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RW, This is only my opinion but I bet it is shared by many on this site. Your constant pushing of forum sponsors has a reverse effect on me than what you're going for. When you deviate from the thread to mention a sponsor, it seems less sincere and meaningful. Again, just my opinion. The OP was looking for help on a particular product, yet you find a way to slip in a plug. There is a difference between $4.99 Reel Grips and an $80 handle which does look like a great product, just different . To the OP, I have the Reel Grips on my PQs and CuradoEs but keep them off my ProLite Finesses and Johnny Morris Carbonlite. The latter 2 reels have foam grips which I prefer to the Reel Grips. You can find them in color combos to suit any of your needs and they do make it easier to handle when the reel gets wet.

She really is not something special. Besides getting the pole she has not made much of an impact in nascar.

Pick a $50 spinning reel in any of the name brands (Daiwa, Shimano, Abu, Pflueger, etc....) in the 2500 size. Spool it with 20lb braid, and grab a 6'6" or 7" Medium Berkley Lightning Rod Shock. That combo won't break the bank, fish all the things you listed, and give you trouble free use.

We met over a jig n RAGE Lobster breakfast... only to share a quick Smile and fond farewell! Does this mean I'm in LOVE with a FISH or did my brain get frostbite that morning 1oz Siebert Big O Brush jig, Grn Pmp Purple/Gold Lobster, 25lb Vicious Pro Elite fluro, Hawg tech Reel Handle. Hope to see some of you at the Classic

I am not a doctor, but I am going to school to be one. You wouldn't have had hypothermia from being outside in over 50 degree weather. Unless you dunked yourself in the water and went into a freezer for a long while. If the water was sub 40 degrees and you decided to go for a long swim (10 mins or so) you would have issues. I am not saying 100% you did not have hypothermia, but if you do some basic research (mayo clinic website) you will see that you wouldn't have ever gotten it from being outside and sweating in 60 degree air temps. sounds to me like you may be sick, no matter what is going on with you, I doubt it would be hypothermia, maybe if anything some exhaustion from kayaking all day, plus being dehydrated and under fed. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hypothermia/DS00333

bassh8ter, this site needs both sponsors and members. RW is here to help both, that's it. If you don't like it, then post in a different thread.

One thing that I see in dozens and dozens of posts from people wanting or talking about sponsors is they spell the dang word wrong. It is SPONSOR not Sponser. This has to be the most common spelling error on any fishing forum. There is about 0 chance that a company is going to do anything with you if you ask them for a "sponsership"

I just realized this is my 10th year working with Gary Yamamoto Custom baits. That is getting pretty rare in this industry. I also just realized this is my 9th year coming to Bass Resource. So much has changed on BR since I have been coming here. The format is entirely different and there are WAY more members here now. Great place to learn and meet new friends for sure.

It was a gorgeous day today, low 40's in the am quickly heating to low 60's in the afternoon. Bluebird skies, light wind. It would have been a shame not to get out, and with the girlfriend sleeping from her night shift at the hospital, I had the perfect excuse to go piddle in a neighborhood pond that Matt V. introduced me to not 10 minutes from her house. I'm glad I did! After some frustrating tests with a shaky head in the test tank, I decided to try some Owner Shaky Heads. I decided to make a quick stop to pick up some Big Bite Baits Squirrel Tails recommended to me on my shaky head thread and decided to start with those. I just brought a single rod and a small bag for simplicities sake, my Sahara 2500 on a St. Croix Mojo Wacky Rod, 6'8 M/XF. Two casts in, my line starts moving. Never felt the hit. A few more casts in, my line starts moving again. Again, never felt a thing. No telling how many more I missed! After saturating the pond with shaky head casts, I decided to swap gears and tie on a squarebill Norman Thin N chartreuse and black back, hoping to pick up a few reaction bites. After two casts to an area that I absolutely saturated (15-20 casts easily) with the shaky head, my rod took a lunge towards the water as something started bulldogging drag from my reel. A few moments later, I brought this little chub to hand. I didn't have a scale on me, but the fish measured seventeen and a quarter inch, but I am not really going to attempt to guess the weight. Nothing compared to what a lot of you guys post on here, but for a half acre neighborhood retention pond, I'll take it any day. I can also say for a fact that this is my biggest fish from a pond without a doubt. Just thought that I would share, so get off your behind and explore your local ponds, even in the winter! -Joshua

I was just sitting down having breakfast with my 3 year old son and we had the following conversation. Me: Noah daddy bought a new fishing set up wanna see it. Noah: I want a spider man pole Me: don't you want a white Abu Garcia pole like all of daddy's. Noah: well yeah I want that one and a spider man one from Walmart. Me: you want 2 poles bud why not just the white one to match daddy. Noah: while you have a bunch of poles daddy! I want the white one and the spider man one to go with my sponge bob and red one. Me: ok bud Noah: you have all kinds of poles I want to use all of mine like you. I need a ig pole and a worm pole and one for my bobber for baby fish and and and how many poles do I have left daddy? Me: Noah how many poles do you have/want? Noah: 4 Me: well you told me about 3 set ups so you have 1 left what's it for. Noah: I I I I I want it for you-ers. Me: you-ers what are you-ers Noah Noah: nooooo you-ers!!!!! Me: oh you mean lures Noah lures Noah: yeah you-ers that's what I said so I want 4 poles so I can just switch up fast so you don't have to stop fishing to retie for me......can we go bow hunting daddy? Ok since when do 3 year olds know so much about fishing lol. He was getting all excited about what poles he wants and it blew my mind he knew I had jig set ups and well just set ups for individual techniques. He's to d**n smart and then to ask about bow hunting he's my little outdoorsboy. We also had to get his 22 out for his weekly inspection that it's clean lol the gun hasn't been shot in probably 10 years it's my old youth 22 I told him he can have and he inspects it every time he comes over makes me open the bolt and he checks the safety then the chamber and makes me wipe it down so as he puts it "in a long time when me get bigger I go shoot fox with it but u need to get me a red dot" Telling ya he's to smart haha

Some of you might remember reports from "Pond X" a couple years ago. Well the levy/dam was fixed about 8 months ago, so we decided to give it another shot. I took a roadrunner thinking there might be some bream/crappie in there from the birds. No stocking has been done, and I was pretty sure the whole thing dried up. Seems some life survived right by the natural spring that creates the pond. Jeff

Set it up as a poll. It's already Monday afternoon I don't think we have had one this week! Seriously, I see you are new, so go right ahead. You might want to add a few more brands. The results will be the same, but more guys will participate.

I'm not brand loyal, I'm model loyal.

Miami=North Cuba.

From Benno Himself: "Hi folks, This is Benno from Little Creeper Baits. I have seen some of the posts about the Berkley Sick Fish. I just wanted to clarify that the design was not stolen and we are not getting screwed by the big guys. When the our Trash Fish first came out I sent a few to Skeet and a few other friends who fish at the pro level. Skeet loved them and used them to great effect that season, he even was able to get us a little national attention because of his 5th place finish on Clearlake. About a year and a half ago Skeet contacted me and wanted to make a version of the design for the mass market. At the time we were struggling through our darkest days. I made a deal with Skeet that allowed him to use the original Trash Fish design and allowed us to continue making our Trash Fish. At the time we received enough to get us through those very dark days and survive long enough for people discover our baits and give us a fighting chance at success. We also have the promise of a modest residual income once their bait started to sell. Hopefully the future income will help us continue to keep going. Skeet has done his part to honor our agreement, and we have done ours. I new when the deal was struck that Berkley would be making a very different bait with the same shape. To us the design only half of the story. The materials we use and way we make them is at least as important in making the Trash Fish (and eventually all of our baits) what they are. My hope is that people will be exposed to the design and get curious about what our baits are all about. We really appreciate that people have come to love and rely on our baits as a well made tool that fishes like nothing else made. We also are very humbled and grateful that people are recognizing what we trying to do and really want us to succeed. We are still a very small company working very hard to make the best baits possible. We are not rich, or even very comfortable at this point. But with your support we think we have a chance at a solid future that will allow to make many more baits that will help you catch a ton of fish. We thank you again for your support. We will continue to make our baits by hand in the USA, and do our best to continue bringing you the best lures we can possibly make. Thanks again to everyone."

Enough said click on pic

It's an enjoyable winter hobby. There are start up costs of course, but if you like detail work and would get extra satisfaction from bustin' hawgs on baits you designed and made, check out these online sources: www.barlowstackle.com www. lurepartsonline.com www.jannsnetcraft.com They will be happy to send you their print catalogs, I'm sure.

I used 10# mono for many years until I switched over to 15# braid. Rods of 6-1/2' in M power and Fast action have served me very well as all-purpose rods and I've used them for just about all techniques. I use Daiwa reels in the 2500 size.

It is cheaper to buy jigs at the store when it comes down to it. Start -up cost is about $200 give or take with a mold and all the hooks, safety equipment, lead, melting pot, powder paint, toaster oven, and a bunch of other things I'm sure I forgot. Now if you want to do this as a hobby and a passion to make something with your hands and then fish it, well then I would say go for it. All the stuff I'm referring to is regarding jigs. If you are going to start out pick one avenue to follow. Don't try to do them all. If it's cranbaits stick with that until you've mastered it if it's jigs or plastics then pick one and stick to it. If you try to do them all you will get overwhenlmed with too much info and you'll give up for sure and waste a lot of money in the process. Just my thoughts.

I think this is some good advice. Although I'm a fan of lesser-poundage braid on spinning gear, you'll do fine with 20 lb for just about anything you'll encounter.

I'm budget loyal. 60% off quality stuff is my brand.

I have (in my youth) been known to leave red spots on young girls necks

The recon utilizes a 36 ton blank. It is between a veritas (30 ton) and a Megabass x4 (40-45 ton). I have the 714 as a utility stick. It fishes a half power under ...more like 713.5 if that makes sense. It has a softer tip and solid and powerful butt section that kicks in the lower 2/3 of the blank. It is plenty sensitive for bottom and slack line presentations. I have mine paired with the 5.9 oz Johnny Morris carbonlite and the outfit is under 10 ounces. If phenix would have added a bit more weight ... say a 1/2 oz to the butt section it would balance better with lighter reels. I don't have the champion you are looking at but dobyns as a whole makes some of the best balanced rods out there. While the weight is a bit more they really float in your hand and you can't even tell. I would second the extremes but the champion series is more like the recon on sensitivity alone. The extremes are just magical and stunning rods. Sensitivity is better than the recon and champion but the price is slightly out of your budget but would be worth treating yourself to! You can't go wrong with either. If you want call Gary directly at dobyns and Vince at Phenix. They are very resourceful and can answer any question you would have. I am glad I did.

I think it is kind of funny, just like how LMG is always talking about Shimano. What is, is, and what is not, is not. Sometimes you just have to laugh and remember the internetz isnt serious business.

Nice work, Gman.

Not trying to be a dick but you really are ignorant to how much fishing has blown up in the past few years. Kids used to want to grow up and be astronauts but now I am meeting kids that want to fish professionally . I met a 5th grader that knows more about fishing than most people my age (20). I also met an 8th grader that is looking to get onto not only his high school's team but also a college team down the road. These are just two examples of the dozens of kids from grammar school to high school that I meant in one day at a fishing show. On top of that I meant dozens of kids at a fishing show a month prior that are extremely into the sport. I do not know about you but when I was in 5th grade I was not able to explain the intricacies of using tungsten over lead in a drop shot. Hell in 5th grade I wasn't even throwing a drop shot. I know adults complain about kids being attached to tvs and cell phones but honestly that does not apply to my younger brother and his 50 + friends and the neighborhood kids. They are out side playing and doing everything I did when I younger except their cell phones are way more advanced. Sorry this was a huge rant lol The only people that support bans like this also support gun bans and things of similar nature. Anything to protect our fragile children.

I've tried a couple of different things and came up with the following. I do have a pegboard too, but only use it for hard to store soft plastics that won't fit in the tubs; they were $1 at Wal-Mart. I marked the outside of the contents of each bin so I don't lose track of what I have. This is my fishing shelf that I made out of plywood. I wouldn't climb on this thing, but it is more than sturdy enough to hold a few hundred bags of soft plastics. This is an example of what's inside each tote. Pegboard: Here is a little rod rack that I made in the closet underneath my stairs:

Cool!

love those hooks...look awesome to me!!

Perfectly said. I'm part of that brand posse myself!

Depends on what you want to spend. For around $150 you might find a gently used G. Loomis IMX MBR844C.

you can ask this question in any industry and your going to get the same #1 answer=word of mouth referral (in the investment industry people were asked why they invested their entire life saving$$$ in a particular stock or bond. #1 answer=a friend, family member or adviser recommended it. i respect word of mouth referral from local anglers on my local water more than forum referrals. those lures are proven in ur fisheries and the ole time anglers don't make any commission/get 'sample products' etc. in this day and age over 33% of online reviews are mere marking company's typing away. 'soft/passive sales' and false reviews make it very difficult to navigate what is real and what isn't. and instead of a fishing company having pro staff they can have moderators plug their product thru ad-vice instead of ad-vertising. second runner up=repetition advertising over multiple media ie hard/aggressvie sales. ie coca cola/pepsi, gatorade w/ ad's in magazines, tv, newspaper, bill boards, internet etc.

I've mostly used Strike King Buzz King Jr. with a triple-wing blade, but I've seen numerous brands be effective. I don't know how much difference it makes, but I lack confidence if I'm not using a trailer hook. I've had just enough fish caught on the trailer hook only to make me use them all the time.

They probably got bombarded with negative internet threads. The internet is serious bidness.

x3 and do not do it in the house. Better off in a well ventilated garage

Yeah, the action is pretty awesome on the BPS version, too... wish the fish were in on that action, tho.

X2

What's your core temp? You could have a small case of pneumonia. I asked my fiancé (RN) and she has never heard of being more susceptible to it after having it. If you had hypothermia there is a good chance you had pneumonia too.

I had an uncle that was like that when he needed a drink.

I would not use the same microwave for soft plastics that you use for food. Allen

That's exactly why I have one for home defense. Nothing like the sound of someone pumping double 00 buckshot in the chamber!

Why choose a Bandit over a Norman? I think it boils down to local availability, personal preference, and what colors you have confidence in.

Big barge, the inflatable certainly makes sense in your situation. Much to my wife's dismay I have an assortment of boats. I started out with a kayak and eventually moved up to an 18 ft center console to chase stripers in the Chesapeake. Storage has always been a problem for me also and the boat is stored remotely I fish less. I'm in the process of selling the bay boat and have purchased a 14 ft Jon with 15 hp that I keep in the garage and in process of modifying. And I still enjoy fishing out of the 22 yr old kayak. It's a different experience from other boats being able to access waters others cannot. To enjoy the bigger waters I joined a local fishing club as a non-boater. I fish out of the backseat on the big rigs and split the gas at the end of the day. I've met a lot of really skilled anglers who have been more than willing to share their knowledge. It has improved my skills. I agree about the noise factor. I've noticed that when fishing shallow or very clear water some of the club members will turn off the fish finders while fishing because o the clicking noise they make.

Many different reasons. On the rapala's, #1 was quality issues..........too many broken bills on DT's, too many X-raps that sank/took on water/fell apart, skitter pops that the cups would break after 1 fish, and the list goes on.........and on. #2 was there lack of CS, and as a result of #1 and #2 I have purged all Rapala baits from my tackle selection........hence the huskey jerks, and shad raps going. I may re-think my decison on the shad-raps, but I have found sutable and, better replacements for the HJ's. Funny, though VMC, and Storm, both owned by big brother Rapala, have not given me any of the same issues, so I continue to use those brands. #3 the baits I replaced them with have caught more, lasted longer, and give me more bank for the buck, so I am not missing anything, but the headache that comes from breaking the bill of a brand new DT 16 the first time it bangs into underwater cover, or a an x-rap sinking like a rock straight out of the package before a fish even has a chance to fart in the same zip code I casted it to, let alone bite it. On the Bandits............#1 just elimintaing an option that wasn't any better or worse than other baits I use, and freeing up space for other stuff I liked better. #2/#3 production/availabilty............as for production.....it's a non-issue. Since I started using, for example, say a SK 3xd vs a Bandit 300, I have seen no decline in my results. I know there are people who will claim that "one bait does this better in that situation" and so on, and if it makes them sleep better at night knowing......or thinking that, and having endless options available.........more power to them. As for the availabilty? All the colors I liked in the Bandit were available in the SK, and I can go into any local store and restock the 3xd's I use when ever I want, no need to make on-line orders, thats a big plus when I need a few baits NOW. Just the oposite for Bandits...........around here, some stores have them, some don't, often the colors/sizes I want were not in stock or carried at all.

May have to give those folks a break, they more than likely posted on twitter after getting the snot kicked out of them...LOL

Yo-Zuri Hybrid #6

You have to be PSYCHO not to use Norman baits ?????? :grin: (wouldn't hurt a fly)

I heard they just place it in a box bare with nails and rocks

One of the most under rated crankbaits on the market. Like Vinny, my favorite hands down for 7 to 12 feet. I've caught smallies in 48 degree water on them.