SirSnookalot

Personally I would be matching the rod more to the environment and less to the lure type. Fishing weeds I use a med spinning and open water it's a ml, I use what ever lures I wish on either rod.

That's it !

Been on a pretty good roll this is about the 10 th one I've had on the line in the last 10 days. Today I had the good fortune of another fishermen there with his 36" pier net so we could lift it up. I tried to pick up for a pic but was exceptionally slippery, so I opted just to get back ibn the water quickly.

Doughballs with molasses.

Never used that knot, I use a double wrapped improved clinch knot for braid, I can attest it holds 50- 70# fish on 20# line fished in 8 knot current. That's strong enough for me. Saw Henry Waszczuk fishing on the flats demonstrate the knot, I haven't any thing else since.

I've only fished the keys maybe a dozen times. There is plenty of shore fishing along public beaches on the coast side, bridges too and the 7 mile bridge is a popular spot. The backcountry is a different animal, boat is best with guide and sight casting. All kinds of species there, spanish mackerel, triple tail, shark, trout, snook and redfish. The big 3 are bonefish, permit and tarpon. Fly rod is really best for permit and bonefish, fish are very spookable. Bud N Mary's in Islamorado is a good first stop, get anything from guides to local knowledge there. If you shore fish you'll need your own gear but a guide will have everything you need. My first tarpon I caught in the keys, nice little juvenile.

It does feel like it's been an exceptionally hot, humid, and rainy summer. The rain has not helped, the spillways have been open and all kinds of crap is mucking up the water, the inshore bite hasn't been great, although I did hear they were doing well in Juno. Made my first cast at about 4:30 am in the ICW, not a strike until 6:30, I caught 5 in rapid succession and it was over. I've been peacock fishing most days in this heat, they like this weather. Bass on the other hand in my area has been terrible in the canals, I'm seeing a lot of activity in ponds but the fish are very small.

Mark Sosin, pretty darn good, both angler and author.

A tarpon cannot be removed from the water if it's larger than 40", I suppose it would have to be measured first in the water. The fish was a snook the was caught out of season, not slot and spearfished and forget to mention no fishing license. I had heard it was $2500 fine in total, I can't confirm that.

Hold you rod tip high or low and vary the speed, it will affect the depth of the jig. Keeping a high tip and bit faster speed can keep the jig just above weed tops in shallower water, I catch both bass and peacocks that way.

For good bass fishing weeds are very desirable, I go out of my way not to fish those areas. I enjoy open water fishing with lighter tackle, I may find fewer large fish but I like the kind of fun I'm having better.

I prefer Monster Fish. I hardly watch any fishing shows, I do catch a SW program once in a while. Being primarily a SW angler many of these shows have to be staged and edited, it just isn't that easy.

Interesting work in progress but for a person like me who can't count past one I'd forget to switch the spool side. The point about not be able to duplicate casting distance is a good one. I hope the finished product puts a case around it, at present looks like it was made with an erector set. I'd hold off and not buy into the IPO if they go public.

40 yds by itself is a pretty hefty cast, so 40 more than you I'm not so sure about. Impossible question to answer without being there, too many variables. The reel may have better bearings, more line on the spool and thinner line diameter, his reel may be adjusted better. Rod length can play big part, but one brand at 7' can cast as far as another brand at 8'. Fast taper will cast a lighter bait farther, but I personally think a fast or moderate fast will cast a heavier bait farther. The profile of the lure may have a bearing as well, some lures cut thru the air better, the weight of the lure may load his rod up better. He just may be more skilled.

This time of the year I use them a lot mainly for peacock bass but all species including bass hit them, caught a pretty hefty gar on one last week. I make my own and prefer using maribou, I'm not a great tier but the fish haven't reprimanded me. I can work these jigs in a number of different ways, they work really well in Florida ponds and canals.

As a kid we didn't have boat at first, learned to fish in a rowboat without any electronics. When I lived on a lake I had a pleasure boat which didn't see that much fishing action as I opted to use an aluminum rowboat, I enjoyed rowing too. In Florida I fish ponds and canals, don't need electronics. I do use them offshore to fish depth patterns. Kayaking is very popular here, fully rigged with rod holders and electronics, jet skiers do the same thing.

If a fish is big enough and you are alone a quality picture can be difficult. Toting a camera around on tripod while fishing from shore is going to reduce your fishing time, too much stuff to lug around. In some cases you have to be careful of posting pics, there are powers that can and have tracked violators down. In Florida some species over 40" cannot be removed from the water even for a photo op. Several years ago an individual posted a pic of a fish and indicated it was kept, caught out of season, not within the slot limit and spear fished it. He was fined over 4 figures as the story goes.

Fox, fair and balanced.....................but of course !

I would use a 4/0 or 5/0 hook with only 1 treble, 3/0 is a good size. Be careful with this rig, if the fish is only hooked by the leading J hook, the treble could be dangerous with a flopping fish. You should be careful with all fish, I caught 3 or 4 pound fish on the beach last year, flopped so much one of the trebles on a top water got embedded in my shin. I could not bend a 4x hook to back it out until I found some big dude........lol.

The only time I don't use a leader is when I get broke off and have no leader with me, I travel light. Never found that braid direct increased or decreased my catch. I do use leaders because it's much easier to untangle from a treble hook, braid can be a pita.

I did go the ceramic route on another reel. I burned out one of the interior bearings on another brand, I went into Boca bearings and they suggested a ceramic so I bit. Had 2 of them installed, while the reel is pretty smooth the bearings are not quiet, but still pleased with the performance of the reel. My stradics have served me well, I don't expect anything to last a lifetime here, when it's time I'm just going to replace them, at that point I'll start looking as to what's the "hot ticket".

If it wasn't for BR I would probably not have known about the alberto, using a bimini twist is time consuming. I think the alberto and albright are great knots, I do think there is a limit on how strong they need to be. If I have a large fish on the line my drag is going to allow pressure off the knot, the fish can be landed. In the event of a snag or very large fish that could be exhausted from a long fight sometimes you gotta break it off yourself.

A lot of head boats won't allow this rig, that treble can be dangerous with a fish that flops around a lot, on private boat it's fine. For a toothy critter using a dead baitfish I would much prefer what we call a king rig, 2-3-4 trailer hooks down the spine of the bait. I think a better hookup would be obtained for a muskie and less cut offs.

Never seen a stinger used that way, this is how we do it. I use it with a frozen (thawed out) baitfish, J hook to a treble using a single strand piano wire. J hook is hooked thru the top of the head and the treble embedded in the side of the bait.

I do believe I know who suggested the redbones and calico jack, a coincidence as I own 7 bones and 1 calico jack, all spinning. They are SW rods but I use 2 of them for freshwater, my light action redbone is for pond fishing for the likes of bass and peacocks, the calico is a med and I use it for high banked canals and in vegetation. The fish in my avatar was caught with a medium 7'6 redbone, backbone doesn't seem to be an issue. About the only time I sway away from a redbone is to buy a rod with a wider lure parameter.