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There is a reason I don't suggest custom rods to anglers such as yourself. I don't want you to take offense, but you are using an Academy rod and you seemed to be pleased with them and that is great. Custom rods are for someone who wants something different from the mainstream either as a status symbol or because there fishing is dialed in to the point there isn't a factory rod made that will work. I have 2 customs I had made for me in the mid 90s, both are spinnerbait rods, one is a split grip with a cherry wood split grip and is 6' in length, I had it made to sling spinnerbait under overhanging trees and the split grip makes it just a tiny bit tip heavy which helps me with roll casting. That rod is one you can't buy off the shelf and I had it made for a specific purpose, my other custom is also a spinnerbait rod, it is a 6'6" made the traditional way with a full grip and a fore grip, I had it made because I needed a longer rod than my 6' and I wanted a specific reel seat that I couldn't find on any factory rod that I liked at the time. If I was able to find the rod I needed on the shelf, I would have bought it but there is a lot of other things to consider. Most custom rod customers are normally fishing high end factory rods and they may want a certain length that isn't available or perhaps they like their St. Croix Lenend Extreme blank but don't care for the reel seat, well they get a custom builder to build them a rod with the blank and reel seat that they want. In other words, if you aren't picking out the reel seat, the blank, the guides and the type of handle then you really aren't getting a custom rod, you are buying a rod that the guy has the blanks and components for and he is offering to build you a rod with the stuff he has for a certain dollar amount, and at $120 you are getting low quality guides on a cheap blank with a basic handle kit, and so you're better off with the rods you are buying off the shelf. Now, if you get more serious and get more experience, you may find that a custom rod will benefit you but right now it isn't, especially at that price.

$120 for a custom rod leaves very little margin for profit & quality components. Minimal custom rod prices start at $200 & go up. Most custom rods sold are priced between $300-600 for spinning & casting rods.

I for one buy quite a bit from Amazon, mostly items that local stores don't carry, and not necessarily fishing equipment. I share an account with my sister, and let me tell you, it seems like she's always ordering stuff for her house, especially since my nephew was born. We laugh and talk about how Amazon must hate us since we must eat into their profits with all the "free" Prime shipping we use. I don't know their margins, but it doesn't look like they're hurting. I know for a fact we've used FAAAR more than $99 worth of shipping, not to mention our streaming TV and music services. It's a win-win for us all. Regardless of all the margins, overhead, etc talk that can be said, at the end of the day I am exactly x1000 more likely to buy something from Amazon, even if it's a couple bucks more knowing I'm not getting ripped off for shipping, and in most cases have it in a guaranteed 2 days. It burns me when I need a $5 pack of Z-Man Shroomz heads from BPS/Cabelas/TW and I have to pay $7 to ship it. I sell quite a bit on eBay, and believe me a tiny pack of lures ISN'T $7 to ship. Additionally for all the "buy local" crowd, I would do that at the ONE shop I even know of around here, but I can't bring myself to pay almost exactly twice the cost (many times more than that) of what I can get it everywhere else. These guys at this shop seem to find it sporting to gouge people who are typical weekend fishermen and don't know average market prices. Anyways.....(rant over)..... A fishing retailer implements a shipping subscription model, and they will allofasudden have me as a VERY consistent customer. Whoever does it first will almost singlehandedly assasinate their competitor.

A second option is to keep your eyes on the flea market section of this site. A lot of guys here take great care of their stuff and sell their old gear when they upgrade. You might be able to find what you want, albeit second hand, in good condition and for a fair price.

That "treatment" procedure is a fantasy. No way can you put 4 ounces in every cylinder and let it set for even 2 seconds unless it is a single cylinder motor. Putting any treatments in the cylinders does nothing for some of the cylinders due to their position in the stroke. A piston at the top of the stoke has virtually no space to hold anything-- it's that compression thingy. For 4 cycle engines there is the exhaust stroke too. For a 2 cycle, at the bottom of the stroke it is open to the crankcase and cannot hold any fluid. The only way to clean carbon is run the product through the intake while the engine is running, either mixed with gasoline or directly. Seafoam has a spray version to do the direct application. The spray can be used to put a film of lubrication in the cylinders for storage. That is when you remove the spark plugs and spray each cylinder as you rotate the flywheel to coat the surfaces. The instructions are on the can, READ them.

The curado has anti-rust bearings compared to the citica. That and accent colors are the only differences I know of. And imo the svs is more trouble free than the vbs. I oil my svs system maybe once a month and I usually fish 20 days out of the month. Use a very thin oil like remoil and it will blow your mind as far as distance goes

And make 28 more posts. And those posts must be meaningful in the eyes of FishinDaddy.

Don't dip elaztech plastics, or store them with regular plastics. They don't play well with others. Anything else I've never had trouble with.

You probably should have bought then during the TW black Friday sale. Now, buy some gift cards and wait for the next sale. Good luck.

Well after reading up here I went with the curado i. I found one on eBay for 105$ shipped. I'll let you guys know how it is when it gets here.

I'm glad to see you're back posting again! Be Well Mike

Something tells me if this was so easy and lucrative for big box retailers, it would have been done long ago. I'm speculating that amazon eats up the $99 fee and passes all the shipping costs down to the seller, forcing them to take a lower margin as part of doing business with amazon...kinda like what wal mart does to vendors.

God I hate winter.

Nope, missed the shroom years. I forget to take prescribed medication let alone recreational. I wouldn't be a very good drug addict to be honest with you.

Hey Folks - A change to the forums is coming very soon, and it may impact the way you login. If you currently use your DISPLAY NAME to login to the forums, or use your email address, this does NOT affect you. To find your DISPLAY NAME: Find a post you made on the forums. Look at the name above your avatar on the left. That’s your display name. You can also look in the upper right near the envelope icon. Your display name is just to the right of it. If you don't use that name or your email address to login, then this notice is for you. Write down your DISPLAY NAME now. When the change is implemented, you will only be able to use your DISPLAY NAME or email address to login. The other name you've been using (the "user name") is being eliminated because most people don't use it, and it causes confusion. Your password did not change. So just enter your display name or email address, and password, and you should log in. You can start doing this now, but the change will not take effect until.....very soon. Don't ask me if it happened yet. You'll know when it happens. It will be very obvious. Stay tuned. Enjoy!

Only is there is gravity present, no gravity both are weightless.Tom

Didn't know this. I was thinking about dipping some TRD,s. Glad to know this.

Most companies have free shipping for a min. amount, I always can find enought items to ship free.

I buy 70 Percent of my tackle from Walmart , you just have to look sometimes at wally world.

The only ones still available are left handed retrieves or I would have told him to add a little more and grab one.

Those Damiki Vault's are great baits. They worked very well for me this fall.

Have not used the Abu Garcia or lews, but I do own a couple curado I's. Let me tell ya, best bang for your buck in a reel in my opinion, especially if you can pick one up new for $120-130. Super smooth, casts a mile, and built like a tank. Definitely gets my vote.

If you like Abu Garcia reels, get the Revo. If you like Shimano reels, get the Curado. If you like Lews reels, get the Speed Spool.

Pick one that fits in your hand and feels good on the rod. Done.

I say curado. I haven't found another reel yet that is as smooth and powerful as it is.

Nice reel you have there. Been experiencing the same thing here in DC. Caught 2 in the mouth on a silver buddy the other day.

Scary part...I think that FloridaFishin fella thought I was serious. He invited me to work out and he would buy nachos. At what point is free..."free"?

you tell em!

I can't comment on the other two because I haven't tried them. I really like my curados though. I think you will be happy with any of them.

Drones! Strippers on flaming hoverboards! I gave up on amazon when they started charging me tax! I rarely buy anything on amazon any more. They gotta save me a bunch of money to motivate me to buy from them these days. Back to the strippers idea... maybe I would pay for that! And it ain't free shipping if I gotta pay for it!

Nice!

Anytime! Do you really need anything other than chrome/blue back? Oh yeah... red. Done. (Actually, I have a lot of good luck with a fire tiger/red back pattern in the muddy water I usually fish.) Tight lines, Bob

I'm late to the party, but I'd go Klx first, then Zodias. They both utilize smaller caliber fuji alconite guides which is a plus in my book. You're getting a great, reputable blank with Kistler. Both leave me longing for a full handle though. I've only handled a few Zodias, but the blank felt crisp, responsive, and lively with a relatively decent amount of flex to it making it universal I would imagine. Didn't care for all the clear coat on the blank, but that's shimano for ya.

I prefer GLoomis I have a few gl2's and gl3's an IMX and GLX all are either HVY or MHVY most are within the 200.00 price range with exception of the IMX amd GLX...

Someone is on mushrooms?

dafuq did I just read ...

Wild boar maybe? That would be "PIGFOOT"

Have your fun. Right now it's the 400lb black bear that's back. I bought those squirrel proof bird feeders. Guess what there not bear proof. He bent a Shepard hook to get one. The other one is outside my window. I heard a noise during the summer it was a big racoon. Haven't seen the racoon since the large bobcat has been hanging around. Just bobcat n bears. No cold or snow yet. Funny the bear broke one metal feeder, emptied it, left it. The other one he took with him. The bear does take out.

Once, this possum tunneled under my HVAC pad where he commenced to die. Every time my AC came on it filled the house with his dead self. Took me a while but I dug him out. The End

Raider's house?

ageed Most likely Big Bill sneaks in and steals your dirty undies to sniff then retreats back into the woods

should have resurfaced at post 666 welcome back

My theory about the whole bigfoot thing: you just have an oversized bait monkey visiting you.

Leave it to Beaver.

In an alternate universe I am fighting the world record bass right now and the girl from the AT&T commercial's is wearing a bikini and trying to net it .

Arcteryx is great stuff. Very pricey but some good stuff for sure. I don't make runs in the cold, but I do like to ski, and a face mask is always a good idea. Wind burn sucks. Period.

That's a bummer man. I didn't think Sirius/XM was worth paying for when I DIDN'T have it. Now I can't imagine riding in a car without it. Might be time to upgrade.

I like the red dirt kind of country, only time I get to listen to it on the radio is on sunday nights for 2 hours on one of our local stations. Other than that you NEVER hear any of it on the radio. Thank god I have a 6 disc cd changer, and its full of the good stuff!!

Same thing happened around here probably 6 or 7 years ago. The station was 99.9 The Carp and they'd always do these funny skits during commercial breaks. Well I turned it on one day in the middle of summer and there was Christmas music playing figured it was a skit so I changed it to a different station and flipped it back about 5 minutes later and still Christmas music. Monday morning BOB FM was born, a computer run mix station that there's already a bunch of around here. There was an uproar in the Chippewa Valley. There were talks of people boycotting any business that advertised on that station. It took a while but they finally transitioned one of their classic rock stations into more modern rock, but the Carp is still missed. I feel your pain man!