Darren.

Nice little kitty kat

Congrats on the PB!

I fish on the Peninsula, near the even smaller airport! But will have to keep that in mind next time I'm down there. There have been a number of 10 pounders caught out of Harwood's Mill over the years, but not by me, sadly . Now that I'm becoming an addict of striper fishing, my time on fresh is going to be less than ever....

You bet! Caught me many a 10 and even a few world records! Where? In a dream-state.

Welcome, again!

welcome! @Glbglb21, stop by the Introductions forum and tell us a little about yourself.

I see Shorty's is wholesale for retailers, etc., on their site. Will they sell to anyone? Nice if they had details and ordering online.

I always try to buy Gammy hooks in bulk, so long as I can easily find what I want . For me, Split/Drop Shot and Finesse Wide Gap. Saves a bundle as I also like to tie my own weed guards on 'em.

Welcome aboard!

Kayak. Occasional shore.

Welcome aboard!

Fluoro is not necessary for a leader. You will be fine with a line like Yo-Zuri Hybrid, or other copoly. I do use fluoro but use copoly more often. So no, you do not have to drop a load of $ for a leader. But some of these lines are very nice. I like Gamma Edge fluoro, myself. Where I think fluoro will shine is where there are abrasive objects like zebra mussels, oyster beds, concrete pylons, etc. Length is up to you. Some don't like the leader knot to get past the top guide so tie it accordingly. I tend to go with a stretch across my body, arms extended. One or two of these. Gives me a long period of fishing before I cut in to my braided mainline.

Agree with the taught line comment...unless you've got a floating worm, per se. You can also add some rigidity...sort of...by using a long shank hook like you'd use for TX rigging.

I do not use the watertight containers. For one, the ones I've messed with have been a pain in the butt to open, but that helps with the seals to keep out water. Not found the need for watertight boxes at this stage of the game. Now that I'm doing saltwater fishing, too, I have thought about it, but not made any moves to upgrade. Bottom line, I've not had enough stuff rust out to make it a big deal to me. I have, for some boxes, kept a silica gel pack in 'em. That works great, too. The ones you get in shoe boxes...

Welcome aboard!

Never used braid for backing, typically cheap mono... I do/have spooled straight braid with no backing....

Welcome aboard, Seth! 16 and a licensed Stihl mech, eh?! Wow, good on ya lad!

I assume you mean the CI4+, right? CI4 is previous model with the round handle grips. While I haven't used a Patriarch, I have and own a CI4+ 1000. By far, my favorite reel among all my Stradics. Smooth, light, powerful.

That does look pretty interesting. Also like the single hook design. Don't see it joining my arsenal, though. Just started tying my own bucktails which, along with soft swimbaits, is my bread-n-butter for my new addiction, striper fishing!

Wow! Kirk van Douglas, the original KvD! Yeah, I know, I just had to add the "van" to make it work. I'll show myself out....

Welcome to the forums! There's a few gear junkies here to keep you company . Wait, I see you joined back in 2013! But your first posts are almost 4 years after! You been mighty busy with your "beer" gear, eh .

Holy smoke! Giant Beasts of Mexico!! Fantastic stuff! Time to update your "My PB:" in your profile One of these years I'll get down there....

Pretty slick! I'm not that organized, LOL. My stuff is in tackle boxes, or storage boxes.

Welcome aboard, Adam!

Sorry to hear about your daughter. And yeah, grandsons will need to be followed up and cleaned up after, too, LOL! Hope you and yours have an awesome Christmas, too!