earthworm77

Green only at the moment.

Any rod builders have any experience or comments about this American Tackle blank?

traditional bluegill skirt is smoke with black and blue flake, maybe a little gold thrown in.

Avid I checked NBS for you, none in stock.

I second that, you never know who is trolling around on the forums.

Fish for Free!! Win a tournament. Let the sponsers come to you I'm sorry Avid, I do not agree with that statement at all. This might work if your initials are KVD or if you are one of the top 50 but you likely have your sponsorships in line already but for the rest of the rats trying to get a crumb it means very little. Marketability and the ability to hold the interest of a prospective customer are the things that I look for in Staffers for my company. Low level tournament success maens very little in the grand scheme of things.

I caught 15 bass on Christmans Eve last year in about 1 1/2hrs on a swimbait, that are temp was 29 degrees. So as long as the water temps are ideal, they will eat. I'd guess mine were low 50's, upper 40's

It is realtive to where you fish. On LI, there just aren't numbers of larger fish for you to experience them schooling like that. I knew of a few places where I could watch a pod of fish that size swim in and out of the shallows all day. I'm sure they are still there. Since I've moved to Fl., the story is much different. Here the fish have a longer season to grow and there are more larger fish. That said.....generally smaller fish 2lbs and under are more agressive. Suicidal at times. At certain times of the year larger fish can be like that but it isn't the norm. Larger fish are more dominant in that they are extremely territorial. One thing I've found is that if I'm catching smaller fish at a good clip and then the action simply stops, a larger fish may have moved into the area. Granted a 5 or 10lb bass may not regularly snack on a 2lb bass but the fear factor of a larger predator sends the smaller fish running for cover at times.

I use Solar Bat and Costa Del Mar. I like both a lot.

0119, I'll look into that. I haven't broken them down for a winter cleaning yet.

How about chucking this thimg in a field of pads and plopping it along. No bass in there has seen that. It is a good idea, not unlike the Soft plastic Pop-r that was introduced about 12 years ago. I don't think that it hit it off really well though. I can definately see a use for it.

Pointers and Sammies are my fave's as well.

I've been in Florida for a year now. Might go back next summer for some smallmouth fishing in the Catskills.

CrazedLI- black neon on Forge, RoadKill on Swan and Ronk, Pearl on Maratooka, Grn Pump on Millers and Blydenburgh, Black grape or junebug on Forge in the Summer and Upper Mills. Any yes, Micro Munch Tackle tubes are the ones I use.

I believe that a shark is indeed a fish...a whale is not a fish however.

Flech, I run 4 MG's and 3 Antares right now. I love the lighter reels. Not sure what application you need the new reel for but make that the point on which you base picking up a new reel. I am a die hard jig guy although I love the light stuff. IMHO, The Scorp MG is a great reel but the Antares outshines it for jig fishing. I usually keep 3 jigs rigged so I go with the 3 Ants. I took two 10+'s in the past two months and both were on the Ants. As far as drag is concerned, it is absolutely more solid than the MG's....which are the same as the Chronarch MG. Take a look at it, for the extra 35.00, it might be worth it to wait a little extra.

Flech, don't know your budget but take alook on Ebay for the Shimano Antares. It is the Japanese domestic version of the Calais. You can get one for around 285 to 295 which is a bargain for this reel. It is a better reel than the Calais.

My shirt says it all. Kistler Helium LTA all the way. IMHO, nothing comes close.

I am too, agreed!

loudest rattle? =Rippler Jigs

1- Dropshot a Goby imitation for the deep fish- 6-6 ML spinning rod 2- a baitcasting set up with a silver buddy or sonar jigging spoon-7ft med casting rod 3- a tube rod, Texas rigged for the fish on the docks or slip in head for the deeper fish 4- a wacky rigged Senko type bait for the bass on the docks since you said you aren't fishing any shallower than 15ft.... 3-1/8oz hairjig-7ft ml spinning rod 4-slider worm-6-6 m spinning rod forget your faster moving baits. If you can get a few bites on a crankbait or a spinnerbait you may be able to locate fish but since you went through turn over you will likley just be giving your cranking arm a workout.

Modify your approach to fit each specific lake. If you pick upweeds at a depth of 3 feet, use a minus one crankbait or switch to a spinnerbait. For LI, you really don't have anything to worry about. I rocked that place for years and never really had any issues with vegetation fouling up my baits. Just fish it a little differently.

take a look at northern bass shops. Possible a .com. I used to get them there in a pinch. I do prefer the older ones circa the late 70's

The Elite Series ain't Lake Tenkiller in Ok. That said, after a long long time in the business it is entirely possible that a man loses his edge and can't compete with the young guns. Rolo's retirement is a perfect example of that. Kudos to Houston for trying though. I wonder how many events he fished.

Nice job Sirmo. How's your Eagle 175 holding up? I love mine. I didn't realize you had a 50 on it. I recently saw that there is a 90HP 4 stroke available now. I wish I knew. I would have gotten that over the 60HP.