cyclops2

Lots of people average the BIGGIES. VHS disease is wiping out small fish as the BIG bass die slower on stored body fat. So last year was a FANTASTIC big .....small & largemouth year. Hell there only are LONG STARVING big fish left. But the total fish caught was that of a dead fishery.

The size of the weed stems RULES when a fish dives & wraps around a couple. BRUTE force can be necessary. Open bare bottom ? go with 2# or 4# line. He is not going to get away. Rod action to me, is very unimportant.

Just use the 60#. It cuts weeds better. IF you need to.

I got caught up in that " gotta keep up with the latest " until I forgot all my tackle at home when going on a 2 week vacation. But I had the emergency rod & reel & a freezer zip lock bag with those 1.5" long floating Rebel & Rapala lures. Couple of splitshots assorted sizes. I caught the same amount of fish as loaded. BUT I was not wasting time changing rods lures different spools with different lines. I Still fish & only buy to maintain the 4# test ultralight & the 60# test rig. Dam I can fish well. I never think or worry about 200 items being changed. It is the person who catches the fish. Not the tackle. If there are no fish ? NO SPECIAL TACKLE is going to catch any of nothing.

When we / you talk about schools of fish ?? That statement is very true.

Thank you Megastink. Where I am the amount of roadway stones has Eliminated all the weed beds. Almost like a crushed stone bottom. 30 years ago I launched right above Philadelphia & found great reed islands. Fantastic bass & Channel Cats there. Rich

Catt I am in N Y. Cool all summer compared to the Good Ole Boys in Lake Charles, La. A pocket of shallow back water might reach 85 on a very hot day. So your bass do the night shift. The LM have big laterial lines for sensing baitfish & crawdads

Do people still test drive a boat anymore ?

Since I fish local waters I do use the U L almost all the time from a river bank. Some of the =15 POUND CARP & CHANNEL cat have opened up a fishing tackle shop with my lost struff

This has been a great topic. There are several fish that are just cooked & have no flavor. Need seasonings & spices to make them edible. Farm raised fish & some GMO are kind of bland. They are raised for profit & very long shelf life. Flavor is the first thing eliminated in modern food. Season it to death. Modern apples sold in chain stores in the north east stores have almost no flavor. But they are kept in giant buildings for years refrigerated.

Love the use. Makes total sense.

Fish-fighting. Who died & put you in charge of my opinions ?? No one asked you to belittle me & my thoughts. I have ridden to hospitals with far better people. Peer Pressure is not what he needs. I certainly do not need any from you. Catch & grease Do what you want. What ever it is. You need to be comfortable with it. Posting here took a lot of good backbone. I support what ever decision you make. My best wishes for you. Rich

Playing a non money making sport is not the same obligation as working at a job for enough money to support yourself. Or a family. People quit jobs all the time.......... You were not put on this planet to be forced by anyone to stay on the team. It is a OPTIONAL INTEREST for as long as it interests you. Another person can not wait for you to leave. You owe the team nothing. The team certainly owes no player nothing. You DO OWE YOURSELF the undeniable right to leave whenever you know it was over long ago. This pressure from other sports people is called PEER PRESSUIRE. They are trying to make you live out a guilt trip. Do what you want........At this point with the team ? You are not giving 90 %.. Time to let your charged up replacement give his 120% for the team. You will get these guilt trips from all people who enjoy telling others how to live out their lives. Do what you want. You are not guilty of doing anything wrong. Edit As a coach. Do you want a team made up of people being FORCED to stay on a team by parents & others ? The drive of the team is useless to him. Better to have the 120% gung ho people even if the have less athletic abilities.

I am a Clearwater yankee. So I can use almost anything. But if I lived in thick stemed weeds & huge lily pads ? 120# braid & a BEEFY saltwater spin rig to pull the whole dam plant up. It would probably break the basses jaw. So I would catch & eat a lot.

Jon I am constantly changing rings to the smallest I can use. No scientific reason. better the shape. more strikes ?

anything acting not normal gets nailed. Even baitfish jump a lure doing back & forths. I use a wet fly with the flyrod tip underwater & about12 to 18" of line out. After catching a couple of shiners a NICE LM darts out & grabs the next hooked shiner. Funny. I let him take some line to a stop place. wait. then slowly increase pull. He is coming along nicely. ZIP He is gone. I have my wet fly back.

Well I am a Macho He Man. I can crank any reel handle forever with a Bull Shark going the other way. I use a very heavy non-detergent oil in & on everything. Gearbox, spindle, spindle sleeve in the spool. Only thing I do not lubricate is some friction discs. I call the factory for their procedure. Which is...........Replace them. Then they usually will say what to clean with & relubricate with. Any CLEAN parts with CLEAN oil is always better than dirt & water crunching around. I almost completely fill a gearcase with oil. Never have found a dipstick on any spinning reels

Any fish in it there ? Was great 30 years ago.

I was ORDERED NOT to come to anymore fly fishing club meetings. Seems My catching several giants with a large Muddler Minnow in the public waters stream where " Match the hatch is only allowed " BY CLUB MEMBERS. Used up all my elitist Snot . Good riddance. Weird people.

I sure would not want him as a doctor or anything else. Cheapshot hothead on a grant ?? Dump the loser. Better exfootball people around

Scott F Has it best ....I think. If the plug & socket are in the EXPOSED deck area ? Then the Hydrogen & Oxygen bubbles coming out during a recharge. HOPEFULLY are far enough away from a accidental spark. Also the plugs should be polarized. So there can not be a backward charger connection done. Good setup Scott.

I find SIZE of the lure always determines minimum good action speed. My 1.5 " floater wiggle like crazy compared to the 13" perch floater minimum speed. I do knot tune lures for 10 mph retrieves.

Many 4# lines are good for up to a breaking load of almost 10 pounds with a great knot & a smooth surfaced metal eye.

Thank you Snakehead. Rich

O K guys. This is how lures work. They catch you. You still have to get the fish to bite it.