05-24-2004, 03:17 PM
[cool][blue][size 1]Hey WOLFRAD, now you're gettin' serious. Gars? I have really never gone after them on purpose, while fishing from a tube. My mama drowned all the foolish kids. I would especially not want to be connected to a big ol' 'gator gar. Although, I have fished for them and shot them with arrows from a big sturdy boat.[/size][/blue]
[#0000ff][size 1]The common gars, like the long nose, are often thick in waters you fish for bass, crappies, cats or other fish. Since they chomp both live baits and lures, you can expect the occasional hookup. And, if you get them near your inflated craft, you are putting yourself and your gear at risk. They thrash around a lot and they have a long beak full of teeth. Not something that goes well with inflatables.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Seriously, you have virtually zero chance of one of them attacking you. You only need to get worried if you hook one and bring it too close to you and your craft. They are too tough to gaff and they can trash a landing net. So, if you cannot easily remove the hook, it is best to break them off or cut the line.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]LINE? You can ask a hundred fishermen (especially catmen) about their favorite lines and you will get a hundred answers. The RIGHT answer takes into consideration several factors. 1. What kind of water are you fishing...running, still, deep, shallow, muddy bottom, rocky, snaggy, ???? 2. What species of cats are you fishing for...channels, blues, flatheads??? 3. How big are the fish you are fishing for? 4. How will you be fishing...casting and retrieving, bottom soaking, drifting????[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I will start by saying that for the past six years I have pretty much used Silver Thread Excalibur lines. This is tough copolymer mono that is very abrasion resistant and has minimum stretch. It does not develop memory and has good knot strength. Now, I fish mostly in open water reservoirs without a lot of snags or blowdowns. If I was soaking bait back in tangles of timber, I would be using Fireline...in heavy poundage.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I started using Excalibur to keep from losing so many flatheads. I caught lots of channels on Berkeley TriMax and other monos, but whenever I hooked even a smaller flathead, their sharper teeth quickly sawed through the softer lines. Since spooling with Excalibur, I have never had a fish bite me off. I have landed flatheads over 30 pounds on six pound Excalibur. And I take lots of channels over 10 pounds on 4 and 6 pound. I also use this stuff for everything from bluegills to largemouths...to salt water inshore fish in the Sea of Cortez.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I love to catch big kitties from a float tube. I fish them mostly with jigs tipped with a bit of fish meat, and flavored with shad or crawdad oil. In the clear deepwater reservoirs of the west, catfish are often "sight feeders" and hit lures well. TubeBabe and myself probably catch more cats on lures, during the daytime, than the all-nighter catfish fanatics do soaking baits after dark.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I haven't had any experience with the Gorilla Line. I suggest you spend some time online, putting it in on search engines, and looking for some reviews you can believe. I suspect the Gorilla line would be good for fishing big fish in snaggy water. The braids are good for their low stretch and their resistance to abrasion when trying to wrestle larger fish out of the cover.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Most lines are good for some kind of fishing. Not all are good for all kinds of fishing. And, the choice of lines is a very subjective thing. The properties one person finds desirable are often totally off for someone else. You just have to decide 1. What do I want 2. What do I not want. Then keep looking until you find it.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff][size 1]The common gars, like the long nose, are often thick in waters you fish for bass, crappies, cats or other fish. Since they chomp both live baits and lures, you can expect the occasional hookup. And, if you get them near your inflated craft, you are putting yourself and your gear at risk. They thrash around a lot and they have a long beak full of teeth. Not something that goes well with inflatables.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Seriously, you have virtually zero chance of one of them attacking you. You only need to get worried if you hook one and bring it too close to you and your craft. They are too tough to gaff and they can trash a landing net. So, if you cannot easily remove the hook, it is best to break them off or cut the line.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]LINE? You can ask a hundred fishermen (especially catmen) about their favorite lines and you will get a hundred answers. The RIGHT answer takes into consideration several factors. 1. What kind of water are you fishing...running, still, deep, shallow, muddy bottom, rocky, snaggy, ???? 2. What species of cats are you fishing for...channels, blues, flatheads??? 3. How big are the fish you are fishing for? 4. How will you be fishing...casting and retrieving, bottom soaking, drifting????[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I will start by saying that for the past six years I have pretty much used Silver Thread Excalibur lines. This is tough copolymer mono that is very abrasion resistant and has minimum stretch. It does not develop memory and has good knot strength. Now, I fish mostly in open water reservoirs without a lot of snags or blowdowns. If I was soaking bait back in tangles of timber, I would be using Fireline...in heavy poundage.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I started using Excalibur to keep from losing so many flatheads. I caught lots of channels on Berkeley TriMax and other monos, but whenever I hooked even a smaller flathead, their sharper teeth quickly sawed through the softer lines. Since spooling with Excalibur, I have never had a fish bite me off. I have landed flatheads over 30 pounds on six pound Excalibur. And I take lots of channels over 10 pounds on 4 and 6 pound. I also use this stuff for everything from bluegills to largemouths...to salt water inshore fish in the Sea of Cortez.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I love to catch big kitties from a float tube. I fish them mostly with jigs tipped with a bit of fish meat, and flavored with shad or crawdad oil. In the clear deepwater reservoirs of the west, catfish are often "sight feeders" and hit lures well. TubeBabe and myself probably catch more cats on lures, during the daytime, than the all-nighter catfish fanatics do soaking baits after dark.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]I haven't had any experience with the Gorilla Line. I suggest you spend some time online, putting it in on search engines, and looking for some reviews you can believe. I suspect the Gorilla line would be good for fishing big fish in snaggy water. The braids are good for their low stretch and their resistance to abrasion when trying to wrestle larger fish out of the cover.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]Most lines are good for some kind of fishing. Not all are good for all kinds of fishing. And, the choice of lines is a very subjective thing. The properties one person finds desirable are often totally off for someone else. You just have to decide 1. What do I want 2. What do I not want. Then keep looking until you find it.[/size][/#0000ff]
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