White77

when i was in high school i got in trouble with the law. i was given a court ordered curfew...8pm school nights, 10pm weekends. my folks made me stick to this very much so. they also had a cabin on cayuga lake (finger lakes) and would go there every weekend except in the winter months. i usually didnt go cuz i was partying!! but now i had this curfew so that put an end to that. what else was i going to do? went to the lake, started fishing from the dock, first big smallie and the rest is history!! i went every weekend from then till i joined the army. my dad got me a boat so i could go whenever i wanted. it was a 14 foot v-hull with a 7.5 hp merc. i caught a ton of smallies in that thing!! so i guess what got me into fishing was being a stupid idiot when i was young!! Cliff

i was an abu round guy too, but like someone else mentioned, the hand thing made me change. i now have two revo's, one black max and one cardinal 802. i am thinking about another round tho just for crankin.

thanks for all the great ideas guys. i will let you know how it ends up!! Cliff

yeah i hear ya, i have only been in the business for around 4 years now, and my back injury happened in my first year. i guess i will stick to it till i cant anymore, i am one of the lucky ones who enjoy going in to work every morning, i love my job! ;D when i get to the point where i cant do the work physically anymore, i will look for something else in the field, maybe estimating or something in the occupational safety area. i am pretty big on the safety stuff (dont mind the fact that i shot my own finger to a 2x4 with the nail gun, OUCH!! ;D)

i am 31 now. a few years back i lifted (and twisted at same time) a 4x8x7/8 sheet of plywood while standing atop a ladder, needless to say, it did not end well. i shifted the lower 8 inches of my spine and my entire pelvis 1 1/2 inches to the right(you should have seen the x-ray!). after weeks in the chiropractors office i was "fixed." i still go balls to the wall at work, i cant help it i guess. co workers tell me to slow down, take it easy etc etc. i just have to do the job as fast as i can while maintaining the quality of my work. the doc told me that this one injury will probably haunt me the rest of my life. i do still get a little bit of a sore back after a day of hanging sheet rock or something, but i have not had any serious probs like the first time i injured it. additionally i have this deal going on in my right hand, dont know what it is, maybe arthritis or tendonitis or something. it gets all tingly, like when your foot falls "asleep". it causes my grip to be very weak, this is the main reason i switched from round abus to LP. it has helped some but it still happens. i get this whenever i am doing anything that requires me to grip stuff, fishing, hammer etc etc. basically i just stop, stretch it out till the tingle goes away and continue on. Cliff

i am pretty brand loyal for reels, i have two revo's, one black max, one cardinal 802 and a daiwa. i plan to replace the daiwa with another abu reel. i have had good luck with AG and i like their stuff, like somone said, if it aint broke, dont fix it. as for rods, mine are all custom, three are on allstar blanks the other is a shikari blank. i have one more to build and i will buy what i think will work and has the right price tag.

well i only used one for many years, then when i moved to minnesota i got heavy into walleye and pike fishing, so i had two. now in texas and i now have five set ups 6'6" H=jig/big worms/small swimbaits 6'6" MH=spinnerbait/buzzbait 7' MH=Crankin/small swimbaits 6'8" MH=Worm my 5th is a spinning outfit which i havent yet got a rod for, but it will most likely be a 6'6"-7' M that i will use for weightless stuff and jerkbaits. once i get this rod i think i will be pretty well set, i may want a heavier setup down the road for larger swimbaits. but i am in no hurry for that. do i need this many, nope! Cliff

i have two choices for today,,, this move or twilight. i chose twilight. i have no interest in eiteher, but twilight is in the dollar theater. ;D

for my nephew. he said to me today, "uncle cliff, i sure wish i had a rod like yours" so i said you got it bud!! took his little 5'6" light cherrywood and stripped of the cork (which is actually cork look alike foam), cleaned the blank up, turned down a set of new grips from left over hypalon i had, couple of fresh wraps and there it is! just gotta put the finish on the wraps and it will be done. this rod paired with his little UL mitchell avocet makes a good learning rig for him. here is a pic i think he will be pretty excited in the morning when he sees it. Cliff

yeah i now have two of them a black max (biiig difference there), a cardinal 802, and this other weird daiwa thingy.

several months ago i made the mistake of trying to fix one of my revo's. well it ended up in a million pieces in a zip lock baggie, and a few parts shy as well. in the mean time the worm gear went in my other revo. since then i have messed with them so much i know them inside and out, so today i got a bunch of parts in the mail from abu!! spent about an hour just know replacing both worm gears and pawls, as well as the missing parts to the one reel. oiled them both up good too. now i have two revos that are like new!! i cant believe i actually put them together right and they work!! and now that i have a boat, hopefully they wont get so much dirt and crap in them and wear out that gear so fast. i am excited if you didnt notice!! ;D Cliff

well i am in TX so that might be an issue ;D

is it possible to make a "portable" live well, like from a cooler? when i say portable i mean such that i dont have to attach anything or add holes to the boat? if there is a way, how? what do i need? any info is much appreciated!! Cliff

i always tell people my favorite movie is "the goonies" but secretly it is "the wizard of oz" ;D

recently i got a used abu cardinal 802 for $65, i think retail is $125, so i got i about half off. i got it here in the flea market too! Cliff

thanks for all the info guys, sure do appreciate it!! Cliff

i am right handed and i use all lefty BC reels. for me, i want the rod in my "good" hand. i cant do much with my left hand, reeling is just reeling, but the rod is how you set the hook, work a bait etc etc, i want those things to be done with my dominant hand. Cliff

my boat is not the prewired model, so i dont have the little plug in the front. so i guess i would have to put the battery in front as well, unless they sell some kinda of extension cables for the TM. i have heard before that they are better with the TM in front. that charger you mentioned is the one i was looking at too. thanks Cliff

i looked at them today actually, plus they have a 40lb minn kota for $166 and a nice battery charger for $50. looks like i can get everything i need in one spot!

yeah most of the time i will be by myself, but occasionally i will have my buddy with my or one of my nephews. they just cant wait, i see them in the back yard and they just get up in it and sit in the seats. Cliff

here is my boat, it only weighs 86lbs by itself.

i am looking to get the trolling motor for my boat soon, it will be a 30lb thrust most likely. i have no clue what kind of battery to buy. i want a decent battery that will last so i dont run out of juice during a trip. but i also dont want to spend a ton of money. additionally do i need any certain charger for it? or just any old battery charger will do? down the road i also plan to get a depth finder, will this require its own power source, or could it be run off the same battery as the motor? thanks! Cliff

cool deal, i think i will stick with that then. gonna do one for the next rod in the line up tonight!! if i ever get my stupid camera working right, i will post up a pic. thanks Cliff

is there and harm in just leaving the little piece of foam exposed? i kinda like the look and feel of just the little piece there. the seat is sealed up good, i dont even see why it needs finish, i think it looks fine.

cool deal, i am definetly trying this. i have plenty of extra hypalon left over from my last builds. and those last builds never got a finishing touch between the grips and in front of the seats. thanks keith, i will let you know how they turn out Cliff