Marty

Sorry, you've decided how your free time gets used, not the NFL. They don't have the power to do that, only you and me and others can do that. We're talking one instance here out of a season. It's a non-issue as far as I'm concerned.

I don't ice fish, but I hear a lot more talk about ice fishing for perch and toothy fish than I hear about bass. However, to the best of my knowledge, the Massachusetts state record of 15-8 was caught through the ice.

I don't think the one on the bottom right is either a Lazy Ike or a Kwikfish. Both those lures have a smoothly curved back, not coming to a blunt point like the lure pictured.

They'll know about it when some guy complains he got a $50 fishing combo instead of a $175 golf club. Whether they'll be able to know you got the golf club I'd have no clue.

I have fished an awful lot from shore at the Erie Canal in spots that have wall-to-wall, crankbait-eating rocks. The slide-down-the-line retriever was worthless, but a telescoping pole is very effective (mine is about 20'). It can be clumsy to use, but that's OK, I have saved about 60 lures, which has to be worth at least $250300.

Stren ain't so cheap anymore since they kept the same price but reduced the package size from 330 to 175 yards. But I've always liked the line.

I've used several Berkley lines over the years and didn't have any particular problems. The lines that come to mind are XL, Ultra-Thin, Tri-Max and Sensation. I still have XL and Sensation on some reels.

Given a choice, I'll generally go with the larger because of the reasons Raul mentioned. The bigger the spool, the fewer the problems, for a given line. The larger spools also cast longer and smoother because for a given distance, fewer revolutions of the line are needed.

Kids under 16 don't need licenses. But I'd check with your Fisheries department about you. Depending on what you do or don't do to help the kid may constitute you fishing as well and may require a license. You might want to take a look at some regs. http://floridafisheries.com/rules.html#FISHING%20LICENSE%20FEES

I wouldn't rule out some faster-moving baits, such as crankbaits, spinnerbaits and inline spinners, especially if the water is about 45° or warmer.

My shore experience with walleye has been limited to the Erie Canal, where the water is very murky green and maximum depth is ~10'. They readily take grubs on jigheads, but I've used crankbaits much more. They've taken a wide variety of cranks in various brands, sizes, shapes and colors. Some of the baits I use more than others are #5 Shad Raps, Bomber 6A, Deep Baby N, Deep Flat A and others. Sundown is probably a good time, as they're reputed to be light-sensitive. However, that hasn't affected me because the water is so murky. However, other guys have told me that it's much harder to catch them during the day further downstream where the water is clearer. Good luck. Walleyes can be good fighters, not acrobatic, but strong, consistently pulling toward the bottom.

I don't see any reason why those Bass Pro hooks wouldn't be OK. I use trailer hooks on buzzbaits and spinnerbaits. The advantage is that they will help catch a few more fish and the obvious disadvantage is that they might snag some vegetation or other cover. As far as I know, all hooks that actually have the words "trailer hooks" in the product name will have an eye big enough to fit over the main hook of the bait. Like shortbasser, I also rig mine so they are free swinging.

I think a 6'6" medium rod is an excellent general purpose rod. I don't think it matters much what brand of reel goes on a certain rod. What's important to me is that the reel is a quality one and that the combination of rod, reel and line constitute "balanced tackle."

I've had cheap $3 pliers (I think "Worth" brand) that worked fine on large rings, but not very well on small. I have the Texas Tackle ones which work very well on smaller rings, but not that great on large. They do have a larger size but I haven't seem them. But the size I have does meet most of my needs.

My experience has been many miles from your location, but here water in the 40s and 50s has produced on spinnerbaits, cranks, and inline spinners. Sometimes topwaters too, but not as a first choice.

I have a bottle of Kick'n'Bass garlic from 2001 that still is effective.

Have you seen this picture of why these WVU players shouldn't sit together?

Like others have mentioned, I remove the screws and put a drop of super glue in the holes which has prevented lots of problems. I use them during the day and have done well at times.

It's just incredible this year with so many top-five teams getting beat.

I can't say. For years I used the 3/8 oz. but switched mostly to 5/8 oz. a couple of years ago, but I can't say one is more productive than the other. Nor can I see a difference between regular and jointed models. The only color I use is black. Again, I can't say if that color is any better or worse than others, but I have confidence that owning and using an assortment of colors wouldn't net me any more fish. I truly believe if a fish is willing to respond to the Jitterbug's type of action, it won't be that fussy.

This is from Ken Cook's site: "Basically, all fishing lines are the same. Now wait, I'll "splain dat". ALL these lines use polymer technology to create the basic thread. Monofilament translates literally as "one thread". Although the chemistry is different, fluorocarbon is a monofilament as well. Copolymer lines are one monofilament sheathed in and chemically bonded to another. Multiple "micro" threads woven together create the braided "superlines" made of Spectra, Kevlar or Dyneema fiber. You can still find Dacron, but it doesn't compare to the superlines." http://www.kencook.net/fishinglines.htm

RIP Joe. He has a distinction that will never be equaled.

I agree with jwo1124; pickerel have always fought well in my experience, better than largemouth in my opinion.

Do you really have to ask? ;D But since you did ask, the right answer is to stay home, vacuum the carpets, wash the kitchen floor, clean the bathroom, dust the furniture and catch up on the ironing.

I don't claim to know, in fact, I don't even know if there is an answer. Lure selection is more of an art than a science. The obvious first factor is that you have to use a lure that is suitable for the cover and depth. But for a given set of conditions, there are many lures which might all be "correct" choices. Take, for example, fishing submerged weeds which come up to within two feet of the surface. You could use topwater, shallow crankbaits, spinnerbaits, soft plastics and probably other lures. You just need to put in time on the water, experiment, develop confidence in certain lures and use what you feel is best. You and your partner could come up with two separate answers, but chances are you could both be right.