Triton_Mike

Micropetrus (sp?). You have some very valid questions that deserve an answer. I'm at the inlaws now but when I get home I will take my reel apart showing how things work and answer your question in more detail. The thing is Ardent has been around for 3 years and if they have reached the point where they are now in 3 years, then it's gonna be scary to see what they accomplish in 3 more years. It took Shimano what 75 years to get to where they are now and they have the best warranty program in the business to back them up. Let me post some pictures for you tommorrow to futher answer some of your questions. Mike

caw caw caw ;D I am glad you got a chance to ask Gary your questions and pick his brain. He is the most approachable and downright honest person I have ever met. Just so you know Jay I have no hard feelings toward you even if you don't like the spinning reels. I personally did not like the looks of them but after fishing with them I was amazed how comfortable that reel seat is to fish with. I liked the idea of cork under your hand vs a hard cold reel seat. But cool glad to see you doing your homework and asking your questions. Takes a big man to eat crow . I've always found salt helps kill the taste LOL. Mike PS I'm in love with that ML 795. I used to dump fish all the time with another rod I had, but I haven't dumped a fish in over a month with that rod.

ww2farmer, Let me know if you have any questions or need any support literature? I will admit that getting a shop is not an easy task in most cases. I will say that if your into Balanced rods Dobyns is it!! Mike

ww2Farmer, If you can get Dobyns Rods stocked in a shop up there in New York I can get a rod or 2 in your hands NO CHARGE!! Mike

I'm also with George here. I have 15 spiral rods. No advantage at all. No disadvantage either. Mike

Use several marbles in the corners of the mold instead of popsicle sticks. Mike

Sorry bout that Glenn . ww2farmer, If I can help with rod selections please let me know . Mike

Bugman, If your line is breaking on the snap with 12lb test something is wrong. Even if your drag is set your line shouldn't slip on the hookset IMHO. Maybe if it's super close to the boat. I set the hook like a ninja with 12lb test and no problems. You either have bad line, Bad knots, use heavy lures with small lb test or don't retie often enough. Mike

bugman, By cranking the drag down you get solid hooksets. No worrying about if your drag is too loose or if it becomes loose. As soon as the hookset is over with I am ready to free spool. Like someone said earlier older reels had horrible drags and that is how I got started. Namely the 5500C Abu that I grew up fishing with. I fished for Sharks with this reel and free spooled for a drag. Got the burn marks on the thumb to prove it . I actually caught a 7ft hammerhead on a abu 5500C and a flipping stick and 20lb line . Roadwarrior, Since I was 13 or 14 I was free spooling. You don't need to be an accomplished angler at all to do it. Just takes a little practice. The problem I have with drags is this. If a fish surges to the right or left it takes "X" amount of force to have line come off your reel. NOW if a fish surges under the boat it takes "Y" setting of your drag for line to come off your reel because of your rod. Take a wild guess where most of the fish get off?? AT THE BOAT. This is where free spooling shines. I don't like the fact that a mechanical piece of equipment without a brain determines how much or how little line to give a fish as each situation is different. I also give different amounts of pressure based on what baits I am throwing as well and also what kind of cover I am fishing in. If I am throwing baits with little #6 treble hooks I really free spool very lightly especially on big fish. It's just so easy to tear out skin hooked fish on little treble hooks. If your a big jerkbait guy like I am this technique is invaluable to putting those big fish in the boat. Anything to put the odds in your favorite and free spooling does just that. One thing I am proud of is my catch loss ratio. I very seldom lose big fish. I have lost them but it's a rarity. Bottom line is this. USe what works for you. But don't be so hard headed to not try different ways of doing things. Mike

lubina, The ML's are due in the stores at the very beginning of October. Good things come to those who wait . Especially when Mike Long's name is on it. Mike

I found the balance of the Powells to be off. Also, If you pry that hook keeper up by accident (it happens when you are in a hurry when you see schooling fish). Once it's pried up it can't be bent back down like it was originally. It's amazing how often your line gets tangled in that pried up keeper. I did notice they put the dropshot keeper behind the reel. That was a good move. Gary Dobyns designed all of the Powell Rods and fixed the above and took it a few steps further with his new rods aka Dobyns Rods. How many of you have tried the Dobyns and the Powells?? Mike

YOur fishing big swimbaits on a glass rod. LOL. This I gotta see!!! Mike

If you look closely ALOT of pro's use their thumb instead of a drag. I have been doing it that way for 15 years. TOo many variables for one single setting in a mechanical drag. By using your thumb you can micro manage how much drag you want to give or not give based on how the fish reacts and how much cover you got. I channel lock all my drags down tight as they can go and use my thumb. The technique is called "Free Spooling" Mike

The biggest 3 advantages of fluorocarbon is it's sensitivity, refractive index and it's sinking capabilities. If your having twists in your line your doing something wrong. For starters you CAN"T put flourocarbon on a reel straight off the spool without twisting it. You have to throw it behind the boat to eliminate the twists. Once you do this you won't need to nuke your line or coat it with anything. Been doing this for 7 years now and I got clients that bring their 8-12 year old kids and they using my spinning 2500 and 2000 series spinning reels with no problems whatsoever with 4-8lb test. I use fluorocarbon on pretty much every reel I own including topwater. The difference is night and day between a 100% and a fluorocarbon coated line. Once you start adding nylon to a 100% fluorocarbon you are chipping away at any advantages you had to begin with. Mike

Your pretty observant LOL. Yep it's an Ardent.. They aren't even on the market yet . They told me to put it through the wringer. I've been fishing with it since Icast and It's sweeeeeeeettttt . It's the 2008 Ardent Mike

Water Temperature: 88 Water Clarity: 4 feet or greater CRAP it's hot out there!!! Somebody would make a fortune offering cold showers on the lake!! Water temp is 78ish at first light and got up to 88ish when the oven turned on. Water level is 5.6ft low and falling .1ft per day. The sonar bite is pretty good. Key thing right now is deep. THere is some schooling going on but buddy you gotta be quick and accurate when they come up. We caught just short of 20 fish today all but one on the spoon. Today I went out with my buddy Craig and all he wanted to do was learn more about sonar interpretation so we stuck with that sonar bite till noon. Lots of activity from the 28ft to 40ft range. I caught the decent spot in the pic and Craig lost one longer than his leg shortly after. There was a fish of similiar size following the one he lost. Here is what you are looking for on your sonar/graph to catch spoon fish [img width=900 height=300] http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o314/TritonMike/S00007.jpg [img width=900 height=300]http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o314/TritonMike/sonarspots.jpg [img width=900 height=300]http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o314/TritonMike/S00008.jpg [img width=900 height=300]http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o314/TritonMike/S00005.jpg With the kids back in school I have already seen a decline in pleasure boaters this morning. Hopefully that will make the heat just a tad more bearable. Be sure to stock up on Gatorade and water and drink often to keep hydrated. If you wait until you get dizy your gonna be in trouble! All the SPOTS!! T Mike

bassboy, The rod Ceph mentioned is a good rod. I personally use the Dobyns 681 Spinning rod and it has the split grip no foregrip design. Also has a very unique dropshot keeper that the Croix above doesn't have. Mike

Split grips on swimbait rods are uncomfortable to me. Reason being is you tuck that handle up under your armpit vs have them out in front of you like with other applications. I like it just the way it is. It also helps to balance the rod. Mike Long agreed as well when he designed it. Mike

bpm, I thought the same thing until I got one. The one thing you will notice is how much easier it is to throw the big baits over the course of the day. I was blown away by what I experienced with those longer rods to the point that all of mine will be extra long. I personally thought the longer handle would get in the way but it is just the opposite. Mike

The Mike Long and Dobyns Rods (same company) will be available in September. From speaking to several folks at Icast these are probably going to be the most sought after swimbait rods ever. LOL. Get them while they are HOT. I was blown away by the balance and lightness of all 4 swimbait rods. Mike Longs will have EVA foam for grips while Gary's version will have cork The 4 rods on the far left are the swimbait rods.. Here are pics of the rods at ICAST Mike

Guys, I was on the Powell Prostaff before I went to Gary's Dobyns Rods Prostaff so I'm pretty familiar with both line of rods. The biggest noticeable difference between the Dobyns and Powell line of rods is the sensitivity as well as the balance of the Dobyns rod. Those 2 just jump right out within the first few casts. The single foot guides on the Dobyns rods are secured by a locking wrap and not just glue like most rods are. The warranty for Gary's rods is $20.00 and I believe Powells is $35.00. I also think the Dobyns rods are a sharper looking rod but that won't catch you anymore fish . Just my opinions after fishing both brands of rods. Mike

We usually wait a day or so before we start the low blows. Speak for yourself Gene, WHo is that ugly guy in the video?? ~ LOL. Good to see you over here Bobby!! Sorry about the line screw up. I was in a hurry to take the boof down Mike

fivebasslimit, Glenn and I both talked in good detail about internet advertising. I really think for the best value for your dollar Internet advertising can't be beat. Especially on moderated forums like this one. How else can you reach an unlimited audience. I'm going to talk to some people and see what strings I can pull. Mike

Guys I just wanted to say that I had the privledge of meeting and talking with Glenn at Icast the other day. Super nice guy and much prettier in person than what his avatar shows ;D. You guys should be proud to have Glenn as your fearless leader. Glenn it was an honor to get to meet you and I enjoyed our conversations that we had. I passed your information over to you know who and I will follow up on it for you. Thanks for stopping by and I apologize that I had to divert to a customer during our conversation! "Triton" Mike Bucca

Here is a little something I wrote on dropshotting that might help some. http://www.tritonmike.com/flattail.html