Bass Junkie

Terminator Titanium. I have yet to find something close to these baits. Skirts are very nice, and easy to wire-tie, blades are good, and they run true every time you tie one on.

Frog

Deep diving cranks.... I have everything from the original Normans in their cardboard boxes to Risto Raps to Bomber Flat A's and Crankin' Raps. Never caught a thing on them... I can work with Top Waters, Square Bills, Jerk Baits, Lip-less.... Just not deep divers...

Daiwa Fuego on a 6'6" ML casting rod... Works like a charm for me, and I am becoming severally addicted to that reel!

Green Goblin.

Considering your description of the pond, I'd go with a jerkbait or topwater, using very long cast in a fan patter. Also, any irregularities are key in ponds... And I mean ANY. Especially in small ponds or ponds without a lot of cove, something as small as a fist sized rock, or as seemingly insignificant as a tiny trickle entering the pond is a hot spot. As for specific lures, check out the Lucky Craft Sammy, Rebel Pop-R, and possibly a Lucky Craft Wake Tail or Brian's Prop Bee in the topwater department, and the Lucky Craft Pointer and Megabass Ito Vision 110.

Braid with a leader of your choice, if you feel the water is too clear to use straight braid.

This is true I have had the pleasure of landing, sedating, and un-hooking a goose in sight of the DNR office....... Actually pulled the bird out of the air after it took off, but that was with a Froggin' rig....

Gen 2 Revo Premier...... There is no contest.

Nay. I've owned one, and hated it. The retrieve is just not as smooth or free as other brands. For some reason they have not corrected this issue for a number of years. I also experienced issues with the gears being rough. I do not know if this was because the reel had not broken in, or what. I returned the reels due to the tight retrieve and its inferior casting ability compared to a Revo. I now no longer use any Quantum reels. Abu Garcia Revos are superior by far, and with the 3rd generation coming in STX-HS can be had for a very reasonable price. Between these two reels there is no comparison. Also, Quantum introduced the Reax at ICAST 2009~

Good lookin' jig!

What these guys have said pretty much covers your bases. One more thing, however..... If you are not fishing the presentation the entire way back to the boat, you will probably be "burning" the bait back to the boat. When you do this, watch the bait. It spins like a helicopter blade, creating immense amounts of line twist.

Try a 1/4 or 5/16oz. North Star swimming jig with the back half of a solid soft plastic swimbait such as the Gambler Big EZ

I have used a few different ones, but for what you are looking at, check out the Spot Removers....

Tie an improved clinch not, wrapping 7 turns, and leave a normal tag end..... I have never had this pull through

The fish were in 25 FOW, biting on a worms worked with a nervous twitch

Neither will a properly tied Improved Clinch.

Jackall Cross Tail Shad......... I can't believe no one has mentioned these!

I use them on buzz style frogs when in sparser cover.... But not in the thickest stuff. It does help.

He adapted to the situation... If he did snag it and posted this, he should be fined. If he did exactly what he said he did, I can find no fault in it. I would've tried it myself, but would not have set the hook unless the bass ate it. In his case it did, he did, he caught the fish.... It would be hard to explain to an Officer no doubt......

Smallmouth readily take a topwater, fight like crazy, are very pretty fish, and are more likely to inhabit river systems than largemouth. But Largemouth get bigger, hit bigger lures, and live in some territory that's downright fun to fish. (Frogs in the slop anyone?). To each his own, but I love both personally.

I actually enjoy sight fishing both during the spawn and on bright days. It is incredibly frustrating, but when you do catch the fish it makes it worth it. Patience and stealth are two musts. I have learned a lot about Bass behavior from observing them though....

If you haven't oiled the reel in a while, do so. The reel comes with oil, and applying it to the appropriate places, as specified in the manual, will do a great deal for you. It has the effect of relieving friction on the key areas of the spool during the cast, and will cause less backlashes due to the lower force required to start up the spool. It will also eliminate any "sticky" spool spin by alleviating the heat and friction on the spool shaft. But a word of caution; go easy on the oil. A drop or two will do fine. and the oil is not intended for the main gear. You need to use a quality grease on that. Hope this helps- BJ

Pick up one of the Revo STX's on sale at Tackle Warehouse right now. You will never look back.

Thank you for that post. It is very appropriate.