desmobob

I have a few rods in that price range... a St. Croix Premier and a couple of the Kistler Carbon Steel. I didn't get to fish the Kistlers a whole lot as I got them near the end of the season, but I'd say the Carbon Steel are more sensitive than the Premier (and lighter). Tight lines, Bob

I brought home a small one (1 1/2 lbs. or so) many years ago and whacked the fillets off it. I cooked two or three other types of fish at that same time. I distinctly remember the drum being my least favorite, by a big margin. I never bothered to try it again, and don't intend to. :-) Tight lines, Bob

What a great performer... very sad to see him pass. :-( Like Hootie mentioned, it was his rendition of She Came in Through the Bathroom Window that got me hooked on Joe. Remember that other past performer, John Belushi, doing the Joe Cocker imitations on Saturday Night Live? Good stuff. R.I.P., Mr. John Robert Cocker. Tight lines, Bob

+1 When I'm excited about catching fish, it's hard to go S-L-O-W and have to stare at the line the whole time. Merry Christmas, Bob

Looks like a fairly even spread of mono, fluoro, co-poly and braid. I guess I'll have to pick up a spool or two of co-poly so I can try everything. I have a decent selection of the other stuff. Now all I need is for Spring to get here. :-( In the mean time, I'll have to settle for some yard fishing in the snow! Happy Holidays, Bob

There are definitely some differences in sink rate between different brands of similar plastic baits. Also some differences in durability. For that reason, I carry some similar plastic baits from different manufacturers. Tight lines, Bob

I have a copy of Jim Carmichael's "Book of the Rifle" I think Crestliner2008 has it mixed up with O'Connor's book.... In any event, after years of hunting with different calibers, I settled on the .270 as my favorite caliber for eastern whitetails. I'd use something else on elk or bear (.300 WinMag, 9.3x62). I've killed a moose and a couple of caribou with the .300 and it was more than adequate. Never shot a bear or mountain lion.... Tight lines, Bob

Imagine the pressure at that depth! The deepwater fish that still amazes me is that Black Sea Devil (I think that's what it's called) the Monterey Bay Aquarium folks captured on video a few weeks back. When I first started watching the video, I couldn't believe it was real. There's some weird stuff way down there! None of the reels I have will spool enough line to get down there, and even with a pricey Megabass PopMax or XPod, I don't think I could get one to come up from 26,000' to hit a surface plug... ;-) Tight lines, Bob

I couldn't resist the TW deal on the Daiwa PX Type-R. It's a long way off 'till next fishing season, but I'm debating on which line to spool up the new finesse reel with. My first inclination is 15 lb. Power Pro with a fluoro leader. I'm also considering straight mono or fluoro in 6-8 lb. test. I plan to use the reel on my new Kistler KLX Finesse Worm rod (6'9"MHF rated for 1/8-3/8 oz.) or KLX Specks, Reds, All-pupose (7' MF 1/8-3/4 oz) for unweighted plastics, light T-rigging, light drop shotting and possibly light jerk baits or small topwater baits. I'll have to experiment with these two rods to see which one is better suited to casting light baits. In the limited amount of bass fishing I've done so far, I've become very happy with using braid and a fluorocarbon leader. The Pixy will be my first "finesse" bait caster and I'm wondering if I'll be better off using something different. I'd love to hear opinions from the finesse bait casting reel users out there.... Thanks, Bob

My most memorable fishing moment was not a bass fishing day, but a day fly fishing for Dorado off Loretto in the southern Baja of Mexico. We were having a slow day when I noticed a marlin in the distance, stitching across the water is a series of wild jumps. The guide ran the boat over to the area and told me to throw out a big live bait on a spinning rod. We were way offshore in open water and by the time we got to what we figured was the right area, the fish had stopped jumping. I figured it was pointless, but lobbed the bait out anyway. In about two seconds, the line was flying off the reel. I closed the bail, set the hook, and started a long and exciting fight on the medium spinning gear. I can't believe the way that fish jumped! Eventually, I landed the 110lb. striped marlin. It was a fish I never dreamed I'd catch, ever. Happy holidays, Bob

Same here... it's going to be l-o-n-g wait! Happy holidays, Bob

The Bait Monkey KO'd me in the third round. The sneaky little son of a gun isn't very big, but he's fast... My new Pixy is on the way. I think it will sit well on my Kistler KLX finesse rod. Tight lines, Bob

Those are cool... never saw anything like them. I have some old spoons and lures I plan to put in a shadow box/frame and hang on the wall someplace. Those two would be neat to display in your man cave (if you have one!). Tight lines, Bob

Glad to hear he's improving, and also staying positive. I can't imagine how rough it must be to have something like that happen. He's lucky to have some good people around him to help him get through this. Tight lines, Bob

?? Tight lines, Bob

I'll always have a boat. I love being on the water, even if I'm not fishing. I have a kayak, two float tubes, three canoes and two boats. I even love being in the water... I got my first SCUBA certification immediately after high school. If I'm traveling, I hardly ever pass up a chance at a boat ride, whether it's a harbor tour, whale watch, ferry ride, or whatever. Tight lines, Bob

I didn't notice a frog of any kind.... Tight lines, Bob

I would not feel the least bit under gunned with a nice five- or six-shot shrouded hammer/hammerless snubbie. A buddy of mine had a sweet titanium-framed snubbie that got me very close to buying one. Tight lines, Bob

I use mine with two brakes engaged. I really need one and a half. ;-) With just one engaged, I can get some scary fluffing during the cast, so I always chicken out and go back to two. I keep the magnetic control anywhere from 1 to 4, depending on conditions. Tight lines, Bob

Berkley Havoc Pit Boss, Norman crankbaits, Cotton Cordell Spots, Scum Frogs, Beetle Spins.... Tight lines, Bob

That thing looked like it was shot out of a cannon! Too cool. Northerns are built long and sleek, like a rail dragster. They can accelerate like one, too. :-) Tight lines, Bob

I just put a set of HawgTech bearings in one of my Lew's Tournament Pro reels. I have Boca ABEC7s in a different Lew's TP. I can tell no difference in smoothness, free spool, or sound. It's not exactly a fair comparison though, as the Bocas have been fished heavily for 4-5 months and the HawgTechs are brand new. It will be about four months before I get to actually fish the reels side by side. (Winter sucks!) My initial impression is that at half the price, the HawgTechs seem like the logical choice. Time will tell. Or maybe not... Tight lines, Bob

+1 on the American Fishing Wire product. I used it for years for inshore bluefish when fly fishing, and now, on freshwater northern pike. I use 20lb. fluorocarbon leader (but it's Seaguar InvisX... probably the least abrasion-resistant fluoro out there) and northerns bite me off fairly regularly. Tight lines, Bob

Here in the Adirondacks, New York State DEC uses helicopters to stock remote ponds/lakes. I would guess the survival rates have been studied to death before they started doing it. Tight lines, Bob

+1 :-) I had a big one do the same thing. Startled me so much I almost screamed like a girl. Ok... I might have screamed like a girl. Maybe. Tight lines, Bob