Team9nine

Also mind boggling how poorly understood the lateral line function(ing) is among anglers... ?

Because life is simpler when you only need one connecting knot for every outfit you own. The Palomar has been tested and proven as one of strongest knots you can tie no matter the line type being used. It's not as difficult as we sometimes make it sound in these forum discussions.

Hit several more subdivision lakes today. Managed 12 bass between the three of them along with a couple big hybrid gills and a free Wiggle Wart

Ditto the above, from another guy who loads spinning reels from off the floor, usually of the boat though and not the house. And if it's braid instead of nylon/fluoro, it just gets tossed to the ground to roll wherever it darn well pleases

I run two 4-stroke Mercs. 87 octane minimum with cleaners is preferred per manual. However, even better as stated in manual is ethanol free. I run ethanol free whenever I can get it regardless of octane; usually 90 or 91 around here. If you have to use alcohol enhanced gas, manual states 10% ethanol or less, or 5% methanol or less.

Janderson45 nailed the possible "issue" but otherwise there is nothing wrong with that unit and screenshot. You can see digital depth reading correctly at 5.3 ft. Doesn't look to me like you even have the unit on auto depth in the first place. This is one reason why I never run my units in auto (Hbird or Lowrance). I say nothing wrong here..

Tying ANY knot correctly is the key. And if you are tying it correctly (Palomar), there is no need to lubricate. I stopped doing it years ago...and don't cross the base lines So far I've found two lines that don't like Palomars regardless.

If tied correctly, Palomar knots don't slip. You also don't need to lubricate (though never a bad thing if you do) because there is no friction with one tied properly. It's the only connecting knot I've used in every type of line for over 20 years. What does happen though is that certain lines don't tie well with certain knots, for whatever reason. This is fairly common with many lines. And there is always the chance you tied a slightly improper knot - it happens. As such, you might test some other knots with your current spool of line to see if they all perform similarly, or retie a few Palomars. That would tell you whether it's the knot or the line.

Another great sunset as I headed in to the ramp this evening.

Hear, hear ? Nice job on the fish. They haven't been so cooperative on my local waters.

This ^^ I've run them both for over 30 years. Each has strengths and weaknesses. Both are great units overall. In the past I leaned much more Lowrance. These days, more H'bird. Wouldn't complain with either on my boat. Figure out what is most important to you and then decide.

I'll go with less chance. The longer the fish stays in the water, the greater the chance you might lose it for a variety of reasons. If you can simply overpower a fish, your odds go up. Lots of variables not factored in though like can you get bit on heavier gear to the same degree, etc.

Seems like you'd end up missing quite a few if they ate the whole thing, similar to what A-Jay mentioned. Other than holding the blades, it's the upper arm that helps create the weedlessness by protecting the hook. Shouldn't matter whether it's a bass or a stump.

So all these fish are eating the blade and not the body?

This ^^ Have my favorites (Daiwa and Shimano mostly), but my tackle collection is a hodge-podge.

Not sure, because some of the greatest anglers always said you shouldn't use the same stick. I'm guessing now days it's simply marketing convenience.

According to Clunn, there are no good spinnerbait fishermen left

Tippet rings have become somewhat common in fly fishing circles for similar reasons, and they're smaller than swivels, but I personally still go with line-to-line connections because of their greater flexibility in rigging.

Owner Phantom's look neat, a modern upgrade to the original Mister Twister design style, but it's not for "Stupid Tube" rigging. To the best of my knowledge, the Stupid Tube style was developed right here in Indiana. I've had the pleasure of fishing with some of the originators over the years. Anyway, Bite Me, Secret Lures and HCT (Honey Creek) all sell jighead versions locally, though once you've seen the design, I'm sure you can find other similar brands. Some videos on rigging here: https://www.secretlures.com/videos-with-tips-and-tricks-for-lures/#thestupidtube

Hat snob here Wear a non-structured, low profile soft cloth fishing logo'ed ball cap most every second of the day that I'm awake, but I'm extremely picky about fit and "feel." Have literally only worn a handful over the past 30 years as I find one I like and then wear it exclusively until it simply wears out. Currently have a Bass Pro hat that "fits the bill" and is going on 2 years old - just getting broke in Only exception to this is that I do have and wear a Sunday Afternoon SPF hat (like tander posted above) out on the water from about April until September. Have had several spots frozen or cut off over the past 8 years or so, so finally got a little more serious about hatwear while on the water.

Been to Quetico twice, both back in the 80s. Enjoyed the heck out of those primitive canoe trips. Would be neat to go back and see what has changed after 40 years Nice job. Finally picked up the bass stick tonight for the first time in 2 months after all that crappie fishing. One pond seems to have died - Not sure what is going on yet. Moved to a different one and missed a couple but landed a few. That was a relief. Ready to hit a couple more either tomorrow or Saturday. Bass bit through sunset until dark

Like everything else in fishing, there are no simple answers, and certainly not one correct answer. From the biology side of things, if you subscribe to Optimal Foraging Theory (OFT), when prey is heavily abundant, predators have the luxury of being incredibly selective. This would suggest that "matching the hatch" is the best option. The tricky part is figuring out what attributes the bass might be keying on, such as size, color, flash, markings, etc. to trigger the bite. For example, late summer around here finds lots of bass feeding on abundant juvenile shad just an inch or so long and schooling near the surface. One of the better baits we use in those instances to get bit is a small, clear crankbait with a mirror insert...it seems to mimic the flash and profile of the tiny baitfish while camouflaging its true size. For suspended bass around bait balls, a few of the better options are A-rigs and Damiki rigs. Occasionally, going vertical through the school to predators lurking underneath can be successful using jigging spoons and blade baits.

Has to be myth because "hate" appears to be a human evolved emotion

One must always be aware of the behavioral dimension (of anglers) in anything related to the explanation of why fish do what they do.

You make it sound like that's a bad thing