'Bago-Bassin'

Chalk it up to a learning experience. Do however ride UPS until it gets sorted out and they make it right: even if that means the driver having to go back and retrieve your package from this woman. Next time, whether it is UPS or USPS or any other carrier make sure that you insist on "signature upon delivery". No signature no delivery. You don't have to be the one to sign for it unless you specify it that way. At least you'll have a better idea of who to find for your package if things go south again.

Fish it. If your Ugly Stik is anything like my old mh Stik: it's a stout rod and can handle it. Not ideal but definitely workable.

Welcome

Generally prices are pretty much the same wherever you go. It seems like St.Croix has fixed pricing unless either they, or the particular retailer are running a sale. Otherwise the money is about the same everywhere. All of my St.Croix stuff I had shipped either to a store for pickup or to the house directly. In fact a bunch or their product drop ships directly from the St.Croix warehouse no matter where you purchase it from. I can suggest ordering and having it shipped rather than buying off the shelf. Sure, go ahead and get your hands on a few at the store. But do keep in mind that this world is full of knuckleheads that will abuse the rods when they test them out at the store. If you're unlucky enough to be the guy buying the rod after one of these geniuses gets their hands on it then you might have a warranty claim that you wouldn't otherwise with a fresh rod. Now If I was buying Ugly Stiks... Sure I'd grab off the shelf and head for home. For St.Croix money I want to make darn sure that it's in pristine condition. So far I've bought from Cabela's and Gander Mountain. Both online. Price was the determining factor and I was waiting/watching for the sales to run.

Others have said it already but I'll toss in my vote for: slow, loud and bright colors.

Junebug Spinner....Now that's old school for sure. Still a great lure and still catches fish. Bluebasser86, Google is your friend. Buy a few or make some up from parts that are still available and catch some feesh on it. Show'em off to your fishing buddies. It'll blow your friend's minds to boat a few with something that looks like you cribbed it out of your great grandfathers tackle box.

I've been using the Cocoons fit-overs with my glasses. I can't swing for a polarized RX pair either. I've got a pair with dark gray lenses for the car/general use and a pair with the mirrored blue lenses for the boat. I'm happy with them so far.

Ebay is/was and always will be a sellers market for the vast majority of all business conducted there. Sure you might get something cheap if you are the only one interested in the item, or if you catch a listing in a wrong category (always cast a wide net when searching fleabay). Other times you can catch deals if you shop for auctions ending on holidays, Friday night or other times when people are out and away from their computer. But it's a sellers market. Really it is basic human nature that drives the prices. People get into a frenzy over bidding because they have to have *that* item and develop tunnel-vision regarding anything else. I.E. another item exactly the same at a lower price.That is when nutty behavior shows itself. The other reason is that they [we,them, us, whomever] have had it drilled into our collective heads that there is a shortage in this world....of everything: tackle, cars, food, eligible mates, good deals on trolling motors, whatever, virtually any 'commodity'. Of course this is done to make people go into a sort of panic mode and drive up the prices everywhere, not just eBay.. It really isn't the fault of the buying public either. It's been so hammered into the collective conscious of society that it's automatic. The last reason is that people just don't shop for deals when they should. I don't know if they never learned or just don't bother? I know myself personally: I shop for online deals all the time. I research pretty much everything I drop money on that isn't an absolute necessity. I'll price shop, figure in shipping price and time, seller reliability and so forth. In just a few minutes I can usually suss out where I'm going to buy or bid on something. I figure in brick and mortar places too. I'll know where, and how much I'm willing to pay. Now I take that info over to fleabay [for example] and start trawling for a deal. It may take me some time and I may miss out on a few auctions, but I almost always end up with what I want at the price I want, if I'm willing to wait for it! Then again if what I want is a "hen's tooth" then I don't mind paying up for it. But even that has its limitations. Lastly on fleabay: snipe. Yup....snipe. It's the only way to go. Bid once, bid your max and bid as late as possible in the auction. Have the mindset of what is the absolute top limit you are willing to pay for an item (don't go nuclear you could train-wreck with another nuke bidder) ,one penny more and you'll walk away from the auction. Have a mindset that the one penny more the winner paid is too much and he got hosed. Bid that amount as late in the auction as you can stand it (usually ten seconds or less) and let the chips fall where they may. O.k. Imma climb off my soapbox and go look for a deal.

Hey'dere fellow cheesehead. Welcome.

Opener?!...What's this strange thing you all speak of? Just kidding. Since I've been on the Winnebago system (since 2000) I haven't had to worry about the opener. I just fish whenever. Actually I do think about the opener because that means that it's positively nuts everywhere up there. Due precisely to the avalanche of people that didn't/don't know that they don't have to wait.

Absolutely brilliant. Hilarious and true too. All of the guys on TV are masters of the stiff-arm perspective when it comes to the honey shot of the fish. It also helps if they have little hands or are shorter in stature. I attended a clinic by Al Linder and Dan Sura a bunch of years ago and by chance found myself walking next to them later in the day elsewhere at the sports show. Both are much shorter than what you'd perceive from television. Al has to be 5'6" maybe 5'8" tops. Any fish he does the stiff-arm with is going to look really good against his frame. Me... I'm built like a linebacker so even a really good fish might look underwhelming against my frame and my meathooks.

Bait weights are mostly between 1/4 oz.and 3/4 oz. Techniques are varied but I'd primarily say topwater (spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, frogs, spooks, etc), some plastics like Carolina rigging and maybe some jig work. Cover is anything from wood to weeds and amount is often moderate and very occasionally heavy. I have heard/read before that St.Croix's power runs a bit more than that of other manufacturers rods. Thanks for confirming it.

As stated above...anything with a blade. Since the water is already being churned and disturbed by the wind: you need a bait that goes over and above that level of disturbance and cuts through to get the attention of the fish..

Hi Everyone! New guy from Wisconsin here. I've fished all over Wisconsin in my lifetime but my favorite place has to be my home waters of the Winnebago system. It's a great system to fish. Anything you want to catch can be fished for, with just about any technique on any given day. I've been fishing for 36 or 37 years now. Most of my life. As far back as I can I remember I've fished. Dad had a fishing rod in my hand as soon as I could hold one (Thanks Dad, I miss you bunches!) This will be my first season on the water without my fishing buddy, my Dad. Last season was too crazy to really get a line wet. This season it's going to be hard to get on the water without him. I fish for most anything that swims but my favorites are crappie and bass. I spend my winters making my own tackle. When I'm not thinking of fishing, going fishing, making tackle, talking about fishing or otherwise obsessing about fishing, I play guitar. Really loud guitar. I was in the music business for a long time. I worked in retail sales. I did repair work on guitars. I've done consulting for a couple of guitar companies as well as some R&D design and engineering for them and had the pleasure of doing a little artist relations too. That about sums me up.

This is my first post here at Bassresource (been reading here about six months). I could use a little help on a dilemma I'm having. I'm going to get a new casting rod soon. I've decided on the St.Croix Avid series. That's the easy part. The hard part is deciding to go with a M or MH rod and the length. I'm leaning towards a MH/F but considering a M/F too. I'm thinking 7 foot for either. I fish sitting down, on the elevated casting deck of my deep-v, and wonder if the length would be a hindrance? As far as the rod power and action goes: I'm looking to upgrade from an older 6 foot MH Ugly Stick (be gentle). My thinking is that I can put the Ugly Stick into service as a crankbait rod (albeit not ideal and a bit heavy). I have some medium and medium-light spinning gear that I use for walleye that I can press into doing double duty for bass. I however worry that a MH on the St.Croix might be too heavy. The techniques that I use are all over the place but my hope is that the new rod would be the 'go to' the majority of the time and then use the others as a fill in for more specified purposes. I also shouldn't neglect to mention that the likelihood of catching northern pike, either as a byproduct of bass fishing or specific targeting of pike is a foregone conclusion. So... Is 7 foot too long? Would a MH/F or a M/F better suit my needs? Thanks ahead of time for the replies and the help.