Sk8man

Jimski2 I used the 18 lb years ago and although the lead diameter appears the same diameter as the 27 lb the sheathing seems more durable on the 27 lb (that is where the strength comes from too) and especially if using for larger fish say on Ontario and Erie and the sink rate doesn't seem that much different on them. Leadcore can last a long time if taken care of but in my case replacements have not been due to line failure but rather to my own failure to keep it from tangling in my other stuff when running too much stuff and then taking some "unintended" turns

The question is not really an easy one to answer in short especially without actually seeing the lines in question. There are many factors involved in line condition aside from just the length of time it has been on the reel. Each type of line has its own characteristics that translate into strengths and weaknesses. For example mono and fluoro can be adversely affected by sunlight and high temperatures and moisture (i.e. humidity) during both use and storage. Leadcore can appear fine as far as the outer casing where much of the actual strength comes from while it can be separated (even in several places) internally without you detecting it visually. Some braid can fade from sunlight exposure and can weaken as well. If the braid (e.g. Power Pro) is faded and it is for only a short section (which may be used frequently) you may be able to just cut off a few feet and be OK. Another strategy is to reverse the line so that you are using the often larger part that has probably not seen a lot of use compared with the front part of the line. Usually the lighter the lb test the more the line strength becomes an issue but it also can depend on the condition of your rod line guides and tip and the line guide of the reel . You can also do the reversal method with SS wire if need be. I have had stainless wire on a couple of my Seth Green rigs for about 30 years or more but I inspect it routinely and redo connections periodically. On the 30 lb stuff (wire dipsey rods) I take a few feet off of it (at the front near the swivel) as I start a new season. I have never had ss wire break in and of itself on any of my rods. With leadcore I'd carefully check the outside sheathing for any obvious abnormal wear, frays, cuts or weak spots and if noted change the line. It is not the best idea to use it directly on your releases when using it from boards either or at least use it with relatively weak rubber bands or splice in a short section of mono for attachments etc. When using single strand copper cut out any kinks and splice in a small barrel swivel.....any kink will eventually fail. braided copper line is a little more kink tolerant but if it doesn't straighten out fully...better to be safe than sorry...cut it out and splice in a small high quality barrel swivel (e.g. #8 SPRO Power swivel). I know some guys on here may change their lines very frequently but unless you are a charter guy or very heavy use sport it is usually unnecessary if you haven't had any problems with it.

Sounds as though it could be the freshwater jellyfish... the freshwater shrimp have been there for years and the perch do actively feed on them but the huge hoards of them don't really resemble jellyfish. A lot of times when you see large schools of perch under the ice and they won't readily bite that is what they are often feeding on (freshwater shrimp).....they sometimes come up puking them and stuffed full.

Must have been a couple "misprints"... it should have listed his title as EMPEROR Cuomo and instead of the word "leadership" it should say "authoritarian rule"

I wish.... My dad did quite a bit including making his own lathe from scratch....and I have friends that do a lot of it.

Great job and both the shelving and the video Pete. You've got me looking around my home office thionking about "conversions"

I should have mentioned that mine is a 2 stroke by the way

Just as you stated it but you may want to use the High Performance straight 90 weight synthetic the Premium is 80/90 wt.....it is supposed to give better sealing and allegedly has stuff to keep water out. I know my mechanic buddy laughs at me for being overly conservative but I now do my own winterizing after I had to have new lower unit seals after the marina used the Premium instead of the High Performance in my 135 Optimax. Never have had any problems with the High Performance stuff. Just my 2 cents I know the motors are much different but I always like being conservative

Although I was obviously joking above.... it is no joke actually going into cold water. I've been in twice through the ice and once it was up to my chin at 17 degrees outside temp alone in the early morning with a snowmobile suit and "moon boots" on. My son and I now wear buoyant suits out there and I always wear my life jacket fishing in cold weather or fishing alone even in summer. If I had reached the deeper water where I wanted to fish I would now be history.....something to think about....

3,5,7

Gee what a shame Stan....but the downside may be that the home owner may be charged with manslaughter or a civil suit lodged against him by the goody goodies knowing how things go out there as well as here in New York State.

I think the state probably figures that we ice fishermen are so freaking crazy that its not worth messing with us

Seems to me it is a bit like the horse is already out of the barn for most places I'm familiar with but I guess late may be a little better than never.

Thanks Dennis....certainly food for thought (and hopefully action). One of the things I'd like to make special note of that is not necessarily covered in any data collection and that is the the concept of specific species "vulnerability". There is a lot of understandable concern about the vulnerability of trout and salmon to the illegal actions of poachers, snaggers or lifters while the fish are in the streams under low water conditions or during the spawning cycle and the concern for potential drastic drops in the populations of these fish. This "vulnerability" is somewhat different with respect to panfish and perch in particular because they very frequently clump together in contained schools that are densely packed in very tight or in contained or confined areas (e.g. marinas or small shallow baysand/or under the ice) during the most vulnerable periods and often in shallow water. What this means is that they are highly susceptible to being taken in large numbers often very quickly by individuals familiar with their habits and recent innovations and improvements in technology has radically "improved" this ability. For example some perch fishermen are using underwater cameras to select out the largest perch (often gravid females) routinely as well as during "derbies" (and even scout them out days in advance) as well as the largest schools and then decimate their numbers day after day and the fact that perch often stay in or about the same area while feeding doesn't help either. Entire schools are taken out this way and those fishermen pay absolutely no attention to regulated "limits" either.. There are also some very greedy people that live right on some of the bodies of water and they continue to take limit after limit when they locate a large school and this goes on day after day all season long and because there is profit involved they have no regard whatsoever for future generations or the present fishermen for that matter and enforcement efforts are either totally lacking (most cases) or their transgressions very difficult to detect. Given all the other concerns such as invasive species, water pollution, predation over harvesting is not only a concern but rather a reality and the days of watching of kids with joyful expressions on their faces while catching panfish from a dock are nearly gone and in some places already a sorry fact of life. Something to think about whether a pan fisherman or not.....

I'd contact the Regional Office of DEC and talk with the fisheries biologist.