The_Natural

You won't be able to get a hook out of a fishes eye without costing him that eye- you just need to cut your barb off and slide it right out. There isn't a worm hook or treble that is worth more than a fish's eye to me. It won't kill the fish to rip his eye out, but I can't imagine he would ever get huge hunting with only one eye. Call me a softie, but I snip barbs when I hook a fish in the eye or stomach.

Power worms work- they are the number one selling worm for a reason. I also like the Frenzy crankbaits, and throw them mostly when the water temp is in the 50's. They have a tight, erratic wiggle that seems to excel in cold water. The Frenzy crankbaits go on sale for $1.99 a few times a year, and I think that is an exceptional value for a scale-textured bait with glass eyes. They catch fish, too

Tiki sticks and Yum Dingers are both good, but don't quite have the fall rate of a Senko.

That's impressive- I wish they had the Junior bassmasters when I was your age. Keep it up dude...I don't doubt for a minute I'll see your name again.

Anybody with about 50 grand could catch the world record bass. Just pay a bunch of illegal aliens $5 an hour to scan the shoreline of dixon lake next spring until they spot that world record fish again. I'll instruct them to sit on the fish while I fly down. I'll work her nest over for days if needed to force her to bite. Then I'll be hoisted upon the shoulders of California anglers and regarded as the greatest angler of all time. Heck, it seems even if I foul hook her some don't care! Not even finding the fish...offering to pay the people who found her...and then foul hooking that giant bass is about as impressive 7th place finish in my bass club tournament last weekend. Ok...less impressive.

I do like your modest approach, and it almost sounds better than the usually embellished tournament finishes, etc. You might want to add what kind of exposure you will offer some potential sponsors.

I use Jack's Juice garlic oil or Lake Fork Tackle 'Hawg Wild' garlic spray. I find aerosol cans to be the least messy and easiest to apply.

Ironically, I was actually going to type a post similar to this, but hadn't gotten around to it. I notice all the time how my cat stalks prey similarly to a bass. I have a wire with a little thing on the end, and sometimes I rip it back and forth and he goes after it, and sometimes I have to slowly drag it tantalizing him to strike. The wire is thick, and I know he sees my hand moving it, but instinct and reaction get the best of him and he goes for it.

I'll probably get a barrage of crap for this, but doesn't mike long fish out of that special small 'membership only' lake? Seems kind of like shooting a trophy buck on one of those pay-to-hunt trophy buck farms. Just doesn't seem as challenging or rare of a catch when that is considered.

Get him a nice bait like a lucky craft pointer or rick clunn shallow runner. Those baits are something you hate to spend $15 on, but would love to get as a gift

1. Carebear 2. Jalepeno 3. Indian Burn

Yep...and I always fish rip rap with moving baits.

Tie that x-rap on your spinning rod with some 8lb fluorocarbon...it will run deeper and have better action. There definitely isn't a temp that jerbaits become ineffective. They are tailor made for cold water, even though they can produce year round. The colder and nastier it gets, the longer I generally wait in between jerks. You will just have to experiment.

I'd lose the bulky craw tube trailer. Go with a chunk which will give your jig a better profile and more natural action. Fluorocarbon also can help you detect the subtle strikes when the fish are light biting. Check out www.joesjigtrailers.com

Spinnerbaits: Booyah and Red River spinnerbaits are good reasonabley priced baits with good hooks....war eagles are better. Crankbaits: Berkley frenzy's, Bomber model A's, bandit flat maxx, Rapala shad raps, and Norman cranks are good reasonabley priced, tight wiggle baits. Bomber fat free shads, bandits 100's and 200's, Storm original wiggle warts, and the Rapala DT series are good reasonabley priced, wide wobble baits. All Lucky Craft baits, zoom/wec balsa crankbaits, and bagley originals are nice but expensive. There aren't really any bad plastics. You can't go wrong with Zoom, Yum, Mizmo, Table Rock tackle, and Yamamoto baits which you can all purchase at bass pro. Good luck...

The hooks aren't as good now that they don't use mustad triple grips, but I haven't noticed a difference in paint or construction quality since production moved to china. Some guys claim that they are breaking easier. All I know is the darn things catch fish like crazy, and every time I turn around a tournament down here is being won by someone throwing a bandit. The BFL super tournament that was here in September was won with a bandit.... "Gibbs' winning catch of eight bass weighed 25 pounds, 4 ounces. He threw a Bandit crankbait in 2 to 5 feet of water around rocks and points. "

Do bass that are hand fed snicker bars, I mean trout, count ;D I wish they fattened up our oklahoma bass The California bass remind me of the people I see at wal-mart here in oklahoma that are so big they have to ride the 'mart-cart' to get around the isles ;D

I'll sponsor you! Just send me twenty bucks and I'll send you some baits Sorry, just couldn't help myself. ;D

I'll add that garlic is also my favorite scent. It just flat stays on your bait longer (I can smell it!). I use craw oil for my jigs and garlic on everything else.

I use yum dingers, tiki sticks and senkos. Yum dingers and tiki sticks have a different fall rate than senkos, and sometimes the fish prefer one over the other, but not one all the time. GY sells a premium bait, and I feel you get what you pay for. I guess I'm glad his aren't the only ones that work, but utilizing all that are available to you to find the one that works on a given day will make you a better fisherman.

8. Why be modest ;D

Here's a better pic...