SDoolittle

Ditto. I rarely get excited about new baits, but I drool over new rods and reels.

Bluegill

Thank you, Hound_dog. I'll give it a try.

Guys, I appreciate you suggestions, but when I said that I wanted to give them to kids, I didn't necessarily mean children. I'm wanting to give them to some junior bass club members (teenagers) who have no interest in Zebco 33's. I should have been more specific in my original post. If I could just remove my name, that would be great. Any suggestions on how to go about doing this? The blanks are unpainted, and it looks like the name is just s sticker or something under some kind of very thick lamination. A friend suggested that I try heating it with a heat gun, but I wasn't sure if that would compromise the strength of the blank.

I disagree. I don't think this will cause the worm to slide down any worse than the traditional method of rigging a Texas rig. I certainly don't think you would have to peg the weight. If you're worried about the worm sliding down, peg the worm, not the weight. With that said, I don't think this would be any more effective that the traditional Texas rig because bass typically suck the whole worm in at once.

I have a few custom rods that I rarely use and are in excellent condition. I thought that it would be a good idea to donate the rods to needy kids who would put them to good use. The problem is that they have split grips with my name on the exposed blank part of the handle. How hard would it be to put a full length cork handle on them in order to cover up my name? I have zero experience with rod building. Any advice would be appreciated.

I was just reading about the Ardent Edge. I'd like some feedback as well.

I have had a few of them over the years. They are very nice reels for the price range.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWmzMNck_z8

Wayne, it would be very expensive to ship a pup from WV to WA. For the money you would spend on shipping, you should be able to find a good pup closer to home. I have a few connections out in your neck of the woods, and I may be able to help you find something, but I would suggest you start by looking here: http://www.gundogbreeders.com/breeders-idaho/.

I'm still looking for a home for two males.

When talking with my fishing buddies, the subject of fishing professionally often comes up. There seems to be two different trains of thought on the subject. Half of them say that they would love nothing more than to go pro, while the other half believe that it would turn their hobby into a job and take the fun out of it. So let's pretend for a moment that you have no real responsibilties (i.e., no spouse, no children, no debt, etc.) and that you are confident in your ability to compete at the professional level. Would you give pro fishing a shot? Why?

I think A&M will fare better in the SEC than Missouri.

The Big East may not die outright, but they are no longer relevant in college football. They haven't been for a while. Sending UCONN (8-4) to the Fiesta Bowl last year is a perfect example. Adding the service academies is an act of desperation, and it will not strengthen the conference at all. Seriously, Army has one of the worst teams in FBS football year in and year out. Navy and Air Force are mediocre at best. Boise State and BYU are anything but a done deal. The Big East will need some serious help in order to hold onto its automatic BCS birth. Why do you think they were considering merging with a couple of midmajor conferences to create one superconference?

You would be surprised. Most of the fans out here are very excited about having teams like OU and UT visit their stadium on a regular basis, and anything is better than staying in the soon-to-be defunct Big East.

I've never known a fisherman who complained about getting a Bass Pro Shops catalog. They are quite possibly the best toilet reading material ever. I'm on their mailing list too. I get one or two emails a week, and they're almost always discount codes for rods. I've gotten some excellent deals on Kistler rods by reading those emails. Keep them coming, Trey!

You are correct; however, I believe that the BPS may be an exception because it it marketed as a shotgun that can be used by left or right handed shooters.

I think WVU and TCU will be nice replacements for aTm and Mizzou.

Why?

600 decoys? I thought my four dozen was a lot!

Take a look at the Browning Pump Shotgun (BPS). They are some really nice, affordable guns, and they have bottom eject, so they can be shot ambidextrously. http://www.browning.com/products/catalog/family.asp?webflag_=011b Depending on the size of your boys, this might be the ideal shotgun for them. http://www.browning.com/products/catalog/firearms/detail.asp?value=011B&cat_id=012&type_id=225&content=bps-micro-firearms

There's only one Oklahoma.

Where did you come up with 216 calories per hour?

Post a pic of Stillhouse sometime. I can't imagine it down that low. How's Belton looking?

Welcome to BR! I just left your neck of the woods (Nolanville) about a year ago. I had some of my best days of bass fishing on Stillhouse Hollow, and the biggest smallmouth I've ever seen caught came out of Belton. I can't wait to get back. Has the hydrilla made a comeback?