Crookedneck

Fishing is a family thing here. My 9 year old fished a couple tournements with me last year. My four year old hangs in for a couple hours at a time. I bought a minnow bucket for when the youngest goes with me. I buy a half a dozen minnows, put them in the bucket and the 4 year old fishes for hours.

Michigan. A motorized dryer is not a necessity, lots of rods have been built with out them. But they do make it easier. Good luck & post up some pics as you go.

Trailer hook? Yep Trailer? Most of the time it is a split double tail. http://www.mistertwister.com/information/split-double-tail/335#description

Those deep divers look like the Sebile D&S cranks. An interesting concept on those. I haven't tried them but have wondered how they work... Glad to see your new stuff...sorry to hear about your boat.

I won't talk about gear other than I throw them with floro and like A-Jay like a slightly longer grip, instead of my standard 10" rear grip I prefer 12.5-13". I love throwing them in late fall. I fish alot of rivers so I concentrate on deep gravel bars and rocky points banging the bottom the whole time. I have also been known to drag them through deep sandy flats every once in a while. On the rivers I like to crank against the current. It helps drive the crank deeper, while allowing for a slower retrieve if needed. During these types of times color hasn't been to much of a factor in my opinion, more of a reaction bite. My favorite retrieve on DD's is to crank down to the bottom and then use long sweeping strokes then reeling down. I get alot of hits on the pause/reel down.

Pflueger president. It will fish as good or better than most $100-150 spinning reels

Hook section isn't too bad...it's the fillet knife section that makes me jump.

I have seriously been contemplating changing over to the Revo line of reels this year...I am currently running all Quantums with the exception of one...

Yep you can find them for spinning rods. I used to use them until I had them catch some air one day on a run up river, and I didn't have my rods tied down....

Pretty close except I am using #15 on my bait caster. I am a believer in the Seaguar. I used to you Vanish, but made the switch last year when I went through 2 spools of Vanish in 2 days due to breakage. Haven't had that problem sense I went to Seaguar.

He probably isn't using a motorized rod dryer. Probably doing it by hand which is why he is rotating it.

Unfortuanetly, wavy, lumpy, foot ball shaped epoxy on your first build is all too common. Probably happens to almost every self taught rod builder in the first couple builds. x2 The key to smooth epoxy is several lite coats, even if it is high build. Usually my first coat soaks into the thread and not much more...usually I end up with 2 coats minimum, usually 3 coat.

Welcome, you found a great site. Lots of great knowledge around here.

Looks Good! Wrap looks nice. My first build was done in simular colors. Cross wraps add alot of visual effect to a rod. I haven't done too many cross wraps lately. Maybe my next build I will do one. I'll take some pictures of the inlay after it gets done turning, it got it's first coat of epoxy this morning. Here is a picture of the reel seat that I turned. I turned the insert out of stabilized box elder burl.

Fish Hawk makes some very good thread. I am watching football and doing a feather inlay on a custom switch rod. The thread I used on this build was Fish Hawk varigated thread. Make sure to post some pictures.

I grabbed (stole) a small 8"x14"ish plastic tote from my wife. I keep the plastics in there own bags. Can fit probably 30-40 bags in it.

There are usually a few aluminum boats in the tourneys around here, to include mine. I've actually got a 17' 6" aluminum bass boat, it actually has a v hull not your typical flat bottom aluminum bass boat. Hard to find and I looked for a while to find it. 90% of my bass fishing is on rivers where the water can get pretty skinny. I have fished some rough water on windy days. That is where a good trolling motor comes into play. Where some people laugh at my 80lbs thrust saying it is over kill for a tin boat, I don't get blown off my spots. Currently it has a 65 horse Merc. But, is rated for 115, I would like to get a 90 or 100 to put on it. I think 115 would be scary. I do get out run, but fish don't care how fast your boat is. My fishing partner has a 19' glass Ranger, when we travel we always take my boat. Saves gas money. The only real difference between the two boat that make a difference in tournement fishing is his boat has two livewells, and mine has one.

I have found having a black weight helps when I T-rig. Might have to do with where I am fishing, and how.....but, I get skunked every once in a while too.

I use a custom built rod 7'3" rod. Built up on an MHX MB874 blank. The blank is a H/F. I did an acid wrap on the guides. I have it set up with a Quantum Tour Edition 1170PT w/ 65# Power pro. I have also used this to toss an Arig the few times I have fished that rig.

7'3" H/F w 65# braid for pitchn and flippin 7' MH/F w 15# floro for t-rig/carolina 6'11" MH/F w 25# braid for spinner baits 7' M/F w 12-14# floro for cranking 6' 10" M/xf spinning rod w 8# floro for drop shot Sometimes a 7' M/F spinning rod w 10 # braid for top water

Depending on what they are made of, yes they can be melted down and re-molded. Not all brands can be melted down though.

Maybe not irresponsible but gauranteed to cause fireworks. Move them all into the house for a couple days. A couple in the kitchen, living room, dining room. Then sit back & see how your wife reacts.....I don't recommend putting any in the bedroom as you may get beat in your sleep...just saying...

Knot Wars app on my smart phone is awesome for teaching how to tie and listing breaking strength using different types of line..

I can tell you how my brother fixes them..he comes over to my house when I am fishing in my boat. He takes my good ones & replaces them with the bad ones. WHAM! Hole in waders is fixed...for him....True story...twice...

Lot's of good points and techniques in the posts above. I fish alot of deep water in rivers, gear has alot to do with improving hook ups. The right hooks, floro, sensative graphite rod, and a high speed reel are all going to help with hook up ratios. Knowing the water you are fishing helps too. Time on the water is the best way to learn