Vinny Chase

Another vote for the chompers!

Not calling him a liar either, but I thought my fish were a lot bigger when I was younger and before I got a good scale. This is my biggest ever and it came from a pond. We think she weighed in at about 6 3/4 lbs, but with our harsh seasons and environments on public lakes, I would say there are only a handful of 7 1/2 lbrs out there.

Go out and throw a spinnerbait for pike...if you get a bass, that's a bonus I know Cabelas has the Zillion reels...have you tried calling them?

Stained water or mildly stained water when fishing deeper water. My top producing deep crank is a DD22 in chart./blue and I don't fish heavily stained water.

My skipping setup is going to be a 6'6" MH spinning rod with braid and a short flouro leader. This will allow me to flip accurately into heavier cover and get those fish out. As far as baits go, you're are on the right track. I love the cover craw and will be throwing that a lot this year along with NorthStar pro finesse jigs, ring fries, and 4" senkos.

Congrats...The addiction begins.

That is a pretty big bass for MN...You should post a picture, I would like to see that fish!

All depends on the conditions, but you cannot go wrong with a clear spook and a bone color pop-r.

Big bass? Pelican.

Welcome! You should also post your introduction in the MN thread I started under the Central Bass Fishing section.

Just wanted to get some clarification for the original poster about what led you to the opinion that swimbaits are a numbers bait. The consensus is going to be that a jig is more of a consistant numbers bait vs swimbaits, and can catch the big mommas as well.

I own a few long sleeve Under Armour heat gear shirts. They keep you cool and protect from UV rays. This is much needed for me because skin cancer is a trend in my family. Always have my trustee Crocs on my feet!

They've never thrown a swimbait though because...well it's not a jig...that's where the confusion is.

I would never have thrown a chart. color in those conditions, but they must have been pretty dang hungry! Clear water = natural presenations If you are refering to cranks, I would throw a realistic blue gill, perch, or craw color because that is the main forage in our lakes. The thing you should remember is that is clear water bass are going to have a longer time to distinguish if your bait is safe to eat or not, so you want that bait to be as close to what they are eating as possible. **Do also note that weather variables such as wind and cloud cover break up the visibility and can change what I throw.

But you added in pros, and I don't think any pro would put swimbaits in the catagory of a numbers bait...big fish bait? Yes.

I would strongly disagree with that statement. This goes without saying, but that is my opinion. I do want to preface the following statement by saying this is based off what bait the original poster was asking about - 4" hard body swimbaits. I not consider this a "numbers" bait whatsoever. In my own experience, I use hard body swimbaits when the fish are active and I am looking for a kicker. The spring is a perfect time to throw this bait, along with a jig to get big bites. Granted there are always certain times throughout the year where a particular bait will clean up on the bass, but when I think of baits that are CONSISTANT numbers baits, I think of the following before hard body swimbaits, or swimbaits in general: senkos, ring fries, flick shakes, flukes, etc.

Why are you limiting yourself? You should start out by purchasing a setup that you can throw both applications on - 7' MH Moderate/Fast. Granted, this isn't ideal for swimbaits, but is the most versitile rod that you can buy, and once you figure out your confidence baits, you can purchase more setups from there. Just my two cents!

This

Haha love it! Hope you enjoy the jigs. NorthStar Watermelon Candy is one of my favorite and most productive jigs I've ever thrown, so you should get a few on those

Like others have said, I strictly throw flouro. more specifically, I throw 12lb - 15lb seaguar invisx on my jig rods. Med power rod is not going to give you strong hook sets. I also throw a 7' H F action, but I also have a 7'4 MH, so if you are looking for one intial setup I would go with a MH F because like Francho said, it is a lot more versatile.

I generally am only throwing NorthStar Custom Baits jigs, so below are the types of jigs they offer and how I use them.: Premier Jig: This is your all around jig and you will be throwing this the majority of the time. I use this jig to flip, bottom bounce, or any other technique where I want the jig in the strikezone for a longer period of time. Swim Jig: The name says it all - this jig is made to be fished in a constant retrieve, like any other moving baits (crankbaits, spinnerbaits, etc.) This really shine in the spring and fall when big females are staging to spawn and want a quick meal. NorthStar Custom Baits Flip & Swim: This is the most unique jig on the market; no other jig would go where this one does. This is also a well rounded jig that you can throw in the thickest cover or swim this in deeper water. Hair Jig: The rule of thumb is to throw these jigs in colder water and fished slow. I know people have good luck for largies on this jig, but generally I stick to throwing these for smallies. Color: I have been there and I understand how overwhelming it is to see so many color options, but keep it simple and then build up your box with colors over time. I would start out with a natural, dark, and a color with a lot of contrast. My picks are: Watermelon/red, Alimony (black/blue), and Missouri Craw. As for swim jigs and flip and swims, I would go with two colors; natural and dark. For the natural color, go with what type of forage you have in your bodies of water (for example I throw new gill) and black/blue for your dark color. Sizes: This is the most crucial variable in jig fishing, which can lead to terrible days on the water, or the best day of your life (true story). I would pick 3 sizes in each to give you a lot of options that depend on what depth you're fishing. Again, the general rule of thumb is that the shallower you are, the lighter jig you want to use, and in most cases that is true, but always keep an open mind and experiment to see what they want on that particular day. Here are the sizes I would recommend: Premier jig: 3/8, 1/2, 3/4 oz Swim Jig: 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 oz Flip and Swim: 1/2, 3/4, 1 oz Hair Jigs: 1/4 and 3/8 oz Head Types: Alien Head: This is a great all around jig head that is good for flipping around vegetation, but can be used in really any type of conditions Football Head: Excels when fishing rock. I really like to throw these deep and slowing drag them along the bottom - very good summer technique Arky Head: good jig head around wood cover. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions, otherwise thanks for the support and enjoy the jigs! Setup: I would start out with a 7' MH F of your choice..In that price point, I would like at the Veritas line of rods. For the reel, you want a fast gear ratio, so find a 7.1:1 or faster. VC

I would also start with 1/4oz and 3/8oz sizes. NorthStar Custom Baits makes the best spinnerbaits on the market. They are hand tied and painted and have the best color selection, along with the triple willow technology that creates a very unique presentation that the bass have never seen. The hidden weight technology creates a smaller profile weight than other companies use. Color selection really depends on what forage you have in the lakes you are fishing. For the most part I am throwing a new gill color (shown below) because on of the main food sources for our bass are bluegill. As far as trailers go, I would simply put on a trailer hook and go fishing.

NorthStar Alien Head works really well in grass!

We set ourselves up for it when we are out pretty much in the snow, with shorts and t's, the second it hits 45 degrees.

I have never seen those in my life...Did the package give you any indication of when they might have been produced?