Fishes in trees

A couple of things might happen. One, you are a little more likely to snap off a lure while casting, due to the lighter line. This really isn't a problem unless there are people in the direction that the lure snapped. Secondly, any backlash you might get might be harder to untangle. I don't see either of these possibilities precluding the use of 8 lb line. Give it a shot.

I'd recommend one of the Hummingbird Fishing Buddy depth finders.

I think that this bait is just another tool, one that has demonstrated huge results in certain conditions. It is a tool that I'm going to try any time I think I'm around suspended fish. Really, I think that the surface has only been scratched, that there other conditions that this tool will work in. I don't know about you, but I'm going to keep experimenting with the A-rig from time to time. Next year, maybe, I'm going to upgrade my A-rig gear again. Currently I'm using a 7 ball bearing Calcutta, I'm thinking about upgrading to the Shimano 300 EJ or some other larger capacity inshore reel. I was using a 7'9" Fenwick swim bait rod, and it worked ok. Then I found an old (early 90's) Team Diawa Muskie rod. It is rated to handle about the same range of weights as the Fenwick, but it is only 7 feet long and that relieves some boat and truck storage issues. I haven't noticed any loss of casting distance by using the shorter rod,but, the just is still out on that. So, that's my current thoughts on A-rigs.

Oh, ok, on further review I get it now.

In the great Quantum/Shimano debate, here's my take. Since I've taken Bass Fishing seriously, (mid 80's) I've owned numerous brands of reels. In those earlier years, many of those reel choices were determined by economics. Late 90's, I acquired a couple of Quantum round reels, IRON IR4CW, very cheap due a store going out of business. They were a good quality, mid-level Quantum reel at that time. Around the same time, I acquired a couple of Calcuttas. Around the same time, I acquired a boat and was getting into carrying multiple rods so I could switch around between different techniques easier. Both the Calcuttas and the Quantum reels saw regular use. I used the Quantums more for throwing cranks and rattle baits, mostly because of a higher line capacity. By 2004 the Quantum reels were worn out. Noisy, rude clicking sounds, didn't always engage instantly, etc. Now it is 2012 and the Calcutta reels are still in the first string rotation. Matter of fact, they just seem to get smoother with age. So, while that Quantum is a smooth and good reel now, I have my doubts about longevity due to my experiences with a similar Quantum product. Basically I see it as a matter of pick your poison. Relatively equal price points? I'd go with the Shimano brand based on my experiences. Less money and all you're looking for is a serviceable reel for a few seasons, Quantum becomes more attractive.

For me, a shorter rod is better than a longer rod. I have issues trying to fish a spook with anything over a 6 1/2 foot rod. A 6 foot rod is better. I have a 5 1/2 foot med/light pistol grip rod (unknown brand, Eagle Claw I think) that I think is ideal for this technique. My issue is that after 20 or so minutes of spook fishing, my wrist is done for a while. I find spook fishing really tiring to my wrist so I don't do it all that often. I can't really tell you when spook type bait is better than a popper or a buzz bait, cause I don't know. I just pick one and try it for a while. I wish I could tell you more about this kind of top water fishing, but like I said, I find it really a tiring after a while.

It probably would cast ok on 25 lb line. I wouldn't know because I use braid. The reason I use braid is that you snag it ( and you will snag it at some point ), the braid (I use 65 lb) gives you a chance to get your rig back and 25 lb mono doesn't. By the same token I don't think that fishing orange or yellow or any high visibility color braid is a good idea either. I don't think that the line color makes a difference but I think that a high visibility color is asking for it.

If you're going to do that, why not just buy a Netbait Paca Craw or Paca Chunk?

I think that the short answer is "YES". Especially spring in the Ozarks, the tournament record of Lucky Craft Pointers can't be ignored. I don't know much about all of their crank baits, but I am a big fan of the Pointers.

I remember by days of bank fishing and basically, bank fishing is tough. Good gear helps. Being able to cast long distances helps. Sometimes top waters work, or buzz baits. Sometimes a rattle trap type bait will work. Sometimes a spinner bait will work (parallel to the bank as much as possible) More often than not though, your best bet will be some sort of tx rigged plastic. Throw it where ever you can reach. For the most part, I think spinning gear is less of a hassle than bait casting gear, unless you are that one guy who can cast all day long and not get a back lash.

If it was me, I'd charge them seperately. I'd get a 2 bank charger and just leave it plugged in when I wasn't fishing.

I drop shot around cover quite a bit. I've come to prefer 20 lb Abrazx for this and a bait cast reel handles this line much better than spinning tackle. I was using a Shimano Calais bait caster for this duty (7'6" Kistler Flippin/pitchin rod) and it worked ok. I decided to go a little lighter, so I got a Shimano Curado 50E, and so far after a couple of trips I like it better than the Calais for this technique.

Tackle organization? What is that? I'm pretty sure I have issues in this area. I've lost stuff for half a season and then, all of a sudden, there it is. I have a bag of fluorocarbon leader material thats been MIA since last November. It could have fallen out of the boat, but I don't think it did. I try to be mindful of where I put stuff away, in different boxes and different bins of the boat, but it is a struggle, and I've been known to space stuff out. Most of the stuff turns up in my shop at some point, the leader material and several other items are still MIA as this is typed. Between trips, I keep most stuff locked up in my fishing truck. Every so often, I clean out my truck, or attempt to. It seldom stays clean. Duh. Maybe I should downsize. Yeah, right.l Anyway, fishing tackle organization is a problem for me.

I want one, but I don't see my buying one this year. Maybe next year.

I like the vibrating style baits, I've generally got one tied on, but I don't like Rattle Traps. I've had a decent bit going with a Berkley Frenzy Rattle bait, stopped and tied on a Rattle Trap, and the bite stopped. 15 minutes of throwing the trap, and no bites. Go back to the Frenzy and -boom- several more fish. Since that day all of my rattle traps have been caged in their own box and set on a shelf in my shed where they can't contaminate any of my other baits. Now, to answer your question, I've got a few spots, and they work, my current favorite rattle bait is a Berkley Frenzy.

Some line twisting is inevitable with drop shot rigs. I just deal with it. Every so often you drag the line out the back of the boat while you putt around, and that takes all the twist out of the line and when you reel it in it is on the spool with no twists. I think some of the line twist happens when you don't get it on the spool exactly right to start with, and then that twist gets exacerbated when you fish a drop shot rig. Re-tie and you're good to go.

You might consider Trophy Country in central Missouri.

I have some in my boat all the time. Specifically, I use them on my bubba drop shot rig when the water is stained to muddy. Then I think that the Gulp scent is a good thing. I have used them as a weightless tx rigged senko imitator. Again, in very stained to muddy water. As the water gets clearer, I think that there are better options available.

I didn't want to hijack the recent thread about fishing shirts so I started this. Years ago, when I was a hippie meat fisherman I wore cheap polyester jumpsuits. These were very similar to the jump suits that you saw pro fishermen wear during that era. The thing that I liked about them was that they were cheap and had a lot of pockets. You could fish all day in them. ( I was mostly bank fishing and had to walk through mud and cockleburs to get to a lot of my fishing spots. Then at the end of the day you could just pull a clean one out of the car for the ride back. I've looked all over the KC area and some on the internet. Does anyone know of a current source for these garmets? I thought they were comfortable and really handy. I'm not talking about a heavy set of denim coveralls. These jump suits were light, made out of some sort of material like nylon/polyester or what ever the 70's name for miracle fibers was then.

I think that the Columbia shirts are good - I've got a couple of them. I like the Cabelas Guide Wear shirts better. What bugs me about fishing shirts is that it is difficult to find shirts and shorts that match. I like the suit look, and Cabelas only offers shirts & shorts that match in a couple of colors. Columbia or BPS doesn't offer shirts and shorts that match at all.

You're going to fish tournaments in a 12' boat? And you're going to put a big cooler in the boat and fill it up with water? How much will that weigh? Are you fishing by yourself? What is the chance that this big cooler full of water will throw off the weight balance in your boat? I'm thinking that the odds of this are pretty good. Please be careful in this endeavor, don't tip your boat over, don't fall out. Get a good life jacket and wear it all the time. Even small club tournaments, I think trying to fish tournaments out of a 12'boat is asking for it. Just my thoughts.

I'd go with a Mizumo or a Cabelas store brand. I know I've seen this lure on the racks sometime in the past, but I'd have to see the side profile to be sure. Another thought is that it could be some Spro model that didn't take off. I'm not sure. A side profile would be nice.

I've tried a few new beers this year. New Belgium had a spring seasonal beer - Dig - and it was really good. The Shiner spring seasonal was pretty good. O'Dell Brewery has a light pale ale - Levity, which I liked a lot. When I can't make up my mind what new beer to try I get Boulevard Brewery , either Boulevard Pilsner or Single Wide IPA. I'm looking forward to the Shiner summer seasonal beer - Ruby Redbird, it is allegedly shipping but it hadn't made it to the KC area the last time I went to the beer store. I very seldom buy the big company, nationally advertised beers, not because I think that their beers stink, but more because I'm not a fan of giving money to large multi-national conglomerates. I'd just as soon spend local or regional if I can.

I've just played around with A-rigs a little bit and I think its a good idea to get a dedicated rod & reel. A-rigs (which fully rigged are going to weigh between 2 1/2 to 4 or so ounces) thrown on braid can tear up a cheap reel pretty quickly. You can snap a flipping rod trying to go for distance with a 4 ounce A-rig. (I've seen that happen, I've heard anecdotal stories of cheaper BPS reels failing. I think the just is still out on what is and what ain't a good A-rig rod. Different guys are trying different things. I've been fishing a 7'9" Fenwick swim bait rod, and the 7 ball bearing Calcutta reel (I forget the number) That works ok. Throwing the A-rig at 4 or so ounces you feel like you're stressing the rod. The next rod I'll be trying is a 7' Diawa muskie rod that's rated for lures from 2 to 5 ounces. I'm thinking that the shorter rod will be a little more manageable in the boat,but the jury is still out on that. I'm ok throwing with the Calcutta right now (a 5-1 gear ratio), I'm used to that ratio for just about all my fishing. Some of my fishing buddies think that ratio is a little slow. They are throwing their A-rigs using a 7-1 ratio. I'm considering changing reels to some sort of swim bait sized reel, like a Curado 300E, but at $250 + shipping that might have to wait for a while. Anyway, I don't think that the A-rig is a fad. I think that there is a time & place for it. I think more & more national level tournaments will ban it. I think that for fishing tournaments on the club level, it is a game changer. Tournaments can be won with a few casts and it will happen. We've just scratched the surface for applications for the A-rig and I think that there will be more innovations coming. One think I'm going to try is putting two large buzz bait blades on the top two arms and some sort of soft plastic swim bait on the bottom 3. The idea is a mega buzz bait with multiple targets for fish underneath the surface commotion. The jury is still out on that one as well.

I've experimented a little bit with light line on bait casters (8 lb or less) Mixed results. I've come to the conclusion that when it is time to throw light baits on light line, that's why god made spinning gear. I can understand throwing light line and light baits on bait casting gear as an exercise in buying more tackle, (which isn't a bad thing), but practically I don't see the point, and these days there are other areas of the fishing experience that I can squander my dollars on.