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Happy Birthday Mike. Don't see much actiivity on the boat when I pass (although not around that often) Hope Everything is OK at your end Peteg

Tom, Level wind is permanently engaged and is slaved off the gearing at the opposite end of the spool to the main drive gears. Not worried by this as the majority of the reel load is taken up by turning the spool via the main drive gears. All in all it looks a great peice of kit for the Price! I would not try to compare it to the "Look Alike" Penn internationals which start at 4 times the price but as an alternative to the ABU 7000 or Shimano charter special or TLD 15 or even some of their even more expensive lever drag models. I'll keep you up to date with how it fishes or any issues If I ever manage to get out to wet a line It fits the ALba Rod fine. The ABU5500 struggled a bit when wrecking with Dan the eel god Peteg

Guys, I believe I have done Fladen a diservice. My plastic gear dissappointment was limited to the end which contained the Level Wind gearing. I stripped the handle end down today and Found Metal Gears used for the main drive and feel far more satisfied with my purchase. It was very easy to take end plates off and no springs jumped out to bite me, Construction seems very robust for price, the handle end plate looks like it is diecast and machined as necessary. The reel reassembled easily and everything worked first time with no readjustments necessary . I did take some photos if anyone is interested I can email them. Got to Christen it now

Dave , When I bought Reflections 2 over 3 years ago it was fitted with an electric horn commonly found in most chandlers for around

Now thats more like it They can all crew for me anytime

This pic will put it more in perspective. The boat is only 6m Pete

Paul, I havent gone mad with the mounting height see pics. I am aware that there is some shadowing due to the mast forward however hopefully I will be looking where I 'm going as well hence minimising risk. The main reflection lobes are to the side rather than for/aft (although even these still meet spec) The beauty of this device is that it also takes a Nav light fitting bolted to the top such that the cable can runs straight through the body of the unit and out of the bottom. For those of you with Radar arches it makes it easy to mount both cyclops and nav light as one peice. Hope This helps By the way I have no affiliation with the company its just that I spent a lot of time trying to find a unit that would comply with current specs. The spec will be changing soon and becoming even more challenging to match. Cyclops themself are developing a brand new design but are awaiting material prices to drop before committing to market so don't hold your breath Pete

You're Quite right Terry I must get out Fishing Sorry about the slip into letcherousness But I still think she'd make a great extreme fishing presenter in her bikini and with oiled muscles bulging........... Oops There I go Again Roll On a Weekend Weather Window Peteg

I'm still taking stick from having the most expensive passive radar reflector in Cobbs Quay. As I keep telling people the Cyclops 3 is the only Passive one that meets the current performance requirements as stipulated by the international marine organisation. And if I have the return echo of an aircraft carrier all the better!!! My recommendation would be one of the Cylops range see link http://www.northseanavigatorinc.com/cyclops%20models.htm obtainable through the manufacturer as per link http://www.cyclopstech.co.uk/index.html It works on both old X band and S band Radar frequencies If they're good enough for Sunseeker their good enough for me Peteg

Kate Silverton would do it for me She's so athletic she could land those piddly sailfish with RB thrown over her shoulder for goodmeasure.

Being thoroughly depressed about poor weather and lack of suitable fishing opportunities on the weekends I decided to listen to my female side and take the female option and cheer myself up by buying something new. I Thought it was time to up the anti and buy a new multiplier reel. Tackle Tart as I am. Initially I was going to go for an ABU 7000 Series but got swayed at the last minute by the Fladen Maximus 3/0 lever drag "gold" According to Fladen This is a "Rock solid" CNC machined from solid aluminium reel which I managed to purchase New at the knockdown price of just

Dave, I agree with Smallfry you've done good in your limited time Just A Couple of queries . 1. Can't see any anodes fitted to the Trim Tabs 2. You haven't painted over the anode on the Leg have you? Peteg

Dave, Ever thought of doing a bottom scrape and antifoul article on your website. Looks like you've got all the evidence needed here.. You never know we might even be able to see a write up and Photos of Lady C... .Before and after etc. If that mess is what Lurks in Holes Bay??.........Scary Charlie may be right looks like you've been running with Zero Antifoul There have been quite a few tests on antifoul paint in the press I may be able to dig one out and email you before you purchase. PeteG

With the economic situation reportedly Dire, I thought we should all try and understand the various mechanics of economics so I hope the following explanation will help. 21 Economic Models explained with Cows - 2008 update SOCIALISM You have 2 cows. You give one to your neighbour. COMMUNISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and gives you some milk. FASCISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and sells you some milk. NAZISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and shoots you. BUREAUCRATISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the milk away... TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. You sell them and retire on the income. SURREALISM You have two giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons AN AMERICAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows. Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead. ENRON VENTURE CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a debt/equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows. The milk rights of the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the rights to all seven cows back to your listed company. The annual report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more. You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States, leaving you with nine cows. No balance sheet provided with the release. The public then buys your bull. A FRENCH CORPORATION You have two cows. You go on strike, organise a riot, and block the roads, because you want three cows. A JAPANESE CORPORATION You have two cows. You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow and produce twenty times the milk. You then create a clever cow cartoon image called 'Cowkimon' and market it worldwide. A GERMAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You re-engineer them so they live for 100 years, eat once a month, and milk themselves. AN ITALIAN CORPORATION You have two cows, but you don't know where they are. You decide to have lunch. A RUSSIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You count them and learn you have five cows. You count them again and learn you have 42 cows. You count them again and learn you have 2 cows. You stop counting cows and open another bottle of vodka. A SWISS CORPORATION You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you. You charge the owners for storing them. A CHINESE CORPORATION You have two cows. You have 300 people milking them. You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity. You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation. AN INDIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You worship them. A BRITISH CORPORATION You have two cows. Both are mad. AN IRAQI CORPORATION Everyone thinks you have lots of cows. You tell them that you have none. No-one believes you, so they bomb the **** out of you and invade your country. You still have no cows, but at least now you are part of Democracy.... AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION You have two cows. Business seems pretty good. You close the office and go for a few beers to celebrate. A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION You have two cows. The one on the left looks very attractive Thank goodness they have left out the Welsh Corporation

Tony, First experienced the problem when I brought back a couple of packets of plastic worms from the States. Every thing was fine whilst they were kept in their packets but once used I put them into drawers in my fishing box. Next time I went fishing I found that the used ones had melted into the plastic of the drawer . I always keep them in their original packaging now it also keeps the smell in one place. I don't know if the reaction is between plastics or between the chemical attractant additives that they seem drenched with. Peteg

Will be fishing Sunday "probably inshore from Poole to Christchurch Ledge ". If any one wants to join me give me a pm Leaving Cobbs Quay around 10 ish maybe earlier If anyone can reccomend an area that is fishing well at the moment (aside from the Rips) inshore or offshore I would appreciate the nod. Peteg

Quite Right Terry Sometimes I wonder whether its not better to trail, Go where you Like No antifoul Can work on boat out of water and basically when you like no anodes no mooring/berthing fees and then there's the one overiding factor as to why I berth Your not keeping that ****** in front of my house!! Fear

Jim, The fitting of plastic tabs won't help your screws in fact probably quite the opposite as you need to fit sacrificial anodes to something. I am told that the Volvo QL style tabs are very effective although they cause a lot of drag and hence increased fuel consumption. One of my Pontoon Neighbours swears by them but he also moors at the pontoon with additional anodes dropped into the water and wire connected to the boat metalwork at various locations The vertically operating tabs still have to be fixed to the hull with screws. They wont get in the way of your fishing like the smart tabs. I dont have the problem with tabs getting in the way of fishing on my boat as I fish from the open Bow cockpit. Peteg

Jim If you search forum you'll find my previous post where I had a Bennet trim tab ripped off the hull when hitting a wave rather awkwardly. Reason for failure was that anodes on tabs had corroded to a point where they weren't doing their job and Galvanic corrosion was eating the stainless steel screw heads that held the tabs to the hull. The probem was resolved by 1.Replacing stainless steel screws 2.Replacing existing anodes with new Plus fitting an additional extra large anode to each tab 3, Using a metal antifoul rather than one for grp hulls on the stainless steel tabs This was more effective preventing weed growth hence the anode condition could be easily monitored over the whole season. If you trail your warrior you shouldn't have the same problem. My boat is berthed all year at Cobbs Quay where the brackish water and electrical currents have a field day dissolving anodes Peteg

Would always recomend adjustable trim tabs for the additional control they give to the boat. I can plane at around 9knots with mine fitted and they come in especially useful when balancing the boat Peteg

Count me out this time Job lists as long as my arm Peteg

One Late report to add. Go on have a good laugh How a day went from bad to worse Left fishing tackle box at home ! turned around and drove back 30miles to pick up box. Eventually got out around 12.30 Had a small bass(returned) and small mackeral all on first drift. Bass was on shad , mackeral on squid Thought I was in for a great day Decided to anchor uptide of spot Not a good decision as Achor Yanka came unclipped and buoy floated away with tide. My fears of not being able to lift Manson Supreme anchor came to fruition it was solid. Made wrong decision and should have dumped anchor with buoy but Stupidity took over and tried to power out anchor without buoy. Anchor rope wrapped around prop Had to loosen warp to lift outboard and cut anchor rope!!! Bye Bye Anchor and chain and about 30ft of warp Managed to free remaining rope around prop using knife taped to boat hook Saw Anchor Buoy in distance and managed to retrieve Decided I 'd had enough for one day and returned to Berth Returned in time to see Marcel2 return from trip Note to self No.1 Make sure the Anka Yanka doesn't unclip itself on the cleat next time or alternatively change it for a carabine style link. Note to self No.2 If you do go for one of these extra high holding capacity anchors and you loose the lifting buoy make sure you dump the warp over the side with a big enough buoy on the end so that when you do recover your lifting bouy you can get your anchor back. Alternatively buy a

Unrfortunateley crew has just called off sick and can't make tomorrows comp I am therefore Crewless!!! Place therefore available for tomorrow if anyones interested I'll be leaving Cobbs Quay around 9.00AM(may be later rather than earlier) fishing more for fun than competition but you never know your luck If anybody is interested give me a ring on 07917357405 Peteg

Reflections 2 will be out Dont know who will be crewing yet though but book me in !! Do weevers and blenny's count in this comp.? I might just be able to catch one over specimen weight Peteg

Alan, Cant help with Local supplier as I get Holes Bay Marine to fit them during my annual service. What I can Advise you on though is to fit bigger rather than existing if possible as my original anodes on trim tabs didnt last a full season. I have since added bigger anodes as well as the originals and they lasted last season fine although it was ovious they were doing their job. I don't have the problems with the outboard anodes because the outboard is always lifted and doesn't spend much time in the water. I am confident the anodes I have fitted now will last a season. You unfortunately have most parts submerged throughout the season so definately go bigger than if boat was moored in salt water as the brackish nature of Cobbs Quay really does eat them up. On the antifoul front Last season I had my stainless steel trim tabs antifouled with the same paint that was used on the hull and this was pants ....I was growing a hydroponics garden within a couple of months which totally covered the anodes and made them invisible for checking and no amount of scrubbing would get rid of the weed for long. This year Holes Bay Marine have used a Black antifoul specifically for metal and this is really doing the business .The weeds definately hate it . Talk to Richard or Chris at HBM for details. The standard Blue antifouling they put on the hull works fine . Best I can do ....if you need a trip out let me know ..............you'll need a break from all that scrubbing down . Peteg