File: tacklebox.jpg (3.1 MB)

3.1 MB JPG

my micro panfish box
i run with a 4.5 foot shakespear spinning combo i bought 25 years ago. currently spooled with 4lb fluoro

>>2865212
>Chatterbait
>Calls it micro panfish
You could have been in the OP instead of that girl.

>>2865212
You don't know what micro means.

Just today in my 3 months of fishing bass have I learnt how easy and fun it is to catch bluegills and I cant stop. Please pray for all the bluegills around me cause they about to get fucked for a few months.

>>2865279
You have to hunt for 10inchers. 10inch bluegill fight real good. It's like a double digit bass in terms of rarity.

Spin fagging should be illegal. They always leaving trash and poaching fish. Minimum 10 year prison sentence if you get caught spin fagging with a 10 year look back period for any spin fags in hiding.

>>2865298
You talk like a fag, and your shit's all retarded.

File: 1745924240166025.jpg (262.4 KB)

262.4 KB JPG

ive never caught anything on one of those weird frog lures so its my goal this spring to

>>2865319
It is great seeing fish hit at top water lures like frogs
I don't have good luck hooking up with them, but get lots of attention

>>2865328
i have a decent lake nearby with bass and northerns as well as being relatively shallow across the whole thing so hopefully it wont take too long since theres plenty of weedy areas i can just walk up to

im honestly frustrated with fishing in socal enough to consider moving, please tell me its not as bad in other states i havent caught anything in four months

>>2865333
Could be you just suck at fishing

>>2865319
If frogs are unproductive, try the ones that look like a mouse or rat.

>>2865338
No. The fishing here blows unless you want to go the pier and fight off crackies

>>2865294
can I do that with my bobber, bread and #6 hook? just let the hook sit much lower and cast it in further?

File: boat.jpg (209.5 KB)

209.5 KB JPG

>>2865172
Can't afford a boat. Can I get a remote control boat to take my line far out from the beach? Would that work? Connect it to the floater/bobber?

>>2865353
The thing you're trying to do is kite fishing but dumber and gayer.

>>2865354
Would the water be too choppy for a remote boat?

>>2865353
Youd be better off with a drone, fly it out and drop it.
>>2865279
Bluegill are a lot of fun especially on light tackle.

>>2865340
I have a hard time believing the fish cares that much. Looking up a small frog, duckling or rat would look almost exactly the same.

I guess a jointed one would swim differently but I also have doubts that the same fish wouldn't just as soon go for a Rapala jointed

Finally caught a damn fish this year. Not exactly what I wanted, but beggars can't be choosers.

File: IMG_20260405_073209367 (1).jpg (2.2 MB)

2.2 MB JPG

>>2865442
You'd think I'd know how to attach a pic at this point, but no.

>>2865442
>Not exactly what I wanted, but beggars can't be choosers
what exactly did you want? pike meat is some of the best for freshwater

I never have luck fishing with jigs and plastics, only with spinners and rapalas
Any tips for these? I tried drifting them under floats, retrieving like a spinner, tossing them up current, swinging them down current, vertical jigging and retrieving and never any luck
Am I going too fast trying not to hang up on bottom or what
I have mainly tried trout magnets, senkos a few time, and 3- 5 inch plastic worms

File: mepps-ocean-1948.png (3.9 MB)

3.9 MB PNG

look at this steam engine looking mofo

>>2865453
Looks like a tank. Wonder how it fishes

>>2865451
What are you targeting?

>>2865353
They make boats with bait dump trays. The consensus is that they are not good at much except for chumming for canal or pond carp.

>>2865353
https://a.co/d/0alcEaHQ
This looks like it should work. All of the pictures show it dumping food pellets. But that gap on the back of the dump tray looks like it should hold onto a lure. And the dump tray should drop that lure easily.

Just ordered some stuff to try tying some gane changers. 140lb hard wire aa nd one step loop pliers, a couple different colors of game changer chenille and eyes.

File: marlingbaits.png (762.6 KB)

762.6 KB PNG

>>2865172
>Just moved to South Carolina on Lake Hartwell

RIP his Youtube channel. Finnicky overpressured southern reservoir bass aren't going to be hitting wacky oversized crankbaits and jointed swimbaits like dumb farm pond and creek bass do in Iowa.

>>2865491
>like dumb farm pond and creek bass do in Iowa.
We may not be a pressured state, but we do lack fish. As I have been told, Iowa has the lowest fish count per mile of the Upper Midwest.

What is with bass boat tards and being the most inconsiderate pieces of shit to bank anglers?
Went out to the local pressured lake today with a couple of buddys and we were followed the entire time by 20k boat filled with bubbas.
I just don't get it there are better spots only accessible by boat and they decide to follow us after they see me catch a single eater bass.

>>2865497
All they know how to do is race between gps waypoints, fish 5ft from the bank, and stare at electronics. This is what happens when you fish like youre a famous tournament angler with $100k on the line instead of for fun. You often see a few dead bass floating near the boat ramps too from when these tards keep them in livewells for no reason. More money than brains. Half of these guys don't even work, because they're on the water 5-7 days a week. Must have daddy's credit card.

>>2865495
Yeah, but he had access to stocked and managed private ponds. That one with the muskies, walleyes, and trout was a miracle of science. Now he's gonna have to work for them.

>>2865507
>Must have daddy's credit card.
It's called SSDI fraud.

>>2865468
Mostly bass and crappie when I tried them, but I've gone after trout with trout magnets as well. I had the chance to see some small brook trout investigate the trout magnet but then something spooked them and they hid

File: IMG_5208.jpg (4.2 KB)

4.2 KB JPG

I be catching bluegill about 85% of the time but the white rooster tail is life and I don’t care what I catch currently. I think more than anything I need to grow in patience in order to experiment with various rigs and grubs that will expand the horizon

hehe fishe

just mogged everyone at a dock using worms, baitholders and split shot. 15" trout and a catfish that was almost as long but fatter.

>>2865554
Try a 1 inch white curly tail grib on a 1/32 or 1/16 oz jig head under a bobber. Find em with your white spinner then catch every single one with the grub.

>>2865574
On it boss

What's the general rule for how much of a budget for a rod/reel should go to the rod vs how much for the reel? For the average weekend warrior freshwater fishing. I've been told you should favor more for the rod. So if you have a 150 budget, you'd do better with a $100+ rod and a cheaper reel than 50:50 or the inverse.

>>2865610
Pretty much yeah. Baitcasters often demand a bigger investment in the reel for decent results but a 2:1 rod to reel budget is usually fine tor spinning gear and freshwater.

>>2865610
Honestly, I'd favor the rod even further. A Shimano Sienna is like $35, and I'd spend $125 on something like a niceish St Croix

>>2865610
spinning? general purpose?

making it a goal of mine to catch gar this year. any tips. might have to travel down south a state or two in my case.

>>2865612
>>2865610
There are St Croix Premier rods on clearance right now for $90 right now. They'll also sell you a 13 Fishing Kaylon for $40. That's probably the hottest $130 combo you can buy rn.

File: 20260404_114021.jpg (1.7 MB)

1.7 MB JPG

>>2865610
Generally you get a nicer rod than reel. But you will only notice nicer rods if you had things you didn't like while having a cheaper rod. Also, not all pricier rods are that much better, lots of overpriced rods in the market. A truly good pricier rod will have higher end guides, lighter and more sensitive blank, and better reelseats. The only cheap rod I can recommend is the aird-x, because you get a lightweight moderate fast blank that's durable and has decent sensitivity compared to most thick heavy numb blanks at that price. The reelseat is love it or hate it, but it helps with sensitivity on a budget blank. Don't go too cheap on reels however, most get sloppy after some use. Shimano and daiwa lt models at 50-75 are your safest bet, although the $30 sienna fg is surprisingly good. Still, the best way to get bang for your buck with mid-high end gear is sales and patience. I have a 550 dollar setup I paid 300 for. Old gen shimano zodias is under 150 for many models on shimanos official ebay. You literally wont beat that for the price. Got pic rel for 150. I just check everywhere for sales daily when I have money and want something new. Id never have bought half of the shit I own at msrp. I'm poor.

>>2865616
Topwater walker or popper real slow. Heat of the summer. Watch the gar slowly investigate it, work it slow enough for it to stay interested. When it bites. Dont immediately set the hook. Light wire smaller trebles penetrate the boney mouth much better. Be prepared for them to throw the lure at somepoint during the fight once they get a burst of energy. Staying hooked up is the second challenge after actually getting bit.

>>2865619
13 fishing is very hit or miss with qc. That's why they changed hands and went through so many unexpected revamps. I own two baitcasters, both feel incredible for the sale prices I got them at, but at msrp fuck that get daiwa or shimano. One I had to return because it was so sloppy out of the box, but the replacement was great. The other was buttery smooth but the drag was defective. I fixed it and use it a lot. Still going strong. I want to love the company but I still hesitate to recommend due to qc variation.

Posted in a dead thread >>2865655

>>2865666
I won't buy a rod from them, but I've had good luck with their reels, and it's an $80 reel for half off.

Shimano is weird for me, everyone seems to love everything they make, but I have very mixed results with their products. I've got a pisspot (like 8 or 9) of the old AX-500s that I bought for ice fishing when they were discontinued and clearancing out at like $8 (down from 20, they were always cheap), and I love them and they're over 10 years old now and work as good as new despite being bounced around in the back of my truck or in a sled behind my snowmobile all winter this whole time. The Sierras, Catanas, Spirex, and the Sedonas I've tried, I was really happy with initially, but they seem to wear out faster than than competitive reels for me. I've had issues with bails spontaneously opening, with bails needing to be manually closed, and with self ejecting handle screws while reeling in fish. But I also have a couple of Saharas and a NASCI that are completely fine but not special, and a Ultegra that I have absolutely nothing bad to say about, even compared to other reels at that price point.

Like I said, a pretty mixed bag. So if I'm not looking to spend Ultegra money on a reel, I tend to look at Penn, Okuma, Daiwa, Pflueger, Quantum, or 13 instead now.

File: IMG_20260408_085317087_HDR~2.jpg (740.6 KB)

740.6 KB JPG

>>2865673
>but they seem to wear out faster than than competitive reels for me
I either go daiwa or shimano and comparing a year and a half old fuego and nasci 1000 reel I bought within a month of each other and used similar amounts the nasci still feels new and the daiwa at the very least needs a re-oil and grease, but it feels sloppier too.
The daiwa was definitely nicer out of the box
Both reels were used hard and often but not really exposed to salt/severe weather or much dirt
A daiwa qx750 I have feels like shit after 3 years too.

Must vary by model and usage

>>2865674
That would be because the daiwa qXXX series are not daiwa factory produced, but outsourced with a daiwa name slapped on it. Quite a few daiwa sub$100 reel lines are like that. For example, the daiwa cX80 series of baitcasters are made by doyo, not actually daiwa. But luckily that company is pretty solid. They make a lot of the more budget lews and abus also. QC can still be a bit meh however. Actual in house daiwa stuff is shimano tier.

File: IMG_20260408_133752835_HDR~2.jpg (312 KB)

312 KB JPG

>>2865691
>That would be because the daiwa qXXX series are not daiwa factory produced
Didn't know that.
I was a little harsh on it before honestly, because this one was stuffed in hiking packs and not taken care of the best for 2 years before it started having issues with the anti reverse switch and not feeling as smooth.
I'm happier with this one than the fuego because it was cheaper and held up to way more abuse.

>>2865610
Actually that depend what you fish, and in what conditions
For example my main target is pike, i don't need a subtle rod, but a stiff and resilient one, i use a cheap 4pc carp rod, and a reel with a good drag, so it's more case specific

File: IMG_5367.jpg (3.7 MB)

3.7 MB JPG

>>2865574
>>2865589
I did it boss. The white Berkeley power baits acted as though they required constant retrieve like a spinner bait to maintain a good presentation but the red version acted the opposite. The latter definitely needed more twitching action to behave more naturally in the water. Not exactly sure why but whatever works I guess
No luck with the whites but when I got the reds in the right waters I got a couple sunfish and two rock bass with the larger one depicted.
No bobber this time as it didn’t keep the bait behaving as I hoped

Going to try making dough bait out of expired g fuel

File: 20260408_165319.jpg (4 MB)

4 MB JPG

This may seem strange but this dink bass is the first and only fish ive ever caught on a spinner bait. I just dont fish them a lot.
>>2865726
I like the venom curly tails personally they move really nice doing anythibg from super subtle jigging to snap jigging to burning to slow rolling to crawling even just the waves moving the bobber gives it life. My favorite way to fish them is to pull a couple feet and drop it, youll see the float slide back as the jig pulls it.

Congrats on the fish!

How much should I spend on fly tying tools? Seems like theres not a huge difference in a cheap rotary vise and an expensive one if you're just making 10~ flies once a week or less. The only other tool I can see maybe being worth getting a nicer one is a bobbin holder

>>2865741
I use griffin bobbins and a spyder odyssey vice and buy dr. Slick cheap tools and catch plenty of fish jn my flies
>>2865726
>>2865739
Turns out venom is out of production. Mister twister are great too. Usually when curly tails suck its because the plastic is too hard.
>>2865737
Good luck

Finally clicked with fly fishing this weekend and it feels good. I've gone a few times and just went with a fly tied on based on a hatch chart and I've gotten lucky a few times but this time I felt like I actually got it all down. It was pretty rough, water was moving way faster than what's typical here, targeted the slowest water I could with a nymph rig. Found some mayfly nymphs and matched my fly to them, and actually got something. Caught a nice size natural rainbow trout. Perfectly clean catch and release. Felt like truly the first time since I picked up fly fishing that I did it all perfectly without pitching flies to the trees and not just throwing something random on and hoping for the best.

>>2865764
Its always fantastic when things click. Glad to hear you had a good day congrats anon.

how do you cast a 2 piece rod without twisting it? happens every time. i bought a 2 piece by accident.

>>2865741
I'm using a Eupheng Madison vise. It's a Chinese Traveler clone. $50 on amazon right now.
https://a.co/d/0dDwH36U
It has been amazing! I love it. I've ties hundreds of flies on it over the last year and a half that I've owned it. I haven't had any problems with it. But if I do, I can buy 4 more before I hit the price of an actual Traveler.

Most of my tools are either Dr. Slick or Umpqua. I haven't bought anything from either brand that I haven't liked. Make sure you get a ceramic or glass(lined or solid) bobbin. These are the ones I'm using now.
https://a.co/d/0c26KNfe
I have two 4in and a 3in. I mostly just use the 4in. I have multiple for when I'm using more than one thread in a pattern.

I have not been impressed with any of the Loon products I've ordered. Kingfisher stuff on amazon is just rebranded Chinese stuff. I avoid either company now.

>>2865764
Nice! Congratz! The water is still high and fast here in Norcal too. It'll be this way for another month or so as the snow melts and floods the creeks. Trout season doesn't officially begin here until the last Saturday of this month(April). We can catch and keep them in the lakes year round, but in the rivers and streams, it's catch and release on barbless artificials from the last Saturday in November to the last Saturday in April here in California. So I usually just wait for the water to calm back down, since that usually aligns with the season anyway.

File: 20260409_165100.jpg (4.2 MB)

4.2 MB JPG

Little Redeye Bass from this evening, just after spawn because after this I caught 5 of his babies, 3-4 inches each or so

>>2865741
The things I like to spend money on are a vise and bobbins. I have a renzetti vise and I use renzetti ruby tip bobbins in salt water size. For scissors I just buy fiskars from Walmart tying scissor are a meme.

I hate how loud some fly reels can be. I'm looking for some large arbor reels that don't sound awful, something that sounds more akin to a spinning reel. I like the sound of the Echo Base, Redington Behemoth, Redington Tilt, and Sage Spectrum. I've heard Bauer makes good, quite reels. I don't want to hurt my ears and signal to everyone that I have a fish on like it's the factory quitting time whistle.

>>2865802
Meanwhile i have a click and pawl reel on my switch rod that can be heard a hundred yards away when a fish makes a good run

"dry fly" bruh just say topwater

>>2865824
No. There's a huge difference. Topwater fishing is all about huge disturbance. Dry flies, on the other hand, tend to be delicate and subtle. It's all about weather, the emergence, and matching the hatch. Terrestrials are not even dry flies.

File: IMG_4417.jpg (111.8 KB)

111.8 KB JPG

A bloodworm bit me today, bros, I was so scared, I just started fishing, I didn't know they bite. I will buy some fishing gloves or something, I got so scared.

>>2865619
Never mind on the Kaylons, they are 4.0s, lol.

File: IMG_2911.jpg (81.9 KB)

81.9 KB JPG

Fly chads how are we feeling getting close to the fishing season? Striper are in Long Island sound, silversides are in the bay and it shouldn’t be more than a week till they swim their silvery bronze asses back into my life.

i hate my baitcaster

>>2865869
I hate your baitcaster too.
Do you hate it specifically, or baitcasters in general.

>>2865871
I've never found them to do anything I couldn't just do on a spin aside from being more likely to lash if I'm not paying attention

>>2865869
>>2865873
I love my baitcaster, there's nothing better than casting a short pistol grip rod with a caster on it under some trees imo, but I'll say long rods with them are kinda boring now

Fellow fly tyers, I need some advice in the next few hours. I can buy tons of mink fur for $3 for 2 squares larger than my hand. They all look good. The same applies to rabbit and rabbit medley pelts. Colors for mink are brown, black, and tan. Colors for rabbit are white, brown, various natural shades, and any natural color (all on one pelt). Everything ranges from $3-5. How much should I buy? What should I buy? I want to take advantage of this great deal, but I don't want to end up like the guy who owned them before me.

File: IMG_20260411_055507106~2.jpg (2 MB)

2 MB JPG

Damn, if only I could keep walleye right now

>>2865908
Nice catch none the less.

>>2865908
river janny don't work at night

>>2865903
Do you tie with mink and rabbit a lot? Are you going to cut zonker strips from the rabbit pelts? Do the faces come with the rabbit? I don’t ever use mink and only use rabbit rarely when tying hares ears. Unless you use a lot of zonkers the masks last a long time depending on what and how often you tie.

>>2865873
Once you git gud they really are superior. I've nearly entirely converted, bfs next.

File: image-4.png (4.7 MB)

4.7 MB PNG

Pretty Smallmouth caught on a 1/8 ounce jig with twirl tail grub, Southern middle Tennessee

File: IMG_20260411_095057425_HDR~2.jpg (2.4 MB)

2.4 MB JPG

I had the rivers to myself the last 2 days but no brookies are taking the bait
Anybody here fish in the Adirondacks? I want to find some before I have to leave tuesday
It's been cold as fuck so they probably aren't as worked up as could be

>>2865971
Nice

File: 1765565648470.jpg (3.8 MB)

3.8 MB JPG

>>2865923
I used white mink because white squirrel isn't a thing. I liked it. I paid $20 for it all

anyone ever fish north carolina? i'm going up there for a vacation in the moutains hopefully fishing for bass and trout.

>>2866035
Yes, on the eastern side of the Great Smoky Mountains, only fished trout but did good when I was there

File: IMG-20260412-WA0014.jpg (83.8 KB)

83.8 KB JPG

>>2865172
I got mercury poisoning bros! Gonna be catch and release only for a while.
I'm so fucking sad about this, that I barely even want to go fishing or anything. Be careful what you're eating, 'cause this sucks.

>>2866047
how does that even happen? are you eating lbs of fish a day?

>>2866050
Huge limits on perch in the winter, trout and whitefish the rest of the time but also my gf is Filipino. She cooks lots of fish, I would eat canned fish pretty regularly for lunch at work, and sushi was our go to food when dining out.

File: 3c6b644203e9919b77963b6530271bce-3123009860.jpg (189.7 KB)

189.7 KB JPG

>>2865996
There's actually a sizeable population of white colour phase (not albino) grey squirrels in southern Ontario.
They're mostly urban, I would love to see one of em out in the woods though, I would get it taxidermied.

>>2866054
Yeah, the fact that our fisheries are so polluted really bothers me. Running through my land is a small river with plenty of trout, smallmouth, redeye, bluegill, etc, and I would love more than anything to be able to catch a mess of fish a few times a week and fry them. However, being in the south, almost everywhere has heavy agricultural runoff. There's no telling the amount of glyphosate in our fish alone. This has made me think a lot about farming fish up here so I can control the conditions and keep them from being toxic

>>2866060
Man, I live in Iowa. Your state has nothing on mine. I have never heard of a person getting mercury poisoning from fish, and I know a lot of people who fish.

>>2866054
What the fuck! You eat too much fish, I bet it was the canned fish. Here, canned "tuna" looks really suspicious to me.

>>2866054
Lmao classic. I’ve seen asians fishing runoff from industrial areas with a bucket to keep what they catch. So much for muh high iq cope.

>>2866077
I blame the canned fish too.
>>2866112
I'm whiter than you, check your reading comprehension retard.

>>2866118
>I blame the canned fish too.
outside of tuna, sea fish usually have low amounts of pollutants, freshwater have more
i'd probably get mercury poisoning if i hate pike more than twice a month
depend on both species and age, i'd probably die if i tried to eat the local giant catfish too

>>2866121
NTA... Canned sardines have a relatively high level of mercury. If yo eat a can a day, you will have elevated mercury in your blood.

>>2866121
Also....fish that eat a large amount of small fish will also have elevated mercury. Tuna, swordfish, shark etc... It's a cumulative effect. It builds up over time.

>>2866135
pretty sure sardines were the safest of the bunch
unless we're talking farm grown sardines

>>2866137
Eating a can of sardines is perfectly safe. Eating a can a day isn't. Again, it's a cumulative effect.

>>2866137
It's arsenic, not mercury in sardines. I miss remembered. My bad

>>2866139
fair enough
there's also PFAS that are present enough in most places to be a very real risk

>>2866054
Your local fish and game department usually puts out safe limits for eating fish from your local waters.

>>2866118
>Im white
Sure thing chang

File: Screenshot_20260413_180427_Gallery.jpg (1.1 MB)

1.1 MB JPG

Pretty Redeye Bass, still havent caught a largemouth or bluegill this year. Want to start fishing more live bait, red worms and crawdads. A few years ago I caught a 21.5" Smallmouth on the Elk River in Tennessee, which is just 5.5" short of the world record, given mine was a lot less weighty. Of course I didn't have a camera on me then.

>>2866145
Very cute, fish like this make me wish I had a small pond of my own

>>2865484
I can not, for the life of me, get these wire loop tools to make a game changer link loop like in the video I watched.... I'm thinking I should just get a set of jewlers pliers. But, I ordered some pre-made links too. So I'll still be able to tie a few. It's a busy week, but I'll tie a few sometime this week and share the results.

>>2866147
My monthly Smitty's box came today too! So there's another two patterns for me to tie this week. The beginner pattern is a chironomid. Basically I zebra midge with some poly yarn at the eye of the hook. The intermediate pattern is a parachute BWO emerger. A couple easy patterns. I'll probably tie these first sometime Wednesday.

File: 20260323_185258.jpg (2.8 MB)

2.8 MB JPG

Wait until the fish eaters find out about Thiaminase...

File: magoo.jpg (50.3 KB)

50.3 KB JPG

What do you guys recommend for a aspiring fisherman with visual impairments?
I always struggle to keep my eye on the bobber and have to keep it in the more shallow waters.
Is it possible to fish blindly, if so, what methods would you recommend?

>>2866158
>Is it possible to fish blindly, if so, what methods would you recommend?
Pretty much everything other than bobber fishing...

>>2866158
cast and retrieve lures/spinners, live/dead bait sinker rig
you just need to feel the bite with your rod

>>2866160
>>2866161
Best news I've heard all day, thanks!

>>2866166
>Is it possible to fish blindly
Caveat, you will need to be able to see to tie knots. You can get reading glasses that you can keep in your pocket or around your neck when not in use, if necessary. It will also benefit you if you can see well enough to tell what looks "fishy" and what doesn't. Cover, depth, water flow etc.. And you can still use bobbers to keep swim baits at a certain depth. While you can use the bobber as your strike indicator, as you'll be actively working the lure, you'll most likely feel it before you see it.

>>2866167
Luckily tying knots is something I can do just fine.
I'm generally fine doing any task that can be done close to my face.

>>2866158
Catfishing is great for people who can't see very well. There is so much fishing that doesn't require much eyesight.

I did a catch and cook with friends today for my birthday. It went poorly. There were a fuckton of undesirables at our spot. Fishing was not great. There were just a bunch of things that didn't go our way. But I got to eat fish tacos, so that was great.

File: 1770878981961.jpg (2.5 MB)

2.5 MB JPG

>>2866172

>>2866172
Happy birthday anon

i am desperate to break the skunk i am going to start targeting bluegill if this keeps up having been scorned by fish (multiple times) i have no conscience about what i do

>>2866158
Using hi vis braid (yellow specifically) helps me a lot whenever I'm doing anything.

>>2866180
Ive been getting skunked by smallmouth in the creek I fish in, it comes out of a dam about 9 miles up river so the water is usually pretty cold but warms up some in the summmer. I think there are 2 factors, first the water may not be warm enough for them to have moved this far up river yet and that there is a lul sometimes post spawn where the fishes feeding behavior changes. I'm about to switch to targeting trout until May

File: Screenshot_20260414_093316_Gallery.jpg (1.2 MB)

1.2 MB JPG

I have this book series from the 90s, NAFC published, strategies for catching all kinds of fish. Really cool books

File: Screenshot_20260414_093538_Gallery.jpg (880.4 KB)

880.4 KB JPG

>>2866207
Think they are 1987-1990

>>2866209
>>2866207
scan it and share it

Just doubled my collection of old mitchells (and other odd reels).
Found a yard sale that was shutting down and got a whole box for $20.00.
Had a couple Mitchell 301's, a 300, a 308 (that is in sad shape and may end up as parts), one of those Zebco/Cardinal reels in fairly nice shape, and lastly, an oddity I'd only seen pics of, a "karmann 41" (basically an early 60's relabled Daiwa)

File: 20260414_135206.jpg (267.8 KB)

267.8 KB JPG

This mayfly landed on me today. I thought it was a huge mosquito when it landed and was about to smack it. But when I got a better look to aim, I realized it was not. It's a very interesting looking insect. Speckled Dun?

File: 20260414_145056.jpg (1.8 MB)

1.8 MB JPG

Caught my first trout of the year up at my mountain creek. Official trout season doesn't start until next week Saturday(the 25th). But we can still catch and release in the off season. The water is still high and fast. But it shouldn't be long before things calm down for the year. I caught this one on a pat's rubber legs. Lots of giant California stoneflies(salmon flies) are starting starting to emerge. I'm starting to see lots of cast skins and mature adults on and under the rocks or crawling around.

File: 20260414_154745.jpg (1 MB)

1 MB JPG

>>2866237
My brother in law caught this one on a hare's ear.

File: 20260413_234702.jpg (1 MB)

1 MB JPG

>>2866150
Monthly Smitty's box, beginners pattern this month is a chironomid. Included materials are: size 14 chironomid hooks, 3.2mm tungsten beads in black nickel and white, 6/0 Uni thread in black and red, #14 uni mylar in holographic black and gold, size SM red wire, and some poly yarn

>>2866240
This month's intermediate pattern is a parachute BWO emerger. Included materials: size 18 and 20 scud hooks, 8/0 uni thread in olive, olive dry fly dubbing, olive midge flash, poly yarn, olive dun hackle and a peacock feather top.

File: 20260413_234743.jpg (1.1 MB)

1.1 MB JPG

>>2866241
Forgot to attach the picture..

File: 20260414_005625.jpg (1.3 MB)

1.3 MB JPG

>>2866240
I tied these up last night, just before bed. They have a lot of nice color and sparkle. The gold ones look like pan fish candy! I did the black four first with the included red wire. I then made the first gold with that same wire, but didn't like the lack of contrast. So I switched to some black wire I had. I like this pattern. Simple, easy to tie and should be fish magnets.

>>2866228
>that is in sad shape
as in actual damage? as long as nothing is broken or bent these reels are always fixable

>>2865172
Where did you get this pic of me and my wife?

File: Mitchell308parts.jpg (306.1 KB)

306.1 KB JPG

>>2866249
You're right, I can fix it for $20~$30. The part I need is the ball bearing set, "81 303".
Everything else looked fine, til the bail cup came off and I found it was missing the balls, and the bearing shell was cracked.
Everything else looks pretty decent though. The Zebco/Cardinal is an interesting find.

>>2866258
didn't some earlier 308 had a bronze sleeve instead of bearings? might be cheaper even

>>2866207
This is super cool, gonna look for them on eBay

>>2866204
Depending where you are this is most likely the case. I am in VT and it has been a pretty good winter, Water temps are finally starting to break past the 40s. Been Steelheading, and now the Suckers have been moving in, and then I think once the temp reaches 43-45 the Smallies will start to come in.

Just ordered a bunch of material to tie streamers up for the smallies and will get after some Pike too, very excited. Didn't get a steelie this year, more or less have given up.

Pic, White Longnose caught on a Stonefly I tied

>>2866260
Not sure if that'd interchange, as this one and my others have that same double ball race held in with a dowel-screw.
I found a NOS bearing set, but it is almost as much as I paid for the box of reels, and as much as the last 308 I bought.

>>2866260
Not sure if that'd interchange, as this one and my others have that same double ball race held in with a dowel-screw.
I found a NOS bearing set, but it is almost as much as I paid for the box of reels, and as much as the last 308 I bought.

>>2866260
Not sure if that'd interchange, as this one and my others have that same double ball race held in with a dowel-screw.
I found a NOS bearing set, but it is almost as much as I paid for the box of reels, and as much as the last 308 I bought.

File: sucker.jpg (339.1 KB)

339.1 KB JPG

>>2866264
I think there has been some connection issues...

>>2866236
Very cool, I have some pieces that look just like it

>>2866268
No kidding, not sure how i managed a triple-post.

File: IMG_1709.jpg (1.1 MB)

1.1 MB JPG

Which one of you guys did this?

>>2866278
lol, what's the idea behind that washer
some kind of oversized tippet ring?

>>2866281
Improv sinker if I had to guess. You’d think the swivel would fulfill any need for a tippet ring. Could also function like a teaser blade and just generate a little extra flash and visual interest.

>>2866278
>>2866281
>>2866283
Seen people do that to make a "snagproof" sinker.

>>2866283
>Could also function like a teaser blade and just generate a little extra flash and visual interest
i've read a bit on that with dropshot rigs as an example to compare painted and unpainted weights, and turn out that fishes that get distracted by the shiny thing miss completely the lure 20cm away

>>2866286
I switched to tin sinkers because I’m a bleeding heart environmentalist, and they were causing this issue, so now I paint tin split shots brown like a complete lunatic. Anyways, I was guessing that might have been the guy’s idea, not saying it was a good one.

>>2866291
mine don't shine, i suppose you could get a similar effect with a bit of sandpaper to unpolish it

File: Screenshot_20260415_220506_Gallery.jpg (837.6 KB)

837.6 KB JPG

First time ever catching anything on topwater, this was a little hula popper and I caught 6 bass after sunset. Was very exciting

>>2866299
The Hula Popper Micro is a favorite. It caught me my first topwater bass.

File: 20260416_002720.jpg (419.4 KB)

419.4 KB JPG

>>2866242
These are some tiny flies!! I've only tied a handful of flies on size 20 hooks. I had struggled in the post with tying parachute posts and with locking in the hackle after wrapping it around the post. These gave me some great practice. It was a lot easier this time. I also had a very hard time whip finishing around the post last time I tried a parachute pattern. My ability and technique has definitely improved since then and I found it fairly easy now. It's nice seeing that my practice has been paying off. Overall, a pretty fun pattern to tie. And I'm glad that I no longer need to fear the parachute post :)

File: Screenshot_20260416_080322_Gallery.jpg (884.6 KB)

884.6 KB JPG

>>2866300
Yeah, I always really liked the hula popper, just never had any luck with topwater, though I had only ever tried it on big lakes and not right at sunset. This was on a little river, as soon as the sun set bass started breaking water all around me. I have this other small topwater lure I want to catch something on next, but the hooks are slightly bigger. There are big smallmouth in this river but I havent caught any yet this year.

>>2866324
I can't wait to go to Guntersville Lake this year and canoe camp and fish. I want to see a big largemouth jump out of the water on a hula popper.

File: KIMG0680.jpg (2.7 MB)

2.7 MB JPG

>>2866228
Got into the Zebco/Cardinal 3 (Abu Cardinal 33).
It's quite a change from the Mitchells and Daiwas I'm used to, the way by which they effect the spool reciprocation is downright steampunk. The drag mechanism is also unique, it tensions the shaft the spool is carried on, instead of using friction discs in the spool.
Basically just had to clean out some dried grease, give it a general cleaning then spooling it up with some monofilament that was made in this century.
Hoping to see how it fishes this weekend.

Can anyone recommend a spin rod for a 9 year old girl for inshore fishing? I’m a fly guy but my daughter wants to go fishing more now that I got a boat. What’s a rod and reel setup that she can handle and throw some keitechs and other soft baits.

>>2866351
Im going to unironically suggest a diawa bg 3000 and a 6'6" or 7 foot medium or medium heavy ugly stick with 20 or 30lb braid or 15lb-17 mono.

>>2866351
for the line don't listen to skid, he tend to use lines a lot bigger than what you need
but consider that you don't want a line strong enough to let a big fish pull your daughter or her gear overboard, also braid isn't exactly beginner friendly, i would say full mono, 12 to 15 lb at most
>t. got pulled into the water by my pb pike when i was 10, still managed to get it but it could have gone a lot worse
for the gear depend the budget, okuma for the lower end is good enough, daiwa for mid prices
at least for the reel
for the rod i'd see whatever look sturdy and is fairly cheap, something mid action maybe, a whippy rod might not be too suited for a beginner

>>2866351
Lots of people (Myself included) got their start with a simple spincast rig, and there are a lot of very good spincast reels and rods out there for not a lot of money.
Otherwise I'd get what you would use in the same conditions, since there is a very good chance it'll end up being yours when she loses interest.

>>2866351
Airx661mfs or airx601mfs and a shimano fx fc 2500. Lightweight and cheap without being shit-tier

i need way to carry rigged bass jigs

>>2866381
I've seen a few around here using a piece of that corrugate plastic stuff used for signs.
Hook(s) goes in one end, and then a notch on the other holds the line.