Fishingmickey

Hello, Just wanted to share this catch with y'all. I fished the above tournament Saturday and managed to win the 7th hour. Fishingmickey

I'd add a Zillion to the list also. FM

I've gotten a couple of rods from Edge. First one took five months and the second one over six months to receive them. FM

I like to sail and I like to fish. I almost always have the wrong boat. FM

Cruising fish in the spring might be looking to spawn and not be feeding. I do feel like if your seeing them they may have already seen you. FM

I've made at least a couple of dozen of JDM purchases in the last three or four years. Digitaka, Japan Lure, Plat, Asian Portal. etc. Not a bad experience yet. FM

My experience has been anything larger then about 8# to 10# fluoro on medium spinning rod with a 2500 sized reel gets terrible line slap. Mono isn't quite as stiff. Or the Berkley XL that use anyways. Like Bulldog said the line is just too stiff and you get big loops coming off of the spool that slap against the rod. FM

Velveeta or canned corn works well in Texas. Light line, split shot and a small hook. FM

I use all three, Fluoro, Mono and Braid. All have different properties and pro's and con's to them. I use mostly Fluoro for cranking, single hook moving baits (spinner and chatter) and bottom contact baits (worms and jigs). Mono is for top water baits when I don't want the line to sink. Braid to mono leader for small top waters on the spinning reel. Big game mono for big swimbaits. Braid for throwing into heavy cover. I also use braid for deep diving (15'-25') crank baits. It really gets them deeper. You have to be careful with the drag to keep from bending out the hooks Regarding fluorocarbon. I have tried a bunch of different brands and have settled on three. Seaguar Tatsu, Invisx and Diawa Samurai. I have some of the Shimano Mastiff that I need to try out. But the quality of the resin formulation makes a serious difference in the performance of the line and the price you pay. Buying large bulk spools (600-1000 yrd) on sale and using backing really reduces the cost of using the top tier fluorocarbons. I'll add more to this post next week. Time to go home. Best, Fishingmickey

Kinda hard to sharpen the middle of the hook shank or bend when it is rusted there. They will rust through enough to weaken the hook. FM

One thing to be aware of is using trailers impregnated with salt (Yamamoto, some of Keitech's). Salt will corrode the hooks fairly quickly especially if you leave them on the baits. With the price of some bladed baits I strip the trailer off after fishing it. Hope that helps some. Fishingmickey

X3 You get hung up bank fishing and trying to break off braid can be downright dangerous. Breaking off a 12-15# leader is much easier and you know your not leaving a bunch behind. FM

Rest in Peace, fellow fisherman. FM

Neat looking crank bait. What flavor is it? FM

Thought's, prayers and positive vibes headed your way MN. Fishingmickey

Scuff the rod tip up with some 120-150 grit sand paper and clean with acetone or alcohol before you use the hot melt. When you do the gluing maybe only turn/twist a 1/4 to 1/2 a turn and back. You might be letting it cool too much and you're breaking the seal. If you go the epoxy route it will work but if you ever have to change it out again it might be a problem. It would also depend on the type of epoxy you use. My opinion is rod builders use hot melt and I'd stick with that and try altering your technique. FM

I noticed they specified "box" turtles. A different species then a Western red painted or red eared, slider turtle. The common one we see in Texas. We occasionally see a Soft shell or Snapping turtle. FM Taking a page out of Swampy's play book. My sweetie has her TAR measurement. Turtle Approach Radius - How close she can get in her kayak before the turtle slides off of the rock, laydown or bank.

LrgmouthShad, Yes I am planning on "maybe/probably" fishing that one and the LBJ Texas Bass Nation event on 5/3. I was debating about fishing the BASS National event on Ten Killer it's the same weekend as Stillhouse. Let's talk some more about Stillhouse, I may sneak up for a day or two of prefishing. FM

Nantucket sleigh ride. FM

F14A-B, That handle looks really sexy. Do you have the Gomexus part # for that handle and what is it's length? Thank you, Fishingmickey

I have listened and obeyed the Tackle Monkey, Freams 3000CHX and two 20lb 400 M. spools (not for the spinning reel) of Monster Brave Z fluorocarbon have appeased the Tackle Monkey for now. FM

I carry more then ten vertically.... Yes, I have them sorted, Single hooked Spinner baits and Chatters on one side. A cross the back is usually treble hooked lures. Crank baits, Jerk baits, etc. I have soft plastics single hooked on the opposite side, T-rigged, weightless, jigs, etc. FM

Hello Ersteman, Weak bail spring or the catch that holds it in place might have build up not allowing the bail to latch open all of the way. You mentioned it closes easier then it should also. It makes me wonder if there is a problem in the mechanism or pin affects how it latches (holds it open) until it is tripped. It just may need a good deep cleaning. You might check out the Diawa web site and find a exploded view diagram of your reel and that could be helpful in troubleshooting the problem. Delaware Valley Tackle (BR site sponsor and member) might have run across this same problem and chime in. Best, FM

Thoughts, prayers and positive vibes headed your way. MD Anderson is top notch! Best, Fishingmickey