The_Natural

Dude...you got hung out to dry. It's been two years since I had a total baitmonkey meltdown. BPS had H&T Custom Cranks for half price, and I 'dove in'. I immediately took a picture of my invoice, so homicide detectives would have something to go on if I turned up dead or missing.

Am I retarded or are the bars on each end of your name new? Maybe both I guess. BTW...I'll have some of my custom cranks up shortly. No one can procrastinate like I do.

Most reviews I've read seem to echo that it is strong, but has a significant amount of memory. However, buying things cheap like that is a good way to try new products and still be able to get your money back if you don't like it. I do this often....

As said....it varies greatly. Traps are the easiest baits to cast...I don't think anyone will disagree that you can throw a trap into next week. I can spool reels with the 3/4oz LV-500 max. A Zoom/WEC Sweet Pea would represent the polar opposite (of baits I throw on a casting reel). I didn't say the small original Rapala floater because I throw them on a spinning rod as most do. Anyway....the difference in distance between the Sweet Pea and a trap is significant. I can safely say I can throw a trap twice as far as a super lightweight balsa crank.

Nonsense. I agree with Raul. A strictly ran Chinese factory isn't the most common...they may only represent the top 10% ro 5% of the factories over there. Most companies want the cheapest way to assemble or manufacture possible, and there are plenty of ho-hum factories that will make your product for pennies. My Daiwa Zillion and Quantum PT Superlite rods have been mistake free. However; I won't buy a reel that is made in China, or the USA for that matter. I'd own the new Quantum Tour Edition versus an Ardent. I wish things were different. BTW...Gblanks just represents a guy who custom builds rods in Tulsa, OK. Other than a website and probably an LLC account at his bank to deposit checks...he is just a custom rod builder like Fletchero. I forget his name, but he builds every rod. Of course some components are made overseas...like Fuji guides. But St. Croix and Loomis use them as well.

I was making my weekly stop in Cabelas bargain cave, and made a pass through the rod section...and a Loomis caught my eye. It was a pre-'99 Loomis CR723. The kicker was it was new...brand new with the tags on it. I say pre-'99 because I believe Loomis used the weible reel seat into '99, even though Shimano bought them in '98. Who has a rod for 10yrs before they decide to return it?! My buddy Walt in the bargain cave said they don't carry the 723 anymore, and it couldn't be put out with the new Loomis rods because it 'looked different'. Hey...I'm down with the 'different'. Anyway, besides the Weible seat, the older Loomis rods seem to have a higher grade of cork. It's like it has no pits, and it's brighter (granted I cover the cork with rod wrap anyway). It's bitter sweet for me; I found an old Weible 784 at a tackle show in late '03 and sold it after I used it once because I thought I 'needed' a 7 footer. I was young and dumb and it represents my biggest regret of things I've sold. . Anyway...pics in a bit....

The guy who started that used to own/run a site called 'Pogo's Place', and I bought a bunch of rods from him in 2003. He closed down Pogo's, and opened up the Loomis Superstore. He always did me right....excellent prices and fast shipping.

Oh boy...If we were having a beer and you said that; I probably wouldn't have let that go. Buuut...this is a family forum

Yep...they are out of California. That's kind of a high sales tax also.

No Sheet? And I call myself a tackle junkie.....

+1 My favorite spinning reel is about $150, and I'm going to get one regardless. I always pack one in my bag during tournaments, and while it makes me feel safe; I haven't ever had to switch it out.

I just surfed that auction website, and you can buy Cores all day long for $275. Kinda of surprised me. Mods...if links to ebay are a no-no, I'll edit it or you can I suppose. http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Shimano-CORE-100-Mg-Casting-Reel-CORE-100Mg_W0QQitemZ120370595943QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116

As stated, most low to mid-level rods are made overseas. Most people would rather spend the majority of their budget on the rod's components versus its manufacturing costs.

I don't think he's just showing us a pic of it; I think he bought it. It'll be the first one anyone's bought on this site that I am aware of.

There is no doubt it would work. Mike Iaconelli won a tournament a few years ago where he was using a 4" Senko. The bite almost completely stopped, but he noticed some bass in the area that were feeding on these huge dragonflies. He bit his Senko in half, and started casting out this 'nub'. He instantly started catching fish....and pulled off the W. The 2" of Senko he was lobbing was barely as long as his 4/0 hook.

I haven't seen the lucky craft spinnerbaits, but the Megabass spinnerbaits have been around for some time. The Megabass spinners were sure purdy, but I think the blades and wire are what make a spinnerbait. The pretty head looks good, and might give you a little more confidence, but I don't think it makes a $10 difference.

I clicked on the general bass fishing section just a second ago, and saw this thread (which I posted at like 2am) had 4 pages already. I thought, "Oh sh!t". I thought there was a chance it could turn ugly, but to my surprise everyone has kept their cool for the most part. Kudos...

Dude...you can get the the Mg50 for $168.99 after you get the extra 10% off! They only have left handed reels left...lucky for you. The Mg50 is one of the best light bait casters ever made.

I honestly think it is near impossible for a bass to reach 25lbs unless it is eating trout.

I edited my original post. I missed parts of the show the first time I watched it, and so I re-watched it. It is actually the narrator talking, and he said the boys found the fish the day before, but the park was closing...and so they camped out by the gate to be the first ones there. I am ambivalent about the money and rods offer; I think we all debated that a while back. I just think that the story should be told correctly when told in a documentary. Great show though...I really enjoyed it.

I just watched 'Hooked on Bass' on the National Geographic Channel, which features Jed Dickerson and his two compadres. National Geographic highlighted a section about the famed 25lber, and how jed had been relentlessly persuing the world record. The boys recounted the day they found it. They said they found the fish the day before, but since the park was getting ready to close, they decided to camp out and fish for her the next day. In actuality, they weren't the ones to find the fish at all. They had gone back to the dock and heard of a guy trying to catch a 'huge' bass that was on a bed. They motored over to the guy and looked down. They saw it was 'jed's fish', and offered the guy money and Gloomis fishing rods if he would leave. The guy wouldn't leave, and continued to fish for the bass. Jed and the boys decided to camp out by the entry gate of lake Dixon until the next morning, to beat the guy who was fishing for her, or anyone else for that matter. I had to roll my eyes a bit when I heard them recount their story; seems like they left that part out because it steals from their thunder a bit.

Bingo. It can't get 'in' your line without being water based. Silicone spray just coats your line, but a water based silicone spray can be absorbed. It works well....

It was kind of funny...they showcased the California 'bed fisherman' right after they explained how easy it was to catch a bass that is guarding a nest "Anglers take advantage of the clearly visible bass and its willingness to strike at anything".

Just an FYI for the guys that are going to be there Saturday, the BFL will be going on. Might be a little crowded on the lake. I'd love to go, but I just started a new job, and I'm not sure if I can take a week off.

Seaguar spools Cabelas line. Carbon Pro=Cabelas No-Viz....Inviz-X=Cabelas No-Viz Xtra. They have discontinued the NoViz Xtra, and you can get a 600yd spool for like $20 in the bargain cave right now. Inviz-X users should jump on it. Natural, I noticed they have their house brand mono and braid discounted as well. Any idea what is up with that? Are they possibly switching manufacturers of their house lines? FD Fishing Doug- No; they are indeed discontinuing a few lines, but Seaguar still makes the Cabelas leader material and the Cabelas No-Viz.