J Francho

This is NOT a time to use a treble. If you want to try a spoon bait, a Heddon Moss Boss would be the appropriate choice. http://www.lurenet.com/brands/heddon-lures/heddon-moss-boss

I wish you had that picture, Mike. In just about every picture claiming to show a "meanmouth" or whatever is simply a someone holding a smallmouth or a spotted bass, and torqueing the the heck out of it's jaw. It's either that, or a smallmouth with plain markings. We catch those all the time on the Great Lakes. They aren't hybrids.

Pictures are tough to use to make an accurate guess. The fish on my right was a little over 19", and went 3.74 lbs. on a certified tournament scale. I'd say your's might be close to, but a little shy of that.

It's possible, but doubtful there are any "mean mouth bass" in Keuka. Here's a great article that explains the origins of the hybrids and the terms: http://www.in-fisherman.com/2012/08/24/hybrid-black-bass/

Love that red and white bobber.

Looking good!

When I tie one on, I usually say something about quitting fishing, lol. They work everywhere, every time. However, they are slow, and a little boring if your fish are more than 8' deep.

I wouldn't bother with a live toad, though I'm sure a bass would try to eat it. Why not try something that would catch several fish? Like a Ragetail Toad or Shad? http://www.ragetail.com/news/color-charts/rage-toad-color-selection/

Bottom line, you must ask permission to fish private property. Suggesting anyone trespass or otherwise break the law is foolish, and not allowed here.

I drop shot is a terminal rig, not a technique. It solves several issues encountered when fishing. For shallow water, there is no other rig that allows you to keep the bait in one place, while you impart action to it. Here's an article I wrote about catching bedding bass, though all of the techniques and equipment described can be used on any shallow water: http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/dropshot-bedding-bass.html

Your install looks good, very clean, and I dig the red. Just be careful of tripping on or crushing the pad eyes. I used a similar set up on my boat - just the bungee was rubber, so it was snag free. Eventually, I went the the boat buckle style. Expensive, though.

I don't know - simple alliteration? I do polish my reels with it, and my rod blanks and guides after cleaning. I've even used it on my sonar screen in a pinch, when the dried droplets got obnoxious.

If your pulling hooks, then you're using the wrong hook, waited too long to swing, or the fish never had the entire bait in it's mouth. If you are sure it's the last issue, try a different, contrasting color. I swing on every fish, braid, mono, fluoro, copoly, kite string, lol...rarely have I pulled a hook free, even on crankbaits. Most often, it happens when a fish surfaces head first, and shakes the hook free.

I was just going to post the same - try a weighted swimbait hook and sleek profile, soft swimbait. Otherwise, you can always swim a good grass jig and trailer.

You can get some screaming deals in the Flea Market, but you have to watch it like a hawk. As far as new goes, Dick's has some decent two piece rods in their Field & Stream house brand, as does Gander Mtn. BPS can be a little over priced sometimes, but watch for sales, since there are great deals when they run sales, and use your points card for cash back on your next purchase there.

Seems like this has run it's course.

That depends on your thumb.

I can mean smoother and faster startup, and so long as the reel is properly adjusted, it can mean longer casts, if you can harness the speed. For the average person, it won't change much.

I used to be a die hard Real Magic (note the spelling!) user, until I gave KVD L&L a try. Never looked back, L&L just plain works better than any other line treatment.

Here's a recent shot that shows the deck of my Bullet.

Probably why I don't shop there. I've never seen it for more than $40 where I shop.

I use a 1/0 Wide Gap Finesse hook for 4-5" Senkos. There is no working the bait - just cast, and let it fall. It is a "spot on the spot" bait. Casting into oblivion might work - even a blind squirrel can find a nut. Once you have located fish, or have a very good idea about location, this is a bait that will turn tough to catch fish into biters.

Drive 5000 miles, towing a boat. 3 hours of sleep, practice day, tournament meeting, media day, more practice, very little sleep.... I bet you there's some amphetamines kicking around. Iaconelli also recounts many nights drinking heavily, and he wasn't alone. You can't tell me fishing with a hangover is an advantage. I bet there's a little helper going on there. I'm not accusing all pros, or any specific ones. Just saying it's not as unlikely as you think. I think airborne angler brought up an interesting point.

First, it's $40, not 50. Second, it's often on sale for $30. The fact that I've had Seaguar fluoro on a few reels for three years now is testament that you get what you pay for. Still can't swallw that big a pill? Try Invisx, it's also excellent, and goes for around $17 a spool.

You'd see freayed line when spooling up, not buying that it came from the factory that way. In just about every instance I've seen, where line was chewed up in the middle, someone missed an eyelet when threading line through the guides. And I mean pretty much EVERY time. I did it myself a few weeks ago.