Big Hands

I know we're not supposed to cut the tag off of a mattress "under penalty of law", but sometimes I wait until no one is looking and I do it anyway. Even worse than that, I know I am not supposed to use old monofilament, but I have a couple of quarter pound spools of Ande 6 lbs mono that are older than I can remember. And even though I feel the warm wash of shame as I type this, and I know there ought to be a law against it, I still continue to spool some of my BFS reels with it. . . . . And, even though I can feel the disdain coming through the fiber-optic cable of my internet provider after coming clean about using ancient monofilament, I feel further compelled to admit that I even tie on Megabass lures with it.

"Weeds for thee? None for me, thank you very much!" I used to feel the same way. I used to feel that way about many types of cover. It wasn't fun and I had neither the time nor the patience. I didn't even like dabbling round the edges. And if bass could talk, I imagine they would state their preference for it to stay that way, LOL. But something changed along that path and I decided that I would try to explore, make friends, and eventually embrace at least some types of weeds. . . at least occasionally. The same goes for reeds, cheese mats, trees, bushes and all other manner of 'stuff' bass tend to gather in, in order to have a peaceful lair in which to hang out. Every once in a while, I get rewarded for this newfound (at least to me) curiosity. Fishing is supposed to be fun for most recreational anglers, so fish whatever way is fun for you. The weeds will be there waiting if you have a change of heart.

I think Daiwa's line capacities would be more consistent and accurate if they were to use drunken and blindfolded chimpanzees walking barefoot on broken glass while throwing darts left handed backwards over their heads in a snowstorm at a spinning table of random numbers fifty feet away that were multiplied by three and then divided by seven.

I ordered from japan lure shop and received my goods before even hearing from FedEx. They first sent me texts (2 of them) asking for payment. I called to verify, but still haven't been able for FedEx to let me pay them some other way, like just let me enter an invoice number and submit payment directly to them on their website. Finally got a bill in the mail and now the text links have expired. I tried to pay at their website, but my invoice number "was not found". At least they are not holding my package hostage while all of this is going on. It is still better than buying USDM for many items, sometimes by a little, and sometimes by a lot.

If you don't mind me asking, where were you fishing?

Tackle World

The 7'6" ML-M/F spinning rod? I have the Elite AGS version of it and I am really liking it.

I saw the Pitbull "Cutter" today and threw down $12.99 for them. We shall see. . . .

I stopped by my local tackle emporium after work today to grab a jar of U-40. . . . Um, nope. Apparently, U-40 is not super common to have in stock these days, at least around here. I was able to find a seller online and ordered it even though shipping was twice the cost of the product to get it in a week. Thanks all for the feedback.

Flukes are able to be rigged and fished in several different. They are super versatile in that respect. "Regular" flukes can be nose hooked with a dropshot hook, Texas rigged with or without a weight, rigged with various ballheads, crawl them across surface 'cheese', as a trailer on a bladed jig, Carolina rigged, on an underspin, donkey rigged, fished behind a bubble, dropshotted. . . even wacky rigged. I would venture a guess that a ballhead is how many like to fish the swimmin' super fluke, however, I have personally had my best success on a Carolina rig and on an underspin. The point being that "rigging them like a regular fluke" might be just what the doctor ordered in one situation, and a giant nothing-burger in another. I need to figure out how to get a bait in front of them wherever that may be, and then trigger them to strike at it. While the intent of it's design may have been to swim it through various parts of the water column, as far as I am concerned, once it's in my tackle bag I'll use it any way I want. I like baits like that (Swimmin Fluke, Caffiene Shad Swimbait, Keitech Swing Impact, Spark Shad and several others) for a Carolina rig and I fish them super slow, which if it only moved slowly, may as well be any other chunk of soft plastic. But what happens is that as the egg sinker catches on things like weeds or various structure and cover, when the egg sinker pulls loose from whatever it was hanging up on or falls off a ledge or out of a bush or tree, it swims briefly and this is when I get a lot of bites (but certainly not all of them). Nobody told me to use them this way and a lot of people look at me like I have two heads when I tell them what I use these baits for. They are meant to mostly be used on a swim jighead or weightless Texas rigged and used to swim through schools or as a searchbait. That swimming action of the tail and the relatively realistic profile of a baitfish are makes them different from many other soft plastics, so if that is helpful, you can do whatever you want to with 'em.

Well my jar of U-40 Cork Seal has somehow turned to a chunk something that I can no longer brush onto the cork of my rods, and TBH I haven't been super impressed with it's ability to make the cork on my rods look anything like the day they were new. There is a small amount (less than 5 cc's) of clear liquid in the bottom of the jar. Does anyone know what act as a solvent to possibly "rehydrate" (using this term in the broader sense) the contents of the jar? If not, what do y'all do to treat the cork on your rods, especially if you have discovered a fountain of (cork) youth treatment?

Your original question is 'why?' I can't claim to know 'why' with any degree of certainty. All I can do is spectate, speculate, postulate and react. And I'm probably a little too eager to do the first three.

It'll likely need one washer to ride on. If it's a thick washer, you might see if you could source some thinner ones. Are you certain the spool is all the way down on the shaft?

Maybe not, but it will let you feel the balance, how much the butt section length agrees with you, and how the ergonomic features of the rod's reel seat and reel work together.

Take off the spool and see if there any washers you can remove from the spool shaft. That will let the spool sit a little lower. Many spinning reels come with extra washers so you can adjust the line lay.

I'm gonna venture a guess that fishing in relatively shallow water might be a factor too.

I have bought black spinnerbaits for night fishing, but I don't know that the color of a spinnerbait used at night is all that important.

They both have their limitations. One important factor you (the OP) have mentioned is where you can store it. Since you're able to store a boat in a garage, that takes fiberglass from a "no-go" for me to at least qualify for consideration. I won't (again) own a fiberglass boat if it can't be stored in a garage. Too many materials that will get ruined too easily in the sun, of course if these same materials are used in an aluminum boat and are not immune from the effects of the sun. But more often fiberglass boats will have things like carpet, upholstery, and wood. However, since that's not at play, there are other considerations. Fiberglass boats are often heavier than aluminum boats. That weight can make them ride better in choppy water depending on the hull design, abd be more stable when fishing from them when someone is moving around. But when a boat is heavier, they may also require more powerful motors to perform similarly. Fiberglass boats often cost more initially, but over the long term may not hold their value as well. This is for better or worse depending on your situation. If you're in the market for a fiberglass boat on the used market, you can find some pretty nice deals for $8,000 to $15,000 if you shop carefully. A friend of mine found a twenty year old but fairly well kept Triton TR-21 with a 225 hp outboard. He paid less than $1,000 more than I did for a newer but much more basic Tracker 1648 with a 40 hp tiller. Both boats can do many similar things, but there are things that one or the other can do better than the other. For instance, a 21' fiberglass boat with a 200+ hp motor can go much faster, will be more stable and less susceptible to weight shifts, will be inherently safer in rough water. A heavier boat doesn't get blown around as easily when using the trolling motor on a windy day. They will often have more storage provisions and rod lockers. On almost any day (or night) I can fish the same opportunities as a more substantial fiberglass boat, but if I don't be careful to monitor the weather, those can be treacherous. And the weather in TX is famous for changing in a hurry on a regular basis, so there's always that. An aluminum 1648 jon boat will fit in areas a big or heavier boat won't, storage options are generally more limited, but it will be generally easier to clean and maintain, and it will be far, far more economical to operate. I have a few spots that I like to fish that bigger or heavier boats sometimes can't access, and I'm not so concerned about going in after 'em if I want to. I have a 1/2" thick rubber mat on the floor of my tracker, but I still don't go barefoot for longer than it takes to get something on my feet after I take an occasional swim during the summer. If I frequently encountered rough/choppy water, I would favor a fiberglass hull. I think the weight helps, and they would generally be less susceptible to damage from damage over time. When I was looking for my 1648 (or something similar), I had a hard time finding them where I live in southern California. In fact I drove to the n/e corner of the TX panhandle to get mine, and the price made it worth it. The gentleman was kind enough to hold it for me while I made the trip, and wouldn't accept a deposit. I found many decent deals on the eastern side of the continental divide, and many of them were in TX, so that is IMHO in your favor especially if you shop carefully. These are all generalities and there may be some boats that are made from either material that defy some generalities. Maybe you could use one of each ;~)

IME, if I use scissors that cut braid well to also cut mono and fluoro line they will become less-than-great- at cutting braid. I try to keep my braid scissors strictly for braid. Eventually I invariably end up using them for mono and fluoro and eventually they become duller to the point that they don't cut the braid as easily and cleanly. I've tried at least four of the ones I have seen mentioned above and they seem to all suffer the same fate. Lately, I have just stuck to the cheap Rapala scissors and replace them when they become too dull for my use.

I use a Minn Kota MK-26 plug to get power through the "bulkhead". That plug ain't playing around.

So, I ordered a reel on one day (8/31 IIRC), and some lures the next day from the same seller. Yea, poor timing on my part to say the least, but I digress. . . . Package arrived on 9/10 with both orders in the same box. No mention of additional duties, taxes or fees. . . . until today. Sort of. Early this morning (a Saturday, 9/13) I received a text message on my phone allegedly from FedEx stating that some "duties, taxes, and fees" are due and (this is where it got very interesting) it referenced the actual tracking number of the shipment. I was ready to delete and report the text, and thought I would check the tracking number on the odd chance it is legit. So far, the tracking number IS legit. Still not sure the notification by text is legit. Of course I have yet to click on the link provided in the text message. Instead I first went to the actual FedEx website where I had a totally ineffective and unsatisfying conversation with a chat-bot as expected, but the bot did provide me with a phone number to call. So, I did call FedEx at the number provided and spoke to two CS agents in succession, neither of which were actually able to reference my shipment because their international CS agents from their "Revenue Department" were not available on weekends. The saga continues. . . .

Maximum strength non-braid? Swimbaits: 20 lbs Big Game monofilament "Other": 15 lbs Big Game monofilament Larger crankbaits/topwater: 15 lbs Big Game monofilament Medium Crankbaits: 10-12 lbs Big Game monofilament Smaller crankbaits/topwater: 6-8 lbs big Game/Ande monofilament Leader (attached to braid 6-8 lbs fluorocarbon (usually Daiwa J-Fluoro Samurai Hidden Concept)

This has been my experience so far. I have a couple of their BFS reels (Zephyr BFS and Kestrel BFS). I can understand concerns for their durability over time, but I have caught tons of fish on them (nothing over five pounds. . . . yet). They cast well enough (dare I say noticeably farther than my Curado BFS with 1/16th oz to 1/4 oz baits).

I did it in the late 80's and early 90's . . . sort of. I still have the log. It's a store bought fishing log. I thought it would be more useful to look back on seasonal patterns, dates, etc. but it's more entertaining as nostalgia rather than useful data to me. Even though I spend upwards of 90% of my fishing time on one lake system (a main lake and an afterbay below the dam), the most insightful thing I have learned is that every year is somewhat different than the other years and that's likely due to seemingly endless combinations of "X factors" such as weather patterns/trends, droughts, the effects of invasive mussels, wind, wildly fluctuating water levels, wildfire runoffs, algae blooms (and the water being bluestoned to treat it), the health of the forage base, the ups and downs of other species. The bottom line is that I just haven't found a way to make it useful.

Good call. The Dobyns would not have been a good rod for 3/8 and slightly heavier. I tried a Shimano World Pop Flash Boost at 3/8 oz and it was definitely not a good match for it, or the Phenix Classic BFS. When you're ready for a rod that does really well with 3/32 oz to 1/4 oz baits, the Dobyns and Phenix are worth a look.