Xander_Crews

Just a quick update, I fixed the reel! I used a "binding post" screw with a washer on each side. The reel looks nice and performs like new. Thanks for all the suggestions and tips, guys! Here is a pic of the screw type I used.

It is an Abu Garcia. I have some other spare, cheap reels laying around... but they all seem to have the same kind of rivet system, which doesn't seem interchangeable. All I need to do is re-attach the knob to the handle, and it would be cool to have it look and perform like stock... but it looks like the only real simple way to repair it is with nuts, bolts and washers. I am sure the nuts, bolts, and washers will work fine and fix it for less than 5 bucks, but it won't look quite as good as it would if I could get my hands on the rivet system they use. I have little experience with rivets, so I was hoping the fasteners they use would be cheap and common. Thanks for the input, gives me a better idea of what my options (and lack thereof) are. I was hoping to get it fixed for less than 5 bucks total, ha ha. I am looking at it as an excuse to buy another, for sure, because I like excuses to buy tackle, lol. I will probably fix it to use as a spare, after I buy a new replacement. Again, thanks everyone for the input, it has been helpful!

Thanks for the responses, looks like I will have to get a whole replacement handle or just replace the reel. (It was under 50 bucks anyway.) With how cheap the reel is, I am not looking to sink a ton of time or money into it. I will probably just replace it and maybe, eventually, get around to jimmy rigging it up with bolts, nuts, and washers. I was really hoping that there was a simple answer to the fastening system they use to attach the knob to the handle, but it looks like that is not the case. (It appears to be some sort of rivet system, I know little about rivets.) Again, thanks for the info. Buying a new reel is easier knowing their isn't a super easy or cheap fix to this.

I was fishing with my brother the other day, and while reeling in, the part of the handle you actually hold onto while reeling came off. We were fishing on rocks and the parts were pretty much all lost, except for the actual part you hold onto. (I have attached a picture of what I am talking about.) Does anyone know what the fastening system they use to attach these is? Where to get the parts, etc?... I could use small nuts, bolts, and washers to put it back together, but that would look stupid and might not perform as well. Any help is appreciated. (Excuse me if this is the wrong forum for this post, it seems like the closest related sub-forum to my issue.)

Went back today, saw the big one again. Looked very concentrated on taking a bed from a fish I caught yesterday, the fish I caught yesterday was preoccupied with the big one. I moved on and got one that was close to two lbs. (Didn't have a scale) I will include a pic or two. Funny enough, I went back today, and I was doing this exact technique with craws rigged weedless on Arkie "Jerk & Stick Bait" hooks. I caught fish with Zoom Lil' Critter Craws (Pumpkin with chartreuse claws) and Yum Crawbugs (Crawdad color). Caught about 6 today, left alone the ones I disturbed yesterday. 4 were about the same as yesterday, decent fish, but sub 2lbs. 1 was a little dinker and 1 was pretty decent, approaching 2 lbs. I will include pics of the big guy and the small one.

Today I had a few hours to fish after work, so I headed down to a local pond in a park. The pond doesn't have a ton of monsters (unless you are counting carp), but I did see a beautiful bass swimming around near the shore, probably 5-6 lbs. Did not catch that one, because they were not feeding. It was warm, middle of the day, strong sun. However, I did get some bass simply by ticking them off. It was easy to locate spawning beds near shore, and each one had a fish sitting on it. I was using a Zoom Swimmin' Super Fluke Jr. in Disco Violet, but I don't think that matters much. It was rigged semi-weedless on a swimbait hook. Each time I located a bed, I would swim my Fluke through it, and the fish would stare at the thing without moving a muscle. I was persistent though, and kept invading their territory. Kept annoying and bugging them until they snapped and struck. I was out for a few hours, and I landed 5 fish, all about the same size. (I didn't measure them, didn't seem like they warranted a measurement.) All in all, a fun way to spend an afternoon.

My mother and one of my brothers are both convinced I am color-blind, my other brother is convinced that I am not. I apparently am not as "color-blind" as some around here. I have always been able to see the numbers in color-blindness tests... but in about 10% of circumstances I can have trouble distinguishing green-yellow from yellow or purple from blue. (But only when the colors are very close anyway.) I am constantly pointing out fish in the water, so that doesn't seem to be affected. I do seem to prefer copper lenses in my glasses, but that might be unrelated, I don't know. (I haven't had a pair with other colored lenses for a while now.) Hmm... now I am wondering if there are more fish that I don't see because of my mild case of color blindness, ha ha.

Thanks for the warm welcome, guys!

When I am not fishing lakes or ponds for Bass, I am fishing mountain streams for wild trout. I swear by the 04 X-Rap in Rainbow Trout or Olive Green Muddler colors, if I bring one downstream near a trout and it gets seen, it seems to get a bite almost every time. Other lures I use for trout that work really well for me are Rebel Tracdown Minnows, Rapala Ultralight minnows, Rapala Countdown, etc... I fish some quicker rivers and the suspending and sinking lures are the best for getting to the bottom where the big Brown Trout hang out. I have read that trout do 90% of their feeding under the surface, and most of the bigger Brown trout I have caught have been at the bottom of deep pools. I stick to the two smallest sizes available in most cases, as those work well for me. If you can't get 'em on a crank, use an inline spinner. (My favorite ones are the Vibrax series.)

I have recently gotten into ultralight trout fishing on rivers, and I have had a bunch of success catching wild Brown and Rainbow trout. I prefer a really short rod, the one I am using right now for my ultralight setup is 5'. I find that casting from the sides of rivers and even some lakes, the short pole makes for far less snags. (Having a small, light setup is nice when you are hiking up rivers too.) I also prefer a fast action, and I don't miss many bites. It also looks cool having a 5' rod with a tiny spinning reel. If I am fishing a lake, I usually am targeting bass or catfish... so I fish for trout almost exclusively in rivers. All of the rivers I fish are artificial flies or lures only, so no dough baits/salmon eggs/worms/etc... And while I do often tie on a spinner, I have found certain crank baits to be irresistible to wild Trout. (It takes some practice to run them in a river, especially in faster sections, but the reward is worth it.) My favorite spinners are Blue Fox Vibrax spinners. My favorite crank baits are Rebel Tracdown Minnows, which come in effective trout patterns, I also like Ultralight Minnows from Rapala in trout patterns. Lately I have had a ton of success with a number 4 Rapala X-Rap in the Rainbow Trout pattern. When fishing spinners and crank baits, generally cast upstream and bring the lure downstream by fish holds, I find fishing fluorocarbon helps get the lure down where you want it. I usually opt for 4lb. (Berkely Vanish is my favorite.) If I am fishing a fly on that setup, I use a fly fishing strike indicator to give myself something heavy enough to cast, and if I am using a dry fly, I use a 2lb mono leader because it doesn't try to sink as much. At this point I am rambling, but I hope some of the information helps you. If you want to know anything else, feel free to ask.

Hello all, My name is Xander Crews! (Not really, obscure cartoon reference.) I am 26 yrs old and I live in the Denver metro area. I have been fishing on and off all my life, and I grew up bass fishing in Iowa. My first fish ever was a wild Rainbow Trout about 14 inches long when I was 6 years old. I stopped fishing for quite a while because life gets busy, but I have rediscovered one of my favorite outdoor activities. I recently bought myself a few poles, reels, and filled up a tackle box. I have already caught quite a few wild trout on my ultralight set-up, but the bass have eluded me so far this year. (I like to blame it on Denver not having a ton of great places to bass fish, especially from shore, but I am sure that I am just avoiding responsibility for my lack of luck.) I am more addicted to fishing than ever, and I thought I should stop lurking and join this community, I look forward to seeing ya'll around the forums. Xander. (For fun, I decided to attach a picture of my best fish this season. Not a monster by any means, but it is about as big as they get in that particular creek. Here is to hoping that I can upstage it with a nice bass in the near future.)