Shimmer

My local Wally World had an entire box of Bomber and Rapalas (50-60) for $1.97 a piece. Some were junk, but I took about 35-40

That is a waste and sorry to hear that. Maybe it's leading you to the real honey hole (yaay optimism)

I'm sure you will get alot of great responses from the very knowledgeable people here at BR. My two cents, go to any place that carries some fishing tackle and look for Bullet weights (They look like bullets and scale the size due to thickness of the weeds ). Rig the bullet weight above your senko threading the closed end first and give it a try. This way you will be 'punching' through the mats. Best of luck

Awesome man, size will come! Just enjoy it

I would agree with that. Get water movement going over the fishes gills, then hold him giving little wiggles and he should take off

The Mud Bug looks awesome!

I've got an order in for some XPS Magna hooks after the supposed "z0mg amazing owner hooks" failed after one outing. Being expensive is fine, but for nearly 25 bucks I didn't expect them to bend and break like my first pack of Southbend value hook packs :-? Gammies work great, but I'm still testing the waters with other brands till I find the perfect one for me personally.

Thats to bad Rhino but at least you didn't SEE the fish..that could have led to a heartbreak ;D

Gratz!

X2 Winter seems to last forever, and for me not to get out now that it's warmer would be a betrayal to the season. Winter has seemed to never end in Illinois. Only 2 days through June and July breaking 90 degrees. Though it has made for awesome fishing

I have 2 DSG and a Gander Mountain within 20 minutes of me... and would trade all 3 for a BPS. Thought the Cabellas is nice even though its about 1.5 hours. The nearest BPS is in Chicago about 3 hours away. Always thought it was very odd why WI doesn't have a BPS. Ah yes, I feel your pain. The Chicago BPS is the closest to me as well at about 3 hours away. Though they came to town about a month ago thinking of putting a BPS in East Peoria...5 minutes away from my apartment

If I see shad swimming and bass hitting them, I will throw a crankbait 0-3' or a 4-7' and more times than not I will slay them until the feeding frenzy has ceased.

I agree with alot that was said above. If you are planning to get back into fishing ya know maybe you could go a little more expensive. It also depends a little bit on if you like your baitcasters/spinning/or spincast. I always recommend to my friends who may go out fishing a couple times a year for a broad array of species, an Ugly Stick. 30 bucks at Walmart and you can apply them to any fishing situation. Just a cheap alternative for ya Oh and line, maybe 12 lb Trilene X-tra Tough mono or something to that degree.

Took the words out of my mouth

Jig-N-Pig / Jig-N-Craw Deep Crank

To me there is nothing better thank thinkin'... I bet there is a fish on that log. Pitchin' out and having the bait hammered almost instantly Wormin' is a close second though!

I fished the other day for about an hour between a crankbait and a buzzbait, as soon as I put my tiki stick on I caught 9 in a row then never got a bite the rest of the day. I guess some times they are just finicky.

I had the same problem the other day while at a new farm pond I was trying. It was frustrating as I kept having to fix the t-rig, but I kept dead sticking and finally, as I swept and let it sink, I landed a FAT 3 lber..who spit up a blue gill

I carry 2-3 colors in every range of depth that I fish. I personally don't fish anywhere deeper then 10' so my set up is; 0-3 4-7 7-9 10-12 It seems to work well for me and the areas I fish.

Very nice lookin fish, good work.

You will have to keep us posted with some pictures through the process Omaha, good luck

That is simply classic ;D

Like everyone else has said, that is just an amazing looking lure.

Shimmer Shad is the hottest color right now. (like it was made for you, lol) For the most part, anything with watermelon or green or pumpkin (or any combination) are the hottest colors. Also the new Tilapia color is coming on strong. Hope that helps. Just know that for every person that hates one color, another wouldn't leave home without it. (including merthiolate) b Thanks for the information, I'm running out of stick worms at the moment so I'll be putting my order through soon. I'll definately keep the Shimmer Shad in mind!

Yep, Skin so Soft by Avon works wonders. You may smell like a french, ya know..but it does the trick!