Darren.

Welcome aboard!

I bought one at BPS years ago. Inexpensive. One of the worst fishing days I ever had was when I first used it while fishing off a dock. My lure got caught in a tree about 40' away. The dang weight was too heavy to get that distance away, LOL. I tried anyway. Eventually got my lure back later by going and getting my canoe. I have used it one other time since, and it did work....

Welcome aboard! Hopefully you'll get some help from the NOLA-familiar folks in short order.

Unfortunately you'll find no doctors here for your new addiction. Only enablers.

Welcome aboard, Jeff!

Holy cow! Those are some great peacocks! Bucket list for me. Congrats on the awesome haul!

Welcome aboard, Justin!

Totally agree! Great forum, great folks, great advice (well for the most part )

Looks like you may have your answer(s), so I'll just welcome you to the forums!

The worst being...was it staged? Camera angles suggest it may have been like far too many wild life shows....

It's always someone else's DSG's, never yours! At least that's my experience, LOL....

Welcome aboard!

My best advice (and congrats on the fine yak) is to always, 100% of the time, wear your PFD!

Usually the Spring Fishing Classic late Feb/early March. Good deals, rod and reel trade-ins, etc. That's for Bass Pro, not sure Cabela's.

As much a fan of the Stik-O as I am, I've not experienced much success with the 3" variety. But my local BPS now carries them in a greater variety of colors, so I'll likely try again in 2016.

Wow! Nice find!

Lou! Kickin' butt and taking names! Nicely done, mate!

Have to agree. According to what I read, Bantam1 said the gearing is cold-forged aluminum. However, he also says this: So there are some differences, but by and large, Hagane is a new trademark for their cold forged gearing.

Welcome aboard!

The more opinions you get the more confusion can set in. Many of us have gone the lighter braid route because we have confidence in it despite how thin it may seem, 10# braid has a high breaking strength. If you feel more comfortable with 20#, go for it. For me, that's what I put on my casting reels. We all have different experiences, plain and simple. As for copolymer line like Yo-Zuri Hybrid, etc., they are great lines, good for abrasion resistance, and so on. Some are coated or bonded with fluorocarbon. Using fluoro as a leader is fine if you want to use it. Has its own advantages and disadvantages. I've taken advice from this forum and made purchases based on it that I later regretted. My experience differed from the other folks. You may drop some $$ on pure FC and love it, or hate it. Part of the game as you develop how YOU like to fish.

As I don't have a huge collection, I would says that I've had some great luck and enjoyment with my BPS Carbonlites. However, my Croix Legend Tournament Walleye rod is far and away my new favorite in terms of sensitivity. Amazing rod.

The retention ponds (local housing ponds) down here tend to have a lot of crud on the bottom so fishing weightless wacky/TX has been the go to ticket. Have had some luck on mojo, but a lot of crud comes in on the weight. Drop shot has worked some too.

Welcome aboard!

Something that won't break the bank will be Yo-Zuri Hybrid, or P-Line Floroclear. I use both from 4 to 15 lbs as leaders on all of my spinning/casting setups.

Looks like a cross between a crappie and a cichlid!