J Francho

You beat me to it! I was just going to post similarly. I was kicked to the curb by the Marines over 20 years ago - bad feet, tried to hide it, but they were only really taking the best candidates. It probably worked out for the best. I have a great many friends that are serving, or served. To them, a hearty thank you. If anyone is ever interested in a great cause, Google "Heroes on the Water." A great cause, these guys sacrifices are very compelling.

I'd rather a scale that reads in the 100ths, simply for my own nerdy pleasure, LOL. That really boring class you took all through school, called Math will help you through it. This is a pretty good explanation of how to apply the mathematics: http://www.wikihow.com/Convert-Tenths-of-a-Pound-to-Ounces.

I'm with Catt...ever have one (or several) of those days where it seems you really have to pop that t-rig off the bottom to get bit? It took years for the light bulb to go off in my head that they wanted it on the fall, not crept along the bottom. A slight change in weight can mean not getting through weeds, or lingering too long in unproductive water. Too much weight, and it zings by them unnoticed, or simply ignored, which might be even worse. Also, note that different baits are not the same animal with the same weight.

I have caught smallies using the 3/4 oz. Sebile Magic Swimmer Slow sink in early spring. I didn't use it like a "swimming bait," though. I used a series of twitches and a pause, just like a suspending jerkbait.

With line on the spool, that tends to go away. There will always be this tiny amount of play as the roller press against the springs in the AR bearing. Plus , there's no load on the line carriage, and the spool tension is usually set much lighter than when you actually have a bait on, and its adjusted properly. I used to actually dismiss this is as "its all in your head," until a couple of customers asked why their reels felt so sloppy after a cleaning, but that went away when they were fishing. Now I see what they're talking about, but its totally normal in most cases.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxxtEnI72Hw

Its somewhere between cookie dough and ABC gum.

Ban Senkos.

Ahhh. Wondering, since there are undoubtedly some hiding in feeder creeks, if the water is cool enough.

Kind of like supertuning a Yugo. ;D

Don't forget construction cone orange, LOL.

Those pike are a lot older than two years old...

Yep...

If the rules are live bait must be used, grab some wax worms or mousies, and put them on the hook with the Powerbait, LOL.

I'll be working the booth at some point. Might even have some goodies for the raffle.

My favorite conditions are those that allow me to get on the water.

In a pond...use a "universal rig," which is essentially a Carolina rig, though smaller and less obnoxious. A 1/8 barrel weight slid up the mainline, a small swivel, 12-18" mono leader in 2-4#, and a #8 to #12 bait hook. I use Raven brand micro swivels and Blackbird hooks, though anything will work. The other rig for this is just the opposite, and float rig. A small, sensitive, slender fixed bobber, slid up the main line, enough split shot below it to make it neutrally buoyant, a small swivel, and a fluorocarbon leader (so it sinks) and hook. This works great where there is current, or wind, to "trot" your rig through a section. For the dough, I buy the bulk stuff, but it comes in little chunks as well. I like to change the size, and mix colors, but you basically want a pea sized ball that just covers the hook. The dough floats, hence the light hook and mono. Rainbows can't really look down, so you want the bait to be up. For colors on Powerbait, don't limit to just pink. Pink, Orange, yellow, light blue, and combinations of these will all work.

You don't see too many Browning rods and reels out there. I serviced a pile of round reels, very similar to Abu in construction, and well made. Pinnacle seems poised to offer decent gear, at good prices, and from personal experience, GREAT SUPPORT. If you're looking to get back into Shimano, I see GREAT deals in the used dept. Grab a used reel, have it serviced by a pro, and you'll have a "like new" reel for a fraction of new. As far as rods go, many makers are coming out with great rods in the sub $100 range. While the economy may be in the toilet, its a good time to buy gear right now.

Revo Premier 2010 vs. Revo STX vs. Daiwa Zillion vs. Shimano Curado. Of the three left in the list, its really six of one, 1/2 dozen of another. They're all well made reels. The Premier is light, the Curado represents one of the better values, and the Zillion is built like a tank, and features on of the best braking systems in the biz. Out of those, I own Zillions.

There's a few guys in my club that like them for the fact that they can switch the spools easily on the water without fear of losing parts. I honestly don't see too much difference in the drag systems, other than the rear drag is pretty well sealed, and difficult to service. I've never had one, but I've serviced many.

When its a 30 year old boat already exhibiting problems, yes.

Probably 5.something to 1. Around 24" per turn. that's what most of those reels of that era were.

Because he added the under 10$ just now : Buy used is my advice.

A couple of WAYYYY better boats in your area.... http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/boa/1626934500.html http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/boa/1626297411.html http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/boa/1626038640.html http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/boa/1625823667.html http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/wsh/boa/1625741604.html You get the idea.... I realize these may be out of your price range, but you'll get a lot more out of one of these than some rotted out POS.

I can't remember the specs on that reel. All you'll find on Abu's site is a schematic.