John Merwin

Major Tackle Manufacturers Moving Out of China

Dave_Maccar — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 12:19:49 -0500

by John Merwin

Let’s talk about China, Inc.. If you’ve bought much low- to medium-priced fishing tackle lately, chances are it was made in China. That country’s manufacturing capacity and sophistication have grown enormously in recent years, which combined with relatively cheap, skilled labor made it a logical source for many global tackle brands. But now that appears to be changing.

Not that Chinese-made tackle is about to disappear. It’s a very big industry there, and the Chinese fishing-trade expo--called “China Fish”--is a huge international deal.

But consider this current headline from the European fishing-trade journal Angling International: “Giants Accelerate Move out of China.” Rapala, for example, is moving some lure manufacturing along with some VMC hook operations from China to Batam, Indonesia.

Boat Drain Plugs: The Root of All Evil?

Sarah Smith — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 13:36:07 -0500

by John Merwin

This is a drain plug. When removed from the bottom of your boat’s transom, water drains out. When inserted in the transom, it prevents water from coming back in. Sounds pretty simple, and maybe that’s why a drain plug is truly The Root Of All Evil.

There are lots of boating checklists out there. “Install drain plug” is usually the first item. Sometimes second and third, too. You just can’t remind yourself enough. There are many horror stories about this. More than once I have gotten the boat partly off the trailer and noticed water pouring in the back. Gee, where’s that water coming from? Drain plug! Oh, no. I forgot.

So I crank the boat back on the trailer, pull up in the parking lot to let the water run out, and then search for the drain plug so I can install it. I keep several extra of these inexpensive plugs in the truck and the boat, so the search won’t be too difficult.

Falling Into The Water While Fishing

Sarah Smith — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:02:02 -0500

I got to thinking about falling in this morning. That is, taking an accidental dunking while fishing. This photo reminded me, being the time my good wife took a tumble as we fished a North Country trout river.

She saw me grab my camera as she was changing into dry clothes at streamside. Already annoyed at getting soaked, she was furious at the prospect of pictures. So she hid chastely behind the door of our truck to finish the job.

All of which reminds me of another falling-in yarn, this time while bass fishing in Florida.

Once in a great while, I or another staff member has to go fishing or hunting to schmooze with advertising clients. This particular trip was at Bienville Plantation in northwest Florida, a private-lake nirvana (think phosphate pits). Anyway, the prospective client was in the front of the bass boat, ahead of our guide--while I sat in the back--dutifully hoping the client would catch a big one.

Do You Treat Your Reel As Well As You Treat Your Gun?

Sarah Smith — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 09:16:00 -0400

About a month ago, I wrote about the necessity of maintaining and servicing your fishing reels. Some readers noted doing a lousy job of tackle maintenance while at the same time taking meticulous care of their firearms.

That brings up an obvious question: Why is this so? Or what’s the difference? Seems to me that if you’re going to make the effort to keep a prized rifle or shotgun in top shape, then you might lavish the same attention on a nice, quality reel--be it fly, spin or baitcasting.

Guns and reels both perform better with appropriate care. But somehow guns are often seen as treasured heirlooms while various tackle items are usually not. Historically, it’s an attitude that goes back a long way, which I learned as the former director of a flyfishing museum and often went through boxes of old, usually neglected fishing stuff.

Despite Pockets of Abundance, Bass Numbers Are Down, 2012 Rules May Change

Sarah Smith — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:51:44 -0400

by John Merwin

There’s good news and bad news on the striped-bass front these days. Both the good and the bad will almost certainly be hotly argued as usual when the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) meets November 8th in Boston to consider changes in striper-fishing rules for 2012.

First, the good news. Young Of The Year surveys of juvenile stripers in Chesapeake Bay were announced last week to show spawning success at near-record levels in 2011. Most stripers appearing along the Northeast coast in spring, summer, and fall come from the Chesapeake, mixing with smaller numbers from other spawning areas such as the Hudson and Delaware rivers. This year, apparently, environmental conditions such as water levels and temperatures were ideal for spawning. So in 4 or 5 years, I and millions of others should start catching fish from the big 2011 year class of striped bass.

Review: 5 New Flashlights For Anglers

Dave_Maccar — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 14:41:00 -0400

by John Merwin

Flashlights. Everybody needs at least one and--most often--more than one, each light suited to a particular task. In my case, that includes tying on a fly or lure after dark, finding my way through the alder tangles back to my truck, and illuminating the area around a camp stove so I can have dinner.

I recently had the chance to test five new-for-2012 flashlights, a couple of which are truly outstanding. Fortunately, my neighbors didn’t call the cops despite seeing all the odd-looking activity in my yard after dark. I am thus still free to report the following.

1. The PolyTac 90 LED is a small (4.1 ounces, 5.22 inches high) right-angled light that puts out a whopping 170 lumens at its highest setting with 3 hours and 45 minutes run time. On the lowest-output setting, the two 3-volt lithium batteries are said to last for 30 hours. An attached belt clip plus a hanging carabiner give various attachment options. At $85, it’s nice, but pricey. From streamlight.com.

Sharpen Your Fishing Hooks

Sarah Smith — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 10:11:04 -0400

by John Merwin

I was rummaging around in some tackle bags last night, looking for lures that I’ll use for a saltwater trip next week. There were some oldies but goodies-- ancient Kastmaster and Hopkins tins, for example-- that are great producers but need work. So it’s time to sharpen some hooks.

Hook sharpening is probably the single most neglected thing in all of fishing. It’s true that the latest generations of chemically sharpened hooks don’t need touching up, especially in smaller sizes, but older hooks do, along with larger trebles and the big hooks on larger streamer flies. The easiest way is to use the Donmar-style sharpener shown in the photo. (As far as I can tell, the company doesn’t have a website, but you can find the product at various online retail-tackle outlets.)

Why You Must Maintain Your Tackle

Dave_Maccar — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 11:00:26 -0400

by John Merwin

The wages of my fishing-tackle sin have come home to roost. Thinking about an upcoming saltwater trip to the Rhode Island shore, I pulled a favorite wide-spool baitcaster off the shelf. Bad, John. Very bad.

The reel suffers mightily from corrosion and accumulated grit. All the cleaning and maintenance I should have done last fall or winter somehow got put off. Just as such things always seem to get put off. But I want to use the reel in a couple of weeks, so now I've got to do it.

It’s a classic case of a fishing writer’s “do what I say; not what I do.” I mean, how many times have I preached about taking good care of good tackle?

Cooking Walleye in Northwestern Ontario

Sarah Smith — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:29:01 -0400

by John Merwin

There seems to have been a lot of outdoor fish cookery around the F&S website of late, most recently at The Wild Chef blog last Friday. Just so the likes of David Draper and Colin Kearns don’t get to hog it all, I’ll use this photo to point out that we here at The Honest Angler blog are holding up our end, too. Yes, that’s a pan of sizzling, fresh walleye fillets, flanked by a pan of potatoes and onions.

The location was a remote walleye lake in northwestern Ontario, where F&S Deputy Editor Dave Hurteau and I formulated a delightfully self-indulgent daily fishing plan. Fish in the morning with jigs tipped by live minnows or Gulp! baits. By late morning, we inevitably had enough fillet-size walleyes for a generous lunch. So then we’d head back to camp to make up that day’s main meal.

delancy_shad

Sarah Smith — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 12:02:23 -0400