mrbassky

He isnt making anymore of the billed ones. I got a Male billed version and now they are gone. ;D I figured I better get one now or never.

I sent my broken ones in worth $50 and got back replacements and an extra king shad and a hat. Great customer service. ;D and extra $20 bait and a hat is hard to beat

Basspro shops isnt any better with backorders. If something is on backorder just cancel it and order it again latter. Trust me. At either place it is better to leave it backordered if you really want the product. At least you will be first in line. I must admit I have spent way too much at TW, anybody want some stikers ;D I love that place. I better go, just remembered there was something else I needed. ;D True but you can probably find it somewhere else before you get your backorder if your that desperate. In my experiance you dont know when you will get it and its annoying to carry that $15 on your checking balance 3 months. >

The Kentucky Bass federation changed a couple years ago to the coangler not having any say where to fish and staying in the back of the boat. My club says the nonboater gets half the day in the front if they want. What are your federations rules? please say what state and if its FLW or BASS. And what are your clubs rules?

Substitute any number and TommyBass hit a key point. Approaching 50 and no MAJOR problems as yet. But they are creeping in. -Detached retina (from climbing stairs!!! -Go figure!) -Tendonitis in dominant elbow (my Doc's first case of 'bass elbow'. Can fish ambidextrously now). -I've got a hip that grinds now, only noticeable when hauling a 50+lb pack into the high country. I know that my elk hunting days are numbered. -Need reading glasses, so I have to peer over them to talk to you LOL. What these "minor" chips are signaling is that I have to be MUCH more careful with my body than I used to. Elderly people (>70) tend to be relatively fine until they fall, and the slide begins, oftentimes terminal. Recuperation is MUCH more difficult. This is true with us "younger" folks too. Some suggestions: -Stretch (those muscles and tendons) -Exercise (walking is fine). Stay on it. It gets harder to play catch-up. -Good time to look at your diet. -I now wear a neoprene forearm brace when fishing to protect tendons. Take care of yourself and it goes along way. Some injuries are job related or genetic but alot are not.

Charlie Moore isnt that bad of a person his is just annoying to me. Ike is just loud not funny. The funniest thing he did was DQ from all those tournaments. One Classic he broke the light because the livewell didnt work and his fish died. The other he fished off limits. This is what turned many opinions on him (myself included) from what I read they think he did it on purpose to get the publicity after he didnt have a chance to win. Who know?? I still think hes a nice guy and has changed alot since. Zona is actually funny I think he has an Xgeneration type humor. I think he took a simialar path to Fish Fishburne. Hes a good fisherman who is a character and it translated to a fulltime gig. Hosting events and a tv show. And I would much rather see a guy who could fish who is funny than a guy who is funny that cant fish. I gotta go with Zona. Charlie is just annoying but hes not near as bad alone on the local cable network shows he did. Ike is cool but not near as funny, unless you consider someone screaming like crazy over 12 inch bass funny.

Yes, the fish should be relatively shallow all year. In murky lakes oxygen is often lacking at deeper depths. In winter many people go up murky creek arms and flip and fish are shallow. People just prefer clearer water when its really cold so you dont hear much about fishing shallow in the winter. I fish lakes that are murky all winter and I catch fish in December and January less than 6ft deep.

Basspro shops isnt any better with backorders. If something is on backorder just cancel it and order it again latter. Trust me.

If its the soft plastic.... by John Kerr When fishing for spawning bass there are several techniques that will catch you fish. When you are looking right at the fish you have the opportunity to see how it will react to your offering and then choose the best bait and movement of the bait in order to agitate the fish into striking. During my experiences I have found one bait to be especially great at catching the larger females, and that's mattlures bluegill bait. I throw the bluegill with a 7'6 light swimbait rod from Graphite USA, but the bait is light enough that a flipping stick or heavy jig rod could also handle it and I'm primarily throwing it on 20lb fluorocarbon. The question most frequently asked about the bait is whether or not a stinger hook is necessary, and for what I've found any fish that I want eating the it will really inhale the lure. Any added hooks are usually only hurting your success with the bait and not intended to be fished that way. My first impression of the bait was pure astonishment with how life-like it was. If you take a bluegill and hold it up right next to his bait you really can see how well the bait matches a natural pan fish, and the attention to detail is second to none. Swimbait fisherman know realism is key, and a natural looking bait gives you an advantage. The second thing you notice about the bait is how it sits in the water. When the bait is left alone it will sit with its nose on the bottom and the rest of the bait will remain sitting straight up. When the bass are spawning their number one enemy is a bluegill, and the bait simulates bluegill messing with the bass' spawning bed. I tend to find deadsticking the bait to draw the most strikes from the females. With the new ultimate bluegill you will find that the longer you let the bait sit with the fins flared out the more upset the female will get. Even is you are unable to see her, she is absolutely aware that the bed is under attack. Sometimes you may need to place the bait on the bed and move your boat away, and again let it sit. Be very patient with the fish, and let the bait do the work. When I'm fishing the bait this time of year the obvious use is for sight fishing, but I've found the bait to also be very successful blind casting for beds in deeper water. The longer casts give you an opportunity to place the bait on many beds without spooking the fish. The best way to do this is make a longer cast where you would think a bed would be located then let the bait sit nose down. As you retrieve the bait make sure and let it pause many times in order to optimize the amount of fish seeing the bait. Many times you will be able to put the bait on several beds and increase your shot of catching the big female. When it comes down to it the mattlures bluegill is such a good bait because it's right at the size where the small males aren't able to get it, but 4-5lb fish are able to easily eat the bait. I've caught fish over 10lbs with the bait, but primarily the reason its one of my go to baits is because of its ability to put tournament winning fish in the boat. Two of my largest tournament limits have come in spring using this bait and I expect to have many more. Thats one way to fish the most popular. During the spawn

Its kind of an unwritten rule in some places that you need a fiberglass boat to fish tournaments. I think its actually hurt bass fishing because alot of people get in the mind set you need a big fiberglass boat to do well bass fishing. I know people who got out of fishing all together when the decided to sell their boats and cut back instead of using a small boat occasionally. How smooth aluminum runs depends on the hull but the standard flat bottom is rough. But its not that bad.

They run shallow regardless. Weight doesnt affect running depth much really. I would think more about retrieve speed you need more weight to keep it running straight at faster speeds.

The biggest difference is handling rough water. Aluminum boats beat you to death. That and they are slower for the most part. But if you dont think they are cheaper you are out of your mind. I pulled mine with a car fine. Thats where you save gas using a small vehicle instead of a big truck. You can fish fine out of aluminum boats if you can handle the rough water. I hate people who turn their noses up at the guy in the aluminum boat at the tournament. :

Spro doesnt make a bluegill as far as I know. :-? They do make a shad but it doesnt come in bluegill colors. My guess is they will add a bluegill to the BBZ lineup in the future.

My favs in order 1.FLW 2.Bassmaster 3.Bassin 4.Bass Anglers Guide 5.Infisherman-great but 1or2 bass articles per issue I subscribe to all these.

I fished Hartwell and I am pretty sure the spawn in early May. Maybe its earlier there but I dont think its in early March. I think BASS fished there in April or May and the herring were spawining then. When I fished Hartwell in march we caught fish in main lake pockets with baitfish. And the bigger fish came on channel banks in creek arms and pockets. Maybe I am wrong but I am pretty sure you wont hit the blueback spawn?

If I had to pick 1 of those go with the Osprey. The magic swimmer is the best blueback imitation I think. It played a major role in the BASS events on lakes with them. Get one in Halo greenie in the 125 model.

Didnt mean to ruffle so many feathers on the subject. Dont think I am sexist a lot of women can fish with anybody. But I would rather see them beat the guys in the Opens or even Eliete series. I just dont know if the WBT is strong enough yet they should send someone to the Classic. I would rather see the top 5 qualify for one of the other championships that get you in. I hope the WBT is that strong someday.

Again like I said big difference in being hooked and caught. Hooked doesnt matter as much. Its the stress of being out of water and handled that matters. I think you could catch fish the next day but I think its difficult. When they will bite and when you are likely to catch them is a different story. I found after I caught several fish in my pond (there werent many) that if I waited 2-3 days the fish would bite alot better than they would the next day. But I am sure I could catch some the next day if I really slowed down or used live bait.

I follow the WBT its in Bassmasters every month. The reason I say the competition isnt as strong is the weights that are brought in. It doesnt take near the weights it should to win. And not only that the dropoff in weight is huge. Out of 83 pros at the Old Hickory for example: 1st-36.5 2nd-28.8 10th-21.13 20th-13.2 Last spot in the money you had to catch 13.2 in 3 days 30th-9.5 40th-7.13 the pros a week later (4 day tournament 106 anglers) 1st-44 after 3 days 2nd-41 after 3 days 10th-33 after 3 days 20th-30.12 30th-28.2 40th-25.15 50th-17.0 last in money The mens tournament had worst conditions and it stil wasnt close. At the WBT on Clarks Hill in September it took over 3 days 74pros 1st-24.14 2nd-24.10 10th-17.5 20th-14.12 The Weekend series event on Clarks Hill 2 years earlier same time 1st-21.9 2nd-19.14 10th-14.12 20th-8.8 out of 51 anglers, pretty comparable till you consider this was a 1 day event not a 3 day event like the WBT Fact is the WBT is about the same competition as weekend series event at best. There are some good anglers who always finish high and couple probably compete with the guys in the Opens and Kim-Bain is one of them. But there are also alot of Women fishing the WBT who couldnt compete in BASS weekend series. If she does well in the classic it will show she could compete not that the WBT is good. Fact is the WBT is at best the same as

Being caught and hooked are different. It stresses fish after they are caught and handled. I had a small pond behind my house I fished almost every day when I was younger. Every fish is different but I think 3 days is a good general time frame. Just hooking a bass and they could bite again that day. I think if you put them back quick you can shorten the time frame as well. There are no rules but plan on 3 days for fish to get back to normal. My 2 cents

There are no rules. Some examples Standing up-Bill Dance Having sponsors-Just go to a local tournament alot of the best guys dont have sponsors type of boat-What about the guys on In-fisherman??? for one. Expensive gear-Not even close how about quality gear?? Winning local tournament-Who hasnt? Smack talk-Even the pros do beyond being confident. BASS on Wheeler! Look at the local tournaments over time the best fisherman win alot more than their share not just occasionally. Also dont judge big weights alot of guys are great and just put limits in every tournament and they win the tough ones. You can go by being able to fish different bodies of water to an extent. Being good on all the water you fish is more important. Sponsors are a joke in some cases. You can win one big tournament and get sponsors. Getting a couple free things every year doesnt make you a great fisherman. Truth is there are different levels. My definitions Novices-Guys who pick baits and dont know why. Bank beaters 24/7 no exceptions. Your bottom of the pack finishing club guys. Can do well but only at right times on right lakes. Skilled Amateurs-Your best guys in the clubs. Could compete in small circuits. Good on different lakes different times. Finish in money in some bigger tournaments. Local sticks-Guys who do great in bigger small circuits. Rarely finish out of money in big local tournaments. Compete in the biggest amateur tournaments and do well. Just my quick definitions its really a matter of how good you consider good. I have won a small boat. I have won Angler of the Year in my club. I have won lots of small local tournaments in different states. I dont consider myself great. But I know I am better than some guys I met with sponsors and I am not a novice. I dont think you can make everything black and white. Come on over to the grey area theres plenty of room.

If you cant catch fish in half a day of fishing good water then you probably need help. Trust me if your catching fish you coangler wont leave your spot anyway. Lets be honest alot of us have egos when it comes to picking water. Most of us think the spots we have picked are the best and when we pull up on our partners spot we dont have near the confidence even if we only caught 1 short fish on our spot. You want to play scenarios heres one. I fished with a guy once who pulled up on a point first thing in the morning. Later I found out the guy picked that spot because his pocket guide to seasonal patterns said secondary points should be good. Another tournament same lake I fished with a guy who ran 10 miles up a creek to fish cold muddy water and stayed 5hrs there because he had a couple hits there. No fish hits. :'( I KNOW I could outfish these guys easy. I am in the top 5 in my club every year and won a couple plaques as well. So here I am a good coangler I spend $50 in gas, $50 on a hotel, and $100 on fees, side pot, helping out boater. So for $200 I draw out with Jim Bob who insists on fishing that shallow mud flat up the creek. No bites just a couple short fish all day. How fun would that be? Is that how you get the best anglers to represent the state. Point is nobody wants to share anymore. Alot of boaters think its my boat my decisions. Your fishing a tournament with a coangler deal with it. Alot of guys said if your a coangler and you dont like it dont fish. Well if the boaters didnt like it then they shouldnt have fished. Instead they whined and changed the rules. Used to be pros would draw out with each other in tournaments, they would fish and get along. Its getting to the point where you have to own a boat to fish tournaments. If Ike fished with my states rules we might not have ever known who he was.

Yeah but your not talking about fishing with a pro. Your fishing with Jim Bob from the club the next town over.

I think women have a different way of thinking and on the water they dont make the quick decisions the way guys do. At least thats my theory. I know women who fished as much as guys so I dont know why they havent had more success fishing against the guys. I heard someone on bassmasters say they didnt want to be the one beat by her. ;D

Dont think she took a spot the number of spots and who qualifies changes every year it seems. Its not a 64 team bracket. I was just making a point about how hard it is for the guys to get in. I think out of 150 elite pros almost all are great fisherman. Out of the 50 that fish all the WBT tournaments maybe 10-20 are in the top teir. I dont know how good they are but there is a fast drop in the talent level. It would be like 10 pros fishing against a bunch of amateurs.