SDoolittle

I may be wrong, but I'm guessing that you're not seeing the whole picture here. The other kid may have called him that late to whine about having to work seven days in a row even though he knew his schedule well in advance. Pehaps he was invited to do something, and he's using the seven days straight as an excuse to take off at the last minute. The boss was probably irritated, but agreed to ask someone to fill in. Notice that he didn't tell you that you had to work. He asked you, and he may have asked others. Because he was already irritated with the other kid, and he didn't consider this an emergency situation, he opted not to call and wake people up. He simply sent out a text on the off chance that you were awake and wanted some extra hours. I would have replied with a text saying that I already had plans, but thanks for the offer. Attitudes like that are what worries me about retiring from the Army in a few years. I have an open door policy, and my Soldiers know that they can call me at anytime to talk about anything. I try to keep it at a minimum, but occasionally, I have to call one of them about something. It would be a very long day for them if they decided to cuss me for calling on their time. Civilian life is definately going to take some getting used to.

Rem Oil has a tendency to gel up in the cold. I learned that the hard way a few years ago when I was hunting in the panhandle of Oklahoma. It was frigid cold, and my brand new Browning Maxus wasn't cycling properly. I called Browning, and the first thing the guy asked was what kind of lube I was using. I told him I was using Rem Oil, and he said to throw it away, and get some CLP. Anyway, I switched to Break Free CLP and never looked back.

Do you know how high Tradinghouse Creek Reservoir is? I've only been there once, but I had a pretty decent day. It might be worth checking out.

Nylon monofilament for topwater and jerkbaits. Fluorocarbon for crankbaits. I do use braid (rarely) and copolymer, but not for treble hooked lures.

I'm thinking about installing retractable rod straps on my boat. Has anyone here done it? Which ones did you use, and how difficult was it? It doesn't look too difficult, but I'm always a little nervous when it comes to cutting or drilling holes in my boat.

Are you still in the Army, Brian?

I'm looking for 1/8 oz and 3/16 oz shaky heads with 3/0 thin wire EWG hooks without a spring lock. If anyone is interested in making me something like that, let me know. I'm looking to order about 100 of them. I'm basically looking for something similar to the Tru Tungsten Ikey Head, but I want a lead head.

Ditto I bought a new Sedona a couple of years ago, and I didn't like the handle, so I replaced it with the handle off another Sedona that was over ten years old.

I haven't tried the Turbo Toad or the Double Take, and honestly, I wouldn't waste my money on either of them. I'm sure that at some point you could catch fish with them, but they just seem too gimmicky to me.

WW2farmer, what kind of problems did you experience with Kistler rods? Over the years, I've owned Kistler Heliums, Argons, Mag TS's, and Carbon Steels, and I've never had a problem with any of them. I did have one get damaged in shipping, but they replaced it free of charge and without hassle.

Welcome to BR! I've never thought of Spain as a bass fishing destination. Did that hawg in your avatar come from Spanish water?

How old are you?

I really can't quantify that statement because I have never measured the gas milage or oil consumption on my boat, but I wouldn't let the cost of Optimax oil deter me from purchasing one. If we were talking about a 250 HP, then I might take it into consideration, but not on a 115 HP.

A gallon of Optimax oil will get you a long way with a 115 HP.

I've only spent a few weeks in Kuwait on the way into and out of Iraq, but I can't imagine that you will find many opportunities to fish. It's just too hot. Pack a travel rod with you, and work on casting, pitching, and flipping accuracy. Subscribe to a few fishing magazines, order some fishing DVDs, and log onto BR whenever you get the chance. Those are the kind of things that got me through my time overseas. I did get the chance to fish both the Tigris and Euphrates rivers during my first tour in Iraq, but it was only for a few minutes, and I didn't catch anything.

I've always heard that, but I've never understood why. Can anyone explain?

I have a 115 Optimax, and I've had no problems with it in the four years that I've had it. I don't know anything about the four strokes, but I would buy another Optimax.

Congrats on the first win!

Me too! I'm just afraid to try it because I know I'll like it, and as often as I change my line, I can't afford it.

What is the other website? If you can't post it here, please PM me.

X2 on the Z-Bone, but I'm a Revo fan, so I'd go with a Revo MGX.

I would love to get picked for something like that! I took a baitcaster with me on my last Iraq deployment. I wasn't able to do any actual fishing, but I had to do something to feed my addiction, so I spent countless hours casting, flipping, and pitching to various targets around the FOB in my free time. I may not be able to catch a fish once my lure hits the water, but accuracy is definately one of my strengths.

The Slim Jack is my favorite shallow water jerkbait. I haven't tried any of their other hardbaits, but the Finesse Miki is a sweet little shaky head bait, and I really like the Zool fishing line for light line applications. I wouldn't hesitate to try anything in the Damiki product line.

To my knowledge, the only rule is that the reel must work. I've only done it a couple of times, but I just take one of my old reels that don't get much use anymore.

I don't know about the Z-7, but the numbers are right on for my Z-6. The estimated speed is listed as 50-52 MPH. If I'm alone in the boat with smooth water and an empty livewell, I can get it up to about 54 MPH (GPS). With a partner in the boat and a full livewell, it tops out at about 50 MPH.