Angry John

Your loyalty was bought and paid forward. If it was any other company they would have told you to pound sand and have been on solid ground. Be the loyal customer that they deserve.

They have a no question warranty program. Call and ask, most of the time you only send in the bottom section and pay the portion of warranty. Most times that's 70 bucks plus shipping, better off just trashing it. They may do an upgrade and give you the rod value. That may be worth it.

Not worth the effort and the follow on disappointment. Either send it back to dobyns for a replacement or use it for your lure retriever

When fishing moving baits high end blanks are not required. Bottom contact and dropshot is a total different game. Crank with an ugly stick and fish jigs on a k2.

I use clp from break free on the pawl gear. The plastic line guide sliding on the aluminum shaft I leave dry. I may get a little clp on it but my main goal is to keep everything clean. I have been known to dab a little carnauba car wax on that rail and it seems to slide good for a long time with almost no dirt buildup. More is less in most of my reel lube experience. Lube that runs or is working when dry is best in exposed situations.

Looking at jobs that translate well to civial work will help you a lot. A corpsman, has a great shot at a good job and the transition to officer is encouraged. Never seen a business with out shipping and being a legal rep also has direct applications. Most of the "cool" jobs dont cross over well.

I know it is a favorite. The 168 size is best imo

Just about to retire and if your into fitness there are some cool navy rates. Diver, and Eod are very adventurous. If you want a tech job pick IT or ITS. They do have Intel officers if you finish your degree and field work would up your action a bit. You can see most jobs before hand. Look before you jump.

I agree my st croix legend elite 70mhf always gets a spot in my yak and is one heck of a rod. One of my best purchases in fishing and the rod and reel gorilla has a firm grip on me.

Cost is almost always more. The builder has a time investment, and even with price breaks still pay more when using the exact same components. My cheapest custom so far was 300, and its everything I want. I only mention this as going custom is not a money saving route but a way to get a rod that is not available off the shelf. There are several custom builders on the site and DVT is a site sponsor. Step one is to know exactly what you want. Have you fished a blank you know is a perfect fit or something close? Which reel seat is your favorite. Are you looking for a working guide train of the builders desire or sic on a kr setup. Do you you have length storage and transportation limits?

This may be a reasonable approach depending on your skill and the yak. I had a nucanoe 12 classic, and now a hobie pro angler 12. I have never fallen in the water or rolled either. If you do find yourself in the water often then this is a very smart approach. I dont normally go out with air temperatures below 40. I wear long Jon's sweats and waterproof Colombia rain gear with a Colombian nit cap with polartech. I rock a set of llbean boots and wool socks from Costco. I use a set of sun gloves with no fingertips so I get some heat but a carbon fiber paddle helps a lot.

Use the same baits that were working in a darker or brighter color. Watermelon red works very well for me in most of my waters but I shift to green pumpkin or dip a tip in chartreuse if the water dirtied up.

Stick baits I use a 2/0 ewg because it's the smallest hook I can reliably hook up with. When punching I use the biggest hook that will fit the plastic. Dropshot I tried small hooks and I loose them more so I play with the size based on what will land the fish. Never a simple answer in fishing.

Slow roll a keitech 4.8 fat.

I smell a shimano fan boy

If you find a 7' medium mf action it will work well for cranks spinner baits and lipless.

It's a great rod and with the regular brick and mortar stores going out of business it's only going to get harder. If your worried go used and you can get your money back if you dont like it. It's my primary jerk bait rod and I love it.

I have frogged with 4 6 and 8 carrier. The only difference is how well the braid cuts the pads. The lower the lb test and lower the carrier the better it cuts in my experience. Liked 40lb sonic braid for a while but it's not made any more. 65 sonic braid was also good.

All the shelby park lakes get hammered. Its close to the house so i am out there a bunch, and there are always other people on the bank while i am there. The dog park is my stomping ground, and the only real fish i have caught in the park. The beaver pond behind the stables has fish but i have only ever caught dinks out of there and lots of the bucket patrol hauling fish out of that pond. Found a huge pond called the blue lagoon but despite the 4 trips i have made, i have skunked every time. Rumor is there are good fish in there, and i could believe it based on the size of the water, i may and try to get my yak in there and see how that goes.

I use a 610mxf for that work with a 4/0 grip pin edge finesse hook. If I need a heavier hook I step up to medium heavy.

10 yhb on avid 66mf with alphas. Line sinks slow so I get good depth but does not drag down lure. Tried 10lb floro but when it's cold it makes the lure sink to fast.

My swing head jigs are nice and silver.

The day after is usually bad for me, as I feel they feed heady during the low pressure. Picks back up after things stabilized for a 2-3 day period. If you have a river near by just put some time there for a bit.

I just started using the strike king 1/2 oz tungsten. I like that I can change the hook. A 4/0 ewg seems to be good so far. Drug around the sk rage craw mostly by plan on trying out some other baits. Figure Matt Allen did all the work already so I will rock his top picks before I go crazy. Might roll a keitech 4.4 just for kicks.