A-Jay

**** Update ~ Timing is everything ! I JUST received (like 2 minutes ago) 3 spools of Tatsu purchased from "Poor Fish" at Amazon. Totally Bogus ! No factory seal - all 3 're-spooled' - complete mess. Already boxed for return & refund along with a nice little note to Amazon & the seller. Going to need a different source of supply for my bulk spool line needs. Fairly disappointed but not surprised. And Yes - PayPal is the way to go for your internet shopping needs. A-Jay

Borrowed this one ~ "My children ask me the same question each year, "What do I want for Christmas?" After thinking about it, I decided I'd give them my real answer. I want you. I want you to keep coming around, I want you to ask me questions, ask my advice, tell me your problems, ask for my opinion, ask for my help, make me feel needed. I want you to come over and rant about your problems, rant about life, whatever. Tell me about your job, your worries, your fur babies, my grandbabies. I want you to continue sharing your life with me. Come over and laugh with me, or laugh at me, I don't care. Hearing you laugh is music to me. I spent the better part of my life raising you the best way I knew how. Now, give me time to enjoy your life as it is today. Raid my refrigerator, help yourself, I really don't mind. In fact, I wouldn't want it any other way. I want you to spend your money making a better life for you and your family, I have the things I need. I want to see you happy and healthy. When you ask me what I want for Christmas, I say "nothing" because you've already been giving me my gift all year. I want you."" Love, Dad A-Jay

How did we ever manage to hook, fight & land any bass at all with 5 to 1 ratio reels ? Seem impossible - and with brilliantly golden mono no less. What's the deal ? Maybe it's because that's all we had. jk A-Jay

Amazon routinely offers bulk spool pricing on quality line (all types) that is seriously below most Anything out there. Been taking advantage of this for a while and the incident documented here is the first time I've seen or heard of something along these lines. I do agree that E-Bay is also a fantastic source of supply where many killer deals can be found on all sorts of gear. But you may not want to totally write of the Amazon thing completely. (and the two-day shipping is pretty sweet !) A-Jay

Hello @Dan_in_Texas and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ Pulled one back from the achieves right here . . . A-Jay

@Mr. Aquarium ~ Good Question. Just read through this one - so many Fantastic approaches / answers to your 'problem'. I am also fortunate in that there is quite a bit of 'fishing opportunities' fairly close to my home. For me, there's a lot that goes into the decision as to where, when & how I fish each. I'll try to offer the shorter version but still hit the main points. First off, regardless if I'm planning on fishing from my Old Town Canoe or the Lund Pro-V bass - it's safety first. Meaning the wind & weather will always dictate where I both launch/recover, as well as where I fish. Next factor is the season. Smaller dark bottom lakes with colored water warm and cool first when compared to larger deeper clear water lakes. Then there's the bigger water usually means bigger fish and or bigger schools of fish. Perhaps not always the case but enough to make this a consideration. Also, I prefer to fish less pressured water, so the waters proximity to major roads as well as what type of ramp/launching facility is a factor; close & nice may mean busy where as distant & challenging may mean not so busy. With so many waters to choose from, I've developed a sort of 'rotation' where I may not even visit a few lakes at all for a season, sometimes two. This has proven to be a good plan; especially on smaller(canoe) waters. Going back to these after a brief hiatus in the early or late season has allowed me to get on a several above average brown bass. Clearly my approach & presentation has to be adapted to the lake, season & conditions. Big Water can be challenging in that if 90% of the fish are on 10% of the lake - may mean there could be a ton of water to cover before I find fish. If the weather & conditions do not allow for that, then I may be better off selecting a different lake. So as not to confuse the issue here, I will not go into the 'night fishing' aspect of all this as it's some what different but sort of the same. Bottom line for me is I prefer to fish for & catch the biggest bass in whatever body of water I'm fishing - and while I don't like to go fishless for too long, I am willing to endure it for a while as I know it's part of the process. So that's the underlying objective & what drives most all of this wicked & wacky decision matrix for me. In the end, my advice is very similar to what has already been offered here. Make a plan, don't make a plan, throw a dart at a map, whatever - just do what is right for you. We all seem to do best while we're marching to the beat of our own drum and not someone else's. Good Luck A-Jay

Don't know what that is - but it looks like a mess. A little more that 1/2 price - perhaps too good to be true I'd be returning that one ASAP. A-Jay

I'm liking the Daiwa Tatula Elite AGS Spinning Rods. Specifically the Brent Ehrler Drop Shot. Nice mix of Light & sensitive, with a good tip & back bone. A-Jay

Super glad to hear that you've faired well. Any debate as to where we choose to live & why will end here for me. Have a safe & happy Holiday season. A-Jay

I have a 'husky jerk' box. Several of these baits are pretty old but still make it happen. Great baits for me; especially in super cold water. It's the bait I first started playing with custom 'suspending' my own baits. It's also the first bait I deliberately over weighted to sink. What ? Yup - I do this quite a bit - just don't discuss it much. Jerkbaits on the bottom - who knew ? A-Jay

While I can totally understand not being able to fish when one wanted to and will admit it's a little brutal at times. But so are these . . . My wife & I no longer wanted to board up our home, pack up & run from them; so we took that completely out of play. When the snow & ice all finally does melt each winter, my house is still there. And the fishing's pretty good. A-Jay

That Perch Popmax is the deal ! A-Jay

You got it ~ A-Jay

ONLY 119 days or 17 weeks or 3 months & 29 more days . . . . . Good Times. A-Jay

OK HB ~ Just scored two. Now it just about 119 days or 17 weeks or 3 months & 29 days until ICE OUT !!! A-Jay

Thanks ~ OK - I'm going to take you on your word and try to pick up one or two Vixen baits. They are still a little hard to come by at times, but I guess that's half the fun. Thank you for the recommendation and I'll be sure to let you now how it goes. Like I need more hard baits !!!! A-Jay

For me what made the repo man special - was The Sound. I can fish any number of walking baits that have a very similar size, profile, walk & action - But few have that distinctive one knock - glass like sound. Something about it made the big smallies here eat it with reckless abandon - see here Have not fished a Vixen so I can not compare them. The Strike King Sexy Dawg is very close and what I now fish. (below) A-Jay

GP Pro Perch, Twilight Secret, & Northern Secret are a few of the better/consistent producers here. And the Perch Popmax has been like magic for me . . YMMV A-Jay

Still Solid Info ~ A-Jay

Good Question ~ My 'line care' has changed a bit over the years. When mono was the deal - It would get changed when it needed it - that depended on how hard I fished it. Might be weekly or monthly but either way, it was always fresh starting out each season. Don't hardly use it anymore. Braid mainline routinely lasts several seasons - Leaders are changed every trip (when fished). Fluorocarbon (Seaguar InvisX & Tatsu mostly) - I will monitor how "hard" it gets fished and change when needed. If it's not too short - I'll end for end the spool near mid-season. And when it gets beat up or too short - I replace it. Finally - I HATE equipment failure and there's nothing more final than broken line when fighting a fish. When one considered what may be spent ($$, effort & time) pursuing these little green & brown fish, line cost & replacement is just part of the deal. A-Jay

Thank you ~ And I share your 'jonesing' my friend. A-Jay

There's a possibility Not every bite is from a fish large enough to actually eat your bait; hence the short strikes. Your speed of retrieve may be too fast - What size are the fish you're landing ? If the bass you're hanging on your thumb are sizeable, perhaps that hook is too small. And finally, no one lands them all, but other than frog fishing, a landing rate of below 50% may mean something's a miss. Change whatever you're doing to land them - do something else. The worse thing that can happen is you lose it - but you're already doing that so you can only improve. You're nailing the hard part; finding bass & getting them to strike. Tweak the rest and you're Golden. A-Jay

Yes ~ Additionally ~ for an equally KILLER and often times even better producer than a blade bait, I will fish a Lippless bait rattle bait like a blade bait; Meaning in the same spots & with the same slow lift short hop / lift and drop right along the bottom. Even pausing it to let it rest on the bottom. Bass with often pick it up while it's lying dead still. The very best bait for me here is the Duo Realis G-Fix Vibration Tungsten Lipless Crankbait. I use the 3/4 oz the most but the 1/2 oz has it's place as well. A-Jay

As a ST Croix stick fan - I fish several in the LTB line. I have & rather like the previous spinner rod handle but have not yet fished the new one. Have checked it out (in store). It's nice & perhaps even better than the older model. All that said & on a separate note, I ventured into the world of the Daiwa Tatula Elite AGS Spinning Rods last spring. At about the same price point as the LTB - IMO it's a better stick. Love everything about it especially the lighter weight and carbon graphite guide frames. I'll not purchase another ST Croix spinner choosing instead to go with these Diawa rods. Might want to check these out prior to making your decision, I'm glad I did. A-Jay

Check out ZPI F-Zero Reel Oil ~ With only limited use so for, I've been impressed with it. TW carries it -some of it's currently on sale Info here ~ https://zpi-japan.com/products/F-zero.html A-Jay