# 2022 MAN Joe Mullet Memorial Tournament



## Garboman

Well at least barring some personal calamity we will not have to worry about Blake in the near term and likely in the long term if he stays in.

I met DrumProGolfPro and DrumProHollywood some years back at the Spring Secret Drum Spot. At the time these fellas were young and had set a goal of 50 Citations each for a season. I am not sure if they knew who I was but since they were parked in a cut in the bar on the South End and Dark was coming in early March, I knew we would be close that night, real close in fact.... because there was no way any of us was leaving that Cut. As luck would have it, I caught a Drum that night and the grainy picture is still on my old phone that Hollywood took for me.

Fate had me doing something else the last few years but both these two rose to the very top on the OBX Drum scene.

They both have the attributes that make up a top Drum Pro. 

1. They are great distance casters, Even with my new 4-Point Drum Pendulum Cast, I am unsure of ever getting a bait closer to Africa than ether of them. When I was in my Prime I was smoking them, but that may have been because they were in the Cub Scouts at the time.

2. They have the youth and stamina it takes to go to work for 8 hours and then go fishing all night and then without sleep go to work for another 8 hours. 

3. They are not lazy Plank Buzzards and both are willing to go to Sand Land to eke of a few on any given tide change.

4. They are not Face Book Friends waiting by the phone for Bite Notifications.

It does not surprise me that they were #2 and #3 in 2021.

It would not surprise me if one of them is #1 this year.

With this Low coming up the coast, we are all at the same position, at zero for the Spring Season.

Barring some calamity I hope to at least spend one night tide down at the Secret Spot at a cut in the bar with both of them sometime early this March.

See you out there at a Cut in the Bar.


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## pcbtightlines

Bring on March and the time change !


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## Garboman

The Locals were out at the Secret Spot yesterday before the new Front.

According the on-scene reporting by Red Head and Bill H it was a lot of Sharkin going on. Yakkers will dropping baits off and getting bit before they made it back to shore. 

Not sure if anything happened on the incoming which was around 11:00 PM or so.

DrumPro GolfPro was identified as a participant...

Looks like everyone was trying to get a head start on 2022.

4 Drum were caught a couple weeks ago at the Point and perhaps more last night. Dusk was at dead low.


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## Garboman

Hopefully the Ukraine Conflict will not impact the MAN 2022. 

However if it does, MAN Tournament Officials are reaching out to DrumPro's to see if there is interest in training for a top secret mission to Moscow to take out some short angry guy who is balding and causing millions undue strain.

Participants may be able to count on 1st class instruction from DrumPro's with military-hunting backgrounds.

Guns and equipment provided free from MAN Tournament coffers for the mission. 

DrumPro's who respond should acknowledge that this is likely what could be termed a Suicide Mission in the event things go wrong and the Kremlin Guardians do not step aside freely to let Mother Freedom ring his bell.

Respondents should be single if possible with no next of kin. Qualities we are seeking are adventurous-borderline psychotic-and willing to stave off WWIII.


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## jahtez

So when you say "a cut in the bar", I assume you're talking about a break in the first or second bar that allows the tide to surge through and is a natural predator attractor. But aren't they intrinsically transient? From what I've seen, bars move, breaks in the bars move, and holes come and go. So I guess I'm wondering if you're talking about a feature that remains the same from year to year, or one that only lasts until the next big storm comes along and moves it?


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## Garboman

Beach formations change all the time..

However if there is no storm or major current change, the conditions that are present that day will be there that night. 

The cut in a bar is usually the path that Drum use when they move from deeper waters offshore to come close to the beach at night searching for dinner. The cut is where I want my bait, especially with a wide major slough formations that can hold a lot of baitfish and crabs.

Because of the relative density of knowledgeable fishermen on a limited amount of beach available to off-road vehicles on the OBX a great spot for beach fishing for Drum will often have other DrumPros posted up before you get there. Even if you camp out and try to greedily take control of a good spot, you will have visitors some old friends, some welcome, some not.


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## jahtez

Ok, thanks. When you talked about a secret spot at a cut in the bar that you would hit in March (above) I was wondering how permanent those features are.


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## Arnav

I've been wondering this for some time as well.
"The secret spot" has been mentioned this year and last several times. I was assuming it was a fixed address.
Or maybe a substantial feature that is not susceptible to moving between storms.
However, I don't expect you to reveal it 
Thanks


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## DrumBumm

Arnav said:


> I've been wondering this for some time as well.
> "The secret spot" has been mentioned this year and last several times. I was assuming it was a fixed address.
> Or maybe a substantial feature that is not susceptible to moving between storms.
> However, I don't expect you to reveal it
> Thanks


context clues will give it away hahaha


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## Garboman

Secret Spot Yesterday about 30 Citations caught.

Big Sharks way too thick to use bait, so almost all Drum were on Metal during the day.

DrumPro Lee broke double digits day before yesterday. *All on Metal.*


Sharks ate a bunch of metal also.

This time of year it is mostly Big Sand Bars.

Have to confirm via Secret Drum Hotline but it looks like Lee shot to the front of the leader board. If he decides to fish real hard this year, then DrumPro GolfPro (who has three at the moment I believe) will lobby again for Hatteras Island Handicap of *50 Fish* or so because he might need it because he has to work a full-time Job.

Cold Front will shut it down perhaps if it gets to Secret Spot.


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## DrumBumm

100+ beached the last couple days time to start faking those coughs to the boss and packing the trucks


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## Garboman

Louis- Owner of Cape Henry Rods Secret Spot on Metal with a Cape Henry Vega Rod










HollyWood DrumPro also at Secret Spot on Metal Looks like a custom Cape Henry Vega rod










These photos were abducted from TW's Facebook site. Which the MAN supports and if there are copyright or privacy infringement issues please contact MAN Tournament legal representative Spurling, Stevens, Judge, and Judy LLP by Certified USPS Letter at this address 10000 K Street Washington DC 20001.

There are some very beautiful large format photos by Daniel Pullam on Ocean East's Facebook site posted today, including several of Jack who is an old time OGDrumPro from back in the Day.

MAN Tournament Attorney's cautioned about abducting photos taken from a professional photographer so just travel on over to Zuckerbergs Ocean East Nags Head site and take a look if there is interest.

Unlikely Louis and Hollywood would object since they both would like to be the MAN and TWS expressed interest to be the MAN Tackle Store Sponsor if the MAN became monetized.


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## pcbtightlines

Healthy, healthy fish


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## Garboman

Fran Folb passed away March 31, 2022

I spent a fair amount of time back in the day at Frank and Fran's, rummaging through the coolers on their side deck, seeking the prime bait. The Redheaded Fella and I would make a mess out of Fran's freshly iced and packed coolers, seeking only bright red gills and clear eyes.

We would either be going to the Point or Avon Pier, but unless our bait coolers were slam packed we seldom passed thru Avon without stopping to take a peek to see what the Commercial Fellas had brought Fran that morning.


I wish the best for Missy and her children.


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## Catch This

Sad that she is gone. I remember several times going in there and she had a pot of chowder going for the customers. RIP Fran.


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## retired

Just talked to Stephanie this morning to add to my running pick up order..........sad times. I like it that they are well stocked with product in hand. Always have been. Generally I am on the southern end but ALWAYS make a point to get in there a few times every trip. The problem with getting old is you lose far to many friends.........My wife's grand mother lived to be a 100. She often said all her friends were talking about her in heaven. She wasn't there and they must assume she went to Hell.....I assure you she didn't.


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## jahtez

It's encouraging to see those two pics. When I joined this site a little while back and started reading the posts, I started to get the feeling that I was going about it all wrong by fishing exclusively with spinning gear. I've never gotten past the birds-nest phase of learning to cast a conventional, but recently I've been thinking that "dammitall, this year I'm really going to figure out how to do it clean". But after seeing those two pics I'm more thinking along the lines of "nahhh, maybe next year".


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## pcbtightlines

I would bet those 2 only use spinners when throwing metal


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## jahtez

Maybe so, although the second guy has a hook wrapped around the reel crank.


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## pcbtightlines

That’s the hook on the sting silver lure


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## Arnav

pcbtightlines said:


> That’s the hook on the sting silver lure


Any idea of the specifics of that lure ?
Weight ? Brand ? Name ?
Thanks


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## pcbtightlines

Sting silver is probably the brand no idea on the weight …surely at least 2-4oz’s


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## Arnav

Are they steel ? or painted lead ?
Thanks


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## pcbtightlines

I believe painted lead


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## jahtez

pcbtightlines said:


> That’s the hook on the sting silver lure


Good lord... I was looking at the reel, saw the hook, and somehow completely failed to see the shiny pink metal thing it was attached to


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## snedfish

Garboman said:


> Fran Folb passed away March 31, 2022
> 
> I spent a fair amount of time back in the day at Frank and Fran's, rummaging through the coolers on their side deck, seeking the prime bait. The Redheaded Fella and I would make a mess out of Fran's freshly iced and packed coolers, seeking only bright red gills and clear eyes.
> 
> We would either be going to the Point or Avon Pier, but unless our bait coolers were slam packed we seldom passed thru Avon without stopping to take a peek to see what the Commercial Fellas had brought Fran that morning.
> 
> 
> I wish the best for Missy and her children.


We lost Ginger Knight the day before. Time ticks on and the outcome is still the same, no one gets out alive. I will miss them both very much.


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## Surfjunkie

jahtez said:


> It's encouraging to see those two pics. When I joined this site a little while back and started reading the posts, I started to get the feeling that I was going about it all wrong by fishing exclusively with spinning gear. I've never gotten past the birds-nest phase of learning to cast a conventional, but recently I've been thinking that "dammitall, this year I'm really going to figure out how to do it clean". But after seeing those two pics I'm more thinking along the lines of "nahhh, maybe next year".


Luis likes grandwaves and Travis likes Seigler SM’s when throwing bait.


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## Garboman

GolfPro in HUK Gear.

There are some internet photos you can appropriate and some you can't. This is one of those we felt would can...


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## Garboman

I just finished a 7'6" Popping Rod that was purpose built to throw Jerk Jiggers off an OBX Pier. I spent a lot of time throwing Jerk Jiggers off of Piers and decided to let folks know this morning a secret that is known only to a couple people, those who do it and those who have seen it happen.

At times when King Mackerel are around in the Summer there are two times a day which are golden. Dawn and Dusk.

Dawn had me more concerned about getting my bait buckets full of bait but Dusk was different.

I have seen numerous large King Mackerel hit the large 5 inch long Jerk Jiggers with the Red heads and White Bodies, they hit right at Dark, it must be the low light conditions that make it happen and you need the bigger Bait to get a Pier King to reaction strike.

Kenny has caught hundreds of Big Spanish and King Mackerel on his boats using Jerk Jiggers as bait, DD trolls with them.

My Biggest Jerk Jigger King was around 20 pounds off a pier.

My Biggest Spanish on a Jerk Jigger was around seven pounds off a Pier.

My Biggest Bluefish on a Jerk Jigger was around 13 pounds.

My Biggest Pompano on a Jerk Jigger was around 3 Pounds.

I have seen multiple Cobia crush and break off Jerk Jiggers off the Piers with people throwing light spinning tackle unsuited to big Cobia.

Jerk Jiggers are my favorite lure on the Piers with a butterbean double bucktail rig next and then Gulp lures.

What does this have to do with the MAN, nothing at all but I am 250 miles away from the Secret Spot right now and it is affecting my memory .

My color of Jerk Jigger is the one that is working the best.


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## jahtez

I've seen a couple of King Mackerel hooked on a pier (dear old Kitty Hawk pier) then take off sideways and raise hell with all the lines in the water up and down. Both times they hit on butterbean double bucktail trout jigs and the fisherman was fishing for something else, and both times they broke off leaving a spectacular mess in their wake.


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## Garboman

Got into an AR15 state of mind when terrorists in Kenosha started capping innocent protesters.

I just priced out the parts needed to build a AR15 with stripped upper and lower receivers.

The total cost of the parts was $100 more than buying a complete Upper and a complete lower from reputable American manufacturers.

What does this mean? It means that say you want to build yourself a custom fishing rod. Guess what the parts will be more expensive than if you went Factory. And do not kid yourself that you can build a rod with tighter thread wraps than those ladies in Shanghai. It is not going to happen.

But if you are like me, and like struggling to roll your own, or have some type of illness or too much time on your hands, I saw go for it.

The worse that can happen is that your friends will laugh at you and if you have any enemies, it will make them feel better about themselves.

Wind is going to come around and the fish are going to start chewing again. Decent Trout Bite on the upper OBX, kind of like the old days, Moratoriums work.....


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## Garboman

I decided to sell a couple reels to get one reel. I could have gotten by with just buying the new reel, but it felt more frugal to sell off some back up upon back up reels.

I was assured that the new reel is going to be a Drum Reel and Not a Flattosaurus Reel or a Grey School Bus Reel, actually this guarantee was not made by the seller but he did give a super price on a Seigler SM.

When it gets here I will strip it down, scrub the bearings and put some ProSpec on it.


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## BeachLife

Garboman said:


> Hopefully the Ukraine Conflict will not impact the MAN 2022.
> 
> However if it does, MAN Tournament Officials are reaching out to DrumPro's to see if there is interest in training for a top secret mission to Moscow to take out some short angry guy who is balding and causing millions undue strain.
> 
> Participants may be able to count on 1st class instruction from DrumPro's with military-hunting backgrounds.
> 
> Guns and equipment provided free from MAN Tournament coffers for the mission.
> 
> DrumPro's who respond should acknowledge that this is likely what could be termed a Suicide Mission in the event things go wrong and the Kremlin Guardians do not step aside freely to let Mother Freedom ring his bell.
> 
> Respondents should be single if possible with no next of kin. Qualities we are seeking are adventurous-borderline psychotic-and willing to stave off WWIII.


It should be ok. The bald mans adversary (the marxist that dresses like a mermaid in leather daisy dukes and twerks like a herring) is going to be busy again this weekend collecting the latest shipment of pirated booty from US taxpayers that could have been used to buy new boats, beer, ice, bait, fishing rods, or anything else that supported our local economys. But instead its going to protect twerking mermaid mans biolabs so him and hunter can pump out some more goodies for fauci & co to terrorize the world for another two years, if they dont starve us out first.

As a sidenote, theres been rumors going around for a couple of years now that our own borders are currently being invaded and could use some of that patriotic attention too.

With water temps in the mids 60s, should start seeing some flounder trickling back in soon.


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## Garboman

I guess I erred in making a Political Reference in this thread, even though the MAN is all about the Politics of being the most bad assed Drum Fisherman in the USA.

MAN Tournament Officials cautioned me from providing a snarky response as I was born and raised in Berkeley California and have a different viewpoint on whom should be protected from whom.

More Importantly new to me USA made Truth arrived via USPS Priority Mail and I mounted it on a USA built New Zealand built 1307 Blank and filled the Reel with Some Orange Man Orange Chinese Made Line owned by a US Private Equity Firm (I think ProSpec Chrome is made in China) and third week of May should find me at the Secret Spot bowed up to a US made Red Drum.


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## BeachLife

Garboman said:


> I guess I erred in making a Political Reference in this thread, even though the MAN is all about the Politics of being the most bad assed Drum Fisherman in the USA.
> 
> MAN Tournament Officials cautioned me from providing a snarky response as I was born and raised in Berkeley California and have a different viewpoint on whom should be protected from whom.
> 
> More Importantly new to me USA made Truth arrived via USPS Priority Mail and I mounted it on a USA built New Zealand built 1307 Blank and filled the Reel with Some Orange Man Orange Chinese Made Line owned by a US Private Equity Firm (I think ProSpec Chrome is made in China) and third week of May should find me at the Secret Spot bowed up to a US made Red Drum.


Youre ahead of me by several of those. So i'll do one more and then im done. The situation the world is facing right now isnt a simple matter of left vs right. Its tribal warfare, the marxist left, vs the zionist right, with all of us in the middle being used as cannon fodder and slave labor. On the left is self assembling graphene, on the right its neuralink, both designed for the same purpose. And neither benefitting the common man that isnt in either of these private clubs.

I hear theyre catching some spanish and blues along the Carolina coast lately. So maybe we should try to just enjoy the opportunity to take a break from all of that while we still have that option. I think we're up to 17 major food processing fire/expIosions in the past month or two, and just in the USA. So shouldnt be long until were forced to face all of this whether we want to or not.

In fact it might be a good time to fine tune our fish smoking skills, and start exploring our ancestors alternative methods of preserving some of the fruits of our efforts for a rainy day. Has anyone here every experimented with fish jerky using a basic dehydrator?


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## Garboman

Seen a lot of folks complaining on the internet about how Drum are being held with hands inside the gill plate for beach photos. Drum Killers people are being called by folks who probably do not catch too many Drum, otherwise they would stay silent.

If you are like myself you have a strong aversion to putting your reel down into the sand, sand hurts things internally in the reel and at times the only cure is to dunk the reel in the ocean a few times if the reel gets sanded up. So you can not put your rod down to hold the fish with both hands.

So unless you have a Bait Bitch setup that follows you around on the beach and is waiting to hold your rod for you, how can you control the Drum with one hand without dropping it without sticking your hand in the gill plate or in the mouth? There is a Hook in the mouth when you slide the Drum on the beach so that leaves only one spot to control the fish.

Some folks are willing to hold your rod for you whilst you un hook or release a Drum, some folks just want you out of their way for as long as possible, and those folks do not help you with anything. Some folks are new and they are scared to do anything.....sometimes there is no one around..

Unless your hand is trashing the actual gills, and you are careful with the fish and do not drop it too many times, fish is likely going to live, if you are gentle. You also have to give the fish a head start when releasing the Drum into the waves and you want the Drum going head first.

These Internet Fish Police likely do not travel out to the end of Drum Piers where the game is a little different on the release. For me the Drum slide over the rail better upside down in my arms. Some fellas with smaller Drum and big hands can grasp the tail and throw the Drum head first, like a fastball pitch...

Some Drum land good off the piers and some land bad. I remember a big 50 Pound Drum I caught one dusk and released on Kitty Hawk pier back in the day. The water was clear and shallow off the end of the T and the Drum did not like the Drop. I could see this Drum laying on its side in the lights at the end of the pier, on the bottom for perhaps 10 minutes right in front of me, before it finally kicked, woke up and swam off. I admit to feeling miserable until that fish woke up. Another way to wake them up if the Drum is floating on it's side on the surface after a pier drop is to cast over it and drag a Drum rig over it, for some reason this wakes them up right away usually.

Sometimes things do not go well, but most to the time the Drum live. When we killed Drum back in the day, by the time we made it back to the Walk-in Cooler at Rodanthe Pier the Drum would still be alive after being out of the water for two hours. If the Internet Fish Police have a hard time now with how to hold the Drum, imagine how they would be back in the Day when an 8 inch Dexter Russell came into the equation and the Drum ended up on the Grill.....


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## pcbtightlines

I know what you mean …Wish I had some help today ….caught a bunch of sharks in Buxton and no one to help land and release …had my gaff but it ended up being a case of several destroyed drum rigs 🤣🤣…glad I brought all the ones I tied when I was bored this winter.


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## retired

pcbtightlines said:


> I know what you mean …Wish I had some help today ….caught a bunch of sharks in Buxton and no one to help land and release …had my gaff but it ended up being a case of several destroyed drum rigs 🤣🤣…glad I brought all the ones I tied when I was bored this winter.


I just went and put another bag in my stuff since you said that.......Its pretty quick to tie one up as I keep stuff to do it but a heck of a lot easier to just get a rig out......Leaving in the morning. be there for several weeks....


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## Garboman

If the Shark has any size to him, I break it off on as short as line as possible on the shock line. Sharks especially the big ones do not like being dragged up on the beach: Which means you then have to drag him back into the water, which on a really big shark means you have to go over the drop-off at the shore and be in the water with Big Boy or else you have the problem of the Shark continuously being pushed and rolled back up the beach if there is any significant wave action in the surf.

I usually have about 50-100 Drum rigs tied up and in the Truck these days. Cannon Ball rigs typically, it is too hard for me to thread a bead in the dark these days, so I am always tying directly to the swivel.


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## pcbtightlines

Yep…. I predominantly throw cannonballs ….glad I brought the 50 or so I tied this winter.


Here are 2 I was able to land yesterday others I had to cut line


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## retired

Yeap. Bring ya rigs. I had to sit the other night and tie some more between big ass skates and sharks some aren’t coming back. Been overall a disappointing trip


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## retired

Heard Drumpro Lee added 6 to his total this week. Plus did some very successful offshore fishing. He is very helpful to us idiots trying to fish. Easily shares his knowledge. Great guy.


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## pcbtightlines

Thanks for the reminder …I need to tie some cannonball rigs with wire for those times the toothy critters are thick


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## pcbtightlines

I learned my lesson a couple weeks ago


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## Garboman

DrumPro's do not use wire traces to the hook.

If you have an angry 8 foot SandBar attached to your hook, the Drum are unlikely to get close enough to your rig to eat the bait.


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## pcbtightlines

Wire will only come out at night


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## River

retired said:


> Heard Drumpro Lee added 6 to his total this week. Plus did some very successful offshore fishing. He is very helpful to us idiots trying to fish. Easily shares his knowledge. Great guy.


Worked for Lee several years, learned a lot, got to see everything he does and uses ..... knew his secret spots but I don't fish for big Drum .... great guy, one of the best fisherman on the island, always eager to help .... more fisherman need to go by see him ....


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## retired

River said:


> Worked for Lee several years, learned a lot, got to see everything he does and uses ..... knew his secret spots but I don't fish for big Drum .... great guy, one of the best fisherman on the island, always eager to help .... more fisherman need to go by see him ....


 I cant find fault at all in any of your comments.........I dropped by yesterday to tell him see ya in a month or so.....That was a tough tough 3 weeks of fishing, Disappointing and of course rewarding at the same time. Few more fish would have helped make it a lot better. I'll also add expensive as well. With fuel,food and other thing
s escalating in cost it does make one wonder out loud of its truly worth it at times. Then ya remember you are a long time dead when your time comes.........so go for it no matter the cost.


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## Garboman

In several days from my Good Friend FedEx... I will be receiving a super bad ass 14 WT Sage 8'6" Fly Rod. Ordered 300 meters of 40 pound 8 strand braid for backing and several Fly Lines that I reached out all the way to my friends in China for.

Some people might ask Why? Are you insane?

I have to recheck it but the World Record Fly Rod Drum is pretty much wide open to me if and when I can get to that Secret Spot next to that Bar in Koru Village. I remember that South Pamlico Charter Captain Beckwith I think is his name and he kept putting some Hottie in front of Big Yearlings and after she hooked up he went and beached his boat Down East Pamlico so she could weigh them.

You have to weigh the fish over Land, and I have to recheck the prices on the IGFA portable scale or else get Koru to get their scale certified.. Can not remember if netting with a Pier net is legal for the IGFA but if it isn't I can beg the MAN Tournament Officials to let me enter it in the MAN. However I am pretty sure even an average November Secret Spot Drum will be on top of the All Fly Tackle World Record if you can get it Certified. I have to tie up some IGFA spec leaders with tippets.

Would have been way way easier if the Dork Hole was still intact but you have to work with what you got and these days it is a stub.

Scenario is to keep casting a custom Big Drum Fly with sinking Line off the downwind side of the end of the Secret Spot and try for Mr. Big. Left side is better for me cause I am left handed with a Fly Rod.

May have to Chum and Chum and perhaps some live bait teasers to get Mr. Big within range of the 14 WT. 

I have an extra 10WT Reel at the moment loaded with 9 WT sinking and I will test it out in my yard to see if I can get away with decent casts with 10-12 WT Fly Line which is much more inexpensive than 14 WT and likely it flies much nicer and with tighter loops.

IGFA sent me a letter a few weeks back looking for my $$$. I may respond now because I am motivated....


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## Garboman

Just read some specifications on a spool of Scientific Anglers 9 WT sinking I have on hand.

Sinks up to 6.5 inches per second, sinks up to 18 feet deep.

Ordered a spare spool for one of my 9/10 WT reels that will hold plenty of backing with 12 WT Line perhaps even 14 WT Line if the lesser WT lines do not cast well.

If I can keep from putting the Fly Hook in the Riff Raff that hangs around the end of the Pier at Koru, I should be good to go.

Can not wait for the 14 WT to arrive so I can test out this new Super System for Planking Drum 

Used 60 pound test with an Albright Knot to make a 4 foot mono section connect Fly Line to Leader Butt section

Using a Uni-Uni to connect 10 Foot tapered leader to the 60 pound butt section.


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## Garboman

Sage 14WT dropped off by my good friend FedEX.

16 Pound Tippet IGFA Fly Rod World Record is currently 43 pounds.

This 14WT is quite different from the 9WT's I am used to, as soon as it stops raining here I will test it in the front yard. The rod feels stiff and heavy just holding it. 

I have a Loomis 10WT, but I want to put the heat on any Drum I get hooked up to so we have a project with this Sage Stick.

If I decide to go the Beach Route and fish the Conga Line with this 14WT I will try and pay Joker and Biker Ricky to get folks out of the way of errant false cast fly hooks in the ears or eyes...... It would be a most ridiculous endeavor, but epic if I slide a Monster on the Beach. Drum will need to be in real close and I mean close for me to hook up.


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## Garboman

Reached out to the Chinese for this sealed drag 13/14 WT Piscifun Fly Reel. No Regrets.

This reel is smooth, perhaps overkill for my Drum project challenge. 

Currently has 300 yards of 8 strand 40 pound braid and 100 feet of WF 12WT floating. The reel would likely hold another 400-500 yards of 40 pound 8 strand braid with 12WT.

This 13/14 WT Sage rod has been quite responsive in my test casting with 12WT, much easier and better balanced with this larger reel, than I anticipated. This Sage also has quite a limber tip, can fish it with a 16 pound tippet with no issues for break offs.

I have British made fly reels and this Piscifun is likely a superior technology, however the UK reels I have owned for 20 plus years

I spent a large part of my early fishing career fishing career with a fly rod in hand and I am back into it. Started out with a Herter's fly rod in the mid 1960's. Likely when I get too old to cast a Drum heaver I will end up with fly rods.


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## Garboman

Spooled Sufix Superior Neon Fire on one of my 7000's and I like this line. It really seems to be the equal or better than ProSpec Chrome at half the price. (Which if you spend much time hooking up to critters that want to take all your line off in the first run, is important).


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## pcbtightlines

Agree…I have it on 4 reels now… some .35 and some .40 ..casted it on the beach for a day recently and was impressed ..very visible and smooth


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## Arnav

Can you give a comparison between the Sufix Superior Neon Fire and the Sakuma Fire Crystal Tommy F. has on his site ?
Just gettin ready to order some.
Thanks


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## Garboman

Never used Sakuma. Most of the fellas I fish with used ProSpec Chrome. Sakuma seems to be never available in a bulk spools and at this stage of my fishing career I have a preference for respooling the entire spool when I change lines rather than tying in a top shot a half filled spool. I used to tie in all the time, but I fish so infrequently at the moment I prefer to not to take chances on old line. I have lost too many Drum to broken line issues at the beach because when you are hooked up to a critter the line is often rubbing the bottom of coarse sand and broken shells and then on the next fish, you break off in the middle of the spool rather than on the leader end.

What line you want is somewhat determined by what kind of fishing you do. Drum fishing requires being able to see the line at night. The green Tritanium Sufix is harder for me to see at night, than orange Chrome or Neon Fire my new favorite.

Buy both and see what works best for you and then buy a couple spools of your preference because at some point most everything gets changed out with a new product.


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## pcbtightlines

Outside of what Garbo said which I agree, Sakuma tends to have a smaller diameter at all pound tests. It is not stiff and handles and casts very well. You should put 20lb Sakuma on a drum reel as Garbo said the line is in contact a lot with sand and shells. 20lb is listed at .3mm in diameter.

Superior neon fire has a thicker diameter but a tackle shop owner told me the breaking strength of 15 is 20 and it’s .40. It seems to be very visible but I have not yet fished at night with it. It did cast and handle very well when I used if a couple weeks agoI have always felt Sufix makes very good quality mono lines.

Sakuma will be more expensive and it is a bit tougher to get. Tommy does have bulk spools periodically.

To echo what Garbo said get smaller spools of both and give them a try.


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## dsurf

I've used the Sakuma 20lb and found it to be somewhat less than desirable abrasive resistant...I know that's partly due to the ultra small diameter.....25lb may be a better solution.


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## pcbtightlines

line diameter is definitely something you want to pay attention to bottom fishing. I personally never have had any problems with 20lb Sakuma but everybody's experiences are different. Personally I like a .40 diameter line for my drum reels. 25lb Sakuma fire crystal might be hard to come by in the states.


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## Benji

20# sakuma fire crystal is by far my favorite option. I like it better than the yellow sakuma, i feel it's a little more abrasive resistant and definitely easier to see. They tie knots about the same. Sufix tritanium is second choice. I personally do not care for chrome, I'll use it in a pinch but have had bad experiences with it having defects in it more than once. Unfortunately the fire crystal sakuma doesn't come in a bulk spool, really wish that it did, because i too like to respool completely, and often. Sakuma also makes some premium 60# shock leader that I've become quite fond of.


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## retired

Garbo its mid year, who is in the lead? It hard to not believe Lee isn't but I know several hit it a little harder than him.


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## Garboman

Most of the DrumPro's will not let anyone know what they have, a couple who have won multiple times have a habit of not telling anyone every what they got of they did not have the winning total.

Early in this game, only a couple will tell Tournament Officials but they do not want the World to know until late November. If you are in the lead, then you know it and if you want to win, you sandbag the others into a feeling of false security and let the eventual losers go off drinking or just do lazy time planking at Piers who then run you off in time to get a decent nights sleep, instead of point the truck out onto Sandland.

The ones that fish the hardest are in the lead.

Pretty sure last years DrumPro is not in the lead. Probably learning how to interdict smugglers and illegals coming in from Cuba, getting ordered to clean the latrines if he screws something up or goes Garbo on his Chief.


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## The Joker

retired said:


> Garbo its mid year, who is in the lead? It hard to not believe Lee isn't but I know several hit it a little harder than him.


Zing has said he has no interest in being the man again, he said three times was enough for him. Especially since some of those competing don't know how to measure a fish.


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## Garboman

Yearlings are good for practice.

Yearlings if counted a bit too many times potentially could result in a Lifetime Ban for the miscreant. If you are banned then every DrumPro who walks out to the T or Drives out to the Secret Spots will know not only your name, but the names of the crew you run with. You might as well become a bait bitch at that point.

Remember it is better to be a Loser than a Cheater who gets caught, because if you Cheat and get caught then you Lose everything.

There were some controversies Last Year regarding the Yearling issue. Tournament Officials let the DrumPro's who had witnessed the events make the call, and the Tournament Officials then stood behind their decision.

Some years back a the owner of well known OBX Tackle Shop wanted to Monetize the MAN but after review (9 seconds worth of reviewing) it was deemed that too many people would then likely become liars and cheats, to win the $$$.

If you want to be an Outer Banks Legend it is best to do it the hard way.


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## Garboman

I have been practicing at home with a 12WT and 14WT Fly rods with shooting head systems. Spent most of my time using typical weight forward fly lines because I mostly did freshwater fishing with Fly Rods and 100 feet casts were not necessary. The Shooting head is pretty exciting, sucker just punches it on out there further than I have ever cast before.

I have researched stripping baskets and the prices seem ridiculous, may end up with either a kitchen Counter dish drainer or just use on of my trusty drywall buckets. On an OBX Pier I would not be able to take all the catcalls and sneers if I strap a dish strainer to my belly, but if I just set a drywall bucket in front of me and strip into that, I will be the one doing all the trash talking if I hook up. I just have to Post up on the left hand corner of the piers. (Can not be too windy)

Seen some nice pictures of Chesapeake Drum caught in boats recently.

There is an OBX secret spot accessible by foot that still should be producing Drum and a possible right now with a strong NE wind. If you are willing to tote your gear a bit and brave Mosquitos or are willing to soak yourself in 100% Deet you probably already know the place I am referencing.

Right now instead of working I am playing around with Fly Rods, it is kind of like way more fun.


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## pcbtightlines

Looking forward to seeing the glamour shots from an OBX pier…fly rod and drum in hand 🎣


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## dirtyhandslopez

Wonder whatever happened to Fly Wacko? He used to post on here way back. David, are you out there?


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## Garboman

Lopez your hijack prompted me to ask you if your *Drum cycle* is still around and working or did it bit the dust?

Tried out a very fancy Tarpon WF 12 line with a clear sinking tip. The clear tip was some type of really stiff mono and mighty thick. The Clear tip did not want to turn over, it kept getting snarled up. I had bought it at a huge discount on Ebay and the seller said it had been used only once. I took it off the reel and put back on a normal WF 10WT and the Loomis #10WT was putting in work again with tight looks with double haul. I am not going to bad mouth the manufacturer of that Tarpon sink tip line since they have been around as long as I have but it must have been some kind of error involved. 

Test and Test and practice and practice so that when you are fishing for real there will be less problems when you get in the big game.


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## dirtyhandslopez

Seen's you asked.
1966 and still rocking and rolling. She's a work taxi right now.


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## retired

Lee did not let me have any secret drum catch numbers this past week......so we are all in the dark.


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## Garboman

After testing, I cut the fancy 15' clear sink tip of the 12WT Tarpon line clean off and now it casts pretty decent on a St. Croix 9Wt. So it is not a total loss. Suspect other fly rod guys have cut the clear tip off, it had all the built in casting ability and smoothness of 150 pound mono leader. 

Lots of pictures of boat Drum in the Chesapeake but they count just as much as when you use a big 12" Stretched Mesh Gill net.

Seems like Seigler has paused on the SM models. Wonder if the lifetime warranty on a reel that gets doused with Salt Water was not really a good idea. I am not seeing any new ones available at the Seigler website.

I could hit up Travis or GolfPro but they seem to be busy, so I am reaching out to see what is what......

About six weeks and the action will start up again.


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## Garboman

Blue Tarpon 12WT is the line that is now missing the clear tip in the foreground.

The other rods are part of the rod battery I am planning on turning loose on a Drum sometime.

I should get back to practicing with my heavers, but I am having a good time casting the fly rods these days in my front yard.


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## Garboman

I first cast a fly rod 58 years ago, spent a lot of time away from fly fishing, but came back to it more than a few times over the years. My Rich In-Laws lived in Potomac MD and had 6-7 acre pond that their home was adjacent to. It is a private pond and I grew up fly rod fishing for Largemouth Bass and Bluegill there. My In-laws had some deaths in the Family so their Home was sold and now I can no longer fish this pond. When I was in my late teens I used to sneak in to the Pond and fish, and I thought about it this morning. There are Security Guards for this neighborhood and Guards would come and run me off if tried it. Rich people live differently than others and when I could I fish it, I had it pretty much to myself. Landed an 8 pound Bass at the pond and had some 10 pounder's hook up for an instant on buzz baits.
Back then I never carried a Polaroid Camera and a SLR was out of my skill set for fish photos. I caught some monster bluegills too, but my favorite was hitting the bedded Bass in late May.

Any way I have fly fished long enough to not need Simms waders and Orvis branded wear, come to think of it I do not need Huk either a plain Black t shirt to hide the fish blood stains is good enough for me.

I look fondly these days at two pairs of neopreme waders I repaired the leaking seams on this Spring, they will come in handy when I step into a cold Winter Steelhead River out West...........


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## Garboman

DrumPro Update:

Whilst taking a break at work, I check out Surfchex.com web cams. You cannot make out who is who on the Avon Pier Webcam but I did just witness the Florida Twin cast out a Drum Bait. I first saw him cast nearly forty years ago, and he has a distinctive style so I recognized him before I even thought about it. Ingrained in my mind one might say.

Florida Twin coming up every year in the early Fall, year after year after year after year.

Florida Twin was the 1st Drum fisherman to land 1000 Citations (Did that around 20 years ago or so).

It is said that the MAN Tournament was actually created in the interest of beating the Florida Twin if only for one given year.

Every once in a while back in the Day when I fished next to him a lot I would have a good tide or two, but not like the Florida Twin.

Before the DrumPro's starting running the numbers into triple digits, and getting 70-80 on the beach before the end of May. There was the Florida Twin coming up each September, who mostly fished like it was a Job. Every 20 minutes out goes a fresh Cob Head. Never fished 2 rods at once on a Pier (Fishing Rodanthe Style). Pretty much hard at it all day long, he took the Fall off to fish, and then fished every fishable day.
Florida Twin's only vice is fishing, same as his Brother.

I refuse to join Zuckerberg's site so I have no pictures of the last week or two.

Going to try to make it down for a few days in October.


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## Garboman

Tomorrow I have a new Stainless Steel 20" Extra Heavy Barrel AR15 Complete Upper in .223 Wylde arriving from my Friend Mr. FedEx. I almost got an Upper in .300 Blackout until I saw two loaded mags one with 300 Blackout and one with 5.56MM side by side. Because the rear of the Cartridges look identical, if you were in a hurry and did not check the tip of the cartridge, it seemed quite possible to inadvertently slap a loaded 5.56MM Mag into a 300 Blackout AR15 and create some Darwinian end to your Shooting Career or vice versa a loaded 300 Blackout Mag into a 5.56 Gun and Jam up any chances you had against winning a match or worse a gun fight. 

What does this have to do with Drum Fishing? Not really sure.......but it was on my mind so I decided to share the bit of information. 

A DrumPro Drum Fishing Tip is to always use a Drum Hook with a *Gap* big enough to lodge itself in the hinge portion of a 60 pound Drum's Mouth. You do not read that kind of stuff in Salt Water Sportsman. Once you got a hook lodged in the corner of a big Drum's Mouth you should be good to go unless a 400 pound Dusky bites the Drum in Half late at night at the Secret Spot before you get the Drum on the Sand. Seen it happen, did not wade too far out the rest of that night.


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## Trevfishin

Looks like the piers are heating up, actually started last Wednesday. Wonder if the warmer weather will shut it down again for a while.


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## ifishhatteras

Yesterday, caught a couple of large bluefish on Ocracoke and hung something large that swam east at a high rate of speed until it bit my 100# hook leader in half.


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## retired

Be on 55 in the AM in the morning.............if I can get a damn phone working I will let ya know if things cool down. If you park your truck with a BIG trailer out next to a highway although in the middle of no where a drug head will find it and like your phone more than you. I was on a Cat Loader....I guess someone was honestly looking after me. If I had caught them I have no doubt I would have smashed their car straight into the ground then got arrested........


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## Garboman

Read some information on 300 Blackout being loaded into a 5.56MM Chamber and evidently more than a few have done it and more than a few have destroyed their weapon when the Blackout Round ignited and then had nowhere to go down the too small barrel so it got sketchy real fast.

I am too old for sketchy. 

Phone manufacturers should build in software so Samsung and Apple could send a signal that would totally disable a phone and make it unusable for the Foreign markets and eliminate the value to thieves. If the phone goes black and starts a siren screech who wants to have that in their pocket? And then creepy folks who buy the old Iphones and send them overseas would be out of business.

CTS and Century should be able to do something similar...say some doper swipes your new Heaver. All you have to do is make a call to New Zealand and Presto via Satellite the rod no longer will catch anything but Skates and Dogfish......It would help out finding the thieves also....if every one on the T is bowing up to a Paper Drum and one skanky sketchy looking guy is only hooking up Winter Skate, you know where I am going with this.


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## Trevfishin

Garbo you drinking again?


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## Adam

Garbo you gotta mark your .300blk mags, or get different colored ones. .300blk is a good round for stopping man-sized targets in your house, and even better with a can and subsonic. I fully intend to shoot a couple deer with mine in a few weeks.

Havent caught a drum this year, hopefully get out and fish soon, been a busy work load. I did manage to find a chunky 21" Virginia smallie on Friday. Replica being made as soon as I find a good company to do it.


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## Garboman

I won't have to paint or buy different colored mags or get rubber bands with caliber printed or paint the gun orange and use only orange mags in the orange gun, because I will not be getting a 300 Black Out. I have a 6.5 Grendel AR15 and those cartridges have such a unique look to them and even an old person like myself can tell the difference.

If a man sized target enters my home with evil intent, I am going to slice-dice him up with my kitchen knife selection. I bought a paper wheel sharpening set and mounted in on a bench grinder. It took me a while to learn, but now my knives get razor sharp in seconds, not 10 minutes as with the Lansky sharpening system. It is similar to the Flying Ginsu system, that the CIA used on Ayman al-Zawahri but without the Drone.

I wanted this to see if I can still shoot long range targets. So I got this instead of the 300 Black Out.


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## retired

Well back to drum fishing.........Just left Hatteras around 6:00AM this morning. Few puppy drum and that was IT. Saw very very few fish caught...........it was HOT, damn bugs galore and it was time to go. Dunked a F15 and blew up a fathom within 15 minutes......... Surf was getting rough when we left. This trying to plan ahead and using a long range forecast sucks....hoping for better times in about 3-4 weeks......Garbo drum pro Lee said he is yet to see you......and he is not sharing any info. NONE.


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## Garboman

I have been extremely busy at work, it may not happen for me but for a long weekend or so this Fall. It is a good thing for me to be busy, but the timing is off for the DrumPro Game.

When the surf gets real rough like it is, it is time to go and meet and make new friends at the end of the T, instead of heading home.

DrumPros will all be at that Whalebone spot at opening. the one near the 7-11 and KFC tomorrow. I checked the webcam and it looks like Kinnakeet spot was about to get blown out, or it already has been.

So both Twins and GolfPro and HollywoodDrumPro and DrumPRoNick and likely DrumProLee and and BikerDrumPRo and AvonJohnDrumPro and DrumProTomH plus the regular crowd of Pier Vultures at Whalebone Junction will all be under the care of employees of State of North Carolina all day tomorrow till closing time. Plus that Tall RedHead ReplacementMateDrumPRo, you know he will be there. I do not want to talk trash about ReplacementMateDrumPro in case I have to hit him up for bait sometime, or at least paw my way through his bait cooler.

It is tough to net Drum when big smoking sets come in and the Drum decides to fight the net in whitewater, but there are times when the only ones getting bit are pier fellas.

It is also tough to hold bottom, so if the three sided 10's do not hold its time to breakout the 12's.

A DrumPro tip for holding bottom on a pier during a big wind and current event. Throw your bait straight into the malestrom, that way you have a few minutes before the current starts dragging you.


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## Garboman

I hope Spike gets one tomorrow morning. Looking forward to some reports.


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## Garboman

Another trick is to use a Nail Sinker. You have to be careful how long the Nail stays out because it can get so buried it never comes loose and you have to break it off, causing a snag monster, which folks will ride you about. Water abd current tomorrow is made for a 1307.


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## Garboman

Wind went Hard NW so Kinnakeet major league of yesterday surf calmed down. Florida Twin and likely AvonJohn are out on the T. DDDrumPro is also probably out there and perhaps PotatoManDrumPro.

I am 275 miles to the North at a Secret Location.


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## pcbtightlines

Anyone use the Windy app….pretty good tool


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## retired

We thought about hanging around until this blew over but couple issues. We did not bring our camper and was just renting a cabin plus my wife's best friends mom did not survive heart surgery unexpectedly..............Life just gets in the way of fishing sometimes and ya just do the best you can.........We will be back weather permitting in around 3 weeks then back again in November. Now lets go clean some gear up plus a very nasty truck.


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## The Joker

Garboman said:


> Wind went Hard NW so Kinnakeet major league of yesterday surf calmed down. Florida Twin and likely AvonJohn are out on the T. DDDrumPro is also probably out there and perhaps PotatoManDrumPro.
> 
> I am 275 miles to the North at a Secret Location.


Florida Twin had to go to parents weekend and missed the entire bite. I made it for the bite on the incoming storm front, but couldn't get one that counted. Friday morning the Whalebone spot did not open at regular time due to plumbing issues. So I snuck out to an undisclosed location and found what I was after. Went to the big pier that afternoon and put in work, we double hauled the net multiple times.


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## Garboman

Clyde Coltrain of Rodanthe NC passed away yesterday.

I talked with the RedHeaded DrumPro about Clyde this morning. The RedHeaded DrumPro is going to miss Clyde.

Clyde was a fixture on Rodanthe Pier and he was one of the very first people I met in Rodanthe on the old Big T Pier back the end the T was perhaps 100 feet across 30 some years ago and went out some 1200 feet from the sand.

I had cast a bait out on the North Side of the T and in my inexperience had not noticed that a Skate had picked up my bait and then went south in the current with it. It was dark and windy and a light rain was falling.

When I finally noticed I had slack line I started reeling it back in only to see Clyde on the south side of the T, in his raincoat trying to unpin my skate in a big tangle that was involved with his line and mine, with the skate being wrapped multiple times in a big snarl.

Underneath his raincoat hood Clyde was muttering something about Tourist Fisherman intermixed with **K and P* and stuff like that, all whilst I stood there attentively waiting for Clyde to hand me my rig back. 

After Clyde unpinned my Skate, and for some reason he left the Skate attached to my rig, he handed it back to be and then without a word turned his back on me.

I felt a bit embarrassed, and the fact that it still clear in my mind as the day that it happened is not lost on me.

RIP Clyde


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## Garboman




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## Trevfishin

The Rodanthe Pier Facebook page posted a lot of pics of him too.


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## retired

Unless it’s at night I doubt anyone is making a break away in numbers caught this weekend. Honestly never seen so many people. Hoping when the weather cools considerably next few days and this tourney is over sanity can take over.


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## poppop1

Not sure if this guy is in the Man Tournament, Travis from TW's caught a 49'' red drum at a secret spot on the beach near Avon, nice!


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## Garboman

When I get old I am going to have Travis cast for me.


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## retired

Well, some observations for 3 weeks on the island. CROWDED, especially from say around the 11th to the 20th or so. Honestly worst its ever been. Fishing? Not really a great drum bite from what I personally saw....I did poorly to say the least but I also did not go elbow to elbow with the crowds either. We walked to a few spots that produced. Got in 3 good days of Blue runs.......got in 3 GREAT days of whiting.......big Whiting. Again walking to a few secluded spots on low tide to smoke it over and returning to marked locations at high tide was the secret. Fished a little at night, so so in my book. Caught a lot of flounder that had to go back, many were well over 15 inches. Spent a ton of money as I tend to eat well and don't cut corners there.Lost the spaceship while there......that sucked. I've decided to go on some charters from here out plus the surf fishing. Lee is a good person to get ya lined up. We had thought about a week in November. Not going. I have been 5 times this year and spent 9 weeks on island......had enough. Oh...I forgot to tell you about the kidney stone and my experience with the OBX hospital. Trust me. If you have bad health you do not need to be on that island. You will die........ONE person in the emergency room and I laid on the floor for 2 1/2 hours........and NO urologist on staff. wanted me to wait for 2 days for a ambulance to Norfolk.


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## poppop1

retired said:


> Well, some observations for 3 weeks on the island. CROWDED, especially from say around the 11th to the 20th or so. Honestly worst its ever been. Fishing? Not really a great drum bite from what I personally saw....I did poorly to say the least but I also did not go elbow to elbow with the crowds either. We walked to a few spots that produced. Got in 3 good days of Blue runs.......got in 3 GREAT days of whiting.......big Whiting. Again walking to a few secluded spots on low tide to smoke it over and returning to marked locations at high tide was the secret. Fished a little at night, so so in my book. Caught a lot of flounder that had to go back, many were well over 15 inches. Spent a ton of money as I tend to eat well and don't cut corners there.Lost the spaceship while there......that sucked. I've decided to go on some charters from here out plus the surf fishing. Lee is a good person to get ya lined up. We had thought about a week in November. Not going. I have been 5 times this year and spent 9 weeks on island......had enough. Oh...I forgot to tell you about the kidney stone and my experience with the OBX hospital. Trust me. If you have bad health you do not need to be on that island. You will die........ONE person in the emergency room and I laid on the floor for 2 1/2 hours........and NO urologist on staff. wanted me to wait for 2 days for a ambulance to Norfolk.


Glad you had some good fishing days, you have definitely put your time in so far this year. I can relate to your experience regarding being ill away from home, on vacation, and at the OBX, which is never supposed to have any negative issues, we are at a happy place. We were in Rodanthe May 2021, my wife was bleeding internally, got real sick quickly, just about passed out, throwing up old blood, looked like a horror movie, scary. Called 911, the ambulance was there within 10 minutes and those people stabilized her, she lost a lot of blood. They took her to Nags Head hospital, I followed , we waited there for about 4 hours, they had a fire in the kitchen and everything was closed off, they did nothing for her after 4 hours, the ambulance people did it all. Finally they said they did not have the equipment to find the bleeding and from there we went to Chesapeake Hospital and they did a endoscopy, found the bleeding and welded it shut, but she had to remain there for 4 days to be sure the bleeding was sealed. This and your problem too only happens to other people, I thought, wrong! She has been good with this problem since then, hope you are also,...pop.


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## retired

poppop1 said:


> Glad you had some good fishing days, you have definitely put your time in so far this year. I can relate to your experience regarding being ill away from home, on vacation, and at the OBX, which is never supposed to have any negative issues, we are at a happy place. We were in Rodanthe May 2021, my wife was bleeding internally, got real sick quickly, just about passed out, throwing up old blood, looked like a horror movie, scary. Called 911, the ambulance was there within 10 minutes and those people stabilized her, she lost a lot of blood. They took her to Nags Head hospital, I followed , we waited there for about 4 hours, they had a fire in the kitchen and everything was closed off, they did nothing for her after 4 hours, the ambulance people did it all. Finally they said they did not have the equipment to find the bleeding and from there we went to Chesapeake Hospital and they did a endoscopy, found the bleeding and welded it shut, but she had to remain there for 4 days to be sure the bleeding was sealed. This and your problem too only happens to other people, I thought, wrong! She has been good with this problem since then, hope you are also,...pop.


I think it hit home during that experience that I will never go to the OBX with a pending medical issue. You're on your own. They did what they could I guess but for a area the size they cover it was disappointing. My wife is a BSN and she let them have it in a review they sent. They broke numerous medical codes along the way. To say my wife was appalled is a understatement. Making money is the name of the game and I guess a 6 month hospital doesn't make enough to keep specialist and what is truly needed. Next year we are doing a little changing up. Planning a Florida Keys trip, may go to Upper Ontario on a fishing trip and take a damn boat to hatteras this next trip. I love surf fishing but I like catching fish more.


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## Garboman

Appearances can be deceiving. At first glance he looks pretty scrawny, until of course you try and out cast him.


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## pcbtightlines

Technique ! 

Have a friend who is 5’8” and is worried about buying a 12 ft rod just because he is 5’8” …told him learn to cast it properly and you will be fine.


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## poppop1

Awful quiet here, thought this latest blow would have the DrumPro's secretly landing some nice reds at their secret spots, or maybe they have??....pop.


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## The Joker

Talked to Zing today, we was out looking or that last one of the season. He said he counted up all his numbers over the years and he has broken the 1,000 fish mark. Probably a very small club that can make that claim.


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## River

Zing has one citation with over a hundred drum listed on it .... each one listed on second page .... it's on display in the Teaches Lair tackle shop ... never seen one like it ..... have known Zing for a long time, fished with him, worked for him .... and proud to say, I helped him catch his first citation Pomp ... which was easy with Lee ..... one great fisherman, a fish catchin machine, any fish and at the mention of big drum .... he's gone !


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## pcbtightlines

__
Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content


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## Garboman

62 is current leading number of Paper Drum

Tournament officials are still reviewing.

If anyone know of someone with documented number of Citations above 62;please reach out to Skidmore-Schilling-Burton LLP 1000 K Street Washington DC 20001.


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## Garboman

DrumPro Hollywood at 62. When you find yourself in a full time job, it hits the bottom line.











Results pending verifications Tournament Officials are still sorting out entrants

Meanwhile:
Why does this DrumPro look pleased.
Because he broke his personal record for 11 Citations in one Day, along with 4 yearlings.
Take note GenX he took care not to count the Yearlings.


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## Garboman

Very rare to deck more than ten in one 24 hour period by one DrumPro, if you think it is easy just imagine strolling out the the Tee and having a half dozen fellas who can out cast you and have better bait connections....you need an edge....420 or Captain Morgan could help but a lot of the DrumPro's these days do not even know what 420 stands for so you may be unable to get them too inebriated to bust out a monster cast. These guys deck a monster and before you have even gotten your cast out the Pics hit Zuckerberg.

Plus DD's previous best day was on Kitty Hawk Pier several decades before. back when both DD and I were very good looking.

What does this mean, it means that the MAN Tournament was started way back when on Kitty Hawk Pier, back when DD was the MAN and Tournament Officials interviewed him about being number one.

GenX was not even born yet, when the best early Fall Pier was smoking hot.

We are taking more time this year to determine DrumPro number one because we need more time and want to get it right.....


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## Garboman

I stripped my 1509 yesterday of guides and took my time sanding off the factory paint finish. I am going to rewrap it. I was not pleased with the last rewrap so I did what needed to be done and got out the Heat Gun.
I also got 100 cork rings from Portugal via International mail these are going on my sticks, have hole saws coming to enlarge the opening on the cork rings to .875 which slides over a CTS butt nicely as well as the ALL Star with a bit of reaming. Even built a jig to glue the reel seats. Shame you cannot find cork grips already set up for heavers.

Things are getting stacked up at Garbo's custom rod shop, which only can manage a few sticks a season.

Two of the most memorable Drum I have decked and I mean decked on a Pier were taken on the 1509 that is now going to sport a GenX look. This 1509 was involved in the only time I caught 10 Citations in one 24 hour period on Rodanthe Pier. I want this 1509 to catch a few more before I am done.......


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## pcbtightlines

Garboman said:


> Very rare to deck more than ten in one 24 hour period by one DrumPro, if you think it is easy just imagine strolling out the the Tee and having a half dozen fellas who can out cast you and have better bait connections....you need an edge....420 or Captain Morgan could help but a lot of the DrumPro's these days do not even know what 420 stands for so you may be unable to get them too inebriated to bust out a monster cast. These guys deck a monster and before you have even gotten your cast out the Pics hit Zuckerberg.
> 
> Plus DD's previous best day was on Kitty Hawk Pier several decades before. back when both DD and I were very good looking.
> 
> What does this mean, it means that the MAN Tournament was started way back when on Kitty Hawk Pier, back when DD was the MAN and Tournament Officials interviewed him about being number one.
> 
> GenX was not even born yet, when the best early Fall Pier was smoking hot.
> 
> We are taking more time this year to determine DrumPro number one because we need more time and want to get it right.....


April 20th 🚬


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## Thorhammer

Garbo....pics of this build, please!


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## Arnav

pcbtightlines said:


> April 20th 🚬


@ 4:20 PM
"Me and Julio down by the schoolyard"


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## Garboman

Still researching and reaching out for numbers to the less vocal DrumPro's......we are creating a deadline for submissions..."a call for offers" is the term in Commercial Real Estate wherein the bids are due by a specific date.

4/20/2023 seems to far in the future....so Tournament Officials have selected 1/13/2023 which is Friday the 13th.

Tournament Officials refuse to participate in Zuckerberg/Meta so this will be the only notice unless you call in on the Secret Drum Hotline for more time....

Did communicate directly yesterday morning with Green Beret George who only fished the Spring and caught 39 Citations in three separate week long trips.

May ........2022 George said he was in a big bite with only six other fisherman at the ......spot.

20 citations and an additional 20 yearlings in one day pulled up on the sand at the ......spot. This is rarified earth. There are only a few who have beached or decked 20 Paper Drum in one 24 hour period....Zing, Twins, Savfish, I think Nick, George, TomH and perhaps a few others...not Garbo...

In my mind it is even harder off the beach like George did it....you are standing in sand....you are walking in sand....you are in the water....unless you are stretched out in a recliner spiking it, you are putting in work and it gets harder especially after night falls and you are in the Dark.

If you are a Pier say the one at Whalebone Junction..you can order Pizza....you can lay on the bench...if the bench is crowded you can lay in the lee of the Big House. When you hook up someone else usually nets it for you and a couple others pull it over the rail for you. All you have to do is unhook the Drum and pose for glamour shots and then slide-drop-muff the Drum over the rail and back into the drink...hopefully the Drum lands right.....I have found if you turn the Drum upside down and then slide him over through the crook of your arm they usually land right for me.

If you are really big and have big hands you can grip them by their tail section and then throw the Drum like a fat Dart headfirst right into the water. I actually never have tried this but it looks good until the Drum flips and lands bad.

Quicker they get back to the rail the better their chances. Perhaps when he was in his prime, the greatest caster I have ever been around unhooked one on Rodanthe Pier and then muffed the Drum when he was picking it up....Drum landed hard on the deck and began spouting blood from his gills and I mean pulsing blood, covering up the deck with Bright Red Blood. This Drum was not going to last five minutes out there in SHARKLAND, but the DrumPro dutifully tossed him back per regulations.

I would have kept it as this Drum was DDW (Dead Drum Walking) and I would have given it to a fried of mine who was born on the Hatteras long before they ever thought to build a Bridge over Oregon Inlet.


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## pcbtightlines

_April 20th 🚬….clue in to 420 _


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## Garboman

Had a few moments today, instead of working I played and did the cork rings on this CTS 1307 Butt which will be similar to the 1509 Rebuild

I made a jig to hold the cork rings that had .750 ID from Portugal. I would have had to order 300 rings to have the .875 ID I wanted for CTS Rods.

Hole Sawing out the ring was less than satisfactory but the jig did hold the ring good for the old fashioned way of using a file to enlarge the ID.













































This last picture was what was in my hands for a good bit of the day.

I am like a amateur rod builder with a construction background. 

I have to jury rig a turning lathe because my rod lathe is in a nice room where cork dust is not acceptable.


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## The Joker

Just talked to Biker Ricky, his finally count was 64.


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## Garboman

64 is current leader.


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## Garboman

At the moment the top three DrumPro's

60 Devon
62 DrumProHollywood
64 DrumProBiker

The fellas at 62 and 60 might be thinking WTF....
One more trip to the Secret Spot might have turned the tide.....


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