Ima Bass Ninja

Ok i'm gonna go away from the popular gift card idea. Why? Because its impersonal. It doesn't take allot of thought to go by a gift card. Will he like it...probably..will it mean as much as a well thought out and researched gift...no. First let take the rods and reels..You can pretty much kick those out. People are very brand oriented and only he knows what kind he wants next. Without giving it away and asking whats next on his rod and reel list you'll probably get it wrong. There is an exception though. You could pay to have his reels professionally cleaned and maintained. Most anglers do clean there on stuff but few go to the extremes that a professional would. I would check with Delaware Valley Tackle on this forum if you want more info on this idea. Next lets kick out electronics( fish finder). Most are very expensive and unless you know exactly what he wants then its best to just stay away. Now to the good stuff Tackle. Soft baits like Senko's on are a good idea but $150.00 worth of 1 type may be overkill. I would suggest finding out more on what soft baits he like to through and mix it up a bit. Rage Tail products have many fans (including myself) and even if he hasn't tried them yet you won't break the budget getting a package or 2 of there products. Hard baits like crank baits and spinner baits. Crankbaits again some tend to be brand loyal. Find out what he likes such as Lucky craft, Strike king etc.. Once you have that knowledge you can move onto color and style. Being in CA i cant give you much knowledge on this since i'm on the oppoisite end of the country but there are many here that fish there and they can let you know what works. Probably something natural would be good. No flashy colors. Spinnerbaits and jigs are a good choice but again not all are created equal. Maybe talk to some of the guys here that make 'em. they can lead you in the right direction. Its great that you have taken an interest in something he likes. If you do some research and get him some good items he will appreciate it allot more than a gift card.

You would be better with a right handed reel (same as the one in you original picture) reason being that the baitcaster is controlled ultimately by thumb pressure on the spool. You will be able to better feel the amount of pressure you exert on the spool with your dominant hand. I'm in the same boat as you because i am a lefty and i cannot tell you how beneficial it its to be able to control the spool rpms with my left hand and reel in the line with my right.

Great report Goose!!...Since i don't get to fish anywhere near as often as you i can expect to be buried with my PQ's :lol:

If the ugly stik is in your price range now and gets you out fishing then go ahead and get it. Once you are ready to upgrade to better equipment then hand it off to someone else (possibly a child) who is just learning to fish and let them get into fishing.

No matter how you do it there will always be people that aren't happy with the system. Doesn't matter if its a playoff or the current BCS. Am i happy with the system....no.....title game is just a rematch, been there done that ,Alabama lost lets move on. Now if they win the BIG game LSU fans are gonna start crying about how they beat 'em the first time and they should not have had to play them again..not to mention the fact that LSU had to play and extra game(hows that fair??? seems like Bama made out better by losing) ...just more controversy to college football.

I really like the set-up..It does the job very well for me ...never a doubt when you get a strike, cast those DD lures a mile and with the slow retrieve reel i can fish it all day without any fatigue. Plus the rod has enough stiffness to not feel flimsy when retrieving.

i use a 7'6" MH BPS carbonlite rod and a 4.7:1 BPS pro qualifier reel for my deep crankin duties. This set up has worked fantastic for me and hasn't broke the bank.. Total retail for the rod and reel would be around $180.00 ( although i got mine for less than $80 :) )

Now THAT my friends is awesome customer service!!!!

This is what i was thinking. Yes KVD has a lot of selling POWER based on his accomplishments. But imagine if you were new to fishing, didn't know one pro from the other and got put in a room to buy gear from the pro's. KVD would be on the bottom of the list IMO.

Most professional anglers only get to do what they do because of there sponsors. So being good salesman of there sponsoring companies is a necessity. Who do you think does the best job of selling there companies product? I would have to give my initial vote to Ish Monroe. Watching his videos from Icast (i think) made me want to purchase what he was selling. His enthusiasm and knowledge of his products made me think that it was something i just had to have. So who's your pick for best salesman in professional bass fishing?

TKO Dodson over Dillashaw...1;54 in first round.. a lot of people thought it was a premature stoppage but dillashaw got rocked bad and probably wouldn't have lasted much longer anyway. Miller got his butt kicked.. i think these highly touted fighters from other venues think they will just walk in the UFC and start winning but that is far from the case. UFC has the best fighters for a reason. I really thought Miller would have put up a better fight but Bisping owned him. Just look at the records...Shogun Rua lost to Forrest Griffen..Wanderli Silva lost to Liddell....Henderson lost to Anderson Silva....Anderson Silva is the only fighter to come into the UFC and absolutely DOMINATE.. If you wanna be the best you have to beat the best and the best is in the UFC.

Wonder why the SEC has the best stuff? Its all about the money: SEC BOWL REVENUE DISTRIBUTION (A) For bowl games providing receipts which result in a balance of less than $1,500,000, the participating institution shall retain $800,000 plus a travel allowance as determined by the SEC Executive Committee. The remainder shall be remitted to the Commissioner and will be divided into 13 equal shares with one share to the Conference and one share to each member institution. ( For bowl games providing receipts which result in a balance between $1,500,000 and $3,999,999, the participating institution shall retain $1,000,000 plus a travel allowance as determined by the SEC Executive Committee. The remainder shall be remitted to the Commissioner and will be divided into 13 equal shares, with one share to the Conference and one share to each member institution. © For bowl games providing receipts which result in a balance between $4,000,000 and $5,999,999, the participating institution shall retain $1,200,000 plus a travel allowance as determined by the SEC Executive Committee. The remainder shall be remitted to the Commissioner and will be divided into 13 equal shares, with one share to the Conference and one share to each member institution (D) For bowl games providing receipts which result in a balance between $6,000,000 or more, the participating institution shall receive $1,700,000 ($1,800,000 if the SEC team is a participant in the Bowl Championship Series game which determines the National Championship) plus a travel allowance as determined by the SEC Executive Committee. The remainder shall be remitted to the Commissioner and will be divided into 13 equal shares, with one share to the Conference and one share to each member institution. That means the SEC will receive $23,850,000.00 for there conference and teams with the 2011 bowl season schedule and that is just the 3 BCS and capitol one.. It doesn't include the other smaller ones. And the rich get richer

Great article!!! But i do have 1 question on part of it: " I’ve also found that the new braided lines are excellent for Carolina rigging because of their sensitivity and strength. I use 25-pound test line on the reel, then tie a 14-pound Berkley Trilene XT leader to the business end of the swivel. " Does this mean to use 25 test braid? Or is it 25 test of something else?..... Thanks for clearing it up for me...I will be trying out this technique more this winter...

So whats your thoughts on the upcoming UFC fights? TUF finales and Machida vs Jones. TUF--Diego Brando is a beast i don't think he can be beaten by Bermudez Dodson and Dillashaw should be a good fight but i'm picking Dodson to take the win Coaches--Bisping has the experience of UFC but man i don't like that guy , just rubs me the wrong way....so i'm going for miller on this one Machida vs Jones----Now this is a good match-up!!!...I can't wait for this fight. 2 of my favorite fighters going head to head. I gotta root for Jones though. I think his reach and wrestling ability will win this fight for him. So whats your thoughts/ Picks???

Alright i have 2 different questions both belong in this section so i'll just put them together instead of starting two topics. Question #1..What are the benefits to using a baitcaster over a spinning real when casting really light lures? Question #2..During a recent discussion(more like an argument) with a friend, we were discussing components of a rod making it better. His argument was he has a IM7 team daiwa v rod rod with 10 fuji guides and a full cork grip that he bought for $59.99 was better that the 30 ton vendetta rod of mine since mine only has 8 guides and a split eva grip that i bought for $79.99. So basically he is saying he bought a better quality rod for a lesser price. I can see his point about more components = more mfg cost and better rod. I would think though the price difference would be in the construction or maybe the graphite material itself? So is there any validity to his argument? Thanks!!

This one!!

Hey just wanted to get your thoughts on Vicious fluorocarbon line? I got 4 250 yd spools of 15# for $11.00. Not sure if i have 1000 yds of junk or maybe a good deal. I figured at worst i could use some KVD L&L on it if there was a lot of twist and memory.. Whats your thoughts??

Yep he's already sent me a PM on it ....

Since ya are gonna get so many of them how bout slippin the guy that turned you on to the deal one :lol:

here's the way i view 'em Main lake point- A point that extends into the main body of water Secondary point- A point that extends(usually perpendicular) off of a main lake point, or a point that is contained within a cove.

I don't have first hand knowledge on most of the reels you are looking at except the president which i just got. So far it is outstanding, however if you are open to other reels and looking for a good deal saving money Cabelas has a Quantum tour edition Pt for $99. http://www.2011-blackfriday.com/ads/cabelas/cabelas-black-friday-ad2.shtml

Maybe i'm just missing the good ole days with the likes of Mark Coleman, Bas Ruutton, Kevin Randleman, Pedro Rizzo, Pete Williams, a prime randy Coulture, up and coming Frank Mir, Tim Sylvia, and my favorite..Andrei Arlovski. And even though Tank Abbot never amounted to anything extraordinary there was always an excitement watching him sling punches for 30 secs before he tired himself out

Does anybody else think the heavyweights lack depth. I know Dana was trying to pump up the division but really, compared to the other weight classes, it just seems the heavyweights dont have much going for it. I will say its my least favorite division which is the exact opposite of boxing

Pretty funny stuff right there

Thanks for the responses guys.. I actually ended up gettin real lucky and it goes along with another thread i saw on the forum. Long story short i saw a pfluger president on display that was marked $59.99 so i asked the clerk if it was correct, when he checked he said it was actually $139.99 so i told him that i thought is was mi-smarked but wanted to check and it was no problem, so he talked to the manager who ended up sellin it to me for the marked price. YAY ME!!!