SirSnookalot

Eyeglass cleaners with a defogging agent should help, most drugstores carry it.

The most important factor in catching fish is not the equipment, skill plays a part but being on the right body of water is the key to great fish. As a younger person fishing with my dad we killed them on Lake St Clair and Lake Erie, go to an inland lake 20 miles away and it was a struggle. Down here in Florida the fishing is just so so in the Boynton area, I go to the keys or Sebastion and the catch rate is dramatically higher using the same gear. I no longer have to micro manage my budget for fishing gear, but I still don't feel the need to drop a bundle. I do spend a bit more for my saltwater reels, they do take more a beating, but it seems to me the ones I pay more for seem to need repair more often. Whether it's fresh or salt my sub $100 reels are as smooth, handle fish as well and don't seem to fail like their more expensive counterparts.

If you do an internet search you will discover this not an unusual problem, in time the rubber knob starts to shred and get sticky as mine has. I've read maybe a dozen or more posts regarding this issue, a former BR member that works for Shimano has posted that they think the sunscreen being used may be the problem, I'm not so sure as I don't use it but I do use insect repellent, so may be. My 4000 fi is about 4 years old, nearing it's last leg, I did buy the replacement knob this week, $19 plus $3 shipping. Do not throw you old knob out so fast, you need to remove the bushing on the bottom and remove the bearing just under the nut, it did take me about 30 minutes to get it seated properly, now that I know how to do it, it's a 5 minute job.

Bass are not one of the more line shy fish, hi vis colors are for the angler not the fish. If I were concerned about coloring the line, I simply would not buy it. From my own point of view a deal is only a deal if I want or need it, just to buy something I'm not comfortable with because it's on sale, isn't a deal for me, an experiment is a different story, that means I want it.

You are putting way to much math into this. Max drag on reel is not that much of an important issue, the drag should be set to the line you are using. The drag is meant to allow the fish to pull line out, that reduces the tension on the line and knots. Lighter line, too tight of a drag can spell disaster, I personally like my drag set just strong enough for a good hookset, nothing wrong with increasing the drag just a little bit with the fish on, but do it gently. The amount of drag that fish can pull out is going to vary with the species.

Bass fishing in my area has been very lackluster the last few weeks and I have not been doing it daily. When I go I've been concentrating on ponds and only fishing a top water popper, nothing else. It's that time of the year when "other species" have priority, only 1 fish yesterday in 4 hours, it was a tarpon.

Not jumping to any pre mature conclusions on who the culprit(s) are and why this day and venue was selected. Just some food for thought, this is Patriot day in Boston and income tax day. Clint Van Zandt suggested the bomb material may have been of non military grade (white smoke) but the detonating system was sophisticated. My prayers are out for all the victims and their families, luckily there were first responders on the scene.

My 2 proteges, jitterbugger and diggy.

Probably not worth the time and effort, the extent of my labor would be a hook replacement. I would only buy good ones, Roostertails just do not last, a Mepps or Panther Martin will last 4 or 5 times longer and for just a little more money. Some time ago Goose suggested bending the the blade just a little bit to get better spin out of the blade, it works very well.

The answer to the question you receive lies where you ask it. On this forum very few people fish with but 1 rod, in the "world" of fishing I think the answer just might be different.

I'm putting my $$ on Snedeker. Had Tiger Woods not caromed off the flagstick he would be at or near the lead, so I think he is playing well. Well enough to overcome 4 strokes I'm not sure, but if gets off to 2 birdies in the first few holes, he could do it then. If the field sees him only 2 out, they just might get a bit nervous.

Many snap swivels are inexpensive barrel swivels with a snap, not only are they on the heavy side and may affect the action of the lure but barrel swivels spin little if at all once they are in the water. Crane swivels with a crosslock or duolock are only slightly better, personally I use sampo or spro ball bearing swivels, don't get fooled into believing a power swivel is the same as a BB, it isn't. The ways in which people use swivels, leaders and snaps can and will vary with the lure type as well as the target species. Probably the most popular way I use them in freshwater is 10 or 15# braided line, leader attached with a BB swivel and a duolock on my leader, top water lures get no snap at all and spoons have a BB swivel attached with a split ring. This is just the way I do it, everyone has to find their own niche.

A bucktail is a buckail is a bucktail, I've caught more fish of every species with a bucktail that every other lure combined . I am not too concerned on the manufacture, only the weight I want to use. Bucktails are very versatile, can be fished in a variety of ways , I've caught hundreds of snook, tarpon and others, then used the same jig and caught bass. One lure for the rest of my life, bucktail hands down is the winner.

I've been using the hot water method for eons, the last few years I've added liquid fabric softener to the water. The warm water limps up the line and prevents coiling and it works wonderfully. This is not a permanent fix, periodically I will take the spool off the reel and soak it. L & L works fine, but so does water, probably I only purchased it one time. Line twist is a totally different issue, the action of line being "wrapped" around a fixed spool on a spinner will cause twist, the type of lure being used can make that twist even more dramatic. No deviation ever for me, when using mono or copoly, spinning or conventional reel, my line is always trolled out either before my outing or as my outing is ending. I troll out about 98% of the line just leaving a few wraps around the spool, even if the reel holds 300 yds.

For bass a 2000 or 2500 size reel generally is better size, but not always. Some 4000 reels may balance better on a heavier or longer rod, I like to match my reel to the rod or vice versa. Quite true a 4000 reel can have upwards of 20# of drag and even more, but if you set your drag to your line, the drag setting will about the same as the 2000 size. The line type of choice is always a personal decision, just about all lines break well over the number on the label, imo diameter of the line is what I look at.

Both my stradics spooled perfectly out of the box, on the second or third respool I did have to shim each one. Not a big deal, sometimes it takes a little trial and error to get it where you want it. I have only had to shim each them 1 time, there have been many respools.

Find a local repair shop, a guide will cost between 8-$12 for the size needed, depending on the shop the repair time should only be a few days. Free shipping and free repair doesn't pay to send it back to the manufacture, not only do you have deal with a much longer turn around time, but always a risk in shipping a rod.

I'll be fishing for saltwater bass this morning, aka snook. The bite has not been hot yet due to a lack of baitfish, I did see lots of mullet yesterday but the tide was wrong. This morning tide change is about 6:15, the bite may be better over the next few days, I getting ready to leave within the hour.

No question about, I'm not a redneck. As they say in Florida, the further south you go the more northern it gets it.

This is the guy to pay attention to.

Playing golf in the 50's on public golf courses there were no yardage markers on the course (maybe a 150 yd marker) and no hand held electronic measuring devices, players were able to dial in yardage pretty good. The depth perception is totally different on water, I don't have any idea how far I cast from a boat or from shore. A popular distance seems to be about 30 yds with average type equipment, I can buy that. I know from my own experience as well as observation that using a 10-12' surf rod, thin profile lure like a diamond jig distances of 100 yds and more are attainable, I've seen not much difference between casting and spinning. I've seen talk on surf forums of 100 yd casts and no one seems to debate it.

I agree with Scott F, I'm 5'4 and use rods up to 10', my bass rods are 6'6 and 7'. For tight quarters I fish 6'6 rods, open spaces I go with 7'. If I were using a ml spinning, which I do when I pond fish, 8 or 10# braid.

2 ways to do it. One way is to tie on your backing and spool it, then tie on your braid, knot of your choice (I use an alberto) and load the spool up the rest of the way. Another option is to tie on your backing and spool it up then cut the line and put tape around the backing, tie your braid right on to the tape, it should not slip. The negative is that only the braid is usable, so if you require more than 50-75 yds of line it's not the best way to go, but should fine for bass fishing.

Only thing I would do when using braid and an inline spinner is to use a ball bearing swivel or better yet a ball chain swivel to reduce line twist, not that it will be totally eliminated. If I were overly concerned about depth I'd put a small split shot on.

Don't have a favorite combo but have a favorite species I target, I tend to use those outfits a bit more often. The ones I select for the day are based on the location and wind, I prefer only 7' rod when it's windy, calmer it's 7'6 and 8'.