FrankW

Norman Speed clips work great. If you are trying to operate them with your finger nails then no wonder you don't like them. I use my long nose pliers and find them easy to put on or take off. My long nose pliers are on my belt so it is quick to change cranks, top water or spinner baits. Frank

I have a Boomerang and not my favorite. It only cuts on a taught line and I want something that will cut a line with out pulling it taught. The Boomerang is OK but not my favorite. I prefer scissors with serrated blades. I have used fly tying scissors for several years but they do dull after a couple of years. They are also a little expensive. This year I am trying the new Cuda 3" Scissors. They are stainless steel with a Titanium coating. The coating may be just an advertising gimmick but the scissors are well made for the price. They have big finger holes making them easy to use. If you cut braid near the end of the scissors they will cut slack braid with a perfect clean cut. I haven't had them long but if they last just a year I will be a happy camper at $5.00 per. The serrations are deep and very sharp. The pivot pin is a rivet instead of a screw but I am not sure that is a problem. If they get loose a whack with a hammer will tighten them up. They are available from Bass Pro Shop or Cabelas. Frank

It seems to me some of you are way over doing it. After a trip while at home, jot down the Date, Time, Place, Baits Used, Weather, Success. Now next year and future years you can refer to you data for planning other trips. If you have a bang up day one year at a certain location there is a good chance that somewhere around that date is a good time to go again. If you have a cell phone you can send your self an Email with the information. Create a folder on your home computer and store your trip Emails in that folder. They will be organized by date. Frank

I hated to see the big bass that were killed. Some photos are obvious that the fish was not released. Frank

I read lots of forum members talking about slack line sensitivity with Fluro. I don't fish a lot of Fluro but I have never noticed that Fluro has any better slack line sensitivity than other lines. If I am not in contact with my bait then Fluro doesn't tell me anything more than what braid does. Has there ever been a slack line sensitivity test? I think that is a myth like the one that Fluro doesn't stretch as much as mono. A good deal of what some of us know comes from reading other peoples comments rather than personal experience or testing. Frank

I was fishing in a mountain lake for Grayling and Lake Trout on a fly rod. We were fishing up by the inlet creek and I saw two people fly fishing in the creek. I waded over and asked how they were doing. They have only caught a couple of six inch Grayling and were not having a good time. They had rented a cabin right by the creek and had to charter a plane to get there. I ask to see what they were fishing with. They had very small dry flies and not the right choice for big Grayling in this lake. We were getting ready to leave and I had caught several big Grayling. I took them over to the sand bar in front of the creek and showed them how to catch a big Grayling with my weighted streamer. They were thrilled but didn't have any fly close to what I was using. I cut off my fly and handed it to one of the fellows as we got on our plane. I am sure I saved their trip with that fly. It was the last one I had or I would have given them several. Frank

Hi stk, You may be lucky and the rod is castable to some extent but the line, and probably the leader, is bad. Buy you a good Double taper or Weight Forward floating line. My choice would be a Weight Forward line. There are some Chinese lines that work OK but not as good as the best lines from Scientific Anglers or Rio. Frank

HI Scott Tidal, The Tidal is a new rod getting good reviews but is intended for salt water fishing. Did you pick the Tidal because you might be fishing salt? Or did you pick it because of the reviews? If I was buying my first Bass fly rod I would be looking at the Sage Specialty rods (Bass II) designed for Bass. They are a bit shorter and well designed for Bass fishing. The rod comes with a line that is designed to match the specific rod. Frank

PX-R left hand Kistler Finesse Jig rod 7' 0" Frank

I have a KLX Finesse 7' Worm Tube Jig Rod rated for 1/8th to 3/8th oz baits. The rods handles very well with high sensitivity. The overall rod handle is short but works well for pitching with one hand. I like a short handle but some might like it a little longer for two hand casting. The rod is very light with good balance. Even with a 7' length and the short handle I don't find it tip heavy with the Alphas. I have a Daiwa Alphas Finesse Custom mounted on the rod and a very good match. I can cast 1/8th Texas Rigs with no problems but generally have a 1/4 jig head with a skirt and trailer. The tip is fairly soft and with a heavy load bends to about half rod. It is definitely not a full parabolic. It doesn't have the cross-their-eyes power in the front of the rod that you usually see in a jig rod. Nor should you expect it in a Finesse Jig rod. This rod falls somewhere between a jig rod and a true Finesse rod and is what I expect from a Finesse Jig rod. I haven't caught any fish with it yet so not sure what its roll will be. This is a really nice rod and I got it on sale. In regards to the Kistler warranty. Kistler warrants that their rods are free of manufacture defects in workmanship and materials. They don't warrant their rods against breaking for any reason. If you step on your rod and break it, or slam it in a door, or hit it with a jig, you will more than likely be disappointed in their warranty. If you are expecting that a broken rod will be replaced with no questions asked, then Kistler may not be a good choice for you. The KLX rods will be hard to beat by other rods any where near its price range. If a buyer understands Kistlers warranty philosophy they will be very happy with the KLX rods. Frank

I doubt the original saying had much to do with Bass fishing. I would think this is an old saying coming from North East saltwater fisherman from many, many yeas ago. A wind from the east meant something to them. Frank

Hi Rhino68W, Well it seems that you have a pond and are catching fish since you calling it a honey hole. What cover is on the bottom is not as important as where it is located. I bet every time you drag across cover in a certain area you get a bite. With a small pond I would make a map of the lake and keep tract of where you catch fish and where the cover is located. Dragging a weight across the bottom would give you a good idea of where the cover is and some idea of what the cover is. If you drag across a sunken tree it is pretty easy to tell what it is. Grass is easy to tell where it is and if you use a hook, you can determine what type of grass it is. If you are fishing plastics on the bottom then you can't beat braid. You can measure the bottom with your same weight setup by adding a bobber that the weight will pull down. Adjust the bobber above the weight until it doesn't pull the bobber down and that means the weight is on the bottom. So if you put the bobber 4' above the weight and you throw it into the lake and the bobber is puller down, it is deeper than 4'. Adjust to 6' and toss it out and so on until you find the bottom. Frank

That fish should never have left the lake. Frank

I like the Trokar Tournament Tube Hook. I use it for Tubes and it would be a great hook for Ikas. You should use a solid head tube and rig it skin hooked. If you lay the Tube/Ika along the hook you can see the entry angle at the head so the point lays right along the far side of the Tube Ika. Frank Trokar Tournament Tube Hook

Take a look at the RillRidge Forceps. You can watch a video at this link. Frank

Braid: PP SS8 Mono: Cheapest I can buy for backing. Fluro: Tatsu

I got two schoolies on a KVD 1.5 this summer on Rodman Reservoir. Fish were 2.5 pounds each. Frank.

Take an empty spool and put a hex head bolt thru the hole in the center of the spool. Then screw a nut onto the bolt up to the spool and tighten. It helps to use a flat washer on both sides of the spool. Chuck the bolt into your drill and you are good to go. I have some spools with a 3/8" hole and they work the best. If you have a big hole in the spool you need to cut a sleeve and put it over the bolt. Cut the sleeve just right and the washers will hold it in place. Frank

I will be 80 in January and still fish once a week. Getting harder and harder to fish during the Florida Summers. I have always been into electronics and have a LAN, Digital Storm gaming computer, two printers, a tablet and a smart phone. I keep my neighbors computers running. Up until two years ago I managed the largest Fly Fishing Forum in the states and I am still an administrator. Been fishing since I was six years old. Frank

I would not buy the T3B just because you can get it at a good price. I agree that the Tatula is a better reel and you won't have the problem with the hood on the T3B that is hard to get fixed right. I would not buy any T3 series reel with out having held one in my hand. The hood is a poor design and Diawa abandoned it for the TWS system. Buy your self a Tatula for the same price or cheaper and you will like it better than the T3B. Frank

I fish the Rainbow river in Florida that is spring feed and this water is super clear. You see all the fish and how they react to line and lure. There is heavy boat traffic and a very narrow river. The fish come out into the river to feed in the currant. They line up along the river like a dinner line. They are tough to catch. I have caught fish on braid with no leader in three to five feet of water. If the line comes over the fish they will move away from the line maintaining their lineup just in a different part of the river. If I control the presentation so the bait comes to the fish before the line does, then they will take the bait. The line doesn't bother them if the bait is leading the line. Float the line over the fish and it moves. When I say bait, I mean plastics. I find that a drop shot with FC works better than the braid as I don't have to worry about what the line is doing in relationship to the fish. I have one drop shot rod and one casting rod with FC. All of my other rods are rigged with braid and no leader. I have no problem catching lake fish with straight braid if the lake has any cover. Frank

Hi rippin-lips, The Kistler KLX Finesse Worm Tube rod is rated by Kistler as Medium Heavy. DETAILED SPECIFICATIONS: - Fuji blank exposed reel seat - Fuji MICRO (larger than other brand micro rods) Stainless steel "K" tangle free, Alconite rings - Action: Fast - Length: 7' 0" - Power: Medium-Heavy - Lure weight: 1/8 - 3/8 oz. - Line weight: 10 - 14 lb. - Handle length: 9 " - "The handle length is measured from the bottom of the butt cap to the bottom joint where the reel seat meets the cork." - Overall rod weight 3 ounces That could be wrong because I think the 7' rod weighs 3.3 ozs, not 3 ozs. If it is a MH then it must have a soft tip. Did you read the reviews on TW about the Recon? Frank

Hi rippin-lips, You don't have to fish ultra light just because you have the Px68. The reel is just a sweetheart to cast with 3/16 to 3/8 worms, tubes and creature baits. I have an Alpha that I am looking for a rod and think the Kistler KLX Finesse Worm, Tube, Jig rod is a good choice. It has a fast action and is rated for 1/8 to 3/8 baits. It comes in a 6'9" or 7' length. Kistler states that the 7' weighs 3.0 ounces. Free shipping and it is under your budget. Frank

I have a Bantam Black Magnum 100ULS purchased in 1979. It has a flipping switch, 2 stainless bearings and 5:1 gear ratio. The box says "Specially Designed for light line Bass Fishing." It has a graphite frame and end caps. Weighs 7.9ozs. Yesterdays finesses reel. Frank

I can't think of a worse home defense load than a 12ga slug. Especially if you live in an apartment or close to your neighbors. Many states gives us the right to defend our selves but if you penetrate a wall and kill an innocent, you are in serious trouble. In an apartment I wouldn't use double ought buck. Most of us pick a home defense arm based on its killing power and not how it works in the home environment. I am 80 years old and the muzzle flash and recoil of a 12 ga doesn't work for me. If my home was set up so I could flip a switch and turn on all of the lights, then muzzle flash wouldn't be a problem, once I got accustomed to the light. But that is not the case. If I fire a shotgun in the dark then I am blinded for a very long time. So for home defense a tactical flash light is first on my list. Since I can't see the sights in the dark I want a laser aiming devise. I have hand guns close at hand in the bedroom but I am not good with a hand gun. So my choice is a Berretta CX4 Storm in 9mm. I can handle the recoil, the rifle is very handy and can be equipped with the right sighting equipment. It still has the over penetration problem but there is new ammo that may solve that problem. The CX4 Storm may not be for everyone but at my age it works for me much better than a 12 ga shotgun. Frank