cadman

Another choice other than the ones mentioned above are lead pipe, roofing lead flashing or lead roofing stacks. However if you are a novice at this, than I would suggest you buy dry lead from Roto-Metals. Reason being is that any lead that has been exposed to water (lead Pipe) has to be dried out thoroughly, because if you put a piece of this in a hot lead pot, the lead will splatter and possibly explode all over as the steam and water is trying to evaporate. This could cause severe burns. In reality you should always wear eye protection and face shield along with long sleeve shirt, long pants and shoes. I wear these even in the summer. If you were ever burned by even a small splash of lead you would understand. Stay safe.

Wow nice variety of fish. This is the first time I've seen yellow stripers at a different lake. I remember fishing many years on "The Chain" and catching loads of yellow and white stripers. Did well ice fishing for them too.

I've asked Abu in the past about their reels with too much grease. I also told them that I clean all my own reels. They told me that the reason they put more grease on the reels is because most people will never maintain (clean) a reel. Also, if my reel is under warranty, and I open it and clean it, my warranty is null and void, because they don't know what the real problem was with the reel after it was opened. Give them a call and maybe they will help you out.

We had a small tourney on Delavan Lake this past Sunday. Biggest fish wins all. Delavan has a 1 fish, 18" minimum limit. 3 fish brought in to the weigh-in. Biggest fish was 19-1/2", 3.67 lbs. Myself and another guy tied for second place with both fishes weighing in at 3.56 lbs. My fish was 18-1/4" and his fish was 19". So close and yet so far from 1st place. Sunny day with 9 mph winds. Gills were on the beds, water temp was 64 degrees. My fish was caught in 10 feet of water. Pic of my bass below We also caught 4 bass under 18" and 6 northern pike between 16" and 24"

Mine are Revo MGX Gen 1 and 2 and Revo MGXtreme 1 and 2. I use 12 in rotation and have 12 new in the box at home as extras.

Thank You for your input.

I keep all of my tool in a Plano 3700 box and use the dividers to keep things from sliding around. Out of curiosity how big is your mat and where did you get it from?

I will start by saying I am a die hard Snootie jig user. I tie silicone and round rubber skirts on that jig with no problem. I also use trailers on all my jigs. Yes the trailers sometimes do slip down the hook shank due to the lack of a wire bait keeper. I am in the process of putting in a wire bait keeper in the mold by carving it out. I will see how it goes. I use this jig as a swimbait and for hopping/dragging it on the bottom. Other than I like the smaller sizes of the Snootie, I think the Do-It Manic mullet would be a better choice. However this mold doesn't have an 1/8 oz size, but it has a ribbed collar that may hold plastics better. I will check tonight to see if I can put in a wire keeper in the Snootie mold. Will let you know.

That's a hard question for me to answer. If you can keep them dry and humid free than leaving them in the cups is fine. I've tried to leave them in the cups and for some reason, I am unsuccessful in keeping mine this way. They always clump up for me. I must be doing something wrong. With that said, I put mine back in my Gatorade container. For what it's worth it is easier to keep them in the cups, this way it is always ready to use.

I make the "R" bend spinnerbaits for friends, but for myself I like the twisted loop.

I have been using a lot of Eagle Claw hooks ever since they re-tooled and started to carry Black Nickle hooks. I've used the Gami 604 as a replacement for some customers, however that is for my molds. I don't know what mold you are trying to put that hook in.

I fish there quite often. Fall is prime smallmouth time. If you can find them usually in 20 to 30 feet. Small minnows and crawlers work really well on drop shot. If you want some spots PM me.

I've replaced all my mono on my spinning reels with 8 lb. Yo_Zuri. On my bait caster I have some with Trilene Big Game and the rest with Yo-Zuri in 10 lb and 12 lb. I like Yo-Zuri and have been using it for many many years.

I probably fish the same waters you do as I am from northern IL and fish S.E Wisc lakes exclusively. I can tell you this I used to be a die hard crankbait guy until I fished with a friend I met and he changed my whole perspective on jig fishing. Once I learned to jig fish, I caught more fish and bigger fish. I can tell you this, that not every day is a jig bite day. As I am a very confident jig fisherman, there are some days that I struggle with a jig. At that time need to change tactics. Also I will tell you this, that all the lakes I fish, I use a 1/8, 3/16 and 1/4 oz jig max, 1/8 oz being the preferred daily jig. With a trailer it ends up weighing about 3/8 oz give or take. I never fish any heavier jig unless it's 20 feet plus. Also with the lighter jig, the falling action is much different than using a 3/8 or 1/2 oz jig. What I suggest is going into the Fall season, you will get less bites with a jig, but the fish will be bigger. I would also wait till Spring next year and go out on these lakes with only jigs and trailers. This will force you to learn how to use a jig and see what the fish are doing. As dumb as this sounds, I learned to jig fish by feel. Cast your line, close your eyes and slowly hop and stop your jig as it sits on the bottom, waiting for a pick-up or line movement. This will help you concentrate and focus on what's going on. You will feel this thru the rod and into your hands and then into your brain on when a fish taps or picks up a jig. Once you master this you can cast and keep your eyes open as you fish. Concentrating on what's going on and focusing on your line is key. I hope this helps some. Finally, if you want to PM me about some of the lakes you fish, I would be more than happy to discuss some techniques. Good Luck.

There are many places on the web, however if you can find it, I stick with Dupont, Sherwin Williams, IVC and a few others. CS Coatings is good powder but they are expensive. Depends on how much you need.

I clean all my reels and my friends reels and never ever grease on an AR bearing. Dip cotton swab in alcohol and then keep cleaning until clean. I don't coat with anything after it is clean, but in the past I have used a light film of oil.

I keep all of my boxes as well. Like mentioned above many guys won't buy a reel without the original box. When I was looking for a Gen 1 and a Gen 2 Revo Aurora, I had to have all original reels in their boxes with all documents. These reels are worth a lot more in their original box for the buyer and the seller.

Rod must be in very good to excellent shape. Let me know what you got and how much shipped to 60048.

You have a PM

I have a ABU Garcia handle in VG/EX condition. Black handle and white knobs. Handle centers are 90 mm. $25 shipped. No Pay Pal.

I find it as a convenience. I have a lifetime IL fishing license that I purchased in 1992 for me and my wife. Its' nice not having to get one every year. Also when I purchased ours it has already paid for itself., which as the years go by the licenses have gone up. I believe in '92 the licenses were around $9.00. It works for me.

How about $35 shipped. Cashier's check or money order. No Pay Pal.

I have a R.H Shimano Cruxis 200. Cosmetic 6 out of 10, Mechanical 9 out of 10. 6.4:1 gear ratio. Has some boat rash. Just professionally cleaned. $50 shipped to your door. Pics available

Bismuth is easier to pour with lower temp in the pot. However, even with Drop-Out, it can be a problem to get the jig out of some mold cavities. Also, it is very hard to file out the sprues compared to polishing lead jigs. Finally powder painting can be an issue, as you usually need to heat a jig a lot to get the powder paint to stick. With bismuth you have to be careful so you don't melt the jig before you dip it in the powder paint. It is definitely a learning curve.

Volunteering started for me in 1992, when I used to belong to a local fishing club in my home town. The club held a three day event for anyone that wanted to volunteer to help disabled people go fishing. It was sponsored by Fishing Has No Boundaries which was based out of WI. The event was held at Haleys Marina in Fox Lake. My wife and I weren't sure we wanted to do this but we decided to do it. Anyway, day 1-3 they would bring in disabled kids and adults on a bus. There were 4 buses filed with people. We had people in wheelchairs, blind people and many other people with other disabilities. Fast forward, all the people were loaded on pontoon boats. We took them all out on the water and helped them cast and also reel in fish. You would think that a blind person cannot cast, very untrue. You just give them a little guidance and once they cast they could feel the bite with the vibrations from the rod to their hands. Their senses are much more attuned to everything than ours are because we visualize everything, the go by sense of touch. Anyway, we volunteered for 2 days 10 hours each. We helped them fish, load and unload people, handed out door prizes and so on. I couldn't tell you how good of a feeling my wife got from helping others less fortunate than we were. You never heard them complain about anything. They were glad to just get out on a boat and go fishing. When we were done helping them, they all thanked us for taking the time and going out fishing with them. I never felt so rewarded internally for doing that two day event. Fast forward to several years ago, when Slonezp ask for volunteers to help do a one day event with kids showing them how to fish. My wife and I jumped at the chance to do this. It is a one day event to volunteer yourself to help show kids how to fish. This isn't some high tech fishing challenge. You basically show the kids from all ages how to cast a fishing rod. Many of these kids don't have a father or those that do, the father knows nothing about fishing. When these kids come to us they don't know how to hold a rod, when they leave they can cast and if lucky they catch some fish. There is nothing like a feeling my wife and I get from seeing the innocent smiles on these kids faces All they want to do is to get a chance to learn and they do for those 20 or 30 minutes they are with us. Many of the kids leave thanking us. You cannot help but feel really good inside for doing something like this. I encourage anyone and everyone who is in our vicinity to join us next year. For those further out, get involved in helping kids and adults learn how to fish. Once you do you will get the greatest feeling deep down inside of a sense of accomplishment.