>buy 10$ lure and wait a week for delivery
>snag it in some rocks at the first cast
>manage to free it by trying every trick in the book
Fishing shouldn't be this stressful!

do you guys think the lady who's kid i do therapy for will give me the fishing rods in her garage? i know she doesnt use em

>>2789429
That’s a big Dorado, but I suspect she’s under 5 feet tall.

>>2789429
Hey Kevin, can you please not use words in the OP of this thread that you would expect a normie’s /gif/ filters to catch?


Kthnx

>>2789445
Like two weeks ago I was inshore fishing in Cape Cod and lost a Yo-zuri Crystal Minnow when the knot broke on a cast. I stripped down to my boxers and swam in to get it. I'm not losing a $12 lure without a fight. I was fucking freezing though.

Fishing anons

I have never been fishing but I want to learn. My parents never fished and I didn't have a grandfather figure to teach me. I live in coastal Florida so it becomes even more embarrassing to say I don't know how to fish. I understand the concept of fishing but I wouldn't know how to cut and eat the fish, or what fish can even be eaten near me.

Any suggestions?

>>2789459
literally youtube

I had quit fishing for years and got back up to speed just by watching YT. And I've moved to a few different places and watched YT to get up to speed on those specific circumstances and how to fish them best.

>>2789457
based, I almost did the same thing today but as a last resort

>>2789459
learn how to setup a bait fish rig and get some mackerel
Then gut and fry them, they are easy fish to prepare
If you like anime watch Houkago Teibou Nisshi

>>2789469
>Houkago Teibou Nisshi
Not him but that sounds cool. I dont really watch anime but I saw one romance one years ago and one about camping since I love camping. They should make more anime that are like that, about calm recreational activities like fishing, camping, being outdoors. I watched the camping one last year in the middle of winter curled up in blankets with a fake fireplace on my tablet and it was really cozy.

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>>2789445
That happened to me with a whopper plopper. Now I hate then

>>2789454
I blame anon posting trannies. But noted

Caught my first fish, a smallmouth bass on a ned rig last weekend.

>>2789617
Good job

>>2789617
Congrats, its always fun catching a new species and its always fun catching something on a new type of setup. Now you have to finish out the Smallmouth entry in your FishéDex by catching one on every single type of lure available.

>>2789631
>>2789620
At this rate I will catch my next fish in two months.
I have been using a texas rig and lipless lures but no luck so far.

>>2789633
If you're in the Northern Hemisphere, its probably because its winter. They move to deeper areas and slow down a lot which is probably why you had success with a ned rig. Use jigs that will get you deep and use a slow retrieve, anything fast might be seen as a waste of calories to chase.

>>2789617
grats man

>>2789539
I found these trannies and this particular video because I was watching fishing videos in the region. They are an awful mess.
https://youtu.be/L7k2XJklYag

>>2789429
If you’re still here, >>2789007, yeah we’re probably in the same place. It’s not just the chinamen it’s also the carribbean migrants. Which wouldn’t be an issue if not for the way they go about it. Like there’s no morals to it. If you’re fine eating freshwater out of a canal or nasty non clean lake fine, cool even. But taking like 10 bass or using a cast net or even catching them off live bait is just gay. I don’t even much mind the bass at this point because they’re already fucked I just think it’s silly how it’s done. It’s a kin to taking a deer after spending 5 seasons baiting them so they walk right up to you and then point blanking it while it eats out of your hand. Most freshwater fish ain’t that difficult to catch. There’s no sense of accomplishment in using 60lb test with goldfish on a bobber to land a max 3lb fish. Even that’s not my main gripe it’s the harvesting of the big ones done in such ways. At the very least release the oversized fish and keep your 15 2 pounders. And of course these people are usually unlicensed and never get fined or told to stop


They really do keep everything. I got a FOB Vietnamese/Chinese buddy from college who saw some of my fishing posts and tried to one up me by going to the pier and posting his cooler full of tiny idk what species perch/some type of grunt, puffer fish dockpet, and pinfish captioning some shit like “let the real fishermen have their time” bro you caught bait fish and a dockpet to make over seasoned soup with.
They also do the same shit with non fish. Turtles, ornamental water birds, it’s all fair game

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>>2789721
>ornamental water birds, it’s all fair game
Never forget what these people do to us.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QOKj4Ctyko
>probation
If his name was Timothy Cartwell he'd be doing six months.

>>2789721
>There’s no sense of accomplishment in using 60lb test with goldfish on a bobber to land a max 3lb fish
60 lb test is just going to be more visible and hamper your casting. I would kind of agree with the accomplishment part simply because bobber fishing is less fun.
>bro you caught bait fish and a dockpet to make over seasoned soup with.
>They also do the same shit with non fish. Turtles, ornamental water birds, it’s all fair game
Now, you're betraying your prejudice. You're one of those people who boils the shit out of all your food and doesn't season it. Spicy Asian food is delicious. Turtles are a traditional American food, and I look forward to trying them. I was raised in part by a Belizean woman. Her son became my brother for official and practical purposes. I remember her eating turtle and rabbit stews. She got the meat in a grocery store, though.

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Hi guys, my dad bought me a fishing pole for my birthday a couple months ago but I have yet to use it. I'm poor as fuck from south Louisiana about an hours drive from the delta with plenty of bayou around me. My bitch ass dad never took me fishing and has no interest in going with me nowadays, although I went with my friend and his dad a couple times when we were kids, we mostly used to throw rocks wherever his lure landed to piss him off. I'm mostly interested in fishing to eats because I enjoy cooking and fishing seems like a sustainable way for me not to go broke picking up filets at rouses. My cuzzo owns a boat and goes fishing in the gulf so I can ask to go with him, but are there any really good resources that I can touch ground on to figure out the best fishing spots/what fish is edible near me? Google is too filled with ai trash for me to find decent websites.

>>2789760
Your state should have a department of natural resources website with basic information. For finding spots look at Google maps and look for parks and waterside access that way, I've found a lot of spots that way. If you have a local tackle shop, scrounge up $30, pay them a visit, and get some Intel. Buy some over priced gear while you're there, they're more likely to tell you stuff if you buy stuff.

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>>2789760
https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/subhome/recreational-fishing
https://fishbrain.com/
Use the fishbrain app to see local fishing holes, what people are catching and what they are using

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>>2789760
bruh go getchu some crab down in rockefeller. I'm also in your area so let me know if you have any specific questions. I'm north of Morgan City but can't be more specific than that.

>>2789722
welcome to the maoist revolution.

>>2789768
Im gonna have to try that when I step out into the big world thanks
>>2789769
So all I would need is the basic $17 to fish and bring it home for dinner barring the weight/size limits correct?
>>2789821
Im more interested in some big fish I can turn into gumbo or plated dishes if you gotta any pointers on which way I should be headed for those
>Rockefeller
Mann thats a drive Im up near Baton Rouge but if I ever have the energy to get down there I'll have to hit you up

Thank you guys for the good resources

>>2789844
>So all I would need is the basic $17 to fish and bring it home for dinner barring the weight/size limits correct?
Yes, and then an extra $15 if you want to do saltwater. In my state, an annual license starts at Jan 1 and ends Dec 31 no matter when you buy it. Not sure what it is for Louisiana but you should double check especially if you're poor as fuck. There could also be other restrictions as well, so read the pages carefully, like here in Jersey you need to pay more for a trout stamp on top of your basic license if you intend to target trout. Some states are more strict than others, like in Florida they'll fucking tar and feather you if they catch you an inch under the regulations.

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>>2789846
Whoops, forgot this screenshot.

>>2789734
>Now, you're betraying your prejudice. You're one of those people who boils the shit out of all your food and doesn't season it. Spicy Asian food is delicious.
Now you’re being willfully obtuse. I made zero mention of spiciness. I also am a chef. I quite literally meant this individual gook was going to take all of his catch and dump it all into a pot together and just throw half a container of black pepper and a handful of cloves half a stick of butter and whatever scrap veggies he had with some 99 cent ramen bricks minus the seasoning packet together and boil it. Because I’m speaking from experience hanging with him and that is quite literally what he did. Yet you got personally offended actually emotional on his behalf. That is what women and niggers do. Are you a bitch? Is that what you are suggesting intentionally or not? Because it’s how you sound.
>Turtles are a trad American food, and I look forward to trying them.
Again willfully obtuse. Fuck the turtles. The point which was clear to any non ESL faggot was that they don’t care what it is. They just grab anything no care what exact species it is whether its threatened or endangered or a pet they have no comprehension of over harvesting. I wouldn’t go into your house and drink all your soi shakes, for instance. And yet you got emotional about it.
You act as if some Haitian migrant or some rice paddy dweller is gonna make authentic turtle soup using a fucking box turtle or an ORNAMENTAL pet from someone’s pond as was the key point
>I was raised in part by a Belizean woman. Her son became my brother
Didn’t ask don’t care
>I remember her eating turtle and rabbit stews. She got the meat in a grocery store, though
Nice blog post. What? Was this your big concealed dagger “oh I know this will bother him! Aha! I got him here!” moment? Refer to my earlier and now abundantly made clear points. You are mad because you’re the type I spoke on and you kiss men

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Do you guys like my newest office decor? My coworkers keep putting the turkey foot into the throat, or getting their fingers stuck on the teeth.

>>2789948
Thats pretty cool. You should put a cigar in his mouth and give him shades.

>>2789847
Yeah that looks right

>>2789948
Bob?

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Well, the rain has begun. There will be no more fishing in my mountain creek until spring. What was a nice little creek has become a raging torrent. It'll stay this way until spring when It'll slowly lower and slow back down. In the meantime, I'll be keeping my eye out for running steelhead from now until February or so. I'm hoping to catch videos of them jumping, though with the water this high, they won't need to jump much.

The green circle is where I usually stand to fish. It'll get several feet higher as the rains continue into December.

Going offshore fishing tomorrow, hoping for some wahoo and mahi. Might stop for snapper on the way back in

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>>2789948
Strap the foot to a board, glue the board to the shelf, let them hurt themselves. The pike hungers, and, a natural hunter, continues to draw blood, even I'm death.
>>2789966
>pic

>fish 3 days in a row
>catched nothing
are my waters dead or i am just extremly bad?

>>2789976
don't you have current fishes like huchen or murray?

>>2790054
What are you using, what is the temperature and if you are fishing saltwater are you fishing when the tide is moving or the tide is still? What does the water body you are fishing look like?

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>>2789951
Shades are a cool idea. I'll probably do that.

Dead fucking day today. The perch we slammed last weekend were nowhere to be found, and all the geese and ducks that had flown right over we're keeping a 300 yard radius away. Bullshit!

>>2790072
why do you carry a shotgun? are pirates out there?

>>2790072
Mossberg 500? Great shotgun. I take it you're mostly fishing and keeping an eye open for birds?
>>2790054
My last two attempts at fishing have been fully thwarted. Thursday I couldn't find my head lamp so I couldn't go night fishing.
Today there was an insane amount of leaves. The flows weren't too high but the river was definitely up a lot. There were so many leaves that it'd instantly ruin any presentation and you'd even pick some up.every time.you tried to roll cast at all.

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>>2790055
This is what that spot looks like in late summer. The ground you see at the bottom of the picture is that green circle in the picture from last night. I've only ever pulled rainbow trout from it. I'm sure there are sculpin in there too, but no fish that are accustomed to swimming in heavy current streams or rivers. No salmon run up here as far as I know, just steelhead.

>>2790100
The fucking Sirens bro, we've lost so many good men to them. They don't even tuck it back anymore, the bulge calls them in and there's no escape.

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>>2790113
Here's a better comparison. I circled the same rock in blue on both pictures.

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>>2790103
Ithaca! we were out here last weekend and didn't even think about hunting until there were scads of geese and ducks flying 10 feet over our heads, but today there was barely any perch, and there were hundreds of birds but all way up high and keeping wide around us. Only took home 8 perch today which blows. Hooked about 30 dinks in the ass which was weird.

Pic is last week's perch haul, meat totalling about 1.5kg skin off.

>>2790144
I LOVE OVER FISHING
I LOVE OVER FISHING
I LOVE OVER FISHING
I LOVE OVER FISHING

>>2790147
They're not trout you mongoloid perch is a numbers game

>>2790147
That's not overfishing

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I took the advice from last thread and got totes to hold my flytying material. It feels nice to be organized. Now I need a dedicated fly tying bench, I’m doing it at my PC desk or my coffee table and it sucks. I might buy one of those custom made tabletops.

I have discovered the ultimate bass lure. Throw a ned rig plastic onto a Zman Flashback Mini. You can work it off the bottom like a ned rig, or retrieve like a chatterbait, or snap it off the bottom like a flash spoon. If I have one rod and don’t want to retie ever this is what I’m throwing.

>>2790144
>>2790213
>>2790153
per need 7 -SEVEN- Years to get to 25cm....
this is overfishing and disrespectful

>>2790247
Maybe in whatever urban shit hole European swamp canal you rent close to, but here there's more than enough to go around.

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>leave house at 6:40AM on saturday
>get skunked
>guy i met at bait shop says he left at 11AM and caught 20 crappie and 3 bass
just fuck my asshole

>>2790458
I've never gone out before 9am to fish. I'm usually out at around 11am.

>>2790502
i've only found going out early to be worthwhile for cats or walleye. bass & panfish you cam catch whenever

Any decent sales anywhere? Best I've found is a $40 combo going on sale for $20 that I'll probably grab at a local store, nothing else really.

>>2790513
TackleWarehouse is in phase 3 of their clearance sale. This time it's reels, hard and swimbaits. I went apeshit last week on the spinner and softbaits.
https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/catpage-BLACKFRIDAY.html

>>2790513
I got a good deal on a fishfinder. essentially payed less for the 7" version than I would have even paid for a 5" outside of black friday season sales. a decently big purchase but it's really the only thing left to get for my kayak. I'm more interested in mapping terrain out than "finding fish" because I really need to learn how to fish deeper during the extreme heat and extreme cold months.

>>2790531
I haven't really seen that many good deals on more budget oriented stuff. like with anything, the best deals are to be had when spending more. they have had really good sales on lures though mostly. it just sucks that you gotta spend at least $50 to justify it so you get free shipping. I've got everything I really want now and I'm trying to stop consoooming. that shit is like gambling during black friday sales. I was adding all kinds of shit to carts for my different hobbies and then stopping and thinking "damn I'm a fucking retard."

> https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/13_Fishing_Origin_C_Casting_Reel/descpage-OC.html
this is actually a pretty good steal for $35. the reviews are very mixed but I bought one a while back and it feels and casts really good, the only real issue is that the drag seems to slip sometimes. I may have just got a bad one or something, once I've used it long enough to take it apart and inspect it I'll know for sure. either way, if someone is looking for their first baitcaster, it's aluminum frame, really smooth, and casts pretty well.

>>2790536
Kastking is having a lot of BF deals on Amazon. I also loaded the fuck up on these Bass Jigs since they're all like 50% off
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003CTOXFY
When it comes to rods and reels though I think its better to never cheap out and to at least buy the lower priced stuff from well known brands like Daiwa and Shimano.

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I ordered a kayak so it is easier for me to fish without a huge setup time. I currently have a Helix 5 with CHIRP, and honestly it's just fine for the type of fishing I do (trolling for trout in lakes and reservoirs most of the time, sometimes jigging, and then bass fishing in the summers ), but I figured I should plan on an upgrade path since I will eventually want more.

Originally, I had been eyeing moving up to a Helix 9 or 10 for sidescan, and then eventually getting Mega Live somewhere down the line. But Humminbird just announced Mega Live 2 which will not be compatible with Helix.

I was planning on getting a new graph anyway, so it's not like it affects me that much but I feel like it's kind of a dick move by Humminbird.

So I don't need to upgrade right now, but I saw Garmin has a sale on the echomap units. I could grab an echomap unit now, enjoy garmin down imaging and sidescan in the meantime, and then add a livescope black box and transducer later on. Or I can hold out and maybe Mega Live 2 is an improvement and not have to deal with a black box a year or so from now.

What would you do in my situation?

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Caught this little dude this evening. Whoever gave me the advice on the brushhog for the Texas Rig, thanks bro. That shit worked like a charm

>>2790580
Imagine being proud of that dink. It's cool bro that you're catching fish but that's dinktastic

>>2790580
Yo that was me, congrats man. I'm actually planning on rigging one up for these ponds since the grass in them is silly right now.

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I hope I used enough flash

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>>2790637
same

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I just moved 16 miles from the gulf coast, and my uncle just bought a house in Galveston.

Can anyone get me started on a good rod / reel for surf fishing? I have a ton of freshwater stuff but I've never had this kind of access to saltwater so I don't really know where to start.

>>2790642
I am kinda in the opposite boat, I moved from the coast to freshwater, and I have had a lot of success with my saltwater gear in fresh water. A 7' medium fast action rod with a 2500/3000 size spinning reel rated for saltwater is plenty to catch most inshore gulf fish: snook, redfish, sea trout. Put some decent 25lb braid and appropriate fluoro leader, and you should see decent success. The main difference is lures, and that is dependent on the bottom. With a rocky bottom, a diving lip plug is good, but if you are going to eat what you catch, live bait is always effective. For surf fishing specifically, up that rod length and reel size. Someone else would be better suited for terminal tackle, but spoons are always good for active fishing

>>2790642
depends on the target species and the style of fishing you want to do. take a look at the okuma rockaway sp line for lighter surf duty and lures. they are really lightweight unlike most surf rods. think of them as essentially a longer version of an inshore style rod for surf use. I assume that's more what you're looking for coming from bass/freshwater fishing.
> https://okumafishingusa.com/products/rockaway-surf-sp-rods

>Store puts a combo on sale for cheaper than the reel itself is at 50% off
Cool, a free rod and some line.

>>2790641
Those jigs look good. The collar is a little heavy in my opinion but the fish should eat em.
>>2790642
Honestly a lot of your bass gear will transfer over. Penn and diawa make good rods if you really want to buy a new one, though.

>bought a baitcaster
>it was a catastrophe
why do americans like to fish this shit?

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>>2790657
>skill issue.

Just tied up a double fluke rig to go try out for the first time as soon as I'm done with work.

>>2790657
the nicer ones with better brakes are easy to use.

I'm the guy who bought the expensive euro rod last week. I am buying some line for it from Mad River Outfitters, and they have it discounted and say it is being discontinued. I received the rod and reel yesterday, and I can say that it is a very nice rod. The pieces come together nicely, but they don't have dots, which is annoying. The 3 WT has pretty good backbone. I'm going to nymph a big river at some riffles later today. I am hoping to catch something pretty big. I'll use a light leader to protect the rod, though.

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>>2790657
it's one of those things that seems hard initially, but really isn't. once you finally get it, you're like "oh, I've been doing it wrong." it honestly won't take long, like a solid handful of trips at most. set your spool tension a tiny bit tighter than you're supposed to at first, basically right at the point where the side to side play is completly gone. start with the brakes like 75% on and back them down as you can until they're like halfway. and don't try to cast anything under like 1/2oz, especially with the spool tension not having and side to side play. DO NOT try overhead casts until you've got plenty of experience. gentle side/roll casts where you load up the bait are by far the easiest. once you can side cast well and have proper loose spool tension, then you can try overhead. overhead casting with tight spool tension makes the bait crash straight to the ground a few feet out and you get a turbofucked birdsnest. lol. also helps to have good cheap line in case you really get a bad birds nest that you don't feel like picking out for an hour. yo-zuri hybrid 10-12lb 600yd spools are great. the release points of your cast and your thumb dexterity needs time to adapt no matter how good you think your thumb is working... it's not.

>>2790668
>1/2oz
this is the error...
i tried to cast 10g jigs
>yo-zuri hybrid
and this too
i have a thin braid spooled on

thank you very much

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>>2790669
on most compact baitcasters you will be able to eventually cast 10g, but it's nearing the lower limit. even the ones that can manage to cast 7g can't do it very far, and forget about casting against wind. that's why they infented super light spool models and bfs.

>>2790668
I saw that picture without looking at the file name and thought, "Is that crazy frog?"

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>>2790662
Good luck anon. I wish I was swinging flies right now instead of making chips at work
>Pic related

>>2790657
>he fell for it
enjoy your tangled spool fag
dont worry i fell for it too, i'd have fucking tossed it by now if it wasnt my only other reel

>>2790660
I fish in cramped areas with a lot of things to snag on, the thought of running two lures at the same time sounds like an absolute nightmare to me.

Is it safe to assume combos come spooled with the max test the reel is rated for? I can never tell what they have on these things.

>>2790662
I never use alignment dots even when they are present. I've always put all of my multi section rods together by looking down the eyes. Probably because my first rods didn't have dots or if they did, they weren't accurate.

>>2790711
>alignment dots
I... Anon I didn't know these were a thing, I thought everybody just
> rods together by looking down the eyes
Hell half the time I don't even look down the eyes I just get it close enough.

>>2790713
Cheap rods will have no dots, good dots or misaligned dots in about equal numbers. Mid range rods will have dots that are fairly accurate. And top end rods tend not to have dots because they assume you know how to align a rod by the time you're buying them. At least, that's been my experience.

>>2790713
>>2790714
Ive never heard of them or even thought people would need them. I have some decent $200+ rods, not ultra luxury but I doubt they have them. I wouldn't want to use them anyways, I've always aligned them after the pieces are put together at a 90 degree angle. I'd be worried about causing grooves over time, so I just twist them right after they're seated.

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>>2790724
alignment dots are just dots of paint. They are supposed to line up when the rod is put together correctly. They're outside of the part that is inserted, they're visible when assembled. They're not going to cause grooves.

>>2790660
okay this rig fucks, caught a fish on my 5th cast after I changed out to some bigger flukes. Will be using it in the future.

>>2790725
Oh no I get that, in my head I was picturing people using them to line up the rod, THEN connecting the pieces and my concern about the grooves was that over time, inserting them at the same position would cause them to form. I always just slam the rod together and adjust them by eye, so if any grooves formed they were perpendicular to the rod and not parallel.

>>2790711
>>2790713
The reason I like alignment dots is that I can put my rod together quickly and precisely.
Anyway, my preference for alignment dots may betray my retardation. Today, I broke my reel when spooling it with mono. The spool got totally fucking bent, and I don't know how. It is depressing. The manufacturer will do a free exchange for me, which is really nice.

>>2790739
If the dots are accurate, they are pretty handy. You assemble just as you describe, put them together wherever and twist them tight. But instead of looking down the eyes when you twist them, you just line up the dots. I just never use them because I've had a couple cheap rods when I was younger where you line up the dots and it's clearly not aligned properly. So I learned not to rely on them. That said, my Echo fly rods could be assembled using the dots and it would be aligned perfectly. So it's really a preference thing assuming you have accurate dot placement.

>>2790740
I've noticed that fly rods over a certain price usually don't have alignment dots. I think it's probably because people that are willing to pay that much for a rod don't need them and may even be offended that the manufacturer would assume that they might.

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>>2790745
I dont think it has anything to do with price. Ive never seen those dots before so I took out my fly rods to check, the top is a “cheap” $195 Clearwater rod and the bottom is a $650 Thomas and Thomas rod. The top has nothing. The bottom has a dot for the first piece and then just these numbers where a dot should be, and it all lines up with proper ferrule placement. I guess they think I’m an retard for spending so much on a rod.

How do I keep my lure in the strike zone at sea?

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How important is it actually to have multiple different rods for freshwater fishing? For salt I have a handful, from 7' medium light fast for inshore light softbaits to 11 foot medium heavy fast for rough surfcasting. I've gotten into freshwater more this year and have two rods, one for panfish and one for bass. I'm doing more research into different bass setups (more bass opportunities here) and it seems like people go out with like 5 rods at a time with different actions and reels of different retrieve speeds based on what they're throwing and into what cover. Do I really need so many different combos? I'm running...
>7'6" Medium Heavy Extra Fast
>Shimano Scorpion 6.2 w/30lb braid
>3/8oz-1oz
I feel like this is all around a good bass setup, from frogs to Texas rigs to spinnerbaits but the more time I spend watching different freshwater bass setups and techniques the more complicated it seems, as opposed to saltwater. Is my setup fine?

>>2790926
It's fine if you enjoy only fishing for giants I guess. Seriously the lightest lure you want to run is 3/8? It seems like you're still fishing for inshore reds to me.

Some of the funnest fishing on lakes imo is finding some juvineles and just traumatizing them. And you need to be able to cast at least 1/8 for that.

>>2790926
when i lived in the lower 48 (wisconsin to be specific) i liked having
>a super ultralight panfish rod for shitty lakes with mostly just stunted bluegill
>a light rod for bigger panfish or smaller bass or whatever
>a handful of mediumish rods for walleye or bullhead or pike or suckers
>a pair of heavy rods for large pike & walleye
>a pair of extremely heavy rods for big cats & sturgeon
excluding stuff like fly rods or tanago rods or whatever
but i would never bring more than two, maaaaybe three different categories of rod out. if you're getting that into gear you're really losing the plot in my opinion. but i never cared too much for largie fishing, i always thought it was like reeling in sticks, so i might just be ignorant

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>>2790930
>>2790931
The local ponds/lakes are full of bass, catfish and carp so I erred on the side of something sturdier even though I'm targeting bass. My panfish rod is 6' light fast 1/16oz-3/8oz. What would be a good middle-ground? Something like this? Again, this is legit the first year I've been doing conventional freshwater fishing (I've been doing freshwater fly fishing for like 10) after literally 28 of saltwater only so I'm like a fucking toddler.

>>2790936
i wouldn't worry about carp taking bass bait unless you're just tossing a nightcrawler out there. catfish also not a big threat i don't think unless they act different down there

>>2790936
Personally my heavy rod would have been a little lighter but yeah that's a good combo. You can use both rods to target different size bass if you want, or put some stink bait and a bobber on the bait caster and occupy yourself fishing for bluegill while you wait for a catfish. It's pretty close to the 2 rods I always carry.

>>2790939
>>2790940
Thanks, I'll buy that Fenwick and pair it with a Tatula I have lying around. The 3/8oz-1oz MH rod did seem a little too much but I had seen so many videos and shit about needing that action/power because of the structure and vegetation they like to hang around.

>>2790931
This. I only ever bring 1 or maybe 2 rods with me. I also have drastically downsized whatever tackle I bring with me to a couple of lures/rigs that I know I'll fish that day instead of carrying everything with me. At most a very small bag on my hip, usually an extra lure or 2 in my back pocket.

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I've figured out how to tie a flash fly In a single dubbing loop. I think my next progression is to tie it on an ewg worm hook

>>2790958
I'm good with bringing just what I need in terms of lures/softbaits, I'm just not used to freshwater and probably overthought it in terms of "I need X Action X Power with X Reel for Texas Rigged Senkos and Z Action Z Power with Z Reel for frogs." I'm reading reviews about this one >>2790936 and it seems like a good all around rod.

>>2790961
I have a Dobyn's exactly like that but 7' instead of 6'6" that's one of my most used rods. I wish I had gone with 6'6" so you'll be perfectly good with that. All my reels are Daiwa so that tatula should be a good pair for it.

>>2790926
bass fishermen are consoomers and/or wannabee pro fishermen, that's the only reason they have 10 rod layed out on the deck with minor differences. it's because their favorite pro does it and they don't realize that he gets the rods for free cause sponsorship. with that said, not every rod is great for every tactic, so having 2 or 3 is pretty normal and sane. you can eliminate the need for several rods by just keeping 2 that are more versatile instead of a really technique specific rod. for example, you can have
> a medium heavy bladed jig style rod
it will be stout but not a broomstick so you can throw big trebled hardbaits with this, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, smaller swimbaits, and probably even frog with it.
> a medium light, or even a medium that doesn't have a super fast action.
this is basically what you throw normal sized(3/16-3/8oz) trebled hardbaits on, light wire hook finesse fishing, etc on.

>>2790936
look at the TFO Professional rod. they recently redesigned them but I'm pretty sure it's still the same blanks. they are really good in terms of being a "versatile" rod instead of technique specific because they were created for inshore use and have a moderate-fast action instead of fast. they bend deep down towards the first guide if really loaded up, but without feeling sloppy and weak. I've had the medium light for years and you it's an excellent rod for both 3/16-3/8oz treble baits, and light wire hook finesse applications. although you sound more like you would like the medium instead. it would basically be perfect for 3/8-1/2oz treble baits, and you can finesse fish with beefier hooks. I've recommended it before because it's honestly an excellent rod for people who don't want to or can't afford to have a whole arsenal of technique specific rods. bonus is that it's very durable also. it's been bounced around in a kayak, on the boat floor, through the woods, you name it.

>>2790895
Experience and paying attention to how much line you have out vs the angle of the line entering the water. Wind and current mean that what you need to physically do changes constantly. Learning what your lure is doing and then reacting to that is basically all you can do.
>>2790926
Most of my open water fresh water fishing is with a Medium St Croix, either a 1 piece 7 footer or a 4 piece 6’6” rod. My second most used freshwater rod is a 4 piece, 7 foot Daiwa UL, and my third most used rod is actually technically an inshore rod, an 8 foot 1-6 oz “Medium Heavy” that I use for swim baits and gliders for big pike and muskies. I’ve caught some really large fish on the Medium though, so it’s not like you need a certain rod for a certain fish, pick a rod with a lure rating that you want to use.

In terms of spinning rods, I have a UL pack rod, 2 Ugly Stiks (Med), and a catfish rod. I'm thinking about upgrading. I could get a single or two piece UL. I could, obviously, get a better medium. However, for my first non trout / panfish upgrade, I'm thinking I could use a medium-light, something I could throw hard plastics, like Rapalas, with. Is a medium-light what I'm looking for?

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>>2790960
It's fish approved. You can really tell this scoliosis lookin ass fish is a stockie lol.

>>2791110
>using a bougie rod for bougie fish
You aren't the same Skid I grew up knowing. Didn't you used to post about stealing dinks from Florida lakes?

>>2791109
depends on the rapalas you want to throw. most medium lights are good for hardbaits around the 3/16 and 1/4oz range.even 3/8oz if it's something that doesn't have a lot of resistance when reeled underwater. for example, a 1/4oz medium or deep divink crankbait might not be heavy, but it really loads the rod up on retrieve because of the big lip. if you specifically want a rod for hardbaits with trebles, you also want something that bends deeper down the blank so fish don't throw the bait as much. you don't have to go full-blown glass composite rod like people do for crankbaits, but you damn sure don't want a really fast tip where the rest of the rod is stiff. you will pull smaller trebles from fish a lot that way. been there done that. the perfect hardbait rod has some give to it when fghting a fish. a medium light is definitely the most versatile though, because you can also fish for panfish with it. the only exception really is crappie because their mouth tears so easily, you really want a lighter rod for them.

>>2791118
This rod would be for big fish on rivers, like wipers, smallmouth, and walleye. I'm looking for something that could also throw tiny jigs for carp and buffalo but is strong enough to fight them. Thanks for the tip about not getting something that's too fast.

>>2791121
what kind of hardbaits are you throwing for those fish though? it matters more about the lures you use than the fish. any rod can reel in a big fish, you just have to set drag and play fish accordingly. having a rod that isn't paired well to the lures is where errors are made as it hurts your technique, casting distance, and ability to keep a fish pinned.

I always prefer to buy from local bait stores, but when it comes to buying online do you guys prefer to buy from the manufacturer directly or from places like Tackle Warehouse or other third party sellers?

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>>2791113
You've been gone a while huh anon
I've been fly fishing for a hella long time at this point, and stocked trout are hardly bougie.
Is Pic related better?

edit* I prefer the big online tackle stores. third party sellers often have good prices and it's conveinent but the risk is getting items that have been returned and are damaged, missing stuff, or downright used. not to mention the risk of getting a fake item. sometimes you get a good deal but I usually avoid it unless the third party seller is very reputable because the risks aren't worth it. discounttackle is my favorite for baits because they have the cheapest shipping by far at $3.99. combine that with the fact that all of their baits are like a dollar cheaper than anywhere else outside of sales and your total price will always be good. other places where the shipping is like $7-9 kind of sucks unless you're buying $50 worth of shit to qualify for free shipping. you get from where you need to if it's the only place that has it but paying more for shipping than the lure you found on sale kind of defeats the purpose. tacklewarehouse, discounttackle, tackledirect, and fishusa are probably the top that I've used. fishusa has some of the best sales on their daily deals page you will ever find, you just have to be patient and check daily for one you want. they have buy one get one on lures, buy a rod get a reel free, good shit like that. they also are a salmon and steelhead specialty store so they have some shit you won't find anywhere else. I've never had a problem with any of those stores. omnia fishing is also great but I've never ordered from them. one of the only places I've ever seen that does a rod bending test against a grid wall to show you the true bend of different rods, I just wish they had it for every rod they carried. it's mostly with certain lineups but still really cool and indepth for people with autism.
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekxEDsAzv0c

>>2791149
Yeah that's the skid I remember. Yeah I just got back into fishing due to let's just say less work opportunities. Glad to see the fishing general is still going.

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>>2790729
imagine my seething at dad's today when the donkey / double fluke rig got skunked while he's dipping 5 sacalait (crappie) straight from the bank in a row with one of his hand-tied jigs (like the kind I tie)

>>2791164
Imagine your embarrassment if your dad said something like "these ned rigs are pretty good I saw it from your cousin on Facebook"

>>2791165
nah my dad taught me how to tie jigs and he used to be on a fishing and hunting TV show (local cable) so I wasn't embarrassed but still lol.

Flysisters, I need a fly reel recommendation. Im currently using a Cheeky for my 9wt salt setup but its not the greatest. Price range is up to $500. Im looking at Nautilus and Tibor. Any experience with those?

>>2791123
I haven't thrown any hardbaits really because I can't throw them on my medium ugly stik. I have tried the floating minnow, husky jerk, flicker shad, and a small lipless. On the river, I only throw softplastic swimbaits on jig hooks.

>>2790746
i have the t&t contact ii rod. ironically enough i got it for half off thanks to a black friday glitch a couple years. whatever you do, do not break any piece of that rod. it will take them 2 months minimum to replace it. it is a fantastic rod with a surprisingly nice backbone. ive had no trouble landing fatties with it, compared to the echo shadow ii i started out with.

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>>2790662
>I'm going to nymph a big river at some riffles later today.
It’s winter. The fatties aren’t hanging out in the riffles. And they probably won’t be going out of their way for a nymph either. I was slanging streamers yesterday and provoked some incredibly violent attacks.

I recently was given an old 80s era surf rod/reel. I think the reel is garbage, it's an eagle claw Mach VI, and it is in rough shape, but the rod looks pretty good. Only issue is on the largest guide the inside is kind of dinged up, and I am trying to look how to repair it. I was thinking some epoxy resin and some sanding to get it smooth. Any ideas?

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>>2791366
Forgot Pic

>>2791255
I know what you're talking about, but this was far from trout water, and I know fish hang out there. I didn't nymph there because I broke my reel. Additionally, Kelly Galloup says trout are almost always in 1-3 ft of water all year.

>>2791367
>>2791366
You're gonna be cutting it off and replacing the guide if you want to actually fix it. Jannsnetcraft or mudhole will almost certainly have a closely matching guide. You could replace all of them.if you wanted to make them.properly match.

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>>2791372
Do you mind saying where? I’m just curious. And yeah, I failed to mention, the browns in my stream are somewhat more active right now post spawn, but it is getting cold.. by Christmas, the only way I’ll have any luck is tossing tiny nymphs and maybe animating them a little bit. I like to dangle 18-20s underneath a pheasant tail soft hackle during that time. And man, Galloup is the best, I had no clue about streamer fishing but ended up buying his fly line just because everything he says makes sense. His tying videos are fantastic too. Do you use any of his patterns?

>>2791397
I was fishing in Iowa City beneath some train tracks that are frequently filmed by a local YouTuber named Backroads Angling. He's a nice guy; you should sub. I was throwing a Crush City missile on a hook that was too small, but I got some good bites in freezing weather. I intend on euro nymphing that spot as soon as I can get a functional rig. I would like to try catching some big rough fish, but crappie would be fine too. Then, I will drive a couple hours to fish it on trout water.

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>>2791444
Jig streamers euronymph well, and you can make small crawdad flies that euro nicely too.

>Bought new trout rod and reel
>Stopped going trout fishing before I even bought it
I don't know what's with me. It's my first light action rod, you can still get decent hook set for a bass on that right?

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>>2791516
Skid, spoonfeed me something I can tie with these materials. Looking up the names of fly patterns makes me queasy.

>>2791653
just use light wire hooks. owner mosquito light is what I use for dropshots. they are very thin and stupid sharp. owner also has the j-light for a weedless worm/flue hook but I haven't tried them all of my best bass have actually been on my light rod.

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>>2791653
oh and now you have an excuse to buy a bunch of small hardbaits in the 1/16-1/8oz range. I catch endless 3-4 pounders on tiny hard baits in the warm months, not to mention big bluegill and white bass

>>2791661
Not skid but you can spin some deer hair poppers if you have heavy thread

>>2791661
Spinning deer hair is cool
Muddler minnows, wooly sculpins, bass poppers, Goddard caddis, irresistible Adam's, bombers, elk hair caddis, sex dungeon, spook fly, stuff like that.

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>tfw thinking of moving to a coastal city just so i can saltwater fish whenever i want
talk me out of it

>>2791444
thanks for the rec. i will tune in.

>>2791772
Do it

I love when people just leave broken off lures in easy to reach places. got a nice topwater popper with expensive aftermarket single hooks on them, didn't even have to work hard to get it. that's like $10 lure for free that I won't have to buy with my own money. clean up the environment, potentially saving an animal, and getting free tackle. I haven't bought a float in like 10 years because I find 5+ every time I go out in my kayak.

>>2791810
There are several entire nests of lures that would be really easy to reach from a kayak or even a tube, but for some reason all the people kayaking in the area haven't been collecting them.

I saw several BRAND NEW lures looks like they got lost on the first cast but they were out of reach, months later they're still there they're just weathered now.

Personally, I found a weird promo popper from some "airestech", a few frogs and plenty of jigs in good condition this year.

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>>2789429
Why is fishing so hard in winter bros? I've been skunked twice in a row now. In November I was catching 6 bass per day.

East Texas by the way

>>2791811
Most people are the same regardless of if they're bank fishing, in a kayak, or on a boat... lazy and careless. Most of the lures I find aren't even easy to get just because I'm in a kayak, they are within reach from the bank, or close enough where you can step in like 1ft of water to get it. That's just how people are. I'm gonna make me a pole to carry around on my kayak where I can attach my knife to the end of it quickly. Then I can stand up and reach the ones dangling up in the trees by line that I normally can't reach. Finding a good lure is always as exciting as catching a nice fish, but I even carry a large ziplock bag for all the trash ones and line/floats I find. It takes 30 seconds to get them but most people would rather just leave them there.

>>2791818
less shallow fish.

>>2791825
Would it be better with a boat?

>>2791827
yes but only if you have a fish finder or a viewable chart online somewhere showing the depth contours so you can narrow it down. it can be like finding a needle in a haystack in large bodies of water. you can get skunked in a boat just as easily if you aren't fishing the right areas.

>>2791831
You can fish deep just fine without a fish finder, I've done it my entire life. Caught my personal record 10 foot sturgeon in a cheap aluminum boat with a motor that barely worked using a dead fish I took from a seagull as bait. Fish finders are if you want to go out and catch as many fish as possible in the middle of winter for some reason.

>>2791818
Take the troutpill anon, they love cold weather I can still sight fish them in my area.

>>2791832
I'm just saying that you can get skunked with a boat, and even with a fish finder. If you don't know what areas to fish deep, you're just playing the lottery... especially depending on the target species. There are online maps for popular lakes though and you can study them to choose areas that are more productive.

Ice is gonna be walkable by this weekend!

I can’t wait, fucking Snapchat has been taunting me with my old ice fishing pictures as suggested memories for months.

>>2792064
I don't like ice fishing. It's cold, wet, boring, and snow gets everywhere.

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>>2792101

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>>2792103
Got some free flies from someone yesterday. Very nice of the guy who gave them to me. My store got a bunch of fishing tackle yesterday.

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>>2792064
I'm so fucking excited. I look forward to ice all year.

>>2792152
A fishe/human hybrid?

flysisters, what the fuck are tube flies?

>>2792178
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tube_fly
You don't have to blow me. I already have someone to do that, but if you really want to, go ahead.

Turns out dinky bass will take little red gulp angle worms. Color me surprised.

>>2790216
Post more cat.

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I finally decided to order some Owner 1X Strong single hooks to try. They are really the only option you have when it comes to small sizes unless you order jdm bfs specific hooks. They actually turned out to be nearly perfect for small hardbaits. Probably just slightly thicker wire than jdm bfs offerings, but still acceptably thin wire. They also have a very small micro barb like I was hoping. Just enough to not lose as many fish as barbless, but easily unhooked with no damage. That's my review for anyone thinking about an easy to find single hook replacement for trebles. That's a Rapala ULM04 on the bottom right for size reference.

Today I caught a cutbow trout. They're neat.

Snell knots on 2lb line and small hooks are a lot harder to tie than I anticipated, I might actually start pre tying at home like an old man, feels bad.

>>2792275
you have to keep a pair of jewelers glasses in your tacklebox.

>>2792277
Nah, just clamp a loupe between your cheek and brow like an old timey forgeries specialist.

>>2792277
>>2792283
It isn't the visibility that gets me, it's keeping the line tight enough to tie a good snell without it sliding between my fingers or snapping. Doing that out in the cold was a pain.

>>2792275
Forceps can help, they make it way easier to hold the hook. Also what in gods name are you doing with 2lb line
>>2792178
It's a fly that's tied on a little plastic or metal tube. It's rigged like a through line swimbait where you thread tippet or leader through the fly and then affix a hook (usually an undressed and unbait3d hook) directly to your line. I mostly use tube fly stuff to tie extended body musky flies. Gunnar brammer has a video about it. I think it's called the build a beast fleye

>>2792285
>Also what in gods name are you doing with 2lb line
4lb mainline 2lb lead for trout tripfriend.

Micro fishing yes or no?

>>2792291
yes

>>2792291
no

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>FLASHCHANGER
I used an ENTIRE HANK of flashabou on this fly. Started with a brand new, unopened pack. I ran out, so I finished the fly with a brown head.
>Pic related
>>2792289
I don't even use 2lb on #20 midges, i use #4, even on my 2 weight. I mean if it works, go for it, but I'd run straight 4 right to the hook personally.
>>2792291
Yes

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>>2792325
I also hid a tungsten scud weight in it.

>>2792325
>I mean if it works, go for it
I'm using it on one rod when I fish clear water, the other us using 8lb down to 4lb for fishing deeper or in weedier areas. So far I'm not a fan of trying to remove hooks with 2lb line, fish keep snapping them off while thrashing in the net and I have to retie.

go catch some fish

>>2792377
>Lakes are frozen over
>But not thick enough to walk on
How do you expect me to do that?

Is there a secret santa this year?

>>2792384
crawl slowly

>>2792358
I think you'll be fine with 4lb, even in the clear water.
>>2792395
I sure hope so

>>2792414
I emailed the dude who organized it before. I can't logistics that shit myself.
Also you had me for the secret santa a few years back and I ain't catch shit on what you sent me.

>>2792433
What did I send you?

>>2792440
Some big saltwater lures with the price tags still attached lol. I don't blame you though.

>>2792486
The big flutter spoons? Regardless sorry you've not gotten anything on em, if we do.seceet Santa again ill try to do better

>>2790231
Good idea. What line size and rod cast best?. What color TRD? I think the Ticklerz will crush too

I'd be in for secret santa. It'll be post-Christmas, given how late we are starting, but it should be fun.

>>2792500
Ah I'm just ribbin' ya bud.

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Mid 20s rainbow on a musky lure lmao (jointed shad x rap 13 in hot head) 30lb high vis braid mainline and and 3 foot 25lb mono leader

whats your guys preferred method of handling the fish you intend to keep? planning on actually taking something home tomorrow and im curious what you guys prefer. i was told the brain bonk was the best thing to do but i'm not sure

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>>2792771
>>2792699
Stab brain, jank knife around until spasms stop, slit gills while some semblance of blood pressure remains, put corpse on ice
>Pic seni related
That fish had eaten 16 shad and a cigar cigarillo tip and still wanted to eat a 5+ inch goldfish

If the pond I'm fishing has rainbow trout, and it has cutbow trout, it should have cutthroat trout right?

I have caught about 80% cutbows and 20% rainbows where I've been going the past few months, but I haven't caught a single cut throat, is it possible there's just generations of cutbows and no cutthroats left?

>>2792853
>it should have cutthroat trout right?
Not if the cutbows were stocked and not natural

>>2792880
My state claims it clips all stocked fish, and nothing I've caught there has been clipped so I have been presuming they're wild. People also keep telling me it's bad fishing and they never catch anything there.

>>2792777
wtf is it American or something?

>family i work with has several quality and obviously not in use rods sitting in their garage
Do you think the mom will deem it unprofessional if I offer to buy them? They're borderline hoarders and I know for a fact no one in that house uses the rods. My ultimate goal is to get them for free, but I think offering to pay will set a better precedent. I'm absolutely desperate to replace my memecaster rig

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>>2792699
Very nice fish, congratulations.

>>2792771
I just bonk, then rinse the blood out of the fillets at home. Never noticed a difference with bleeding it at the site of the kill so I save the hassle.

>>2792942
I can't imagine you're in a highly professional line of work if you're in a hoarder house so I would say there's probably a decent way to broach it. If they're real hoarders though they know every scrap of garbage in that house and they won't be keen to let it go so I'd ask once then move on if they say no

>>2792893
Does your state clip all stockers or only anadromous stockers? Here in CA they only clip the adipose fin of stocker rainbows going into anadromous waters to prevent the take of natural born ocean bound steelhead.

Also, it's my understanding that cutthroat are a sub species of rainbow. Are you sure all your cuts were cutbows? It can be difficult to tell depending on the starting stock. I'm in norcal where cuts and bows originated. The McCloud is only 45min drive from my house.

>>2793008
Yeah every source I've found says my state clips the adipose of all stocked trout, there is a small population of westslope cutthroats around my area but they shouldn't be in this pond.

Also I actually thought they were ALL rainbows at first until I noticed throat marks in some of the pictures, then went and caught another "rainbow" with throat marks.

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>>2793080
Marks related they're pretty faint on all of them.

Anyways, hopefully I'll find a pure cutthroat or catch that brown trout that's been taunting me.

>>2792952
I am tired af and need to put in an order for some amnesia mono and fly tying materials from Mad River Outfitters tomorrow. What are some general materials and patterns you'd recommend? I was planning on tying jig leeches, krystal buggers, and zebra midges, but I recently came into a large quantity of zebra midges. Maybe the hare's ear or pheasant tail would be good substitutes. I love pink squirrels but already have a bunch.

>>2793090
Soft hackles are fun and versatile, and zonked variants can by tied in a variety of variations. I like to use ice dub instead of that tubing for the body, and in so doing can tie them on jig hooks, standard hooks, bead head, cone head, lead eyes, weightless, any colour combo I like, and they do a great job imitating leeches and minnows.

Got a jar of gulp leeches and they didn't really work out when I tried them. But that was just once. Anyone know if they work?

>>2793200
I've never used the jar ones, but the bag ones work good.

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>>2793090
I don't know shit from fuck. I've just got a ton of deer hair from a bunch of failed attempts to tan a deer hide and a bunch of squirrel tails from taking my infant son hunting, plus I'm literally buzzing waiting for the lakes to freeze so I'm just dressing up all my jigs while I wait

What's a good light spinning rod for around $100?

>>2793246
How do you fail to tan a hide
Scrape it and slop some brains on there

>>2793277
for what kind of fishing? hardbaits? jigs? or a little bit of everything?

>>2793200
idk what the difference is between Gulp, Gulp Alive, Gulp in a bag, Gulp in a jar, etc... but the gulp in the bags works very well. I've used both the sandworms and the minnows. they stink like shit though.

>>2793306
Mainly I want to throw tiny jigs or even tiny Texas rigs. I wouldn't mind if it could throw flies but I've never done that and that would just be a bonus. The light I have just isn't responsive enough for tiny stuff. Mainly I want to catch panfish with it, or an occasional small bass.

>>2793350
What do you mean "not responsive enough?" too floppy? too stiff? this line has lots of options. I'd probably choose a 1 piece 6'6 UL .
> https://tforods.com/product/trout-panfish-ii/

anybody know a good porgy jig? i can’t hook them up they come off way too easily

>>2793308
Most of the gulp stuff I've tried is in a jar and works really well. That's why I'm confused.
>>2793224
Never used the bag ones myself.

i use the gulp in the bag (sandworms and shrimp) works extremely well for gilthead seabreams and euro seabass

>>2792064
Maine here, had some fishable ice the past week or so, this storm is going to probably fuck it all up tonight.

Borrowed someone else's gear last year, dropped some coin on my own stuff this year...really fucking excited. Got some nice Jack Traps and a fancy electric Auger.

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>>2793599
Were getting some cold coming through, everything in southern Ontario is frozen but not solid enough to walk on. Getting very excited.

Made a quick and dirty ice rod from a driveway marker. I've got a bunch in different colors and thicknesses. If this one survives I might make a few more. Ice rods seem to be the last place anyone tolerates solid fiberglass anymore.

I will never understand ice fishing. As a bank fisherman too cheap to even buy a kayak I get wanting to reach deeper and farther out. But after you buy the tent and the stove and drill and the rubber pads and the cots if you don't camp with those already isn't it more than a john boat?

>>2793719
A used boat can be as cheap as $100. A coracle can be made from a tarp and a bunch of willow branches.
But a manual ice auger can be had for $50, and if you've got good cold weather clothes, all you need is a small ice rod, a manual auger, and some jigs. I've icefished without an auger too, with just an ice chisel for cutting holes (protip, spend $50).

But even if you want a hut, heater, chair, and power auger, you're still probably going to spend less than the $800 one of those Pond Prowler plastic jon boats does.

I'm not counting electronics, they are just as necessary for ice fishing as they are for open water fishing, with the possible exception of a camera, which is useful for ice fishing but almost completely pointless for open water fishing

>>2793719
And the other half of it is, what the fuck am I going to do all winter if I don't ice fish? I like snowmobiling, but it's pretty punishing to spend 4-6 hours a day all winter sledding, but I can drink beer and ice crappies essentially indefinitely without discomfort.

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>>2793719
You can poorfag it in ice fishing in way better ways.

Historically ice fishing gear has always been very homemade. Most of why I love ice fishing is that you can build the things you need with essentially garbage. An axe to cut a hole and a line with a hook is all you need everything past that is gravy.

Casting is irrelevant so rods can be way more basic than open water rods.

You have free instant spot lock, good luck keeping your jon boat right at the edge of a weed bed or watching a single fish come up to take your bait either on sonar or through a big hole in the ice.

Also if you have big water near you, it's accessible in all weather. Big lakes like Simcoe are nearly inaccessible in bad weather with small craft, no big deal with ice you're still just walking on a solid surface.

Ice fucking rocks you should try it.

>>2793719
>hand auger, $50
>tungsten ice jigs, $10
>wax worms, $2
>ice rod, $20
>ice spikes, $10
>total investment: $102

>>2793355
>too floppy
Don't worry about it. It can happen to the best of us after too much booze.

>>2793781
Hand auger is all you really need, my dad and uncles spent 5 years living in magadan oblast and they told me they would use sticks with line and a normal hook with either frozen fat or worms as bait and it worked

Where can I see photos of hot women fishing?

>>2793864
Where do you live / fish?

>>2793865
Internet
>>2793861
You don't have to worry about that if you're a bottom

>>2793908
You do actually, you just don't have any control over the situation.

>>2793908
lol

Is there something I can buy in a supermarket that is a decent replacement for a live worm? I just can't be bothered to go to a bait shop or catch/farm them myself and don't want to pay to order them online.

>>2794058
Gummy worms.

>>2794058
Buy frozen smelt or shrimp. Cut frozen squid into strips. Grocery store bait is very underused.

>>2794058
Hotdogs work for catfish. Corn works for carp. But live worms are good for everything. Could just get some bait from Wal-Mart if you have one.

>>2794102
>frozen shrimp
does this work on freshwater fish too?

>>2794143
I use shrimp, squid, and mackerel as bait in fresh water all the time. It's often more effective than dead shiners. Once caught a burbot that coughed up like 3 cocktail shrimp.

>>2794058
How could a baitshop be out of the way for you? Many gas stations carry bait.

>>2794155
yuropoor

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Feel like a doofus having my first ice fishing trip of the year be on almost 5 inches of ice

>>2794210
is it cold? how do you keep warm?

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>>2794221
It’s 24°F and sleeting. I am wearing a heavy jacket, a bomber hat, insulated bibs, and winter boots.
So far everything’s been a dink. Have a tiny walleye.

>>2794210
>>2794233
I'm jealous

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>>2794210
Fuuuuck

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>>2794242
Two eyes and a dozen or so dink perch. The better eye was legal, but barely and I don’t keep littles on that lake, so I tossed him back.

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got him
timing is really everything
fished that spot a thousands times but nothing
today half a hour before sunrise and he bit

>>2794143
trouts are loving these so much that our club forbade to fish shrimps on a jig hook

>>2794301
looks like he got you. Congrats though, anon. Where are you from, Austria?

>>2794301
Awesome fish!

>>2792777
Checked and mirin' catch. That was one hungry chonk. Can't wait to catch a giant rainbow one day...

>Stab brain, jank knife around until spasms stop, slit gills while some semblance of blood pressure remains, put corpse on ice

Based, pretty much ikejime without the spine flossing.

>>2794301
well done anon, that's a great fish

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what do you guys think about this stuff? I was fly fishing for pike yesterday at my club lake and tried it for the first time and I fucking hate it
if you tangle it up even once it holds the memory so tightly you may as well swap out and put a new length on, it sits like a pig's tail in front of the fly underwater once it's kinked so it spooks the fish
unless there's something I'm doing wrong I'm just going to stick with wire traces from now on as they're less rage inducing but I'd like to hear what you lot think about it

>>2794473
I am faithful to nylon, I don't even like braided, imagine steel... that material must sunk so fast

>>2794473
I.like the rio and partridge knotable wire. They can kink and lose their nylon coating to teeth but the fish don't care and as long as it's not rusted or frayed neither should you

>>2794301
Looks tasty.

>>2794384
thank you
i am from bavaria, germany
>>2794450
>>2794472
thank you
>>2794552
too rare to kill

>>2794553
>i am from bavaria, germany
what part approximately?
I didn't know we still had any Huchen in Bavaria.
t. Munichanon

>>2794473
>>2794526
I bought some knottable wire and don't like the kinks. You could just buy some of those camp things instead of tying knots. Tie off to a tippet ring or swivel at one end and swivel and/or a clip at the other.

>>2794562
I don't have kink issues tying uniknots or double surgeons knots, and I can just tie knots instead of having to buy snaps, tippet rings, cramps, crimp pliers, etc. I tie about a foot of leader to each fly individually then I change flies with a loop to loop connection, it's super slick and i can make new leaders in the boat with just some medical scissors to cut the wire, and the wire.

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>>2789429
pic related uploaded for your entertainment. gotta be one of the ugliest, most shitty streamers uploaded here to date. personally, fit’s the first one I have attempted. excited to report back to see if this piece of shit will catch a fish lel.

hey any of you lot pickle suckers? like red horse?
any recipes or tips?
or smoke em even?
Can you smoke sucker?

>>2794661
Smoked is the only way I've had them, I use alder. It's good.

>>2794562
>>2794589
it's not the knot tying that's a problem for me with making kinks, it's just that if you fuck up a cast and end up with your fly wrapped around the rod then the wire holds a curl like a pig's tail and it's practically impossible to straighten it out
i'll just stick to wire traces personally. I can see the authanic wire being useful in bait fishing where the line isn't being cast so often and the line is under constant tension when you're waiting for a bite but it's shit for fly fishing because the kinks make it hard to feel for a bite

>>2794657
Fish will take anything.

>>2794589
>I don't have kink issues tying uniknots or double surgeons knots
Says the guy into pup play. I haven't tied many metal leaders, but I did only use uni, and the material was the second best knottable wire there is.
P.S. Do puppists, pups, or whatever wear dog collars with owner information? How about HIV status? Furthermore, does a free roaming dog, like a farm dog, need to get clearance from his master before having sex?
I can imagine an HIV lawsuit in this realm. "No, your honor. He made two negative barks to my question. He was denying his HIV status, not affirming it. Everyone knows "arr arr" is negative and "arr arr" is positive. Can't you tell the difference?"

>>2794663
hungry for smoked fish now
with beer

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This thread isn't as dark as I thought it would be. Hopefully the epoxy darkens it some.
>>2794705
Awhuff uwu
>>2794675
I'm not too worried about those personally. Sometimes it seems like they give the fly more action.

Tism and fly fishing are connected. Imagine my lack of surprise.

Autism and 4chan use are also related, what's your point, autist

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Behind the counter at the fly shop. Check out the fish and hook snowflake.

>>2794724
neat

>>2794712
Smoked suckers with pickled beets, rye crisps, olives and gin martini

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>>2794661
This was my first year taking part in sucker harvest. I brined and hot smoked 3 in the "classic" style where you split them next to the ribcage leaving the belly holding the 2 sides together, bones and skin on. Bones are still a pain in the ass but super delicious, like bologne. I ran one through the meat grinder to crunch y bones then mixed it with cream cheese and dill, made an incredible dip.

I just can't get into pickled fish.

I want to try pressure canning apparently that works for bones, too.

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My new spinning rod is currently spinning

>>2794884
Nice!
I've got a couple blanks I need to get done, but my rotissery needs parts and I've been procrastinating,

>>2794724
I used to be a NEET. I had plenty of time to fish, but now, I'm stuck behind the register of a sporting goods store. Of all the wagie jobs, this isn't the worst, but my health has backslid and I have less freetime. On relatively warm days, I'm stuck inside, and it sucks. On the other hand, I felt like I was plateauing in my fishing, which was virtually my only hobby. I tried tons of new spots and had to resort to long road trips. Fishing for pond bass and bluegill no longer gets me off. I need to catch bigger, freakier fish in order to nut. Thus, my concern is that, for me, fishing may not be fishing so much as it is the pursuit of novelty. My adult life has been entirely defined by the pursuit of novelty and the absence of greater meaning. The great thing about fishing is that in one activity and a single outting, I can relax, be thrilled, and forget everything. I can't think of anything else that can achieve the same thing.

>>2794589
>kink issues
Lmfao

>>2794724
Actually kinda cool.

I still haven't figured out a good glove system. I'm wearing normal gloves for casting and handling stuff in general and I wear thick skiing mittens while waiting and not doing anything.
But I need some gloves for handling fish and dirty bait. Last time I just took off my gloves to do this, but I think I almost got frostbite from this. I'm thinking some neoprene diving gloves might work for this. Does anyone do this?

>>2794943
They're not great, I don't really use them anymore. Not warm enough on their own when sitting and not enough flexibility for bait/fucking with line. Someone on this board recommended wearing nitrile gloves under your warm gloves and I've started doing that, it does seem to help a bit

>>2794983
That was probably me.
>>2794943
I wear nitrile gloves under regular mechanics wear fastfits down to about 5 below (Fahrenheit). When I am doing a wet task (grabbing minnows, unhooking fish, etc) or tying a knot or something that requires good tactile control, I strip off my fastfits and just wear the nitriles. Below -5°f, I’m doing basically the same thing but I have choppers over the fastfits.


This does get the fastfits all gross, especially if I’m catching pike, but IDK, I’m not actually touching them, the nitriles are.

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was bored, made a literal spoon lure with some things I had in my box, gonna try it out this weekend on the delta and either lose it on the first cast or not hook shit because I'm a newb that doesn't understand fish
or I'll probably catch yellow catfish. you could use a piece of underwear and those bastards would eat it like it's a gourmet meal

>>2794997
That's how they started making em.

>>2795010
I'm aware. but in modern times there's plenty of research on how the fish identify "food" or "fucking annoyance" that makes them bite the lures that resulted in products that will rile up them animals with good odds.

I'll try to show any results after the trip

>>2795016
It will eventually work. Hope you have fun.

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>>2795022
thanks. last weekrnd a couple friends and I managed to squeeze some night fishing time in between house mainenance and we caught two yellow catfish, a male and a female, and a shiddy silver fish, both commonly used as bait for bigger fish

>>2795024
Catfish looks cool.

I've never fished and live in Seattle. My biggest interest is flyfishing for trout in small lakes up in the cascades. I'm thinking of a cheap tenkara rod to start with. Does that sound reasonable?

>>2795131
Ffs do not buy a weeb stick buy a real fly rod especially if you're doing anything other than small creeks but even if you're doing small creeks don't get a weeb stick.

Also the weeb stick is a pole, not a rod.

>>2795131
Don't even bother with that retarded shit. If I were you I wouldn't even get a fly rod. A cheap spinning rod and 4lb with some #10 Aberdeen or a few flies is more than enough. Worms are free.

how do you swing streamers the right way with a sinking line? the line is black, so I can’t really see what it’s doing.

>>2795131
From personal experience, tenkara rods are extremely limited! I can do everything I can do with my tenkara rod with my traditional fly rod better and easier. Tenkara is also not very good for still water. Flies require the water movement to provide action or for you to provide the action by stripping in line. As the line on a tenkara rod is fixed, you can't strip it and still water doesn't provide it any movement, so unless you get a very curious fish willing to surface for something on the surface that isn't moving.....you see where I'm going? They work pretty well in smaller creeks but you'll still be limited to where you can actually reach unless you plan on wading. The biggest hurdle for me was the initial cost of a setup not made in China. But if that's not a concern for you, maxxcatch and SF are not bad and not that expensive. The SF kit I bought for my bro in law for Christmas feels surprisingly nice! Rod, reel, line, leaders, flies and a fly box, nippers and a zinger and forceps all for under $100.

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Test drove my new rod last night. I like it.
>>2795225
You have to match sink rate to water conditions, cast down and across, I like to cast more across than down, mend if need be. Come tight, and lead your flies through. Sometimes you only lead s little, sometimes you lead a whole bunch. One think you can do is point the rod at the fly, pull back a foot keeping the rod pointed at the fly, and use how fast it comes tight to judge how fast your presentation is going and if you're still swinging or hanging down. Mostly just send it.

>>2794839
>I ran one through the meat grinder to crunch y bones then mixed it with cream cheese and dill, made an incredible dip.
this idea intrigues me

>>2795146
>>2795169
>>2795241

Thanks for the advice, I will not be going the Tenkara route. I'm happy to start with the cheap Chinese option. Would a 9' long 5/6wt medium action rod be a reasonable choice to start with?

>>2795273
9" 5wt is a pretty common first fly rod. I personally prefer a faster action, I like medium/fast. But that may be because I started out in spinning and bait caster rods. I just find the faster action easier to cast. But you're supposed to have more sensitivity with a medium action rod. I'd wait for skid to chime in with a more experienced opinion though.

>>2795277
Skid hates 5WTs. I haven't fished alpine lakes, so it's a question of 4WT or 6WT. I'd lean towards 4.

>>2795262
thanks man. how long are your streamer leaders? also, is it normal to tie up streamers and add weight with lead? i am using a 250 grain line but not once did the streamer touch bottom (not that I wanted that to happen, it was l surprising).

>>2795286
nta, Mine are usually 6-9 feet long of 6-8lb fluoro. Only put split shots on if there is nasty wind or something.

>>2795286
>how long are your streamer leaders
On a sinking line, 3-6 feet
>250 grain line
What is the sink rate? I use 6ips most but also have intermediate and 3ips stuff for carrying scenarios
>weighted streamers
Very common; cone head flies, lead eye flies, bead head eyes, lead wire wraps, I've even put splitshot in front of streamers to help them sink. You shouldn't be dragging bottom but you should occasionally bump something every couple of casts.
>>2795282
>>2795277
I usually tell people to get a 6bweight because it has more casting power but a 4 weight is better for smaller fish

I tried euro nymphing for the first time a couple days ago. Casting was hard af. It's completely different but also not very castable in general. A friend gave me a new fly he came up with tied on a plastic version of a 1/32 jig hook, so it didn't even weigh 1/32. It casted amazingly well. I don't have the lengths of leader and tippet figured out yet because I'm still trying to figure out the mechanics of casting, but I am quite pleased that I'm getting into building my own leader. That was something I wanted to do to save money, although that is no longer relevant at the moment.
If there are any fly anglers or potential fly anglers in or near the Driftless Area, let me know because I'd like to invite you to come to what is promising to be an excellent conference.