billmac

I took a friend wading in a river once, and I swear he simply cast from one side of the river into the trees on the other side of the river. He would wade across, get his lure, and do the same thing in the opposite direction. I had the actual water all to myself. I and a group of friends once had a shore dinner which consisted of cooking a shiner over a road flare. These are more of "can you believe it" rather than funny. I was wading for smallmouth when a big one broke off my topwater lure. A few minutes later it broke water and spit out the lure literally a foot from me. I just reached out and retrieved it. I think it was a skitterpop. Once I was wading in a rocky river and had one of those times the freespool didn't engage during a cast, and my mister twister meeney spin broke off and sailed away. I tied on a new one, cast out, and reeled in my lost lure, hooked through the line eye.

I broke about 6 inches of my Lew's Carbon Fire spinning rod. Can this kind of thing be repaired with any utility? I've already replaced it and it's not a hugely expensive rod, but I thought I'd ask.

If I really thought I needed to use fluoro, I would use a leader long enough so that my knot stayed on the spool, maybe 25 yards or so.

When I need to break off braid, I will usually not do it by using the rod. One of the nice things about braid is that it often just pulls up the obstruction rather than breaking off. I've hauled up some pretty big sections of tree with my lure attached.

Yeah, unless you are talking about biting off the line, braid seems as easy as mono or fluoro. I pretty much use the uni-knot for all my lines.

Is fluoro more abrasion resistant than braid? Fluoro sinking, I get. Making breakoffs easier, I get. But not sure about changing lures. Is changing lures harder with braid?

This post is prompted by the "popular opinion" post. I'd love to know how much of what we "know" about how to fish is just conventional wisdom without any science behind it. The conventional wisdom is that we have to use leaders at least in part because fish are line shy and braid will scare them off. Someone rightly pointed out that a big honking hook and additions like slip sinkers kind of make that reasoning a little shaky. Who goes leaderless?

I just bought an 88 Cajun Maverick. So far so good. I think the trouble spots in the old glass boats are the wooden parts.

I've never fished either yet so I'll be watching this thread with interest. My go to plastic is the grub.

I have in mind the big 3: BASS, FLW, and MLF. I know some pros fish more than one of these. But I'm curious as to why your typical pro will choose one over the other. Are there any pros who fish all 3?

TMs are built to be in wet environments. Let it dry and it will probably be fine, assuming something didn't short out when you initially capsized.

I'm new to the terminology. What is a glide bait? Just a jointed bait? I've been fishing jointed Rapalas and Rebels for years, but I've never heard them referred to as a glide bait.

1/4 oz ball head jig with yellow curly tail grub.

I agree that 2 piece rods can have some utility, especially for tight storage. They are the logical choice for backpackers. But I strongly suspect they are ubiquitous in the sporting goods stores because they are easier to ship. In fact a guy at Dick's all but confirmed that to me yesterday.

1. That weedguards don't reduce hookups. 2. That long casts are better. 3. That guitar strumming your line will get snags out. 4. That flipping your fish onto the deck or bank is harmless to the fish. 5. That Rick Clunn is better than Roland Martin.

Rod shopping drives me crazy. It's bad enough trying to find the right combination of price, length, power, and action, but just when I think I've got it, I see the stupid things are in two pieces. What is up with 2 piece rods? Are they really that popular? I hate them, but perhaps I just don't know how wonderful they are.

How difficult is it to add a recessed tray to an older bass boat?

I only have 1 TM battery, although I've been considering adding another in parallel.

I could be wrong, but my understanding of batteries is that the voltage is not a reliable indicator of capacity. Doesn't the voltage stay pretty much at 12v until it's just about depleted?

When I bought the boat (16ft) the guy who sold it to me said he needed something bigger. I wondered at that because it was the biggest boat I've ever owned. But man, once you get two people in, with tackle, and life jackets, and maybe some food, and it's pretty crowded. The trolling motor cable sometimes trips the trim/tilt motor. I have to get a system figured out.

I would love to do this. I love my new (ha, 1988) bass boat, but now that I've got fishing fever again, there are a lot of waters that are just too small for a big boat. Plus, as my recent trips to Schroon Lake and Lake George demonstrate, I've got a long way to go to become a passable big-water fisherman. (plus I have to remember to put the plug in). My rowboat doesn't have a trailer. Is it easy to find a trailer for random, trailerless boats? I don't often see them on craigslist.

How do you guys know how much juice is left for your trolling motor battery? Is a battery capacity meter useful?

I have new respect for the guys I see standing in the front of the boat, working the trolling motor, and fishing continuously. I just got my first boat in the Spring, and it's much harder than it looks. Keeping the momentary button pushed down and steering without leaning on a seat is really tricky. I keep steering in the wrong direction. It's going to take a while before I can leave the pedestal seat at home. I want to add a fishfinder to the bow and that will add another variable. It should be fun.

I'm almost there with you, but for me it's the Meeney Spin. It is my go to bait under nearly every condition except very deep water. I catch everything, from panfish to muskies with them. 1/4 oz with a 3 inch grub.

Woo, a 6lb smallmouth is a tall order, even on the St. Lawrence, but I'll take it.