12 Volt Man

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.

well, I have caught pretty much everything in the lake off this pier at one time or another: carp pike trout (brown and rainbows, although the rainbow was never landed. long distance release lol) smallmouth sheephead white bass salmon in the fall sometimes the action is slow, other times it can be good. My father, my uncle and I caught 2 browns and 2 sheephead one time in the span of 15 minutes - had to go due to rain, but boy, did it turn them ON! you just never know.

yeah, they are ugly, but they fight pretty hard.

caught and released this bruiser this evening. almost swallowed my rapala whole.

my Sage FLi 5 wt. fly rod (model is no longer made) is currently in washington for warranty replacement. butt section got knocked by a car door and broke the top section of it..

very nice setup

good stuff. I took a fly tying course with Grindstone Angling in Waterdown when I started fly fishing 10 years ago. tying flies is surprisingly easy - you can tie any fly in the world using the same 4 basic steps (whip finish, pinch technique etc) that a good fly instructor will teach you. the course I took was two nights. it was well done. the amazing flies you see are done by creative and talented people..but the basic steps they use to make the fly are the same. the best advice to give on fly casting is to practice practice and more practice. I do a lot of trout fishing, so I use a 5 weight rod and reel. for a more all purpose rod I would go with a 6 weight. you can cast poppers for bass a bit easier with a rod like this. Also, although a fly outfit can be expensive, try not to go too cheap. a better rod will make learing to cast easier and help with casting with wind present, which there always is LOL.

thanks for the input everyone!

make him some morning french toast: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4ZXRlcoEW8

Shimano purchased G. Loomis in 1997. their quality has not suffered one bit in the last 13 years. if anything, Loomis rods have improved by a whole lot, mainly because Shimano left the company alone. the only thing that they did that pissed people off was made the availablity of rod blanks for rod builders a lot less available. that was the one complaint that I have heard many times over the years since the buy out. "my fav. rod blank isn't available anymore.." I have a few Loomis rods, the SJR782 in GL3 is the best overall spinning rod I have ever used. its awesome. I find my self reaching for that rod more than any other in my arsenal back when G. Loomis Canada had a plant in Mount Hope, I had to use the warranty for a broken rod. I got a brand new baitcasting rod for $60. a new one would have been 4 times that much. however, now that G. Loomis Canada has apparently closed down that plant, I am not sure how the warranty will work in Canada as all Loomis rods are now G. Loomis USA rods. the one I got from basspro a few years ago says 'usa' on the rod decal.. probably just means you have to ship it down to the states for warranty issues. A real pain in the ass now that Loomis Canada is not around.. or are they? can anyone explain what happened?

Hello all. well, that time has come when I want to upgrade my older stradic to a new spinner. I was looking at the Shimano Sustain 2500 FE reel. I know this isn't a cheap reel, so I was looking for experiences from those that have it or have fished with it. any insight would be greatly appreciated! thanks -12 Volt

I have. but it was in Loch Ness. oh wait. that was something different. haha