flechero

There are a bunch of us here that fly fish... but fly fishing threads seem to be pretty sparse. I often carry a couple fly rods in the boat. I do most of my bass fly fishing in the fall or spring when it's not so hot... (or the first hour or 2 of daylight) I fish a deep water lake so it's tough to get a fly deep enough in the hot weather.

For about 15 years the (Loomis) MBR784 IMX was my dedicated t-rig rod. (6'6" H, F) Has great sensitivity, a delicate enough tip to cast any t-rigged worms and enough backbone to handle big fish in cover. Perfect for everything except deep water... then I moved to Belton! ....lol Down here I began to prefer 7' rods and gave up the 784. The 844 (IMX version) felt so different that I didn't like it for t-rigs. I use 7' rods mostly for t-rigs in MH or hvy and fast but prefer a heavier tip. (it's a subtle difference in brands and actions)

I need to get out more... I somehow have never seen these. Best of all, it's an excuse to build another rod!! I don't have a shakey rod!! ;D ;D

Yup, the sticky above is all you need for now... as you get into it you'll have specific questions. A friendly caution for you and anyone else considering taking up rod building as a hobby... if you like it, it will consume lots of time and you will end up spending way more than you used to on factory rods. : And then you will decide that you want to replace every rod you own with your own builds... and then you'll start replacing those with nicer rods you built... and if you still have any cash left, you'll look for odd ball stuff to build, like travel rods, fly rods, etc. ;D Think I'm kidding? I wish... I'm on the Mud Hole and FishStiks4U Christmas card list!!

maybe, but I'd be sure to look at the action as well. Power and action are 2 different things. Mod-fast is the action, med and MH describe power. The slower action of a mod or mod-fast is what makes cranking more comfortable and makes it easier to retain fish hooked with trebles.

That's a tough call since most people prefer a moderate (or mod-fast) for cranking and a fast to X-fast for working topwaters. I will say this though, if you were to settle on a mod-fast, it would be a good all around treble hooked lure rod. Your spooks would require a little bit of working by timing versus by feel but it would only take a little geting used to. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably get a med power, mod-fast. (or med-heavy, depending on what the fish are like up there) hope that helps.

Yes, that blank is a 785... (and braid isn't for everyone, so stick with XT if it's working better for you)

By the way, Welcome to BassResource.com! (post some pics of your builds!)

Well, there are a couple options out there. I would look at the Batson blanks in both RX6 and RX7. I've used both and except for some clearance sales, the RX7 are the best inexpensive blank I've found. I have an RX7 in my wrapper as I type this and am going to buy another in the next week or so. Mud Hole has their "builder blanks" if you really want cheap, and FishSticks4U has a few All Star blanks on clearance. Someone always has a sale going on... For what it's worth, I buy all my Batson blanks through FishSticks4U and would recommend them to anyone as a place with outstanding service. They also carry the Lamar products. http://www.fishsticks4u.com

It amazes me at how few people know that concealed carry is already in place throughout much (or most) of the country and think that it's now going to be a return to the ok corral. ...lol Tens of thousands of people already carry everyday... the only difference is now they can have lunch in a restaurant that also serves alcohol... which changes nothing. Those who would break the law and drink while carrying have already been there drinking with a concealed weapon, they just haven't been caught....

If it were me buying at the $100 and under range, I would concentrate my efforts in All Star or Shimano.

I'm a reel palmer also but I guess I hold it differently... I dry fit up the rod I'm building with an ACS and to get my fingers to lay in the grooves, I had to adjust my grip fairly dramatically. No loss, but I had hoped it was going to become my new favorite. I was curious as to how many found it comfy.

Part of my own reasoning is that as a husband and father to be, I am to provide for and protect my family. If I get mugged, killed or whatever, then I can't do either. Just like lots of people advocate a life jacket -because you "never know." Agreed, 100%

That's a common feeling... no one wakes up and say "well feels like today is the day I'll get attacked" or car jacked or murdered or whatever. carrying a weapon is NOT for everyone... but for some, it's like insurance... you have it and hope to God you never need it. Do you think any of the Va Tech students felt unsafe before the shooting started? I always felt safe at home until one night a few years ago when I awoke to the sound of my door being kicked in. Secluded boat ramps at late night/early morning seem to attract people I would otherwise avoid, if there was an open ramp elsewhere.

Sounds suspiciously like a common BPS problem... they have a bad habit of re-selling returned reels. It's highly possible that you should be upset with them, not Shimano. Oh well, there are lots of other good reels out there for you to buy.

You must be single! (or have been at the time) I know better than to make an all inclusive list of all fishing related expenses... The idea with this was purely to look at the cost of operating a boat as a local, recreational angler. Each person will have a block of costs and some will have a few more or few less, but I suspect the lists (items) would be fairly similar, even if the amounts were varied.

Another thread prompted me to post about this. I think few people plan out the cost of ownership in boats (and other toys). The following is a list of my boat expenses... this does NOT include the purchase price of the boat (mine is paid for). It seems like a lot when you list it all out, but this is what my particular boat (19' Champion w/ 175hp) and situation actually costs on average since it was purchased new in 1994: $75/mo boat storage (12' x 30' with electricity, security and 24 hr access) $25/mo $300/yr insurance (I'm guessing new boats will be 2-4 times that) $2/mo $50 TPWD boat registration (every other year) $6/mo $65/yr trailer registration $50-$100/mo. boat gas/oil (double or triple it if you plan to ski) $4/mo $40/yr corps park/boat ramp pass $2/mo $25/yr trailer lights (get him at ramps) & grease for hubs $5/mo trailer tires (2) every 5 years $7/mo $250 batteries (avg.) every 3 years $17/mo $600 motor tune up and carb o'haul every 3 yrs. $7/mo misc. and truly unexpected ________ $200-$250/month on a receipt tracked, 5 year average. (obviously higher in summer and lower in winter) The first 7 years when it was "new" it was a $217.37 pmt. plus the carrying average above. (I remember the payments like they were yesterday ...lol) I put $100/month aside for this list, because I pay boat storage (rent) and fuel separately. In doing it this way, I've never had a financial "emergency" as a boat owner. (in fact, I have a cushion in that account) Older boats and unknown histories should also be taken into consideration. If you travel far to reach your lakes of choice you may even want to add some truck related maintenance expenses to the list, so it reflects all the true costs. These costs should not be unexpected... if you own a boat, you will incur expenses... if you plan for them, it's no problem. If you buy a new boat you will also have some required maintenance for the outboard to stay in warranty. I hope the "honest" numbers are helpful, and not discouraging to boat owners and prospective boat owners, alike.

Great news!

I feel your pain, every 4-5 years.... Boats cost a lot of money, but usually in waves (sorry) No one ever posts being happy about the 3-5 year stretches that you only pay for gas, oil and registration... As for the trailer, sounds like you were sold the wrong size tires... that sucks but you can hardly blame the boat or trailer for those costs. I shared in your frustration and used to get upset about these kind of years, until I realized that you can easily plan for them. If you put $??? a month into a coffee can, you would have these "unforeseen" events covered every couple years. You prompted a new thread on the cost of boat ownership... http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1215099163/0#0

Any of you using the ACS reel seats? I have been eye balling them since they became available and finally ordered some... If you are not familiar with them: http://www.mudhole.com/Shop-Our-Catalog/Graphite_4/Fuji-ACS-Trigger-Reel-Seat And now I'm sending them all back... The finger grooves are so small that they must be sized for youth, women or the stereotypical Fuji employee. :-? I can't get my hand comfortable with one. It's a shame because it looks like a great seat. And it looks like it would be super comfortable if you have smaller hands. I hate return shipping. ...lol

I would take it back to the retailer to exchange.

Too bad it's Fri/Sat instead of Sat/Sun.... :-/ I would have liked to go.

I like that you even marbled the guide wraps, that's pretty cool. I still haven't found a thread combo I like a lot for that blank... in the direct sunlight, it has both yellow and blue glitter dust in the paint...

Another excellent post, Catt! Humps are some of the most productive and underfished locations there are. (and they usually hold bigger fish) You can't pinpoint exactly with a graph... most transducers are between 4 and 24 degrees of cone angle. 20 feet of water at a 20 degree angle and most of the time you'll miss the entire brush pile. Beyond that, you can easily feel the hump's boundries with a c-rig... the slopes, bottom composition and then the cover. A c-rig allows you to "map" the hump on the surface so you can "see" it's feature's locations. The graph gets you in the area and the c-rig gets you on the spot, exactly where you need to be.

I mentioned this in another thread, but when i see people having trouble, I offer to back them in. They usually say yes. It aggravates me to no end, when guys make a wife or girlfriend try to negotiate a ramp in their stick shift truck when the wife/gf have trouble with a stick on level ground. Never realizing that it would have been faster and safer to load or unload by themselves.