Wayupnorth36

Has anyone tried inert welding gas instead of Bloxygen? I have a tank full of CO2 and Argon gas for my MIG welder. I haven't refilled it in about 6 years or so, but at that time, it wasn't very expensive, 30 bucks or so, i think. Anyhow, if i ever get the chance to try it myself, i'll report back, but that won't happen anytime soon, i just moved, stuff is packed, etc... Just curious. Alex

I use aspen and birch a lot for musky lures. There's enough waste wood in the forests that I just set some aside a year in advance for it to dry, or sometimes stumble onto a piece that's dry enough to use as is. Key word for me is FREE.

I experimented with this a while back, and did a lot of reading. Those recycling numbers are the key to which kind of cup to use and what to use to dissolve them. Here is a link to a web page that explains the recycling numbers... PLASTIC RECYCLING NUMBERS Here is a link to a page I found listing all sorts of plastic and their resistance levels to different chemicals, including all of the common solvents, acetone, toluene, mineral spirits, etc.. http://www.labcon.com/Media/crchart.pdf This oughta speed up your experiments a bit. Alex

Trout were hitting pretty good on a little stream in the UP, and I was down to my last Royal Coachman fly, cuz there are lots of snags, so I go through a few flies. Anyhow, I cast about 6 inches too far, hooked a log, decided to wade out and get it. The water was clear, looked to be about 4 feet deep, so i'd be getting close to the tops of the waders, but not quite. Stepped off a sand ledge into about 8 ft of water (I'm guessing... I never did touch bottom!) and came up sputtering and floating hatless downstream. I stuck the cork handle of the rod between my teeth and sidestroked for shore, with 20-30 gallons of water in my waders. sadly, not the first time I've swam that way. Alex

Try skunk tail for black. The natural black is great, obviously, and the hair is so long that you can use it for anything. Alex

There are a couple of guys on here who have used it before, try a search for it, I know I came up with a few things when i read up on it a few months ago. Alex

Jamie That rack idea sounds awesome, but I can't quite picture it. Have you posted any pics of it, or would you mind? Alex

a hand full of dog food works for bait in the minnow trap as well

They're awful cannibalistic! When I keep them in the winter through the ice I always look in their bellies, and they eat a LOT of their own. I think i see as much pike in a pike's belly as i do anything else, at least 1 out of 3.

I have made many sinking lures, though they are always large musky lures 5" in length or more. I have never added any weight, except that of the hooks and hardware. I use a denser wood (oak or maple around here) which still floats. Just put a few more coats of clear on, a good heavy thick epoxy like etex. I simply take the same bait that works as a floating bait and add a couple more coats of etex. Nothing radical. You wouldn't even know the difference just by looking. I haven't experimented with smaller baits, so maybe this only works on larger ones because the mass of the epoxy is enough to overcome the buoyancy. If absolutely necessary, add a small amount of lead at approximately the "pivot point" in the bait, if that makes sense, the point of the bait that moves side to side the least in the natural course of the bait's action. Hope this helps. Might just be a fluke that it works for me, i haven't had enough years of experience to know for sure, so it might just have been luck, but it has been consistent. Good luck Alex

Vodkaman, your idea intrigues me. I checked on a google search, but couldn't find much, except to buy them in bulk and from China. They would probably be ideal, though, if you can get your hands on them.

Got any duck shot lying around? I use steel pellets in mine, with brass or aluminum tubing (optional, just amplifies the sound a little) alex

i haven't had any problems yet with GOOD ziploc bags

"(stole one of my wife's make-up brushes booo ha ha)" I love this site.