5bass

Hands down.....Kistler

Are those the Elton John Signature Series Polarized Limited Editions? Ol' Elton would be proud! ;D Seriously though, if they help you catch a bunch of fish like that, who cares! Good fishin' guys!

I have a couple of the Pinnacle Matrix reels from the first generation of the Pinnacle Metal series....they are the chrome finish, 10BB models. Those reels are tough, they cast good and the drags are silky smooth. I still use them on a regular basis and have no issues with them. Pinnacle still makes a Matrix now with 7BB's, chrome finish and can easily be had on eBay for way less than $100.

Which one of us isnt hashing things out? Looks like that would be me. Not necessarily Russ....we know where you stand. Have fun in Cali....we fully expect to see you in a pic holding a 10 pounder.

Best summertime worm made in my opinion....especially at night. They move alot of water and the PowerBait scent kills 'em.

I have a theory about the very high end stuff. I believe the reel makers take an already good reel, add a bearing or three, a different finish, a few holes drilled here and there and jack the price thru the roof. They are able to sell $500 reels simply because they can. Some people just have alot of money and like to have things that other people cant have. There is a market for gear that ordinary people cant afford/justify. Use what you feel comfortable with and can afford.....if you can afford a Kistler Helium LTX go for it. If you can afford an Ugly Stik, go with it. As long as you are happy with it and are catching fish, thats all that should matter.

If you are dragging a bait you will feel 'taps' when you hit something. When you get an actual bite, you'll feel it when you are not moving your line. Your line will jump, feel funny or just start moving off. If its possible for you to do, go to a place that you can just catch fish after fish (overloaded pond) or somewhere like that. Just throw different baits and get the feel of them and how the bites feel. Time on the water is the best way to learn. Period.

DT 4 or DT 6 in brown craw or green tiger if the water is dirty

Vick is a dirt bag thug who hangs out with his dirt bag thug friends. He shoud've made better decisions in his life. Obviously he thought he was above the law and had plenty of money to buy his way out should he ever get in trouble.......but then all of his homies "rolled" on him and he's suddenly found himself up "that" creek without a paddle. Enjoy prison loser! And the one big surprise in the whole Mike Vick dog fighting scandal is that his brothers name wasnt mentioned at all. Thats a shocker.

If I added Michigan to the over-rated list, they would be on it twice. They are on it EVERY year. I cant stand Michigan. Way to go Appalachian State!

If I could only take one worm to the creek it would be a ZOOM finesse worm in green pumpkin.....attached to a Spot Remover head.

I've never been a fan of the X-Tools stuff and Boga's are way too expensive for me. I weigh mine on a P&P fish level, two at a time......whichever is lighter gets thrown back.

Unless you are 8' 4" and 425 lbs, your scale seems to be off. Neither fish looks to be over 4#.

crankbait spinnerbait jig all in shad colors

I'm not sure about Michigan but where I am the bass are still deep. The fall transition doesnt usually start until mid-late September and thats only if the weather cools off for a couple of weeks in a row and fall is actually here, not just a false alarm.

Which one of us isnt hashing things out?

LOL! And Basshunter69, I wouldnt advise saying anything before you guys leave the dock.....that would almost assure you a bad trip and being front-ended from the very first stop. I would at least wait until somebody catches something to see what happens. The way you described would put even a good guy 'off'......

Once the fall transition takes place, try to find the shad. Typically in large lakes the shad will start migrating into the bigger creeks and the bass follow right behind 'em. As the water cools the shad will be getting shallower and shallower. Fall is really a good time to catch some fat bags of bass. They feed heavily as the temps drop. The most dependable fall pattern for me is a crankbait. I will locate some large shad pods and pull the crank right through them and also will fish just under the pods. Usually the bass will hang around or under the shad just waiting on something to trigger their strike. When you pull the crank thru the shad, the shad will scatter and become very erratic and "jumpy".....a sure trigger for the bass. At some times during the days in fall you can find the bass in typical hiding spots like laydowns and docks, especially in channel bends. I like a spinnerbait around the laydowns and light colored jigs around the docks. Other times in fall you will see the bass schooling up and bustin' shad on top.....thats where the Pop-R comes into play. I like a white or silver feathered treble on the back. A super fluke works well when they are schooling also. Another bait that I should've added is a blade bait such as a Lil George. These can be killer when the bass are under the shad. Just cast it and let it fall thru the shad, then just yo yo it back to the boat (in the strike zone of course). If you feel anything strange, set the hook. Whatever you do, remember that the bass are keying on shad in the fall and try to "match the hatch" with whatever bait you throw.

Outrageous!!!!!.......with all the equipment he has he should catch em fair n square like the rest of us Good one Avid!

#1 crankbait #2 spinnerbait #3 pop-r

RW, was it that one bad outing that put the bad taste in your mouth about tournament fishing? I had crappy partners alot when I first started fishing in clubs but the thrill of competition kept bringing me back. The first 3 years I fished in a club were brutal because I was young and didnt have a boat but I survived. I hate to think that one bad outing with a ******* would form my final opinion on tournament fishing. I'm glad I gave it a fair chance. I had plenty of bad outings starting out.

No kidding?

flippin4it, good to see you back on the forum! If you are fishing a team tournament it really doesnt matter who is the net boy as long as someone in the boat is catching fish. In a split tournament, fishing from the back can be a real drag. Sure you may learn something but you may not catch anything. Really depends on the boater and how/what he's fishing. As far as being "net boy" in a split tournament, I expect my co-anglers to help with the net if I need it and I always do the same for them. They are fishing a tournament too. In a split club tournament back some years ago, I was a nonboater and drew a first class @#$%^&* for my boater. Before we took off he showed me the net and said to keep it handy. : I ended up catching the first 3 fish of the day and he didnt help net any of them and I lost 1 of the 3. So I asked him "whats up"? He told me that he doesnt net fish for co-anglers......so needless to say I didnt pick up the net the rest of the day except for when I had a fish on. I only weighed in 3 because he seriously front-ended me the rest of the time and never said another word to me all day. He lost 2 nice keepers that day and only weighed in 3 fish. He could've had a good limit if he had not been such a BLEEP!

[moved] [link=http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1188487836/0]Tournament Talk[/link] [move by] fivebasslimit.

[moved] [link=http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1187378734/0]Northeast Bass Fishing[/link] [move by] fivebasslimit.