Gavin

These work really well. Its a blockhead dressed like a sneaky pete. Size 1/0.

_{Pick up a copy of "Fly Fishing the Texas Hill Country" its out of print, but you can probably find one. Most of your fishing will be west of Austin and North of San Antonio.}

The need for the bobber seems to present itself more often when trout fishing deep, fast water..but it does work for smallmouth...Zonker about 10' under a cork with a smaller dropper is a great way to catch smallmouth & trout were they mix up in the winter time.Bring at least a 7wt for that.

Not a bad spot for numbers of small fish...up or down from there on a week day.

Use them all the time when trout fishing....the Thingamabobber is top dog, though I carry several varieties...For heavy nymph, nymph & streamer rigs......the 3/4 inch Thingamabobber works well..rig as follows...3' of 20lb tied to fly line...bobber slides on that...6-9' of straight 8lb fluorocarbon...add 12-18" of tippet to first fly...start with 2 BB shot on the knot above the fly...add a second fly...usually lighter than the first. Best to roll or switch cast that kinda junk...Usually use a 10' 5wt...or my 9'6" 8wt...11' or a switch rod would be better. Add lead till you catch or snag up a bunch.

Really don't know what you have w/o a picture, but the wooden form fit case is a relic of the 1920's....does it have flip ring guides? Lots of those were replaced with snakes when they came around. Take some good pics of the reel seat, winding check, guides and ferrulles..Have a few reference books laying around. Probably not much value...most likely a wall hanger.

Good find Andy....lets go this year.

Greg's Coffey Grinder is pretty darn good at times...kinda hard to strip it fast enough to emulate a buzzer when that is what they want though...and you aren't going to cast one on a 4wt...6-7wt for the small one...8-9wt for the big one.

Depends on were you are at Fred..Shoot me a PM with your plan. Some stretches are way better than others....The trout stretch is my milk run...but I've floated and fished that river for over 30 years. Guessing I've covered the upper 100 miles in Missouri......Still another 40 or so to cover till you hit the Arkansas Border.

I've been putting legs on blockheads for years....It works great on smooth water..

Tom, I use a nail knot and some glue. Chicago Fly Casters sounds like fun...but I'd have to fly there from St. Louis;>)!

I've been pretty happy with my SA XXD taper lines...so I havent messed with the Sharkskin much...It does cast a little further than my XXD lines...but not that much..maybe 5'-10' on average. .I used to be partial to the Wulff Triangle Tapers...but I like the XXD better...It has a long head so it roll casts and mends like a champ. If your looking for a good running line...pick up a spool of Rio Slick Shooter Running line...its oval shaped...and it wont cut you up...It also put 25' of it between my backing and my fly line...for those times when I want to practice my distance casting.

Nice write up...I fish allot of small creeks in Mid-Mo. Most are very clear, and they are very low this year. I usually approach by wading upstream and my lure of choice is a walk the dog plug presented on a long upstream cast. I use a spinning rod and braid with a leader to gain extra distance...Usually a Sammy 100, Gunfish 95, or Cultiva Zip n' Ziggy, but the new Strike King WTD plug is showing promise..If WTD is not working (rarely isnt) I'll try burning a small buzzbait or spinnerbait in current, or a fluke in slower water... Cast up and work it back fast. Dont cast on top of fish but nearby and keep it moving...Shade, depth, rock, wood, and bank transitions can all hold fish..I pick them off with plastics on your way back downstream. Good luck.

Nice looking build! Love that reel seat insert!

It depends on the rod. I prefer a DT on some of my boo rods, WF on others, Triangle Taper on another, one really likes a silk DT. Try several different lines and see what the rod tells you. I had one of those Cortland Sylk lines a couple years ago. Dont waste your money. Have fun.

Those Brooks bugs are pretty beat up and probably older. Cant see whiskers on the white one either. I got that scan from an old timer in my local fly club. Think he said it was from a magazine in the early 1970's. He sent this too.....The originals were tied by a guy named Bill Gallasch accourding to one of the Joe Brooks books. Cant remember which one.

This is the orignal gerbubble.

It depends....Clear water-Chartruese on Top, Brown and down, White in mid-water column...Stained water..Black or Chartruese.

Cull all the spoons and inline spinners off that list and your down to 35 or so.

Interesting article, but it seems to be geared toward precision casting for trout...If I'm going for distance...I want to use a key grip with my palm forward...Just like your grabbing a golf club, or turning a key in a lock. Mel Kreiger was a big fan of that grip. Cheers.

It is certainly is possible. Several Mountain lions were killed in Missouri this year (nobody has been prosecuted for it yet) and there were several other confirmed sightings.....Maybe a few crossed the Missippi.

That's Awesome Rob!

I fish a 9' 7wt most of the time...sometimes a 6wt...both with floating lines.I opt for an 8 or 9wt if I need to cast bigger flies at distance, or use a sinking line. You might want to try some of the long belly distance casting lines instead of a double taper...The SA XXD taper is a good one...cast well overhead, and the longer taper helps with roll casting. Triangle Tapers arent bad either...used to fish them allot till I tried the XXD lines. Cheers.

Troutnut is a great site...but you need to be able to observe what you are looking at...little sailboats floating on the water...or wispy's with big wings and long tails are mayflies...caddis look like little moths...stoneflies are big ungraceful creatures....dobsonfly...same same....Terrestrials are really good this time of year...Hoppers, Crickets, Beetles, Ants...Crickets are really thick right now...75-100 in my pool skimmer basket this weekend.

Missouri will be banning felt soled wading boots effective March 1st, 2012 if that weighs into your purchase decision...Think I'll be going with Simms Vibram & Studs next season. Cheers.