PhishLI

Mine was supposed to be here today by 2 pm but never made it to the status of "out for delivery" and is now stuck in NJ where it's been sitting for a day and a half. Not looking good.

Around here in these super shallow spots where I fish, a guaranteed surefire low percentage play is to fish under a bright moon when there's no ripple caused by wind. Every fish in the lake goes on lockdown. You won't even see a gill pop the surface for bugs. It's as if they're all in a coma or have been transported to a different dimension. Besides that, I don't care what the moon is doing especially after fishing hundreds of days throughout a fishable season here over and over again. The real trick, which comes down to good fortune, is always the same and that's managing to be there during a hot bite window.

I gave up on that jazz about 6 years ago. Too many "poor" days were bonanzas, and too many "ideal" days were disasters. I focus on other factors to guide me which have been far more reliable.

Almost as heavy as a Caffeine Shad, so very castable, and more durable. Comes in 4", 5", and 6". Big Bite Baits Jerk Minnow 10pk - Tackle Warehouse Bulk packs available on their home page with a wider availability of colors. Junebug's been great for me. Priced right too. Jerk Minnow - Big Bite Baits

The space/time continuum hasn't distorted. Just watched a utoob breakdown of the reel from 3 years ago. Coarse self-tapping screws, so it was plastic then too. Also confirmed in the comments. Oh well.

AFAIK, the one on TW was plastic too. It's no longer up. I'll assume Dobyn's parent company is simply blowing them out via Amazon. Guess they're done with the reel experiment. They're still up on the Dobyn's site, but with a reduced price. Says nothing about the frame material. The Dobyns Maverick Casting Reel Series - Dobyns Rods

Amazon.com : DOBYNS RODS Maverick Casting Reel/Size 100 / Gear Ratio 6.5:1 / Ball Bearings 11BB+1RB / LH/Blue : Sports & Outdoors P.S. Stick a reel in your cart, send it to save for later, then let it sit for a few days. Often it will come down in price. Check your cart daily to see. My last one came down to $18 and change from $45.

Just a question. Do you have a tendency to point the rod directly at the lure on the retrieve? If so, the action of the rod is taken out of the equation as you've simply created a direct line from the bait to the reel through the rod's guides. Combined with braid mainline and little stretch afforded by a leader, you're left with no give, or delay. You mentioned that you've had the same poor results regardless of the rods you've tried including some of your more moderate selections. If you're doing this, try creating an angle between the rod and line whether that's up towards noon, or to the side when you're retrieving. By doing this, you'll now allow the rod to load when the fish hits which will create the delay you're looking for. I noticed that I was doing this myself in the beginning with CBs for some odd reason, pointing my rod directly at the bait. Bought a glass rod to find a solution before I figured out what I was doing wrong, but of course it didn't help. Once I had my ah-ha moment, I've gone back to stouter MHF rods and straight braid and very rarely lose fish. I also believe that consciously relaxing my grip on the rod and reel also introduces a skosh more give into the entire system which also helps, IMO.

Berkley Lightning rod 6'6" MHF Amazon.com : Berkley 6’6” Lightning Rod Casting Rod, One Piece Casting Rod, 8-14lb Line Rating, Medium Rod Power, Moderate Fast Action, 1/4-5/8 oz. Lure Rating : Sports & Outdoors Berkley Lightning Casting Rod - 6ft 6in, Medium Heavy, Fast, 1pc | Sportsman's Warehouse My son in law has had 2 for the past 5 years. A slower fast, almost moderate, IMO. No issues at all, and bass up 7 1/2lbs.

I'm not looking to deny or diminish anyone's experience with this material. For health reasons, I was unable to touch my gear from early November of last year until August of this year. Whatever was tied on during my last trip of November was left on for the duration. That included a finesse TRD on one rig and a Pro CrawZ on another. A rod sleeve covered or partially covered both, and all of my rods were kept in a heated and eventually A/C'd interior spare room leaning against a table while quite close to each other with conventional plastics in the mix. No melting whatsoever occurred. The reasons why I've had zero problems with this stuff but @FishTank has while following the rules of not cross contaminating elazech with plastisol is a mystery.

I've been using Mend-it for years. Nothing comes close. The trick to keeping it from gelling-up in the bottle is to do one fix at a time. Meaning, open it, brush it onto the repair area and quickly screw back the cap back on to keep the solvents from evaporating. You'll have plenty of time to make the bond beyond the 3 seconds it takes to screw on the cap. Always hold the repair together for at least 20-30 seconds for the best results, then let it fully cure for about 20 minutes before use. Also, turn the bottle upside down for a few seconds after a repair session. This will allow the solids to form a seal between the cap and the glass. I've had bottles last for years by doing this.

Check here for your daily fix:

Cool. Would you scan and upload the schematic here for a looksee?

Was I foolish to assume they ship in a rod tube?

You sure? Looks like a bearing from here.

Yup. The 7'6" is on the way to me now.

I'll add another to try. Neutrogena Clear Face oil free sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50. It's the only stuff I use now. Zero greasy feel. Amazon.com: Neutrogena Clear Face Sunscreen Lotion for Acne-Prone Skin, Broad Spectrum SPF 50, Sunscreen for Face & Oily Skin, Oil-,Fragrance- & Oxybenzone-Free, Water Resistant, Matte, Unscented, 3 Fl Oz : Beauty & Personal Care

I picked up 4 over the past several weeks to gift out and have been fishing with one just to get a feel for it. The last one was reduced down to $18.24 with a coupon by letting it sit in my cart. Just silly cheap. Feels pretty solid for a throwaway reel and the recipients have been thrilled.

No need to dare. I believe it. My ARK BFS creams my SLX BFS not in just distance with lighter baits but in consistent braking profile. Not as touchy.

Perhaps? Who knows? It's just strange how info needs to be dragged out of some people strand by strand. I'm officially bored with it.

Expand on that. Do you mean a 1/8 oz bullet weight plus a worm? If so, which worm? A trick worm? A 3" Senko? A 5" Yum Dinger? Try to be specific so we can figure out what's happening. If you're getting an instant backlash, you're probably short-loading the rod on the backswing and releasing the bait too late. Don't whip it like a spinning rod.

If you want the best advice, then tell the group which rod you're using. Mention the baits you're currently throwing, meaning size and weight. Clarify what you're calling the brake control. Are you referring to the numbered dial on the palm-side of the reel, or the spool tension knob on the handle-side? If you're not throwing anything heavy, then 65lb braid is definitely hurting your max distance casting. For instance, the difference in max casting distance when throwing a weightless 5" stick worm between 30lb and 40lb braid is noticeable. As you increase lb test, therefore line diameter, your distance will suffer.

This works well for me and comes with a calibration weight. Amazon.com: Weigh Gram 200g Digital Pocket Gram Scale 0.01g Accuracy, 200g x 0.01g Mini Digital Grams Scale, Small Food Scale, Jewelry Scale, Ounces Grains Scale With100g Calibration Weight: Home & Kitchen

20lb Big Game for swimbaits.

Me either. I use a disc keeper on the hook as shown. Nothing fancy. Got some PVC shower pan liner from H-despot and used a hole punch for loose leaf paper to make a lifetime supply for little$. They work great. Lots of memory, so the hole made by the hook stays tight. I also use them with hooks on poop baits, etc. P.S. I tried the Owner Slim CPS keepers for elaztech. Thumbs down.