Lures'n'Liberty

I love my Daiwa Goldcast GC80. For a 3 year old, I'd mount one on the spiderman rod and upgrade to the cheapest short baitcaster Walmart has when he breaks it or gets big enough to upgrade. As far as the guys above saying Zebco 33, well, mom's first rod as a child was a 33 combo, purchased in the mid 60's. When she got bigger, grandpap taught my cousins to fish with it in the 70's and I used it throughout the '80s and early 90's and I brought it for my younger cousins throughout the '00s. I can say that this combo doesn't like heat much though, it finally died in the bed of my truck when it caught fire and burned to the ground in around '06-'07, so I'd venture to say it's a quality combo.

My buddy is sponsored by Piscifun and he's really happy with the stuff they send him. I've tried his equipment a few times and it's all been pretty impressive considering the price. I've never held this particular model but will say that the others are quite decent and much better quality than one would expect from a low priced reel. Their fly reels are also really nice if you're in the market.

I think so.

Every single trip I've ever taken with a baitcast reel. I switched to closed face and haven't looked back.

I prefer fishing at the bottom of the river with cutbait or panfish on a big circle hook and 40 lb mono with about 2 oz of weight at night, although you're not going to catch many bass that way.

Told you guys I'd let you know, the 2 50 series Kast King Sharky baitfeeder reels that I ordered came in the other day and they're really more than I expected for the price. Both were shipped fast through amazon, one was an exceptionally good deal due to a slightly damaged box (I knew when I ordered it). The damaged box reel was flawless, while the brand new one kept losing the drag adjustment. I took the spool off, cleaned off a bit of the packing grease and gave it a few squirts of WD-40 before re assembly and it also worked perfectly after playing with the adjustments for a couple minutes. It felt like something wasn't seated properly and took a bit to get it to click. I also ordered a 60 series but was told it was out of stock . These are beefy reels with a smooth action. I mounted them on 8' heavy action rods that I bought at my favorite local discount bargain outlet store and spooled them with 40 lb Berkely Big Cat. They cast and reel pretty smooth, although my neighbors windows would likely suffer if I tried for distance. Will report more the next time I go chase flatheads.

Across from Flexicore, I know it well. That hole will probably hold fish forever.

It's not like it used to be. There are trees down in the creek from Bentleyville to the mouth and since Tri State closed they don't stock trout anymore. The smallies are still in there, though. Hell, if it's been 20 years, there's even a new bridge by the wall and a sewage pump station there now. The sewage authority did a nice job of cleaning up the section in between though.

I think the silvercast is the best looking on the market, shiny chrome (both of mine are mounted on glossy red rods from a MFR that I can't say) but chrome don't get you home. Do they make it in different sizes? I know Daiwa makes the GC/SC 80, 100, and 120. I like the 80s but for a one and only rod I'd go for the bigger one. I've definitely looked into the bullet but haven't bit yet. I could really benefit from a fast retrieve reel and wish someone would make a quality 2 speed closed face reel.

For sure. I was along the aquatorium on Sunday and only had a few real light hits. Went up to Pigeon and had better luck.

West Newton, PA? My man! I'm sure we're hitting some of the same holes. How's the Yough looking this year?

I may have to buy one and change my tune. How do you like that Omega? I've mentioned in several other threads that I don't do baitcasters. Outside of 2 spinning combos, all of my bass rigs have Daiwa Goldcast or Silvercast reels on them and I've heard a lot of good things about that reel.

I'm mopping up what you're spilling, too. On a small craft as the aluminum boat above, I'd venture to say that one of the 2 wells I dream of would wind up on a rope hanging over the side of the boat. My other wouldn't have to be huge, just big enough to keep enough bait for a night of flathead fishing alive. We'll say 60 lbs for the livewell and if I can find the right chunk of aluminum for the deck/floors, including carpet I may be able to keep the weight of construction well under 50 lbs. Figuring another 20 lbs per fisherman for gear to make it even, that leaves 450 lbs for 2 fishermen and a motor. I weigh about 170 and most of my fishing buddies are tiny, so If I never bring anyone bigger than me I've got 110 lbs left for motors, fuel, batteries, and accessories.

Is that a spring? Sweet combo, I like it. Personally, I was thinking 6'6" MH Ugly Stik with a French Mitchell 300

Now that's the kind of information that I'm looking for! Thank you, I never really thought about that. Are you basically suggesting that I keep the floor as close to the water line as possible? My initial thought would be to build a small deck from the bow to about a cooler width past the front bench, as low as possible, with a hatch that would allow access to a portable live well below and adding a flat floor throughout the rest of the boat.

Are any of you preppers? I like to be ready for anything, and to be able to get mobile and be prepared in the event of the zombie apocalypse or any other situation where the need to bug out may arise. Was talking to a friend about this the other day, and space being a situation, there's only room for one combo. You may have to travel anywhere from coast to coast and have no particular target fish other than the kind that's for dinner, potentially you're only food source. What one rod/reel combo would you buy?

My UL's are heirlooms. I have a 4'6 7 eye super lite that was custom built for my grandfather who loved to crappie fish. It's a spectacular rod and I still use it with caution if I go out. Combo w/ nice Daiwa reel, although I'd love to find a quality vintage reel for it. Second on the list is a vintage baby blue Daiwa 5'0" UL that my dad bought me before my first trip to trout camp with the guys at age 12 in 1994. It has exactly the backbone as described above, and is my trout go to for streams and creeks. It's still paired with the original Daiwa reel, which is due for a rebuild. Third is a light action 5'6" ugly stik with a rear drag Shimano with a trigger on the bell housing that mom bought me for Christmas when I asked her for a noodle rod. Was a pretty good mistake, It's pretty much the throw it in the truck fish anywhere rod. Taking the kids to catch bluegill? Yup. Going to catch bluegill before catfishing in the dark and forgetting there's a bait rod in the truck? Yup. It's also the backup trout rod (primary when I need another sinker) and always seems to come on every fishing trip. Oddly, still haven't gone out and bought a noodle rod.

That is what I'm probably going to end up with, just add casting decks, portable livewells, and rod holders for trolling cats.

That's probably for the best, however to be clear, I wasn't referring to using the stator voltage, but the ACC circuit on an ignition switch that would be more costly and complicated but control multiple power sources with one switch and a couple of relays, making things way overcomplicated, especially in 2 or 3 years when you'd be under the dash in the middle of a lake scraping corrosion with a knife and swearing, trying to get the nav lights to come on while burning your thumb holding a lighter so that you can see because you forgot your flashlight that day or the batteries died, just saying.

There doesn't appear to be a working link in your comment, Rodfather, but I did find the thread and it looks like you have a nice project. I know very little about what to look for in a hull, but my family has owned and operated an automotive electric business since 1957 and they put me to work when I was old enough to push a broom! I hope some of the wiring tips I put in can help out. It looked like everyone was steering you in the right direction but there were a few little details that were missing, primarily that you can't connect the switch panel to the key. You can absolutely do that, but you will need a key switch with an accessory position and it will add more components and connections that are prone to failure if you didn't catch my comments.

I'm a jack of all trades, master of none. 10+ years experience in the automotive field, went to trade school for auto mechanics and body and my old man was a shop teacher, I'm pretty handy and highly resourceful, although I'd have to learn to TIG myself. Please link your thread, I'm very interested. I found a friend with a nice Blue Fin something like you're describing, too. It's a little out of my price range but unless I find the perfect hull, it's looking like the way to go.

Why is it that everyone mentions certain equipment manufacturers, it comes out all starry?

OK, I see what I'm doing here. I want a boat that I can use to not fish alone. No, I can't put a bass boat on a ladder rack or pull it with my motorcycle, but I've got a few options. I had use of a little baby Jon and it's just not big enough for my home river, although it wouldn't go to waste. After reading, I think I really want 3 boats. One, my kayak, it can already cover pretty much all of the small the jonboat territory and the fits on roof angle well. For $200, I'd imagine I'll buy one some day. Some day might come later if I can buy a $200 bass boat instead, but yes, totally 100% on the expensive rebuild on the stringers and transom, even more with hydraulic steering, electric tilt, etc, etc. Maybe to ask again, if I go look at a $200 boat, what should I look for in a hull before I dump hundreds of dollars and hours into it.

I get the cheap Jon Boat/watch Craigslist stuff, that's probably what I'm going to do, but when I browse, every now and again I come across that 1974 bass boat that's been sitting for 5 years and think about it, but I have never been on a 1974 bass boat and I don't know what to look for in a hull. Keep in mind I'm handy, and capable of replacing carpets, building decks, general engine and trailer maintenance, and half assing the less than important parts together with jb weld and zip ties. Basically, what is the biggest risk if I buy one of these $200 pieces of crap in someone's yard, gut it, build 2 casting decks and livewells, and then put on a $500 Craigslist motor and controls if I can't get it running?

I said the same thing a while ago. I wound up buying a quality push button reel so my girlfriend could use a nicer rod and went back to spinning equipment. Split with girl, kept rod. Used it once on a whim when a spinning reel broke, immediately bought 2 more and started a collection. I'll never say never but I have absolutely no desire to touch a baitcaster again. If I have 4 hours to fish, I want to spend 4 hours fishing, not 2 hours fishing and 2 hours untangling.