senile1

Each to his own, but I won't fish without a jig tied on to at least one rod. It sounds like the issues you encountered had nothing to do with the jig, but were problems with your knots. If you can fish a Texas-rigged worm, you can fish a jig. Hang in there.

No kidding. If there is a stump or treetop not visible under the water, one of my greatest skills is being able to find it with my trolling motor. Always carry extra shear pins. I agree with sloanzp that aluminum is too soft.

A dinghy is a boat carried by another boat to be used as a lifeboat or a pleasure craft. I don't know what type of saltwater fish are available in the islands there but where I have fished saltwater bays we usually used shrimp or croakers as bait, either on a hook only or using a float as a popper on top. I would call some guides in the area and ask them what to use. I'm sure some bass lures would work. Bass rods and reels would be fine too.

It sounds like it is starting to come together for you. Congratulations!

Don't forget your 5/8 oz Big O Brush jig! I tend to use 3/8, 1/2, and 5/8ths the most. I use heavy 3/4s to 1 Oz jigs for punching through nasty stuff and when the bite is tough I will switch to 1/4 oz jigs. With regard to the OP's question, you obviously can't try every jig that exists so you listen to friends and forums and pick a few to try until you find some that work for you. The people here can steer you toward size ranges and jigs that work for them. From there it becomes your own personal preference.

I use the 2.5s quite a bit more than the 1.5s. I can cast further with the bigger bait, and I don't see an issue with catching numbers. If they don't bite the 2.5s I'll switch to the smaller baits.

There was a time when I had uneasy feelings about fishing for bedding bass, but as RW stated, the science didn't support my opinion so my thoughts are different now. Most of the lakes I fish nearby are stained to the point where sight fishing isn't very useful. I can see the occasional bed but most of the time I am fishing areas I know to be spawning areas without seeing the fish on the bed.

That's great! That boat will open up a whole new world for you on the water.

SenkoSam and Fishes in Trees: Great posts, guys! I'm sure we all have lures we have purchased that we shouldn't have. I'm also sure we all have lures we have purchased that we haven't used enough to experience their benefits. And I absolutely agree with Fishes in Trees that fishing time can be hard to come by for many of us. Saving time on the water by having more rigs setup makes sense in that regard. We want to be more versatile, but at what point are we just purchasing another lure that really doesn't help us reach that goal. I guess each of us has to find that balance for ourselves.

In the past we have had some excellent discussions about the effects of barometric pressure on bass. The link below is one of the better ones that I pulled from the archives. Essentially, if you know your weather you don't have to keep up with the barometric pressure. When a cold front approaches the pressure drops. After a front the pressure is higher. After a few days of stability the pressure tends to get lower as the next cold front approaches. Along with a cold front comes changes in temperature, light, food dispersion, etc. We all know that strong cold fronts affect bass noticeably while weaker ones have less of an effect. Whether that is because of air pressure or the other factors mentioned above is cause for debate among a lot of anglers. One thing seems to be clear. Bass seek a stable environment. When a strong cold front passes through, the environment in the upper layer of water becomes unstable for a short period. Bass in this layer will either become less active, will seek a more stable environment (deeper water), or both. http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/77587-barometer-question/page-2

That is one heck of a fish and very nicely proportioned for the spawn!

Those are some healthy bass. That first one is packing on some weight in the mid-section.

Very, very nice and congratulations! That one is a real chunk.

That's a beautiful rig. I'm sure you will get many years of enjoyment out of her.

When I am in my bassboat I pack everything. When I go to small lakes in my jon boat or when I fish from the bank I do something similar to what RW suggested. Based on the season, the weather, and what I think the bass will be doing I choose a few lures that fit the situation and place them in a single box, with a few backups in case I lose some lures. Carry enough of each plastic you think you will use to cover you for the day and leave the rest at home.

A lot of this is personal preference, but I think the Baby Rage Craw is an excellent trailer for small jigs. In cooler weather I sometimes like to use a trailer with a little less action than a Rage Craw but most of the year that would be my trailer of choice. I also like the trailer to blend in with my jig. For that reason I tend to use the dirty craw and alabama Rage Craw colors with brownish jigs, green pumpkin and summer craw with green pumpkin jigheads, and blue/black craws with black and blue jigheads. I will occasionally use a green pumpkin trailer with a brown jighead.

That's a toad for that lake! Ha! Funny, and I tend to agree for the most part though I have to point out that this is only one instance and is anecdotal so it really doesn't prove anything. However, there are hundreds of lakes that are good fisheries which experience tournament pressure every year. I think that kind of evidence speaks loudly.

That's an excellent post, Paul! I don't see you around much these days, not that I have been around a lot over the last year either. I miss your insight.

LOL. Well there are no alligators here but in many of the lakes I fish, after a few steps, you will be half-way to your knees in muck. Creeks and rivers are another matter though. I do agree that wading does open up a lot more water when you are stuck on the bank.

That's awesome. I was hoping they would have a successful release back into Grand Lake. I started the other thread due to the distance involved. Some of us here remember a fish kill that occurred at Falcon Lake a few years back but the fish did not die until after they were returned to the water. In this case, I don't think that did or will happen due to the cool temperatures involved and the care taken. There was a very interesting discussion about this topic in 2008 due to the Falcon Lake situation with some very interesting posts by a Sure-Life representative. If you are interested, I copied the link below. http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/63406-fish-kill-where-are-the-pics/

Like a few stated above, I use them only in very muddy water, though I have often fished muddy water without them. I can't say that I have any empirical evidence that I have caught more fish when using them, however.

Mozingo is great lake to fish. What Bluebasser said is true, and tritonguy is correct that some of the coves can get pretty choked with weeds. I recommend fishing this lake during the week if you want to avoid the crowds. There are some good fish in this lake.

I agree. A fish of that size in Indiana, or my state for that matter, has already had a long life of reproduction and has very little time left. I would not be upset if an angler wanted to keep it because it could not be certified any other way. Many have stated they released their double-digit bass, but in the case of a state record, and especially a world record, I give the angler some leeway.

WRB gave an excellent response to the original post. I think of patterns like this. Imagine it is pouring rain outside. Most people stay inside, while another group of people will wear rain gear and brave the elements. A third group of people will spend time in the rain without any protection, and a fourth, very tiny group, strips down naked and runs around screaming praises to mother nature. These are all patterns. At any one time bass will be following a number of patterns on a lake. Our goal as bass anglers is to find a pattern that a great number of fish are following if we want to be successful. Since the bass is an instinctual creature much, more than a thinking creature like humans, the number of patterns they would follow will be limited based on their instincts to seek out food, protection, and reproductive purposes when warranted.

I find that following the updates on the site is quite entertaining. You get a pretty good feel for what is going on and who is in the mix for the day, and who isn't.