12 Volt Man

very nice!

And why has no one commented on the carp hitting a rapala dive-to lure?

because it happens occasionally.

I have been fishing at Bronte with a friend of mine who caught and landed a big carp that ate his rattlin rapala like popcorn. right in the side of the mouth.

I have caught and landed them on a normal jig with a mr. twister tail on the back, same thing.

sometimes, they do chase down and eat lures and jigs.

just not very often.

I too am addicted to high end tackle.

I have a Shimano Sustain on a G. Loomis GL3 rod. thats almost $600 for the combo...

is it a status symbol? I don't think so. other than a few hardcore tackle folks like us most people have no idea what stuff costs or its reputation for quality.

but it is totally awesome to fish with!

exactly. to me, it looks 25 pounds at best. big fish, but not 51 pounds. I have caught legit 30 pounders (out of Lake Ontario) and they loo notably bigger than the fish in the pic..

I really don't understand how people will line up forever to save a few dollars filling up, when the HST, starting tonight at midnight, is here for good.

or, at least for a few years.

I'd rather spend that time fishing

it sucks, and we are all stuck with it

small world. I am a wastewater treatment plant operator

not to worry. they stock tilapia in parts of florida to help control hydrilla weed and in the lake near my families ex holiday home near tampa, they had hundreds of fish die from the cold winter they had two years ago.

if a cold mid latitude florida winter canl kill them, they don't stand a chance in ours

^

absolutely. its possible that the fish was ordered in by an aquarium hobbyist, but much more likely he came from a supermarket where someone tried to 'rescue' the poor fish..some people are like that. they go into the supermarket and 'feel bad' for the trout and tilapia in the live tanks and think they have to save them..and the fish ends up in a river or lake somewhere. doomed to die in our cold canadian waters.

I have caught them in Florida too.

that fish was probably from a supermarket. they are available live all the time.

I am an avid aquarium enthusiast, and I have never seen that species of tilapia for sale at any of the shops in the GTA ever.

other species of tilapia yes, but not that one. they aren't really popular in the hobby because other species of tilapia are much more colourful.

very nice. next time release those guys right next to bronte pier when I am fishing there..LOL

yup. thats me

see, age can be part of the picture as lakes will naturally progress through the stages (called succession) without any human influence.

a new lake starts out deep and cold

over thousands of years, sediment from rivers and streams fills it up

makes it shallower, which allows for plants to grow on the bottom and still get sunlight

over time, plants increase oxygen levels, plankton begin to flourish, fish feed on plankton etc.

the lake becomes very productive in terms of plants and animals even though it started off with nothing.

however, given that this is the 2000's, few lakes are free from human impacts. agricultural runoff adds nitrogen and phosphorus into lakes which causes them to become eutrophic very quickly (compared to the amount of time it would take with no human influence).

I took a course in freshwater biology at university (a long time ago now though lol) so I remember a lot of this stuff.

biologists classify lakes as being eutrophic or not based on their nitrogen to phosphorus ratio. so they really don't care about the age of the lake.

georgian bay would probably be considered mesotrophic.

basically, oligotrophic lakes are new lakes (formed usually from the gouging out of the canadian sheild by the glaciers)

they will be cold, clear, often deep not much weed growth (eg. Lake Muskoka)

Mesotrophic lakes are 'middle age lakes' that have a good amount of weed growth, and are quite productive in terms of plants/fish etc.

eutrophic lakes are the oldest lakes, where they are extremely thick with vegetation algae etc. and are often shallow from millions of years of sediment deposits.

I don't think we have any true eutrophic lakes around Ontario.

keep in mind that nutrient run off can cause a lake to become eutrophic, as it results in excess algea/plant growth.

but this is different than the natural progression of lakes over thousands of years.. its whats known as 'cultural eutrophication"

wow awesome!

there is a lot of debate about the warranties on expensive rods and whether or not that coverage should be included in the price.

some say, drop the price by $100, and if I break it or have an accident I pay full price for a new one.

others say keep the price elevated, and if I have an accident with the rod, let me pay 75 dollars or whatever for a new one.

personally, when I buy an expensive rod (not very often lol) I buy it for the characteristics of the rod, not the warranty.

the high end Loomis's and St. Croix that I have fished with have been a joy to fish with. light, well balanced (you can fish all day and not have a sore arm), sensitive, cast a quarter mile and have the power to get a great hookset, yet are not too stiff.

the fact that they may also have a lifetime warranty is just gravy IMO.

the thing is, crap happens. I have never broken a rod while fishing (<touches wood>) but have had a rod break to a slammed car door once.

you can be extra careful with your equipment and sometimes, well, crap happens.

so sometimes having a good warranty is a very good thing. but there are some who would rather not pay for this cost included upfront in a new rod.

the debate will never end..

picked up a new Sustain 3000 from Fishingworld today. it is sweet! can't wait to get it out on the water.

in before the HST too! haha

I think part of the problem is that even though each manufacturer's warranty is stated, it is not always applied the same way.

for example, back when G. Loomis Canada had the Mount Hope plant, I had an IMX MBR783 baitcasting rod (a $300 rod at the time from LeBaron's) that had broken near the tip. I called them, arranged to bring it to them, and they had a brand new one there waiting for me for $60.

$60 for a new $300 rod. I was happy.

Now, here is the thing:

if you talk to other people who had had to use G. Loomis's warranty, they will tell you it sucks, was not honoured, they got shafted etc etc etc.

now, keep in mind that this rod had a true lifetime warranty, not a "limited" one.

still, you hear stories of people getting screwed.

I think that depending on which company rep you talk to, your experience can differ.

Probably the same with Shimano, St. Croix etc.

Personally, if I am going to spend $200+ on new rod, its going to be a Loomis or a St. Croix.

^

correct. and I stand corrected as I was posting as if the rod had a true lifetime warranty (eg. the sage rod I mentioned) vs a limited lifetime warranty that only covers manufacturer defects in the rod.

sorry for your rod breakage.

I don't think you should give up easily.

go over to Tackletour.com, register on the forum and post a message on the Shimano product support forum. there is a Shimano Rep that posts daily (user named Bantam1) that may be able to help you.

if that doesn't work, see if you can contact a supervisor and explain your situation. a lifetime warranty on an expensive rod should carry more weight than this.

there is no reason why they can't use a current equivelent priced rod and go from there.

thats disappointing.

the fact that they do not make the rod anymore is meaningless as most companies will use the equivelent price point rod in their lineup (in this case, the Crucial) as a suitable replacement.

my Sage fly rod is in washington right now under warranty work thanks to a car door . the bottom butt section broke and they are custom building me a new bottom section, and this rod they don't make anymore either. but they are going to make one for a small charge which is significantly less than the price of a brand new Sage rod.. thats what a lifetime warranty should be..

IMO, they should have been able to do more for you. the V-rods were not cheap when they first came out. they were an expensive rod and part of that initial cost was the great warranty.

it sucks that they go back on their word. what are they? politicians?

someone mentioned Loomis and I have to agree: their ultralight rods are AMAZING.

I have the SR841-2 IMX, which is a 2 peice 7 foot UL rod from their trout and panfish series and it is incredible.

above there is a discussion about inexpensive vs expensive UL setups, and I have to admit:

I have cast this one side by side with an inexpensive Quantum UL rod (5'6") and the difference is like night and day.

it cast way farther, and its not 'whippy' like many UL rods out there.

but don't get me wrong: it is truly UL power.

the only problem with a rod like this is that it is expensive.

but then I have always managed to justify the cost for nice tackle by the amount that I fish.

most of us fish often enough to make it well worth the investment for great equipment.

yeah, so the rod cost $200 and the reel $150... but if you use it all the time, its totally worth it.

<at least thats what I tell myself haha>

even if you have never cast a baitcasting reel, don't worry.

its easy with a bit of practice. before you know it you will be casting better than Roland Martin..

I love throwing rapala X-raps (the 1/4 oz size) and the X-rap Shad's (5/16th size) with a 6'6" fast action medium power spinning rod, with 8 pound test monofilament.

I really like the G. Loomis SJR782 in GL3 or the St. Croix Avid 66MF rod. both are awesome for jerkbaits and rapalas. The St. Croix is a bit beefier than the Loomis between these two rods. I use a 2500 size spinning reel.

if you move up to heavier baits, you want heavier line, personally if I am going over 8 pound mono, I use a baitcaster.

spinning just doesn't handle the heavier monofilament lines as well once you get up to 10 and 12 IMO.. although if you use braid you might be fine. I am still stuck in the stoneage and use plain ol' Berkely Trilene XL haha

definately a reaction. a bacterial infection would not take effect that quickly. see a doctor. you will probaby be tested (skin tested) and may have to carry an Epipen in the future. I have to have one for a shellfish allergy.

benydril works well as a quick fix, but you should get looked at by a doctor for sure.

long time tropical fishkeeper here..have almost 300g of water in my fishroom lol.

part of the confusion may result from the fact that a popular sportfish in South Florida that was introduced from south america is the 'peacock bass' which is not actually a bass at all, but a south american cichlid (latin name Cichla Ocellaris). you see guys catching them on tv all the time these days. great fish.