Bucky205

I must be looking at something wrong. It looked to me like this thread was started yesterday. LOL, I see it now. Was a 2013 thread. I thought it was coming up on my new activity.

I've never understood the braid to leader thing with multiple rods. Your rod to bait connection is only as strong as it's weakest point. 50# braid to 10# leader if the knot doesn't fail will break around 10#. I normally run braid all the way to the bait if I'm using braid. I am old school and frugel, 90 percent of my fishing is pitching and flipping, plain old 20# Stren in Clear/Fluorescent. I flip and pitch with a 4600 C3 on a 7' Duckett, . The 4600 will only hold between 80 and 100 yards of the Stren, but I have never had a fish come close to emptying the spool. Where it starts to get difficult is setting up one rod for multiple uses, in that situation I would probably consider going braid to leader depending on the situation, and water clarity.

There are several good Shimano's in the $59 to $100 range, add a St Croix for another $100-$150 and your will fish with anything out there. If your going to try to save money do it on the reel and not the rod.

I tie my top water direct without putting the loop.

I was a swimmer for the Navy. Had a plane come apart on us in 96 and rode it down. I was paralyzed on the right side for a year, everything came back except the vision in the right eye. Depth perception is the largest challenge. My accuracy is not what it once was, but I get by. Not complaining, I'm still on the good side of the grass.

LOL, Southerners do not do well with cold or snow. A close friend lives in Maine and posted pictures of him out on the ice fishing. I'm not that mad at the fish.

I saw these and came close to buying one. They look like they would be great for fishing. We have a few motorcycles as well so the helmets won out. They do a good keeping you warm on the bikes too.

Primary, and secondary points are usually a good place to start. You can find a topo map for most lakes onlie.

I ride a variety of motorcycles as well. Lol I crash my dirt bikes a lot and haven't broken my neck yet.

This may have been discussed, but I didn't find it and wanted to let people know why. A friend saw helmet in the boat and commented how safety conscious I was, and he saw some of the pros wearing them in tournaments. I told him it I'm sure it was safer, but that had nothing to do with why I wore it. It has to do with staying warm. If you haven't tried it you should. You can buy a full face helmet from wally world for $42. If it's pouring rain or below 50 you might think it's the best $42 you ever spent on fishing equipment.

A lot of times I will throw a Senko, or Zoom trick wacky rigged with no weight and just let it fall. It can be useful determining how deep the fish are holding. People say they they fall at about 1' second. IMO.. it is closer to 2' second.

Here in central Alabama we are in exceptional drought. With the area around Logan Martin in exceptional drought Alabama Power are running the turbines a lot less. The problem for me is that with no current the bite on Logan Martin suffers. Anyone else ever have this problem?

I think range in surf fishing is important, your trying to get out from shore as far as you can. Bass fishing not so much, I think accuracy in bass fishing is much more important than range. That person that can gently lay the bait down exactly where he wants it, will out fish the one that can throw it a country mile. I might not cast a country mile, but I can put it over yonder exactly where I want it.

Somebody in your area works on reels, call your local fishing store and see if they can point you to the. FYI.. and you probably know that there is an exploded view of most reels made on the web. It really helps sometimes to see how everything goes together. Here is an exploded 5000C diagram. http://www.ereplacementparts.com/abu-garcia-5000-ambassadeur-parts-c-187196_187197_187319.html

If two guys are use to fishing together most partners want the other throwing something different anyway, then they will both get on the same technique once they have figured out the bite. We both like to flip, so we are usually on the front deck together and picking on the other about their trolling motor skills. If you are fishing as a guest ultimately your pretty much stuck with what the other wants to do.

Live worms are the universal bait. I would float night crawlers under a bobber for a couple of afternoons. If I didn't get a bite I would move on.

I've done the retail side for Westmarine who is large, and also managed a small sporting goods store. As an accountant in the retail side the number of available positions is limited. IMO..I would consider the state and government agencies a better option.

I believe in paying attention to the pressure. I'm not really sure when Brush Hogs hatch.

I'm going with KVD. I lived in Palatka, FL back in the 90s and my ex was the manger at Crystal Cove. I ended up running a camera boat for a BASS tournament there and we were assigned to filming KVD. He was just getting started as a professional and was already amazing. There is absolutely no wasted motion when he fishes. If they ever invent a fishing machine it will have KVD stamped on it.

Yes, Fly fishing for salmon in Alaska during the spawn. They are so thick it looks like you could walk on them. They have to be released when not hooked in the mouth. It literally seems you catch 4 to 1 not hooked in the mouth.

19 years Navy.

Hi everyone, I'm retired military, worked as a tech for WestMarine for about 6 years after retiring, I also managed a sporting goods store for another 5 years. My nickname has always been Bucky, and 205 is my area code. I have fished for most of my life, sometimes freshwater, and sometimes saltwater. Bass and Crappie are my favorites types of non coastal fishing. I live in Pell City, AL., Logan Martin is my home lake. To figure out how many days I fished last month I simply need to look at the weather history, if it was above 40 degrees and not raining I was probably fishing. LOL...I know I'm a baby when it comes to being cold and wet. I lost my right eye about ten years ago, fishing with one eye presents a whole list of challenges. I am constantly trying to increase my knowledge and learn new techniques. I look forward to learning from everyone. Good Fishing!