Super User BASSclary Posted April 8, 2012 Super User Posted April 8, 2012 I will pay whatever I need to pay to get what I want. If I can't afford what I want at the moment, then I won't settle for something less. I'll save until I have enough. These are my feelings exactly.
"BRB" Posted April 8, 2012 Posted April 8, 2012 Then why did you go from low end to medium range? You could have saved even more for gas. Well when I really got in bass fishing I thought I needed the high dollar suft and at the time I bought what I could. Which was in the middle. And you can't go backward lol. But one of this days I will upgrade. I do believe you get what you pay for. And you better believe when I hit that power ball nothing but the best will go on my deck!!
tugsandpulls Posted April 8, 2012 Posted April 8, 2012 after all the bills are paid rent food gas kids all i have for myself i buy the best i can wether it be used or new my most expensive set up is 200$ if i could afford more i would but i do very good with what i have
Super User Bassn Blvd Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 Well when I really got in bass fishing I thought I needed the high dollar suft and at the time I bought what I could. Which was in the middle. And you can't go backward lol. But one of this days I will upgrade. I do believe you get what you pay for. And you better believe when I hit that power ball nothing but the best will go on my deck!! I hear ya about not going backward. It's like drinking your same favorite drink for years and then someone changes the ingredient to some nast tasting sht.
Diablos Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 I will buy anything that I think will give the most enjoyment for the money. The only things I don't put too much value on is very expensive electronics 1K+ and very expensive swim baits $40+
Super User K_Mac Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 I continue to read comments about saving until the exact combo wanted can be purchased. While this is a fine practice in all aspects of life, sometimes it is an ego driven comment implying that those of us who have several "inferior" combos are not as enlightened. I enjoy having several combos. Yes I could have a couple high-end rigs instead, but I have made my choice based on cost, how I fish and the benefits of having different combos for specific purposes. I have made an informed decision to use lower priced gear. Having one combo as half of my investment in gear is not something I choose to do. I do not have contempt for the guy with guy $100K or more in boat and gear. I do not look down on the guy with a Zebco fishing from the bank. If I out-fish a friend with a new glass boat or win a tourney from my tin boat all that means is I had a better day. It tickles me that Bassn Blvd can afford to buy nice stuff and is unapologetic about it. That is the way it should be. I am unapologetic about using lower-end stuff. Judge me by what I say and do, not what I own.
Super User Bassn Blvd Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 I continue to read comments about saving until the exact combo wanted can be purchased. While this is a fine practice in all aspects of life, sometimes it is an ego driven comment implying that those of us who have several "inferior" combos are not as enlightened. I enjoy having several combos. Yes I could have a couple high-end rigs instead, but I have made my choice based on cost, how I fish and the benefits of having different combos for specific purposes. I have made an informed decision to use lower priced gear. Having one combo as half of my investment in gear is not something I choose to do. I do not have contempt for the guy with guy $100K or more in boat and gear. I do not look down on the guy with a Zebco fishing from the bank. If I out-fish a friend with a new glass boat or win a tourney from my tin boat all that means is I had a better day. It tickles me that Bassn Blvd can afford to buy nice stuff and is unapologetic about it. That is the way it should be. I am unapologetic about using lower-end stuff. Judge me by what I say and do, not what I own. How do you come to that conclusion? And hopefully it's not from anything I have said. Unfortunately, a BIG part of the population can't do that.
Super User K_Mac Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 BB it was not from anything you said. I have been reading posts on this board for a long time, and that sentiment is often thinly veiled. PM me if you wish.
wisconsin heat Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 about 80 bucks per rod or reel each, its what i can afford and i usually wait for good stuff to drop down to those prices. examples: Fenwick HMG orig $130 i got for $70 Shimano Citica $120 - $80 daiwa smallmouth vip $125 - $60 ima sucker for a good deal
Super User tomustang Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 Judge me by what I say and do, not what I own. Unfortunately, a BIG part of the population can't do that. What you do is an extension what you own. What you choose to have makes who you are.
Super User Catt Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 The hardest thing for a bass angler to admit is where they fit in the scheme of things One can spend thousands of dollars and still only be average at best! In my classes I teach locating structure, understanding structure, and how bass relate to structure. Next I teach understanding prey, how that pray relates to structure and how the bass relates to the prey. This is what will make you a better angler regardless of what tackle you own and all it cost is time. 2
Super User Lund Explorer Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 Thanks for the replies, just some general things I'd been wondering, and figured a lot of the responses would be pretty close to what they are. In direct response to Lund- I break even at the very least, typically I'll make a pretty reasonable profit; enough that I have to declare it as income on taxes and can then utilize it as tax write offs. I like Mr. Hooligan, but take exception to his remark "I guess, it makes me wonder why people would go about it half way. In some ways it falls to the mentality of "If you're going to do it, do it right. If you're not going to do it right, don't do it at all."" If I'm going to do a job, then I do the very best I can. Fishing isn't a JOB to me. I fish to relax and enjoy myself. I love catching fish, but If I spend all day on the water without a single bite, I can honestly say I still enjoyed myself. Just not as much as when I catch a lot. I didn't actually get what I'd intended to across here. It pertains more to tournament angling than anything else, really. Not necessarily just fishing to fish. In some cases it may apply to fun fishing, but it's in pretty specific circumstances. I could honestly see where one might take offense to that statement, I worded it poorly and I apologize for doing so. Lastly, don't get me wrong, I'm not thrashing anyone or anyone's level of where they are in terms of spending or enjoyment. It's just curious to me that there's such a double standard for spending on one hobby versus another, and how arbitrary those reasons can be. While I'm not really surprised at the responses, I did want to throw it out there, however poorly worded, to see if my thoughts did mesh with what might be said. There's a few things that did throw me for a loop, but then, I guess you'd expect that with a bunch of bass fisherman, wouldn't you? Congrats, its very rare that a tournament angler can cover all of his/her costs. You obviously must fish a higher quality tournament trail than I ever had the chance to. My really good years got me to the break even point for entry fees and travel costs. That meant the boat and tackle I decided to use couldn't be figured as part of the investment into tournament cash. Those items had to be justified by chunks of plastic, a narrow boost in reputation, and comfort while I was on the water. I'm happy to see that you came back with that second highlighted comment about your post aimed at tournament fishing. After reading your original post (several times), there were parts that made WW2Farmer's comment in the very next post was going to be almost prophetic. I'll bet you are into the tournament phase that I was in 15-20 years ago. If I hadn't lost my fishing partner I would probably still be there myself. It's a vicious cycle of having to keep buying the next great everything to try to stay on top of the game. Here's hoping to your continuing success, the bait monkey needs you!
Quillback Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 In all this discussion, no one has mentioned technique. I finesse t-rig and c-rig quite a bit on rocky, timbered, relatively weed free lakes. I could use an Ugly Stick, cheap reel, mono, and lead weights and catch fish. But I do much better with a light, sensitive rod, light reel, floro and tungsten. If there was a tourney going on with 2 pros with equal skills fishing bottom contact techniques and with equal knowledge of the lake, one with the Ugly Stick set up, the other with the more sensitive (and probably more expensive stuff), I'd bet on the guy with the more sensitive stuff every time. I'm happy with my stuff (not that I won't buy more), and when buying tackle I try to find stuff that will make me a better fisherman and put more bass in the boat. When I find something I like, I then try and find the best deal on it I can. I don't really care what the other guys on the lake are using or what they paid for it. Back at the ramp, if I run into someone that has done well, I'll talk to them about what bait or technique they used, to me that's much more important than wondering if the tackle they own is more, or less expensive than what I have.
Super User K_Mac Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 What you do is an extension what you own. What you choose to have makes who you are. Tom D. with all due respect, I completely disagree with this view. What I choose to buy may be a reflection of my values when comes to material things, or it may just be a reflection of my financial success or lack of success. In either case these are superficial issues in my opinion. Who I am as a person has very little to do with the content of my rod locker. What a person owns is a very poor indicator of who they are in my experience. 10
WookieeJedi Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 What you do is an extension what you own. What you choose to have makes who you are. If you were just looking at my fishing tackle, you would probably come to certain conclusions about me, but if you were to look in my gun case, well, you should be so lucky...
Super User tomustang Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 Tom D. with all due respect, I completely disagree with this view. What I choose to buy may be a reflection of my values when comes to material things, or it may just be a reflection of my financial success or lack of success. In either case these are superficial issues in my opinion. Who I am as a person has very little to do with the content of my rod locker. What a person owns is a very poor indicator of who they are in my experience. Then you can't disagree. It's the simple science of things, what people add to it is their opinion (judgement) of a subject and makes it worse but still the simple facts remain, you like fishing or fish If you were just looking at my fishing tackle, you would probably come to certain conclusions about me, but if you were to look in my gun case, well, you should be so lucky... Your tackle tells me you like fishing, If you showed me your guns then I'd know you like guns enough to have a case.
Hyrule Bass Posted April 9, 2012 Posted April 9, 2012 i prefer to invest more in reels than in rods, but then again i dont own any super expensive reels either. but the ones i have are decent working reels and i feel they will last me, and not easily fail mechanically. but rods have nothing mechanical about them, and i dont feel $150 rod is gonna serve me any better than a $30-$40 ugly stick. i just dont think the difference is enough to justify spending another $110-120 bucks on a rod. sure the $150 rod might be better all around, but still i am convinced its not that much better. for me its not all about the costs, but i would be lying if i said it didnt factor in somewhat. If you can afford to drop a bunch of money on top end gear, then thats great for you, i wont hate on someones financial position. while there are times i have the extra cash to spend on top end gear if i wanted, i just cant justify it to myself. what gets me is when people throw out thoughts like "your gear sucks, you cant catch fish with that" or "you have to have this or that to catch fish". i dont go around calling people snobby for buying top notch gear, and i dont expect to be criticized for my lower to mid level gear. bottom line is, no matter what gear we own, how much it costs, etc etc etc; we all own our equipment for one reason, that is to fish, something we all enjoy.
Super User .ghoti. Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 Looks like I'm like a lot of you. I like good gear, and I buy the best I can find for what I'm willing to spend. My comfort zone is in the $200 - $250 per item range. Any more than that, and I have to think very hard about it. I seem to be always willing to upgrade, but will do so only when I find a bargain. Above $250 is where I hit the point of diminishing returns. That simply means the increase in performance is not worth the increase in cost, to me. You may place the point either higher or lower than mine. You should. It's your money and your stuff. Place your own value on it, and if it makes you happy, who gives a rip what somebody else thinks about it. 1
Super User Alpster Posted April 9, 2012 Super User Posted April 9, 2012 I just wait for Ghoti to go to sleep and I take his stuff. He's got really nice stuff. Ronnie 1
Super User roadwarrior Posted April 10, 2012 Super User Posted April 10, 2012 WOW! I'm impressed, Whenever this topic pops up it usually gets ugly, fast. My perspective is from the point of view of a recreational fisherman. For me, fishing is a hobby, nothing more. My choice in gear is simply based on additions to my "collection". Most of it, especially lures, is stuff I never actually use. Some of our members collect cars, some race them. Stamps, coins, antiques, art or a variety of other collectibles and hobbies can be VERY expensive. In the broader field of just "fishing", the equipment used for most blue water is HUGE. Boats to get there and the fuel for a 250 mile round trip is a load So, I don't think our sport is expensive, even at the so called "high end". If all you care about is "catching", the gear is not important. Buy any combo, any line, terminal gear, a bag of 5" Senko knock-offs and some Ika. I guarantee you will catch some bass. I like better tackle as a "collector", High end gear makes the "fishing" more fun for me. I really couldn't care less what YOU use, but I really appreciate our members posting in detail there experience with their gear. My favorite comment of all time was from Bassin Blvd, "The difference between a NRX and a GLX is like comparing a GLX to a 2 X 4". I don't own one yet, but I will!
Super User SirSnookalot Posted April 10, 2012 Super User Posted April 10, 2012 "The differencebetween a NRX and a GLX is like comparing a GLX to a 2 X 4". I don't own one yet, but I will! You're buying a 2x4 ?
Super User K_Mac Posted April 10, 2012 Super User Posted April 10, 2012 Have you priced 2x4s lately?! And while I'm at it, I just returned from the grocery store where I paid $2.69 for a cantaloupe and $2.99 each for a couple of watermelons that were not much bigger than the cantaloupe! Kind of puts tackle prices in perspective... OK I feel a little better now.
Super User tomustang Posted April 10, 2012 Super User Posted April 10, 2012 So, I don't think our sport is expensive, even at the so called "high end". When you get down to the numbers, it really doesn't. Say for one high combo you spend a drop a grand and fish half the year you're at a little over $5 a day for your combo. Not as bad as it seems.
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