Chris at Tech

I figured the “grunge” name came about when @Glenn showed up for shows after not showering for a few days.

Don't listen to @Dwight Hottle. He doesn't know a darn thing about jerkbaits. ?

Hammondsfishing.com has both the 6” cherryseed and the 5” June bug lizards available via their website

Not needed for iPhones. Apple generally prevents viruses via the way they manage their App Store

Short-term pain for long-term gain.

*** Fishing

I almost gave up on using Sniper due to similar mystery breakoffs. Once I started using the San Diego Jam knot (and stopped using the palomar), my breakoff issue disappeared entirely.

Hmmm...interesting... I was browsing around Mudhole to see what they had along the lines of your feedback and came across this. https://www.mudhole.com/G2-Carbon-Handle-3.35-Butt-Grip-for-Split-Grip-Handle-Set What I'm thinking is that I ream this to the depth I need to restore the total rod length I'm looking for. I'm not a rod builder but I always assumed such pieces "should" be reamed so that the blank slides deep into the butt grip. But if I ream this new butt grip shallower than normal, what would that mean for the structural integrity of that butt grip?

So I've got this rod which I've come to love for jerkbaits, poppers, DT-6's and balsa cranks. Perfect tip, action and length for me. Of course what happens is that somehow there was a clean break towards the bottom of the butt of the rod (I have some questions about how the heck such a break occurred, and why/how it was so clean a break, but I'm not gonna go down that rabbit hole now). I was able to remove the short broken section, epoxy a new buttcap in place and continue using the rod but the missing 1.5 - 2" is really making a perceptible difference. Right now, the handle is simply too short -- it's like halfway between a pistol grip and a traditional handle. Any suggestions on how I can add that 1.5-2" of length back without breaking the bank?

Search this section for old posts I made about my trips to Panama City Beach. I give some location and bait advice in them.

Hey @Topwaterspook -- good as can be down here! I haven't gotten on the water as much as I'd like either! I haven't been back down south either -- the wife keeps finding new "projects" for us to spend on but I will get back by whatever means necessary. Ha! I'll keep you in mind when the wheels get put in motion. Regarding the guide -- I have fished with him myself. I've not had my kids out with him, but my close friend books with him every year and raves about how well he does with the kids. He suggests you ask the guide to take the larger bay boat though, as that's got more room over the skiff.

We keep 1792 and Four Roses small batch on hand. Along with a few others ?

Give yourself a treat and fish the salt

That must have been miserable ?

Howdy Stitch! http://www.shorethangcharters.com

Braid and diameter are important in this instance. Some brands/versions are just more manageable than others. For example -- Invisx 8 lb will play nice on a spinning reel, but I've never had success taming 8 lb Berkley Trilene 100% on that same spinning rod. In the same lb test, the Berkley is thicker, and also not as supple.

@A-Jay - what color did it used to be? Chrome sexy shad?

I do REALLY like the KLX and Heliums I’ve picked up over the last few years, but the new prices are a bit tough to swallow. Good thing Kistler runs sales frequently.

T-handle for me please.

Yeah, that's a nice bonus to have stuff of that quality down there without the need to lug it yourself!

Hey @A-Jay -- seems Kistler is making travel rods now. Maybe that's another option you can try to break fish down south. Ha!

What kind of baits or lures are you fishing? Upon retrieve, some lures keep a rather constant tension on the line, and generally that results in the line spooling well back in the reel. A Spinnerbait is a good example. On the other hand, some techniques like spooks and weightless jerkbaits are generally fished with some slack in the line. That results in your line being quite loose when it returns to the reel spool, and could result in the type of line mgmt issue you’re experiencing. Try this. Every little while, make a long cast and retrieve it with the sole purpose of tightly packing the line back on the spool. Pinch the line between your fingers so you’re retrieving under tension. I also suggest you learn to spool yourself. Plenty of vids on that subject and it’s not at all hard. As some mentioned above, the shop spooling job is as good as the person running the machine. I once had a guy spool the line on in the wrong direction!

Nice. And way fewer alligators to be concerned about! Now how long before we revive the BR Roadtrip so we can stress-test @Koz's new digs?

And @A-Jay needs something to do during the colder months anyways

One could say I've gone a little "plug crazy" over the last few months. Megabass, Black Label, 6th Sense, Spro.