tholmes

I've used it in a pinch. Fingernail polish is (or used to be) lacquer. It will seal small chips and cracks effectively. It's also pretty brittle and will chip if you bang the lure against rocks and such, but on the small areas you'll be using it on, that's not much of an issue. Tom

Bigger than my hand. Tom

Been in a few and they never end well. You usually either get hurt (even if you "win") or end up in jail, or both. These days, you could wind up dead. Not recommended. Tom

Welcome from another shore-bound fisherman! Tom

In a word, no. The extra hardware will affect the balance and action. Tom

We have a winner!! Tom

+1 ^ Tom

1865 + 52 + 1917 Tom

I started fishing with my Grandfather sometime around 1958, catching bluegill and bullheads with a cane pole and worms. As I became more proficient, I moved up(?) to a Zebco 202 and channel cats and bass. Grandpa gave me my first casting rig, a Shakespeare model 1920 reel and a tubular steel Wonder rod, and taught me (with infinite patience) how to cast a plug. The first bass I caught on a lure was with that rig, throwing a Lazy Ike. That old rig has a place of honor in my shop. After high school, I went nuts for bass fishing, spending every available hour fishing. I went through the usual assortment or tackle, Abu Garcia 5000, Mitchell 301, the original Daiwa Millionaire, Pflueger Supreme, Shakespeare 1980 President II etc. I was forced by circumstances to almost give up fishing in the late '80s. An industrial accident left me with some physical issues affecting my mobility and balance and a divorce shortly afterward left me broke, but I've come back to fishing recently, though I'm pretty much restricted to fishing from the bank. These days, my greatest joy is teaching my grandkids to fish. Tom

I guess I'm officially an old fart. I don't even own an iPod, and if I did, I sure wouldn't listen to it while I was fishing. I only carry a cell phone because the spousal unit insists. What little time I get to spend fishing is part of my "quiet time", and I cherish that. Tom

Wow! After lookin' over that mess of fish, you got me thinkin' fish fry! Is it spring yet? Tom

+1^ No ten pounders, but I've caught some respectable (by Kansas standards) bass on a big, black single-blade spinnerbait running it just far enough under the surface so that it just barely leaves a wake. Tom

Similar story - I was striper fishing with my buddy in his boat. I had just boated a pretty good fish and had my lure (a Storm Big Mac) laying on the floor of the boat beside the rear seat when another boat came speeding by, MUCH too close. The wake rocked our boat and caused me to lose my balance as I leaned over to pick up the lure. I fell on the lure, burying two of the barbs WAY deep into my knee. Had to push both of them through and cut 'em off. Another hook story. Same boat, same buddy, only this time his wife was with us. We were chasing surfacing schools of sand bass around a local lake, casting Kastmaster spoons into the melee. He cranked up for a long cast at the same time his wife decided to stand up. As he whipped the rod forward, he buried the treble hook right in her scalp. Strained the ol' marital relations a little. Tom

Here's the Createx link: http://www.createxcolors.com/ Tom

My local wally world cleared out the SK Red Eye Shads for $1 Ea. They also had some Lake Fork magic shad swimbaits for $1/ pkg. They are sold out of both items ;D Tom

Go with the beard. I haven't been clean-shaves since I was 18, and that was 40 years ago. Just a little clean-up around the edges, and I'm good to go. Tom

Central Kansas here. Depending on the lake, forage consists of shiners, bluegill, shad and (in certain waters) crawdads. Tom

A blast from the past, for sure! I watched Harold Ensley when I was a kid (back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth) and still remember his Ford Country Squire and the theme song...Gone fishin, instead of just a-wishin. Oh yeah, Harold Ensley's fish fry coating mix was the BEST. Tom

I concur. I've had good results with the same bait with a copper blade too. Tom

Heh...these remind me of the multi-colored guitar picks I see from time to time. Always called 'em "clown barf" Tom

Just a suggestion...in case of identical entries, the earliest one wins. Tom

My local "tackle shop" is non-existent. The only place in town that sells any tackle at all is Wal-Mart. There's a Gander Mountain 125 miles away, and Cabela's and BPS in the Kansas City area, about 3 hrs. away. Tom

For me, the hardest thing is finding a balance between exploring a technique to it's full potential and hanging on to it a bit (or a lot) too long. When a certain bait and presentation has worked in the same conditions before, it's sometimes tough for me to admit to myself that it ain't working today. Tom

^X2. Silver w/black back and bluegill colors work for me. Sizes 11 and 13 for the Original Floater and the 3/8 oz. Shad Rap. Tom

They're still listed on Lunker City's website: http://www.lunkercity.com/index.html Tom