Tokyo Tony

I like the Uni for most everything, Palomar for braid and downshotting, and sometimes I'll tie the "Ball buster" which is identical to the Uni but you thread the line through the eye twice before tying.

Another thing to consider is line retrieval rate. If you move down to a smaller reel, that could have a negative effect on both your presentations and your ability to fight big fish since you won't be able to retrieve line as quickly. IMO, you're better off using a normal-sized reel and just use a bunch of backing 8-)

You asked what the qualities are of superlines in general. Well, compared to mono or flourocarbon, they're much stronger for the diameter, and much more sensitive. The main reason they're more sensitive is that they have almost zero stretch, and that also means that it's easier to set the hook on the end of a long cast. On the downside, these lines are more visible in the water. To solve that problem just use a leader. As for Fireline, I think most would agree that it's one of the crappiest superlines out there. I went through two spools of the stuff before I gave up on it. It frays easily and is definitely not invisible, in spite of what the company claims. It also has knot strength issues. LKN Bassman - one time my Fireline also turned brownish when I was fishing murky water. I use Power Pro, and I love the stuff. I'm going to give Sufix braid a try this spring because it was recommended to me, but Power Pro has never given me a reason to look elsewhere.

I know this whole thread is kind of a longshot, but I did find a river, the Pemigewasset River (thanks Google Earth ), that looks like it would be good for fishing. I just want to make sure that it, or rivers like it in the area, aren't frozen before I make the hour drive from Hanover on Saturday...

I'm not gonna lie, so I won't say that I don't cast in the snow 8-)

Hey guys, any of you in NH know any places with open water? I know that all the lakes/ponds are wayyy frozen, but I figure that there should be at least some fishable areas where there's water that moves relatively fast. I know in CT all the rivers/streams are open, but do any of you guys up there catch trout during the winter? And even more importantly, are you ALLOWED to trout fish up there this time of year? I'll be in the Hanover area this weekend and would love to get me some NH trout (smallies would be even better )! Thanks in advance...

No way felons should be allowed to be sworn officers. That's just a ridiculous idea, and the reasons are self-evident. As for my opinion on law enforcement, I just think it's such a shame that bad cops, or at least cops who treat you like sh**, give the good cops such a bad name. Anytime I'm pulled over, I expect the cop to be a d-bag, and honestly, more often than not, he is. It's such a pleasant surprise when a police officer treats me with respect, even if he writes me a ticket. That's just fine by me, but there is NO excuse to treat someone like sh** just because you're a cop. I'm talking about their being sarcastic, condescending, and just very rude. There's no excuse for that. The sad thing is that there isn't anything you can say - you just have to take it unless you want to cause yourself more problems. I've had several bad experiences with police officers, and a couple good ones. The bad ones just leave such a crappy taste in my mouth that it makes me sick.

Nice post Catt, I love when you post with an explanation of how you fish a certain lure/technique It's always simple and straight-forward. When I was young, I fished Texas rigs almost exclusively, but I really have gotten away from my roots, mostly due to the introduction of weightless stick baits and other techniques. The good old school Texas rig is something I'm going to try to use more this year. Just reading about how you fish it, rig it, etc., and knowing that you have great success that way gives me enough confidence to bring it back to life ;D

There's gotta be a "teener", as Fish Chris calls them , somewhere in CT, and I'm gonna find her. I really do believe that there's a 13 pound bass somewhere in CT.

Glad you're ok RW

x2 I can't be bothered with that crap. Plus, it ends up paying for itself because he knows things I don't, so I wouldn't get as much back if I did it myself.

Pointer 65 (for trout), 78, and 100, love Ghost Minnow, Chartreuse Shad, MS American Shad, and Aurora Black (and other colors too ) Love the huge Live Sammy also, in black.

Well before I joined this forum I used mostly $40-$60 rods, but after reading about all of these awesome rod options, I have upgraded a bit 8-) The biggest physical differences, IMO, were mentioned above: lighter weight and higher sensitivity. Generally, lighter weight rods will be more sensitive anyway, but the higher quality of the components also affects that. Anyway, although it's true that fish don't know how much you spend on your equipment, the fisherman feels the difference with every cast and every fish. It's just much more pleasurable to fish with quality rods than with $40 rods, even though in many cases the $40 rod is just as effective. Quality rods will also give you increased sensitivity, which with certain techniques (jigging, for example) is a really big advantage. So it actually is also possible that using a high quality rod will catch you more fish.

Where? I just checked the website, and they're not on clearance there. I would love to find some for $.99

I'm not a huge sports fan (exept for golf), but when any major sport nears the playoffs, I'll passively follow it and watch the championship. I love watching golf because I play the sport, and watching the best players in the world play the game I love to such a high level is just very entertaining. Although I don't play the sports, I do enjoy watching baseball, basketball, and football just because what these guys can accomplish physically is sometimes unbelievable. I'm not one who watches Sports Center and regurgitates all of the stats though - when people do that it annoys me. The invention of the DVR is just such an amazing thing, I can't even explain it. Now I can just record anything I want to watch and watch it whenever.

That style of lure is very popular in the Northeast especially for cold water bass (SM and LMB). I believe the original is the Silver Buddy, but there are many brands out there. Crestliner, a member here, uses those types of lures all the time in fall/winter for smallies and has tons of luck.

I'm in, but I don't currently have a boat so if there's room for me I'd love to do that.

I only keep the big ugly ones (5 lbs+). The little ones are too cute so I let them go because they have their future ahead! Lol, just kidding - I would only keep one if it were a state/world record. That's it.

YES! Thanks Glenn, this is awesome ;D

When I was younger (mid '90s) my three reels were a Shimano Symetre spinning reel, Daiwa Pro something or other baitcaster (black kinda boxy - great reel), and a Quantum Energy spinning reel. The Quantum and Symetre were very comparable reels, and I actually preferred the Quantum slightly (I liked the sound of the drag more ;D). Both reels tolerated incredible abuse over several years until the shipping company lost them on our move north. Point is, although Quantum reels aren't as popular as Shimanos, for example, they're still quality reels that should last a long time. Nowadays the only reason I won't buy Quantum reels just because they look like crap, IMO.

I usually use YUM craw scent on jigs and sometimes plastics. I use Mega Strike on all plastics - won't throw plastics without Mega Strike, even when I'm trout fishing. Caught my PB on a Yamamoto Kreature doused in YUM craw scent, so I have no complaints

Looks like I'll finally be upgrading to some Zebco spincast combos. I've been needing a new setup for swimbaiting and diamond jigging for lunker stripers, so this is perfect.

What they said above... Also, I would love to find a line that had strength of 10 lb test and diameter of 20 lb test mono ;D

I think you mean they say, "Coorint Eastahwood" ;D My father can't pronounce "frustrate". He says "flustlate" ;D

Just one good for me will make a good day, but for the parts of the day when I'm not catching anything, I'll definitely be frustrated. I'd say averaging a couple decent ones per hour is a good day for me, and I'm talking spring through early fall. If I'm shore fishing after work for a couple hours it just takes a couple decent ones for it to be a good afternoon, and a really good afternoon is 8 + or so. Night fishing, 1 or 2 per hour is good, and night time is usually when I catch my biggest fish. On my favorite smallie lake in NH, a good day is 50+ fish. It's just loaded, and I love it because I can catch them using many different techniques ;D Can't wait til ice-out.