jax

Welcome to the site!

My Jon boat was leaking so I JB welded the rivets. I put a solid coat of JB weld over the entire rivet. I thought about drilling it out but thought the solid layer of JB weld would last longer and add a small layer of protection. I don't have a fiber glass boat though. I would assume if the leak isn't bad you should be able to use a fiber glass repair kit to fix the problem. Has anyone used the truck bed liners on the BOTTOM of a jon boat? Not the floor but bottom of the boat that comes in contact with the water. I'm thinking about doing this for an extra add layer of durability. Bad idea?

+1 on this statement. I like the 360 much better. It is hard to beat xbox live. The downloads and the live community are a HUGE feature without the games. The only reason to buy a PS3 right now is for the blue ray player. New movies are for blue ray are more expensive at $30 each. Blue ray isn't worth that much to me at this point. But the xbox 360 and use the extra cash on a surround sound or turtle beach head phone. GOOD head phones make a huge difference in FPS.

Are you guys using a free sliding weight or are you pegging it? I'm going to try to find some tungsten weights this weekend and I don't want to lose them!!! If I peg them does the brand/ finish matter as much? What about carolina rigging? Still matter as much? What about if you aren't using braided line? I'm trying to shorten my learning curve on the tungsten. I'm on a tight budget and can't afford alot of losses.

Well being a Redskins fan is automatically a poor start to the season!!! ;D It comes and goes. I think that is why the NFL is so popular. The cap keeps the rosters evolving. I've been a PROUD Philly fan since they sucked. I sported my colors when it was embarrassing to where green. At least being a Redskins fan is better than being a Raider's Fan!!!!

What is the draw back to using a snap? I don't know anyone that uses them. The only thing I have ever heard is that they have a strong chance of bending out of shape and losing your lure. How true is this? What is wrong with tying a rapala knot onto a snap and then add that to the crank bait?

I love my Terminator T-1. Its made of titanium which acts like memory metal. Doesn't matter how you bend it. It always goes back into place. Main draw back is I have a buddy that hooked a fishing partner of his in the head at a tournament. The paramedics didn't have anything that could cut the metal! He still has that bait to this day! I have a Strike King mini that is very nice also. Dick's has terminators for around $4. Hard to beat at that price.

That was pretty comical. And to think we willing put our fingers in their mouth to retrieve our bait.

I have been more than happy with my Terminator. $4 from Dicks and I don't have to worry about getting bent out of shape. I was pond fishing last night on a clear lake. It was misting outside. I was using the white with black highlights skirt. I was catching little 9" bass with every cast. I couldn't find any big bass due to the little bass hitting it so fast.

Ya. I missed this thread also. Thanks for giving out the free baits anyhow. Hopefully next time I'll be quicker! I'll head out and buy one this weekend too!

I plan on moving some of them to a friends pond. He wants to start stocking his pond. That is the main reason for the livewell. I do plan on eating some though. I grew up eating bass and blue gill. Its been a LONG time since I have had any though. What is a good eating size? 12" I assume?

There is one advantage to being new to the sport. I don't care how or where I catch one. I'm happy as a kid in a candy store everytime I catch one. I haven't caught enough to even begin to discern which way I like better. Shoot I'm still happy just casting different lures! Hard bait or soft bait. I'm in heaven. Big fight or little fight I am happy as can be. I know. I'm easily amused!

I to am sorry to here about your loss. Stealing from my 3 1/2 yr old little girl hurts more than stealing from me. I'm about to buy her a fishing pole. She would be devasted if something were to happen to it. She's at that age. Theives suck. It is hard to claim on insurance because unless you have alot of high end stuff it may not be enough to meet your deductible. I'm new to fishing and I understand what it is like to start from nothing. It gets expensive fast. Especially when you are on a budget. I can't imagine have a full tackle box and then have it stolen. Down on one of the river boat ramps theives are breaking into parked cars. They wait until people either go boating or go running. They are mainly looking for purses but they will take what ever is handy. I hate thieves.

Thanks for the info. I printed it off to take with me! Next time I'll hopefully set the hook faster.

I was fishing with a T-rig worm this weekend and caught a bass that swallowed the hook. I'm still trying to get a feel for a worm. I didn't set my hook in time. I was fishing a pond where I cannot keep the fish. I couldn't figure out how to get the hook out without hurting the fish. It was down deep. How do get hooks out that are down that deep? While I was pondering how to get the hook out I decided to put the bass back in the water so it could breathe. Somehow it snapped my line and solved the problem for me. Does the ARC dehooker that is advertised on this site help? Is there something better? I know I should have set my hook sooner but I didn't want to screw up and lose the fish. I didn't realize how hard it would be to remove without damaging the fish. Actually I never thought about that happening. I never had a fish swallow the whole bait before. Should I have set my hook harder? Sorry for the newb questions but I can't find anything on this searching. I can't stand to hurt a fish that I am going to release.

What do you use for a livewell on a 10' Jon boat? I don't have $200 to spend on one. Do the coolers with and airrater work decently? How rough is it for the fish in one of the metal baskets that you hang from the side of your boat? I plan on filleting them at the end of the day but I don't have the heart to put them on a stringer.

It is duckweed. No vegetation under neath. I haven't had a chance to get a frog yet. I did try a white worm. It was the only color I had. I tried bottom fishing and top fishing. Those fish don't like white. Not having much experience with a worm probably didn't help. I did have some luck with some a two piece rapala shad crank bait. 4' to 5' depth. Blue and silver. I retrieved it fast to make it go deep. Seemed to work at least today. I need to learn to use a worm better. Is there a good book for how to use the different lures? I'm reading everything I come across on the net but it would be nice if someone wrote a descent fishing book. Any recommendation on a good fishing technique book?

I went fishing again today. For most of the day. Lost my Terminator spin bait. My line was apparently frayed and broke when I cast. I'm still ticked about that. On the bright side I caught my biggest bass yet. Approx 16" and maybe 2 to 2 1/2 lbs.. I need to get a fish scale. It was healthy looking. Not a huge one but a nice start. I caught maybe 10 small ones the rest of the day. I don't know much about bass sizes and weights. What is the average size bass? Specifically large mouth in Southern Indiana.

Anyone from southern indiana? Any recommendations for good places to fish in these parts?

It may be duckweed. I will have to examine it a little more closely to be sure. Thanks for the tips. I will hopefully get to try them out tomorrow!!!

:-? huh? It is just a neat way of showing sensitivity/ vibration on a rod. You have one guy set the tip of the rod on his throat and hum while you are holding the rod. You can feel him humming. It is corny but gives you an idea about sensivity.

This is a wierd algae. It is more grainy than anything. It isn't stringy. When I pick the lure up out of the water it is covered in tiny chunks of algae. I hope that makes sense. It is not like a seaweed algae. All baits run right through it with no problem I believe visibility is the issue. This stuff covers the ENTIRE pond. Just like a surface mat. I'm not sure how much depth it has though. I think it may be a surface algae. Paul, I assume this is what you mean by fiborous? Bear with me I'm new to this and I don't know my algae yet. My terminator spinnerbait didn't have much effect. It may be my technique though. I am still learning to use it. I will pick up a frog and try that out. How do you fish with a frog? Do you slow reel it, fish it like a jig, or a little bit of everything?

Southern Indiana area just north of louisville, KY. What do you use to fish for bass in a 1 - 1 1/2 acre pond that is COMPLETELY covered in algae? Water would be clear if not for the algae. Private pond that was stocked years ago and rarely fished. Gets alot of water run off from farming fields when it rains. Has nice sized bass and blue gill. Not overgrown with seaweed. 20' deep in the middle. Mostly shaded. No obstruction in the water. Fishing around 7pm eastern time. The fish are healthy and not under weight. I had a little luck with a purple/brown worm on the bottom. I think I was using a texas rig. What would be optimal in this situation? I once heard that sometimes fish may actually need to be "trained" to hit a bait hook in ponds such as these. Is there any truth in that? Yes I'm a newb!

I went with the Quantumn combo that I posted. It so seems to be a good deal that I couldn't pass up. With the coupon I only paid $40 for the combo. Its the best quality value for the money that Dick's has at the moment. Well at least under the $100 price range. I don't know much about gear but the IM8 rod that came with it is very sensitive. I ran into another guy at Dick's that helped show a me few things. He showed me the throat test (testing the vibration with vocal chords). That was pretty cool. I'm not sure of the reel size but it is 10lbs @ 120 yards. It has 11 bearings. It is a very smoother cast. The gear ratio is fast. Really fast. Almost too fast. I wish I could tell you the ratio but I don't know it. I do know it was faster than the Shimano 1500s and 2000s that the guy fishing with me last night brought. Hope that helps. I also bought a Terminator spinner bait. The one with the memory metal. I got a Rapella medium jerk bait, white trick worms, 8lb berkley line. A buddy gave me some weights, hooks, and purple/brown colored worms. Everything was on sale and I had the $15 coupon off a $75 purchase. Grand total of $59.36. I had to take my new "toy" and use it last night. HAD TO!. I HAD to make sure it wasn't defective! I went to a private 1 acre pond that hasn't been fished in awhile with a buddy and his brother from out of town. I caught 1 14" 2lbs bass and 1 10" 1lbish bass. Then we went to a small 5-6 acre lake after dark where I caught a couple small 6-9 large mouth bass. After dark I was using a borrowed black crank bait (I think ) Overall I had a very relaxing time. I'm not sure why I waited so long to start fishing. Thanks for all of the help and advice!

Thanks for all of the advice. You guys have been alot of help. Sam I never thought about keeping a journal. The idea never occurred to me. Reel side was the biggest thing I was having a problem with. Thanks for explaining where to set the drag. That was a question that I was waiting to figure out later. Moby - Thanks for the link. I will definitely use that! I read all the the link you posted road warrior. That is the hardest thing for new people to new forums is learning what to search for. Thanks for all of the help guys. I'm going shopping tonight. YAY FOR ME!!! I'll let you know what I come away with.