I learned my lesson

[M Michael Meyer]

I am still new to this stuff. I learned a couple of lessons yesterday.

First, we were fishing in the B&R flats yesterday morning. My wife paddled into a small cove where she saw tailing reds. Nothing on topwaters. Switched to GULP and bam! It was the biggest red she ever hooked. She fought it around the boat and back again. She was just getting ready to ease up on the drag and let the thing pull drag so she wouldn't lose it. Kaboom. The knot holding the leader to the monofilament let loose - and you know the rest of the story.

About 30 minutes later I hooked a nice red on GULP. When I had rigged this particular GULP (a 4" shrimp) I got lazy. I did not have the hook coming through the bottom and out in the midline of the top. Instead, the hook came out the side of the bait and laid flush against the side. I was tired and it was let and I thought, "What the hell. I'm not going to catch anything anyway." Well, I did, for about two minutes. Then the damn thing shook the hook. Next time I will make sure the bait is rigged properly everytime.

[JimBeaux]

Been there, done that. Just like everyone else in the world.

“For the want of a nail the shoe was lost,
For the want of a shoe the horse was lost,
For the want of a horse the rider was lost,
For the want of a rider the battle was lost,
For the want of a battle the kingdom was lost,
And all for the want of a horseshoe-nail.”
Benjamin Franklin

[EZ-E]

Not sure what knot your using but i have never had a Palomar knot fail.

http://www.animatedknots.com/palomar/in ... dknots.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[TroutSupport.com]

I lost a fish recently because I didn't use my 'readers' to tie the knot with, thought I'd just do it by feel.. LOL. It happens to the best of us. But yea, generally, if there is a weak connection in the chain, then the fish will find it.

I'd actually think your sideways rigged gulp was ok. sounds like you didn't get a good hookset somehow is all... or the fish just shook it loose. it happens... go hook another one.

have fun.

[M Michael Meyer]

I lost a fish recently because I didn't use my 'readers' to tie the knot with, thought I'd just do it by feel.. LOL. It happens to the best of us. But yea, generally, if there is a weak connection in the chain, then the fish will find it.

I'd actually think your sideways rigged gulp was ok. sounds like you didn't get a good hookset somehow is all... or the fish just shook it loose. it happens... go hook another one.

have fun.

Its a hoot. Even when I catch nothing. It is one of the few times in my life when I am not thinking about practicing law. Plus I have a wife who loves to fish as much, if not more, than I do. Her first Christmas present for me (41 years ago) was a Zebco 808 reel and a rod. I did not even ask for that. She said she knew if she bought me a rod and reel I would take her fishing.

[Yaklash]

One thing I learned long ago is, if you have never lost a fish, you probably haven't hooked that many to begin with. And lessons learned thru lost fish tend to be well learned lessons.

I set my drag light enough that sometimes a little will come off the reel when I set the hook. Then, the closer a fish gets to me as I'm fighting it, the more I will slightly lessen the drag even more.

Orientation of the plastic on a jig-head (sideways or whatever) shouldn't have any effect on the hook-set.

The Palomar knot is a great knot - pound for pound, one of the top 2 or 3 (depending on who you're talking to), but I don't think it's possible to use one for tying a leader to a main line.