Josh Smith

My wife just said we're all sick.

Hi Folks, I picked this 5500 (non-c, no bearing) up for a little bit. I figured on having to fix it, but when I got inside it appears to never have seen water. All the factory grease was still in place. It looks like it was either rebuilt and sat, or was never used and sat, at least from the guts. I can't figure out the mismatched side plates. Help? Why would they be mismatched like this? A rebuild? I almost get the idea that it was a demonstration model for some store. It shows a little wear on the outside but none on the inside. I did open it up to supertune it. Here's what I did, and what I found: • Lots of dried grease, hard, like you find in old reels. It looked like the it dried pretty much in the places the factory put it. • Replaced the driveshaft bushing with a bearing. The bushing didn't show any perceptible wear. • Polished the axle. The brake shoes were not black at all. They appeared new. • Replaced the driveshaft bushings with new, polished ones. There was no wear on the old ones. • Replaced the drag clutches with carbon drag clutches. No wear on the originals. • Replaced the worm gear with one from the 5500c3. The 5500c3 worm gear had a bearing and fresh lube, while the old one, though it shows no wear, will need to be cleaned of old factory grease. I really think this was a demonstrator model as I said. The reel appears to never have been opened prior to my work, and it's all just in excellent shape. I'd be interested in hearing thoughts, opinions, etc, and if anyone knows why the side plates are mismatched, I'd be interested in hearing from you on that, too! Regards, Josh

Apparently bass like crack, too. I betcha' they'd fight really well! Josh

My name is Josh and I'm a lure addict. OK, so maybe not. I like to have a selection. Throughout my life, I've had ever-larger tackle boxes. I now have three of them. Two were given to me by grandpa, with one being a super-organized live bait dedicated box that he inherited from a friend. I will not ever want for hooks again if I live to be 100. My lures are mostly contained in one of those big FLW boxes. It's overflowing. I also have a shoulder bag that's also overflowing. It seems that each lure I have, I have to have two different sizes of that lure, with every color variation that I can get. There are lures in there I justify owning because I once caught bass on each of them. Maybe it was five years ago and the bass was 10". It doesn't matter; it stays! Am I alone in this type of thing? This tackle box weighs as much as a car battery... And I consider a light load for walking around a lake to be three or four rods (MH or two MH, M, and UL) and that heavy shoulder bag. I take the boat out, I'm loaded down even more. Anyone else? Josh

P.S. Chicks just adore guys who are such good listeners!

Dude, smile, nod and wink, then read the body language. Ask her about herself. People love to talk about themselves. Girls especially. I've never related to others well because my brain works so differently. I'm not shy, exactly, but so much of normal conversation is hard for me because I don't understand its relevance. (My nickname in high school was "Rainman".) Let people who like to talk, talk. At least that is what finally started working for me. Give her an opening and you'll learn more about her than you probably ever wanted to know. Josh

Hi Folks, I've been further defining my needs. Here they are: • Moss green or off black or some sort. No hi-viz. • 12# to 17# mono diameter equivalent. (When I use leaders, it's usually 17# mono or 17# fluro). • Smooth as, or almost as smooth as, mono. I discovered this on the new rod and reel. It was backlashing and overrunning, and turns out the Berkely Firewire I was using was really rough, and I therefore couldn't set my spool tension in the normal manner until I tied a fluro leader. Which braided lines fit these criteria? Thank you, Josh

There was a time when I was shooting 500 to 2,000 rounds of .22 per week. This was practicing precision shooting with a bolt action, not burning through 'em with a semi-auto. Being naturally gifted in neither casting fishing poles or shooting guns, I have to make up for it with lots of practice. The typical shooter will burn a couple hundred in one session at the range. Josh

I do not like snakes. That said, I let them live, especially garter snakes. That is, unless they're being aggressive. There was a black snake out on the back cement patio and it decided it owned the place. It bit my wife, though she didn't know it until she saw a couple pinpricks and asked me. I told her "yep", whereupon she started freaking out. I cleaned her up and went to look for the snake. Of course it was still there and wanted to fight. I grabbed a shovel, pinned its head, and looked at its eyes and mouth to make sure it wasn't poisonous, and then blew its head off with a rifle. The garter snakes are welcome to stay. They're not aggressive and I can tolerate 'em. However, even non-venomous snakes carry all sorts of bacteria in their mouths, and that bacteria can make a person seriously ill. I'll not tolerate an aggressive snake. Josh

I am not yet noticing the weeds receding. If anything, there are more, and lily pads, too, which come to think of it haven't bloomed yet. This is going to be interesting. I do wonder if the bass will have time for a fall feed before the cold snaps, though. I hope so. Josh

Some people just have to mark their territory, and public indecency is illegal. My biggest problem is folks who bring kids. Bringing kids is a good thing. It's when the yelling starts that I get bothered. Last time it was a father (I'm assuming) who brought his two little girls, maybe 5 and 7 or so. They were bored and wouldn't leave the bobbers put from almost the get-go, and sure 'nuff ol' da' starts up yellin'. I took my six-year-old and left. He doesn't need to be exposed to that, and we had a talk on the way home about how some people are not nice and next time he thinks I'm mean when I stand him in the corner, remember that father who couldn't even take his kids fishing without yelling. My boy agreed that I must not be all that bad. I do not want to be like that guy; someone who others point to and tell each other how glad they are not to be like me. Lord knows I mess up enough without making a fool of myself in public. Some, I guess, don't care. Josh

Hello, Strange. I never heard of such a thing. Good to know! As far as I can tell, most people have given up on this lake. I have seen kayaks but not recently. I do see charred wood from fires and forked sticks, so I figure folks fish for panfish or catfish at night. In the past months, I've not seen any other bass anglers, now that I think of it. Regards, Josh

Hi Folks, I got away for a couple hours this evening and managed to catch a smallish bass using the new 5500c3 and a green shallow-diving bait of some sort. I flat don't recall what it is: The 5500c3 as well as the old 5000 reels I've tuned out can cast a looong way now, and this bass hooked up at right around 30 yards. This is the furthest I've ever fought a fish of any sort in. Not that this one was big, but it does mark kinda' high on the cool factor. The 5500c3 does 25 IPT and with its comparatively wide spool, that number doesn't drop all that much. I liked being able to crank more instead of having to tire the fish too much. I play less and crank more these days to spare the bass. This bass's coloration was odd on the tail and the anal fin: At first I thought this was a bedding bass, but didn't see enough damage. Then I wondered if it was some sort of rot, but it didn't really look like it. The bass in this lake tend to have either light or dark tails depending on the amount of sunlight they get. This one had positioned itself by the dam's overflow to take advantage of the food there, and it's on the northern side of the lake. I suppose this might account for it. It just struck me as interesting. The rod and reel fish nicely. I wish the reel handle weren't foam, but there were no choices on that matter. Otherwise it all feels really good! Josh

Thank you!

I use a 17lb FC leader that is the length from the levelwind to the end of the rod. There is no practical limiting effect of a good knot through the guides. Use one of these: http://www.animatedknots.com/albright/index.php?Categ=fishing http://www.seaguar.com/applications/knot-guide/63-seaguar-knot.html Regards, Josh

Hi Sam, Thank you! Regards, Josh

Hi Folks, In theory I can build a fishing rod. Usually when I can build something in theory, the first whatever-it-is comes out fairly decent. This is one of my few natural talents. I have a couple Abu Garcia rod handles with pistol grips I'd like to build on: I know they won't be quite as sensitive as blank-through designs, but that's OK. I need a source of blanks, epoxy, guides and wrap. Can anyone recommend a good place? Thank you, Josh

Hi Folks, I have a couple questions. I'm suspecting bass in Indiana are moving into summer patterns at around the start of September. I cannot find historic 2014 highs and lows. I do know this was the worst winter we had in even the old folks' memories, and it seems to have been getting steadily warmer since. We didn't see the highest temps (at least from what I observed) until late August / early September. We're hitting 90 degrees daily now. On the other hand, we had a very nice cold front go through last week. It rained a lot and it was impossible to catch anything. The lakes clouded but it was too cold for the bass to stay near the surface to hunt. I went fishing out of curiosity only one day during this period and caught one bass in two hours. It was a skinny 10" critter. I told it (yes, I talk to bass) to go grow up, and tossed it back to do just that. Hopefully it will take my advice. The grass came in later than it should have this year, but the cattails were about on time. Is there any website that will have average historic temperatures and other conditions from January to present? I can't find one. Dad has looked, too. It's been an interesting but productive year thus far. I'm just trying to figure it out. Any help is appreciated. Regards, Josh

Hello, That rod and reel is just fine. I use an ultralight rig when conditions call for it. Regards, Josh

Hi Folks, I mentioned I was going to be ordering a 5500c3 and a new rod. I found what I wanted on BPS, though the rod doesn't have quite the pistol grip I've come to prefer, it works. The reel took a couple more days to get here as I chose free shipping and the method was up do them. The rod was sent USPS, and the reel was sent FedEx Smart Post, which just means they brought it to my town and dropped it off at the post office for delivery. "Smart" Post? Huh-uh. I love this reel! Shown with a 5000c with fast gears (top), a four-screw 5000 with fast gears (middle), all these reels have an equal number of bearings! The first thing I did when I got the 5500c3 was open it up. It was filled with grease, but not overly packed. It could have been fished as is. I have come to prefer bearings in everything that links up when the level wind moves during a cast. As the 5500c3 came, it was equipped with four bearings: two on the spool, one on the worm gear, and the anti-reverse bearing. I dug out some parts I try to keep around and got to work. The interesting thing is that a bearing cog wheel and bearing worm gear assembly both work fine on both the vintage Ambassadeurs and this 2014 model! Thank God they kept it simple! Reels from the 1990s I've opened up are generally a mess. Not too complicated, but could be simplified. I am happy Abu Garcia has finally simplified things. My only complaint is the plastic, but honestly it's not a huge deal. Polymer has advanced to the point I'm starting to trust it, and it does help keep gear noise down. There are now bearings in both ends of the worm gear, two in the spool, one in the cog wheel, and the anti-reverse bearing for a total of six. The vintage Ambassadeurs have six as well, though the anti-reverse bearing of course cannot be fitted to them, so they retain their dogs and use a ball bearing on the driveshaft behind the drag star. I wasn't impressed with the amount of lube in the 5500c3's anti-reverse bearing. Abu Garcia presses these in on all their current models of which I'm aware, and so I took a new shotgun bore swap and spun it around in there until it was pretty dry, though I didn't use alcohol or degreaser so a protective film still exists. Pics: Casting impressions were mixed. Testing it in the yard, it seemed to require more spool tension than it should have with four of the six brakes engaged. I took it out to the lake briefly alongside the four-screw, and I burnt my thumb on the 5500c3 keeping it from overrunning. I do run my brakes dry (personal preference) and I couldn't figure it out. Finally, I did. I spooled it with new Berkely Fireline, and when I held the rod pointing down and hit the free spool button, the lure dropped just fine. The braided line had too much friction, dangit! I got home and tied some fluoro leaders. That solved the problem. I prefer to set my spool tension to drop the lure fast enough to give one loop of overrun, and those settings seem to apply to the 2014 model as well as the '60s and '70s models. This is a very nice reel, and the rod is more than acceptable. I do wish its grip was better molded and of hard pebbled rubber, but those seem to be out of vogue. I was going to order a custom rod until I wandered across a couple handles and seats (made by Abu Garcia) on eBay. Looks like I'll just be building my next rod. It should be interesting to learn! The only thing I have left to do on the 5500c3 is to install carbon drag clutches, which I just ordered. I almost got them on their way so they'd be here when the reel arrived, but I figured I'd see what the reel had in it, first. It turns out the clutches have a substandard feel to what I've come to prefer, and so it's getting carbon. I can't wait to get this thing out again. Tonight was not optimal for fishing and I caught nothing. If I can get away tomorrow, I'll get to give it a more thorough workout! Regards, Josh

Hello, I conducted a penetration/expansion test on Guardian Gold. i would not carry it for defense. For practice it is fine. Josh

When I first read this, it was while sitting on the toilet. Appropriate, in a way. Dude, look: You stepped up a lot more than you needed to. Get the kids, wish the ex and the new bf best of luck, and be ready to go it alone. Pursue any child support the ex is ordered to pay with a vengeance, and try to get supervised visitations for the wife if there is any reason to think she might take the kids and run or if drugs are involved in any way. Josh

Spook or Hula Popper if I want to fish slowly. Buzzbait or Jitterbug for faster retrieves and/or after dark.

I think it will last. My issue is that I'm just used to round reels and centrifugal brakes. Even my round Abu Garcia 5600 MagTrax got upgraded to brake shoes and I hardly use the magnetic brakes as a consequence. I'm 36 and have been fishing since I was like, two. I don't recall my first fishing trip. I'm sure the Black Max is an excellent reel for those younger fishermen or those new to the sport of bass fishing. It didn't feel round enough to me and the braking felt funny It will be interesting to see how long yours lasts. I only took mine out a couple times. Regards, Josh (edited Sept 10: Writing from the BlackBerry seems to insert "corrections" and change the whole meaning of sentences, sometimes...)