A-Jay

Had to go to Wikipedia for that one . . . A-Jay

Earthy Rainbow ~ No, like the contents of a baby diaper after eating half a box of Crayola's . . . . . A-Jay btw - I'd like to apologize to the OP for that one.

I like topwater as much as the next Bass Head - who doesn't. I do it a bunch but so few of my biggest bass have been taken this way. In the scenario presented there are a few factors that would probably help determine my choice, season, lake I'm at, presence of over large tooth fish, but by & large I'm reach for something I can chunk & wind. A bait that they will knock 2 feet of slack in regardless of the retrieve speed. I like crankbaits but spinner baits, swimjigs & swim baits are nice as there are no treble hooks to deal with. More often than not it's a crank bait of some kind, one that runs at the strike getting depth, could be anything really. I'll usually start with a medium size bait & keep increasing the size of it until I stop getting bites; at which point I'll tie on the last one that they ate and go to work. At some point in this whole evolution, a jig & craw is getting presented Low & slow. I can't help it. A-Jay

I like that description although I'll admit it sounds just a little bit noxious. Especially if you'd included the term crunchy as well . . . A-Jay

Interesting question. I'd anticipate the responses to vary quite a bit for a number of reasons including but not limited to location, water clarity & just personal preference. My boxes are more about patterns rather than specific colors but when I get right down to it, they are all mostly subtle & an attempt at "natural". Yellow Perch, Crayfish, Rainbow & brown trout, Sunfish, Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Bass, Walleye, Pike, Frogs & a wide assortment of native baitfish are what my bait collection is all about. There are a few brighter versions mixed in there for the few colored water situations I encounter each season. For me, the choice of bait selection starts with depth, speed, size & profile well before the color / pattern can even be considered. A-Jay

Personally I do not use spinning gear for any heavy cover situations. Additionally I'll echo what @ww2farmer posted recently here regarding the subject However an Inshore rod might be what your looking for. St Croix has several - the Mojo spinning rods are rated for what you're looking. http://stcroixrods.com/products/saltwater/mojo-inshore There are also similar rated models in the other more expensive St Croix lines of rods as well. Good Luck A-Jay

Have not seen nor heard of the Livingston School Master - until now. Interesting bait - remains me of the Rapala Sub-walk, in that it has the ability to walk the dog sub-surface I guess. Big Difference is how FAR sub-Surface this one is able to be fished effectively. Although not mentioned much, that Rapala bait is good - So I'll be interested in seeing & hearing more about this one myself. btw - all my interest is completely disregarding the sound deal that Livingston lures is famous for as I've not quite bought into that one yet. A-Jay

Ouch ~ Personal Foul ~ Unnecessary Roughness T9, 15 Yards Replay First Down. A-Jay

That's quite a coincidence Sam ~ Something brought you guys back together - bet it's something good. A-Jay

Which is standard procedure for sure. I'm sure you do know that all your electronics, your live well, Nav lights when used, and any other accessories (beyond the trolling motor) are All powered by your One cranking battery. Why leave it hanging ? Throwing a little juice that way each night can't be bad thing. A-Jay

If the "Dual Bank " you're looking to install doesn't include your cranking battery, you may want to consider it. This might mean going to a 3 bank but doing so adds a higher level of success in reaching your goal (highlighted above) for a small increase in price. I'm a fan of the Dual Pro models myself. A-Jay

No doubt the big cat has some serious instincts & mad skills, however Old Tony the Tiger there at the Symbio Wildlife Park is probably used to having his chow "served" to him. Might have been a while since he had to catch it or go hungry .. .. .. .. Daffy's been dodging freaks his whole life. Just sayin' A-Jay

Nice Fish ~ Congrats A-Jay

A-Jay

Looking forward to your review Tom ~ This new Berkley bait's shape reminds me of the original wooden Poe's Super Cedar Series baits. A-Jay After a bit of time with an Lucky Craft SKT Magnum 120 Mag DR Crankbait, fishing a standard DD22 is like a "rest". A-Jay

I hope you're right my friend. I have procured a small assortment of the Deep version. History has shown that for me here the deep bait is the most effective at least 75 % of the time. The standard (shallower) running bait does shine for me very early & late in the day ( low light) especially right after the topwater bite dies off in the morning. A-Jay

The following list are baits that are for me, legit 20 ft plus deep divers. There may be others, but these are the ones I've got experience with. They are almost all fairly larger baits that I can & do throw on 30 lb braid (suffix 832) and believe it or not, on big (20lb) mono. Bill Norman DD 22 HD Crankbaits Duo Realis Crankbait G87 20A Lucky Craft SKT Magnum 120 Mag DR Crankbaits Strike King 8XD & 10XD Crankbaits Some are pictured below ~ and just for a size reference, the top bait is a 10XD FYI @riverbasser - be fore warned - regardless of what some claim, I'm here to say, 8 hours of chunking & winding these baits can test anyone's intestinal fortitude. A-Jay

Hello Daniel and Thank You for your service. Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

As mentioned above, there are many different ways / approaches to enjoying the sport. For those who may have read Bill Murphy's book, "In Pursuit of Giant Bass" the author utilized just this approach. By setting up on what he knew to be Big Bass Holding spots, he'd patiently wait for the fish to come to him. (or decide to eat if they were already there). His favorite technique was very stealthy and he recorded some seriously impressive catches with this approach. A lifetime of trial & error supported his efforts. Until recently, my fishing has been from a small craft (canoe) exclusively for several years. I applied quite a bit of the methodology Mr. Murphy relayed in my own fishing with decent results; and still do today. I will admit to failing miserably using his "stitching" technique though, replaced it with a drop shot & jig/craw. Total win. However waiting out fish is an acquired taste and may not be for everyone, but that's fine by me. Can't even count the number of times I've had other anglers come in to fish 'a spot" I was anchored on. They'll usually beat the water to a froth by machine gunning casts randomly all over the area often never coming close to getting a bait near the spot I'm hoping to capitalize on. I usually stop fishing, have a sandwich & watch the show, hoping to learn. After 10 minutes or so they fire up the big motor & bail. At which point I'll resume my efforts which have enough positive results to keep me coming back. A-Jay

10. So Good. Thank you for that one. and after that - I've got nothin'. A-Jay

Hello Aldo and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ A-Jay

^^^^ This ~ Except I don't use the 200 baits - too small for my needs. But the 300 & the Deep bait work perfectly with the KVD short shanks. I seriously hammered fish with this bait this past season, especially early and late in the year. Haven't had any breakage of any type with this bait either - baits or hooks; although as @ww2farmer mentioned those trebles are pretty much bomb proof. A-Jay

The Auto Charting is really just like any other maps or charts we use - except once completed your version will be current and factual of WHAT'S THERE. And the point at which I feel I have the advantage over those sneaking little brown & green fish, happens quite a bit - but once I wake up from the dream reality slaps me in the face and the potential skunking is again back into play . . . . . A-Jay

I hear that - I'm not actually measuring anything either - it's a total eye-ball job that nearly always ends up being way long & perhaps a little 'wasteful'. But I also by bulk spools and it seems to work out in the end. A-Jay

I do it a little different - I'll spool up with mono backing & braid, but I'll use a little more than two full casts worth of braid. In most situations the braid lasts a while but when it starts getting a little toasted, I'll end for end the braid section back to the mono backing, putting the new / unused portion back on top. Takes no time at all and it can be done on the water by running it out behind the boat and retying. Careful of the bitter end though, don't want to lose the whole thing. I do it with spinning gear as well. A-Jay