Goose52

I have the 9'6" BPS Microlite as well. It's the only FnF rod I have so I can't compare it to any others...

16 degrees here. I won't have my on-lne order ready 'till later today or tomorrow ... still shopping :

Wow - great catch! My first fish was only a brim - probably 8oz or less... I don't have a Creme worm laying around, but here's a relative of your 202

Same here in my part of Tennessee - 27 as the high. It's 8:10pm here now at it's 21deg outside. I don't think I will be fishing tomorrow...although I was out fishing the other day when it was 29 and kept having to stick the rod in the water to melt the ice in the guides.

I was born in Florida but moved away back in '67. However, I can still remember how tough those winters are but I know you can handle it ..... ;D ;D Ain't that the truth. I lurked on this board a bit all summer but didn't register and start posting until fishing started slowing down in November.

I use Spiderwire Stealth in 30lb and a Palomar always works for me. The Palomar is said to be one of the best knots for braid ... Regarding tieing on directly to a bait, I often have a problem with managing to get the palomar loop over some baits and in those cases I use a palomar to tie on a snap (yikes, the purists will get me for that - limiting the action of the bait and all ...).

I got mine about 4 days ago .... I've got my list started

Wow - great score. I'm gonna fight the bait monkey if I can and wait for a sale ...

I think Rapala is probably the superior bait overall. However, I've probably used Rebels more often due to price considerations or availability. By availability, I'm flashing back to the 1960s when I was with my Dad in a 12' jonboat fishing in South Florida. We would cruise by some spots that were popular with bank fisherman and sometimes find some nice lures hung up in the brush on the opposite bank. When we would find a minnow-like bait, it was usually a Rebel since Rapalas were more expensive even back then and most people back then were VERY price conscious! I still have, and fish, some of those 1960s Rebels!

A Shyster in-line spinner - perhaps this very one which I've had since the early '60s. I wish Shyster (which is still being made) had better distribution and more colors/sizes as they are a superior bait to the Roostertail ... IMO.

The water is not hard here so I am still going out fishing ... but catching is very poor. There is a spell of sub-freezing weather coming up and I don't think I will be going out to beat the water so I need to do what RW said - clean gear and reorganize. The bad thing is that if I'm not out fishing, I'm more likely to be reading the BPS catalog or browsing BPS or *** on line ... then, look out - bait monkey time!

Well, I retired August 1st of this year and that gave me more time to fish, after not doing very much fishing for the last 25 years or so. Bought quite a bit of new gear this year, to upgrade my old stuff which dated from the 1950s to the 1980s. Results - the two best catches of the year were 1) the 7.75lb bass shown in my avatar - caught on a 6.5' mf baitcaster w/12lb mono on a BPS ProQualifier reel, and 2) a 20lb channel cat caught on a 5.5' light-power spinning rod w/6lb test on a mid-80s vintage Shakespeare Sigma reel - the best "fish-fight" I've ever had. 8-) Looking forward to becoming a better angler in the next decade !

At least the water here isn't hard like up north ... but I was out fishing the other day and had to keep sticking the rod under water to melt the ice in the guides ;D

Well, every day of winter is a day closer to spring, eh !

Went fishing today for 5 hours - water temp was 42 degrees - caught nothing, nada, zip - fingers got cold and slipped off the spool just about the time I was ready to quit - terminal backlash, had to cut the line. So ends my last fishing day of 2009. STILL, getting out and wetting a line was better than sitting in the house thinking about it! Happy New Year to all !

Palomar on hooks, snaps, snap swivels, etc. Improved clinch when tying on to lures or other stuff where it's hard to get the palomar loop over the item. For braid - always palomar. When my fingers are cold, I can usually tie an improved clinch easier than a palomar ... but that's just me....

Thanks for the report Steezy. Maybe I'll have to get a combo instead of just the reel!

The Carbonlite reel has now sold-out 3 times on the BPS web site. They posted it initially and it sold out and they took the listing off the site. Then they got more, reposted, sold-out, and then pulled it from the site. The third time they pulled it was yesterday or the day before. When the reel sells out, they also pull the combos... We don't know how many they have sold, but it's obvious the interest is there. Also, all the right-hand Pro Qualifiers are sold out as well.

Let's hope the internals of the Carbonlite are as good or better than the Pro Qualifier - if so, I will be a happy camper. On the ProLite, looks like it's gone and BPS must be thinking the Carbonlite is the replacement. I would think (hope) that they will be expanding the Carbonlite model line to include left-handed and a 7.1 ratio. However, while about the same weight as the ProLite, the Carbonlite is still a bit bigger and won't palm as nicely as the ProLite. I'm glad I got my 2009 model ProLite before they were gone...and I should have gotten two!

It's gotten some good reviews from forum members here, it has a 4.8 star rating (with 88 reviews) on the BPS web site (FWIW), and those that actually own them usually say they are a good value. Right now, the right-hand models are sold out on the BPS web site. I've got 4 PQs and will be getting probably 2 more. One thing for sure, the dual-braking feature sure makes learning a BC reel much easier and you will have fewer backlashes. With most baits, just turn on 2 of the centrifugal brakes, set the magnetic to 5-7 to start, and you will have a pretty conservative initial set-up. Don't forget to adjust the cast control/spool tension knob per the instructions. No, not at all - see the instructions. It shows you how to remove the palm-side plate and to remove the spool and also gives lubrication instructions. Reel oil is best. Some gun oils are probably light enough - like RemOil or equivalent. Not sure I would use BreakFree... Sure - I have had 8, 10, and 12 lb line on my PQs.

Did you check the spool shafts - I got a reel in that had grease on the shafts - I cleaned that off and put a drop of oil on each shaft, as well as a drop of oil on each of the three spool bearings and it made a difference...

I'm with you. Most of my reels have excess capacity for what I need in fresh water. Don't we often have discussions about putting backing behind expensive lines? Do we really NEED more than 300 feet (100yds) of line for bass fishing? Couldn't we have a bit smaller, lighter reel with reduced capacity? Just sayin' ...

Now you're talking. A 5 1/2' light-power spinning rod is one of my favorite walk-around rods since I go for multi-species (usually small stuff). However, I got a 20lb channel cat on that rod w/6lb test back in September. 15 minutes to get it on the bank - the best "fish-fight" I've ever had. 8-)

Given the additional information posted above, it sounds like I would be better off selling my Shimano B-Mags on eBay - they've been going for around $20 or so... Plus, not sure the kids would want to learn fishing on a 25 year-old baitcaster (although if you really crank on the magetic brake, you can cast these reels pretty well without backlashes).

I've been more interested in the reel than the rod. While the Carbonlite rods seem like good deals, and at least one person on the other thread actually fished with a prototype and gave it a good review, there are other brands of split-grip rods of similar features as the BPS Carbonlites, all pretty close in price. However, there is no other reel with the specs of the Carbonlite reel that is anywhere close in price. I will be waiting for the reel to go on sale and grab one for sure (unless the bait monkey gets me and I actually pay full price for a BPS reel! )