fin

I fixed two broken Cherrywoods recently and replaced a guide on one of them. Those are the first I've ever done, other than replacing tip top guides. It wasn't too difficult, kind of fun to do. I didn't have to buy anything. It took a while to set everything up. There are lots of tutorials available and obviously there's people here that can help with it.

That reminds me of this video: https://imgur.com/imagine-you-discovering-these-rattlesnakes-backyard-what-would-you-do-1BioyP5 Snakes don't bother me too much, I'm fascinated by them, but large quantities of venomous snakes like that are nightmare fuel.

I know where you're coming from. I used to use a 5 foot-something Lew's Speed Stick glass rod with the pistol grip made in the 80's with a spincaster on it. I could hit anything with it and put it wherever I wanted it to go. If I still had that combo and tried to use it now I wouldn't be able to hit anything probably.

I was thinking the same thing when I read her post, but then I looked online for "difference between pond and lake". Very educational. I still couldn't tell you the answer, but size is not the difference. It's complicated.

A lot of water snakes seem suicidal. I've had a bunch swim right up to me. They don't bother me, but they freak out most people and I'm sure a lot them get killed because they're curious. Someone once said to me you can identify a copperhead by the Hershey's Kisses on its side. That's kind of a simple way to remember. This is one I almost stepped on. I was standing where the blue square is. I looked down and saw it by my foot and then stepped way back and took this picture. It never moved the whole time. A black racer was the only snake that's ever attacked me. Surprised the heck out of me. Made me jump like a little girl. I didn't know they did that. 😄

How much are you guys paying per rig for a worm, O-ring and nail weight? Like $1.50-$1.75?

Buying rods is the hardest decision in fishing purchases for me by far. Having a small budget makes it harder. I remember when I first got back into fishing, I thought I knew what I was looking for in a rod, but when I was forced to try something different, I learned there were much better options out there that totally changed my fishing. What you are used to and comfortable with is not always what's best. My suggestion is to actually try what is available in your price range. There are places that will allow you to exchange a rod if you're not happy with it within 30 days or whatever. You might have to pay a little more at a local mom & pop shop, but having that exchange option is priceless. You can't damage it or get it dirty. Leave the plastic wrapper on the cork. You might find the casting distance of a 7' irresistible, or you might find that a 6' in Medium Heavy hooks fish better, or that you can feel the worm on the bottom much better with a graphite compared to a fiberglass.

I've seen times when they'll only bite after long pauses, but that's rare. So no, you would not be limiting the effectiveness much at all. Just make short pauses.

It’s true sometimes they will silently get sucked underwater with barely any disturbance on the surface, but since it’s a double treble, the fish is probably going to get hooked whether you can see it or not, you will feel it hit. Being able to see it is not a necessity, but it will help keep you from missing hits. Keeping the line tight will compensate for being able to see it. You can fish them at night with no visibility and catch fish.

I've seen them do that a lot (and I don't even fish for them), but I don't know if they are really seeing the line or if they are just sensing the disturbance on the surface where the line is cutting through the water. Maybe vision, maybe lateral lines, maybe both.

You've got some interesting ones there. I just bought one of those Googan Ayu jerk baits on clearance for a couple bucks a while back. That color looks great in the water, but it swims super shallow. That's probably not the original blade on that spinnerbait, seeing as how it's attached with a snap swivel. lol. I've never seen anyone put a ... trailer on the trailer hook. Crafty fellow. Edit to add: I think that's the only Googan bait I ever bought. I only bought it because it was marked down so much and I liked that color.

I would recommend downloading the parts diagrams for each and comparing them if you understand anything about mechanics. Make sure you know the exact model number of the Shimano your store sells, because there are a lot of different model numbers out there on that one. I wore out a couple Siennas years ago and was still real happy with them up until then, but when I went to replace them, I found they changed the design and removed ball bearings. That got me looking at other options, which led me to Daiwa. I bought a Legalis and wore it out, but liked it a lot. When I went to replace it, I got a Revros because it was a good bit cheaper. I've bought several of them since then when they were on sale and paid around $30 each. I still have one in the package that hasn't even been opened. I liked Shimano, but honestly I haven't looked at them in years.

https://web.archive.org/web/20141112134918/http://www.ragetail.com/news/rigging-info/the-rage-rig/ That's kind of funny, because "Rage" is a brand name, not generic at all, but thanks for that, because it led me to that thread. I was expecting something older than 2006. I guess before that people just said weighted hook, which is probably easier for others to understand anyway.

I used braid on stainless guides for years. It eventually wears faint grooves on the tip guide, but it takes a very long time - hundreds of hours of use. It can get to a point where it wears into a single groove in the middle that the line can bind in. I became more concerned about the guide harming the braid. Do an image search for something like “groove guide tip braid rod” and you can see some pictures.

Thanks, @FishTank I think maybe my question was kind of rhetorical. I could go watch videos or read the hype, but like what you posted there, it doesn't really answer my question about what this design does that's special and why it warrants a new rig name. I use weighted hooks all the time. I either buy them pre-made, or add weights to different styles of hooks myself, so I get the attraction. I love them. It's obviously nothing new. Where you place the weight along the length of the hook greatly affects the action, obviously, but I don't think I buy their claim that evenly distributing the weight along the hook does anything special. My favorite weighted hooks are the adjustable twistlocks that allow you to tweak the position to get the best effect for a particular bait. I never really thought about the fact that something rigged with a weighted hook doesn't have a rig name. Is that really true? Maybe I just don't know the name. @WRB usually knows what the original was on everything. Maybe he can tell us.

Thanks for the review. If necessity is the mother of invention, I'd like to know why someone made this. I mean, what was the problem they were trying to fix, or why did they need this? I don't think this is really worthy of me having to remember the name of a new rig 😄

I don't think so, but I know from experience those are 1/4oz. With blade and skirt, no more than 3/8oz. For stuff like that, you can use hand held postage scales... which I would have said are like a dollar, but after checking Amazon, I see they are now like $8 😳

Fish Gripper Scales Pocket Knife Line Clippers Braid Scissors Needle-nose Pliers Hat Sunglasses Reading Glasses Face mask Handkerchief Phone EarPods/Headphones Leader Line Hooks 2/0 Bullet Sinkers 1/16, 1/8, 1/4 Paper Clip Sharpie Lighter Whistle Water (stays in car) Sunscreen (stays in car) Bank fishing. My list has grown over the years. I used to get by with a lot less. One of these days I'm going to put all this stuff in a pile and weigh it.

70% alcohol won't work, it's got to be like 90% or more. I had an old Nikon camera from the 80's that had a soft touch grip that was sticky. I searched online and found that solution. I tried it and it worked like a charm. I also had the same problem with a spade (like for digging in the garden) with a soft touch handle, it worked on that too. I can't remember where I bought the 90%, but I know it was local, so it shouldn't be too hard to find.

@Glenn you mention a video about line twist, and I thought you said there would be a link at the end of the video, but I didn't see it? I see you've posted videos about line twist before, but I'm not sure which one you're referring to...

I read your post the other day and I actually tried this for the first time today as well, but I only played with it for a few minutes, not really trying to catch anything. I just wanted to see how it looked in the water. For a weight I just used a 3 penny finishing nail with a 1/8 oz round split shot sinker clamped onto the head, then painted black with nail polish. I was using a 4” Big Bite craw worm with an O-ring. It did look like the videos, but I found that when stopped, it would fall over on its side or backwards sometimes. It seems like it’s probably best if you keep it moving, otherwise it doesn’t look natural. Or maybe my hook was too big. I was using a 4/0 Octopus. What size/kind of hook did you use?

It's hard to know which raises your blood pressure more, saying something or holding it in. Neither one is good for you. One thing that works sometimes is talking to them. Not talking about the elephant in the room, just talking fishing talk, the weather, whatever. Sometimes that will drive them away. lol. It can help calm you down too, or at least it works for me sometimes.

Good article. One question though, why a 3/4 oz buzzbait for a topwater search bait? He says he likes to slow roll it over the bed as slow as possible to agitate them. I'm not much of a buzzbait guy, so maybe I don't get it because I'm not familiar with them, but it seems like it would be hard to slow roll a 3/4 oz?

Anybody recognize this brand? It's got an "R" in the eye and also embossed on the back blade. The front blade has "312" embossed on it. The head has an unusual shape. I noticed it hanging way up in a tree a few months ago. It was sitting on top of the limb like maybe the line was wrapped around the limb. I couldn't tell if it was a dollar walmart spinnerbait or what. I finally got around to getting it down.