CountryboyinDC

I don't have that one, mine is a 6'10 medium - moderate (that's what Cabelas had for $150, the other tapers were the normal $250+). It reminds me of the Lamiglas Skeet Reece glass rods. They're certainly heavier than a comparable graphite rod, but I don't mind it with the handle tucked under my arm. They seem to have the wall thickness thin, but the diameter of the blank is substantially greater than a graphite stick. They have a feel that some absolutely hate - I'd call it buttery, but I really like it, and the fish I have caught have stayed pinned really well. I was thinking of making the 7'4 MH my next purchase, when I looked at all the rods I never take out. I almost never take more than a couple crankbait setups, so I have so far held off. I do wonder if that rod would be good for 10XDs and the like. I tried a 6XD with mine, and that pulls a bit too hard for it (6'10 MM).

This plug is supposed to be pretty much fished like a buzzbait, just retrieve at pretty much a steady pace. You don't have to pop it on slack line like a walking bait, prop bait, etc. So the action should be preserved without a split ring even without a loop knot. The split rings mine came with were definitely sturdy, but the were round. I took them off and kept them. Never know when I might go tarpon fishing or something similar and need a split ring.

There's one in Stephen's City, VA opening this weekend, for those of you that live in Front Royal/Winchester area (or are willing to make the drive). One of my wife's friends texted and asked if we want to go (we're not). https://ourcommunitynow.com/attractions/virginia-drive-in-theater-re-opens-on-may-1 There's a free drive-in that a church and the county recreation department puts on several times a summer. It's nice, and the price is right (free). For me the draw of the drive-in is gone, since there's no chance of making out in the back of the old Chevelle (really wasn't a lot of chance back in the day either).

Same as @tander and @EWREX, with yellow Power Pro, I can see the 10 or 15 lb test on my spinning setups.

Are you getting those temperature readings by a IR thermometer? And if so, are you aiming at the axle grease cap or somewhere else?

Can't be done by a mortal man once it's been running for a few hours, at least ours couldn't. I remember how mad my dad got when I chugged the engine on ours at the end of a windrow raking one time. He said, "Might as well go eat lunch and wait for her to cool off." I tried to prove him wrong for about 15 minutes before I tuckered out, but I couldn't spin that flywheel fast enough for her to fire. @MN Fisher, I don't even know what all those words are. I reckon I've pitched manure and some of the other things, though.

I think the FG knot is probably worthwhile if you fish saltwater applications where your leader is stronger (not just greater in diameter) than your main braid line. For most bass applications, the terminal knot is probably the weakest point until you get to the the arbor knot you used to tie the line onto the spool. The FG is a neat knot, as is the bobbin knot (can't remember the name), but they both are complicated for someone as simple as I am.

At least there's one honest angler - I know several people that use red trebles for everything and a few that use red worm hooks and each has a different explanation. Kind of like all the bow hunters who buy fox pee to spread on their boots to go deer hunting. I haven't heard the same explanation for that yet either. FWIW, I once bought some red hooks because that's all that was left at the country store, and I couldn't see any difference.

I guess you could go about it that way. You'd be assuming that you could find and pull the tag end in what would likely be a potentially dicey situation. Come to think of it, I'll probably go tie a quick release on mine. It never hurts to have a couple of contingency plans.

I used to try to have a quick release for anchors. It really does become tricky in a kayak, as there's not a lot of room to coil a cord that doesn't leave an appendage at risk for getting hung up in those coil. I made the conscious decision to use a winch to eliminate that all but eliminates that potential. Unfortunately once it gets to the end of the cord, you're still hung. http://www.anchorwizard.com/kayak-anchoring-winch-system/ There's an argument against it and for having a quick release, but for me, the knife is as good a contingency plan as I can come up with. Anchoring in or using a drag chain in current comes with some risks, at any rate.

I got an email from a vendor about how many G Loomis NRX rods are in stock, and that they weren't expecting orders to be filled until the factory in Washington is able to reopen. Timing is terrible, because I had about $10k lying around, just didn't what to do it, and I was going to replace all my current rods with NRXs. I think that I'm about as likely to run out of tackle as I am hair dye (evidently that's in short supply too).

For a john boat, I really don't know what it takes to sink one of those, first or second hand. I know it would be a more force, I'm just not sure how much. For your canoe, even if it is a high volume wide job like a Wenonah Fisherman or a Sportspal, it only takes enough force to get one gunwale under, and you're submarined. I don't know that I've seen anyone use a drag anchor on a canoe, but I would assume that you'd rig it similarly to a kayak with the chain off the stern dead-center. I have an anchor (3 lb dumbell) on the bow of my kayak. That's to hold me on so I can thoroughly fish the pools above a falls or riffle, or the eddys and trailing pools. If that anchor doesn't hold me completely still, I pull it up and try something else. I don't think it would be a good idea to fish the kind of water I do with a drag chain that allowed you to move with it rigged off the bow. You'd really be begging to hit a strainer, sweeper, or other obstacle. But those are different circumstances than what you're facing in a powered john boat.

I have heard others with similar concerns. I consider the force of the current and the laminar and turbulent sheer stresses that the current exerts on the bottom probably are magnitudes greater than what a couple of pieces 1' logging chain drug across it will be. Anything you would damage would probably not survive in the current very long either. That same current can also sink your boat pretty quickly should the chain or line get hung. I don't really have a solution for that concern other than have a quick release system of some sort, and mine is not ideal. Mine is a knife and I would have to turn sideways in the kayak to use it. I would not recommend this setup to someone starting out, particularly if there is quite a bit of class II and over rapid along the way.

I'm sorry, 7'0. It's the longest they have. For me that's a little short for a frog rod, but about perfect for a jig rod. This is still powerful enough for frogs, though, especially if you're fishing from a kayak where the bass may pull you rather than you pulling a bass.

I've had some luck with both snakehead and bass there, and I've seen some catfish caught around there too. I've also gone left past the boat launch, fishing pier, and small beach, and had some good luck there. A lot of boats don't go back in that bay much farther than the marina.

I finally was able to get a big piece of pork at the local grocery - a picnic, but who can be picky at this point? 18 hours later and the butt part was perfect (when the Polder said 200) the shank needed a little vinegar sauce (which is why I'm not crazy about picnics). Now I've got to find out how to serve pulled pork 9 ways to Sunday, bit there are worse problems. Already fixed one vegetarian dish the wife made.

For me, the best general purpose jig rod for $200 is the St. Croix Avid MH/F. You might find that choice a little fast taper-wise for traps and chatterbaits, but I think most rods really good for jigs will be. It's also power-wise on the heavy side of medium heavy. I've heard good things about the ALX Deputy too, just haven't fished one. The other Zolos I have fished are really good and around this price. Lots of good choices in this price range, I'm sure.

I am taking a kayak, but I use almost a drag chain almost all the time on the river. I use 3/8" chain, nothing close to what @Scott F has there, covered with bike inner tubes. I have a much weaker winch called an Anchor Wizard. I control how much it slows me down by how many sections I attach (the New in spring may be 3 1' lenghts and the Shenandoah midsummer might be a single 1' section) and how long I let the line out. I would imagine you'd want something that can fail before your boat sinks in any event. The Anchor Wizard supposedly fails at 10 lbs of pressure, but I have a river knife strapped to my PFD just in case. I haven't found that the noise really spooks off fish too much, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. I do find that I'm able to fish pools and structure of interest easier this way than before I started using one. I don't know how this might translate to whatever boat you're fishing from, but I know not many use them on kayaks either.

I saw them years ago and somewhere I have a CD with 'Old Cat Died' and some others that are my favorites. They're definitely worth seeing, especially if they're convenient. I haven't hung around Knoxville a lot, but Tennessee definitely has a thriving music scene going.

I bought, without ever handling one, a Cousin's bass rod. This was back when things were a little leaner for me, and someone that I believed told me how great these rods were for their price. I did some research, found that Cousin's (I don't hear about them any more) was a pretty respectable saltwater rod company. So I paid around $200 with shipping, and opening it and looking at it was probably the happiest I ever was with it. I would say it was performance wise Falcon BuCoo or maybe just shy of it. It was well put together, the rod finisher did a good job, but when my friend lost his rod while we were camping, I handed him that one and said keep it. I wish I had put one of my Abu Gen3 Revos on it and taken the OG Revo off of it.

I learned that my Leatherman Juice won't cut Whopper Plopper hooks. My split ring pliers got the overall hook off, but we had to pad the treble hook that was sunken into his shin, tape it, and float the rest of the way down the Rappahannock. The smallmouth got her revenge on the guy who caught her by sticking the treble in his shin and leaving him with an ED bill. Mostly it's bluegills and other bream, but occasionally a bass will hit his nightcrawler. I just checked and they make octopus hooks down to an 8, so maybe that's what I should use.

I would try the Cal Coast Rod Mule https://calcoastfishing.com/collections/rod-accessories/products/rod-mule. It's $40, but you can probably carry 10 combos in it, even with rods in the sleeves. 4 is no problem, although the mid velcro wrap might not not tighten down enough. I use a trigger release zip tie there.

Maybe, but someone on this forum that has a rod locker full of GLXs and NRXs is probably saying, "If I had a nickle for every time I'd heard that..."

That looks like it works like mechanical fingers, only with a rigid arm. I'd also like to know how well you've found it works. My son is good for gut hooking about every other fish, so this might be an improvement over the needle driver I'm using.

I can tell you that if St. Croix moves all rod production out of Park Falls, they'll lose 1 customer, at least. I've never even held a Mojo or Bass X. I was curious about the kayak-biased rod to see if it solves an issue I never knew I had. If I get to curious, Cashion had some rods that looked like they took the same approach at the Richmond Fishing Expo.