J Francho

I remember that post Kent. Big trout and salmon battles are much like this. You question whether it was a bad idea to reuse the leader because it was too cold to retie about a thousand times, LOL. I have a similar story about a possible NY record chrome that didn't end well. Some of it was bad luck, some my fault for not realizing it was a chromie, not a Chinook on the end of my line. I'll never take any big fish for granted again. Don't worry, there a few people that I truly believe will get the big one. You, Huskybass, and a few others are committed to the cause.

Let's take a minute to reflect on what catching that fish must have been like. Good Lord, that's a big smallie!

I have never caught a steelhead, but the White River in north central Arkansas produces a lot of trophy size brown trout. I assure you, once a brown reaches 5 lbs, it is significantly stronger than a comparable smallmouth. A couple of years ago my 79 year old dad had an estimated 15-20 brown trout on for 45 minutes. The fish jumped 8 times and we got it (almost) to the boat 5 times before it was able to wrap around the motor and break free. There aren't many (any?) freshwater fish that put up a fight like that. 8-) Kent, browns are tough little customers. My personal best brown was a 22# hen, prespawn and laden with skein, so the fight was more of a haul her in, let her spool me, repeat, rinse, and 45 minutes you land her. I've had browns that jump as well. Steelhead go absolutely ballistic. The smaller ones (<10#) spend more time in the air than in the water. I actually had to take a few home to eat, after they killed themselves by jumping and smacking the rocks.

In NY, the record smallie is 8-4. The record steelie is 31-3. I've caught many 3-5# smallies, and a few rainbows in that class, though most are larger. The difference is that the chromes have current in their favor, since I fish smallies in the lake. Perhaps that's where the diference lies. Don't get me wrong, smallmouth are about my favorite thing to catch, but the battle isn't nearly as dramatic as fresh chrome. As far as the yak is concerned, it designed for near shore fishing in the ocean. The hull design is meant for crashing through the surf to get to deeper water. There are guys using them that are way more nuts than I. BTW, I carry quite a bit of safety gear, and rely on radar reports from my cousin who runs a salmon charter out of the areas I fish. Its a much more calculated risk than you think. In fact, I've paddled in from water faster than some small boats that have stayed out too long. The only time I get nervous is when lightning comes out of nowhere, so if I hear thunder, even in the distance, I get close to shore ASAP. At any rate, its cool to hear the reports of BIG fish being caught on the fly. For all you Great Lakes pinners, smallies hit trout beads and sacks as well. They are fun on a 15' rod, LOL.

Wow. Just wow. I can't believe this thread is still going, LOL. Very entertaining. I've caught at least two or three fish since it started.

I live and die by the hunt for the big fish. Since the club I fish is a team format, I don't change my strategy for TX. either.

If that was a smallie, the same size, which do you think would fight harder? : The Chrome Wins. You've obviously never hooked a steelhead.

Required equipment in my office and over my breeding pairs of parrots, back when I used to breed them. They worked on my 1st son when he was born a little jaundiced. They said to put him in a sunny window. Well, he was born in March. There is no sun here in March, LOL. The beneficial effects of broad spectrum, UVB, daylight balanced (5500°K) light is well documented. Oh, and get a Flasher, auger, and a short pole and get out there, LOL. Or do as I do, and find a steelhead stream:

I won't go out in anything over 3'ers or if there are whitecaps. Otherwise, its actually more stable than a deep V. At about 5 mph with little effort, it isn't but a short run back to shore, if it looks like trouble brewing. You'd laugh out loud if you saw the saved tracks on my GPS.

Snaps for cranks only. I like Doulock style.

Try a Vita-Lite. http://www.lightbulbkenny.com/vitalite.html?gclid=CLCgy6jPsZcCFcErpAodpGS2fg

Thanks man. I caught her drifting salmon skein in the frogwater of a very well known western NY trib a few weeks ago. I was actually asleep at the wheel of a hero drift, when my buddy asks, "Yo dude, where's your float?" "it's way down ther....woa! Fish on!" LOL. I hear you on the other stuff. I fish from a kayak, and boaters are like why not get a boat, while yakkers are like that's not a yak. Whatever, I can sneak up on shallow fish, as well as paddle two or three miles out into Lake Ontario for deep water smallies. I even caught a few on the fly with her Bring on "flied bass" pix

That story must be told!

First off, I'll put this guy (I mean girl) up to ANY smallie ;D Second, I would agree, smallies on 5/6 wt. rod is a blast, but for my money conventional gear gets the job done with a lot less hassle. I also don't get why you would assume you are alienated. You merely pigeon hole yourself by perpetuating old stereotypes that don't apply anymore. Most anglers like to catch; how they fish doesn't really matter. I do agree with RW though, there is a contingency of fly anglers that seem to get more out of the "craft" than actually catching. For them, a whiff of their hand tied dry fly by a skinny, 8" trout makes their day. Personally, I do A LOT of trout fishing, and rarely does my fly rig leave the rod rack. Floating is just so much more effective at getting into bigger fish. It always cracks me up when trout guys call bass junk fish, or bass guys call trout the same. Nobody messes with the Esox guys though, LOL. I suppose my point of view has something to do with year round availability of many species. Anyway, I'd love to see some pictures of some decent bass on the fly, and what your thoughts on patterns are.

Once you get into a better quality rod, sensitivity and power are not as closely linked as they are in lesser rods. Lesser rods rely on flex to transmit the bite, ehile a better rod simply transmits the vibrations to your hands through careful use of materials and components. The fact of the matter is, you can probably throw 95% of you what's in your tackle box using a good quality 7' MH/Fast action rod.

I would use the heaviest rod I had, but I wouldn't use FC. BVraid is a great fit for frogs.

I don't think you'll find anything really inexpensive for this. Here is one from ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ROD-BUILDING-POWER-WRAPPER-WRAPPING-JIG-SUPPORTS-LATHE_W0QQitemZ320322972463QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item320322972463&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205%7C66%3A4%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A200

Like I said, they have kits for each specific reel. take a look at this manu's site: http://www.bocabearings.com/main1.aspx?p=quicksearchkit&cat=5

Yes. There are many sizes, and most places have "bearing kits" for each specific reel. I'm pretty sure Reel Mechanic sells them and he a sponsor here. Remember that with an upgrade to ceramic ABEC 5 or 7, you'll want to upgrade the oil you use. Opinions vary, but I prefer TG Rocket Fuel Yellow for this.

If its the law, there's nothing touchy about it. It either is or isn't legal. That's what cell phones are for. We are the eyes and ears for the authorities; they can't be everywhere at once.

Dave, check this girl out, caught in VERY clear, shallow water. I suspect water clarity of the waters you fish has plenty to do with your idea of realistic. Btw, both of you guys are doing great work with your baits. I'm not nearly artistically inlined to even attempt such a feat.

100 and 128 8-)

I generally don't eat bass, but I had some smallies from Lake O. that my cousin prepared similar to Muddy's recipe, except deep fried, and it was so good.

Tube.

I don't find this to be true at all. On what do you base this?