Darren.

JDM Ballistic?! Very nice combo. And awesome wife + friend in Japan!!

Totally understand your situation. Agree that grabbing firmly to the bottom lip (not ripping it) helps immensely. Another option is to use a lip-gripper. Either one with a built in scale (Econo-scale, Boga), or a plain old model. My Econo-scale works great for this very thing, although I don't use it as much anymore for this purpose unless the teeth are noticeable and could puncture a vital organ. You can also gently wrest the fish into your hand and hold it upside down. Your hand holding it on its dorsal fin side, think of holding a taco. They calm down right quick.

That's a beauty!

DANG! Thanks for the warning.

Correct. One brand 1/0 is another brand's 1, or such. I bought some size 2 Hayabusa weedless hooks from TW and man were they smaller than I expected.

That's a major bummer. If all the gear used was documented and "legit", they should pay him the winnings fair and square. Too bad expensive lawyers have to get involved.

AJ, are you talking spinning, or baitcasting? And by Shakespeare, do you mean the Ugly Stik, Ugly Stik Lite, or one of their other models? I'm a fan of shorter rods, too, we're probably in the minority among a lot of bass fishermen. My favorite rods are 5'9" and 6' long. But I go shorter than that with one Shakespeare Ugly Stik Lite in L power. If you're budget is $50 or lower, and durability is your main concern, it's hard to beat the Ugly Stik Lite series (with cork handles), not the original all-black Ugly Stiks. That is, if sensitivity isn't your priority. If you want a solid rod around the $50 mark, the Berkley Lighting Rod Shock is pretty nice.

Sure, I can appreciate that. It's all about how the entire kit balances out to you. For me, I love the 1000 lightness, paired with a shorter 5'9", 6' or 6'3" spinning rod with a very light tip. That's how I roll. Others prefer heavy tips, longer rods, and so on.

Welcome, John!

Welcome aboard, Scott!

x2

I pay attention to it, sometimes it's on, sometimes it's off. Things like fronts, water level, also play into the catch factor. Been out sometimes when all the charts said was the worst time, but I had a great outing. So I'm tuned in, but it doesn't dictate what I do.

You can use almost any smaller soft plastic for split shotting. Or if you're going with heavier weights, bigger hooks, any size you want to fish. For weights, I usually use a #5. For bait, I like GYCB Yamaminnows, Zoom Tiny Flukes, Flukes, Finesse worms, lizards, live nightcrawlers, etc. Sometimes I'll nose rig, sometimes I'll wacky rig it if the bottom isn't too cluttered (or use a weedless hook).

Welcome aboard, Joshua!

I might have to check them out on ebay. Tried to find them locally, but it is hit or miss. Mostly miss.

Been there, done ALL that, LOL. And still do it. Now all my boys (4 of 'em) have toe shoes. At this point, their Skeletoes do not stink as bad as their soccer gear.

Heh, I think the 1000 size is fine for bass fishing, 2500 would be fine for what you want, but a 3000 will have a deeper spool (more line) for when you hook a larger salt water fish.

Not Vibram, but I wear Adidas brand toe shoes. Used them all the time. Helped my knees out on long walks - big time. They've since been chewed on by one of the dogs in the house. Got a small hole in a toe. Can still wear them, occasionally do. Want to get a new pair, but have to wait. Only problem, they get to stinking pretty bad. I hear wearing toe socks helps, but I never bought any. Did end up putting 'em thru the wash a few times over the last 2 years.

Welcome aboard, Matt! And ANOTHER Bills fan!! WOO HOO!! You going to the Bills/Redskins this weekend (since you live close enough now)?

Fantastic! Well done!

Good rule, IMO.

Glad your pup's all good!! We've got 3 dogs, a cat, 10 snakes (and a clutch of eggs), water turtles, russian tortoises, and a big ol' monitor lizard. Not to mention the rats and mice we raise. Anyhow, point being, we can control what most of the critters eat, but the dogs...that's another matter entirely. Just last night I had to stop the pup from eating the top of a prickly cactus. A jig would be a nightmare scenario. I've found the pup chewing on a hook that fell to the floor. As far as finding the jig, do you have or can borrow a metal detector?

Welcome back!

Good haul. I agree with Snook, all's good in recreational fishing. While of course I target bass, I mostly welcome anything that takes a hook.

I could definitely do it. I'd have to choose between my Chronarch 50e + 6' M combo on which I can throw nearly every soft plastic I use (weightless), or one of my spinning setups. Probably give the nod to my 5'9" Compre/Stradic 1000FI combo for my do-it-all setup.