desmobob

I keep my old and beloved Leatherman Wave on the boat as an addition to my basic tool kit. I also carry a Leatherman Micra every day in my pocket. Great tools! Tight lines, Bob

I didn't weigh mine, but it was likely over two pounds, on a Norman N crank bait. I caught another one nearly the same size on the next cast, then it was over. Since then, nothing much over a pound..... Tight lines, Bob

I love fishing for bluegills and pumpkinseeds with a 2-wt. fly rod and have often said that if they grew to five or ten pounds, they'd probably be all I'd fish for. :-) I think a person might need light saltwater tackle to fight a ten-pound bluegill! Tight lines, Bob

THAT is an impressive rigging job. Very nice! Tight lines, Bob

I put Boca steel-shield ABEC 7s in a new Lew's Tournament Pro this summer and was pleasantly surprised with the results. I did a clean/flush/re-lube on that reel previous to installing the new bearings. I noticed the larger bearing (the one that stays on the spool shaft) felt rough. The other two bearings spun beautifully after being flushed and re-lubed with Hot Sauce, but that one bearing was definitely rough. The Boca replacements were all smooth as silk. I just tore down another new Tournament Pro not long ago and guess what? That same bearing was rough while the other two were very smooth. The reel casted noticeably better after the cleaning/flushing/re-lubing. I have a set of ceramics from Hawgtech en route, so I'll be able to make a comparison to the Bocas in my other Tournament Pro. Before I put them all in, I'm going to change just that large one, and see if I notice a difference.... Tight lines, Bob

In my neck of the woods, mink do this. There is a stretch of river that I fish where there is a slate quarry along the bank. The quarry's huge waste piles of slate chunks run right down to the water's edge and provide good habitat for the mink. The streamside rocks and shallow water are usually littered with crayfish remains in these areas, and I often see minks popping in and out of the slate plies along the stream. Tight lines, Bob

+1 Me too. Can't seem to appreciate it. I'm going to get all hopped up on Geritol and Metamucil and play some LPs. Screw this stuff.... Tight lines, Bob

Here's my boat. :-( Tight lines, Bob

I agree. The distance thing is definitely secondary for me. The effortless short casts really seem to help with accuracy and make things more enjoyable all-around. It's amazing what a careful and thorough cleaning, tuning and re-lubing will do for a new reel with standard bearings. My newest Tournament Pro was like a new reel after an hour or two at the workbench. Tight lines, Bob

I have a pair of the Tatulas, one in 7:1 and one 6.4:1. They impress the heck out of me. Compared to my Lew's Tournament Pros, they feel "heavy," but they are incredibly smooth, great casters, and feel very solid; like they'll last a l-o-n-g time. The Tatula is one of those few things I've purchased where I felt I got more than I paid for. You could get two of them for your budget, or the "R" version with money to spare for line/lures/etc. Tight lines, Bob

I don't understand it myself, so I can't help you... :-) Tight lines, Bob

Kistler has some Cyber Monday deals that would be an advantage to anyone looking to buy more of their rods in the future. Tight lines, Bob

I really like my Garmin eTrex 20 and use it a LOT. Coupled with a map program for your home computer or notebook, it can be a really handy and fun item for camping, hunting, hiking, canoeing, etc. as well as a valuable fishing tool. I will never be without a hand-held GPS. Tight lines, Bob

+1. I have two Lew's Tournament Pros, one upgraded with Boca ABEC 7 ceramics and one with stock bearings. The stock bearings have been flushed and re-lubed with Hot Sauce. I had them outside doing some lawn fishing yesterday (in the snow!) and found the difference is really not worth the money spent. I do like the sound of those dry ceramics spinning on a cast, though. :-) If I do any bearing upgrades again, I'll try the cheaper ABEC 5 ceramic bearings and see how they compare to the top-of-the-line 7's. Tight lines, Bob

I started off with VMC weedless wacky hooks. They are very weedless/snagless, but I lost a lot of fish on them; usually, well into the fight. Then, I tried Owner weedless wacky hooks. My catch ratio went way up, but I found myself hanging up a lot, especially on wood. I figured the increased catch rate was worth it, even though they were more expensive than the VMCs. This fall, I tried Decoy Cover Finesse HD Worm 220 weedless wacky hooks. They are cheaper than the Owner hooks and seem slightly more weed and snag-resistant. The weed guard is more durable than the Owner mono guard. I think I'll be using them from now on. Tight lines, Bob

I saw your smiley but thought your response was just a bit strong; laughing at vs. disagreeing/explaining. Not a big deal by any means. I'm a newbie at bass fishing and I sort of like this kind of thread. I'm learning from it. For instance, I haven't done any punching (yet), but when I try, I'll ditch the leader. I was just outside looking at my boat, tarped and covered with snow. I can hardly stand the fact that it's going to be several months before I get out on the water again! Next year's ice-out will be my first experience doing any spring fishing for largemouths. I'm looking forward to picking up lots of good information here over the winter and putting it to good use in the spring. It's time to get ready to head to the big turkey day get-together. I'm thankful to have your, and everyone else's, opinions on techniques and tackle. Happy Thanksgiving, Bob

Are you referring to my post or the OP? I didn't notice any post in this thread that insisted one technique or style is a constant across all of fishing, or that their way is the only way. It looked like the usual sharing of opinions to me... Calm down, dude! It's Thanksgiving! Tight lines, Bob

I received an e-mail flyer last night. I wasn't impressed with the "fishing" section. Lots of hard baits on sale for mostly like 20 cents off and no real deals that had me interested at all.... I guess the Carbonlite rods were a decent deal, but I'm not in the market for rods at the moment. Happy Thanksgiving, Bob

Baked stuffed shells... are you from an Italian family? We always had a nice pasta dish to go along with the turkey-'n'-fixin's when I was growing up. Enjoy! I spent Thanksgiving morning running the snowblower. The last thing I did before I came back inside was knock the snow off the boat, which is all snuggled up under its tarp in the yard. I got out for a little bit on Sunday over at Lake Bomoseen in VT. The southern end of the lake was frozen already! I got skunked throwing blade baits, but I saw a guy in a nearby boat catch a few dink smallies on light spinning gear... I couldn't tell what he was using. I winterized the boat and covered her up when I got home. :-( Happy Thanksgiving to all the great folks on Bassresource.com! Buon mangiare, Bob

I always use a fluoro leader on my braid... 1) It becomes the sacrificial part of the line that gets replaced due to abrasion, saving the braid 2) It really helps prevent tangles when casting hard baits with trebles 3) It's easier to break off and breaks off with no braid line loss when hung up 4) It gives me a little confidence due to the lesser visibility of the leader 5) I'm more comfortable tying knots in the fluoro and don't need scissors to trim the tag Tight lines, Bob

Overstocked Baits has a bunch of stuff at 60% and 50% off, as well as a free shipping code if you sign up for their newsletter. I just put in a big order! Tight lines, Bob

I would never dream of putting say, a nice blanched almond colored trailer on a taupe colored jig. Please! Likewise, a mauve trailer would clash horribly with a saffron jig that had some nice lavender highlights. And never ever any white trailers after Labor Day! Toodles, Bob

Another cheaper reel that seems to offer good bang-for-the-buck is the Daiwa Opus Plus Bite-n-Run, particularly if you're going to be doing any live bait fishing or trolling. Like the Battle, it's a heavy reel. I have the smallest one and it still weighs a little over a pound. I like the feel of it better than the Battle, but I haven't fished it enough to really know if I prefer it. I have it mounted on a Cabela's Salt Striker travel rod; a 3-pc 7' MHMF. That's a decent $100 rod. I whipped a small striped marlin on it a few years ago in Loretto, Mexico while fishing for Mahi mahi, and it got the job done. (That was the jumpingest fish I've ever caught!) Tight lines, Bob

I have a big one I use in the surf for stripers and bluefish. I think it's a good real for the money and I'm pleased with mine. I bought it sight-unseen and wished I had the chance to have seen them in person... I would have picked the next size (or two) smaller. Tight lines, Bob

When you cast and retrieve a crank bait, it's only in the strike zone for a portion of the retrieve. When you troll one, it stays in the strike zone. I used to do a lot of crank bait trolling for smallmouths years ago, covering a lot of water and locating concentrations of fish on big mid-lake shoals. It's effective, and I don't understand the stigma attached to it. I caught my PB Lake George NY smallmouth while trolling a Rebel FasTrac minnow for lake trout and salmon in the fall. Tight lines, Bob