Kirtley Howe

I am a righty when it comes to baitcasters. And the reason for looking at bass pro shops is I have some gift cards for there. If I didn't have them, I would not even be looking at reels right now. Bass pro only offers the Max X as a combo, for $89...out of my budget

I once had a job that let you take "well" days. You could call in and say "I feel great today, so I am not coming to work." As long as you did not abuse the privilege, there were no questions asked. I would have stayed with that job forever if the pay was better.

Just my opinion, but I would usually rate the fisherman/woman (person?) who can go out and catch bass on a regular basis in an area that most people struggle to catch one or two on a good day as a more skilled angler than someone who can catch a 10lb bass in a lake that is known for big bass. Of course, I may feel that way because I am much closer (please note I said "closer") to the first type than the second type. But really, I think it takes totally different skill sets and mental attitude, so you can't compare the two in any meaningful way.

I am looking for an inexpensive baitcaster to pair with my Avid-X 7' mhf rod. I am on what can only be called an austerity budget at this point. I have looked around a lot for reel that is inexpensive but has decent features and good reviews. So far, the best I have found that is in my price range is this reel. Based on the reviews on the Bass Pro site, it appears to be an excellent value. But I tend to take those reviews with a grain of salt. Does anyone here have any reel world experience with these reels, and if so what do you think of them? Any other suggestions for a reel that is $60.00 or less instead of this one? Please note that the price on this reel is $59.99 with free shipping (plus tax of course) which is already at the top of my price range. I plan to use this as a "carry in the truck" combo, and really can't justify more money. Thanks in advance.

Just picked up an AridX 7' casting rod. I bought it because of all the positive comments about them on this forum. Plus I got a smokin' deal on it. $41.43 out the door. Now if the river will just go back down enough and clear up enough so I can put it to use.......

You just made me shoot coffee out my nose!

At 74 years old, my reaction time and concentration are still excellent. I credit the fact that I have been riding motorcycles since 1968 (and yes, I still ride, but on a Trike now as my left leg is messed up from a car wreck years ago). I have always led an active lifestyle which has kept me in decent shape for my age. My stamina isn't what it used to be due to a bout of cancer a few years back, and of course just plain age taking its' toll. But I consider myself blessed that I can still get out there and fish at all. But as mentioned above, there are places I used to love to fish that I just can't hack getting into and out of anymore. Yeah..I know that valley too.

Just because you are taking a break from fishing doesn't mean you have to take a break from the site. But, your choice, do what is best for you and come back soon.

Well, you can certainly pull a big bass boat with a Nissan Rouge, or Rave 4, or similar vehicles. The big problem is when you try to stop. The boat most likely outweighs the tow vehicle, so it is really easy for the tail to wag the dog, so to speak. Plus the brakes on those vehicles are not really up to the job of stopping all that weight. For me that is also a big nope.

Glad you made it back. The fishing, aside from being good for your mental health is also good physical therapy. Keep at it and things will only get better. Stay safe out there.

I have tried a few of their lures. Like most other brands, some work well, some don't. The biggest problem I see is that the quality of the lures can be inconsistent. But that is true to some extent with just about any brand. As far as I know, Rapala is the only manufacturer that tank tests every lure to ensure consistency, and I am not sure they still do that. The nice things about the OT lures is if they don't work right, you can take them back to Walmart and either get a refund or exchange them, and if you snag up and lose them (which as a bank fisherman that river fishes most of the time, I do a LOT) you are not out much money. Just my observations and thoughts.

And don't forget..you will sometimes get contradictory information. That is because no one technique works all the time or for everyone. And sometimes doing the "wrong" thing is most successful. No "rules" are set in stone, except for ones about behavior. Be respectful of others. Be respectful of the regulations in your area. Don't litter or otherwise damage the environment. Don't trespass. Be kind to others. And most importantly, have fun!

I don't regularly record my fishing these days. But when I am trying new things, moving around a lot, or fishing more than one type water in a day, I like to record it so I can recall everything I tried and what or where did or did not work. If I tried to remember all that I would for sure forget important stuff and would not learn as much. Can you imagine trying to remember every lure you threw, the weather conditions, your location, time of day at that location, which type of presentation you used at each of those locations, etc for a 6 or 8 hour day? Not too hard to do if you are fishing one stretch of river with only a few presentations. But when covering several bodies of water and doing a lot of experimentation (which I really enjoy doing) it would be impossible for me. The old brain goo ain't what it used to be....

Ezra Brooks Distillers Collection Kentucky Straight Burbon Whiskey 101 proof, about $45 per 750ml bottle is my favorite. But the "basic" Ezra Brooks at 99 proof is cheap at $25 per 750ml and is very good for the price. There is also the Ezra Brooks Distillers Collection Single Barrel Bourbon which is 107 proof that usually goes for around $35 per bottle, but I have been having a very hard time finding that in the past year or so. Also, I earlier mentioned Silas Howe bourbon...that was a typo. I meant to type Silas JONES bourbon. It is inexpensive at about $18 per bottle but is really good for the price. It is only 80 proof and it has a bit of ethanol taste when first poured. Let is sit for a few minutes and that goes away and it is smooth and pleasant, though not very complex in flavor. Enjoy.

Good observation. I had not thought about it that way....but I have never had a wet cell battery die like that. Guess I am just lucky.

It goes both ways.....Happy Spouse, Happy House <G>

My two favorite inexpensive whiskeys are Ezra Brooks and Silas Howe. Yes, there are definitely "better" whiskeys out there but in my opinion these are great for the price. If you are having more than one drink either neat, on the rocks or with a splash of water, than I would suggest that the first one should be the best whiskey you can afford....but the second one only needs to be a decent whiskey as your taste bud will be somewhat dulled and you most likely won't really appreciate a superior whiskey at that point. For myself, one drink per sitting is the rule. If you mix your whiskey with coke, then you may as well just buy cheap whiskey to begin with, as the coke will cover up any deficiencies in the whiskey anyway. As always, your results may differ.....

You have nothing to lose by putting a new tip on the broken rod and giving it a try. A good new tip can be purchased for less than $10.00. I agree that it being a moderate action would tend to keep the action from being destroyed by the rod being shorter. Who knows, you may really like it for some applications.

No, my memory is only average at best. But a small digital voice recorder never forgets. I sometimes voice record my day so I know what I tried and what did and did not work. I used to keep a paper journal, but found that impractical when shore fishing...plus it gets really messed up when you handle pike or musky. As far as the verity...between the Susquehanna River, several small streams (creeks? cricks?) and some ponds all within close proximity to where I live, I can fish several different bodies of water in a single day, which ups the variety of fish over fishing just one type of water.

I can only speak from my own experience, and will definitely bow to more knowledgeable persons. I suppose it is possible that I overcharged mine, but I have a smart charger with an AGM setting that has always worked well for me. Maybe I just got a bad one.....but it lasted me 5 years and then just died. It showed full charge, and started the motor fine several times. Then it was just dead, and would not take a charge period. For what it is worth, it was a DEKA brand.

Didn't say they died quickly. 4-7 years can be expected life for them with proper care. What I said was they die SUDDENLY. They work great until they don't work at all.

I got my "Joans" mixed up. It was Joan Weldon, not Joan Collins. My bad.

I remembered Whitmore and Fess Parker. I forgot that Nimoy had a bit part. Did you know that Peter Graves and James Arness were brothers?

And what is terrible is that he probably didn't even realize he was falling asleep. I have come close to that when I used to be on the road for work. The problem is that on a lot of roads there is NO place a large truck can pull over safely, and it can be a long way between exits. and your brain will tell you "I can make it to the next rest stop" when you d**n sure should NOT be driving.

I used to use 8 or 10 lb Andes mono when I was King Salmon fishing in the Salmon River in New York State. Very soft and very decent quality line. But....it had more stretch than any other mono I have ever used. Normally I would consider that a drawback, but when catching King Salmon in fast water with light tackle, the extra stretch was actually a benefit. Hookset were not a problem as King Salmon will pretty much hook themselves due to their immediate and very fast/powerful run. I don't like it for Bass Fishing though.