5bass

Looking at buying a different boat and need to know how to/what to look for on a compression check.I have the compression gauge already,just need to know what to do to check the motor. Help!!

Dont try casting overhanded,your lure will smack the water about 5 ft out.It can be done but not when just starting with a baitcaster. When casting deep cranks I swing with both hands at about a 2:00 angle,left hand on the very end of the rod. When casting a spinnerbait,small crank etc...its mostly sidearm and sometimes even kinda underhanded,it's really hard to explain by typing. Flippin' and pitchin' is my favorite,you can really lay it in those tight spots quietly.In this case,I grab the lure in my left hand,and dip the rod down and back up quickly,just dont forget to let go of the jig The best advice for new baitcasting people is to become a "backyard bassmaster" and practice,practice,practice.Cast to different targets in your yard and be patient--you will get backlash!Just keep your thumb on the spool and leave your brake AT LEAST halfway up if not more until you get the feel of it.And as you get a feel,start letting off your thumb a little more.Just get your thumb back on the spool the same time the lure touches down to stop the spool from spinning and prevent the dreaded backlash. Hope this helps some.My fingers are tired.

None in Va......water barely at 50 on a sunny afternoon,cold rain and wind every other day,you know-typical March weather. :

I agree to an extent with the "general" colors but I also buy custom painted crankbaits that are basically the same but just a little different,if that makes sense.I truly believe that if a bass sees a shad pattern DT10,15 times a day,he will be accustomed to it and "know" what it is.But change that DT10 color pattern a slight bit and you are presenting something that he has never seen before and can't be bought at the local Wal Mart by every "regular Joe". Think about it,how many fisherman buy their tackle at the local Wal Mart?Well,most Wal Marts carry roughly the same stock as the next one and the fish see those baits ALL THE TIME!!I really believe that showing the fish something different helps out.Not extremely different but different enough to matter.Remember,bass like a little "strange" every now and then.

I agree,I had a conversation with Ike this past October on Smith Mtn after the Open.He signed an auto for my little brother and we started "chewin' the fat" about fishing and he was really a down to earth guy.It seemed like he asked more questions than I did.His "fame" was not bigger than who he really was and he took time to talk with whoever approached him with questions or to get a picture or autograph.I like Ike personally,BASS needs a few more like him.

In a lake there usually is one main river that feeds in and other smaller "feeder" creeks that run in throughout the lake.The main river channel was at one time-justthat.A river.Then at some point a dam was built and the land surrounding the river usually on both sides was flooded.The channel is the old river bed,the deepest point in most lakes and often real easy to find.Just get a good contour map and you should be able to see the main channel without any problem.Good places to fish are where the channel runs into or just past a point,or humps in the channel or where the feeder creeks dump into the main channel.Also the bends in the river channel are often where bass stack up,sometimes on the deep side(outside bend) and sometimes on the flat side(inside bend)..... Take note that some of the smaller creeks have a channel that may only be 5 ft wide,but there will be a ditch there that you can recognize on your fish finder.This time of year it is a good choice to find and fish these smaller channels.The bass will follow these small channels to the backs of these creeks to spawn.And 9 times out of 10,the smaller creeks hold the warmer water. Dont catch 'em all...

The first bait I throw at a ledge is none other than a LedgeBuster spinnerbait.....the deeper the water,the bigger the bait,getting it down faster.i do this parallel of course.No bites on the spinnerbait?,I change to a deep crank,again parallel.Then a Carolina rig parallel.If no bites come from fishing parallel,I switch and pull them perpendicular off the ledge into deep water,incorporating a jig and also a senko and a Texas rig worm.Also when fishing deep,I like to have some sort of chartreuse color on my baits.And no matter what you hear,its dark down deep.The chartreuse gives your bait a little brightness to help the fish maybe see it a little farther away.

I had to fish a couple years from the back and hated it every time.9 of 10 guys on the front like to forget they have someone on the back. There are ways to get back at these a-holes and it all starts with out-fishing them.One of the last times I fished from the back,the guy was beating the bank to death and was catching nothing.I had been fishing all week with my dad and we had the fish patterned deep on points.Dad and I were getting bit on a Carolina Rig with some 4" centipedes(french fry's) in junebug color.I told the guy this before blast off.....but of course,he knew where all the fish were and didnt care what I had to say. Well,I wouldnt even cast when he was beating stretches of bank to no avail,but when we rolled up on a point,I'd whip out my c-rig and start reeling them in.After I caught 3 quality keepers and a few dinks,the guy finally started hitting nothing but points.He didnt have any french fry type baits,why?I dont know,but he couldnt get a bite.All the while I was getting bite after bite.You could tell this bothered him and he finally got up the nerve to ask if he could borrow one of my baits.Well,I told him that I didnt have but a few and couldnt give up on any of them.But what he didnt know was that I actually had 2 full bags and half of another and wouldnt have given him one for nothing. I had five good ones already but his attitude from the start was terrible.I ended up second in co angler with 5 totaling 14+ and he ended up with 2 totaling just under 4 lbs.If he'd had a different attitude for the co angler,he'd had a great day and a good finish.Oh well.....

Well,they went on with it and the guy that won it had 2 fish....5.3 lbs. second place had 1 @ 1.9 and the rest of the crew blanked. Man,I enjoyed the ESPN BASS lineup this morning!It was great....

If you think about it,it makes sense to use a left retrieve being "right handed" because the rod is in your right hand and handling the fish with your "good" hand is to your benefit.Plus,you have better sense of feeling with the hand you use most...and when you cast,you dont have to switch the rod between hands and across your body to start your retrieve .However.....I grew up using my dads right handed reels (casting) and tried to make the switch to the lefty's.It was very hard to get use to.I couldnt do it although it makes alot of sense. Another thing-think of itthis way...a little off topic but I played baseball and ice hockey for many years.I throw with my right hand but I bat left and play hockey with a left handed stick(which is curved to the right).If you think about it,when batting right handed,you are actually on the left side of the plate.From the pitchers mound,you are on the right of the plate but from where you bat,you are on the left.And if you've ever played hockey you will notice that 80% of stick control comes from the hand that is on top of the stick.....and when shooting left handed,you're right hand is on the end of the stick,with most of the control.Think about it....and good luck making the switch,its tougher than you think.

If it's a floating dock it usually means the water under it is deep and since it's floating,you will only be able to fish the outer edges and maybe up behind under the catwalk.I usually will throw a weighted fluke(which,if you have some skill,you can walk the bait under the dock)and also a spinnerbait or crankbait around all sides and keep it as tight as possible to the dock. If the dock has posts,this generally means that the water is somewhat shallow.And the posts will enable you to skip your baits to all parts around and under the dock.In this case I usually skip a jig,finesse worm or fluke as far back as I can get it and then work it back. Hope this helps you.

I will be fishing a jig a whole lot more.I re-discovered it's effectiveness about half way thru last season and realized that when I started bass fishing,I caught a whole lot of bass on jigs.I guess through the years,I got away from it because all the different baits and techniques coming out,I seldom had to go to the jig.But now it's back and I'm sure to get alot more bites with it.Cant wait--come on Spring!

We have a situation about our first tournament this weekend.......it's going to rain and snow tonight and winds of 35 mph tomorrow and barely in the 40's.The lake's water temp average is 43.Our club president won the tournament last year with one fish weighing 1 lb 1 oz ....he was the only person to catch a fish and the conditions were for the most part,the same as right now. Alot of the guys in the club dont want to mess with it since most of us have been out this week and found no trace of biting fish or warming water.We are allowed to throw out 2 tournaments per year and it really sucks to have to throw the first one of the year much less one on your home lake.Some like to throw out the out of town tournaments for obvious reasons. Is it wrong that the Club president didnt call around and take a vote?I have talked with at least 12 of the 22 members and all but 2 of them wanted to reschedule.But the tournament is still on and the sad thing is that one keeper fish will most likely win it. Another bad thing is getting the "points" for fishing even though you may not get a bite,you still earn points.But when the fishing is terrible and you are sort of forced to fish if you want any points,that doesnt seem quite fair when over half the club wants to postpone. I think that rescheduling would have been the "smart" thing to do simply because of reasons mentioned above-air temp 40,water temp 42-43,high winds,rain and possible snow and most of all the fish have not moved up at all.Should there have been a vote? Comments?

"HEY BIG FELLA" or most times, "HEY LITTLE FELLA"

With all the different types of fishing around here...lake,stream,ponds,rivers etc...I probably fish 150 days a year or more. Life is good!Especially when the water hits a constant 50 degrees.

JT,I got you on the Wonka thing.....and yes,when the lucky guy lands the big one,he'd better not start running off at the mouth about what he caught it on or what reel or rod he was using or his line or his boat etc.....these big name tackle companies would be stepping on each other to get to the anglers house.They would pay MAJOR $$$$ to have the guy say that he used their equipment,lures etc. to catch the world record largemouth.I bet if you did it right,you could pull alot more than 1 million.

Spider Jig(hula grub) or plastic craw are two baits that I have alot of luck with.....use something that you can see really well...if it disappears,set the hook hard!!

If you hang a male bass that is guarding a bed,you can catch him 4-5 times or more in a row.I know this for a fact....last spring I located a huge female on the bed and noticed the male bass was making his rounds chasing off anything that came near the nest. Well,I pitched my jig onto the bed and the male immediately jumped on it and was moving it off the bed.I set the hook thinking if I stuck him once,he'd be less aggresive with a fat lip.I was wrong.....no sooner than I put him back in,the next pitch was exactly the same as the first,I pitched,he bit.I released him and caught him on 3 consecutive casts.The third time I reeled him in,I put him in the livewell and proceeded to catch the female after about 25 minutes and 7-8 different baits. After getting the big girl in the boat,I got a couple pics snapped off and out she went....along with her boyfriend from the depths of my livewell.I really believe that the male would have hit my bait as many times as I would've pitched it in there,judging by the way he was acting.He did not hesitate AT ALL,he swam up to it and sucked it in immediately,no watching it,no sniffin' it,nothing like that. All in all I would say that I only caught him like that because he was guarding the nest.....under normal circumstances that would not have happened.

What was the water temp and depth you were fishing?

I use the head phones each time I go out.Metallica rocks!Old Metallica that is.

I am trying out a Lowrance X85 and need to know what the most common settings are that you use to locate your fish. Manual mode? Automatic mode? Fish ID on or off? Sensitivity? Gimme some help fellas....thanks!

Try draggin' a Carolina Rig around since some fish will spook out and then come back when your boat has passed.I learned that the hard way,just like you're doing. Or (as some stated above) pitch and flip the same holes with something TOTALLY different than your partner. Then,when you get back to the ramp..... 1.Run to your truck 2.Drive as fast as you can to the nearest Ranger Boats dealer 3.Buy one of the new Z Series Comanche's Problem solved!

You've probably heard this before but if you need to perfect a certain lure,when you have some spare time on the water,take only the bait that you need to work on.Say its a jig,take only jigs with you.If it's a crankbait,take only crankbaits and so on.Once you realize that you have to catch fish with that ONE type bait,you will figure out how real quick.

Find a good point(slow taper with big drop off into the channel) and throw a carolina rig until you find them. OR Find some rock bluff banks that have deep water on them and throw your jig and pig. OR Throw a crankbait that will run at the depth the fish are holding and reel it SLOW....

It really depends on what type fishing you will be doing.River?Lake?Both?If you are fishing lakes,I would definitely get a fiberglass boat.If you are fishing mainly rivers,get aluminium. You should be able to find a real nice used Ranger for 16 grand.And Rangers hold their value alot longer than most other makes.