fin

One thing about fishermen, we’re not especially known for being great at socializing. I think one of the reasons some of us enjoy fishing is because it’s something we can do alone. I hope whatever was said to you was just someone being socially incompetent, and not something intentional. I try not to step on toes, but it’s hard not to be taken the wrong way online sometimes. When I find myself getting upset over what someone online says or doesn’t say, that’s when I know I have to take a little time off. Thanks for sharing, Tom.

It's bullet-proof too? Is that what it's showing? ?

Since I got good advice on the refillable hand warmer, I thought I’d reply with my opinion now that I’ve used one for a couple months. I’m a little cold-blooded in my old age, and my hands now get cold easily, plus I have arthritis. I didn’t have an issue when I was younger, so your opinion might be different on whether a hand warmer in general is even needed. I wish I had bought one years ago now. I’ve often heard this saying that if you keep your core body warm, your extremities will stay warm. While true to an extent for most people, I’ve found that the opposite is true as well - if you keep your hands warm, the rest of your body feels warmer. I’ve been surprised by how much longer I stay out in the cold with the hand warmer. It’s just much more pleasant to be out there. I got the Zippo refillable. The short version is, it’s worth the $15, for sure. It’s not as hot as I expected. It’s like holding a cup of hot coffee. I eventually quit using the little cloth bag it comes with. Without the bag, it’s much hotter to the touch, and I haven’t gotten burned yet. If it’s not in a bag or pocket or something, it won’t necessarily build up as much heat though - the heat dissipates. That depends on outside factors, like sitting in the sun, but in general, it’s true. I use it up into the 40’s. When it gets to 50 degrees and above, or when getting enough exercise to get the blood really flowing, I turn it off by tapping to dislodge the burner. Sometimes it seems like it keeps burning, even when it’s not connected, so you have to turn it upside down. I use the ziploc bag method to smother it if I have a bag around. The odor hasn’t been an issue to me, except when in the car, and then cracking the window solves that issue. I thought I might need one for each pocket at first, but one is all I’ve ever needed. I guess if you were doing the type of fishing where you’re just sitting there watching a bobber, and you’re not holding your rod, you might could use two, but that’s not me. Lighting it is a pain. I have an old Zippo refillable lighter that I use, and it takes at least 30 seconds of holding the lighter to the burner to get it going, and I have to do it in the dark to be able to see if it’s lit, otherwise it’s by touch. I haven’t had any issues with it going out, other than when I let it run out of fuel. I never fill it all the way, I just put in enough for my trip. I also keep it in a ziploc bag when not in use, because the fuel evaporates. It goes through fuel a little faster than I expected, but still, I haven’t used $5 worth of fuel in two months, using it for a couple hours most days. I would have designed the thing a little differently. It’s hard to get your hand around it, unless you have really big hands. My hands are extra large, and they still don’t wrap around it well. It should be shaped more like a pistol grip, in my opinion. It will stand on its own, but will tip over really easy. It’s also hard to tell one end from the other by feel when it’s in your pocket. Changing those few things would make it perfect. Maybe there are other brands that are more ergonomically designed? I can’t say whether it’s better or worse than a rechargeable, but at this point, I have no interest in a rechargeable. This serves my needs just fine.

I don't get bored when catching them. It's when I'm not catching them that I want to try something different, partly to alleviate the boredom. The stats that @Glenn recently posted show that we are as much, if not more, interested in tackle than anything else, so it's no surprise that nobody wants to fish the same bait all the time. I'm a little surprised to learn so many people feel the same about crankbaits though. That's my biggest takeaway from this post.

I could do it, but we'd need to talk about salary and benefits first.

How would you go about finding local kid's fishing derbies? There used to be an annual event at the lake I fish, but that was pre-covid, and they don't seem to be doing it anymore. I guess the Boy Scouts would be one option?

Seriously though, you can catch a nice fish when you've got a little baby like that on. Reel in verrry slowly.

You just gave me an idea on how to use those old Rooster Tails - Rooster Tail Earrings!

Yep, my friends will believe me, and I believe them, and as far as everybody else, I tell them I never caught a fish in this lake before ? There was a guy at the lake I fish that used to carry a measuring board the size of a skateboard around with him as he fished from the bank. That’s carrying it a little far in my opinion. No pun intended. My general rule is to draw the line at a 3# minimum for pictures, unless it’s something special.

I’m trying to think of a way to anchor a knot, like the one in your idea. It's kind of fun, like trying to solve a puzzle. For example, if you tie a snell knot and then tie the two loose ends together with two simple overhand knots, that’s pretty solid, but not as compact as what I was hoping for, and not very pretty either. It might be that there’s no good way to do that, I don’t know, I’m not a knot guy. The snell part looks good, I just don’t know how to anchor it. I may reach out to a knot guy and see if I can get any ideas. If I find something good, I'll come back and post it here.

That's not a bad price, and it looks like they reduced the amount of bend on the neck, which is good, because they used to tear up a worm when you try to change. I had to do a double-take on that picture - 3 barbs? lol

Yeah, I was looking at that when @MN Fisher posted a link to their page. Nice, but almost a dollar each. I'm paying about 27 cents each. Yeah yeah, you get what you pay for. I know.

Honestly, it's been so long since I've used it, I can't provide much detail. I've caught fish on it. It looks like a tight group of small shad swimming. Definitely drags, and heavy. Not a lot of thump. It's not really the time of year for it, but I may have to dust it off and take it for a spin. I've done a lot of tinkering with spinnerbaits and other types of lures, and I know what you mean - it seems so simple, but then you make a modification, and it doesn't do what you expect, and then you're sent down a rabbit hole you never planned on getting into. In fact, I can't guarantee that willow is original. I may have swapped that out. Also, this thing is titanium, I'm pretty sure. What is it you're stumped about?

No more loop knots for hooks is the simplest solution. The loop knot was just a whim anyway, seemed like a good idea, but as @WRB pointed out, it's kind of pointless. I didn't understand what you were talking about at first, but I get it now. That's a pretty good solution. Yeah, I've broken hooks before by trying to bend them, and I understand about the treated metal, but I'm only bending them a few thousandths of an inch. I think that's a better risk than leaving the gap there. I might also switch to a Palomar. I don't know, I've been given a lot of options here and learned a thing or two. The problem is solved, but it's no one single solution. I hope maybe someone else may learn from my mistake.

This was given to me, I don't know who makes it. I don't know how old, at least 20 years or so, I'm guessing. I've never tried to make one, but it probably wouldn't be too hard.

That's what happened, the knot was still intact. I don't think the hook eye bent, that would take a huge amount of force. I got her up to the surface, she shook her head a few times trying to get free, and then dove again, and that's when I felt a little pop. She was hooked good, so maybe the hook was stuck so good it wasn't wiggling at all, so when she changed direction the loop shifted to the other end. I hope she managed to get the hook out.

Eagle Claw 4/0 EWG

I think that hook may have been Eagle Claw, because I bought another pack of 4/0 Eagle Claws today, and the gap on some are pretty huge.

I don’t think I really owe anyone an explanation, but since several people seem to be unable to understand, I’ll say this: Some people can’t solve all their problems with money, so they look for other solutions. A solution that saves me a dollar, but takes an hour of my time might sound stupid to some, but they don’t know anything about my life. Be thankful for what you have in life, folks, and try to understand that your assumptions about people you don’t know might be incorrect, and the way you live your life isn’t necessarily the way for me to live mine.

Oh! Yeah, that went right by me. It's also something I hadn't considered - with the split ring, the loop knot is redundant.

Doesn't say anything about it on the packaging.

I'm not sure which AJ you are talking about, @A-Jay ? but the problem with a split ring and a loop knot is that the line can get cut by the ends of the split ring wire. It can get caught in that gap just like the hook eye gap. You can get around that by using oval split rings, but not with a loop knot.

A drill and a little hot melt glue will fix that. Drill a 1/8" hole in the belly and then stick a paper clip in the hole and prod around to make sure you're in the right spot and then bore the hole out until the bearings drop out. Patch it back up with the hot melt. Some brands have the bearings in more than one compartment, and sometimes you can't get to all of them. With all the lures you find, I imagine you've got plenty to experiment with.

Has anybody tried this Strike King braid called Contra? I was at Academy today and they had a big display set up for it. I guess it's new? I've never seen it, but I don't get around much these days. I picked up a roll of 10# yellow, because I haven't seen Power Pro on the shelf in that weight/color in a long time. I haven't put it on yet. It's a little cheaper than Power Pro, which makes me wonder if it's not as good?

Well yeah, me neither, I don't care if I don't catch anything. I'm just happy being there playing with my toys ? But when you are not getting any results, sometimes you start thinking, "Hey, maybe this [technique, lure, etc.] doesn't work". That's kind of what I'm getting at. It can kind of wear you down, make you not as focused, etc.