Stasher1

I really appreciate it guys. I haven't tried these things yet, so I don't know if they're worth searching for, but at least now I have some leads.

It's not a scam...they just need your SS#, DOB, address, and your checking/savings account numbers in order to process your prize. Respond with all that info and I'm sure they'll send your gift card right away.

Tried it with two different apps on the Ipad and came up empty.

Some retailers (like the Atlanta BPS) will only do an over the counter swap if the rod is less than a year old. Any older than that, and they'll tell you to deal with Shimano directly.

I'm in this particular WM all the time, and this box of $1.96 plastics is pretty new. I'd say it's definitely been there less than a month. It's impossible to see in my crappy cell phone pic above, but the little "nubbies" on the main body are all hollow, like little tubes or suction cups. Kinda neat. I Googled the UPC# (719339078245) and came up with the Yum Dancin' Tadpole, but that's definitely not what this is.

Not really. They're all packaged in the same bags with little yellow stickers on them saying "creature", "worm", or "frog" with a bar-code. No actual model names. This particular package just says "creature".

While I was at Walmart this morning picking up some ammo I decided to rummage around in the $1.96 bin of YUM plastics. I found a couple packs of these little creature things, but I can't seem to find any information on them... They're only ~4" long or so, but with the thin multi-fingered tail I think they might be productive on a shaky head.

If all you're going to use it for is topwater, I'd stick to mono. It's cheap, readily available, manageable, and it floats. I like Sufix Elite, Sufix Siege, and Berkley Big Game (in that order), but just about any brand-name mono would work fine.

Crucials have a lifetime warranty, and some retailers will swap them out over the counter but they are not obligated to do so. I would contact Shimano and see what they have to say...

I'd hit Academy to see if they have any more Asaros in stock, and spend the other $50 on the best rod you can find. http://www.academy.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_10051_448750_-1

I can't offer an opinion one way or the other since I've never owned a Compre, but there's a 6'6" medium two-piece Compre for sale in the Flea Market for $70 shipped. The seller is a good guy, I've done business with him a couple times now. If he says it's in great condition, it is. http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/99891-fs-shimano-compre-2pc-66-mf-spinning-rod/

Yup.

What about the filtering of posts to remove former site supporters' names and/or websites? I can link to plenty of manufacturers or retailers that have never supported this site, but if I try to mention a former supporter it gets edited?

Do all former site supporters get black-listed or is it reserved for just a select few?

Filled out the survey 4/14, got a pack of 4/0 ewg worm hooks and sticker today 4/27.

Whatever is on sale.

Weightless flukes, floating worms, Trick Worms, or grubs generally work pretty well. The Fat Ika seems like it ought to work, but I've never had any luck with them...or Senkos for that matter.

x2 I've also had pretty good luck with the BPS version of the same worm. I'm almost embarrassed to be seen carrying 6-8 bags of them to the register, but they're dirt cheap and the stupid things catch fish.

There's an old guy who fishes at my local pond almost every day. All he brings with him is a folding chair, a loaf of bread, and a couple cheap spincast combos - one with a tiny treble hook and the other with a larger single hook. He balls up the bread on the treble hook and uses it to catch bluegill which he then uses to catch bass. It works pretty well because once the 'gills start swarming around the bread hook, the larger bass wait just outside the swarm to pick them off.

Braid won't help you in the wind, and depending on the diameter of braid you choose, it could actually make some hideous wind-knots.

My local WM will take a whole bunch of fishing stuff and put it in their clearance "corner" at the front of the store with the red stickers on it, but if it doesn't sell in a few weeks, they'll peel the red stickers off and move it back to where it came from...at full price.

I'm not a Carrot Stick fan, but that ^^^ is sweet.

If you use braid exclusively, you'll learn to set your drag a little lighter and do more of a wrist-snap hookset than the huge bionic hookset that mono/fluoro users typically use. I honestly don't remember the last time I ripped a huge hole in a bass' mouth while using braid.

Ryobi Zauber 1000. It's all metal, butter smooth, has a great drag, and is just dang sexy (imho). It has the perfect balance of size, capacity, and weight for the 7' Browning HiPower it's currently mounted on.

It's my understanding that Browning's fishing products are not manufactured by Browning, but by the same people who build BPS' gear and they (BPS) have exclusive marketing rights to Browning's fishing products. That's why you don't see Browning rods/reels being sold by any other retailer.