Thank you very much for all the info guys. So RT and Stew fished TH rods. Huh, they must be pretty good then. Still don't know what rods Scott and Mark fished with though (or reels and RT's reel too)? Or was Scott filming most of the show and didn't fish? I really didn't notice because the neighbors were talkin' about how good you guys were during the show. Shhh, quiet, I'm trying to watch! I was also watching RT really carefully to make sure nothing was edited out (like him slipping on the pea gravel and starting to fall-yeah I caught that momentous loss of balance there RT). BTW, good job on the part you filmed with Mark and Scott and the jigs. Good zooming too. You must not be an amateur camera man.

Anyway, just trying to get as many options as I can about the rods. Lamiglas, Allstar, TH (are they sold in any stores up north, like Bob's Sporting Goods in Longview?-still haven't been there, but soon I hope), GLoomis (a bit spendy for me), and some of the other name brands they sell in the local sporting goods stores like Fenwick, etc. Since I probably wont fish larger systems with the rod, I'll probably get a shorter jig rod-probably a 9'6" one.

With the reels, I've heard a lot of good things about the Okuma Epix and the Shimano Stradic you mention Stew. And not all the comments I heard were from this board. But I also read a few people's posts on here about the Stadic being a not so good reel (I think that was the model spinning reel they were talking about?).

As far as the line goes, thanks for the brand suggestions. When I get a good jig rod, I'll be sure to check into them and use 10 to 15 pound line on my reel for winter steelhead, maybe the kind with the smaller diameter (is Spiderwire one of those too?-a few guys I know use that and swear by it, but not for jig fishing). 10-15 pound line should be okay right? I don't want to use 8, after seeing that 13 pounder Stew played. Geez, you must have had that on for half an hour? Don't get me wrong, I like using light line too, and playing fish is fun, but I like to know I have a chance at landing a big one. Also, Stew and RT, you said you started using the dacron. I think I'd much rather just have one knot, so I'll probably stick with the mono.

RT, I thought those brass heads were neat when I seen the jigs up close on the show. The ones I bought from the store had worn down heads after the first cast (no pun intended) when they scraped on a couple rocks. That brass wont come off though, that's a good thing. I suppose the brass weighs a little more than lead too? Do you pour molten brass into molds with the jig hook to make your jigs, Mark? Is that how you do it?

About jigs working in colored water. Do they really? I seen a guy come down to the river and pitch a big pink maribou with float a couple times when the river was high and off color after the rains. He never got a bite, but only stayed there for about 5 casts. I would think if you just used really big flashy jigs and heavier floats like he did in the winter time when the water's high/off color, you could hook some fish.

BTW, Stew, you caught a chinook that show? I never seen that? The last fish hooked on the show, which if I recall was yours, was a 12-13 pound steelhead, wasn't it?

And last but not least, I think you guys were trying to explain to me how the jig is supposed to sit in the water, but I still don't understand. Takes me a while to process some things ya know. Is the jig supposed to hang in the water like this (jig is the unbroken horizontal line, fishing line is the vertical dotted line):

|
| =line
|
|_____ =jig hook

or is it suppose to hang like this (jig is asterisks on vertical line, fishing line is broken vertical line):

|
|
|
|
*
*
*
*

??? I know this is stupid of me to make this silly screwed up drawing, but I need a visualization. I think it is the first one. Am I right? Thanks for any info you can provide.

BTW, I think this is a new record for the longest written post by anyone in Piscatorial Pursuits history. Do I get a prize? Just kiddin', doubt it is that long.