paul.

mike, you too seem to be on the right track. but eventually you have to fish with something. allow me to suggest that you use the same lure you used yesterday, or maybe the one you were going to use tomorrow.

fellas, please note the LIBERAL use of the "magic words" in these 2 posts. i'm tellin' ya, both these guys are on the right track. i think dag nabit counts too. rw, i appreciate your humility my friend. i've never held a picture that weighed less than 4.5 lbs. my pb picture weighed 9 lbs. 3oz. not very long, but outrageous girth. perhaps others will share theirs too. ronnie, many people do not realize it, but the "easy 7 pounders" to which you are referring are actually the fry of "the easy 10's". usually these easy 7's are only about a week and a half old and there is usually a 12 pound male close by guarding them. if these easy 7's manage to survive, they will become easy 10's in about 3 months - so please release all the ones you catch.

try using the "magic words" excellent points jay, chris, and george. these shall be #7, #8, and #9 on our list. 10. genetics - in understanding "the easy 10 pounder" we must also address the issue of genetics. unfortunately, there is much controversy over this one. some "experts" claim that the easy 10 possesses northern strain genetics which make them especially dense, aggressive, and vulnerable. studies have shown that these northern strain 10's have roughly the i.q. of a small pebble which lends some validity to this claim. still other "experts" argue that the easy 10 has "florida strain" genetics which produces a large body size in a very young fish. recent evidence suggests that with an adequate food supply "florida strain" fish can reach weights of over 11 pounds in approximately 9 months. this would be the human equivalent of 2 year old's intelligence with the physical size and appetite of a 39 year old. there have been recent efforts to combine the stupidity of the northern strain with the light-speed growth rate of the florida strain. the resulting "f1 hybrid" fish have the desirable characteristics of both, making them quite large and foolish. as bizz alluded to earlier, by far the "easiest 10 pounders" come from california. there has really been no logical explanation for this - until now. ground-breaking research has shed some light on this mystical cali subspecies - scientific name "californus stupidious" - and the biological flaw which renders them helpless to fishermen's pursuits. it seems that trout meat contains an enzyme which restricts blood flow to the bass brain, reducing an already poor intelligence by another 73%. simultaneously, the bass' engorged stomach compresses a nerve which forces their cavernous mouths into the "wide open" posture, making it impossible to avoid engulfing any and all lures which pass by. maybe someone else has some more ideas about these easy 10's.

well it's that time. spring is finally here. time to start my yearly quest for a double digit bass. but i am not after just any old 10 pounder, i am after "the easy 10 pounder", that mysterious subspecies that so many people talk about. fortunately, i have spent enough time chasing this monster that i think i can offer some insights that might help others in their quest. the following are some hints on bait selection, locations, times, and landing tips. 1. bait selection - "the easy ten pounder" is a ravenous beast that will readily munch any lure or live bait known to man. so stupid and gullible is this fat dimwit that there is only one lure they will not bite - the one you are using. 2. best times - unlike the regular "hard to catch" variety of finicky lunkers, the "easy 10 pounder" shows a definite preference for biting on 2 specific days - yesterday and tomorrow. be on the water one of these 2 days and you will load the boat - guaranteed. 3. locations - the "easy 10 pounder" can and does reside in a variety of locales. most well known of these are cali, texas, florida, mexico, and of course the thousands of "private" lakes and ponds that dot the landscape. the problem is that once you put your boat in one of these legendary honey holes, it quickly becomes apparent these lunkers have used their magical ability to defy the laws of time and space, crossing state lines to another body of water where they instantly become twice as easy to catch. 4. landing tips - the "easy 10 pounder's" kind and benevolent nature is just one of the many factors that make it so easy. so generous is this gentle giant that it actually makes things ridiculously simple for anglers to release them once they are hooked. they oblige "catch and release" bassers with broken lines, straightened hooks, and hopeless tangles in nearby cover, neatly eliminating "catch" from the catch and release equation. all this plus their ability to throw baits or pull loose rewards anglers with a "quick release" eliminating all the dirty work of actually handling them. of course this "quick release" instantly adds at least 2 pounds to their already substantial weight. 5. photography tips - it seems that even though the "easy 10 pounder" loves to be caught, it hates to be photographed. perhaps this is why they so often come unbuttoned just inches from the net. they must instinctively know that fishermen would realize just how easy they were to catch if there was enough photographic evidence. 6. magic words - there are some words and phrases that are so commonly used in the pursuit of the "easy ten pounder" that they must hold some kind of magical powers which possibly induce these whoppers to bite. commonly overheard are: "if only i had....", "woulda", "coulda", and "shoulda". if course there are other magic words associated with the "easy 10 pounder" that cannot be mentioned here due to forum rules. usually these are used after the "quick release" detailed above. i sincerely hope that this is helpful to all those who like me, quest after "the easy 10 pounder". perhaps there will be others on this wonderful forum who will share some insights. i certainly hope so. good fishin' to all of y'all!

gotta love those rattle baits. sounds like y'all really put the steel to 'em. congrats man.

congratulations man! sounds like a great trip.

real nice fish. congratulations.

welcome.

hi and welcome.

hi and welcome.

hi and welcome.

after carefully reviewing the 2 choices, either (a) catch giant bass consistently or ( have my arms stretched, i have come to the conclusion that the later choice is my only hope for consistently posting giant bass like chris. i'm off see the dr. now. ;D again, great fish chris. i know that even after a couple of days you're still psyched about that one!!!

that's real nice sam. sounds like you really whacked 'em. hope you have some more cool adventures soon.

what a fish man! congratulations to ya big time. i should look at your pix before every fishin' trip for inspiration! hope you get your 19 (or better) soon.

i do this all the time and really love it. for hooks, i prefer a big size 1 treble. you can use smaller sizes on smaller gills. often with a single hook, even a big one, the hook tends to turn back into the gill on the set and you end up just jerking the bait out of the fishes mouth. that's why i use trebles. i never use a bobber unless there's weeds or brush on the bottom the gill can run into and hide. if there is cover close, you can bet the gill is gonna go right into it and hang ya up. a float will keep em out of this. when at all possible, i freeline the gill with no sinkers or floats. i think this looks much more natural. hope that helps ya. good luck.

this happened to me yesterday as a matter of fact. when it did, i remembered your post catt. i was having to work hard just to produce a few small fish and then, the minute i saw this one cove, i just new it - they were in there. knew exactly what they'd want too for some reason, even though it was a pretty obscure bait choice. sure enough, went in there and tore 'em up. even though none were much over 2 pounds, it was a blast.

question 2 first. the male stays and protects the fry for a brief period. question 1 next. if casting on the bank and dragging the bait in is not working, try bringing the bait in from one side or the other. either that or get on the bank (hidden) and bring the bait in from the backside of the nest (usually this one does not work as well though b/c they do not seem to like having their escape route to deeper water cut off). many times a bass will show a lot more interest in a certain "angle of approach" your bait takes as they will for certain baits over others or a certain spot on the bed. really it's all about being able to "read the fish" by their body language. this takes practice, practice, practice. regardless of which angle you get the bait to 'em from, if the bass knows you're there, it's gonna be tough to get 'em to bite. make sure you're out of sight and /or try fishing the bed in lower light conditions. these are just a few tips. there's a lot more involved to successfully get one (especially a female) off a bed than most folks realize. there a probably a lot of folks on here who know more about it than me. hope this helps though.

cool lookin' fish man. imagine one with those proportions at 27-28 in! stay on 'em man.

i have several. like you said, none of these stick out and most everyone drives right on by without a second look. all are in relatively deep water. i am going to work on finding some shallower ones this year. i only share my findings w/ about 3 other buddies, b/c they do the same with me. if you fish long at all, particularly if you want to target big bass, you learn a very important lesson. average fishermen pattern the fish. good fishermen pattern both the fish and the other fishermen.

real nice man. happy for ya.

cool pix man. you'll get on them bass soon i'm sure.

that's great trey. happy for ya man!

glad you're catchin' some man!

wow! what awesome catches man. congrats big time!!!

wow dude. you SMOKED 'EM!!! ;D way to go man.