SirSnookalot

I would use a med or mh rod, don't need a heavy from the beach.

I have no objection to use any knot whether it be the basic ones I use or more sophisticated ones, as long as it holds. In the event I have a continuing knot issue, I'm changing the line not my knots. I'm sticking with outdated knots, lines, rods and reels but still banging out real nice fish, why change?

I don't get questioned, in fact my wife mentioned to me last month that I was running out of rack space and I need to make another rack for new equipment. A few days later she said, you ought buy yourself a nice fly rod and reel to use at the beach.

I've never really looked at my watch to time a fight. I've had many a fish that the fight time has been quite long. Not my largest fish or the longest time, but my hardest offshore catch was a 100# amberjack, my hardest inshore would have been a tarpon maybe 70# off the beach running after it well over 1/4 mile.

People that C & R do not want to harm a fish regardless of species, I try and treat them all well but I do not put any of them on a pedestal. Fish are going to get hooked in places other than the lip, we can't always control that. Fishing is a blood sport, I don't get emotional over fish that doesn't survive, if I did I wouldn't be fishing at all. Even a cleanly hooked and released fish there is no guarantee on what happens once it disappears from sight.

I actually made a post yesterday but deleted it, I was having trouble being tactful regarding the gear. As derekxec said it's ok and his advice is pretty solid. One of the reasons I have a number of inshore setups is because I fish for snook (other species too) in a number of different places where I favor I set up over another. This time of year it's the beach almost every morning, the important thing about snook fishing is just understanding them in relationship to the tide and weather. Snook fishing is like any other kind of fishing, it's 50/50, either you catch them or you don't. At least on the Atlantic side your going to see 99 spinning reels vs 1 b/c, just the way it is, but use what you have for a few outings. From the beach you don't really need a heavy rod, I prefer a 7'6 med, one of my good buddies uses a 7' 6-12 rod which IMO is a ml and catches many a 20 pounder, but he's 25 years younger than me, lol. I would be using smaller baits, jerk shads on 1/4 oz. head, 1/4-1/2 oz. feathers and spoons, I would stay away from hard jerkbaits if the water is low as it will scrap the bottom, snook are caught in the trough. I find 15# braid to work well for me with a 30# leader, your knot is very critical. Catching fish from the beach is very difficult to explain how much harder fish fight, they're almost immovable in the trough and you just may hook something more formidable like a jack that you may have run after a few hundred yards. Pretty hard to beat catching a great fish off the beach.

You may call professional fishing a sport if you like, but to call the anglers athletes is a bit of stretch. Watching the U.S. Tennis open those athletes put on an awesome display strength and stamina over a 2-5 hour match with only a few pauses. Tri athletes are amazing, swimming, biking and topping it off with a marathon run.

My bass fishing as far as really targeting them is done only in the winter months, once in a while I'll go for peas and snakeheads. My main focus is saltwater, inshore and offshore which I do every day. Snook are probably my favorite everyday fish followed very closely by barracuda being the most finicky fish I specifically target. Offshore an amberjack tops my list, inshore it's a permit.

Nothing cut and dried as I fish for many different species in both freshwater and salt, both open water and heavily vegetated areas. I do like my main line/leader "chain" to be close in strength, being a braid user I go by the apx. breaking point rather than the labeled pound test. With the ever increasing strength of braided lines I'm in the process of respooling everything down a notch, my 20's are becoming 15 and my 15's are becoming 10.

Not a bad idea for starting. Not knowing how much you have been fishing don't know what your skill level is. If you are intermediate or advance, you don't need advice you should already know what you want. Assuming you are beginner taking baby steps and buy 1 decent outfit and really learning how to use it before going on to the next step. Having 3 set ups there is just too much urge to use them all and master none of them.

I don't set my drag until I'm ready to make the first cast, I know where I want by feel. Seldom do I adjust the drag in freshwater fishing, not the case with some other fish. I can change pressure by moving the rod to a different angle, or put pressure on with my hand without ever touching the drag knob, even break a lure off when I know there is no chance of landing a fish. Star drags on convention reels are a thing of the past for me, once I got used to a lever drag.

That's an equity membership where your "share" makes you a minority owner. Your share value can increase over time, most popular clubs have a waiting list as membership is limited to a certain number.

I can only address spinning, using 10,15, and 20# lines it's true that some of the older braids make a bit of noise. This noise issue does not happen on every combo I use, my freshwater ones seem to be quiet. Some of the noise I do get is in the 20# size on my saltwater combos, if I feel it's excessive I make sure my roller and bearing are cleaned and oiled, that's a help, also holding the rod at a slightly different angle. The older lines have proven to me that they handle my fish and tie a good knot, IMO the 2 most important things a line is supposed to do. I recently spooled 10# PP slick, it does cast real nice, it's quiet and I like it so far, but it hasn't been tested for me. Catching a handful of 5 pound fish on 10# braid is not a test of how good or bad a line is. Jury is going to be out until I catch a number of 15# fish, will see the knot holding ability and line strength given the test of time. Question still remains, is worth the extra few bucks...............I don't know yet.

Mr. Ghotti, I have 100% confidence that you are not the problem, no doubt you will figure it out.

A fish doesn't know it's in private waters and subject to the same variables as a fish in public waters, but I do think you have a better chance based on less pressure if for no other reason. I'm going to spend x number of dollars fishing, it would't bother me in the least to spend it where I could have the memory of a lifetime, I'd look forward to it. I've had great memories at my local beach, backpacked into the Canadian wilderness, been on the flats with guides and offshore charters, none of it comes for free. A place like Kingfisher is just another place to drop some coin, it looks fantastic me.

^Without any doubt.^ I use 8 & 2 wraps for 10,15 and 20# braids. I take one more step when I'm targeting fish like permit or tarpon and that's a second wrap before I cinch it down. Other knots will work equally as well. Additionally I always use a leader with a double wrap loopknot to the lure, another knot that won't fail. Mr. Ghotti is an experienced fisherman, he knows how to tie a knot and set the drag, and the knots that he tried should have worked fine. Leaves the line as the problem, but I would make that second wrap on the improved clinch before I respool, it may just work out fine. Singeing the tag is a great idea, I always do because I don't cut braid I burn it.

It actually does get cold in the Sahara at night. I own both those reels each have 10# braid. IMO the windknots were a result of the first guide being too small and casting too hard, new guide and ease it up.............problem solved. Breakoffs, that's interesting, how big were the fish? Only 4 things come to mind, poorly tied knot, wrong knot, bad line, drag to tight. Breakoffs on hookset or lifting 5# fish out of the water? My knots do not break using 10# braid and catching crevalles over 10#. I can't comment on your line as I've never used it, my knot is an improved clinch using PP. Considering the fact you are an experienced fisherman, I'd say the line is crap.

Just about every major brand I've used has proven itself for my kind of fishing. It's mostly PP as I can buy it anywhere at any time of the day. I don't worry about the strength as most major brands are breaking 40-50% over the label, knot holding ability is something to take notice of, a double wrapped improved clinch holds like a vice. I use 10, 15 and 20# lines, works well for fish that I target. Just given the few different preference opinions on this thread alone, I don't see how any claim can be made that one is the best, it's only line.

You haven't mentioned what you are using b/c or spinning. Either way max distance is primarily a combination of rod, lure profile, line and technique. In most cases a saltwater fisherman will make long flowing casts (not snap casts), they do go further with more ease and less likely to get windknots if using braid. The knots can be caused by line coming off the spool too fast and hitting the first guide. The furthest casting lures I have ever used are ones I'm using now, nothing new just have gotten real popular as of late with the saltwater guys. There called sling jigs, jig fish, and a variety of other names. http://www.seastriker.com/lures/lures_files/jigfish.htm You want distance this will cast past any spoon, they flat out catch anything that swims by, I use them for trolling too. They may not be for you, this is a lure effective for fish that are constantly on the move looking for baitfish, IMO it is not desirable for ambush type predators. Distance is going to vary with each different set up, but it's going to be much further than what you have now.

I agree about the rod, with all of my saltwater rods I press the lure weight and so does everyone else here. Today I was using my 8' okuma mh 10/20 with a max lure of 1.5, it loads up so much nicer with at least 2 on it. It's a bit the heavy side especially with my cabo 40, once I have a fish on that's when I really appreciate it.

The guy that called on the phone was absolutley right about lawn aeration, his tact was bad. My lawn back in Michigan was always aerated and so were the golf courses, spring and fall. The grass in Florida is beyond help, it's akin to crab grass up north, we do not have Kentucky blue or any plusher grasses.

What you caught was a jack crevalle. Any lure can be used in saltwater especially for a jack as they hit everything. The main difference in a saltwater lure are the hooks, heavier duty and resist rust longer. In S/E Florida you will see primarily spinning gear, something in the neighbor hood of 50-1 vs a low profile B/C. A good percentage will be a Penn on an ugly stick. You will see the occasional round reel like a calcutta. Larger conventional reels used mostly by bait fishermen, few of those will reels will a level wind. Lure types run the gamut, bucktails and spoons are the most used by far. Sling jigs and Shimano waxwings are gaining popularity. I fish s/e Florida saltwater 7 days week.

I don't see too much reason to use a bigger reel unless line capacity is real important. A 4000 reel should hold hold over 200 yds of 20 or 30# braid, a striper is not going to strip out that kind of line. Any of the 4000 reels have enough drag to slow and tire most fish, 10# of drag is probably more than I would set it and that's a lot of drag, any more and you run the risk of snapping line or leader. Stripers are a lot like snook, they do go bigger, fight about the same 1 good 40 or 50 yd run and then you own them. Great fun fish. A little surf tip, you can't pull them out of the swash with your arms, ya gotta walk backwards and let your legs do the work.

A guide is no big deal, I'd just get it replaced for less than 10 bucks, I doubt I'd bother with getting a guide from the manufacture.

I would not name the company, a negative experience with 1 employee may not be indicative of the company as a whole. Negative experiences are commonplace with everyone in every aspect of life, this one hardly sounds like anything major. No one is physically injured, nothing broken, no money lost, all that happened was a hard sell approach. That's the way business is sometimes, can't take it personal.