Rolan Duffield

You might try contacting www.westsystems.com They are an old company specializing in epoxies and coatings for boats . Rolan

Phil: Any chance you can video some of the presentation for us and post it on Ozark Anglers? Rolan

Bill, Do you use your depth finders on Taney? Where and how could it be used other than keeping an eye out for shallow areas. Rolan

I agree with the recommendation for the Lee Pot. Mine is about 30 years old and still works great. If you're pouring small jigs you need this type pot. With the jig mold held against the spout you can pour the lead directly into the mold and keep the lead from being exposed to air. The benefit of this method is that the lead flows into the mold under the pressure and weight of the molden lead for a quick flow to fill the mold. Lead will harden in a fraction of a second when exposed to air. The open pots may work OK for larger jigs. though probably will not be successful for small jigs. You need good contact with the pour spout for optimum success.

Looks like it's raining. That's good news to save and minimize any damage to the shrimp population. Will this send the big trout back downstream?

The manual for my 2 cycle Yamaha 115 hp says to torque the plugs to 18.4 ft. Pounds. This equates to 221 inch pounds. This seems way too tight. When I tighten them to 100 inch pounds this seems plenty tight. Need recommendation. Thanks, Rolan

In checking a lens for general quality, there are two primary checks you should make and evaluate. Evenness of coverage from center to corners of the image and sharpness across the full image area. Evenness of coverage and lens falloff can be checked by taking pictures of a plane piece of white or colored board and checking to see if the density of the image in the corners is the same as in the center. You should make this test outside in the sun to ensure evenness of the lighting. Cheap lenses and some of the older lenses may show darker image corners and will fail this test. You want a lens that does not fall off in density across the entire image area. If you want to test or compare lenses for sharpness here's a simple way of testing and evaluating them. Always use the camera on a tripod for any sharpness test and make the test in good sunlight. Find a large building with lots of windows, fill the entire image area and take a picture. It's easy to evaluate the sharpness on your computer. Make sure you check the sharpness across the full image area to the extreme corners. You should check any multi focal length lens at several different magnifications as sometimes those type lenses have a soft spot at some part of the focal area. I would expect that the higher priced lenses have higher general quality and will not be a concern though you should check them to make certain. Rolan

You can't go wrong with a scud. Rolan

A great post about a very classic guide. Bill always has a smile and gives his best to help anyone. I have really have enjoyed knowing him and his wife, Becky. Thanks, Bill, for the great fishing reports and steering us to improve our fishing and conservation of our Lakes and fish. Rolan

Phil and I fished the Pere Marquette many times several years ago. It's a great stream in the Baldwin, Michigan area. I used a 6 wt. fly rod. Don't think you really need anything heavier than that. Yes, the salmon will be hard to control and slow down though that's part of the fun. Just make sure you use strong salmon type hooks. Rolan

Great Pictures. Thanks for sharing. Rolan

And the beard. --- I remember your first week. WE've enjoyed many great times staying at Lilleys Landing and fishing with you. Congratulations to all of the Lilleys and wishing you continued good success. Rolan

JR I left you a message on your site. You need to be logged in to receive it. If You didn't receive it, tell me here. I'm heading to Taney Tuesday morning April 30th and will be going through Springfield. Rolan

JR -- I'm in South part of Kansas City. Where are you located. Rolan

Motor Guide 756, 12/24v, 48# thrust, 40" shaft, Bow Gator Mount. It's In very good condition. $150.00 I have upgraded to a TM with higher thrust.

Al: I always enjoy reading your trip reports. You have a gift for writing and making it interesting for us. Also enjoyed the pictures. You should write a book of these great true stories. Rolan

My preference is Mustad 3906 or a similar type hook, weighted, in sizes 14 and 12. I most likely will use Pepppy (gray) or mink scuds in these sizes.I do carry a few other colors and separate boxes of each size including size 10, 16 and 18 though seldom use them. Color does matter most of the time. Those boxes of scuds likely will have at least 20 of any color and maybe 100 of a given size and color. Just don't want to run short. Scuds are not hard to fish, though, a slow short jerky movement is better than fast. Also must keep it near or on the bottom. You also must watch your indicator closely as a strike is normally very, very, light and may only look like a slight hesitation of the indicator. Scuds are generally found in waters of less than 6 feet. Though I have been successful using them when they are running 3 or 4 turbines in Taney. (Used a sinking line).

Medium Gray

Most important ---- Clean those guides on all your rods. You'll be surprised how dirty they get and that will take a toll on your line. Dirty guides will abrade fly lines as well as make casting harder.

It started snowing here in KC about 6:00am. By 9:00am we had at least 8". It was coming down at the rate of 2-4" per hour. Also had some thundersnow. Basically it snowed so hard and came down so fast that the city was paralyzed. Many accidents. As of 6:00 this evening the news reported that Overland Park has received 13.5" and Olathe 12." they're expecting another 2-4" tonight and another round early next week. We do need the moisture. I'm staying in.

Very nice presentation and good video quality. Simple light background color makes the fly tying steps easy to see and understand. Good job. Rolan

a 6 Wt fly rod has been my primary rod for decades. Have used it for all types of Trout fishing and even salmon fishing in Alaska. The flex of the rod is more important than rod weights for a given type of fishing. A medium fast 6 wt. rod is great for Taney when using most types of lures. I agree with Fishinwrench, if I only had one rod it would be a 6 wt. Rolan

Wishing you a very Happy Birthday and good catching this year. Rolan

I took my wife to Roaring River shortly after we were married 42 years ago. She caught a nice trout (her first) and I later had it mounted. It still hangs in the family room. Problem is that she hasn't fished since. She's afraid of water. She doesn't even like to be on a boat, including ships. The best part is that she still encourages me to go fishing and play golf and wants to go along whenever we go to Taney. I go fishing and she enjoys shopping around the Branson area. I was very active in the Missouri Trout Fishermans Association in my early days and we had many good times together with that group where most of my old buddies are now no longer with us. Even so, she was a great part of our activities. We have stayed at Lilleys Landing longer than Phil has owned the place (Approximately 28 years with Phil). They are truly great friends and I include their kids and staff as great friends also. Ellen is a great wife and a keeper. Rolan

I never use red thread for my scuds. The thread color somewhat matches the color of the scud. I have tried red though don't have any faith in it. Rolan