A-Jay

12/23/19...sunrise at the Marquette Harbor Lighthouse Have a great week and Merry Christmas! A-Jay

The very definition of the word makes my point. Also in this particular case, your keen powers of telepathy, have failed you. A-Jay

Most all of that makes me shake my head. Glad to know you were OK. Situational awareness os a valueable skill. While my LEO experience occurred in an unusal environment I did come to learn that there is a difference between actual criminals, and some jamoke hopped up on smack with a gun. 'Skilled' crimanals take less chances and while still pose a threat, drug boy is a ticking time bomb; has no plan and no clue what he's doing or up against. This seems so much more of what's posing the most threat. Really glad that such a large percentage of the law abiding citizens of this and surrounding counties carry a gun, concealed and not. A-Jay

Note (Bassheads who do not own a scale should not purchase this product). ? A-Jay

You're welcome and Yes I do. as for cold water and tight wobble is concerned, I am never using this bait in those conditions. In my world there are more productive presentations. However, in water above say 55 - for me it's all about low in the water column and a slow retrieve with this presentation. It's not a blade bait or a spinner bait - you may be better served to fish it like a jig, especially in the cooler water. Works in warmer water for sure. Try it ~ But please be careful, you might get your arm broke. A-Jay Side note - in regards to the long bill - there have been a few baits on the market where the long bill is so long that when folded down (as in a bite & hook set) the bill actually comes right down on the hook point. This is no good and you may want to check your baits for that. Also ensure that the bill is straight and lined up with the hook can help ensure that your bait runs 'true'. The bills can & do 'rotate' on the jug head over time.

As a self-proclaimed member of the Scrounger Club, my answer is that for me, it revolves around the head weight & trailer choice. The bill is what moves the bait & the trailer. Seems like it's a delicate balance. A small trailer on a big bait or long trailer and a big trailer on a light bait or a shorter bill - both seem out of balance. While I prefer & use the long bill just about exclusively, the medium bill may have it's uses, I just do not find that it works or produces for me. A 3/8 to 1/2 oz head with a Super Fluke is very good. A 1/2 & 3/4 with a Mag fluke is killer a well. Something I have recently been clued in on with these baits is that although I do present them low & slow most often, they will get bite a ton 'on the fall'. If the baits working right (my term) it's still doing it's thing (slow wobble) on a tight line fall to the bottom. Here's a few of my favorite trailers . . . A-Jay

Took on another total body workout today. For whatever reason, I dug a little deeper on this one. Felt Good. A-Jay

As an avid & admittedly spoiled Pats Fan, I agree regarding this teams extended success being repeated. There are so many really good teams this year - the post season games should all be competitive. While anyone can beat anyone at this point, the Ravens already took it to the Pats once this season. If New England doesn't have something different to show them, may not matter where they play. The Dirty Birds are that good. Hope they do play again. To win it all teams should want to beat the best. A-Jay

Intense Game today - Pats pulled it out and this one was no gimme. 11 Straight years, swept the decade in the AFC East. What an accomplishment! A-Jay

Thank You Sir ~ And Right Back at ya ! A-Jay

As we've discussed, The Snow Belt is real. Warm(er) up here too. ~ 116 Days to go. A-Jay

Always a some what significant day in the life us frozen in Bassheads ~ A-Jay

That didn't take long. A-Jay

Been sticking to the plan. Keeping it basic and functionally beneficial. My Balance & Flexibility are decent. But more importantly, my knees, hips, lower back, shoulders & elbows all feel good. Would Really like to keep that going for as long as I can. A-Jay

~ My version of the A-Rig for Brown Bass ~ Right off the bat, I will say that I threw an A-Rig for the better part of two seasons, trying to force feed it to smallies. Got a lot of great casting practice but that was about it. But once it clicked - it was a Beauuuuuuuuuutiful Thing. Now, I'm semi-addicted to the thing. Ok So - the A-Rig for me is a really interesting deal. First, it's a bit of a bear to fish for any length of time. Obviously it doesn't cast very well (more of a full body heave or lob than an actual cast) but it does require quite a bit more effort to fish than most anything else I throw, in Michigan anyway. Second - the strikes are straight up vicious and every brown bass I've caught on it has been in the plus size class - so there's a decent reward for the effort expended. As for what clicked: I initially even got the idea to fish it for brown bass from Mark Zona. But rather than actually watching how, where & when he was having results - I thought I could just go out - throw the thing around a bit and hook up. Didn't happen. Once I went back through what he was offering, and really digested the deal, I was eventually able to get on some fish. Took a while though. So like I said, I love throwing it because the strikes are great and so far, it's been a big fish catcher. However, it's not a deal I use all season or on every lake. I have found two specific situations where I use it effectively. The first starts pre-spawn, but not super early. More like once the water temps get to about 55 or so - and there's plenty of fish shallow(er) say less than 10 ft. Clear water helps but not totally needed. But smallies are sight feeders so clean is usually better. hat is needed are long casts. The fish have to be willing to chase the bait - so if it's too cold or too dirty - they will not. I usually start throwing it once the smallies start to follow a jerkbait to the boat without eating it - often they will eat this thing - hard! This bite will last right up to the spawn for me - and then a little into post spawn - but not that long - as brown bass will often head deeper pretty quick and I'll use something else out there (usually a drop shot or spy bait). The other A-Rig bite comes back in the late summer - first week of August. I have found several Huge Smallies Super Shallow early morning (very first light) hunting perch right at the edge of the inside weedline in less than 5 ft. Unusual to say the least but that's were I got my PB so I don't ask questions, I just go fishing. These big fish are super spooky way inside in such skinny water and getting them to eat has been a challenge - top water works, but that bite dies fast each morning - so once I tried the A-Rig, it was on like Donkey Kong. I was surprised it didn't spook them, as it hits the water like a bomb, but they'll follow it and eat it - no problem. Good thing is, a little later in the morning and again in the afternoon, these same fish move out to isolated weed clumps in 8-12 ft - waiting for the next low light to go back inside & eat again. By throwing the A-Rig around this clumps, I'm often able to get a few more bites from some great fish, I'd often given up on in the past - sometimes at noon with the sun just blazing ! Tons of fun. How I fish it - I use a 7'6" MH Mod stick, 20 lb Tatsu and a 6.6:1 reel. A SK short Arm Rig, all 1/8 oz VMC Boxer heads and either SK KVD Swim N Shiner or Rage Swimmer - I like the baits right around 4 1/2 inches (I'll trim them if I need to). While watching Zona hammer smallies with this thing, he kept talking about how he wanted the rig to kind of "hover" in the water column. I didn't know what the heck that meant ? But after getting some fish, I sort of have an Idea. The A-Rig is certainly not a contact bait, meaning you can fish it around cover but you can't be in it at all. But where it is in the water column and at what speed, is EVERYTHING. Traveling along, about 2 feet off the bottom seems like the sweet spot. And while there are times when they will smash it while I Burn it along, best results come when I can retrieve it just fast enough to keep "hovering" along in the correct slot of the water column. Either way, I want this thing right in their face when it goes by - not way above or below them - right in their grill. Almost seems like it angers them the way they hit it. Intermittent quick reels handle turns, that make the rig 'jump ahead' a little - can be Money ! Finally, I do not do much largemouth bass fishing locally, however I have fished the A-Rig south of the border for those giants last two trips. Most all of the how-to present the bait still seems to apply. I just use bigger gear & bigger baits to do it. Heaading into this next 2020 season I will be looking hard to broaden my A-Rig fishing application horizons just about every chance I get. More to follow (hopefully) A-Jay

Nicely Done ~ And I'm totally stealing that little DIY handle deal - pretty slick. Thanks A-Jay btw, Good Luck with that 'down sizing' stuff. Been trying myself for years now. Never works and somehow I end up with more !

I hear that. I will say that I threw an A-Rig the better part of two seasons, trying to force feed it to smallies. Got a lot of great casting practice but that was about it. But once it clicked - it was a Beauuuuuuuuuutiful Thing. Now, I'm semi-addicted to the thing. I'll keep pitching that glide bait around - maybe I can snag a turtle. A-Jay

I can relate. Bigger water can be intimidating. For 10 years I fished mostly smaller lakes here in Michigan from the Old Town canoe. After getting the Pro-V bass, I was trying to make it happen on 30,000 plus acre lakes with 35 miles or more of shoreline. I learned very quickly the importance of being able to breakdown down lake maps at home well before I got on the water. Initially, it was quite a head scratcher. I was trying to fish 'everything'. That really wasn't working. So I went back to what worked in the canoe. I started fishing 'small' again. Meaning, in the canoe, with only a trolling motor, I certainly wasn't moving around much, not fast or far. So when I chose an area, I was pot commited. Learn it and fish it. Clearly the bigger platform I'm in now offers more, but I still need to eliminate water to find bait and bass before I can duplicate it in other areas and perhaps on other lakes close by. Electronics can be very helpful, but I've learned not to try so hard to find The Perfect Structure. At some point I need to actually fish the spot to see what's what. For me it's a delicate balance; reviewing mapping, matching areas with seasonal patterns, some scouting on the water and then finally the fishing. Unfamiliarity with a lake or area may require more of all of that. Waters I can be on often can decrease the first few deals and allow for more actual fishing, and if I'm holding my mouth right, a little catching too. A-Jay

At this point, I'm pretty sure I could catch a bass on half a flip flop with a barbless treble before a stupid glide bait. I just don't get it. ? A-Jay

I will be very interested in both your approach and of course your success. If anyone can make that happen, my money is on you. I will admit that while I certainly enjoy the entire bigger fish hunt process, I am certainly not allergic to bites ! However, most of my big brown bass catches have come one of two ways. Either I am camped out when and where a number of them are at or coming to and I will get several. That is the rarest of deals for me, may happen once or twice a season if I'm lucky. The other deal, which may represent how a larger percentage of my plus size fish come, is when I have found what I think is the right area, it's holding the right bait and the conditions are right. But often these spots can be kind of big or I don't have the 'spot' pinned down. So I'm in semi-search mode and then I will connect. Clearly I will always fish that area hard but as so often is the case, there may be more smallies there, but they can often be quite a bit smaller. I will move on at that point planning to return again at a time when I may connect again with her grandmother's mother. Btw, 'stitching' is a very interesting technique but definitely slow. After several long days on the water, I started nodding off. Not exactly helping bite detection, especially when they are often fairly subtle. Seems 2020 is going to be perhaps just a little more intersting than usual. Good Luck A-Jay

A-Jay

Although the OP has been lying dormant for well over 11 years, I am bringing this one back ! While my world has been totally frozen over for a while, something that will continue for even longer, I am offered plenty of quiet time to reflect on this & other seasons past. Specifically as it relates to this particular thread, how I approached my fishing, the circumstances where I had success and where I may not have. Perhaps more importantly, why. I do consider myself an angler who is almost always fishing for one fish. And my time & efforts are directed in such a manner as to be seeking a big fish. While I totally agree it's a different type of game, it's still bass fishing. Meaning I do not feel the need to employ wildly exotic techniques, or fish giant baits. For me it's more about putting time on the water, learning as much about the habitat, the bait & the bass as I can, by fishing it. And when I look back at each seasons results - there are always a few days were it came together. Whatever these few 'successes' may be - they always represent quite a bit more fishing than catching and that's the game. Those few days, make each different & season special. Much of what is endured during this process is related in this thread. It was and is very rejuvenating in a way for me - to read the perspective of very accomplished bassheads as they discuss the hunt for big bass. In my case, locally, it's a mutant brown bass I most often hunt. When I travel south, it's a giant freak green one I'm slaving in the hot sun for. Either way, the process & over all mind sets are the same. Can happen on any cast and I'm doing everything I can to eliminate the risk of not capitalizing on any & every opportunity I am offered - as there usually isn't that many. A-Jay

It disappears fast ! A-Jay

I use a 'gear bag' - that stays in the boat. Its a fairly large heavy deal with a single stout zipper that runs the entire length (top) and a couple of handles. It holds any & all rain gear, (jacket & bibbs) a couple of extra wind breakers and vest as well as a towel & a change of clothes (suitable for the season). Also keep a smaller bag in the gear bag that contains smaller items making them easier to find & retrieve - Items include, warm hats & gloves, sun buffs & sun gloves. Gear gets cleaned when it needs it and at the end of the season, then return it to the gear bag - ready to roll for the next year. Not this exact item but something very similar A-Jay