A-Jay

I fish for smallmouth bass with topwater in open water mostly. So my baits reflect that deal. Walking baits if there's a little ripple on the water and Poppers when there's not. I get a few. A-Jay

Hello @bryguy and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ Interesting first post. Sounds like you are one heck of a bass angler. So many trophy bass on such light line. Very impressive. Just so we understand each other, this is what a 5 lb SMB and an 8 lb LMB actually look like. However, I did not use 2 lb test. Perhaps you'd care a few pictures of your own . . . A-Jay

Let' s try and keep that one under wraps for at least a couple of seasons . . . It's got so much potential that I think the average jerkbaiting basshead's brain might actually explode if it becomes mainstream too fast. I'm always looking out for others. A-Jay

Is that a Titlest ? 🤓 A-Jay

The middle and last week's of March here Always seem to Draaaaaaaag. Some really loooong days which often see me struggling to find things to do. Not that there's not plenty to accomplish. Just that I lack the desire to actually do any of it. Especially on days I don't workout. So March is my 'Veg' month. The high point so far today was getting up, eating a couple of times and then riding the couch right up until nightfall. Did I mention it was snowing ? I'm like an old man trying to return soup at the deli..... A-Jay

The PRO-V gas tank is directly under the cockpit area and the 3 TM batteries are on the centerline running fore & aft under the center rod locker. So almost right in the middle of the boat. No idea how that Ranger is set up so not sure it applies here. Will say that my galvanized trailer is not a light weight deal. A-Jay

I think I heard that the 6th sense bait was called either 'The No License Needed Bladed Jig' Or the other name for it is 'The Mug Shot' It comes standard with a Cuff Key Trailer A-Jay

Narrowing it down seems like a solid plan. Sadly not one I subscribe too. Either way, If I could only have, let's go with 4 baits. They'd all be the perch pattern I posted above. But in standard 110 The Silent 110 The 110 +1 and the 110+1 Jr. Those have been wildly good for me up here. I'd recommend whatever 'colors' you go with, having something from each of the models listed here can offer a very decent start at covering various sections of the water column. Which IME, is often far more critical to getting SMB to take a poke at my jerkbait, than color. Good Luck A-Jay btw - I like jerkbaits

Or put some dynamite new tires on my truck AND Trailer. A-Jay

This is most of the domestically available colors. Add in the patterns from the motherland and my brain starts to hurt. A-Jay

GP Pro Perch, M Western Clown, & Wagin Ayu A-Jay

Not sure. But it tows like a dream and there's never been any uneven or unusual tire wear. Might be the camera angle. A-Jay

Giant Set Workout Day 2 for this one. I was able to add a 2.5 lbs to each movement vs the last one of these workouts, while still completing the desired repetition ranges. Biggest challenge may be keeping myself moving through the training without taking extended rest periods. As a younger man, that might not really even register. But at 65, I'm calling that a Win ! #borninfiftynine A-Jay

The overall weather trend here now is mostly Melting with a bit of coolness mixed it. Either way it's been warm (relative term) enough to see me step up my 'Let's go fishing' preparations a bit. Tackle is about 75% ready, still have ALL of my boat, motor & trailer prep to do, but I still have some time. Besides, I prefer to do that part of it in the warm sun and we're not quite there just yet. 21 Days and a Wake Up. A-Jay

Today's a better day ~ Past three- not so much. Lynn just spent the last 70 hrs plus in the rack in total darkness with a crushing migraine headache. If you get them you know. Like there's not already enough going on. Not a new thing as these have been part of her deal for the last several years but it's been a while. Past scenes have almost always included serious dehydration and a trip to the emergency room. You know you're there too much when the ER staff knows us by first name, as well as all of our personal information by memory. Well, we avoided that this time, but it was close. Rest & recovery today. My version of that includes 90 minutes in the home gym. Stay Safe & Heathy 😎 A-Jay

Thanks, but I totally stole, I'm mean adopted it. From two of the best brown bass anglers I know. One I've fished with - one I have not. A-Jay

I'm pretty sure I've experienced that a few times. Sometimes retaining the first 5 legal size bass for a short period can help keep the rest Biting. So when and where regulations allow possession, I have no problem dropping them in the live well. As long as they seem OK and are not bleeding profusely, in they go. I call it The Pool. I always release them before I move spots. Something to think about. A-Jay

Define 'neighboring'. A-Jay

My style might seems to contradict what so many tournament anglers seem to bank on. Of course I'm not fishing derbies. Either way what I have found is that for me, establishing/ looking for and especially chasing, a 'pattern' is like digging for "Fools Gold". Rarely leads anywhere I actually want to be, which is catching big brown bass. So all of this is a long way of saying that my version of establishing a pattern, is to be at the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing. And on the bigger inland lakes I fish the most, that's a tall task. If & when there are some similarities in the places, times & ways I make contact with the fish I'm hoping to catch, it will often revolve around, water clarity, Surface Water Temps, depth, the presence & type of cover and finally wind speed & direction. The bait that gets used effectively on any one spot needs to be able to be fished effectively as well as have the size & profile of the bait I might think they are there to eat. Finally my favorite "Pattern" is to have a full tank of gas and plenty to eat & drink. The rest will take care of itself. YMMV 😎 A-Jay

@DaubsNU1 Losing power up here when we first moved was a 'regular' thing. Several times a year. The times varied between a few hours to a few days depending on how challenging 'the access' to repair the problem was. All the power lines are above ground here. Super cold deep snow & high winds usually took longer, Warm temps with some rain was often shorter. That said losing power in the winter is far less of a 'problem' than in the summer. Cold temps allow us to fire up the wood stove and we are plenty warm. We own our own 500 gal Propane tank so cooking on the gas stove is fine. Food items are simply places outside in coolers (animal deterrent) and we are good to go. Summer power lose is a problem because both fridge/freezers will only keep food for a short period of time. One thing that IS a concern is I have a well which requires and electric pump. So no toilets, We keep 'Several' gallons of both green water for the gravity flush into the septic system as well as bottled water for drinking & dishes. Either way we have bounced back & forth on the whole generator deal, and so far have not pulled the trigger. The last 15 years or so the infrastructure here has improved quite a bit which has made extended power loss events far less in number annually. If you are only worried about being cold, get a wood stove. Having plenty of wood on have helps. Quite a bit cheaper and then just be prepared for the rest as it's needed. btw, both my PC's and TV's are on big APC power supplies which keep them running for a while once the power goes out so I have time to shut them down property rather than the hard boot that happens with sudden power loss. Good Luck A-Jay

Congrats again @Pat Brown ! You're on fire man . . . 🔥 A-Jay

What a day indeed ! Congrats on a great bag of brown bass. I'm still a little ways off from open water here but this type of success gets me all fired up . . . . A-Jay

Back at it today with Giant Set Workout Day 1. Dropped into 4 wheel low a couple times in this one. That's what that extra day off can do. #borninfiftynine A-Jay

Using finesse fishing techniques for me almost always means come back another day when the bass are actually feeding. Just kidding, sort of. But every once in a while I get lucky. GP Big TRD did some damage right here. https://youtu.be/3OXnPQs0bqQ?feature=shared&t=61 A-Jay

This is usually just as 'accurate' as any forecast I use. (except for the tides of course) A-Jay