salmo
Advisory Board
Posts: 1,814
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Post by salmo on Oct 27, 2007 6:22:14 GMT
What are your priorities for the close season.
OK for some it will be throw all the gear into the garage or spare room, and forget about it until next year. For many it is a good time to go through all the gear so that they are ready for 2008.
Just to get kicked off I start by inspecting my waders. In season I use them 3 or 4 days a week so there is rarely time to wash dry and clean them in season. This year I got the tiniest of leaks on a leg seam. I wear microfleece in summer under my goretex waders so a small leak is hardly noticeable in warm weather. I decided I would ignore it while the weather is good and wait for stormy weather or the close season before I put them out of action and fiddle about with repairs.
Anyhow, I never got around to it so now it is my first priority. I would appreciate feedback on everyone’s favorite methods for inspecting and repairing waders?
salmo
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Post by Roobarb on Oct 27, 2007 9:06:02 GMT
What are your priorities for the close season. Decorating apparently...
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lamson
Active Member
Posts: 429
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Post by lamson on Oct 27, 2007 9:10:46 GMT
In theory decorating , but I do tend to listen to a lot of music in the off season . Steve
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hornet
Active Member
Posts: 1,120
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Post by hornet on Oct 27, 2007 11:32:05 GMT
Aye, She has me painting. (Today) I will need to track down a new pair of waders, Sort out all my flies and tackle bag. Clean all my lines, Get out the trout gear and have a few rainbow and grayling days ;D. Then look forward to the start of the new season ;D. Still to figure out where i'm starting though . Cheers Hornet
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Post by speyblair on Oct 27, 2007 22:09:23 GMT
1-tieing flies 2-working in the chipper 3-keeping the girl friend happy, (with wages from the chipper!!! ) 4- shooting pheasants, rabbits, woodcock etc 5-working on the bike 6-school (perhaps)
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Post by castelforte on Oct 28, 2007 11:35:34 GMT
Hobbies Tying flies - my fly tying is limited to a few favorites. I have Mikael Frodins DVD so I will be studying that. The step by steps are really great so maybe I will give me some a try.
Reading some fishing books. I always read Crawford Little's 'Success with Salmon' in the winter. He has a lot of simple advice.
Housekeeping
Cleaning reels - I inspect all of my reels and makes ure there is no grit. I take the spools out and rinse the reels in fresh water and let them dry out. Re-apply a tiny amount of grease. Not sure whether they really need greasing sometimes though.
Cleaning rod rings - I should do this every week but when swapping between my different rods I often forget. I found out that using baby wipes is great for getting rid of grime. Pass the wipes through each ring. I often find you can cast a slicker line.
Cleaning line - again I should probably do this more often. It definitely seems to help casting. I always use baby wipes. One of my pals uses silicone spray that is sold for waterproofing gear. I tried this on a 5 year old cortland spey line after cleaning and it really went out through the rod like nuts off a shovel. I believe it added 3 yards or more to the cast.
Line and Loop Integrity
I left this until the end but this is probably the most important clos season job.
Checking all my loops. Check all the braided loops sometimes the superglue dabs become embrittled especially if you bash a few cliff faces. Replace loops or repair. Add a couple of nail knot back ups with 12kg maxima.
Check all fly lines for nicks. It does not always weaken them if the strength is all in the core but I do not like the look of them and it seems that water can enter the line and affect the density.
I find the fine end of the taper next to the braided loop is a place where this can happen. Maybe my loops are too heavy?
CF
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Speyducer
Advisory Board
Release to spawn another day
Posts: 4,123
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Post by Speyducer on Oct 28, 2007 11:47:30 GMT
Some good thoughts there, CF, which will serve well as a 'to do' list for myself as well.
I also like to re-organise my flies / fly boxes, as I always seem to have too many on the riverbank, and some of the more recent patterns will take a new order of precedence.
Checking the waders, although I know what I will find with my older pair of Simms & they will be consigned to low water / summer fishing methinks.
Re-soling a pair of Simms boots.
Re-filling leader spools from the large capacity bulk spools.
Checking hooks, discarding bent or deformed hooks, and refilling the hook container.
Checking the nets, and odds & ends for the riverside.
Listing items that may need replacing that I wish to or need to update, been putting off through fishing.
Selecting any tackle that is superfluous to requirements, and set about the classifieds to sell some perhaps.
Mike
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conwyrod
Advisory Board
Autumn on the Conwy
Posts: 4,659
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Post by conwyrod on Oct 28, 2007 12:17:24 GMT
HobbiesCheck all fly lines for nicks. It does not always weaken them if the strength is all in the core but I do not like the look of them and it seems that water can enter the line and affect the density. [glow=red,2,300]I find the fine end of the taper next to the braided loop is a place where this can happen. Maybe my loops are too heavy?[/glow] CF I've replaced 2 braided loops on my Ian Gordon floater because the fly line coating has "cracked". I've not had this problem on other lines. Good point about checking and replacing loops in the close season - can be a chore when like me you have 4 different multi-tip lines.
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Post by salmonking on Oct 28, 2007 17:38:13 GMT
Busy working,,,making as much money as i possibly can,,started working weekends again,,,,while waiting for rain,,,so work with an in between Kenyan holiday before the 2008 season.
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Post by robmason on Oct 28, 2007 19:11:46 GMT
Painting, cleaning, joinery, more cleaning, hanging curtain rails etc etc. Spending far too much money on builders. My season came to an abrupt end on Sept 4th when the builder told me we had a river under the house. So much for a bit of rising damp. Since then, and 6 weeks of building work later, I've found plenty of odd jobs to keep me going through winter. Looking forward to some action next year. Three days being lined up for March up north. I shall have to keep my eyes peeled for some cheap B&B!
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Post by sinkingtip on Oct 28, 2007 19:18:43 GMT
Painting, cleaning, joinery, more cleaning, hanging curtain rails etc etc. Spending far too much money on builders. My season came to an abrupt end on Sept 4th when the builder told me we had a river under the house. So much for a bit of rising damp. Since then, and 6 weeks of building work later, I've found plenty of odd jobs to keep me going through winter. Looking forward to some action next year. Three days being lined up for March up north. I shall have to keep my eyes peeled for some cheap B&B! Hi Rob - I suggest you keep that quiet. The builder wasn't salmonking by any chance ? Some guy's will do anything to get on a bit of 'private water'.
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hornet
Active Member
Posts: 1,120
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Post by hornet on Oct 28, 2007 19:24:28 GMT
Stp,
;D ;D ;D ;D
Hornet
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Post by castelforte on Oct 28, 2007 19:45:01 GMT
Painting, cleaning, joinery, more cleaning, hanging curtain rails etc etc. Spending far too much money on builders. My season came to an abrupt end on Sept 4th when the builder told me we had a river under the house. So much for a bit of rising damp. Since then, and 6 weeks of building work later, I've found plenty of odd jobs to keep me going through winter. Looking forward to some action next year. Three days being lined up for March up north. I shall have to keep my eyes peeled for some cheap B&B! Hi Rob - I suggest you keep that quiet. The builder wasn't salmonking by any chance ? Some guy's will do anything to get on a bit of 'private water'. Most people dream of a house on the river ;D ;D CF
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Post by sinkingtip on Oct 28, 2007 20:11:54 GMT
Hi Rob - I suggest you keep that quiet. The builder wasn't salmonking by any chance ? Some guy's will do anything to get on a bit of 'private water'. Most people dream of a house on the river ;D ;D CF Your right CF - "on the river" - not "under" it
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Post by robmason on Oct 28, 2007 22:00:17 GMT
Even so I could time share it off to pay for the work. ;D
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Post by shedhed on Oct 29, 2007 17:38:05 GMT
Learn to tie then tie some flies. Get some overtime in and save for some that extra 'essential' kit. It's 'essential' as far as the Lovely Kay is concerned Also save for and book some tuition and stop talking/reading/dreaming about it and get out there and do it for real on a more regular basis. ;D On the domestic front, all decorating and building work is done. But I'm sure jobs will be miraculously appear.
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