Marty

Even if it was a 50# carp, your line wouldn't snap if the knot was sound, the line unfrayed and unnicked and the drag set properly. I would consider Trilene a good, trustworthy line.

I use spinning gear, but only use swivels when fishing inline spinners. However, I do use the 1/2" duolock snaps with full confidence and only extremely rare problems.

In my case, I don't feel most of the hits even with a no-stretch line like Fireline. And I don't think it's too much slack or lack of a sensitive rod because I have no problem feeling the zillions of sunfish taps. I use smoke Fireline or clear mono and it IS difficult to see the line much of the time, but I manage OK by watching it like a hawk.

My personal experience is that I rarely feel anything. I detect strikes by seeing the line move off to the side. When I see it moving, I reel in most of the slack and set the hook.

The only one I get is Bassmaster. I used to get Bassin', but I quit them years ago, even though it was a good magazine, because I despised their business tactics.

My trailer hooks swing freely and the tubing is used to keep them from sliding off.

Yes, that seems clear enough. It's just that I never saw one of those devices or heard the term. Maybe I'll do a search and see if anything turns up. Thanks.

Yamamoto is the 8th most common Japanese surname, so the odds are pretty good that Gary isn't related. For comparison, the 8th most common American surname is Wilson.

At the risk of advertising my ignorance to the world, what's a "water wagon"? ???

Like others said, the buzzbait is good for covering a lot of water. I also like to use it when there's a little chop on the surface. A popper is good when you're fishing a target. With the pops and pauses, this lure can stay in a small area, i.e., the strike zone, for a relatively long time.

Much of the time it doesn't matter because people understand what you're talking about. But it can be misunderstood at times. You could ask what some good structure to look for is, and someone talks about ledges, humps, creek channels, etc., but what you really wanted was good cover to look for, like lily pads, docks, boulders, laydowns, etc.

I'd definitely go with some larger baits, what harm can it do? Do you know what size fish are in the waters you're fishing? Even with that small lure, I would think you'd catch some keepers if you were fishing where keepers were hanging out. I've caught a number of two- and three-pounders on 2" curly tails on 1/16 jigheads. But I wouldn't target bass with lures that small unless I had a reason for using such small finesse stuff. Good luck.

Sure, it happens, although I think "bone-jarring" might be a little exaggerated. Happens more often with faster moving baits, but I've experienced it a few times with soft plastics that were barely moving. It's also happened a number of times with small fish, most notably yellow perch, at least with me. All it takes is for the striking fish to be moving in the opposite direction of the lure for it to happen.

I have never seen much evidence that color is a major factor in my fishing, so I'll always opt for another bait. There may be times once in awhile where color would make a difference, but I'm convinced that over the long run that changing baits will be hugely more productive than just changing colors.

You certainly want to cover a lot of water since there's no apparent cover to fish. I'd follow Reb's suggestion about the C-rig; I'd also try to be there during low light periods and try topwaters.

Catching 6 or 7 every outing bank fishing is a pretty good start. I can't even come close to that. However, I think a good place to start is to check out the beginner's section on this site. Welcome to the forum. http://bassresource.com/beginner/beginner.html

I think one of the reasons, in addition to those already given, is that the flaring out and in of the skirt is a movement that might hold some appeal to the bass.

I use a small wire brush that works pretty well. It's long-handled and the whole thing is about the size of a toothbrush.

I don't think you're alone in your opinion. I've read other comments that indicate he's not exactly like the image projected on his TV show.

Any lure can work well in weeds if you can fish it without getting it hung excessively. You say "packed with weeds", but I don't know if you mean they're all over the surface or submerged. Naturally if they're covering most of the surface, you need Texas-rigged soft plastics and weedless topwaters. If they're submerged, spinnerbaits and crankbaits worked over the weeds, and contacting the weeds, will do quite well, in addition to soft plastics and topwaters.

I use duolock snaps all the time. Metal leaders when I feel the chances are high for a toothy fish biteoff, but I must admit, I'm inconsistent with the leaders. Sometimes I use them preventatively, other times only after I've actually experienced biteoffs. No hard and fast rules that I'm aware of. I use swivels only with lures like inline spinners.

I use a different brand of toad, but my partner uses the Horny. We both fish our baits primarily by buzzing them on the surface. He'll use the Horny in open water, as well as weedy, while I generally use mine in water where trebles can't be used.

How little was your bait? Maybe it wasn't the hook size, but sharpness. Some of those baits, such as the industry leader, come with terrible hooks.

It was on another board, but I met a guy five years ago. We fished together only three times the first year, but now it's 15-20 times a year. Worked out great. I needed a guy with a boat, he wanted a back-seater and I was available to fish with him at times when most guys aren't available. The first time we met at the launch, I asked him if he had any qualms about meeting a stranger from the internet and he said that his sister thought for sure he'd be murdered. But I let him live. ;D Actually, though, I was reading his posts for about six months to get to know him before I mentioned that I was from the same town.

Have you tried topwater? That's something I'd certainly want to try during low light periods over those Christmas trees and other cover. Welcome to the forum.