6 year old tackle, still good?

[twigss]

I used to be pretty into fishing about 6-7 years ago... for some reason or another I stopped.  Now that I have a better job and I get weekends off, I have decided to pick it back up.  I have some tackle from when I stopped that I have kept in my garage for the past 6-7 years, its not much but I like some of the stuff and I was wondering if it was still good.  It has been in my garage so it hasn't been wet or anything, but I live in St. Louis and the temperature can vary from about -5 to 110 and up during the year.  The soft bait(and most of the hard) has been kept in those clear plastic boxes and in a tackle box.

So whats the deal with this stuff? Throw it out and buy some new or try it out?

[roadwarrior]

Welcome aboard!

Some of our "stuff" is probably just fine. You will probably need to replace the skirts on spinnerbaits, they are probably rotten. The soft plastics will be fine, but if you're not fishing GYCB, you need to get some Senkos and Fat Ika! I would have my reels serviced and change out all the line.

[Raul]

Got lots of bags of worms I purchased in 1989 and they are as fresh as when first bought, spinnerbait skirts, you need to check those, silicone normally doesn 't rot but the rubber tie does dry out. Line, if spooled on a reel, it 's trash. Have your reels lubed, the grease is probably caked and the oil has evaporated. Clean rods and rod guides, run a stocking through the guides, it will tell you if the inner surface of the guide is nickless and smooth.

[MALTESE FALCON]

Hi twiggs,

Listen to roadwarrior, it's very good advice.

Also, welcome to the best fishing site on the net.

Falcon

[Grey Wolf]

WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Are the plastics still plyable and soft ? If so they are good to go.

I would change the hooks on the hard baits though.

Have those reels cleaned and lubed.

Check the eyes on the rods.

Needless to say the line will have to be replaced.

[skillet]

WELCOME to the forum! It would be hard to add much to what has been said already. Have a Garcia from '82 and some hard baits that I know are more than 15 yrs. old. Never bought enough soft plastics at one time to last that long ;D

                                           As Ever,

                                            Skillet

[T-rig]

WELCOME!  All has been said!

[Redlinerobert]

Welcome to the board.  Unfortunately, your gear is no good anymore.  Please mail it to me and I will make sure it gets disposed of properly. 8-)

[SneakySnook]

Welcome to the forum. Your rods and reels should be just fine. Make sure you service your reels. Let the monkey get a hold of you and get new gear. GIVE IN TO THE MONKEY!