katmandew

Wow, cannot believe it was that simple. Thought there was something wrong with my reel the way it sounded. It's been that way since the 2nd month after I bought it. That took all the squeak out of it. Thanks.

I grew up fishing out of a 14' Aluminum jon boat. Motor went down and didnt fish the big lakes for a few years until I bought my 98 Procraft. You get what you pay for. The aluminum got the job done, but I can get from point A to point B in no time now and fish much more comfortably with the extra room. I too need the excercise of a kayak, but would rather spend my time on the water fishing rather than rowing. Just my .02 worth.

Have not. Already got the 580G green mirror. Wanted to stick with the eye surrender to save money. I have amber in that frame and it performs really well. Maybe not a costa, but my green mirror is my primary lens. Just wanted to see if having another color (copper or red for instance) for other situations would be beneficial.

I have a pair of 580G Costas in Green Mirror and a pair of Eye Surrenders in the Amber lens. Would like a third pair to try another color lens. What would be the better color to round out my collection so I'll be ready regardless of the lighting scenario. Looking at Eye Surrenders since they are cheaper. Trying to decide between the Red, Blue Mirror, and Copper lenses. Suggestions?

That's what I have now and i do not like it. I love the Lew's TP's, but the BB1 brakes are different and it squeals on the cast. It's about a year old, so I doubt they would warranty it. I'm sure not buying another though.

Any experience with the new Curado 200I? http://www.***.com/Shimano_Curado_200_I_Casting_Reel/descpage-SCI.html http://www.***.com/vlogpage.html?ccode=VLOG276

Money is not the deciding factor here, but looking for anyone who's fished a 4.7:1 PQ with deep running cranks. I'd really like to have the slower speed for cranking deep for walleye. I like the big handle on the Winch also, but its only 5.4:1. Maybe not a huge difference, but with walleye where I fish, it may be. I dont want the PQ if I'm going to have to sacrifice smoothness. I know I'll already be adding 2.5 ounces if I go with the PQ. Wondering what people think would be better for cranks that run 8-16 feet?

Ha! I know what you mean. They not only rip you off but the are A-holes too. At least that one guy is.

Same problem I've run into using similar prop selectors. The 1998 Force 120 HP engine isn't listed.

Aluminum prop needing to replace has the following stamped on it. 48-77350-C1-23 I want to get a stainless steel prop. I Had a quicksilver prop on it (48 72760A4 23P) that ran a couple hundred rpms over max and now appears to be spun. Hub is stuck in prop so I can't remove it. Not sure that was the right prop or not but I ran it 3 years before this happened with no issues. Now rpms go way up and the motor stops pushing the boat if I get above a certain rpm while in the hole. I have another hub, but need the correct SS Prop to put on it. Is this the right prop to put back on it? If not, How do I find the right prop? Motor is a 1998 Force (by Mercury) 120 HP outboard

Dale is a different animal. I used to fish visible cover only before I learned to read structure. Now I know why I only used to catch fish around the spawn.

Glad you had a good trip. That one 4 pounder always makes a trip worth it...but me growing up on this lake where 4 lb was the average fish has me spoiled. I do think Dale will return to that being the norm, but it's gonna take 3-4 more years. The regs are in place for it, but we gotta give the unders in the lake (and there are a lot of them), time to reach that upper end slot range.

Bobby is also a good guide. Let us know how you do.

I hope ur right. I quit in mid august and started fishing top water on center hill early mornings, but we didn't have much as far as size or numbers this summer at night on Dale. More largemouth than anything and that's unusual for the holler.

Never a total waste. It's still the most beautiful lake anywhere around here. Fishing has been tough tho. Here's the official TWRA response in case anyone is interested. http://tn.gov/twra/region3/dhollowfishkill.pdf

I've Fished this lake for 20 years. The past 18 months have been the toughest I have ever seen out here. Biologists shock boats go out every spring to check numbers and size. This spring numbers of smallmouth bass were 40% of what they normally are due to the fish kill last summer. They think it was the combination of severe drought, no generation, and a bad algae bloom. I would keep that in mind when setting expectations, however, it's still a beautiful lake. if you plan on visiting Dale this fall, I'd suggest hiring a guide. Around 2nd/3rd week of October most switch from night to day fishing. Guide mentioned above (Greg) is known as one of the best night guides. Keith Palmeiro, also on smalljaw is one of the best daytime guides. I think their rates are $300 a day or $200 half day. Under normal conditions I'd say you could get by without a guide, but this year I would definitely recommend hiring one.

Just a warning, their fluorocarbon is garbage. "Birdsnest out of the package" is what i call it. Even kvd treated line kinked bad and that made it difficult to throw without bird-nesting. One of the worst lines I've used. I used the clear blue mccoy fluorescent mono for a couple of trips this summer. It was okay line, but it had some coating on it I didnt like. it made the line feel frayed even though it was new. Never used the mean green line. Izorline XXX is the best copoly/mono that I've ever used. Trilene XL for light spinning has always been smooth for me as well, but the Izorline seems to last longer. For around $16 you can get 1700 yards of it also.

Well I pulled the trigger. I needed a long heavy rod as that was the only rod missing in my arsenal. I plan to use it when fishing football jigs or larger swim baits in deep water with 17 lb fluoro and when i throw the umbrella rig on 50 lb braid. I don't flip heavy cover much, but if I ever do it will probably be good for that too...and it is unbelievably light for a 7'6" Heavy EF rod. I thought the Ducketts were were light until I felt this one. Thanks for all the replies.

The vicious line is terrible IMO. For copoly use pline flouroclear, pline CX premium, or Izorline xxx. The yozuri hybrid ultrasoft isn't bad either, but of these lines the xxx seems to last longer.

You can find the Lews Tourney Pro on eBay for about $130. I haven't used the lower end stuff but its hard to beat the TP for the money. I've heard the low end reels are not bad but the TP is a huge step up in performance and for an extra $30, definitely worth a look.

I would like to hear your thoughts on this rod series from those that own them. I'm looking specifically at the 7'6" Heavy XF model for fishing larger swimbaits in deep water and umbrella rigs, but I like the way that rod feels so much I'm interested in how the other models in this series performs as well. They are extremely light rods.

I like to use a small split shot fastened directly in the middle of the hook's bend that is rigged weedless the way Bassresource's video shows you how to rig it. Hook point resting in the slit on the belly of the fluke with the round bend exposed off the back with the sinker. The small weight helps with casting and the bait's tail wiggles as it slowly sinks. The weight makes the bait fall slowly and near flat...not head or tail first, but perpendicular to the surface. Not too much weight, you want a very small split shot weight. Looks like a dieing minnow barely moving its tail. Jerk jerk pause retrieve is deadly when rigged this way. As for the rod, I'm using a 7' Powell Diesel glass casting rod. The crank bait rod slings the fluke a mile. I suppose a moderate action tip on a graphite rod would work just as well. Never have problems with hookups with this rig. Usually the fish hits on the jerk jerk sequence after you have paused. Your jerk jerk sequence sets the hook without you knowing it until you feel the fish fighting.

Anyone use this line? Curious how well it meets the "near invisibility" claim? Fishing weeds in clear water and wondering if I would still need a fluorocarbon leader if I went to this line and if the benefits would be worth switching from power Pro or 832.

Izorline XXX

Great info. Thanks for all the replies. So basically it seems visibility is still a slight advantage, but maybe how it lays in the water and the added sensitivity is why we were getting bit more at night with FC. Does anyone use straight braid at night or would it be better to use a FC leader with it? My copoly to FC Albright knot broke off once on a hook set. I'm guessing that's because the copoly doesn't make as strong of a leader knot as braid?