Tim Ford

My dad and I were floating down the Mobile River, and I noticed a snake hanging down from a tree, and going into the water. I said, "Look at that snake." We watched it. It was about 4-5 feet long. Just then a huge bass came up out of the water and blew up on that snake... Ripped him out of the tree. We both looked at each other like "WHOA!" I'll never forget that.

3. Pan's Labyrinth 2. Fight Club 1. Pulp Fiction

To be honest, I don't like the shad at all. It seems very bulky, and seems to make too much splash on top. To me, I think it would be more likely to scare a fish than to attract one. Maybe on very choppy water it would work well. I don't know. I bought a pack last year, and I still have most of them in the pack. I may have used them twice. Under the circumstances, I go for a good buzz bait instead of the Rage Tail shad every time.

I would use a rod tube, put some sort of padding between the rods, and ship them to your destination via Fed-Ex. Buy the optional shipping insurance, and you're set. This is exactly what my dad does when he visits me from Florida, and it works every time.

I never peg. But that's just me. If the cover is that heavy I'll either use a weighted hook, or a jig.

Yep. If you have a worm, for example, just push the pointed end of the rattle into the plastic worm. That's all there is to it. If I'm using a worm rattle, I put the rattle between the eye and point of the hook, that way it doesn't interfere with the movement of the worm's tail. Plus, to me, it seems more secure there.

Sometimes when I'm reeling one in, especially with crank and jerk baits, when I know the line is nice and tight, I'll go ahead and give it another sharp jerk to make sure the hook set is solid. I do this especially if the fish is swimming toward me, and I feel like the line gets slack, or if the fish jumps. I think sometimes people get complacent, and they feel like that initial hook set is enough to bury the hook every time. I think, unless you set it hard, and the line stays very tight throughout the battle, you're setting yourself up to lose your fish if you don't ensure a good hook set. Every time that line gets slack is an opportunity for the bass to throw the hook.

Are they that soft? I've been eyeing them for some time, never got to see them in person though. Are they more of a flippin' style tube? Yes. They are VERY soft with poor elasticity. My first indication was when I put the hook through it, it tore a little bit. I really don't think it is possible to catch more than one bass per tube. Unless I just got a bad batch.

I have a 565 on my boat, and I love it. I bought it from BPS, and the man at the counter said it was the best for the money.

I caught an 8 pound carp (accidentally) on the 10 lb Vanish line. It gave me a heck of a fight, and the whole time I had this thread in the back of my mind. I actually did end up catching the carp, but I set the hook on a bass earlier in the morning and the line broke. I don't know what happened there.

On a side note, I also ordered some "Boom Boom Tubes," and although I was able to catch 2 bass with them, I was unhappy, because the tube was ripped to shreds after catching each of them.

I used them for the first time this morning. I caught 4 bass and an 8 pound carp with the sweet beaver. I was able to catch 3 bass on one before discarding it. I used the color "penetration" which is black on top, blue on bottom. I t-rigged it with a 1/16 oz sinker and 4/0 Gamakatsu EWG hook. I was very happy with its performance.

I use this set-up for shaky head worm fishing: Rod- 6'6" Shakespeare Ugly Stick (Medium) Reel- Shakespeare Sigma Baitcast Reel Line- 20 lb. Power Pro Braid Hook- 6/0 1/4 oz Luck 'E' Strike Football Power Head Jighead Worm- 7" Berkley Gulp Shaky Worm

Seriously, that would be great. Just say the word, and I'm there.

I got my shipment today, and I was pleasantly surprised that the price was $5 for a pack of 10 and not $5 each. Reaction Innovations should really be more specific, because I almost didn't make the purchase. The strange thing is, the price on the tubes specifically says "9 count"

Thanks for the clarification RW. Where is Germantown? Based on your avatar pic, it looks like I need to hook up with you to learn how to really catch Smallies. Those are some beautiful fish!

Have any of you ever tried these sidearm spinnerbaits? I've never seen them before a couple of weeks ago. I was at a local bait shop, and he had a big banner for Secret Weapon Lures outside. Apparently the company is based out of Brentwood, TN (which is basically Nashville). I don't know if they are nationally known or not. I bought one, but I haven't given it a try yet. If you have used one, I'd like to hear your thoughts on its performance. I can't imagine it would be any different than any other spinnerbait, but I could be wrong. Have you ever seen another spinnerbait with blades like this one before? Check it out and see for yourself: http://www.secretweaponlures.com/arsenal/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=3

This same thing happened to me a few years ago when I moved from South Alabama to Middle Tennessee. I was used to fishing for Large Mouth exclusively. I was used to having structure such as logs, cypress trees, stumps, grass, lily pads, etc. Then I came here, to Tims Ford, a man-made lake. Virtually no structure except for rocks and bridges. I always thought large mouth bass were the only "real" game fish, and small mouth were a lesser species. I wouldn't even try to learn how to catch a small mouth. As I spent countless days fishing, and catching virtually nothing but a few large mouth once in a while on a crank bait or spinner bait, I realized that I had to learn more about fishing for small mouth, or else it was going to ruin my fishing experience. For me personally, I still prefer pulling frogs through grass and lily pads, and seeing the large mouth come up and engulf it. But I must say, if I'm pulling a tube or a senko over a rocky ledge, and I get a bite, I'm hoping it's a smallie on the other end of my line. The truth is, SMB fight harder in open water. When you hook up, you immediately know it is a small mouth. My advice to you is, learn what you can about small mouth fishing. I think you will be pleasantly surprised and rewarded for your efforts.

I'm going to give the Vanish a shot. I just did a search, and I didn't see anything to convince me not to. If I have a problem with it, I'll change it in a heartbeat, and I'll let everyone hear know all about it.

I already have a bunch of rage tail shads and craws. Maybe I haven't given them a fair chance, but I haven't had much luck with them at all.

This is the second year I've had it. I have cut my grass 3 times. Earlier this week, I took it to an old ladies house and cut her grass. When I tried to crank it when I got it back home, it just sort of putted for about 10 seconds, then petered out. I tried to crank it again, but it wouldn't turn over at all. The next day, same thing... The first time it putted for a few seconds. But after that it would never turn over. I think I may have flooded it while getting it in and out of my truck. Any help is much appreciated. It has plenty of gas.

my wife loves to fish. I called her and said, "do you care if I get a new rod and reel?" she said, "no, not as long as you'll use it." I said, "you know I'll use it." She said, "you need to get another spinning reel for that rod in the closet." (one of my old reels got stepped on, but the rod is still perfectly fine) I love my wife.

Yeah, I rigged it up for cranking. I casted it out in my front yard with the 10 lb Vanish, and I loved it. Very impressive smoothness to the reel and the rod is nice and light. I look forward to fishing with it.

The only reason I bought the dancin' eels is because I'm taking a trip to Mobile for Mother's Day, and I'll be fishing in the brackish water of the bay. The last time I went, I threw the dancin' eel one time, and it got BLASTED by something, and it took off, never to be seen again. I'm assuming it was a huge Red. Anyway, that's the only reason I bought 'em.

Ooooooh!!! That sounds awesome! Thanks for that tid-bit, I'll most definitely give that a try.