.ghoti.

I have one Cumara, one LTA, and several Avids. Mostly casting, not spinning rods. The Cumara 6'8" m-xf and the Avid 6'8" m-xf are completely different rods even though they are the same length, power and action. Both are, in my opinion, under-rated. Compared to all my other rods, these are both what I would call med-heavy powered rods. The Cumara is more of a fast action rod, while the Avid is extra-fast. I like both, and use both, but will admit to preferring the Avid. Mainly because of the grip. Nothing against the foam grips. I have them on other rods and have no complaints about this material for rod grips. It's the size of the Cumara grip that bothers me. It is way too small in diameter. I much prefer the larger grip on the Avid. The LTA rod is a 7' ML rod with what I would call a mod-fast action. Can't even begin to compare this one to the other two. It is just a totally different rod, for totally different applications. The grip is very nice though. Not at all too small. Of the three, the Cumara feels the lightest in the hand; the Kistler is the more sensitive; and the Avid is the most versatile, and the one I probably use the most. I would suggest that you go to a store and mount a reel on each of these rods and see what they feel like to you. When i was in the market for another spinning rod, I checked out the Cumara line. The minimalist reel seat and grip on the Cumara may very well present a problem. For me, it is not even close to being comfortable, and is NOT something I would be able to use all day. I have two Avid spinning rods that I no longer use, for the same reason. The reel seat / grip is just too small to be comfortable. Those two rods are now my wife's. Her hands are a lot smaller than mine, and she seems to have no problem with the small grips. I have not tried a Kistler spinning rod. Can't comment on those.

Pretty simple decision for me. Heavy cover = T-rig. I can't seem to get a jig through the really thick stuff. Light cover/sparse weeds = jig/craw Deeper structure = both

I like these weights. Less damage to the hook point. http://www.***.com/Gamakatsu_Wacky_Head_4pk/descpage-GWH.html Agrree totally with Dan about the Owner Phantom tube hooks. The only thing from Owner I don't care for. For tubes, the Owner Rig'n hook is the best I've used. For the same gap, they are a bit shorter than EWGs. When rigging smaller tubes, it can be difficult to find a hook that fits. The Rig'n hook solves the problem. I carry 2/0, 3/0 and 4/0 sizes. You can also try just t-rigging the tubes with a pegged weight. I catch as many fish with a t-rigged tube as I do with an internally weighted tube.

Now you're ready for the wacky jig. Better for fishing a bit deeper and faster. You can also use a baitcaster. Try these. http://www.***.com/Damiki_Kaiser_Wacky_Head_6pk/descpage-DKWH.html and these http://www.***.com/Gamakatsu_Wacky_Head_4pk/descpage-GWH.html Neither of these jigs gets hung up as often as you would think. The weight placement keeps the hook point upright, and, if you keep it moving, it will seldom get hung up .

Rooster, I've read enough of your posts about reel cleaning to get the idea that you pay attention to details, so I believe you when you say the guides or OK. But, do one more check. Using the q-tip again, twist the guides just slightly when running the q-tip around them. Don't try to bend them down towards the rod. Twist them perpendicularly to the rod's axis. Not much; you're not trying to twist them off, just a little bit of flex. Pay particular attention to the tip-tip and the reel's line guide. Also to the area of the reel around the line guide. If this all checks out good, then you got a bad spool of line. I've been using XL for years. Make that decades. In all that time, I've gotten three bad spools of line. Two came from big box stores. One came from a Cabelas clearance sale. 3000 yards for $20. Sounded to good to be true, and was. A valuable lesson it only cost me 20 bucks to learn. I buy line now only from BPS, a local tackle shop, or Cabelas. Only in -store, where I can inspect it before purchasing. And never buy line on sale.

I use Sufix Elite for all my moving baits setups, and have found it to be very good as long as you keep it moving. Any slack will coil up a bit. Same with YoZuri Ultra Soft. Fine it you keep it moving, but coils up when any slack is present. I'm presently using YZUS on two rods; a jig rod and a T-rig rod, where I keep contact with the bait at all times. For all slack line applications. like senkos, ikas, flukes, etc, I use Trilene XL. It is the king of low memory lines. KVD line conditioner is HIGHLY recommended. After you've filled up your reel, spray down the spool with KVD. You want enough on there to soak in. If the KVD is dripping off the spool slightly, you've got it just about right. Allow it to dry overnight before using. Don't forget to shake up the bottle of KVD very well before applying. As far as flouro line goes; I have two reels spooled up with Trilene 100%. I quit using flouro a couple of years ago. I decided to give it another chance. So far so good. The 100% exhibits a lot less spool memory than any other flouro I've ever tried. And I tried "em all before giving up on it. Use the KVD on this also.

Two medical students were walking along the street when they saw an old man walking with his legs spread apart. He was stiff-legged and walking slowly. One student said to his friend: “I'm sure that poor old man has Peltry Syndrome. Those people walk just like that.” The other student says: “No, I don't think so. The old man surely has Zovitzki Syndrome. He walks slowly and his legs are apart, just as we learned in class.” Since they couldn't agree they decided to ask the old man.. They approached him and one of the students said to him, “We're medical students and couldn't help but notice the way you walk, but we couldn't agree on the syndrome you might have. Could you tell us what it is?” The old man said, “I'll tell you, but first you tell me what you two fine medical students think.” The first student said, “I think it's Peltry Syndrome.” The old man said, “You thought – but you are wrong.” The other student said, “I think you have Zovitzki Syndrome.” The old man said, “You thought – but you are wrong.” So they asked him, “Well, old timer, what do you have?” The old man said, “I thought it was GAS – but I was wrong, too!”

Nice fish, Wayne. And, you are, of course, entirely correct. A real man can wear a pink shirt.

I used to carry Money Minnow, Shadalicious, Berkley, and Reaction Innovations paddle-tail baits. Got rid of all of them, and now carry one. GYCB Swim Senko.

what worked for me was something licorice flavored. Sambuca, ouzo, or anisette will do the trick.

12/20 on bumblebees. Pretty good shootin, frogtog. Sounds like fun

Wayne, I've had the Stout. It's on my short list. Very fine. Haven't tried the Bock. Yet.

Used to use a similar method. I carried a scratch awl and a lighter. I liked the awl because of the big plastic knob handle. Didn't got too hot to hang onto. A tip: don't put the awl back in your pocket after repairing a bait. Don't ask how I know this. You know what I did. :'(

Now that we've totally hijacked the thread, what's a GOOD Greek wine? Not being facetious; just can't say that I've ever had one. Probably because I don't know what to look for. Back on topic. I've never tried, or even seen, Ouzo baits. Where are you finding these?

I still do.

Actually, I intended to do this Saturday night. We can do it Sunday night also. I can bring enough to do both nights, since we have so few coming. Looking forward to seeing everybody. Joe, got some good beer, just for you. DogfishHead, a new Sam, and a couple more. Some primo hops, buddy.

Nice. ;D ;D ;D I'm semi-skilled at all of the tools on the list. But, a real handy man knows you only need four tools. Duct tape: if it moves, and it's not supposed to; use duct tape. WD40: if it's supposed to move and doesn't; used WD40. Channellocks: Twist it until it either stops or comes loose. Then use either duct tape or WD40. BFH: for when channellocks just aren't enough tool for the job. Sometimes though, it's hard to beat a fire wrench.

Exactly!

Just try out a few things. You'll soon discover what that rod is good for. I have three ML casting rods in the regular rotation. 6'9" ML-F BPS Pro Finesse rod. Usually has a tube rigged up on it. Sometimes, a split-shot rig with a small hook and finesse worm. It's also good for small cranks and the smallest topwater baits. 6'9" St Croix LT ML-XF. This is almost totally dedicated to wacky jigging. Drop-shotting sometimes happens with this rod. 7' ML Kistler Helium LTA. It doesn't say on it, but I would call this a mod-fast action rod. It flexes a bit farther down into the blank than what I normally expect from a fast action rod. This one is usually rigged up with a Super Fluke or Houdini Shad. If the fish aren't into flukes, I'll have a light jigworm rigged on this rod. Also a good small crank and jerkbait rod. There are a few things for you to try out. Let us know how it works out for you.

light, dark, and in-between

Maybe he got a little excited when he saw the ads. probably not. What the flop is "probably"?

Now, that's funny, right there. A tip o' the hat to Daniel

Real Magic, or Reel magic puts a coating on the line which washes off fairly quickly. KVD bonds to the line and will last for as long as I ever keep line on a reel. It just works. Reel Magic is great for spraying down the weather stripping around your car doors in winter. KVD is not.

Been using the Paycheck and Gambler punch skirts, on a normal weight T-rig. The skirt is placed between the weight and the hook. One of my go-to rigs is a Big Kahuna Cut-Tail worm; T-rigged with a 5/0 EWG, a pegged 1/16oz Ultra Steel weight and an Ultra Steel bead. This rig has been deadly for the last two years. I bought about a dozen skirts, not intending to do any punching. No need for such a rig where I fish. The weeds just don't get that heavy around here. I just wanted to try them with some of my larger T-rigged baits. So far, so good. Got my two best fish of the year with this rig. Almost the same rig, I should say. I had to go up to a 3/16oz weight to get the same rate of fall. It's surprising how much that skirt slows the drop of every bait I've tried it with. I tried it out with a Damiki Monster Miki, a big creature bait, T-rigged with skirt, 1/8oz weight, and an Owner 7/0 hook. It fell through the water like it was weightless. Had to go up to a 3/8oz weight to get a decent fall rate. Gonna keep experimenting, but it looks good so far.

I hear ya soccplayer. I haven't given up on it. RW is one of my regular fishin buds, and this is one of his go-to baits. I believe him when he says it's top-shelf. It just hasn't done it for me, yet.