flechero

Does that mean his girl is still out fishing him with the fly rod? ;D

You are right... it has mostly to do with comfort and a little to do with health and safety in the outdoors. The long sleeved "fishing shirts" I wear are fast drying, vented and are much cooler than even a short sleeved t-shirt. I suspect that if you spent much time fishing in our summer weather, you would probably be looking for a fishing shirt! To go one step further, I have a long family history of skin cancer, and have had a few places cut out already on me... so long sleeves and spf ratings are important to me, especially since I often forget my sunscreen. Seriously though, the comfort alone is worth twice the price.

Wow, what a shame. Condolences and prayers to his family. He was a class act, for sure. I hope his kids are fisherman also, I know that he has a stable of IMX (and other) rods to pass down. (and many nice reels)

I just got an email saying the items have shipped.

here are a couple old posts that address some of the getting started stuff. Check your tension first. (3.5 - 4 oz) Then be sure to hold a finger on the thread as you cut it and put tag end through loop, and be sure to pull on tag end while you pull loop (yes, 3 hands would be perfect for this but you can keep tension on tag end and hold rod from spinning with one hand) lastly, 3 wraps will hold the end but on anything other than trim bands, I use more... usually 5. I practiced in the beginning using up to like 8-9 to get comfortable with it and then went less. It will come very quickly with a minimum of practice... if tension is good and you hold tension while pulling loop. Also be sure to pack your thread as you wrap... I pack on about every 4th or 5th wrap (I use thumbnail as I go) The tighter you pack the thread, the better it looks and the better it will hold the tag end that you pulled under. There are several ways to turn cork... You can buy a lathe or set up an old drill for a cheap and easy cork turning station. The pics show a drill mounted to a board with a dryer vent's hose clamp. I turn most of my grips on this one. I use a 1/4" mandrel or a 1/2" mandrel (the 1/2" is made from a high grade bolt with the head removed and size trued.) this one is the set up clamped to a rubbermaid bin to catch the debris and showing the tools I use for shaping. I start with the sureform (cheese grater) to remove epoxy and quickly reduce size - then to the drywall screen for almost all the final sizing and any contours or rounding... I have better luck doing this part by freehand than with any jigs. After that it depends on who it's for if I go to sandpaper. The correct speed with a drywall screen leaves a velvet like texture that I like. You can put a coat of automotive wax on the mandrel to prevent sticking of the epoxy or if you are careful you can glue up on a 1/4" threaded rod or bolt with a wing nut. I always get a little on the bolt but it breaks loos easily enough if I hold the bolt head with a wrench and "unscrew" the cork. ...lol Good luck, have fun and don't forget... to take pics along the way! Keith

Congratulations! Prayers for a safe and healthy pregnancy!! (for both of you ) I might know someone that can hook you up. ...lol

Agreed, he has a habit of doing more and better than people expect... fast, honest service is just the icing on the cake.

Today's reels are referred to are right or left hand retrieve, not right or left handed. That's 99% of the confusion. I wasn't there when the BC was designed so I can't say that's not true... but it's important to make the distinction that regardless of the original design, the rod most often does the heavy moving and the reel is for taking up line. Which is why people advocate using the dominant hand to cast/hold the rod. Catt's explanation is what I always heard... that a lefty designed the original BC reel.

Not to be a stick in the mud but I'd get this if I were buying a reel today: in the flea market. For a difference of only $15 (and that's only if your price included shipping)

Wow, that's speedy. Similar, except I didn't get the email receipt but the seller verified the order in reply to one of my emails. I paid when I placed the order, he just never shipped. Thanks

I'll be interested to see what if any specific models are recommended here... this is a tough one because I think the Curado E's own this price point. (ebay stores)

I placed an order (and paid in full) on March 23 for some tackle... it was to be made to order and "usually ships in 2-3 weeks" a few emails since (only in reply to my inquiries) one delay due to a death in family, one said will ship soon and the last few have gone unanswered. To anyone who has gone through the paypal dispute process, my questions are- is the paypal dispute worth the time and effort and can they actually charge back the seller and get my money back? Never been burned online before so this is new to me. I appreciate any relevant info.

If I called you a @*#%#! and after you got all mad & offended, I said oh you mis-understood me, I meant the 4th definition, Merriam... even you might think it was a bit ridiculous. :

I always have a couple extra spools of lighter line with me when I travel, never know when you'll run into clearer water and want to downsize. I also carry one spooled with braid, jic.

If we all agreed on everything this would be a boring site. IMO, there is a big difference between socially acceptable and right. I don't like watching network tv and hearing cuss words either. Having had a close friend that was raped and knowing another that was murdered makes me a little more uptight about it than most, probably... Although, I think the phrases murdered 'em, killed 'em, etc. started back when few were into catch and release so at least there was some truth to it at one time.

What are those? simplicity, safety and the assurance that you won't break the rod or line? ;D You could still thumbar or backreel with the drag set... and you would also have the back up insurance if you mess up. In time, you'll either lose fish, break line or break a rod in a brainless moment with a big fish. (not to mention you'll be taking much better care of our reel by not using channel locks to set it up) Be sure to post that you lock out the drag if you ever list your reels for sale here... because many of us will stay away from that! (and your resale value will be cut in half) To each, his own...

Dude, Raped? Really? Grow up. I have heard this term used frequently. It is not used in the context you are thinking of. By definition it can also mean to plunder or pillage.... It's in bad taste, no matter the context.

Here you go... http://www.lowrance.com/en/Downloads/Product-Emulators/

That really puts it into perspective!

You just missed a couple in the flea market section in your price range... I would wait a few days, it seems that gently used revo's, curados and other nice reels come up for sale often enough to wait a little bit. Not to take anything from the other suggestions, I haven't used BPS reels.

How about evolution? ;D ;D ;D ;D

I think it can, or at least usually... I remember seeing the billboards that say "Vasectomy reversal" and have a houston phone number. (Which I thought was odd since I saw the signs on my commute when I was living in Dallas. ...lol

My dedicated t-tig rod has #14 or #17 XT on it (95% of the time) depending on the lake.

That was what I was thinking... just wanted to be sure I understood what you were comparing. I don't think it's based on tradition... as it depends on the height of the guide used and the line dropping below blank level under a full load. At least that's what I go by. If I end up at 19" or I end up at 24"+ it's because the that's as far as I could go with the reel and guides to be used on that particular blank.

Alex, Is the guide count you are referring to above, with a traditional set up vs. micro's beginning at 30" +/- as you mentioned in the article?