.ghoti.

XL got a lot stiffer, and has a lot more memory that it used to. I used to by two 1000yd spools of 10, two of 12 nd one of 14 every year. I bought 330yd spools this year of the new stuff, in blister packs instead of boxes. There is a definite difference. And I don't like it at all.

Thanks Mike. If you think of it, shoot me a PM when you get them in.

Berkley, in their infinite wisdom, saw fit to change the formula, or process, to my favorite line, XL. It is no longer acceptable. I don't know what they did to it, but I wish they would undo it. ARE YOU LISTENING, BERKLEY? I have a few spools of flouro to experiment with for a few applications, but I need a new mono for the majority of my setups. I used 10, 12 and 14 XL on my casting reels, and need something in that strength or diameter range. Braid is not an option. So far this year I've tried the following: Trilene XT no Trilene Sensation a more emphatic NO Trilene Big Game a big $@ NO Pline C21 maybe (6lb test on a spinning reel was OK) Sufix Elite the best option so far YoZuri Hybrid NO Tectan not bad at all but very hard to source What else should I look at?

piscisidal, do you guys have bearings for Daiwa reels yet? Specifically 5X11X4 and 3X8X4 that most Daiwa reels use. I'd like to try some of those that have the plastic cage. Regular ceramic hybrids are way to noisy for my taste.

Boca OS bearings, run without the shields, which you are pretty much forced to do, are way too noisy for my taste. I like my reels like I like other people's kids: seen but not heard. My bearings of choice are the Stainless 7's from BGF. I have some Hedgehog Air's on order to try out. I like the idea of smaller balls. Smaller the balls equals less friction in the races. Less slip in the races equals less noise, so I'm willing to gamble once more on ceramic hybrid bearings. As far as replacing bearings just to be doing it goes; I concur with John. A proper cleaning and lubrication will get you almost the same benefit. Putting high end bearings in a low end reel is not gonna deliver much bang for the buck; if any. Now if an OEM bearing is bad, then it makes some sense. You can usually buy a stainless 5 or 7 for less than a factory stock replacement. But, you know what? It's your reel and your hard-earned cash. Do with both as you danged well please. That's precisely what I do. I've experimented a lot over the years, spending a considerable amount of time and money in the process, and I know I like and what works for me. I know what performance upgrades make sense, to me, from a cost/benefit viewpoint. I've been cleaning and tweaking my reels since I was a teenager. I passed 60 a couple of years ago, so I've got the time on the job to make my opinion worth something to me.

I feel for the families. But, how do you spell irony?

A great reel, at a great price. So good, I just ordered one.

Right now, at TW, is one the great dropshot rods, at about half price. The TD-X rod is on sale for $100. I have one. If I needed another dropshot combo, I'd be all over this. It's sort of a one trick pony. The first two guides are too small for this rod to be a good distance caster. I have a set of MicroWave guides on hand, waiting for really cold weather before stripping mine down. What this rod has is a great sensitive blank, SiC guides, and one the most comfortable reel seat/grip assemblies you'll ever put in your hands.

That would be a first.

right now TW has tha Daiwa TD-X dropshot rod on sale for $140. If I didn't already have one, I would be all over that. It would be difficult to find a better drop-shot rod at that price.

I just tell her it's a gift.

Never had one give me the finger.. I have had several give me the fin.

I will be there again, and will be hosting the next installment of the Saturday Night Wine & Cheese Soirée, which will, of course, be Wednesday evening. Don't have a menu yet. I'll wait until I get a better idea how many people I need to feed before making any plans.

use the 7' MH-F as your primary bottom contact rod; plastics, jigs, etc. use the spinning rod for any light weight baits. add another MH-F casting rod, maybe shorter with a shorter handle for spinnerbaits, and jighead duty add a M-F casting rod, 7' for lighter plastics; tubes, flukes, etc add a casting crankbait rod, 7' M-MF for small cranks or a MH-M for deep cranks Those four casting rods and one spinning rod will cover a lot of bases. You can expand later into more application specific setups as your experience dictates. Buy the best you can afford. It's better to buy one top shelf rod that you will use for a long time, than three lesser rods that you will replace as soon as you are able.

I'm callin BS on this. Ain't no way a 3/16oz jighead is going to penetrate -47 degree water. water is some hard stuff at that temperature.

If you're seriously thinking about N Dakota, at this time of year, you, sir are seriously disturbed. It's a cold, coming, as you do, from Alabama, you simply can't fathom. Besides, none of you southern boys know how to drive up here. And that's a fact.

I've always called a flatus a fish call. Looks like I was more right than I thought..

Let us know how it performs.I'm sort of looking for a new deep crank rod. Oh, by the way, when you go back to the same store, buy another rod, not a pistol. I'm pretty sure it's illegal to shoot fish where you live.

Getting old is much better than the alternative, but it is not for sissies.

this is something I "knew", but didn't really consider the implications of until spending some time on this wonderfull thing we call the web. 50% of the people are below average.

Rage Tail Space Monkey, on a 5/16oz Evo Shake2 jighead. It bass crack.

I use a snap for jerkbaits and some topwaters because I can't seem to tie a decent loop knot. I use a swivel for c-rigs and deep dropshot rigs. I never use a snap-swivel.

I've actually decided to get out of the "bait finesse" game. I'm liking my spinning combos enough, such that, with a little more time on the water with spinning gear, I won't be needing to push the lower limit on any of my baitcast combos. The two reels I mentioned in a previous post will be re-dedicated to other applications. I have the LTB ML-XF rod sold; just haven't completed the transaction. I'll probably keep the Kistler ML; it's a good backup light crankbait rod.

I'm in this camp now. A couple of years ago I had one spinning rod, and almost never used it. I didn't use it for bass fishing at all. I now have five spinning combos. I do use them, and have become more proficient.

I got it covered from A to Z LOL. love me some Alphas. I buy every used one I find except the ito's. I find it incredible (bordering on downright silly) that an engineer with Mr Ito's reputation would produce an unfinished aluminum framed reel, not to mention a delicate, clear plastic side cover. Those two factor make the reel suitable only for life on the shelf.