BobP

I'm less concerned with counterfeits than I am with the line condition, when we're talking fluoro or mono. Guys buy remaindered line from failed businesses which may have been sitting on a shelf for years, maybe stored at high temp, or displayed where UV light can damage it. Then sell it on EBay. You buy what was once good line at a bargain price to find that it falls apart when used. I don't think the problem applies to braid however.

Many manufacturers put heavy lube in their reels. I think it's because they know the "Average Joes" that buy the reel will use it until it fails without ever cracking the case to perform routine maintenance. Clean/re-lube the spool bearings. That should help. Everything else can wait until it's time to do routine yearly maintenance.

I think it's difficult to draw a conclusion that's always right on the braid with leader/no leader question. When fishing the Great Lakes or an isolated farm pond, how many of the bass are educated by having been caught recently? Not many I suspect. But if you're on a public reservoir that gets considerable fishing pressure, the bass will probably have PhD's in lure and line recognition. Personally, I think that it CAN matter so ALWAYS use a leader on braid except when fishing heavy grass.

Leader is much more stiff and tough than regular line and is used for saltwater fishing. We freshwater guys go with regular mono or fluoro most times. I pick a leader that is smaller and less observable as the leader on heavy main lines such as Carolina rigs. Same for dropshots where I use 10 lb braid as mainline and 6-8 lb fluoro as leader. Lighter line gives baits more natural movement and gets more bites.

I haven't been unhappy with any regular mono or copoly line - Big Game, Izor Line, McCoy's, Yozuri, Suffix all work OK. But there are differences. Many companies sell a hard surface copoly such as Trilene XT or Izor Line Premium designed for baitcaster reels and a softer, limper line such as Trilene XL, Izor XXX for spinning reels. So you can mix and match according to the line characteristics you need. The hard surface lines generally have less stretch, better knot strength, and are more abrasion resistant but they are also a little stiffer and develop more spool memory than their softer brand mates. I used Big Game for years and it was reliable on baitcasters and cheap but it doesn't have as consistent a diameter as most other brands, if that is an issue. More recently, I'm using Izor Line Premium and XXX, plus Yo Zuri Hybrid and like them all. I like Izor Line when you can find 1/4 lb spools on sale for less than $10. I think McCoy's Mean Green is also a very good line. It's doped with penesil (whatever that is) which inhibits spool memory and makes it last a long time. Mono/copoly especially benefits from using KVD line conditioner regularly.

I've never had a leader knot damage or knock out a guide insert. The Alberto knot is thinner and passes more easily than most.

Sounds like the rod guide cement has absorbed some water. Just let them dry out for a few days and they should be back to normal.

Big Game is decent mono and it's sold at bargain prices. But it does not have the most consistent diameter. I'd check the filler spool and see if the rest of the line has the same inconsistency. If it does, it's player's choice whether you think this is a show stopper.

http://www.animatedknots.com/indexfishing.php?LogoImage=LogoGrog.jpg&Website=www.animatedknots.com Check out this site - it has several loop knots to choose from.

Personally, I love my Shimano Crucial 6'8" Med power dropshot rod. Very soft fast tip section mated to a strong butt section that can handle 5+ lb bass when needed. That mating of a light fast tip and a medium blank is called a "hinged action" and is the signal design characteristic of the Crucial dropshot rod. I have both the Med and ML version of this rod, and the Med version will do everything the ML will do and more, so to me it's more useful. I can't comment about other brands of rods and their design except to say that after fishing the Crucial for a few years, any rod that didn't have a similar hinged action would be a disappointment.

I don't like grease in spinning reels and prefer a thicker oil like Ardent Reel Butter (not their bearing oil). Grease is needed on baitcaster gears. I use Superlube white PTFE grease, which is an auto grease you can find at NAPA.

There are too many variables for a simple answer, if it matters. How much spool memory does the mono vs fluoro have on your reel at the time? Which specific brands are you comparing? Mono brands vary greatly in surface hardness and the speed at which they develop spool memory, which affects distance. Fluoros are the same, plus there are differences in the density/weight of different brands. Heavier fluoro tends to cast longer. But it also develops spool memory faster, which limits distance. The bottom line is that both will cast adequately long, so choosing one over the other depends on qualities that are much more significant than casting distance.

To each his own bias, fact or fantasy. I bought a JDM Shimano Biomaster spinning reel a few years ago and was appalled when it arrived with a "Made in Malaysia" sticker. What the heck? Big bucks for a Japanese Shimano and it's made in a 3rd world country!? I've used it for 5 yrs and it's smooth as butter, good as new, so my bias turned out to be pretty stupid. The fact is a great reel can be built anywhere if the factory uses the right machines, the right design, good quality controls, and a dedicated workforce. So you have to take it on a reel by reel basis. A lot of good reels these days are being built in Malaysia and Korea. China I ain't so sure about! 60 yrs ago, you wouldn't dream of buying Japanese versus American if you wanted quality. Times changed and they are still changing. Get used to it.

I generally don't like glass rods. But there is glass and then there is glass. I built a Seeker BS706 S Glass rod for SB's, lipless, and square bills that is nothing like the tip heavy, slow action glass rods that I had tried. It's moderately fast action, light, tough, with a ton of backbone. The Seeker was talked about a lot some years ago but since it's no longer the "latest thing" I haven't seen much on them lately. But that blank makes a great rod for those presentations if you're among those who are used to fishing graphite rods and are put off by the weight and casting performance of typical glass rods.

There are basically 2 ways to do it. The basic problem is, if you want to install new cork from the rear of the rod, it has to reamed out to the largest diameter of the blank (at the butt) in order to get it on the rod. Since rod blanks are tapered, that means a bigger void than usual at the front of the handle where it meets the reel seat, which has to be filled with epoxy or a combo of tape and epoxy. What I usually do is strip the rod down and then rebuild it - including any guides that a new reel seat will not fit over, a new reel seat, and cork handle. This yields the best cosmetic result and a slightly lighter rod. But it's possible to do it from the rod butt and many guys would not know the difference, especially on a spinning rod that has a butt diameter that is not very different from the diameter where the handle will sit. IMO, unless you are gonna do it yourself, you need to think about how much you really hate the Crucial foam handles - because the fix won't be cheap.

I like and fish lots of Rapalas but don't think these were one of Rapala's best ideas. They will hunt if retrieved at slow speed but any faster and they plane off or spin. If you think crankbaits should usually be retrieved at a fast pace (and I do), you'll be disappointed. JMHO, I want a hunting crankbait to run upright at any speed up to Warp 9. It's super rare to find a bait that can do that, and this isn't one of them. It may help to use heavy wire hooks and/or stick some lead tape on the belly, to make them a bit more stable. But for sure, if they're misbehaving, you'll have to slow way down.

I haven't found a rod that will throw a 5" swimbait on a 3/4 oz jig head better than a 7' MH fast action graphite jig rod. It's certainly easier to use than the 7' MH BPS Cranking Stick I tried them on. And most MH jig rods are rated for more than 3/4 oz. I throw them on braid with a fluoro leader and the 7' rod will cast them to distances at which you are on the jagged edge of getting a good hook set even with braid. It's become one of my favorite presentations because you can fish it at any depth - and bass really like them.

Homers, you don't know me but I've owned a Crucial dropshot rod since they first came out years ago - and it's still going strong!

I usually expect to pay between 50-75% of the new price for used equipment, depending on condition.

I use 20 lb Sufix 832 on a couple of baitcasters and really don't see any drama with it as far as backlashes or digging into the spool. I like the thinner braid because I fish a clear lake often and because all things equal, thinner is always better. I use it with a long leader of mono or fluoro - typically 10-12 ft. The long leader insures there will be plenty left if I have to re-tie multiple times during the day.

Yes and it can drive you crazy measuring how far around the blank multiple transitional guide(s) should be positioned. I've tried 3 different spiral schemes and to me, the one where you have one upright guide at 0 degrees, one 90 degree transitional guide, and the rest on the bottom of the blank works as well and any. I don't notice any difference between 'normal' and spiral wraps as far as casting distance. I've never experienced any line stacking on a reel. You can usually use one less guide with a spiral wrap, so you do get a slightly lighter rod tip and a tiny bit more sensitivity. That makes it worth it, IMO, if you're building a rod for yourself. If you plan to sell the rod at a later date, spiral might be a hindrance. I use a mix of spiral and straight factory wrapped rods and frankly, I don't see enough difference to get excited about either scheme.

I like all fluoro and for jig fishing, I'd go with 20 lb test. I've used the BPS fluoro for years and like it. Yes, fluoro does get spool memory but not more than some colpolymer nylon lines. I also recommend using the KVD line conditioner.

It depends on what colors you're talking about, but you can use Sharpies in their various colors on a bait and it will be semi-permanent. It will last for a good while but eventually will erode off the bait to some extent. There are other solvent based marking pens similar to Sharpies which you can get at craft stores. One I got at Michaels is colored "Goldenrod" and it will make a chrome or silver crankbait into a gold colored crankbait.

Well, there are a bunch of possibilities. If you want quick and dirty, buy some white spray paint, cover the old paint with it, then get a couple of cans to shoot your colors, followed by a clearcoat of the same brand. You don't want to mix brands because some paints will not work with some others. Lacquer/urethane/enamel I've also seen some nice patterns painted with a brush. Most guys who do many baits use an airbrush.

You've got a bucktail, a spinner bait and a buzz bait. Throw the bucktail away, it's mainly a saltwater lure and that one's toast. Put new skirts on the spinner bait and the buzz bait and you're in business. A white/chartreuse skirt is a good general color that works well in most situations. Throw the spinner bait when there's a little chop on the water and retrieve it at a depth just below where you can see it in the water. Throw the buzz bait, keep it churning on the surface early and late in the day when fish are most interested in topwater lures.