buzzed bait

thanks for that Tim! i think i might try to crimp them down and see if that fixes my issues. if not, i'll probably ask for his info since i don't think i'd do as well as i'd want to! everyone here has great suggestions, but none that i'd feel comfortable trying to execute myself. i just know my limitations on some things and think that a lot of these might be a little over that line!

thanks for all the replies!

i don't know about how well they work, i'm sure others can chime in..... BUT gander mountain has lowrance elite 5hdi for $270 (normally $500) and the humminbird 698ci HD SI for $375 (normally $700) both look like solid units. i was trying to find some deals online for my dad recently and came across both of these while searching....

those look nice! bait keeper looks MUCH more solid than the zman version. just looking too hard at them can cause them to fall off! looks like a super solid hook too. update us on how they work out!

yeah, they've been pretty quick the couple of times i ordered from them.

thanks, that's a thought too! mike or gary, if that's the way to go, what kind of heat source might you suggest?

that's really what i was after is whether or not they'd stay in place on the blank.... thanks tom!

just be really "ridiculous" and go all in..... on a calcutta conquest dc or antares dc!!

sounds like a good friend!!

good thought and might be a little less risky than the dremel, but i can still see myself screwing something up! i might have to live with it for a while i suppose.

yikes, that sounds like a recipe for disaster with me!! i'm much better at messing something up than i am at fixing it!!

either of my usual knots: palomar or uni

i haven't pulled the trigger just yet.... they look like they'd have potential. i'm really wondering how well they'd stay in place on the blank and not be prone to sliding back and forth....

I have 2 Daiwa Tatula rods that i would really like to remove the hook keeper on, but i'm afraid it would be a sloppy mess. Is there an easy yet clean way to remove the keeper without mucking up the rod/epoxy? looks just like the picture below. thanks in advance for any help you can offer!

Has anyone used the cal coast fishing cali clips? If so what were your thoughts on them? Have a couple of rods that need hook hangers and was going to get the old stand by fuji keepers, but i saw these and though they were interesting. thanks in advance!

i stand by my usual thought in that i can generally tie a knot direct to the lure faster than messing with a clip/snap

i'd really start to check craigslist frequently at this time of year. it's when a lot of people decide to offload their stuff once it cools down and some great deals can be found and maybe not as many people to compete with in terms of buying it since it's not "in season" for most.

i purge stuff pretty regularly to be honest. i like to buy and try and then hang on to what i really like or really worked well for me. if it's of enough value to sell, i'll sell it and take that money and put into something else fishing related. if it's of little or no resale value, i'll hang on til i have enough to be impactful and give it away to someone. the old one man's trash is another man's treasure is only amplified when given to a youngster as @Surfcaster mentioned above.

well not exactly, but close!!! i seriously considered another one, believe me!!

i'd say you've got the bases covered really. only thing i might consider is a rod with a more moderate action for crankbaits, unless one of those rods already listed is more of a moderate action rather than fast or xtra fast.... but those should cover everything you need to catch some fish!

we used to do it every year at the start of the school year. even around that august time frame the water was ice cold!

i shot an email over to Richard to get his opinion. he's been more than helpful with some of my previous questions about their rods/ratings and such. i just hadn't heard back from him yet so figured i'd throw it out here. thanks for the info!

just picked up 2 major craft corzzas on a 50% off sale at Plat. they came in last Friday and i haven't had them on the water yet. I got a 6'9" ML 2 piece spinning rod and a 6'7" L BFS 2 piece casting rod. they both passed the yard test with flying colors! shakyhead on the ML spinning and was tossing a ned rig on the casting and they both behaved very well. very nice clean builds on the rods and the cork is very nice. so far i'm impressed especially with the 50% off deal!! just went back and checked and they still have the corzza on sale at 50% off and have a 6'5" ML 2 piece casting rod listed.... http://www.plat.co.jp/shop/catalog/default/language/en/cPath/22_80_170_2718/river-lake-fishing-freshwater/rod/major-craft/50-off-corzza-2pcs-model.html

i think @Master Bait'r is the resident expert on the trick darter. might be worth it to shoot him a PM.