VolFan

Best 5 fish for 108” is a great day any day. Super proud of your effort and more importantly for me, your attitude after some disappointment. That acknowledgement and positivity is going to lead to wins.

I’m on the edge of my seat!!! Congratulations?!? Condolences?!?

We tried to mount a comeback but you guys are strooooong. Maybe we’ll see you again.

If you’re interested in that quality from a US place - check out Fins 40G. I have switched all my reels that use braid to it. It is that good.

That G2 you already have is a great gateway bait. They get bit by all sizes of fish.

If you want something more affordable that you can fish a bunch of different ways and catch all sizes of fish, a MS Slammer is it. My favorite is the Cl8 Baby Possum. It is not cheap and it is not subtle. It is like throwing a small dog holding a grenade in the water. But the action is plain amazing. And it catches big fish, especially in rising warming water in spring, and muddy flooding in summer.

I have absolutely no scientific data to back this up but I think my hook up percentage is better with soft tails, either brush or soft plastic. I also think that a hard tail increases the glide and shortens the side-to-to side turning radius, depending also on the joint. I love a good brush tail. Just feelings, not necessarily facts.

I would also like some chocolate cake. and pics.

I wait for @A-Jay or @roadwarrior to sell their stuff and buy used that’s better than new.

There’s a bit of a run below the dam too, but it usually fishes pretty good. You can get up close if the waters not running or fish the riverine portion downstream. White roostertails will almost always catch something. Once it’s warmer the edges of current and close to the bank are best for largemouths but that’s one of those places where you could catch any of a number of species.

I use them on a swing head jig or on a short (10-18”) Carolina rig. 50% of the time it works every time!

This is Weeks. He’s thiiiick.

Lived in Colorado for years and hiked and fished the mountains heavy and never saw one. Got transferred and was coming back from a home finding trip and saw one chasing a rabbit about 15 feet off the airport access road around dusk. He was running alongside me long enough and fast enough that I looked away and back and he was still there. Really was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.

MS Slammer, 9 in, Rainbow trout. Hudd in same. 1 fish.

Yeah @TnRiver46 but you have small pieces and backwaters of many big lakes….

I love throwing a 7” or 9” MS Slammer, especially at night. It fishes like a giant jointed Rapala. You can surface twitch it, wake it, sweep the rod to make it dive and float, or just burn it. It catches fish in all these scenarios. And it’s a ton of fun. The Mini Slammer was my first swimbait that I regularly caught fish on, black one with a blue tail that I got from a @J Francho here. They aren’t sexy or cool but they sure catch fish.

I think you’re chasing something that’s not there in any reliable amount. You e got to get further south into the canals around Naples. That said, there’s plenty of other fish around there in the canals.

You may also be able to adjust your trim one hole to get the nose down too. It’s going to be weight distribution dependent but the sandbag fixed mine as good as anything.

‘The South’ is a big place. I regularly visit my in-laws near Fort Myers, Florida in December/January and again in March. I’ve never had a big problem catching fishing. If a cold cold front comes through they will go off the feed and sit very tight to cover, sunny cover if possible. The waters just aren’t deep so big cold fronts can and do affect them more, but it warms up just as quickly. Here in NC I don’t bother unless the water is over 45 and rising.

The ones a have are 3/4”, Item # 221900399 at Tractor Supply.

Looks like you’ll be near the Go Fish Education Center…I don’t know what that is but it can’t be bad!

My score at 27.4 is still higher than Andy’s IQ. And I’m cheating to get the thread going! And it’s my wife’s old fish! (NC: 4.35/15.875 * 100)

30 lb sandbag from Lowe’s or Home Depot works great, put it all the way up in the nose on the slant. With a wood deck up there I didn’t need it but without it, by myself, it helps a ton.

It’s super stable with the matts in the floor.

I get mid-20s out of it. It’s not fast, but it’s fast enough and super maneuverable.