Bassun

Just wondering, for those who swap hands exclusively --- if you fly fish, how do you handle things there?

Generally speaking, the same way you do, only with my right hand. Being more serious, it just depends. If I am casting long, or sweeping casts, I generally keep my hand further back on the reel - if I am doing more short stuff or just pitching I generally work forward on or palm the reel. But I cast from that position most of the time (I think -- I don't really think about it, I just do it.) Sometimes it just a matter of moving forward one finger up. I do the same with my spinning gear too though. I especially like to move forward one finger for any finesse or really slow presentations.

This debate will NEVER end. I could literally defend either side with what could be considered "good" reason, but let's face it --- you're gonna do what you're comfortable with. I personally find it bizarre that anyone would have ever started casting with their right hand, then swapping hands to reel, by choice. But, if all you had was a right hand crank bait caster - what else would you do. Either learn to cast left handed, which as a beginner using your off hand would be adding an extra level of difficulty... or swap hands. I suspect many of the "swappers" started on bait casters. Learned the process as a necessity, and grew comfortable with it. Conversely, I would suspect those who learned to cast right and crank left probably learned on spinning or spin-casting gear - and learned that way. There will, of course, be a few outliers --- but my guess is that's how the majority of us learned. I personally learned on spinning gear, and cast right, reel left - and only buy left hand crank bait casters. It's comfortable, it's easy, and it's what I like. Now, for those who hold a spinning reel upside down, and crank it in reverse.... well, that's a whole different beast... lol!

Kind of off topic, but regarding the rideability of tin. I've only been in those spine smashing flat bottoms, which surely would jar a filling from a tooth for you, so seating could be a consideration. Have any of you used any type of seat shocks on them? I know I've seen a few on the market, but never really considered how much use they would be... but, considering the nature of most (no offence to the smooth riding ones) tin cans, it may be worth considering. I know that as I age, little things which didn't used to concern me, now have to be considered. I think perhaps an absorbing shock under my can could be one of those if I were looking at rebuilding an aluminum boat. *Actually, I wouldn't mind having one of those spine smashing, flat bottoms in about a 2072 variant with a jet for the local river...the wife, however, disagrees.

Yeah, that was almost exactly what I was thinking, seems their carpet prices were fair as well at my first glancing. I think I can mount two pieces of square aluminum tube in the front and rear of the lips on the boat itself, mounting the piano hinge to the front and allowing the seat to rest on the rear. From that, I could use any foldable, bench mount seat of almost any size (within reason). Problem solved. I just hated to have to do that, if there was someplace that sold seats styled as needed. Thanks for the input!

I looked there earlier, but the problem I'm running into is the design of the bench seats for the SS90 uses a recessed bottom to go over a raised lip for storage under the seat when flipped forward on the piano hinges. A flat/flush bottomed seat frame will not work, it needs about an inch recess to allow for the lipping of the compartment. Most of the seat bottoms I've looked at are designed flush, and wont work. I'm thinking I will probably either have to cut out a notch to allow for the lip to fit or build a short aluminum mounting plate to raise the seat bottom to be flush with the top of the lip. My small deck, and seat design require fold down's -- unfortunately, the only fold downs seem to be pedestal mount. Thanks though, I appreciate the suggestion. I'm fully expecting to have to come up with some sort of modified mounting system in the end.

Hey guys -- The time has come to refurbish the ole boat. New Carpet, replace the cracked windshield (if they still make them) and replace seats, etc. The first problem I've ran into is finding seats that will actually work with the lipped storage below them. I could have them rebuilt from the foam up, but that's generally more expensive than a new one -- so I figure it would be cheaper to just get some new replacements (and probably be more comfortable too, as these were never that comfortable IMO). The problem I'm finding, is actually finding seats that fit correctly. Apparently Skeeter no long has any, considering it's 18 years old, no big surprise -- so I'm looking for folks who have replaced theirs. If anyone has, could you please let me know where you got them from? I guess I can probably come up with a few modifications to modify other seats to work, but I would rather find ones that just fit. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

I've done the butterknife when frankensteining worms. 2 Tips... don't let it get sooty. and if your a kid, dont use your step-moms butterknife. Just sayin'... Last time I did it, I just used my heat gun and an old pocket knife. Worked like a charm.

I've had a few first cast hits, but none resound with me save an old haggard jitterbug of my dads. It wasn't new, but was new to me and hooked me on jitterbugs for the better of a couple years. However, a friend of mine used one of mine that did stick. About 25 years ago, a few of us were "camping" by an old farm pond. Aka, we basically had a fire and were BS'ing and semi-fishing throughout the night. Someone had said there was catfish, so we used it as an excuse. I had my gear, most had just worms, livers and such. My buddy was making fun of this about 4" topwater bait with a prop on the back. It was big, black, and cheap. Some off brand, of which the name escapes me now, that I had not yet used. I told him, "I guarantee you a fish, if you tie that on and cast it to the far side of the pond and slowly real it back in." I think I ended up tying it on for him, if memory serves, but he did chuck it out about as close to the far bank as he could get. It splashed down with a horrendous noise, and nothing found it interesting. He slowly began reeling it back, and with each passing crank he increased his skepticism quite verbally. I kept telling him, slower... slower. Finally, he stops, drops the rod down to his side, and say's something along the lines of "Is this slow enough for you!"... and that was all it took. The granddaddy of the pond exploded on it. He squalled, tried setting the hook a few times before he cranked in enough line to actually get any pressure on the fish and ended up landing the biggest fish of the night. I'm guessing probably 5 or 6 pounds of large mouth, which was a beast for that small West Virginia pond. Needless to say, catfishing went by the wayside for a few hours and we were all torpedoing, jitterbugging, frogging, whatever I happened to have available, the top of this pond. We caught a few more, but nothing of any size.

I don't have the affinity towards the binders that many do. I keep my worms segregated in gallon bags, labeled with types of contents. Then my gallon bags reside in a duffle that I keep on deck. Having said that, good on you for coming up with the DIY! Looks like a nice solution!

...of course, Rick Clunn would say, pick a heavy action rod you like, and a fast reel... then just keep buying the same thing. No need for a different type of rod for every presentation, you present it how you want it. The consistency from rod to rod becomes a benefit, not a hindrance. Having said that, I think I have maybe two twin rods, lol.

"Just as reasonable as bass fishing" --- I'm SOOO doing it wrong as my bass budget is waaaaay to high, lol.

Oh really.... hmm.... May just have to load up and head down that way before too long

I'm exactly the opposite with top water on rod length. I do much better with a longer, more flexible rod. I think that it's probably me wanting to set the hook too soon, but it works out lol. However, if I'm tossing stuff like spinnerbaits, I like a shorter, stiffer, rod. This: Hook size, as well as lure weight, are the most important considerations. Same story with Heddons Teeny Torpedos. Work great on very light gear. I think they weigh 1/8.

Poppers in general, if they are tiny - absolutely! Hula poppers in general, no. I like light line fishing, but even then its usually on a medium-light not ultra. The setup just doesn't match well with a small ultra-light rod, IMO. Can you? Sure... but I wouldn't. If it's a 3/16, sure... you could. I suspect you would probably enjoy it more off a slow, 6 1/2 to 7 foot light to med-light action rod. You would be surprised how much of a difference in casting distance a rod makes. Especially with 4-6 lb line. Having said that, if you have an ultra-light, and want to fling it with out getting a new rod --- ultra light it is! :-)

To me, fly fishing is much more than just going out to catch fish. Personally, I think if you are not tying at least some of your own flies, you are missing out on half of what fly fishing is really all about. Sure you can buy dozens of flies for the cost of a couple bass lures (or 1/4 the cost depending lol) - but then you probably end up just fishing. If you take the time to tie a dozen flies - when you catch a fish, it's all you. You have become PART of the process and, to me, that makes it even more enjoyable. When you tie that Parachute Adams, and have a big bull gill suck it under -- when you tie that woolybuger and have a smallie try to destroy it -- you did that. Not someone else. That sense of accomplishment, that rush of self created success, adds to an already amazing past-time. That's not to say it is always cheap, or cost effective. But you also don't have to buy the most expensive vice, feathers, hurl, etc. My first fly I ever tied was a weighted streamer, on an old eagle claw hook, with pink feathers from a feather duster. I used a pair of pliers in a vice to hold it, and tied it up with black thread out of my step-mom's sewing box. And it SLAYED the bass in the little lake near our house as a kid. Dragging it through beds was deadly. I followed that with what I called a black gnat. Same setup, smaller hook, and basically a bunch of thread. Bluegill could not resist it. The point being, you only have to spend as much as you want. Now if you fly fish a lot, sure maybe it is worth buying the right tools - and maybe ...MAYBE you save some money in the long run. If not, then at best maybe it's break even... but chances are it's a loss. But, it's not about P&L, it's about the experience. I love wade fishing for smallies with spinning gear...but I never feel as connected with fishing as I do when I am fly fishing with stuff I've tied myself. ** RE: someone who posted it's difficult to fly fish on a 16' boat. I 100% disagree. You just have to position the boat differently vs casting with bass gear. 16 foot or 22 foot -- you still can't easily whip it around across the boat from front to back...unless you're partner would like a new piercing, lol.

South Holston, yes -- there are definitely spots in there. Not much of any size that I have ever seen, or really, even heard of. If I remember correctly, there is no size limit on spots or largies, but there is a 14 or 15 inch minimum on smallmouth. Most of the bass are pretty small there from my experience. But it has been a few years since I've been down that way, maybe it's improved...

I rarely use swivels on artificials, save spoons. I almost always slip on a barrel swivel and tie to that. If you don't have any standard barrels, you can always take apart a swivel - snap and use the swivel from that. Now if I'm connecting to a leader or something, sometimes I will just use a swivel snap as long as its not "at" the lure tie.

Considering the weather we had, two keepers (even if they just barely made the bump) isn't bad lol. I think it's too small of an image to be 100% confident, but I thought largie myself. But, I am never really convinced a big spot is a spot lol.

I hate to be the nay-sayer -- but honestly, you don't know what is in the lake. No offence intended, but from fishing it 10 times, and hearing what your buddy said doesn't necessarily equate to what the lake actually holds. It certainly gives no meaningful data on what the breakdown of species and size truly is. Maybe there are TON's of huge bass, you just haven't caught them... Maybe there are tons of trout, maybe there are... the point is, until you really know what is in the water you may as well toss dice and let fate decide how to manage the water. If you are serious about trying to improve this small fishery (which is awesome!)- I would personally suggest starting with the local fisheries department (not sure where you are so, whatever their department is called) and see if they have any fish population reports. Usually you will find they break things down a little differently vs your 3:50 ratio. Most times you will see something like 40% of the fish over 8 inches long were also over 12 inches long. 28% over 8 inches long were also over 15 inches long, etc. for bass, which helps establish the actual size of catchable fish in the water. But, the real key is they will do so via electroshock. So they will not be counting fish based on those you caught (which would be a false report as it would only indicate what's in the pond based on your strategy), but a better sample of all fishes not just bass, but bluegill, crappie, etc. anything in the test areas. If they have not done a report, you could volunteer to help and see if you could convince them to do a study on the water and help monitor the fishery with them. I wont suggest they will likely do so, but it is going to take a genuine study to really understand the dynamics of the water --- and even then, management will be restricted by the local ordinances and willingness of the fisheries department to manage the water. And that is just one of the stepping stones. To really evaluate the fishery, one will need water chemistry tested, habitat analysis, understanding of non-fish forage opportunities, ancillary predation, other environmental impacts on the water, and just keep on going. The biggest problem I suspect you will find, is that they don't care about this water. I suspect you will find there is little more management to it than the initial stocking and they will not be willing to spend much, if any, time or money on it. But, heaven forbid you break a law there... and in most states attempting to manage a public water via import or export (outside of creel limits for keeper fish *and then only to be killed and eaten, not relocated) is an infraction. Now, if this were a private lake, managed by a subdivisions HOA, etc. then the opportunities change -- but all at your cost as you would still really need to do the same things... just on your dime. Good luck with it, and hopefully you will find a young officer with the department who is willing to spend some extra time working with you and can help get the fishery in tip top shape!

Y'all sure that aint a spot? I suck at telling the difference in pictures, but -- I keep seeing it as a spotted bass...

That's my plan to a T. Make it easy, and convenient. I'd love to find a "cheap" weekend place now on a local lake, but their idea of cheap and mine don't seem to line up, lol.

I don't remember the name of the color off hand, but I used to have some green ones that worked fantastically in late spring and summer when rigged weightless and weedless. Toss it to the back of grass, weeds, etc, and slowly snake it back out. Never caught anything anywhere else on em, but in the grass they were fantastic, lol.

I've seen some funny things, but that's a new one. My neice once snagged a hook and line that was passing out of a bluegill that he had swallowed and basically fought him in by his anus... I'm sure it wasn't very pleasant. But, never have I seen that one. I have, happily, lost a lure to a fish - then caught him to get my lure back. I thought that was epic, lol.

It's as if you would assume kid's today would get the same lesson... probably a rant for a different thread though...