Gatorbassman

I think there is a public fishing area here in Georgia that was stalked with only female F1s. I haven't checked on it's progress in the past couple of years so I don't know how it is working out but it seems like a cool idea. I guess the theory behind it is that they loose a lot of weight during the spawn so if they don't spawn they retain that weight.

I've never used it because I believe that "Please Release Me" and "Catch and Release" livewell treatments are the best things you can add to your livewell. They were both invented by a Chemist who is the leading authority in water treatments for fish. Tony and Lane Gergely are the owners of Sure Life. Tony's area of expertise is in chemistry, while Lane's is biology. The combination makes for a dynamic team. Tony formulated and developed 31 products for use on delicate aquarium fish, baitfish and gamefish while he was Vice President of R&D at Jungle Laboratories. All of the original products are still on the market today. He has been formulating products for fish since 1982. While at Jungle Laboratories, he worked with some of the most delicate and difficult species of tropical fish, such as the Wattley Discus..... When Jungle sold the baitfish and gamefish division of Jungle Laboratories, Tony decided to go out on his own. His passion has always been the largemouth bass. In 1991 Tony started Sure-Life Laboratories with 6 products. Today Sure-Life manuractures 40 different formulations.

Was the worm broken just behind the hook or at the tail? You described it as half the worm so I'm going to assume that it was just behind the hook. I have had this happen countless number of times. I kept a mental note of the details when it did happen and compared what each situation had in common. The cool thing is, your situation has the same thing in common as all of mine. That one thing is the wide gap hook. The wide gap hook is great if your fishing a thick plastic bait because that is what it was designed for but it has it's down side. The tip of the hook is directly in line with the eye which also puts it in line with the sinker. This maks it more difficult to get a positive hookset. What happens is when you set the hook the weight gets jerked out of the fish's mouth and blows it open just a little bit. The eye and tip of the hook follow the same line and the fish is left with just the worm in it's mouth. The worm tears and you are left with half a worm and no fish. So to solve this I switched to a regular offset worm hook and I stopped loosing as many fish. The regular offset hook, no matter what size, has a better bite than a wide gap of the same size. The tip of the hook is no longer in line with the sinker and eye therefore when you set the hook it doesn't follow that same line and catches the inside of the fishes mouth before it can exit. IMO You should never use a wide gap hook unless you are fishing a thick plastic like a tube or a fat worm. I don't even use a EWG on Super Flukes anymore.

Only on one condition. We will have a big fish competition between the two of us. The looser has to get his picture taken holding that fish with the other guys hat on. Deal?

OK, I'm pretty much in for this trip. The only thing that will stop me is if I get a full week of guide trips that week. That rarely happens, but if it does I'm out. I'll be bringing my boat and will have an open seat on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I'm staying in the campgrounds over at the state park but will be hanging out at the Hampton each night till they kick me out.

They are good worms and I've caught fish on them but because of all the threats made by Tammy Poss (the wife of the inventor of The Alabama Rig) to young kids on the internet I decided that I won't be buying anymore Manns products.

Exactly. I love to fish a huge worm. I had a 40+ fish day last spring with a Manns Jelly Worm. I just use a 5/0 hook and set the hook like I normally do. I've even found that a big bass will inhale one of the 16" custom worms that I fish with from time to time. The funny thing about little ones is they will be the ones who try to rip the rod out of your hand. The big ones just pick it up and slowly swim off with it.

That's great news Mike. Just show up and the boater/non boater thing just seems to always happen. PM me and let me know your details. We might be able to double up on some of the cost and make it cheaper for both of us.

Back from the dead. It's Triton Mike Bucca!!!!!! Good to see you checking in again my friend.

When talking about a fish's mood it's not so much what they want but how they want it. Are they willing to swim after a bait? Do they want it falling straight down, fast or slow. Do they want it sitting on the bottom? Do they want it drug on the bottom or hopped? Or like last week they wanted it drug a few inches and then one little hop before they'd hit it. Do they want it noisy or quiet? The advantage you have with a Rage Tail Craw is the action you get with the slightest movement. The majority of the time that my jig is in the water it is sitting still and I want all the action I can get. A Paca Craw is a great trailer. I used them religiously prior to finding a Rage Craw but when I compared them in a tank the Rage was a little better. And my catch rate increased after that.

I love to fish new lakes. It gives me great personal pride when I go to a new or rarely fished lake and have success. The first thing I look at when I get to any lake is the water clarity. This gives me an idea of what color and type of lure I'm going to use. It also gives me an idea of how big or small the strike zone is. Muddy - Dark colored jigs with rattles and dark plastics with good vibration like Rage Tail, loud spinnerbaits or crankbaits. The strike zone is going to be very small requiring multiple, very accurate casts to visible or known cover. You can get away with fishing close and making shorter casts. Stained- Dark or natural opaque colored plastics, Willow leaf spinnerbaits in white and charturse and shad colored crankbaits with rattles. A larger strike zone allows you to cover water a little faster and find fish then slow down and work the area with a confidence lure of your choice. Dingy - (IMO the best colored water) Natural colored plastics and most moving baits work just fine. Back off and make longer casts. Cover water until you get a bite and then stop and fish the area hard until you loose confidence in it. Clear - Light line, natural colors, very natural looking crankbaits work best. Very long casts and cover the area fast. You also may find the fish down deeper where they feel safe. But the strike zone is huge and they are more willing to come and get your baits. This is very basic and will change a little depending on water temp and weather.

Like RW said, just try some here and there and see what works for you. I'm a Rage Tail Freak too but I also am a big believer in the Garage Tackle Markers. Many of them take pride in their work and will not let a defective plastic leave their shop. Some of them will also do custom colors without jacking up the price. I have used many different garage made plastics over the years and have found a few that I like. The only one that comes to mind right off the bat is The Nasty Bait Company.

Pretty much but I give it a few quick pops from time to time. This will make the bass that are following it bite.

That was awesome Glenn. I'm glad I held the shutter release down and let the camera do the work. Those clips turned out sweet.

At least 60lb braid, a heavy rod, and a high speed reel. I promise you will feel the bite. They hit it like a freight train. So feel isn't an issue.

I won't use an original A-Rig. With advise from some FLW pros I've found several knockoffs that will hold up a lot better to the big fish that live in the lake I guide on. Plus they are about 10 bucks cheaper than the original. The baits I have to put on them range from Swimming Super Flukes to Hollow Belly Swimbaits. Several different sizes but I'm only going to try to mimic Shad and Shiners. All have paddle tails. I was talking to a couple of FLW pros today (same guys as above) while on a visit to the JJ's Magic Shop and they said that there are two mistakes that people make. 1. Not using a swivel on the nose of the bait. (The original doesn't come with one anymore.) A swivel makes it so you don't get tangled up and helps it run right when using different size baits. 2. Spreading the wires out to far. (The closer you have the baits the better.)

I'm a pretty patient and easy going guy but liars and stupid people will set me off like a bottle rocket.

I'd say drain all the fluids out of it, have it shrink wrapped and store it. If you don't you will wish you had when you come back.

I love that gun. It's the first gun I ever hunted with. I hope you get as much use out of yours as I did my fathers. The best rifle scopes that I've found that won't break the bank are Nikko Sterling scopes. Mine is solid and the optics are better than any high end scope I've ever used. Check them out you might be as surprised as I was. http://www.nikkostirling.com/

Marketing, Business. When you get up to the professional level or work in the fishing industry the skills you learn in marketing will be worth more than any of your fishing skills. If you rarely want to fish again then study fisheries management.

Impact, You bet it has!!!! I found BassResource back in Feb of 2005. I had been a bank fisherman for a dozen years and had just bought my first boat. It was a 14ft jon with a 8hp Merc. I just wanted to be a better bass fisherman and this website seemed like a good place. There were only 420 members at the time but it felt like home. I got involved in the forums and learned a ton from the articles. Soon I found myself fishing tournaments and doing quite well out of my little jon boat. I got laughed at before blast off but I got the last laugh a few times when I took their money home with me. In Oct or Nov of 2006 Glenn asked me to be a Mod. I soon found out that it was more fun to be a member than a Mod. But I love this place so much that I wanted to help any way I could.

I support local Mom and Pop stores as much as possible. My favorites are R&L Tackle, South of Covington, GA and the other is Aberdeen Bait and Tackle in Aberdeen, NC. I pick up some odds and ends at Academy Sports because it is so close but they don't carry my favorite things. I have four BPSs that I could go to but they are all at least 2 1/2 hours away. They are about to build another one in GA but it's still 2 hours away. I've got a Dicks close but it's on the wrong side of town and the prices aren't worth the trip.

It makes me wonder what you've been reading. I went from a beginner bank fisherman to a professional guide in 3 1/2 years because I used this site for what it was intended for. You get out what you put in. BUT It's simple economics. You get to use the site for FREE because our advertisers help to pay the bills.

All I can say is AMEN!!!!!

From the horse's mouth.