tholmes

X3^ I also agree with PABASS re: the Sahara. A great reel for the $$. Tom

In the lake that I fish the most, pretty much anything that looks like a shad. Lipless cranks, squarebills, in-line spinners, flukes, tubes, grubs and Slug-gos all get their turn. Jerkbaits and spinnerbaits figure in the mix also. Tom

A Lazy Ike, yellow with red spots. Caught my first non-live bait bass on it. Tom

I have a few real oldies that my grandpa gave me, but there on display, not in use. The oldest lure in my regular rotation is probably a Jitterbug. It's gotta be at least 30 years old. It started life as a frog color and somewhere along the line, I painted it solid black. It's been given a fresh coat of black paint several times since. I've caught hundreds of bass on that ol' J-bug, and it's still going strong. Tom

I keep all of my gear in an unheated storage shed all winter at temps down to zero or slightly below. I've never had any problems with any kind of lures, line, etc. Can't comment on JJ's as I've never used it. Tom

X3^ We rarely get ice thick enough for me to feel comfortable walking on. I don't mind the cold so much, but hearing ice crack under my feet kinda unnerves me. Tom

For my first, it was a Barbie combo, for my son it was a Scooby Doo rig. Tom

Great looking baits, jbass! Two of my all-time favorite patterns done to perfection. Nice work! Tom

I had one several years ago. Like 0119 said, a great caster but had some mechanical quirks. I ended up trading mine to a buddy (who loved it) for a 4600C. Tom

Tom

X2^ The ThinFin Silver Shad is one of my favorite baits this time of year. Cast it tight to a rocky shoreline, twitch it a couple of times and hang on! Tom

I keep 2 baitcasting rigs and a small, double-sided Plano tackle box in the cab of my truck most of the time. I put a sun shade behind the windshield and leave a window open about 1/2". I've never had any problems. Tom

I almost always have a lipless crankbait tied on one rod. IMHO, the best search bait there is. I use the Sonar type lures a lot too. A little different action than most lipless cranks, but sometimes that's just what the fish want. Tom

Agree ^^ Survey done. Tom

There are a couple of community lakes within 10 minutes of my house, so I fish them a lot. Within a 75 mile radius are 5 larger lakes that I fish with some regularity. My yearly trip to Colorado for trout is about a 10 hr. drive. Tom

Anything that's over half the weight of the state record. Here in Kansas, that would be a 6 lb. Largemouth and a 4 lb. Smallmouth. Tom

The lake I fish the most is plumb full of rip-rap and brush. I check my line often, especially after catching a fish or pulling free of the junk. If I feel any abrasion on the line, I re-tie. Tom

I'm not sure there is a line that will stand up to zebra mussels. When I fish a lake that's infested, I check my line (Trilene Big Game) often and re-tie a lot. Tatsu may do better, but like bluebasser, I'm not likely to drop ~$50 for a 200 yd. spool of 12 lb. line just to find out. Tom

I apologize if this has already been posted. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/your-right-to-resell-your-own-stuff-is-in-peril-2012-10-04?pagenumber=2 This is somewhat disturbing. Tom

I have the best results with 7" or 7-1/2" ribbontail worms. Red Shad, Tequila Sunrise, Junebug and Watermelon have been the most consistent colors. The brand I use the most is Barlow's house brand. They seem to me to have the right combination of action and durability, and a sack of 100 worms is less than $15. I like Culprit, but they're a little too soft and don't last as long as the Barlow's. Tom

If it were me, I'd spend the $49 on a Shimano Sonora. Better reel for the money, IMHO. Tom

In my case, it's simple. I'm MUCH more likely to break a rod than a reel. Tom

Lipless crank or a T-rigged worm. Tom

Not all of the round reels are made in Sweden anymore. The Kalex and BCX reels are made elsewhere. The C3, C4 and Record reels are still made in Sweden as far as I know. Tom

X2! It even does a pretty good job in the dead of winter. Although in colder temps, I switch to the 1/4 oz. or even the 1/8 oz. sizes. Tom