DaubsNU1

I do almost all the maintenance on my vehicles, ATV's, boat, mowers, etc. Been tracking prices of motor oil at Wal-Mart. Checked today...and difference from April 2021 until today...is... Wait for it... 28% increase!

All but one of my rods are Cabela's branded...purchased in the 1990's. The lone outlier is a Berkeley bait-caster...it's a stump-puller for sure.

Took apart my bait-caster a while back...got the drag washers re-installed wrong... Needed to be like this )( Had them like this )) Got that straightened out...but was still slipping... On advice here...checked to make sure my braid was not spinning on the spool due to lack of good backing. Problem solved.

Happy Born Day! I turned 54 in September. The old muscles don't respond quite like they used to...joints feel okay, except when I work a project for 12 straight hours around the house (office renovation). Stopped eating gluten about 5 years ago along with my wife (had to because of medical issues). Honestly say I feel much better. And recently stopped eating vegetable oils and dairy...again, feel much better. I've never smoked, drink very little...never tried any drugs. Hoping I can be as active as my 80 year old Dad who walks a mile every day...or his mom, my Grandmother, who lived to be 98. Either way I want to go out like my Grandpa on Dad's side...late 80's...got a little afternoon-delight with Grandma...rolled over to take a nap...passed away in his sleep. Epic!

Congrats @TnRiver46!!!

Grew up fishing the old Zebco 33 (rod in left hand, reel with my right). When I got my first spinning rod, had to learn how to hold the rod with my right hand...and reel with my left. Got pretty good at both... When spinning reels started having changeable reel positions, I experimented with the left side...couldn't cast well...so stayed with a right hand cast for spinning rods. When I got my first bait-casters, held rod with the left and reeled with the right... Been doing it that way ever since. One of the nice perks of this method...if my arm gets tired / sore from casting the spinning rod (right hand), I simply pick up the bait-caster and I'm now fishing with my left : )

My wife and I (second marriage for both), have separate bank accounts. We each have our share of the monthly bill responsibilities...what is left over can be spent however we want. Note: we have no payments / loans other than our mortgage...which should be paid off shortly before I retire. If we can't pay cash, we don't get it. Large purchases are talked about, and planned out. She wanted to get a 5th wheel and explore/camp...and had the $$ in her budget...researched and found used for a good deal. Paid cash. We pulled that 5th wheel to Montana this summer...brother and I pulled to deer hunt in November. New fishing rod-and-reel wouldn't even be a blip on her radar...but if I brought home a new boat, well, that would be a problem : ) My brother's wife holds a tight rein over their finances and bank accounts. He works his ass off in the summers (the are both teachers) and she takes the summers off. Honestly, it ticks me off that she barks when he spends even a little $$ on new lures...and could never bring home a new rod/reel. So of course, I rib her whenever I can about giving brother some grace. She's a good wife, and good mom to their children...and good Aunt to my kiddos. Enough about that...in all, life is good! Good luck picking out a new rod-reel combo!!

Free agency has come to College football, by way of the portal. NIL will change things a little...raise your hand if you believed colleges were not paying players in the past (yea, RIGHT!). The big name, blue-blood schools with large alumni bases will exploit NIL and the transfer portal...the rich will get richer. Is what it is...

Several friends worked for Cabela's since the 1980's. College roommate and best friend started on the phones in Sidney, worked his way up to top 50 @ Cabela's. None of them work for BP/Cabela's now. I'm a huge fan of the old school Cabela's gear (coats, pants, shirts, base gear, shoes, gloves, hats, waders, blinds, rods, etc.). Even met Jim Cabela once... After BP took over, went down hill fast. Sadness. I still have a few hats, gloves, and one pair of Gore-Tex bibs with tags on them...stocked up years ago. Is what it is...things change. Glad there are companies out there making quality gear (Sitka, Kuiu, etc.). They are earning my business. Still shop at BP for some fishing lures...but not much else.

Congrats to Michigan! So glad to see them put a whooping on *the* osu! Nebraska alum here...suffering through another disappointing season... After watching the 'Skers play both Michigan and OSU, it did not surprise me the Wolverine's won yesterday. Clearly the more physical team. Buckeyes have some outstanding receivers, and a real talent at running back...but Day tries to get too cute and chuck the ball around way too much. Some old coach said it best, "Three things can happen when you throw the ball, and two of them are bad." Now get to Indy and lay a whooping on the Hawkeyes, PLEASE!

Transported the new duck blind out to the river last weekend...duck and goose season starts Saturday. Deer rifle season is November 13 through 21st. My boat still ready to roll if the weather warms up...it's been 30's at night, and 50's during the day...

7 foot, medium heavy bait-caster rod...let's say G.Loomis. Shimano reel. 40lb PowerPro in moss green. White double-willow spinner-bait with titanium wire. I think this would last the year, and boat me some good fish.

I'm still fishing the Cabela's branded rods I picked up in the 1990's...they do just fine. I'm a cheap wretched when it comes to certain things...but willing to spend good $$ for quality in other areas. Get what you can afford, and fish the heck out of it.

I read the original post, and a few more...and have already learned some new techniques. I like this...and am going to read more. If there were a thread titled "Why I am a better ________ hunter than you are!" I'd have some things to say about waterfowl, or deer hunting...but for bass...let's just say I'm in learning mode!

My boat is small, and space is limited....I normally take three bait-casting rods, and three spinning rods. All my bait-casters are spooled with 30-40lb braid, no leaders. All my spinning rods are spooled with 10lb braid to 8-10lb fluoro leaders. I switch back and forth all day long... The funny thing is all my bait-casters are right hand retrieve.... And all my spinning rods are left hand retrieve...I'm pretty good at casting with both hands. : )

All football is pretty rough...from the pee-wee leagues all the way up to the NFL. It is a sport centered on violence and referred to with war-like terms...yet we expect the players and coaches to be gentlemen and upstanding citizens off the gridiron. I coached at a public middle school...and even in this age bracket, some of the most gifted players were the most troubled. It was a constant struggle to coach and mentors some. My brother coached high school...a team that won state championships...sent players to division 1 programs...some played in the NFL. He has lots of stories...some good, some bad. Nothing written above about Coach O surprises me...nor does what is written about LSU and pending lawsuits, and what Universities do to protect themselves. LSU needs to be careful going forward. I am a Nebraska Alum and lifelong fan...hire the wrong coach, or even AD, you are in for a long, long world of hurt.

Marinade in fat-FULL Wish-Bone Italian dressing for a day or two. Toss them on the grill at medium heat...cook to internal temperature of 145 (medium rare). Enjoy : ) Another way is to cube in to 1" squares...marinade as above...then wrap in bacon...cook to medium rare. Yummy! Works with duck and deer as well.

Depends on the day. Some times I peg it...other days I let it be free.

Fished a new-to-me-lake recently...got me thinking about my plan of attack. Lakes in my part of Nebraska are mostly small, man-made reservoirs, not huge by any means. Game and Parks are leaving standing timber and doing a pretty good job creating rock points / rip-rap, and other cover. I generally start with the following and move down the list: Start early with top-water, buzz-baits, Plopper, maybe even a Jitterbug (I'd fish top-water all day if I could!) Fast-moving baits in shallow water, spinner-bait, rattle-trap, squarebill Move to points or rip-rap and continue fishing fast-moving lures Hit grass/weed beds in the intermediate depths, moving baits, then to Senko, NED, drop-shot, soft plastics Work the edges of standing timber with moving baits, then plastics and slowing down. Slow down and concentrate on high-percentage areas What is your plan for dissecting a new lake?

Believe none of what you hear, and half of what you read... The tricky part is deciding what half you are going to believe...

Woke up today...checked the weather...35 degrees...went back to bed : )

Man, you just never know. I've been logging my fishing trips since 1992...tried for a long time to track patterns and "crack-the-code." There are just so many variables...sometimes it is hard to get a pattern going. Wind, clouds, weather, barometric pressure, air temp, water temp, water clarity, grass/moss/weeds/algae... I to have some tried and true patterns for certain lakes, but some days even those do not work. Hats off to you @Darth-Baiter for sticking in there and finding a way! Nice work!!

The old 1960 Rich Line is a little leaky. Filled it with water to find the leaks...unfortunately the leaky rivets are underneath / inside the benches, and behind the ribs on bottom of boat. I'm planning to seal up the gaps in the ribs...might paint the bottom of the boat as well. Goal is to stop leaks, or greatly reduce. What would be the best solution to seal up the entire seams of the ribs? TotalBoat Aluminum Boat Leak Sealer Marine-Tex RM306K, get some empty / fillable caulk tubes to apply and force in to the gaps 3M Marine Adhesive Sealant 5200 ** Note: I don't care what it looks like...it's a 61 year old boat(!) ** (thread Redesigning my 14' Aluminum v-hull...)

@Hammer 4, you my friend, are a Bad_$$! I'm 54 and still doing all my own maintenance...it is sometimes a struggle. The fuel filter on my 2019 Duramax is behind the transfer case...pretty easy to access and change. Rotating tires is a pain...d**n 3/4 ton rims and tires are heavy.

I have honestly never seen buzz-bait blades in any color but aluminum. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough... I have the following skirts -- black, white, chartreuse, white-chartreuse. Seems to suit my needs.