Dwight Hottle

I respect you as a bass fishing expert but totally disagree with your thinking. The mortality rate of being caught, handled, photographed, put in a live well and mortality as a result is no greater for bass caught on live bait than bass caught on artificials. And yes catch & release does help. Catch & release rules on Stickmarsh/Farm 13 next to Headwaters prohibits using live wells to store bass. Since both bodies of water fall under the SJWMA (St. Johns Water Management Area) once the pending catch & release regulations are put into effect officially later this year the rules should be the same for both. And your comments about teener bass being 100% released but still suffering increased mortality may be true but how is the state of Texas so successfully carrying out the Toyota Sharelunker: Legacy Class catches. Those fish are being handled even more based on the way the program functions. But yet it is probably the most successful program to ever have been put in place promoting big bass capture.

First of all Headwaters is catch & release only. So no one is killing bass except for catch mortality. I had a buddy send me a short video of him & two others bass fishing with lipless cranks & chatterbaits. All three caught new PB that day last week. Paul fishing in front of his boat caught a DD just over 10lb. So long story short you can still catch them using only artificals. They caught about 60 bass between them that day.

Maybe @Bluebasser86 will reply. He has caught some pretty decent flatheads & other cats using bass tackle while fishing for bass.

Today I'm driving back from the tax accounts office on US1 in south FL. It's two lanes south & two lanes north with a 45 MPH speed limit & divided by landscape islands in the middle. I'm in the inside lane next to the landscape. I look down at the yellow line parallel to the landscape island & see two shoes with feet in them touching the yellow line. There is a landscape worker kneeling on the curb with his feet extending inches from traffic with no sign or cone up to warn drivers of their presence. I'm thinking this guy has a death wish because my tires are inches from his feet. Unbelievable.

My simple solution to you is to shop saltwater gear for your needs.

If your not restricted by length take a look at St Croix Premier PS76MLF in 7'6" for $165 or step up to a St Croix Avid AVS76MLXF 7'6" for $225.

Be careful with what you say. This boat saw & survived a lot bigger waves than 4' on Lake Erie. I use to laugh at the fiberglass bass boats on the lake because they didn't have the same deadrise or built in safety that I did. Safest 20 foot I ever rode in.

Targeting bottom structure in 20-25 fow from what I have read.

I look to see how deep I can go and still see bottom. I just use the depth finder reading to determine how deep that is.

Welcome to retirement & BR.

Correct. I buy 17lb for replacing 20lb & 14lb for replacing 17lb. It gives great hooksets (low stretch) for a co-poly & the abrasion resistance is pretty good. It's the only mono I take to Mexico.

So are sturgeon eggs (caviar) but the carcasses were always dumped after stripping the eggs. On the infamous Presque Isle bay on Lake Eire there is an area called the sturgeon hole where they disposed of all the carcasses back in the day.

I can't imagine what that tastes like?

A picture is worth a thousand words. Only my unopened stock pictured.

?? Talking about it is helpful.

Your too tough to be out Tommy. Listen to the docs & follow their advice. Speedy recovery.

First off you need to decide are you using braid as the main line or mono/flouro. If you choose braid you need a moderate action or mod fast to help put some flex/give into the system. Mono or flouro which has the give built in because of the stretch factor allows you to go with a fast or even extra fast action rod. As far as the power rating is concerned your bait choice regarding weight range will determine if you want a medium or medium heavy rod. Guys using 3/8 to 5/8 oz baits will usually go with medium power rods. If you want to use baits from 1/2 to 1 oz you will need a medium heavy power rod. I personally favor the most sensitive rod I can buy in the action/power range I am using. The increased sensitivity helps with soft bites & gives better action to the bait with smaller inputs from the angler.

Google is your friend.

Check Rollie & Helens for musky jerk baits. Also look at Rapala F18 original floater 7" long. Duo realis Fangbait 140 5.5" long & 1 3/8 oz a heavy duty bait. Megabass Kanata 6 1/3" long 1oz weight. Also look at LC Pointer 128. You can upgrade the hooks on most baits without creating any problems by using Owner Zo Wire STX-38ZN X+ or X-45 2X+ or STX-58TN 3X+

It wasn't doubled in the video.

They didn't address flouro in the video so I guess you just need to give it try & draw your own conclusion. When I pulled it to test the knot strength it broke the 13lb mono leader about a foot away from the knot. I have personally watched IGFA employees test breaking strengths & they have pretty sophisticated equipment for testing. I trust their results. I haven't tried it yet just tested it this morning for breaking results.

I got to tell you on most lakes & rivers wind direction probably doesn't matter much except for associated cold front conditions which does matter in FL for sure. On the great lakes an east wind definitely affects bass fishing adversely & usually is accompanied by strong winds & bigger waves especially on lake Erie which is situated from west to east. A sudden change in wind direction from south or west to east shuts them down like a light switch going off. East winds also bring the colder deeper water from the east end westerly & lowers the water temps. In the spring when water is warming from winter temps it really is counterproductive. So long story short it depends on what body of water you are fishing.

I was reading the daily FishingWire this morning & came across this video. What impressed me that this knot was tested by the IGFA in 2018 and was proven to be the strongest & most versatile using all different diameters & materials. I tried it and it came out great the first time. Super strong & a very small finished knot to pass through todays smaller guides. I have always relied upon a back to back uni for joining mono leaders to braid but this knot is quicker, easier, stronger & smaller. I was impressed. Take a look.

Regarding the maintenance issue with lake front properties it doesn't have to be a fight between fishing or cutting the grass, etc. If you can afford a vacation home or 2nd house you can probably afford to pay someone else to do the maintenance. Just saying.

You would not believe the number of people that said he was a bad boy or otherwise reference a male fish.