gobig

Finally...I figured someone had to say it. I am with Nick on this one.

I don't have that many due to a computer meltdown a few months back. I got a harsh lesson in backing up pictures. Here's a few I had on my phone.

Jerry Rago was a trout big trout guy. That is what he was originally targeting with swimbaits. It all crosses over. Big fish eat big baits period. m a t

my uncle says smokin crack is kinda cool.

IMO speedbead nailed it. Its all about ambush points. It does not mater what the prey is, Bass use the same type of locations no matter where you go. Points, humps, ridges, creek channels and flats. Any cover is just a bonus.

I have no experience with the micro BBZ 1 but I am sure it will catch fish as well. My experience with the 4in was some what like J Francho. I didn't catch much with it on a straight retrieve. The only way I have caught a fair number of fish with it has been stroking it off the bottom and letting it settle back down or ripping it out of weeds. The strike comes on the fall. The 6in has been the most consistent swimbait I own. I have not put any toads in the boat with it but it will put numbers of 2-5lb fish in the live well. That's not saying it wont catch a toad but this has been my experience. Now I have caught quite a few fish over 5lbs on the 8in, the largest going 9.7 lbs. When the bite is on with this bait 20 lb plus limits are not uncommon. The biggest problem with hard baits and belly hooks is you can't effectively crawl them on the bottom with out getting hung up all the time, unless you modify the bait. You can drill a hole in the top of the bait and glue in a magnet. Then run a leader from the line tie to a treble and the magnet holds the hook in place. Similar to the system Castaic uses. As for good baits starting out I would suggest... 6in BBZ, Ospreys, 6in huds, Mattlures has some good baits that won't break the bank, A/C minnows are good, Blackdog mini cracker, Tylures makes some good inexpensive bluegill baits. There are a lot of good baits out there around the $20 price point. I would suggest staying with the bigger names.

IMO there is no perfect lure that works all the time. Lures are tools that are applied to fish catching techniques. Dragging, stitching, stroking, swimming, ripping, waking, trolling etc... are all techniques. Weather your fishing for Trout, Bass, Salmon, Stripers, Halibut or what ever... the techniques over lap. There is no lure out there that can cover all techniques throughout the water column. They all excel at certain things, there is no one trick pony. The analogy of lures as tools is the best I have heard. Some have a higher percentage of use than others. Like a crescent wrench, with a slight adjustment it can be used on a multitude of nuts and bolts. IMO the senko is the crescent wrench of lures. It can be rigged a ton of different ways and fished all throughout the water column. Now if I want to change the water pump on my truck I have to pull the fan. This requires a very specific tool that pretty much has one use. This would be more comparable to something like a hollow body frog. I have stated that I feel a senko is one of the best utility baits out there. But lets say you have determined that big fish are eating birds (this happens way more than most people realize) that are drinking and cleaning themselves around matted grass. A senko in all its glory may not be the best option, but walking that hollow body frog may be golden. Selling the illusion of a bird cleaning it self. The perfect lure in the moment. By selecting the techniques I want to apply first, I can then select the best tool for the job.

A few good ones :-? LOL. You caught that hint of sarcasm ;D The man is a machine. I forget where I heard it but a few months back It was my understanding he had already caught over 80 DD's for the year.

Here is how Butch Brown does it. He's caught a few good ones this way.

They should dub those videos over like old kung Fu movies. ;D

They should dub those videos over like old kung Fu movies. ;D

They should dub those videos over like old kung Fu movies. ;D

The BBZ and Pursuit For Giant Bass.

Looks a lot like a daredevil

Well said. BTD used to have a killer catalog that they put out.

Don't get me wrong I think Lucky Craft makes good baits but I do think they are kinda proud of them. The only Lucky Crafts that really have stood out in my book are the pointers. When it comes to deep cranks I would rather throw a deep little N or a DD22 than a CB. I would also take a Rat-L-Trap or a Speed Trap over an LV.

I have had some quality control issues with the 6in huds. They don't swim straight. I don't know if they have fixed the problem but at half the price it seemed like half of them swam straight. They did however replace the baits that were bad. I have only had the issue with the 6in weedless.

Baitsmith makes quality swimbaits. I have caught a fair amount of fish on them.

Bobby, These are my thoughts exactly. Are they a special order?

These are going to be a killer big fish bait. When will they be out?

I had a big problem breaking off when I was punching. I had gone to a 8ft rod and 75lb power pro. This set up was what everyone was saying you needed at the time. I was snapping that braid like it was 6lb test and I was blaming it on the weights cutting the braid (there was one brand it was happening with more than others). Obviously the proper drag setting is critical but here is what I found. It was not the rod or the line. I was allowing slack to form in the line by dropping the rod before the hook set. The shock to the line created from the slack was a big part of the problem. Try testing this using weights. You will see the difference in breaking points. I read an article put out by Bill Siemantle on hook sets. The article was big baits specific but I have applied this technique with great success to many other baits. As mentioned in a previous post its the reel-set. The reel-set is all about line movement and maximum energy at the hook point. The specifics in this article will blow you away. You can google "the bbz articles" the article is called "Reel Force The Right Stuff."

I had a big problem breaking off when I was punching. I had gone to a 8ft rod and 75lb power pro. This set up was what everyone was saying you needed at the time. I was snapping that braid like it was 6lb test and I was blaming it on the weights cutting the braid (there was one brand it was happening with more than others). Obviously the proper drag setting is critical but here is what I found. It was not the rod or the line. I was allowing slack to form in the line by dropping the rod before the hook set. The shock to the line created from the slack was a big part of the problem. Try testing this using weights. You will see the difference in breaking points. I read an article put out by Bill Siemantle on hook sets. The article was big baits specific but I have applied this technique with great success to many other baits. As mentioned in a previous post its the reel-set. The reel-set is all about line movement and maximum energy at the hook point. The specifics in this article will blow you away. You can google "the bbz articles" the article is called "Reel Force The Right Stuff."

I had a big problem breaking off when I was punching. I had gone to a 8ft rod and 75lb power pro. This set up was what everyone was saying you needed at the time. I was snapping that braid like it was 6lb test and I was blaming it on the weights cutting the braid (there was one brand it was happening with more than others). Obviously the proper drag setting is critical but here is what I found. It was not the rod or the line. I was allowing slack to form in the line by dropping the rod before the hook set. The shock to the line created from the slack was a big part of the problem. Try testing this using weights. You will see the difference in breaking points. I read an article put out by Bill Siemantle on hook sets. The article was big baits specific but I have applied this technique with great success to many other baits. As mentioned in a previous post its the reel-set. The reel-set is all about line movement and maximum energy at the hook point. The specifics in this article will blow you away. You can google "the bbz articles" the article is called "Reel Force The Right Stuff."

Strikes on a big top water in Dec? You must live in California.

Strikes on a big top water in Dec? You must live in California.