flechero

just fyi- There are plenty of cases of guides being grooved by braided line. *Most* of today's rods come with guides that can handle braid but certainly not all. Typically it's not the braid itself, but rather the debris trapped in it that act like the saw blade.

Not to compare any 2 reels directly, but in general terms: I've found the better reels are smoother, better casting (distance and control) have smoother drags, are often lighter (physical weight), feel solid and tight and are a joy to use. Now the most important thing to remember here is that the above list has little effect on putting fish in the boat. (although you could argue drag or cast placement, etc.) It's kind of like cars... some just prefer a high end luxury car and some are fine with a old pick up... and both will get you there.

This will trigger some memories! (this is my list, not including the Wife's vehicles) 1981 Ford Mustang GT 1972 Olds Cutlass Supreme convertible 1981 Honda Civic 1992 Chevy 1500 Z71 1996 Chevy 2500 2000 GMC 2500 4X4 current vehicles 1982 Jeep CJ8 (Scrambler) 2002 GMC 1500 Z71

Jellyman, Lots of us here that don't like braid... there's no shame in it. Some of us do quite well with mono or copoly.

Catt, I think he only meant Ga. and Al. to the 75 years comments.

I was going to send it to him anyway... the reel isn't bad, it's been in intermittent service for 15+ years, with a higher set of gears in it. I just figured with the upgrades, it might perform like some of the newer reels. (I could re-gear it and fish it fine, but that solution lacks the sex appeal of upgrades) I know the logical thing would be to retire it but since I won't use it often, I hate to buy a new reel and let it gather dust most of the year.

Here you go... http://www.japantackle.com/Daiwa_reels/Daiwa_castings.htm

Yup Karen (Bingham ent.) and I both do.. Sold the Co. and moved on... I understand the new guy that has it all now, has changed the makeup of the burl we liked so well, and, that is why Karen had that special going on Andys old stuff.. Sorry didn't mean to highjack..... Tight Lines!!! Since we are off topic, I did have an email conversation with Andy a few weeks ago. He reports that he's doing well and in a new industry. I'm not 100% sure which cork I got in my last order... it's been little different the last few times, but I figured that was a lot to lot change as opposed to a formulation change. Do you know what exactly changed?

I was planning to tune up, re-gear and re-bearing an older 4600 power 4, for cranking. Well I found some other parts options at Japan tackle... Is there much benefit from any of the first 3 items on this page? http://www.japantackle.com/Tuning_parts/Tuning_brake_system.htm (I was already placing an order with Japan Tackle so it's no extra cost to add an item or two.) So now I can't decide if I want to spend $100 (after shipping & labor) upgrading this reel or just buy something new. What would you do? I'm curious about 2 things- the parts as well as your opinion on replacing a reel or fixing one up.

What is it with the record nay sayers? California has had 2 fish bigger than the record caught and both times it got screwed up. (once by DFG and the other by an unlucky hookset) That's not Perry's fault. : Maybe you guys should promote "record readiness" and have it as a class to get a fishing license. ...lol Like it or not, the catch was certified and documented to the required standards of the day. Not everyone had a camera or camera phone back then. Even if it were a total farce, you couldn't get that many people to agree on a lie... and stick to it.

Dom, I think he meant the factory didn't support them, not that BPS or Cabela's wouldn't support them.

I miss Andy.

If you use spinning gear, all lines twist, period. The symptoms are worse with some lines (the stiffer the worse acting) but the bottom line is that to rid the line of twist, you need to troll it occasionally... which may mean once or twice a day or once a week / month depending on the particular set up. Otherwise, you'll be fighting it forever.

Loaded question! Just building a functional rod is not very hard to do. But Depending on your background and "handiness," some tasks might be simple or very difficult. But like anything, practice makes it easier. Most of the really tough stuff is the "pretty" stuff. ...lol As for me- I had about 2 months notice on a shoulder surgery... knowing I couldn't fish for 4-6 months after ward got me looking for things to fill my time. So I read a lot, talked to other builders. With the exception of a couple tools, you can make all you need. It was supposed to fill my down time, not become another time consuming hobby!

I'm not taking any orders these days... when our baby gets a little older I might be able to start taking them again. Thanks for the interest, though!

dang, she'll outfish us both!! Or-maybe it was the rod!! ;D

No problem. (I'm working part time for the bait monkey, so I'm obligated to assist in any way!) ;D

Nope, I wasn't aware of that. But like I said it feels just like one! ...lol The MB844 RX8 I'm building is going to be the replacement for my c-rig rod (5C70HF), if I like it as much as I think I will. Dink, Legend Tourney or Legend Elites are the blanks (or rods) I'd be looking at, if I were you. I've only built one 3C blank but built it up as a spinning rods so I don't worm fish it. My guess is that all 3 builders that mentioned St. Croix aren't all wrong. And if you go custom, Batson and St. Croix are both options.

cidgrad- I said I usually use a check. I've made a bunch of ramps but just personally like checks better. crappy pic but you can kind of see the threaded ramps Eddie, This one will be pretty plain, since it's a replacement for my fluke rod. (which means lots of use and abuse) but I'm just getting started on my new 9 wt. fly rod. It will be more like something I'd build for someone else. Grip is finished but no pics yet... Yep, and I totally forgot until I got pm'd about it again. Having a baby around is murder on your memory! ;D

never held a mossyback and can't even give you a comparison to IMX since the RX8 isn't finished yet... I haven't fished it. But from what we have talked about I think you'll like st. croix over loomis... too bad you weren't local, you could take all the rods in question to the lake. :-/

I have been asked several times how I finish off a reel seat when I don't use a foregrip. Most often I use a winding check. But depending on the seat and the blank, about 1 in 5 end up the right size without help. So tonight I had to turn down a check so I caught a pic of it for those who asked. I didn't get a seperate pic of the seat work... but after I cut it, I trim the thread that is raised at the edge with an exacto blade and then blend it by hand sanding it with 400 and 600 grit paper with pressure from my fingernail. The 600 leaves it close enough to a factory finish that the naked eye doesn't catch it (unless you are looking for it) You can see it in the macro shot as a slight difference in sheen but it's factory looking in person. Anyway, back to the check. For this check (an 11 mm) I used a 1/2 bolt as a mandrel and a combination of a sanding screen and some 220 grit to cut it. Since it's my own rod, I didn't use 600 to smooth it or heat to refinish it. (but you can for a perfect finish) cut check: dry fitted check:

The best way is just to light it and put the chimney down on top of it. You don't get the flying ash from the papers, when you use the cubes.

I'm going to guess that micro doesn't consider 3/8-5/8 oz a light bait. I don't have that particular revo but the 3 different revo's I had, would handle those weight baits. There aren't many things in life, better than that!! I love the coast, with a fly rod in hand!

Exactly what I was thinking.

these also work with or without the chimneys