The Rooster

Apparently I should have rephrased the question. :-?

<br><br>Yeah, I had to stop there. "The ****" wasn't going to come off sounding right. ;D Really though, Roosters rock when it comes to whitebass fishing. They account for 3/4's of the fishing I do on the Ohio River around here. White bass love the things. <br><br>And that does look like it was dangerous. I climb down rocks that look like that to get to the water but once there it's just water with no rocks visible above the surface to stand on. But very dangerous getting there, one fall could kill you easily. If the fishing was that good though, danger would not be on my mind, I'd just be thinking about keeping my rods from getting broken, like I do here when climbing over those rocks. <br><br>Great "fish story". Wish I could have been one of the "characters" in it. That looks like a lot of fun. <br><br>By the way, did you ever make it to the lake last night??

I've only been fishing now for about 12 years. In most of that time I thought they broke rod lengths every 6 inches, like 5'6", 6', 6'6", and 7'. Then in the last couple of years I've really noticed there's a lot of 6'4", 6'9", 7'2", and other odd lengths out there. Can a 7'2" rod really make THAT much difference over a 7' rod??

:DRoosters ROCK!!! I got over 100 of them that I NEVER go fishing without. Try some in the 1/4 or 3/8 ounce size for casting gear. Gets you WAY out there and down a little deeper too.

Anybody got any idea why the USA volleyball coach has already been murdered over there?? > It had only been one day and already that happened.

No one mentioned you can get the Pflueger Medalist right now from Cabela's for $60, same price as the President. Aluminum body, 10 bearings, should be very smooth. I have the President that I bought this past spring and it's very nice, but for the same money I'd have gotten the Medalist back then if it was that low but at the time it was $80 for one reel and I was buying two that day. Anyway, Pflueger, Pflueger, Pflueger, Pflueger..........Pflueger.....and Pflueger some more. Nuff said.

You know, when they put line onto spools for packaging and selling, I'd bet they just roll it on there like a baitcaster would. So that should have no twist if they do that. Then we spool spinning reels with it coming off over the side and spinning and twisting it's way onto the spool. I used to think it helped me when I spooled with the roll feeding line off the top like a baitcast reel would but for some reason I quit doing that. I think next time I do this, I might try it again that way and also use KVD with it too.

Wouldn't it be cool if you could do this using a big bucket of KVD??

I've tried every method I can think of and never have found a fool proof way to do it. Holding the spool as if spooling a baitcaster works somewhat well but still has loops. I even let the tackle shop here spool my line for me earlier this year, 4 spools in all, using their machine. It was twisted worse that way than EVER before. So that's out now too. They say laying it on the floor face up and spooling off of it that way is supposed to be correct. Run the line through the line guides on the rod and then onto the reel, just as if you were reeling in the line out on the water. BUT, I've found out that in doing this you need to start off that way, wind a few turns onto the spool, then let the line between the rod and the spool on the floor go slack and watch to see if it twists up on you. If not then you're good to continue but if so then turn the spool on the floor over face down and continue. Only thing I have yet to try, and will be doing the next time I need new line, is using the KVD line conditioner. Even spooling the way I just described I still get some line twist. They say the KVD line conditioner will help greatly with this. I have yet to get any but I will be doing so soon, it's the only thing left to try that I know of. I've read to spray some of it onto a cloth to where it's pretty wet and then pinch the line in the cloth so that it runs right through the sprayed area and spool it onto the reel. That way every inch of the line is coated in the spray. It's supposed to soften it up some I think so it retards the memory of the line and helps with the twist in that way.

Clean it out!! Just don't wipe off the steering wheel or stick shifter though!!

To be quite honest it's only been about 6 weeks maybe since they were on sale for $60 on the website. I was watching them and was about to make a purchase of 2 of them but they went back up before I could act ( >) so now I have to wait on them. But I agree, 2 BPS Extremes would be sweet. Don't know how they compare to the Revo S or SX but I'm absolutely in love with my Extreme and just can't give a thought to spending more for a different reel when these are available every so often for 1/2 the price.

I had never owned a Pflueger reel before this year (other than a really really old antique Summit that's just a collectable now, never fished with it). This passed spring I got one of both the President and the Trion spinning reels, and I love them both dearly, am thoroughly satisfied, they hold up great, I will be buying more and will NOT be even considering any other brand of spinning reel again as long as these are being made. Is there any doubt about how I feel about Pflueger spinning reels?? ;D

I like them really well. Have a BPS Extreme, but it's not nearly $150. You can sometimes get them for $60 on sale, but regularly they are $80. And in my opinion, it's a very underpriced reel for what you get. Should be more like $100 to $120 I would think. Step up to the Rick Clunn signature reel, or a Johnny Morris if you want, but really I can't see the reason to do so when the Extreme is so nice and very smooth. You can get 2 of them for $150 if you catch them on sale. With my Extreme, I was able to cast 1/4 oz. crankbaits straight into pretty strong winds early this spring. No backlashes either with the inertia brakes they have. Of course I had the brakes set on 9 out of 10 but with wind that strong there was no other way. I was still making 40 foot casts with it even in that wind. I have it set now to where I almost don't even need to thumb it while casting crankbaits of that size. They really are excellent reels for the money spent. A lot of bang for the buck.

They also get their reels handed to them free with a big thank you note for using them from the manufacturers. So if the reel wears out in only a few fishing trips it doesn't matter, and they probably have 1/2 a dozen of them on the same boat to replace a bad reel.

How do you like that rod?? I was wondering when I'd run into someone else on here who has one. I like the looks of them but was afraid to spend the money on one without knowing what it would be like.

I need to try some trolling with my lures. I don't tend to do that much at all. Never have really. I do have a graph, it's a Humminbird Pirahnamax 220. Not sure if it will show me the thermocline but if it will then I need to learn to use it. I did see some fish, and they were in depths of 12 feet or so, but the T-rig was the only thing I had to get me down there and I had no luck with it at all. I am just going to have to take more time to learn what to do under these conditions. I want to cast and retrieve a lot but that doesn't always work. Gonna have to learn some new stuff.

WOW, that is a good price. Thanks for the info, I'll look at it. I've about decided to wait though to see what the new Medalist coming out will be offering in the way of a combo. I'm wanting a rod and reel both. The new one is one sharp reel!! Of course, I do know of a rod I could use with the Medalist you mentioned if I just got one of those instead. Anyway, I sure do appreciate you taking time to let me know about this sale. Whether I get one or not, I'm glad you thought about me enough to pass this on. Thanks again.

I don't know about Florida but around here in Kentucky I wouldn't be caught out fishing without at least 10 Worden's Roostertails in white, chartreuse, black, firetiger, glitter frog (green with glitter), and pumpkinseed (brown). Many think of them as a trout lure but I've caught some decent bass on them, up to 15 inches long, which here in my lakes makes them keepers. About 1 1/2 pounds at that length. I know, not huge but still fun. Of course there's a LOT of other lures you'll want but if I could only go fishing with one thing it would be those Roosters. I'll let some of the others tell you what else you'll want. Maybe somebody will put you on to some 5 pounders instead of the runts I usually catch. ;D

I've been hooking them in the lower lip too and I'm somewhat inexperienced with the T-rig so maybe that's my problem too, setting the hook too late. I usually watch for the line to move off in one direction before setting the hook, so I know the fish is there.

Yeah, I don't do that anyway. I know if I cut the line and leave the hook in it that it will eventually rust out. I once caught a bass that had another hook in it's mouth already. The hook was shiny new gold right down to where it entered the fish's flesh and then it was corroded so badly that when I handled it, it broke off right at the surface of the flesh. So I'm thinking the secrete some kind of acidic substance that disolves the hook. It couldn't have just been rust from water cause the rest of the hook was brand new looking, as if it had just been hooked yesterday. If I leave a hook in the fish, and I usually only have to do that if it's gullet hooked, then I will always use nail clippers to cut away all of the line, leaving only the hook itself in the fish. I used to try to even shorten the hook by cutting it with wire cutters but I found out that might do more damage than good trying to cut through heavy hooks like a 3/0 EWG. Only light wire hooks can be cut that way and I hardly ever use them anymore. Also, I don't keep fish at all, not for eating or otherwise. I'm 100% catch and release. Not that I don't think they should be kept, I just don't like the cleaning and cooking part, and don't think they taste all that good anyway, at least not the ones I catch. Long John Silver's is were I get my eating fish. So that's why I wondered if I was hurting anything releasing a fish that might die later, cause even if I thought it would die, I most likely still wouldn't keep it. Hope that's not wrong. I don't catch anything over 2 pounds mostly anyway.

Boy, ain't that the truth if I ever heard it!!!

So which one is the current make of it, made like the Trion or the other way?? I didn't like it made like what's shown in this year's Bass Pro catalog. Seemed to me that it just looked weaker and that it might not hold up. Might just be in my head, but I just like it better the way I bought mine being.

Any old needlenosed plier work fine. I got an 8" pair for getting way down deep in the fish's mouth. Small 6" ones are too small for me.

I fished a buzzbait a bit but not more than about 20 casts or so. No hits. I figured since a reaction strike might be what I was getting that it might work. And I kept thinking deep water structure too. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough money for gas in the boat tonight. So I had to troll it in a no wake area near the ramp. I had 20 foot deep water available to me but absolutely no idea where any structure might have been in any of it. Plus there were about 40 boats and jet skis floating around the area too. Way too many people on the water in that area so I trolled away from them as fast as I could so I could fish some. One pontoon went towing a couple kids on a tube up the lake in the no wake zone just idling along. Not going fast at all, not breaking any laws, but in my way the whole time. I even had a couple guys who swam way out into where boats were passing through, and all you could see were their heads so I had to watch to make sure I didn't get near them as I went by. Guess luck was not on my side for that little trip. I got far enough away from everyone to where I had plenty of room to fish again, but it was only in 12 feet of water or less. I'll just have to try again another time when there are less people out there and I have more gasoline for the boat to go elsewhere.

If you hook a fish that's under keeping size but it's foul hooked like in the belly or back or something and the wound looks like more than just a small hole from a hook, what are it's chances of survival after being released?? I released a fish tonight that was hooked inside it's gills by a crankbait treble. It's actual gills weren't hit but the flesh all around the gills and under it's chin was hooked pretty good. Then dad had one hooked in the back that the hook ended up stretching the hole out to where it looked more like a cut on the fish's back. They were striking weirdly tonight and we caught several that were foul hooked but all were way under keeping size so we had to release them wounded.