A-Jay

Every legal Fish I land needs to see this. There are Two Options available. option 1 option 2 I'm good either way. A-Jay

Workout day 4 this morning. With the start of my bass fishing season oh so close, yet seems so far away, I have plenty of pent up energy to get these done. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

Nope ~ A-Jay

Have a great history with Sufix 832 on spinning gear. Tried Smackdown a couple of years ago and I really like it as well. Especially in the lightest tests - it's 'softer' than 832. Have it on good authority @Dwight Hottle that the Sufix 131 is very good, although I have yet to make that jump. A-Jay

I use this rather effectively with a uni to uni knot. As for pike seasonal location in Michigan. Early and late season where water temps in the shallows are less than 68 or so they will be there. After it warms above that the bigger fish move deep. Deeper than most bassheads fish anyway. HOWEVER, the smaller pike and the ones that will still bite off baits, remain shallow all season, so you've got that to content with. Good Luck. A-Jay

Admittedly I'm not sure how already fishing a couple of times in 2024 actually effects the rules regarding the official countdown. Since this is my wacky thread guess I can decide how that goes. But either way since it's re-frozen we're sitting at 6 days and a wake up ~ It's been cold or perhaps cooler is a better term, with air temps in the mid to low 20's and intermittent snow flurries. Snow on the ground's gone but can't say if that's the right deal to help with open water. Haven't been to any lakes in a few days but instead I've been in this weird state of semi-suspended animation where I want to cast but what's the sense. This Sunday the winds are forecast to let up to where I could get on one the bigger lakes but I'll need open water confirmation before making that commitment. If local Lake Menderchuck opens up before then, I might go there just to scratch the itch a bit. Which at this point is build to something I'm not actually able to describe without including quite a bit of colorful terms. More to follow. A-Jay

Somehow the bait monkey found out that I've started collecting SSBs. I've been doing pretty good keeping it on the down low, but I think he hired a Private detective monkey to take a deep dive into my finances. Either way, he finally nailed me . . . Daiwa Tatula MQ LT Spinning Reel 3000D-CXH Qty: 3 St. Croix Avid Series Spinning Rod 7' Medium Qty: 3 Tackle Warehouse Spinning Rod Sleeve Black Qty: 3 FREE Tackle Warehouse Sticker Orders Over $50 Qty: 1 $0.00 Seaguar Smackdown Braid Stealth Gray 15lb 150yd Qty: 3 At least he got me next day air shipping, A-Jay

Full Grown rig right there. Best of Luck with her and Safe Travels. Congrats A-Jay

GP Pro Perch has been so good and that's throughout the line. Silent, +1, and+1 Jr. Honorable mention goes to GP AYU And Baby Trout A-Jay

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

While that's one way to use it. I'll admit that I'm not the most tech savvy user either, but I'm not looking to be quite that precise as far as spots or waypoints are concerned. I'm looking at it as more of a way to locate areas to check when I get there. Experience on the water enables me to take it from there. A-Jay

Poke around on this deal a little and see what you think. https://usa.fishermap.org/depth-map/ I use this one a bunch and it's free. I have Contour Elite btw. Haven't used it since this came out. A-Jay

?????? On casting gear maybe. But when done correctly, not on spinning tackle. Don't make me come over there . . . 🤪 A-Jay

Some early trip seasons I will fish the smallest waters first. As they warm the fastest. Bigger inland lakes IME take 'some time' to warm sufficiently after ice out to where the big fish will set up where I'm looking for them. Every year is different, could be a few days or a couple of weeks. Usually depends on how late open water happens. The later it is, the faster it warms. So I get to scratch the itch and work the dust off a bit while I wait. The smaller lakes offer great numbers and I'll catch the 'biggest' bass I'll see from them all season. But the true trophies are in places that have goby and zebra mussels. And most of the smaller places do not. Finally water temps past 50 make me sad. A-Jay

Take a hike you has been wild bush plane pilot, multi species fishing guide, ocean navigator, Sport fishing freak of nature ! A-Jay

LOL ~ What gave it away ? Light braid is reserved exclusively for my spinning gear. Or as @AlabamaSpothunter calls them, the pixy wands. A-Jay

OK Thanks ~ I was close, sort of. Great Tip btw. Especially when residing with long legged & curious canine companions. A-Jay

When it came to early, early season SMB with the water temps mentioned, for Years I was in the full sized and even slightly Over sized bait camp. And I did OK. Still throw 5 inch jerbaits a lot. But since the 110 +1 Jr was introduced a couple of seasons ago, I have changed my tune. The bait is a hammer on big smb for me. I still throw the old tried & true deals, but I mix that fish catching machine in quite frequently. And more often than not, I'm rewarded. Don't buy the perch pattern. A-Jay https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/233534-megabass-vision-oneten1-jr-~/?do=findComment&comment=3019438

Yup ~ My 'tackle room' has this dark grey carpet that absolutely EATS small parts, springs, even hooks & split rings. Collectively I have spent Literally hours doing the hands & knees with a flash light & a magnet trying to locate anything dropped. It's Never where I think it is. And if I manage to be lucky enough to locate it, it's Always in the last place I would think to be looking. I spread white towels down now. Sometimes it helps. 🤓 A-Jay

I agree with @MN Fisher Having a process is a good thing. And I think @J Francho has mentioned that the Egg carton method (for parts) can be helpful. I use something very similar. Either way, I ALWAYS stay in my lane. Meaning, I'll only break a reel down as far as I "Know" I can reassemble it correctly. No guessing for this hack. Finally @Delaware Valley Tackle has serviced 'several' of my reels every few years for the deep clean. #topnotch Checking and replacing worn parts in advance of failure is an important aspect of that IMO. Between full service visits, I'll Clean and do a 'light' & 'as needed' deal. Oil, grease and a drop or two of fine oil on easily accessed bearings takes care of it. A-Jay

Congrats on a killer day of SMB ~ ! You earned it. A-Jay

Workout Day 3 this morning. Plan was to bump up the weight and perform 3 working sets of 8. Went well, mostly. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

IME, I've had both good & not so good days up this way. Both before & immediately after a front passes through can be banner or bust. I like before a lot but after has proven to be OK for me too. Especially early season. And while the timing is important, location might trump it. This was an 'after' deal. https://youtu.be/o9xew3tWuuU?feature=shared&t=323 A-Jay

Keeps me fairly busy ~ A-Jay

The Megabass SV-3 produced a few decent SMB for me last season. However the Megabass V9 Double Willow Spinnerbait has been better, especially on the full grown specimens. A-Jay