u/UnlawfuIWaffle

Hey all, hoping for some help on gear info/recommendations. I’ve recently been debating getting something a little larger than my 5wt trout rod for larger streamers and bigger fish like steelhead and bull trout. I was looking for something that I could use no problem in salt water and found a barely used Echo Boost Blue 7wt on eBay for a pretty good deal so I snagged it while I had the chance.

I’ll be mostly using this setup for freshwater species (steelhead, bull trout, bass, carp, etc.) but also have some family in Washington that live on the Puget Sound so I figure I can take it with when I visit and try to get some sea run Cutthroat and Coho or other smaller Salmon.

Im thinking I’ll probably get a Lamson Liquid/Remix with the extra spools so I can get a full sink, intermediate, and floating line but I’m also interested in the Redington Behemoth and Echo Bravo as they seem to be good for slightly larger fish. If I went with one of those two, I could pick up a couple of the SA regulator spools for storing and switching out my lines easily.

Some questions I’m looking to answer and/or get recommendations for:

1. Good reels for application

2. Do I need to buy specialized saltwater lines for use in the salt or will I be fine with a regular freshwater line as long as it’s for cold water and I make sure to rinse it after saltwater use?

3. If I get all saltwater lines, can I still use them in freshwater without any issues?

4. Lines that pair well with the Echo Boost Blue? From the reading I’ve done, it seems like the rod likes to be overlined with 8wt or even 9wt lines

I have also added a couple pictures of some of my better catches for y’all to hopefully appreciate and keep this a little more interesting

I recently changed the rotors and pads out on my car and ended up just ordering rotors that were the same dimensions as what was already installed. I saw online in many different places including realoem that my car should have vented rear rotors but mine had solid rotors so I replaced with more solid rotors. Does anyone else have a convertible with solid rears and vented fronts?

I’m asking because I was already confused but when I saw the brake pads, it made me slightly worried. The brake pads I took off had 2-3mm left on the front (was down to the wear sensor), and at least 10-12mm on the rear. Could this be due to the wrong rotors being installed from factory or possibly the original owner had them replaced and they used the wrong rotors?

Everything is currently seated correctly and is working but I did have some small issues getting the outside rear pads to seat correctly while in the process of actually replacing them. Any thoughts from anyone on this would be much appreciated.

I got back from the gym last night to see my ankles were extremely swollen and I had random blisters on my feet/ankles. I’ve had this happen once before, last year, but wasn’t sure what it could be or what to do. I currently have hydrocortisone cream on the affected areas as they are extremely itchy. Any one have thoughts on whether I’m in the right place or just need to go see a dermatologist?

Also, ignore all the random scratches and scabs on my feet as they are completely separate from what’s going on.

Found a sweet marketplace find that I picked up this weekend for $300 from a really nice older guy who guided for 42 years but can’t get out on the water much anymore. He was definitely sad to see it go but he seemed happy that it was gonna get used rather than sit around. He hand tied all of the flies he used as a guide and had a collection that he said he last counted at 3000+. He even threw in a leader and a double taper fly line for me and told me all about the different flies and which ones were his favorite. I’m fairly new to fly fishing so this was a great experience and I feel like I’m set for life on dry flies. Plenty of nymphs and streamers as well but I’m pretty good at losing them. So will probably have to buy more in a year or two.