Ainsley

I got my first dobyns rod last season and have been trying to swap out my existing rods to them since. Started with a dx744c which I use for spinner baits, jigs and soft swimbaits. Up next was a dx743c, an amazing rod for senkos and other plastics. Near the end of the season I picked up a champion 702c and 765c for dropshot/finesse and flipping/pitching respectively. Haven't had a chance to use them yet. Next up is a champion 765cb glass to replace my similar Powell for deep cranks and a 704cb graphite for jerkbaits, topwaters, and shallow cranks. What does everyone else use and what do they think of them?

Once it's cleaned up I like to use some dielectric grease on it.

I picked up a dobyns champion 765 flipping stick for 150 off the classifieds at the end of last season. Haven't had a chance to use it but I have been happy with all my dobyns rods so far. Something to look at.

I always used to use snaps an hated the r-bend spinners. Now that I tie direct and keep a dedicated s-bait rod all I use is r-bend. My most used are war eagle, booyah, and Stanley.

I just got a flipping stick at the end of the season but I plan on putting my curado E7 on it. I decided on a dobyns champion 765c and it seems like a very nice rod. The chronarch D7 or core 100mg7 would be my top choices but availability and price (respectively) are limiting factors.

Very nice! That would make some sweet knife handles. Do you ever work with desert ironwood burl or cocobolo?

I'd suggest checking out the bark river Canadian special I've had many fixed blade knives and I also make my own, the Canadian special is my all time fav. It looks a bit odd to some people but it really feels like an extension of your hand. Another model to look at is the aurora. Are you located close to Niagara? If so you could check mine out in person. Another note about the bark river knives is the huge variety of handle materials available. Everything from durable G10 and micarta to beautiful exotic woods like desert ironwood ( my fav) Good luck with your search.

For trout I use inline spinners like mepps, panther Martin, and blue fox or spoons like Those from Cleo, Williams, or my fav: EGB. DEpending on the time of year you can straight cast and retrieve or troll them either by themselves or on a 3-way rig with the appropriate weight.

I don't have any experience with dressing a deer but I do know a good bit about knives. One of my favourite production brands is Bark River. Their website sucks tho, best bet is here: http://www.dlttrading.com/bark-river-knives.html My personal favourites are the Canadian Special and Lil Canadian. I should add that I make my own knives now from O1 tool steel.

What material do you use? Balsa?

I use a curado 300e on a st. Croix LTB 7'9" swimbait rod for the time being. The price was too good to pass up on such a nice rod and it does the job

Great tips so far, so I'll add a small one. I tend to give them a slight twitch as soon as they hit the water to get the blades spinning. I throw mine on a baitcaster so when I thumb the spool at the end of the cast I do the twitch then turn the handle to engage the gearing.

On Monday I had great luck with wacky senkos in green pumpkin, beavers and flappin hogs in the thick stuff durring the morning then spinnerbaits in the afternoon.

I was eyeing those tecotas earlier in the week. I'd prefer the line counter though. I also was going to get some rapala clackin cranks, had good luck with the 74 size this year

I'd have to keep my dobyns champion extreme 744c with the shimano Antares AR. great combo that I usually use for jigs and spinnerbaits but handles most baits quite well.

I went to UWO for a few years and would fish the Thames a few times a week in the summer. My favorite stretch was from downstream of the Richmond bridge to Adelaide. Caught alot of different fish in there.

Let me add another recommendation for the shimano curado E series. They can be hard to find now but keep checking kijiji and other online classifieds. I have the entire line up of E series reels and the 200E7 is the best general purpose reel. For a rod I'd suggest a shimano calus, compre or a st. Croix premier. 7' is the way to go, Infact my past two rods were 7'4" one piece. The extra length really helps make longer casts in open water.

I grew up fishing baptiste every summer. My dad worked at a camp in the north east end as a kid too. Didn't get a chance to get up there this year tho as my son was just born in July.

Pretty nice rods. Haven't used one on the water but they seemed tip heavy in the store. For a step up from that the avid series is very nice. My brother has one and I prefer it to my older shimano crucial. That said, all my new rods have been dobyns.

Not fishing related but check out the rapids between rock and pen when the weather is nice. Really neat spot.

My first Algonquin trip was to Booth lake. We stayed on the island in the West end of the lake. Caught quite a few bass along the shore there. This was before I started targeting trout up there so I don't know how they are in booth Good luck!

If you decide not to go with a larger shop size comp I'd highly suggest going with a makita. I have the smaller of the three and its great for running nailers. I've even done some painting with a HVLP spray gun on a small repair on my old truck. The oiled compressor is much quieter than the oil-less I've heard and after about 5+ years I haven't had any problems. That being said I'd love a nice two stage 220V oiled comp on a big tank for the shop.

I've made the trip up from Niagara falls a couple times to check it out. I really like the selection and how helpful and friendly the staff are.

I've come to prefer the rebel pop-r to my hulapoppers. I've found replacement skirts at some tackle shops.

I've been going to baptiste every year with my dad and brother. We target bass and do well with topwaters, cranks and jerkbaits. We occasionally troll the deep part of the lake and have picked up some big eyes.