stk44

I completely have confidence in that but I cant tie an fg on the water and it’s still a PITA off the water. The Alberto fixed an issue that I had with the double uni on baitcasters, likely because I keep the drag locked down. I don’t remember the last time I broke off with the Alberto assuming I start each trip with a fresh leader.

I could be way off with the estimate 50/50. I’m really confident in that knot. When the leader does break off, it’s a huge waste of time re-tying and those times likely carry more weight in my memory. Your comment is well noted though and I’ll keep a better eye on this next season as I’ve never really made a conscious observation.

I’m considering this rod. Do you think it would balance okay with either stradic 2500 ci4 or a vanford 3000?

2 years ago I was in the top 5 with 1-12” fish. The guy in 6th place had the same weight as me but he was penalized for a dead fish. 🤣 No excuses though. It’s not that bad here. I will get a trophy fish someday and I’m sure if I target them I could greatly increase my chances.

Ugh, I can only imagine. That is the hardest part for me—being able to push past that and keep a positive mental attitude to not let it ruin the rest of the day. No matter how many videos I watch on PMA, it still hurts.

We definitely are not out there looking for 2’s, but an average WINNING bag (on the waters) we fish is about 11 lbs for 6 fish. That’s probably skewed somewhat from 2-3 river tournaments, but still. This has been a bad year though. I usually get at least one 5. Many years I will get one close to 6 and a couple low 5’s. Erie and a couple glacial lakes up north usually help the average, but I never get enough time on those waters.

@casts_by_fly breaking off at the connector knot with the Alberto is usually 50/50 for me. I never thought about a longer leader to prevent breaking off at the connector on snags. That’s a good idea. Having to retie a leader during a tournament is a time killer.

Could not agree more. I am not a trophy hunter by any means but I’ve seriously considered giving up tournament fishing for that reason. The overall lunker for my club in PA is almost always below 6 lbs each year. The 3-4’s aren’t plentiful either. This year the lunker for 11 tournaments was 4 lb 11 oz. Some of that has to do with the water fished, time of year, and time of day. We have no control over that, we just deal with what we are given. The other part is being forced to fish faster, oftentimes covering lots of water, with baits that I know will get bit—because it’s noon and I havent caught a keeper. Tactics are very different. As I’ve grown in the tournament scene, I’ve noticed that each year my average 5-6 fish bag increases, but my lunker fish per tournament has decreased. This year, I didn’t clear 5 lbs. A tournament angler is looking for five or six active 2lb fish which beats searching for a rare 6-7 lb bass. The former results in more points to the yearly standings than the latter. Alternatively, a trophy angler is waiting for one big bite. They are willing to accept “defeat” on numerous occasions by fishing slowly and methodically, picking apart high potential areas.

I do something in the 7-10’ range for leader length. I tie an Alberto so it can zip through the guides all day long without issues. 8 lb leader line is what I use for ponds. I may bump up to 10lb in special circumstances but it’s 8 lb 90% for me.

We got a new batch of foster pups last week. They told us they are Lab/Aussie/Shepherd mixes. 1 is already getting adopted today. It’s a lot of work but definitely satisfying. We started last year and are on our 8th and 9th dog now. As I prepared to post this, Bruno was whining in the game room. I walked in to find he jumped onto the pool table but couldn’t get down…

Exactly what I use and for the same reasons. I don’t like the big spools in my boat. So I tie up my leaders using manline flouro before a trip/tournament. If I need to retie, I reach for my sunline flouro leader. It’s really good stuff and doesn’t break the bank.

I’m thoroughly pleased that this is posted in the gun forum.🤣

I like the zman skirts as well. Sometimes I take some craft wire and tie a few wraps forward/behind the band to prevent the dry rot issue. I started doing that for my cheap mini bladed jigs as well.

Yeah their stores aren’t good around here either. We had one that had an awesome fishing section. Even had high end baits. That one is gone now and the other one near me has a fishing “corner”. I recently went to one in Polaris,OH and they actually had a good selection. They had metaniums in the showcase. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of those at a brick and mortar store.

@bishoptf yeah they were actually really cool about it. I get to keep the originals and the mini maxs have shipped out.

Bought some mini maxs at dick’s to get get the $20 off $100 deal. They were buy 3 get 3 free which was nice. But… I think they thought they pulled one over over me…

I use an Okuma tackle backpack. It fits 4 Plano 3700’s, a large bait binder in the main compartment, about 20 packs of soft plastics on the top zippered section. Leader line in the side pocket, termina tackle in the bottom zippered sections. I have a old towne pred. mx so my tackle pack goes behind my seat. Anything more than that and my kayak is overloaded.

Awesome. The targhee hiking shoes / boots look like they are right up my alley. Thanks!

How well do they hold up after a year? I only get about 1.5 years on my Solomon’s with fairly light use (camping, trails, and fishing) and the lower starts to separate. At that point they get water in them and start to smell.

@casts_by_fly I would prefer them to be 100% waterproof and these would be used in my bass boat. I’ve never heard of allbirds but they look nice so I might give them a try even if I don’t use them for fishing.

@MassYak85 Even the solomon wides aren’t wide enough. They are nice but just cant go that route anymore. I have some huk deck boots that are nice, they run a little narrow but not bad. If it’s super rainy I’d prefer to not wear flip flops or deck boots. @Bird I hear you there. I have a croc hybrid where the upper is actually cloth that I keep in the boat. Super comfortable and ugly as heck, but I like them.

@WaskaCrank12 I have a buddy in my club that said the caps on the treble hooks don’t always seat properly and then you go to grab them and enough hook point is sticking out to jab your fingers. That was enough for me to pass on those.

Usually the breathable ones are gortex and so far I haven’t been able to find one that’s durable. I guess I am asking for too much.

@Scott F are they breathable enough for summer use?