Goose52

Thanks Hootie! I have to disclose though that only 4 of those are Conquests. I'm up to 11 Shimano round reels at present: 4 Conquests, 1 TE-DC, 3 TE-GTs, 3 XTs I'm still somewhat of a "minor-leaguer" compared to Maico1 however...

I'll have to admit that I haven't read the "advertising copy" on that boat to learn what the claimed benefits are...but from the photos it just looks like an "answer to a question that no one asked"...

Ah - that's an old photo from early 2014. It WAS posted on the top of the page - in the "Show Your Stuff" thread (page 79 - post # 1184)...

No decision is necessary on WHETHER to get a Conquest '14/'15 ... the only decision necessary is WHICH size and gear ratio to get ...

There's been a couple recent conversations on that "interesting" boat - follow these links: Check This Thing Out Ultraskiff 360

7' medium light / moderate: ~ 1/4 oz cranks (if you have a reel that tosses 1/4 OK). 7' 6" to 8' heavy / moderate or moderate-fast: 1 oz to about 2 oz cranks (depending on the weight rating on the rod). You have the bases covered with what you have - the above rods cover the "niche" baits at both ends of the weight spectrum.

I'd call it a man "re-adjusting" his priorities !

I was out in my canoe two days ago. I was expecting a calm day, not much wind, and I was going to a small lake. On a whim I packed a 45lb thrust trolling motor that I had semi-retired (but it's lighter than my newer 55lb TM). While on the lake, I didn't have the steering control that I'm used to, didn't have any rudder authority in a drift, had a lot of yaw when powering-off, and was just generally fighting all sorts of boat control issues. I finally figured out the problem. Duh. The TM that I was using did NOT have the Bullnose rudder (which I removed from this TM and installed on my new TM earlier this year). When I first started using the Bullnose, I immediately recognized the benefits as I posted about earlier in this thread. As I found out two days ago, now I am used to having MUCH more rudder authority and generally better boat control that I don't want to run without one. I'm considering ordering another Bullnose so I have one on both my TMs. They work...

...and the bait - all part of the system...

Another vote for the 75X squarebill. Seems to work, catch fish...

There are MANY vendors on eBay selling the same scale. However, most are in China with insane estimated shipping times. While the link that Fisher-O-men provided went to about the cheapest USA located vendor...there is another source on eBay that is USA based but wants about $1.50 more for the scale for a total of about $4.50 shipped. Search eBay and you'll find it.

Yup !

We've had threads like this every year or so...not to say that we can't have one again... Here are a couple of the past threads: Sentimental Gear Show Me Your Sentimental Setup What Are Your Old Rod And Reel Combos? Anyone still using their older equipment? Here is my response to one of those earlier threads: I started fishing around 1959 and have most of my gear that I used from then through the 1960s (Fishing Era 1). I still have almost all my reels from the 60s (2 spinning reels, 2 spincast, and 2 flyreels - missing a baitcast reel). I'm missing a rod or two but still have 2 spinning rods and 1 fly rod from back then. I still have a bunch of my lures from the 60s. I still have most of my 1980s vintage gear (Fishing Era 2) - minus the salt-water rods (don't need a 13' surf rod in Tennessee... ) I still fish some of this stuff from time to time. File photos that I had on hand: My first spinning reel - a Ted Williams (1959), and my first spincast (about 1965) - a Lido (what the heck is a Lido you might ask...it's the reel I got my first 4-pound class bass on!) Here's the Ted Williams reel on a mid-60s solid glass Heddon rod - June 2013 on its annual sortie - still reels in bass 54 years after I got it. (I know, it's not a very big bass..............but its a bass... ) An in-the-box Zebco 202 (~60s something) - I never fished this much and preferred the Lido (don't know where that non-original handle nut came from...............or IS it original???): Fly reels - a Sears knock-off of a Pflueger Medalist (right)...and a real little Pflueger (left)....along with a Shakespeare Wonderod (mid- to late-1960s): A few lures from the 60s (the Hula Popper has a new skirt): MirrOLures from the 60s: A made-in-Sweden Abu Reflex in-line spinner - I got a kit of 5 of these in the 60s (for 1 book of S&H trading stamps) and fished them over the years - lost them one by one but am saving this last one: A Super Duper - still have a couple of these around: Fishing Era 2: - I still have most of my 80s-vintage Shakespeare spinning reels and a couple 80s-vintage rods (two of the reels in the photo have since been eBayed) . I fished the freshwater-size Shakespeare reels in the photo until recently - finally retiring the last one in January 2012 (the 040 size with line on the spool): More than 25 years old at the time, the 040 size reel on the top row, right end in the above photo, scored a 9lb LMB in 2011. Finally - a Mitchell 408 on a Garcia Conolon rod (purchased around 1966) - both in excellent condition, still fished about once a year - this photo from this past June: Special mention goes to this Ambassadeur 5000, now over 50 years old, that belonged to my Dad. It's on an 80s-vintage Shakespeare rod. I still fish this every once in a while - this channel cat hit my bass plug a couple years ago. I got other stuff too - just no file photos handy at the moment. Lots of memories....

I use several different models of Rapala scales. While they are probably not certifiable, they have proven to be accurate - usually within 1 ounce at the 10 pound range. I load test each scale that I buy with a 9.804 pound test weight - the worst has been off by 2 ounces. The test procedure, information on how the test load was prepared and weight determined, and test results of the first three scales were reported in this thread: Rapala Mini Digital Scale - Load Test Report Here's a photo of the scales in the linked thread (showing Unit 2 reading about 1/2 ounce light to the test weight): Fisher-O-men: I had seen you post about these "luggage" scales a number of times in our periodic 'what's a good scale' threads. Finally, I had to see for myself. I ordered two of these scales and received them within a couple days. A whopping $7.98 for TWO scales, shipped ! Here's the scales (labeled unit 1 and 2) and the test weight. The scales are very small (2" W x 3.5" L), they will weigh in either kilograms, pounds, ounces, and a Chinese measurement - the Jin (whatever the heck that is), and have separate buttons for power, unit of measure, and tare. They seem to be reasonably well-made and all the buttons/features work properly. The hooks are too small for my method of weighing (gill slit) but they could be replaced with larger hooks or used along with a fish grip. So, how do they weigh - good, bad, or ugly? Actually, they are VERY accurate. Here's Unit 1 under load - reading 9.80 pounds - dead-on the test weight. Here's Unit 2 under load - reading 9.81 pounds - less than .01 pound over the test weight. Both scales were also very repeatable - powering down the units and then powering back up and re-applying the load nearly always resulted in the same weight. The biggest observed variance was .02 pound (less than 1/3 of an ounce). Remarkable as it might seem, these scales are the equal of, if not more accurate, than the Rapala scales that I have been using. I do have 6 years of field experience with the Rapala scales and have a good idea of their continued accuracy and reasonable durability over that time. The long term serviceability of these little luggage scales is unknown. Load cell technology has certainly reached bargain prices, even for an off-shore product. Given the results of this quick load-testing, I feel that the $7.98 was well-spent. Even if someone did not want to use this scale for daily use, it would serve well as a back-up scale to keep in the boat, tackle bag, car/truck, etc. Assuming these things will continue to work properly (and Fisher-O-men apparently has had good luck with them), there is absolutely NO reason for anyone NOT to have a scale (except for those that don't want to know that their "6 pounders" actually weigh about 3.5 pounds... ).

We had a thread on the Conquest 100/200 HGs earlier this year. A number of us were jazzed by the announcement of the high-speed version and board member "Maico1" bought an HG and posted a photo....but I don't know if there are any other HG owners on the board. One thing for sure, it's nice to have the option for a higher IPT and it really expands the potential applications for the reel. In my case, I already had a CQ-100 2014 standard speed and was going to get the HG as well. BUT, I also already had (have) a couple other round reels with relatively high (for a round reel) IPTs (Morrum 3600ZX - 28 IPT, Ryoga 1016H - 26 IPT) so I already had the HG mission covered. But, winter is coming up and tackle buying is a typical winter activity and an HG would only be a couple mouse clicks away - let's see what happens... Sounds like YOU will be ordering one soon though... AND - welcome to BR !

The St. Croix web site has a good, basic description of power vs. action - and includes illustrations. Visit: St. Croix Rods - Power & Action

I have 16 BPS baitcasting reels. They work, catch fish. Most, at the time I bought them, were great values in their price range ($100-$130), and even better values when bought on sale (as most of mine were). The reels I have include ProLite Finesse, Rick Clunn, ProQualifier, and several models of Carbonlites. I have no experience with any BPS BC reels below the PQ on the price scale, nor do I have any experience with the various Johnny Morris reels in the price range above $130 or so. I haven't had any problems with mine other than typical wear, with the exception of two JM Carbonlites (the black 5.7oz models - now discontinued and replaced by the white JM CLs) which were grindy out of the box - an issue that was fixed quite a while ago. I use a couple PQs as part of my deep-cranking battery - a 4.7:1 (19 ipt) and a 5.2:1 (21 ipt) - both have given great service in this capacity. A selling point for the 4.7:1 PQ is that there just aren't that many reels available today with that low of ipt. Another one of my PQs (a 6.4:1 - 26 ipt) was the subject of a 5 year long test - the results of which are here: BPS Pro Qualifier BC Reel - 5 Year Challenge You mentioned "mid to higher end" - not sure what that means to you but most folks would consider the BPS reels as low- to perhaps lower-mid-range. While the BPS reels are usually good values in their price range, I'm not sure they make any reels that could be considered mid to higher end. Even in their price range, the BPS BC reels are now being challanged by newer-generation reels like the Daiwa Tatula. While the Tat is not a direct competitor at its suggested retail price, the Tat can be found at bargain prices on-line and during store sales and is a very serious competitor to the PQ and probably taking a lot of the PQs market share. Anyway - keep in mind that BPS reels go on sale often, so it pays to wait for a sale before picking up something like a PQ.

Paddling is good exercise... ...and yes, I did have to register my canoe since I motor it. Wasn't that big of deal since I researched the requirements before I bought the boat. And no, I never considered it extortion...just another process to go through - just like registering a car.

The Crush Flat 75X squarebill works - catches fish...

Yup - now you just need to add some fish slime...

With the new model Elite out, I was waiting for those to show up in the Bargain store. BUT, I was hoping for 50% off instead of 30%. Still, a great price on a great rod.

I'm not sure if I understand your question correctly...but I use the Cabela's bag shown at this link to carry plano boxes. BPS has a similar bag as well... Cabela's Quick Stow Convertible Bag

There are certainly pros and cons of trailering vs. car-topping. In regards to loading and unloading at home...I often don't have to. I re-tie knots and clean-up my gear on the water, put everything in (and on top of) the car, get home, drive in the garage, and the next day head out for the water again...

Hey Hootie - you're seeing things. Everyone knows that St. Croix LTBs are just plain ugly... ...and they "ain't no good" at catching fish neither...

25-26" IPT is my happy middle ground. Fast enough to burn a bait if you crank fast enough, and slow enough for shallow- to mid-depth crankbaits if you slow down the retrieve a bit. NOT what I'd use for deep-cranking and really heavy spinnerbaits however.