desmobob

My gosh... we're brothers from different mothers! ?

Are you here to drum up some peer pressure? I can help... ?

This brings up the most surprising thing I've found about imported BFS gear: many of the rods, like the Kuying Teton you mentioned, are very impressive for the price to say the least. I have a few of the Kuying Tetons; L and UL, a couple of Ace Hawk Cu Doubles, and Tsurinoya ProFlex II budget rods that I am very pleased with. The Ace Hawk Cu Doubles were less than $40(!) and came with an UL and L tip section, giving two rods in one. One would probably not guess they are a sub-$100 rod, let alone sub-$40. The Tsurinoya ProFlex II is a very attractive rod and looks like something high-end; as good looking as my Majorcraft Volkey. It fishes like it too. Durability of the blanks, guides, etc. are yet to be determined but I have caught largemouths and channel cats up to the four- or five-pound range with all of them. All guide inserts, thread wraps and reel seats are intact after a decent amount of use this summer. Sensitivity is surprisingly good.

I have seen that video but it didn't inspire me to try hand line fishing. Angler Saito's BFS casting videos are very dangerous to my fishing budget! It's too late; you are already so screwed... let us know when your first BFS gear gets delivered. ?

I keep a spare reel ready to go in the boat and have never used it. Odds are that if I decide it's not needed there and remove it, I'll get one of those backlashes like you only see in memes. And I really don't need it in the boat anyway as I usually have around ten outfits in the rod locker. As Slonezp noted, that would allow me around ten unrecoverable backlashes. ? I remember a new type of backlash cause from my fishing yesterday: the line slipped under one of those Fuji hook keepers that's held on to the rod with an O-ring. It wasn't a bad one, but it was a first of its type for me.

I haven't had one bad enough to require cutting the line in years, but I do get one that might take a minute to fix every couple of trips. Most of the time, it's when I hit the top of the trolling motor with a roll cast or the bait hits a branch, piling, railroad trestle, etc. on a cast. I get the original wind knots (which are better described as "casting knots") when I throw tailing loops with a fly rod and the braided line on my spinning reel get wind knots when I use small braid, no swivel, or cast light lures into the wind.

If that's in reply to my post, I didn't say or mean anything about limiting technology; just thinking about trying to make the playing field as even as possible by everyone using the same equipment. In bass fishing, I'm guessing that technological advancement is driven by the consumer market initially, where in motor racing, the advancements may initially be made in the racing teams and then trickle down to the consumer goods. So even-field fishing tournaments probably won't put a damper on R&D. Anyway... just daydreaming out loud. I have never followed tournament fishing and don't have much interest in it. But mankind will compete/race with anything he gets his hands on and I have been involved with other competitive sports.

Kind of like production class motorcycle or automobile racing... affordable, even playing field where it's all about participant skill. They could even require the same rod/reel/line/lure selections.

I have a traditional, long-sleeve lightweight fishing shirt from Orvis, Cabela's, Columbia, and REI. By the time I had decided on the Cabela's GuideWear as my favorite, I had enough shirts that I didn't need to buy any more! ?

I use StarTron religiously these days...

Early on, the potential issues with the use of the ethanol-laced fuel weren't commonly known and there was no ethanol-free fuel available in my area. The horror stories I heard involving the use of the new fuel usually involved weed-eaters, chainsaws, etc. The new blended fuel caused me trouble with some very small engines, but I never suspected I'd have trouble with one of two motorcycles. There is one gas station in my area now offering non-ethanol fuel. It's 93 Octane high-test, and very expensive.

The Zephyr sure came close to being a decent BFS reel at a bargain price but, like the other low-budget BFS reels I've experimented with (Tsurinoya XF 50, Tsurinoya Spirit Fox, Fishband GH100, Fishhband PW 100), it's nothing to get excited about. If it wasn't for the line-fouling issue, it would probably be my favorite cheap BFS reel. I used mine for a good bit yesterday and realized that the more I use it, the more it loses its luster. Too bad... they were very close to having a decent performer. (And for $70, you can't expect too much, right?) Solving the line-behind-the-spool issue would drastically improve the reel. I have an idea or two and I'll let you know if I try them and if I experience any success. As for BFS line twist, I was getting really frustrated by it when fishing a Z-Man TRD TicklerZ on an Owner Ultrahead Finesse Ballhead or Z-Man Shroomz head. I eventually tied a smallest-sized ball bearing swivel w/crosslock snap on my line. It didn't look good but it didn't seem to affect the bait's fish-catching ability. It solved the line twist issue. The Curado BFS does look nice and hopefully it will prove to be a functional and affordable option for folks interested in BFS but not wanting to buy a pricier JDM reel. I plan on picking up a LH retrieve version soon.

I had a three-cylinder twin-carb Merc 65 back in the '70s that ran and ran and ran... I'm curious about one thing: have you had any problems related to ethanol in the gasoline on that older engine? It has caused me no end of trouble in various older engines where the fuel system wasn't designed to deal with alcohol. I had to replace an expensive pair of carbs on my 1995 Ducati 900SS SP, for example.

Years ago, I shot NRA four-position indoor small bore in a very competitive tri-county league (the team I shot on was undefeated for several seasons!), and enjoyed USPSA action pistol matches. I still do some casual skeet shooting and have shot in one trap tournament and in one three-gun match. If there was a sporting clays course nearby, I'd shoot that once in a while. The closest one is further than I prefer to drive regularly. Great fun!

I have reels from all the big name manufacturers, including probably a half-dozen Lew's Tournament Pros (older MBS models) a BB1 (fully centrifugal) and a Tournament MB. My Lew's reels seem to cast as well as others brands. I've enjoyed easy casting with two of the four centrifugal brakes set and the magnetic braking set for conditions. One thing about the older Lew's with MBS... the centrifugal brakes tend to be noisy and that might make them seem like they're being over braked. Sometimes they'll even squeal or shriek if the brake drum is dirty. I occasionally take a cotton swab moistened with a drop of reel oil and run it around the inside of the brake drum to clean and lube it. I think maybe the fact that our casting hand can sometimes feel centrifugal brakes working might also give the impression of over-braking. I have never done a reel-to-reel distance casting comparison but I always thought my Lew's BB1 (centrifugal brakes only) might be the longest casting reel I have, while the Magforce-Z reels might feel the "smoothest" casting (can't really feel the braking). The only reel I have that I feel might be over-braked is a Daiwa Alphas SV105. It's braking is magnetic and smooth, but seems to really squash distance cast attempts. When I get out later this morning, I'll try to remember to do some comparisons.

I guess I've led a charmed life... I'm too cheap to leave a lure in a tree without pulling past the breaking point of the line! ? I don't recall ever having been hooked by a homesick lure returning at a high rate of speed. I guess that might mean that either I'm overdue, or you have bad luck... ?

Nice... ? I still don't own a round reel, and a round BFS reel would be a heck of a way to start! I sort of cheaped out by a hundred-and-a-quarter or so and ordered an Alphas Air TW20 LH instead. (From Digitaka.)

Same here... I have one of those nice Bass Mafia boxes filled with all kinds of types, sizes and brands. But when I lost what would have been my PB (by a good bit, I think) due to a hook breaking, I wasn't able to identify which brand it was. An isolated/unusual incident, no doubt, but I would have liked to know...

I've float-tubed it and had a blast with crappies on the fly rod, too. Didn't see another person all day.

Dude... it's not about need... ?

It looks very much like the Curado BFS is turning out to be the best bang for the buck in BFS. (I'm waiting on a LH retrieve version). Match that with a Dobyn's Sierra BFS rod and I think you'd have a solid combo at a reasonable price.

I bought a Tracker Pro170 from Bass Pro, on line. There isn't a Bass Pro store in my area. IIRC, they showed me the closest dealer who handled Tracker and showed dealer inventory. I picked it up locally where it was in stock and paid cash. That dealer has a service department with an excellent reputation, but it's over an hour away. When I did have a minor issue with the Merc outboard, a local Mercury dealer was happy to do the warranty work for me.

A-Jay, I didn't mean to imply you were assuming anything... you were helpful and I appreciate it. I had been dealing with almost insulting assumptions in a similar thread on another forum and that was fresh on my mind. I learned about the whole SMS thing and that made the situation understandable. And I understand that not having a mobile phone puts me in a very small minority. What still burns me is that PayPal made the change with no notice or warning... I'm suddenly locked out of my account with no alternate way in. Not cool. In the big scheme of things, not a big deal! I think I'll go fishing!

roadwarrior = The GIF Master

When I mention that I don't have a mobile phone, people automatically assume I'm a Luddite, or stuck in the past, or resisting change. That's not the case. I love technology, from computers to sonars to GPS to digital 35mm cameras, etc. etc. and I try keep up to date with it all, within my ability to afford it. And to afford it, I'm thrifty on other fronts. I never had the need or desire for a mobile phone, so I certainly wasn't going to spend the money on a phone and a plan only to have the thing sit at home next to the landline that was already fulfilling my telephone needs. Now that I understand why PayPal is requiring the mobile number, it's not such a big deal. I guess I'll have to pony up and get a d**n mobile phone.