I used to have a reversible Mitchell-Garcia (switch the crank handle from left to right and change the "cap off plug" to the other side and I guess it had a reversing gear set up in the middle of it so the handle cranked over the top from either side) Gave it to a friend when I relocated south 5 years ago so it's gone forever. No clue what model # but I found a Mitchell 401 on Evil-Bay that fits my needs just fine so I'm back to happy. I'm a south paw and I cast left and crank right and not many spinning reels on the planet that have the crank handle on the right side that I've found? Still think about the Mitchell- Garcia Reversible and wonder what the heck model it was? I don't stay awake nites but? lol. Jer

I think we've all had that happen. I've always figured that my delay on the back cast was the reason for that to happen? It's all a matter of timing and it changes with the amount of line beyond the tip of the rod, Jer

Only the design of the prosthesis haz changed farz I know Larry. When I talked to my Orthopedic Surgeon and he took an x-ray of the one I had replaced in '03 he commented that they don't use that design any more and haven't in quite a few years... Time and medical science marches on. I had a long time acquaintance and friend that back in the late '60s that took "1" bullet through both knees while serving his Country in Nam. They flew him to Japan for knee replacement X2 and he had some sort of Fiber Glass wrap applied to his Tibia and Femur bones on both sides with some sort of pivot joint connecting both upper and lower halves, and I know it worked well for him because we worked together in different aspects of the same industry thru' the '80s, '90s and into the '00s 'til I retired in '03 'cuz we kept bumping into each other thru' those years. Jer

Thank You Larry. Something we also have in common besides Fishin'. I ran the street in SoCal Before Marlin Brando stared in the Wild One back in '55. Got off the street and into the dirt in the mid '60s and hung up my spurs in the mid '90s. All in all a pretty good 50 year run. Yeah the dirt is pretty hard on the knees too 'cuz you're always up in the pegs. But if you go down it's not because a rock or a tree jumped out in front of you, it's because you zigged when you should've Zagged. Last time I was on the 405 in Long Beach about the time of 9/11, these 2 idiots on their Ninja Rockets were were riding the dotted lines between lanes and their was a CHP a couple cars in front of me in the lane to my right and they went between us and past him too and I don't think he ever blinked. And I could see that he never gave chase? WTH? Don't be afraid of the surgery, Just do the P.T. you'll be fine. You will have pain in that knee for a few weeks but that's from the surgery Larry, not the knee anyway and that's what the script for pain is for. Just ask your doctor to give you something that has Tylenol in it. Keeps your tummy from doing flip flops and will help with the constipation too, Jer

I had my right knee replaced on '03 and am very happy with the result. Had my right shoulder entirely replaced in the fall of '18 and the left one needs the bionic treatment too and it ain't gonna happen. My surgeon for the shoulders says that if I lift over 25-30 pounds I run the risk of tearing out the mounting screws and if that happens their's no re-do for that and I'm not so sure those screw aren't loosening az I write this 'cuz I have pain in that shoulder just scratching my self the wrong way? The Left Knee is on the calendar for mid July this summer. Reason for the wait is that I fly up to Madison, Wi. And hook up with a buddy from Chicago to drown ah bunch of worms in mid June between Madison and Stevens Point, and 3 weeks later I fly into Harrisburg, Pa. and party hardy with a bunch of "CAR-BUDS" at Carlisle, Pa. for the mother of all car shows for 4 days from all over the world, and I can't do the complete recovery well enough before June and I refuse to not make that fishin' trip or cancel that car party. Soooo for the time being Advil 200s in multiples are my friend. One thing I've not read here about the Knee surgery is, what plans are you guys making after that surgery to remove your Butts from the throne when you Shirley need to figure a way to do that? And make plans for that adventure with one temporarily useless leg. I had a good long chat with one of our fishin' buddy's here a few months back and we compared notes on the best ways to handle that contortion. Others can chime in on how they solved that issue. The fact that I've brought it up will get the ones that are contemplating that knee replacement thinking about how they chose to skin that cat. Tight Lines, Jer

If it ain't broke it don't need fixin' rite Pal. I'm just Leary of the back cast if I'm standin' on the bank. PITA to retrieve ah bug AND the line if it's hung high in the flora behind you, lol, And Roll Casts can be very restrictive at times too. Stay warm my friend, Jer

Eow, PB. That hurts just to think about. I learned how to extract a treble hook from finger flesh up near Longlac, Ontario in an Indian village hospital 40 years ago. 'Bout a 3-4 pound Northern rolled on me while I was trying to extract the Ripala from his lips with my needle nose and when he did that I found out that me grip on the pliers was not tight enough and his head put a convex bulge in my Grumman when I stomped him to death to keep him from wiggling anymore with my finger married to him. BACK TO THE STORY, Requires a brown shoe lace TRUE. And FWI, your finger should be horizontal or hook toward the sky for this move and you'll be pulling toward the ground. Put a loop in the middle of it and lay the loop down on your finger on the opposite side from the barb and pull down on each of the ends holding one end in each hand. then grab both ends with one hand and keep the pressure on and then with you free hand just lift the hook out. The shoe lace will pucker the flesh away from the barb when you pull down in it from the back side of the hook. No torn flesh and you're free. BTW, Be careful if the Doctor wants to give you a full load of tetanus shot because you can't remember when you had the last booster like I did. My right ear was as big as my hand for almost two weeks after taking that shot in my right shoulder, and my GP sayz to never let anyone ever even give you a booster again EVER, Jer

My rod is an 8' Browning Packer(4 piece convertible),Which I don't think has been sold for 30-40 years but they're around if you shop. Spinin' mode I have a Mitchell-Garcia 401 'cuz I cast left and crank right. And don't hate me guys but my favorite reel in fly fishin' mode is a Pfelueger Automatic. Let me quickly add here that I'm not a C&R trout guy and I see nothing wrong with that, It's just not my thing. I'm a meat fisherman and spend my time on slow moving rivers and lakes and I see no harm in pilling my line on my feet rather then testing how well it still floats. When it's time to rewind I can quickly run it all back into the reel and feed it back and forth across the spool when doing so. That equipment has been all over most of the contiguous 48 plus Quebec and Ontario and never let me down in either application. If it were ever lost or walked off without permission, I'd go shopping on Craigslist and Evilbay 'til I found replacements of the same, Jer

I personally prefer the word EMBELLISH to any other adjective that would indicate that my nose waz about to start growin'. Now we can't say that's necessarily true 'bout PB, lol. Jer

Been eyeballin' Lake Waccamaw for 'bout a year now. This coming spring will be the test on that piece of water. Been resupplying myself with gear these past few cold months. Gave everything away to a very good friend up north before comin' south in '14. ('Cuz we were going into a retirement community to veg, but found out we were not ready to stop breathing and get carried to the Auschwitz for the big cook off-in?), Sooo? We blew that pop stand and invested in our Little Ponderosa a bit north on Monkey Junction. BTW, I'm a fly rod fishin' Blue Gill fanatic primarily because they taste better then Bass so if one of those guys likes my offering I enjoy the fun and the scrappyness but it's C&R once he's boated. Then I'm back lookin' for dinner. I do have a fly-in planed to central Wisconsin this June and hookin' up with a friend in Chicago to try and MT the Wisconsin River up near Stevens Point of Walleye but then their good eatin' too, Just usin' ah different rod 'n tackle, Jer

Personally I'd prefer killin' 'um rather then just stingin' 'um Oz. lol. Couldn't help myself, Happy Sunday. Jer

Yup. Looks Like White Wings to me. A bit bigger then Morning Doves and fly in the same ZIG ZAG Pattern just like their smaller cousins only higher. Thanks for the pix Larry, Jer ... Now for the memory trips, lol

Had an Uncle back in the '50s & '60s that grew up in Phoenix that hunted White Wings from there back west through Buckeye and Blythe into the Imperial Valley before WWII. Taught me about hunting the White Wings when he'd take me with him up on the ridge route when it was still US99 and we'd pass shoot those beauty's. The Lord called him home in the early '80s an he was still driving down into Baha for quail.That's why I ask the question, Jer

O.K. never reread what I rite, not enough Rs, MY BAD. lol

O. K. flyguy. For us old guyz that are not Familiar with the Driftless Area in The Badger. Does it extend to the east far enough to encompass Stevens Point and the river that runs thru' it? I'll be hanging out there and on south to Mauston for a few days around the 20th of June and I'll be traveling with 6'6" and 9' poles, Jer