A-Jay

"Objection, calls for speculation" (I hope) A-Jay

My bass catch of the year happened 24 April 2024. I planned my trip to this lake specifically to do exactly what I did. However, I've done that a few thousand times over the years, with varying levels of success. This Lake Menderchuck is a little over an hour away so I had plenty of time to contemplate a few different plans of attack before my arrival. Once on scene, I was faced with pretty much exactly what I hoped for. Some sun, a mostly stiff SW wind and water and air temps that bordered on perfect for the pre spawn bite I was hoping to get on. No other boats (pretty common) and clear, clean water conditions. All of this indicated I would be going with Plan A - Jerkbaits in 8-10 feet. Didn't take too long to find the brown bass and for the next couple of hours I proceeded to have a really good day. Multiple schools of 3-5 lb brown bass were up and feeding. Then I got one over 6 lbs. And now I'm really starting to think something special was happening. A couple more big 5's on the scale and then . . . . .It happened. I had really zeroed in on what part of the edge the bass were using and it seemed like any errant casts or a bad boat position in that wind would not get any bites. So as I approached this one very promising little flat on an inside turn, I took my time, Taloned down in the right spot and made my cast. About a 1/3 of the way back to the boat my 7 ft spinning rod loaded up. And after just landing a solid six, I was pretty sure this was a bigger specimen. I even said the old phrase I always say once I feel the weight of a big fish in the spring, "Hope it's a Bass". As often times the biggest mutants are not; walleye, trout, pike and even musky have been known to dupe me more than once. But not this time. Not knowing for sure what was stripping all that line off my reel, I took my time landing the fish, and I Mean I went SLOW. Seemed to take forever to get the fish on the leader as she dogged me every inch of the way and stayed deep. Admittedly there were a few "Oh MY GOD" moments once this freak came busting to the surface boat side and I got my first looks at her. #likeadream. Eventually got her in the Frabil and once the scale finally confirmed it, I had landed the second 7 lb Brown bass of my life. I was beyond excited and truly at a loss for words. No sooner was she on deck, she was swimming free back to the depths. Clearly I am happy to have landed such an awesome fish, but truth be told, I am very proud of the 6 years of 'preparation' it took to even get a shot at it. From keeping me, my rig & my tackle in prime shape to be ready when the moment came. And then to execute successfully when the pressure was on. All real confidence boosters moving forward. Picking the right place, the right time and the right presentation can't be overlooked either. Here's the fish . . . And here's the video . . . Fish Hard A-Jay

For any single mostly stout gauge hook presentation such as jig, spinnerbait, Vibrating jigs and even some of the meatier single top hook swim baits, I totally prefer a MH or even H moderate fast stick, and it's often some combination of graphite & Glass. Especially when I'm launching casts well away from my rig. Having the benefit of video replay allows me to see exactly what's going on with the gear I'm using. I want my stick to look just like this on long distance hooksets and then as long as I am able to keep reasonably tight on the fish, maintain that bend to put the fish in the Frabil. btw, I use FC 95% of the time, sensitivity has never been an issue and I get a few. A-Jay

Hello Mike and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

Thanks for the kind words ~ Mobility is Life. Staying in shape as I get older may be less about adding years to my life and more about adding life to my years. Every day we have an opportunity to improve. Good Luck moving forward. A-Jay

OK - Not Football jigs specifically, but I have multiple rigs for just spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, vibrating jigs, topwater baits, and a few others. But I'm an OG and have had time to figure out what I like and more importantly, what I need. And in bass fishing, NEED is almost always a relative term. But what I do might not be right for you. Also, my rig has a truly Ridiculous amount of usable storage for it's size. Clearly, I take full advantage of that. A-Jay

OK so I'm coming in here saying the term 'technique specific' is over and perhaps even misused. And I lean that way because rods are tools and selecting the right tool for the job is what I strive to do every trip on the water. Could I fish one or two rods for a Jig, a swimbait, a crankbait, an A-Rig, a topwater bait, a hair jig, jerkbait ? Maybe but I'm certain I'd struggle. If one fishes a Texas Rig 24/7 - might not need much variation in the arsenal. Otherwise, matching a bait to a rod, reel & line for me is simply part of being an experienced basshead. So I'm not buying the technique specific deal. If an angler is successful fishing his or her deals on a few of the same type of rods, that's cool. But I'm a hack and need all the help I can get. So there's that. A-Jay

Are your @Big Hands bumping the drag while you're working the bait, eventually causing this deal ? If not, I got nothing. A-Jay

Not certain this is The exact unit. But if it's not it's pretty darn close. The knurl on the grip is a little aggressive and was ripping me up. So I taped over it. https://www.amazon.com/Yuhqc-Multi-Exerciser-Attachment-Handgrips-Revolving/dp/B07DBBFZGV/ref=sr_1_9?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.h-qdl8gKStJFHK7zLlvCEPdhMI8TxR-RcwU5vLrZw4AVMaQpQPcgyTwnTmaGSD0SjrpUMWwxbZ_ejHGO2r99l3KsU0GOaWkCuE0Zbep5FxpHS6TAyE2_b9itizxj5fSt4mj5wrJ7I74IiZ-jw8veQJ0gSjCHZ-zs1Xre2DGpcwVUNdt30RW1-2TF92DyngcU2qq8pkbWWpcg0JR1LrjvQHjUHPJtjfRMw8Qim8K_oCQopMPFh9WoCs6DtbPFpnj4Afw1Q1e2URH-qQrNWuLpmYrHkiGnuEcQ8KCx1MVkCT9gjgZEwSkhX70v0sxi3-RuDdnpVZSEw7sXFnCz8dunuegeUoBJEkdGZ4EH2_54edQ9qbAjkrdt3QNWa0klkRXfNOkYYzFSv-CIxMff5hnwTHHr6WFxjqW3RjoBa0jeFaA0QaOGrd9qTftsQ3JX2ENS.yI1rR9RgDd7f3_tU_S4Mne21GeswR3FpuSzlrWvcxp8&dib_tag=se&keywords=cable%2Brow%2Bbar&qid=1734992805&sr=8-9&th=1 A-Jay

Workout Day 1 to start the week. After sufficient warm-up, I completed 3 working sets of the 5 scheduled movements. Showing the last 2 set of each in this one. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

I have some version of that still. But some of it has slipped away at least a little. Having a video to go back & review is very helpful, especially now. I get just about all the info I could want. Not sure I need it or or if it even helps, but it's there if I want it. Now if I could just find my pants, I'm a little cold. 😎 A-Jay

Not real certain as to this statements collective scale of use, but I can openly admit it was my own mantra at least 50% of the time. After varied and somewhat less than desired results, I have since come up with my own version of this one. It's close but with one major change. "Find the Bass - Find the Bass". Seems to produce better for me at least. Now I feel better as well. A-Jay

Nice ! Which gun does Cosmo shoot the best? 🤓 A-Jay

Me too ~ A-Jay

Happy Holidays ~ A-Jay

Early season, I'm taking pre-spawn, (water temps in the 40's) same places & times I'd throw a jerkbait, I also throw a Vibrating jig. I fish it low and slow - like a regular jig or even a blade bait. So these very little if any constant retrieve - ALL stop and go. I fish the bait with short rod pulls, let it glide back to the bottom on a tight line, pick up the slack with the reel and repeat all the way back to the boat. 95 % of the bites come on the glide or the pause. The cooler the water, the short (distance) the pulls. Many a 6 lb brown bass have choked this deal. Admittedly it's usually around a little emergent weed / soft cover areas. It's a slow way to fish but the pay off is most decent. As the water warms and gets past post spawn I'll fish the vibrating vjig in a more traditional manner. As the season gets around to August, I'll fish a Spinnerbait and a Vibrating jig in the same places but in different fashions. Large grass flats in 4 - 10 ft are where I find the plus size fish and that runs right into late Sept. Spinnerbaits I'll burn just under the surface and vibrating jigs I'll fish just fast enough to keep some what constant or at least occasional contact with the soft cover (weeds). https://youtu.be/o9xew3tWuuU?feature=shared&t=1014 https://youtu.be/sITpRNLz_04?feature=shared&t=197 https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/211811-brown-bass-tools-~-questions-answers/page/4/#findComment-2443715 IMO, a Vibrating jig is NOT a replacement for a spinnerbait, especially the way I fish them and when... But it is a very viable option. A-Jay

Me too. A-Jay

Good Luck with all of that. Of course we'll need video preferably but pictures would be OK as well. A-Jay

The 'record low' is just for this date. We've seen and will most likely see a few days colder as the winter progresses. A-Jay

Old Man winter is Flexing for us today, sharing some record cold to our little piece of the planet. This morning our dogs went out and back also in Record time. -20's will do that. 110 days to go . . . . Remembering Miss Big Fin . . . A-Jay

When I did the dogs last night it was -5. I could hear the trees 'popping' all around us. If you've never experienced that - it's pretty wild. It's kind of hard to describe and only happens in the coldest temps. Over the otherwise dead silence of the winter woods at night, it seems eerily loud. A-Jay

My version of 'trends' when looking for big brown bass.. In no particular order, but they all matter. - Quality balanced tackle including line and terminal tackle never goes out of style. - Accurate, LONG casts radically out produce the opposite. - It ALL Starts with Proper boat position and it trumps everything. - Long hours on the water for any trip for me never changes how, where or when the fish will feed. But being there when they do has proven to be a good way to get a few. - Since Both Bass & bait have free will, I am considerably more open minded than I used to be. Meaning I've stopped looking for trends. So if and when seasonal patterns are not producing, I may expand on them a little to see if I can get onto something. But you can bet it won't be a whopper plopper or a glide bait. A-Jay

Gaylord has broken their record at 5:24 am this morning reporting -21 degrees Fahrenheit. The previous record of -10 for December 22nd has been standing since 1989. Cold is merciless. It shows you where you are. What you are. 🥶 A-Jay But wait - It really warming up quickly . . . . A-Jay

Maybe something like this ? Star Bits A-Jay

Now why didn't I think of that ? I actually snagged that Dock Demon rig from the depths of Lake Menderchuck with a Jackhammer - You just never know . . . A-Jay