basscrusher

Junebug

I wouldn't call myself an old-timer (34), but that lure was a staple for me when I was younger. For years my PB was a 5+ caught on a #5 floater in chartreuse. Caught it when I was 16 in a farm pond of my grandfather's friend. I was twitching it like a popper and then the toilet flushed. I'm pretty sure my grandfather had a mild heart attack when it hit. I still have the lure, although the bill snapped off when it hit a rock some years ago. No problems though...I've seen what a C-rigged floater can do!

This is exactly why some of us love Lunkerville so much. No BS, just a guy who loves to fish, humbly trying to soak up as much info as possible. And that show isn't just for the newbies and bank beaters, either. Not all of us tournament fanatics need a 30 minute infomercial, or a technique seminar that's old news to those in the know. At this point, there isn't a whole lot I'm going to learn from TV shows...so I just watch for the pleasure of it. And Lunkerville does the best job (in my mind) of applying the correct philosophical perspective to the hobby. So to answer the original question...get back to the basics.

Ditto what Catt and JFrancho said. But if you want to get into bigger lures, start with a trick worm (that's what I did). Still slender and has a profile well-suited to drop-shotting, but big enough to sometimes get that bigger bite. I also like to put Zoom tubes on a drop-shot, although you might need a little larger gap on your hook. No reason why you couldn't try a bigger, bulkier tube either (think flipping tube).

Dogwoods = bedding bass is NOT an absolute rule. It will probably hold true 8 out of 10 years in VA, but not always. case in point -- last spring dogwoods bloomed right after an inordinate amount of rainfall. That rainfall seriously muddied up most small lakes. Which, in turn, delayed the spawn by about a week and a half. I first heard the dogwood rule as an early teen, and have actually been "testing" the theory since college. It is not 100% accurate, but provides a good starting point and frame of reference.

They were discontinued several years ago, but as one poster already indicated, you can often find them on ebay. I got a bulk pack of 100 a couple years ago.

In a nutshell...which would you opt for? I have 3 E series reels in the 200 size, and love 'em. I have a Curado 200D that I think is big and bulky but too mechanically solid to part with (plus its a 5:1 so it's my cranking reel.) Also have 2 Citica 100D's that are a very comfortable size for me. Many feel adamantly that the D series was Shimano's best-engineered Curado. What say y'all? Eagerly awaiting responses from the other Shimano loyalists. I expect RW to chime in here. Should also mention the 50E is new, Curado D is lightly used. Price is similar enough to be a non-factor. Reel would see action for everything "baitcasting" except heavy cover flipping and deep cranking.

Might wanna check those invertebrate zoology books again...

Folks, it is entirely possible the lake has no crawdads. there's a planned community near me where virtually all of the ponds have no crawdads. NONE. They were never stocked and are suburban enough to not have any nearby bodies of water with craws. Having said that, one of the regulars in that community slays the bass on a jig w/ craw trailer. If it looks alive and tempting enough, bass will eat it. A craw bait probably wouldn't be my first choice, but it will work, especially if that's your confidence lure.

Not sure if this belongs here or in the rod/reel forum, but...I just got a new split grip St Croix premier (a Cabela's exclusive) and the hook keeper is exactly where my finger contacts the blank. Very uncomfortable. I have another rod w/ the same setup, and it cuts into the finger joint when fighting fish. It needs to go. The way I see it, I have 2 options: 1) Get it removed by an expert who can get through the coating and undo the wraps 2) snip it off with wire cutters, then file down the sharp points using a small, delicate file or rasp, being careful not to file into the blank. What should I do here? are there other options I haven't considered yet? Thanks for any input.

I have the 6'10" cara in the Clark Wendlandt series (EVA split grips). It is the so-called finesse jig rod. I don't know what's finesse about it though. It's almost broomstick stiff. But light. It stacks up favorably against my Cumaras. I love it, but to me it isn't a finesse jig rod...more like an all-out jigs-in-the-grass rod. Despite the discrepancy in naming, I recommend it without reservation. To me, not a Senko rod though. It'll throw them, and you will not be at a loss for hookset power, but to me not the prototypical senko rod.

If the "feel" comes through the hand (palm/wrist)...should we start making the reels sensitive, instead of the rod? If you palm a baitcaster, the feel is traveling through that conduit into the hand. (This is really just a rhetorical question, by the way).

I can't argue with the big bait = big fish theory, but...if you wanna use smaller spinnerbaits, a few come to mind. 1) Strike King rocket shad. Very compact. Casts like a...well, a rocket. 2) strike King red eye special. The 3/16 oz size is my go-to. On the pressured waters where I fish, small is sometimes the only way to go. 3) terminator makes a smaller tungsten spinnerbait. Pricey.

Use a reel you already own, and put the whole $200 into a St Croix Tidemaster Travel casting rod (slightly over $200 but not by much). I have one and it is excellent for a multi-piece rod. since it is a saltwater rod, it's power will be one heavier than a freshwater rod. I have the medium and if it were a freshwater rod it would likely be rated medium-heavy.

I usually take 2 rods when trout fishing in small streams...one loaded with 4lb Trilene XL, the other with 6 lb. If I were only gonna take one rod...I'd use the 4 lb (little chance of running into anything bigger where I trout fish) but I'd take the extra spool w/ 6 lb just in case. I use 2 Shimano siennas in the 1000 size for just that very reason. although...I'm very tempted to throw some 6 lb line on one of my Stradic Ci4 reels (even thought they are 2500 size) and use that...just because it's so dang sweet.

short (6' and under) spinning rods especially shine on streams where the banks have lots of overhanging branches (which makes fly casting very tough). I gave up on fly casting years ago (too much wasted motion for me...and i was never very good at it anyway) and now use spin gear for trout whenever I pursue them (usually only a couple times per year).

The Thin N is a weird bait in my opinion. Most thin bodied cranks usually have a very tight wiggle, but the Thin N doesn't. It's a medium wide wobble, which begs the question...why the flat body if it has a fairly wide action? That said, they catch fish. Caught a few out of the Potomac just a few weeks ago on one, in fact. it's nothing magical, but is has its place in a tackle box. It's also about the only Norman lure I've used that didn't need to be tuned to run properly.

Sir Snook -- that Triggerfish looks like the trumpetfish I caught in Hawaii.

Holy shnikes this is like an episode of River Monsters. I love it!!!

Crappie usually bite fairly well in winter, at least compared to other species. Lately we've been tearing them up on the potomac. They'll hit minnows for sure, but I don't have the patience for live bait, so let me suggest some artificials: I always start with 2" curly tail grubs. I start with 1/8 oz and move up to 1/4 oz if I need to get deeper (you'll know the right depth when you start getting bit). In clear water, use a silver color or something natural like baitfish. Move up to white, then chartreuse as the water gets more stained. Black if its muddy. You can also go to slighty larger (up to 3") baits for the bigger fish if they're there. Non-curly tailed baits can work when vertical jigging -- straight tailed Gulp minnows are awesome. start with very subtle action (barely moving the bait) and get more aggressive ONLY if you don't get bit. A light action rod and 6 lb line will help you with the light bites. Hope this helps, pm me if you want more tips.

That would be ideal for skipping docks. But its much more versatile than that. Rod length tends to be a bit overrated in bass fishing. I use my 6' St croix LE for everything from skipping to shaky heads to drop shots. Its really nice when fishing small lakes in a jonboat with limited space (or a canoe). I also find vertical jigging much easier with a short rod.

As stated before, there are a number of good brands out there...Luck E Strike makes good ones with Gamakatsu hooks, VMC makes nice ones, Bass pro's are good too. Mister Twister makes some that are much cheaper with hooks of an unnamed brand, but I've had no problems thus far. One thing that irks me is that tube heads have increased in price exponentially over the last few years. One thing I've done to offset the costs is going over to non-tube jigheads. Bass pro sells a jighead called the Big Bite Stinger jighead made w/ eagle claw hooks. These are meant to be grub heads with extra wide gaps, but they work wells as shaky head hooks and as tube jigs. They slide into a tube just as easily as real tube jigs, and are much cheaper. two words of caution though: first, the hook gap is BIG on these. A 3/16 jighead has a hook that looks saltwater size at first glance. But is isn't too big for smallies. second, they might snag easier because of the EWG feature, but they're cheaper so you won't miss them as much.

More trout streams than anything else near Gatlinburg...pack accordingly. That's the only one of those places I can speak of with knowledge.

To help answer something for the OP...this "crossover" thing you heard about is on certain spinning reels. Some reels, like the newer model Shimano Stradics, have a high speed oscillation feature, meaning that the spool oscillates up and down very quickly. By doing that, it lays your line in a criss-crossed manner on the spool. With braid, this prevents the line from digging in the "gaps" between wraps of line. won't 100% solve the issue, but does a very good job. I have 2 Stradic Ci4 reels with this feature and they work wonderfully for braid.

Don't knock the plain leadhead one with the shorter hair...that thing would MURDER the winter perch and crappie here on the Potomac!!!