Big Tom

^^ Ricky sometimes knows what he is talking about. This is one of those times. BPS Tender Tubes are the only reason I still shop at BPS really. They are really soft and loaded inside and out with salt.

I see what you are saying now. That makes more sense. I have seen a couple Ike rods strapped onto Mikes front deck. I have never seen one in his hands though.

And do you think those LT rods are off the rack? : I guess I am naive but I thought they were off the rack. So these rods are not "stock"? What is different about a LT that Ike uses and one that I can buy at BPS? It seems like a stretch but you know a whole lot more about rods than me.

lmao! R.I.P.

My big question: Why is he mostly using cheap sticks when he has a boat full of Steez Rods at his disposal? I see him with a Light and Tough in his hands about 90% of the time.

Holy Crap!!! That was awesome!

I just found this site yesterday through a different forum. Man, some of those pictures are golden. ;D

That's not a bad rod at all for 20 bones. I got one as well that I use for bluegill fishing and it has been a tough little rod.

I never really though about the age perspective thing but it makes so much sense. Time is going by much faster.

All of what you said is so true. It would definitely make a dedicated builder with some spare time on his hands some quick money.

Make a cast as far as you can. Then pull out several more arm lengths of line. Reel it back on but apply pressure with your other hand to where it coils tightly on the spool. That should take care of it.

I am a big fan of the Lucky Craft 1.5 baits. They may be pricey but the odds of losing it aren't as great as you may think and they are tough little boogers.

I just saw one of these in person yesterday. Absolutely phenomenal bait.

Tubes for me. I used them so much last year and the year before that. Only thrown them once this year for about 5 minutes at that.

Early March through late November I try to go at least once a week give or take. December, January and February lasts way too long.

The guides are Fuji Alconites. I am fairly certain that reel seats are ECS. The 683C is the next rod on my purchase list. If you don't mind, you should give us a review when you get it.

lol...Stated much simpler and better than I did.

In order to get a fish out of heavy cover, you don't want to mess around. You want him out of it as fast as possible before he even has a chance to think about making his escape. When someone says "Heavy" rod they are referring to its power. A Heavy rod has a lot of backbone which means when you set the hook and load the rod up, it is really pulling that fish toward you. A medium power rod cannot do this as quickly and easily as a heavy powered rod. I hope that made sense. ;D

I have two Powell 704C's. I wish I had one more of these. I use them for all different things, depending on the season. Right now, one has a spinnerbait tied on and the other has a 3/8 oz. jig tied on. They fish a 1 oz. Carolina rig nicely. I also throw Texas rigs on them as well using 3/16 oz. weights. They are good for this too. They are a fantastic all purpose rod. Do not let the heavy power fool you. They have a pretty forgiving tip that allows for easy casting. They also have lots of backbone. In a touney earlier this year, I basically skidded a 3.8lb bass across the water and into the boat. I fished a 705C for a little bit and it has all kinds of backbone. I would recommend this if you want a flipping rod. They are surprisingly light and sensitive at their price point as well. I don't think you will regret giving Powell a try. There are starting to be a lot of Powell users on here. They will chime in with their own favorites. Let me know what you pick.

I am not entirely convinced that it is all you though. You said that you oiled the reel before the outing that gave you so much trouble. If that is the only variable that has changed (same rod, some old baits, etc...) maybe something isn't right with your reel. Maybe someone more experienced with reel maintenance can chime in.

Got a big grin from me too.

Paul, that is a lot of information in three sentences. I saw that you wrote that a minute ago and I have been thinking about it a whole lot since. Predictability has gotten me into trouble more than once in my limited experiences. Pre-fishing for a recent tournament, we were catching them on shallow flats. I thought I had them figured out before we went and I was correct on where they were at. Two days later and tourney time, something changed and they were deeper and on very edges of those same flats. I don't know what made them move as they were still pre-spawn and the conditions were pretty stable for spring. We jumped around on several different flats before we realized that they were deeper than we expected. We wasted too much time and it cost us a paycheck we could have easily made had we just been thinking a little differently. We finished less than an ounce out of the money and had them figured out as the tourney was ending. Keeping an open mind is really hard when you can't figure out which nuance needs changed. Sometimes it is so small and other times I have found myself to be way off. I guess its all a part of learning and I am starting to learn enough to know when and how my approaches were wrong each time I go. Thanks for the excellent advice you have given in this and many other threads.

Those are some really awesome looking rods. There are some talented rod builders here.

If I remember correctly, I think that someone else implied that it was as good as a GLX and/or a Steez. I may eventually go the custom rod route myself but I would probably get mine from one of the talented builders here on this site.

Muddy, I have noticed a lot of those things too. Drastic decrease in grass growth. The bass not being on deep points and flats like last summer. The water temps right now are in the lower 80s. This time last year, they were right around 87-89 degrees. I usually enjoy night fishing in the summer. The nights have been really cold compared to previous years. I think the cooler days are diminishing the night bite some because it has been a little off as well. Something else: I have also went bluegill fishing a lot this year and noticed that the numbers are down for them too. Still fun and easy to catch but I really have to work for the bigger ones this year. I wonder what the next couple of months will bring and what this means for winter. It may be a rough one.