Shane J

Now that's a smallie! Nice fish, bud.

That's not a smallie.

Who won the second chance drawing from here?

Got mine today.

On a Rage Craw, Use a 4/0-5/0. I like the 5/0 Moaner Stick'R, which is a twist-lock hook. Same for the Lobster. 3/0 for the Baby Craw.

None of em

If they're "finiky", then give 'em what they want. Chances are, you're fishing too fast, and not deep enough.

Yes it does. Cant wait to go. See ya there, Speed.

Mainebass, those are some great fish. I wonder who the awesome photographer was? Hehe.

My son when he was 4. I say, let him fish something simple, like a weightless, weedless, non-live bait something or other. My son is now 7, and has never once fished with live bait, and could probably outfish half this board.

Haha, Mike, yeah, I just can't get me enough of a jig/Rage Craw!

Bob, on a 4/0 Moaner Stick'R, weightless

Biggest of the year so far. Measurements put her at 8.08 lbs (my scale said 7lbs2oz, but I was using my secondary bag and backup scale, so not sure it was completely accurate. She was 21.5" long and 21" girth!!) . Caught on a Rage Shad this morning. Biggest 5 went 26lbs. They were killing the topwater. Nice rainy Father's Day! Hope all the dads out there had a good one!

I see you're fishing the "D". Good luck cracking the code for the bigger fish there.

Very sorry to hear that, man. Take care of it, and get better fast.

My biggest for the weekend, and the year so far, a 6-14. My buddy got a 5-4, also.

For that, I'd grab the lower ratio.

I have signed up to fish the 2015 BBWC. Now I really need some water to throw at. Good luck to all.

Jig/Rage Craw

Rigging tail up or down does make a difference. one gives UP pressure, and one gives DOWN. Rig according to how you want it to swim (or how fast you want it to fall, based on your retrieval speed). Also, if they were stiffer, they would not catch as many fish. Believe me when I tell ya, that the density, salt content, texture, and the stiffness of the bait, are all METICULOUSLY thought out, until the perfect balance is reached. It is an art and a science, and the guy that designs the baits is a genius at it, and will not release a bait until it's perfect. I also love the Cut'R, and use it all kinds of ways, including weightless, Rage Rigged, C-rigged, Tx rigged, drop shotted, swim jig trailer, and one of my favorites, the shakey head. My favorite color far and away, is Blue Craw. Glad you're having success with them, I'm sure you will have lot's more the more you use 'em. One of the best worms on the market.

Stuff like that, you're probably better with a C-Rig.

smallmouth on a drop shot . Bait was a Dream Shot.

I'm going to agree with the OP's line of thinking, and expand it to include reels, rods, baits, and basically everything else. You get what you pay for, whether it be enjoyment, longevity, more fish, or all of those, it's worth getting the best you can.

I agree. Fish until an authority figure tells you otherwise.

Color matters when it matters, but a lot of the time, action, rate of fall, and retrieval speed are your target factors. I have gone head to head with matching bait, different color, and the color has been important, and sometimes it's not. It's not at the top of the priority list, though.