plankton

I definitely feel that some shimanos are overpriced, but the TLD series are some of the best value for dollar reels available.

Can't go wrong with the TLD's, great reels and you definitely won't be disappointed, but if your looking to run braid and you're going to use a 15kg rod I'm assuming that you will be running 15kg braid and both the TLD 25 and 30 (same reel other than the two-speed option) will hold a ridiculous amount of 15kg braid, they'll even hold a ridiculous amount of 24kg braid. You might look at one of the smaller Saltist reels, perhaps the 30, and there are good options from Avet/Black Magic or Shimano as well.

Here's what I do when I put braid on a threadline reel. Get a nice thick phone book, like the Adelaide yellow pages, place it on a kitchen chair so it overhangs the edge a bit, put the spool on the ground underneath the phone book and run the line between the pages somewhere in the middle, then place some weight on the book(I use a plano box full off heavy jigs and add/remove more if necessary), position yourself in a chair far enough away so the line comes out of the other end of the phone book and can be threaded through the entire length of the rod your reel is on, tie the line to the spoo

What kind of braid are you using? The rounder a braid is the less likely it is that it will dig in. Also, when you load up a reel with braid you need to put it on with as much tension as you possibly can, a tightly packed spool of braid will not dig in. Hope this helped.

Has anyone else seen the really slick commercial that one airs, lots of shots of good fish and it ends with the slogan "fishing lives here". As far as I know they only broadcast one fishing show, ifish on Sunday (which wasn't even on this week because of a stupid nascar rain delay) and I think they show it again at 5am one day during the week. Am I mistaken, have I missed some of their other fishing programs, are they planning on featuring more? Not sure you can claim to be the home of fishing when out of a week of programming you show one hour's worth. Crappy channel 31 has way more fishi

TLD's are great reels, but like CK said, whether it's the right reel depends on how you plan on putting it to use.

Thanks pwilly, karma for you. I know the spot but never knew the name. Hope they finish with the road work soon as it's a bit inconvenient trying to hit different spots along the river right now.

I've read the reference to Perry's Bend a lot on here, which bend might that be?

I like to use 65 and 80mm Squidgy Wriglers and the 3" Gulp prawns and grubs. Jig head size will vary depending on how much the water is moving, you basically want the lure to flutter down to the bottom not drop like a rock, I think I end up using a 1.5 gram head a lot in the Onk. For bream and mullies work the sp slow bouncing it along the bottom through holes and near structure. I haven't tried any hard bodies yet, too expensive in my opinion, and sp's work great any way.

Yeah, I was a bit shocked when Paul said "I'll just grab the tail", a brave move even with the fish being fairly knackered.

Not in my experience. What are you worried is going to happen?

I prefer the twisted dropper for smaller line/fish, say up to 20 pound line for things like salmon or snapper, but for bigger stuff (mullies, rays, sharks) I think you're better off with either a three-way or a running paternoster rig - you can use a brass ring or a swivel on your main line above the swivel that attaches to your trace, and remember to use lighter line for the sinker lead so if it gets snagged it will bust off and you'll get the rest of your rig back.

Does anyone know of a shop in the metro area that sells eagle claw lazer sharp circle sea hooks? Thanks ;D

Sounds good to me, I'm pretty new to footy but it looks like good fun, and I need something to replace my beloved gridiron. Count me in!

Best mono to braid connection is gotten by tying a bimini to make a double in your braid and then using an albright to attach your leader. The exception to this is when using light, thin braid (10 lb or less) the double of the bimini has a tendency to do the wind knot thing around your guides, to prevent this I've been using the slim beauty knot lately and it's been working well, much better than uni to uni. A good alternative to the bimini is to use a spider hitch, the bimini can be tough to tie, although I use a method a mate back in the states taught me where you don't have to use your kn

Yeah, I was the other guy. Figures that spot produced, I didn't even get the rod out, just wanted to take a look as I'd never been there before, went home to bacon and eggs instead, next time I'll take a few casts!! :-[

That was me Micky, wish I'd had one with me, but you can bet I put one in my bag when I got home today!! Next time I see you I'll have to introduce myself, I met Samboman today as well, he saw the strikehook sticker on my car and said hay, good to meet some local guys out on the water. 8)

Thanks for the info guys, probably would have figured it out the first time I caught one, but it's nice to know what to expect beforehand.

Thanks guys. Luke, what about that pic with you holding up the eaglie, aren't you putting yourself in harms way there? Sorry if these are dumb questions, but better safe than sorry.

That's what I figured, be too easy for people to claim they just "found" the 50 undersized crabs in their bucket. I guess I can always just chuck em back in the water as berley, it certainly couldn't hurt my chances. Cheers.

Pumpkinseed from Long Pond in Belgrade Maine, USA. I was probably about 8 years old on a trip with my dad and his workmates. We started making that trip every year after that and my mates back over there are still going. Great lake for smallmouth bass and northern pike if you ever find yourself in the area! http://www.fishyorkepeninsula.com/images/attachments/ywum0G2d__pumpkinseed.jpg[/img]

Reading another thread about eaglies got me thinking about this, what are the safety precations you can take to avoid being hit by a ray you've caught. The other thread mentioned standing in the right spot to avoid the tail/barb, could someone explain how to do this? Also, when it comes to wading, I've read that shuffling your feet as you move through the water will help keep you from stepping on a ray and getting barbed, has anyone used this method, does it work? Has anyone tried the ray-guard wading boots? Any help is greatly appreciated guys, I've never caught rays before, don't really

Hey guys, I was walking along one of the metro beaches today at low tide and noticed a fair amount of small sand crabs washed up on the shore dead, some the birds had found already but many they had not. It got me wondering, what are the legalities of picking them up and using as bait/berley right there off the beach. I would imagine, technicaly, being in "possesion" of undersized crabs I would be breaking the law, but they're already dead and just lying there. Is there an allowance in the fisheries regs for this sort of thing? Any input would be appreciated.

love the one with the school of fish swimming past,thanks for sharing!

If you're ok at casting overheads then you should have no problem controling the reel, they're great casters. If you're using mono and casting big baits/heavy weight off the beach your thumb might get a bit scorched when you get that spool really moving as the TLD's don't have a spool flange like an Abu 7000 or Daiwa Sealine X to rest your thumb on, but you'll get used to it after a bit. An outstanding boat reel for live or dead baits, the lever drag makes things so much easier.