senko_77

Sorry to hear about the loss of such a great person GitRDone. There family will be in my prayers tonight.

Is there any current? Spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and topwaters is what I would have tied on. Also, have a jig or texas rigged worm tied on. Get away with the lightest weight you can without having the current sweep it downstream.

Good lord. That thing is a chunk!

Great story. I had goosebumps the whole last half

Check out the Wal-Mart BFL's or the B.A.S.S. Weekend Series. Both of those trails offer you a big tournament experience while not killing you financially, and you will learn a ton while meeting some wicked nice local anglers.

MIKE!!!! Congratulations! That feeling is incredible isn't it. I don't know about you, but IMO the trophies are way cooler than the check. Where does that put you in the points race? I'm sure that if you weren't near the top, you are now.

Don't worry bout the slump. I'm in a massive one. I've had alot of zeros this summer on lakes that I know really well. It happens to everyone. A combination of you continuing to fish and the water cooling down is gonna bring you some good results soon. Keep on keepin on dude.

Take a look at the Mattlures series. The ultimate bluegill should be killer on the lakes you fish. And you can throw it on a MH rod which means less money spent on equipment....unless you want to spend that money on a new swimbait setup

As for the list, it looks good but like Tokyo Tony said, maybe you should just get one type of frog and spend the rest of your money on getting a better variety of baits that will work in any condition.

Trying skipping small swimbaits under them like the Berkley Hollow Belly. If you've noticed, most fish under docks are caught on the baits initial fall. That's because fish are usually suspended when underneath them. The advantage to the swimbait is, you get the fish to look up when it skips across the surface and then it stays in the strike zone the entire retrieve.

Rat-L-Traps!!!!!! The lipless crankbait is a killer fall time bait. Also, topwaters are huge producers. I like walk-the-dog style baits like the Spro Dawg 100 and Sammy 100 I also know that there are gonna be alot of new swimbaiters in the making this fall. The bass are loading up on shad and will attack a swimbait. You might wanna consider picking up some that closely resemble the baitfish in the lakes your fishing. Good luck!

I'm a huge fan of Aaron Martens. This last year I have also become a huge fan of Steve Kennedy

Check out the Wal-Mart BFL's at flwoutdoors.com

Man, we need this rain so desperately in Georgia right now. I hope it doesn't effect many in Florida, but I am so glad that the projected path is pointing right for the metro Atlanta area.

D, Matt offers some great advice on keeping the soft plastic swimbaits together. When you first get the bait, put superglue on all the parts of the bait most likely to rip....hook hanger, where the hook exits the back, and the line tie. Then while fishing, just put on a slippery attractant like megastrike....or KY, lol. You won't have any 2lbers ripping the bait if you take care of it, and when a small rip develops, just superglue it back together before it turns into a serious problem. I had a Matt Bluegill last me over a year and I took care of it. At the Roadtrip at Lake Guntersville, I passed it on to Electrikal and I believe he is still using it. That gill caught one over 7lbs and many smaller fish. Give it a try....soft swimbaits are donkey

Dude, I don't know if you stick pigs on a daily basis, but I'm pretty sure that if I stuck an 8+ on every $23 bait I bought, I wouldnt be whining about it. With some creativity, and a bottle of superglue, you should be able to get that bait up and running again. BASS, Nice fish! That thing is prefectly proportioned. I bet that made your night.

Tough one Cade. The thing you have to look forward to is that you were 1oz from winning it. I have a feeling that you will be on the other side of that 1oz next year. Keep plugging away. You'll get it. I know how bad it sucks not making it to the Nationals. I bummed out in our state tourny in April and it still fires me up thinking about not winning.

WELCOME BACK!!!! I had you in my prayers last night buddy. Glad you had a safe flight. Let me know when I can get down there and hook up with some of them Fort Stewart bass.

X2!! I picked up this combo at a BFL in March. It performs beautifully and does the job. It does great with a jighead worm and split shot rig.

Another thing to is to make sure you are using an Extra Wide Gap hook like the E.W.G. series from Gamakatsu. A regular round bend hook will impede your hooksets with a bait like the fluke. As other members have said, a MH will help drive the hook a bit better, but I don't see why a Medium won't cut it. A medium power is what I throw my flukes on, but I tend to set the hook really hard. Hope you figure it out and hook up with that pig

Here's 2 modifications you can make that might help your hook-ups. T-rig it like normal, but before sliding the hook point into the belly of the fluke to make it straight, slide a treble hook over the hook point, then continue the rigging. The treble will slide freely up and down the hook shaft, but won't fall off because both ends of the hook are covered by plastic. Another way to rig it is to take a 1/0 or 2/0 worm hook and nose hook the fluke. Hook it just like you would a drop shot. When a fish hits, theres not plastic to drive the hook point through, so a simple reel sweep set will get them everytime. Theses rigging methods are only effective if you're fishing moderate to zero cover. The nose hooking rig will work somewhat in grass, but other than that, stick to the conventional way unless it's open water. Good luck. Sorry you lost that pig! It sounds like your on an awesome population of fish. Keep at it and you'll get that PB in no time.

Phelps is an athlete. He WILL find a way to win 8 golds and set 8 wr's. He didn't train as hard as he did the last 4 years to duck out on the last race. He can see the finish and there ain't nobody that's gonna stop that train

Now that is a qaulity solution

Oh how I've longed to see an "Avid" pic. Looks like that fish has an attitude

AVID!!! Welcome back. You've been missed! This forum is gonna get turned upside down with you and Muddy being back