tholmes

There's no reel worth an angry wife. just sayin' Tom

X2^ Go get a spool of Trilene Big Game 12 lb., spool up, and practice a lot.Once you become proficient at casting, use the Big Game for backing. Tom

X2^ Tom

Merle Haggard Hank Williams Sr. Ernest Tubb Ray Price Patsy Cline Tom

I fish grubs a lot. They'll catch virtually any kind of fish. My favorites for bass are 4" black grubs on a 1/4 oz. ball-head jig. Tom

Lipless crank or a "Silver Buddy" type blade bait. Kastmaster spoons are good also. Tom

^ Hey SPEEDBEAD, try these! http://www.inspiredtaste.net/14284/ridiculously-easy-jalapeno-poppers/ They're way too good, you can hurt yourself eating them. Tom

X2^ In fact, sometimes fishing has to take a back seat to my guitar. Tom

For me, it's more a matter of availability. The ONLY place within 50 miles that sells any tackle is Wal-Mart, and their selection is limited, to put it mildly. The bulk plastics that I buy from Barlow's are proven winners. Proven by me, the most reliable source that I know. Plus, I don't exactly have an unlimited fishing budget, so saving a few dollars here and there is important to me. Tom

C'mon man! You don't have to tell everybody! Deadly technique. Tom

I use Trilene Big Game on all of my baitcasters and Yo-Zuri Hybrid on my spinning reels. I can't justify the price of braid and I don't like to mess about with leaders. Tom

Yo-Zuri Hybrid, 10 lb. Tom

I always peg 'em. I've never found a reason not to. Tom

+1^ That's where I buy most of my plastics. Tom

The C3 and C4 round reels are still made in Sweden, along with the Record series. the Kalex, BCX, and all low-profile reels are made in Asia. Tom

^^ X2. It's not wrong, just different, and requires a different skill set. I think that fishing artificial lures is way easier than live bait. Tom

Given those three choices, I'd go with the Silver Max. If you could go 10 bucks higher, BPS has their Pro Qualifier on sale right now for $80. IMHO, it's a better reel than any of the ones you listed. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Pro-Qualifier-Baitcast-Reels/product/102287/ Tom

ABU Abbassadeur Record 50. Tom

Bingo! #2 and #3 are are a toss-up, IMHO, with walleye the clear favorite. I'd have to throw sauger (and the sauger/walleye hybrid) in there as well. Tom

Toothpicks are about as cheap as it gets and they work well. I've never had any problems at all. Tom

I don't really need to. I get enough vacation time to cover my fishing trips, and my employer is pretty flexible about taking time off with short notice. Tom

X2^. It's one of my favorite baits. Tom

Crankbaits, without question. All types, deep divers, medium divers, squarebills, lipless, I just can't resist 'em Tom

Here's a link to Plano's site with specs and dimensions. http://www.planomolding.com/product.php?BCCID=111&PID=656 Tom

Holy Smokes!!! That's exactly twice the size of the biggest striper that I've ever caught, and I thought it was a great battle. I can only imagine what that monster was like! Tom