break your knuckles. That's just my opinion. Your results may vary. Bottom line, try it and do what you feel most confident in.

I've had good success on the smaller power tubes on jig heads. The smaller tubes fished on jig heads are very versatile. They can be dragged, darted, fished on the fall, etc. Also, putting the head insider or outside the tube will effect its action. I've also had success with the larger flipping tubes texas rigged. These I'll usually just drag around structure or pitch around docks. I've even done well fishing tubes texas rigged weightless on top of slop. Think of it as a poor man's hollow body frog. Has a better hook-up percentage too.