gatrboy53

yep,always made sense to me.bought my first lh baitcaster in the mid 70's a abu-garcia 5001c,still use from time to time...3.8:1 gear ratio

the most important thing about using a cb is to accept that it is not a magic bait.so many fishermen buy some try em expecting to fill the boat and when they dont get bit they quit using it or lose any confidence that they can catch fish on it,and when you do that you wont!!!!! my approach to the cb is to use it when the bite is tough.its a bait that bass havent seen or heard TOO much of yet and can trigger a strike when typical baits wont,i.e. sb,jigs,cb,etc.... dont get locked in to fishin it just one way ,keep changin tactics untill you find what the fish want.experiment w/ different trailers.one of the best for me is to use a zoom fluke,and dont be afraid to use it in heavy cover.yes,you'll get hung up and you'll get aggravated but the rewards can be worth it.

lowrance H2O is designed for fishing and is a good hh gps also, garmin 76 is designed for fishing the c on either unit is preferred (color screen)

to be considered a swimbait it must have 2 action points and 1 being the tail

they are great reaction baits for cold water bass.one good way to use them is ,shad die in the winter and they go to the bottom and squirm around untill they do.let it settle to the bottom and dead stick it,let it set for up to a min. then jerk it strait up and let it settle to the bottom again.sometimes they dont want it jerked just barely raise it off the bottom and let it set for a min. more.

i posted a thread on this same problem yesterday just a few threads down under"is anyone else". this prob just started last week and i dont have it on any other site.i have deleted internet files and it helped very little.am going to im glenn and see if he knows why. if you get a fix please let me know and ill do the same,thnx,mike

having trouble loading BassResource.com? it is taking well over a minute to load and nav. from screen to screen.i have fast dsl and dont experience this on any other site.im assuming its the amount of volume on this site but if that is it others should be experiencing this also. any suggestions,thnx, mike

colors and patterns for the most part are for fishermen.confidence in the colors or patterns you choose make all the difference in the world,but nothing takes the place of presentation.water clarity,light refraction,and so many other variables dictate what bass perceive as color and we all know they are the most unpredictably predictable creatures that swim .i try to get as many colors as possible and keep changing untill i find something they want.sometimes it works ,sometimes it dont matter,sometimes i cant get em to bite anything i try.i dont know about the bass but all those colors sure make me feel better.

wind causes the surface to create a light defraction which causes the fish to be alittle less cautious and expand thier territory.it causes current to an extent which can trigger fish to feed and or move.wind which causes current can position fish which can make them easier to locate and catch.bright bluebird skys i'll always look for the windy side if possible.you can fish more type baits in the wind opposed to slick bright conditions.

i fish several rivers that have strong current and im no hillbilly but i am a country boy.i bought some 1 1/2 '' tubing 6' long and put a 5/8'' chain in it and tied the rope so it would be in the tubing.the rope is 50' long.the tubing keeps it from getting hung up as much. i let out just enough rope as to almost stop the boat and use my t.m. to move me down river. a country boy can survive!!!

the triton is a much better boat especially handling rough water

if bass are slapping at a bait especially alot there is something they dont like about it.i would think the noise is attracting them or at least aggitating them but something is causing them to slap instead of eat.id try a differnt type of topwater...spook,or devils horse

the color of the water(stain) and the light penetration into the water causes hues.the colors they see reds to greens are prominent but there are many hues off of those colors that they do see that resemble something theyve seen before

smaller bass are more aggressive even around larger bass.it is proven that when smaller bass are thrashing a school of bait the larger fish wait patiently underneath the school for a easy meal.the larger the fish the greater the metabolism.large bass will not expend as much energy to chase for food. in the animal world bigger is badder.and for bass who are territorial in nature a bigger bass will always kick a little basses butt. more aggressive=small bass more dominant=large bass

he's made more money from bass fishing than most of us will make in a lifetime

the problem starts way before people get on the water.there is no respect for people anymore.yes,individuals still have some but overall there is none.to single out tx. fishermen is wrong.yes,tx. fishermen can and some are rude and disrespectful,but so are rec. fishermen,and the pleasure people.to me the pleasure people,i.e. skiers,boaters,jetskiers are way more disrespectful than tx. bass fishermen.Now,i do see alot of tx. suedo fishermen w/ thier $50,000.00 rigs and theyre decked out in the latest pro garb running all over the place and couldnt catch a fish unless it jumped in thier boat.they are there to be seen and heard and mostly from ignorance...rude and disrespectful,but ,i see the same people on the golf course,football games or everywhere you want to go....its thier world and you just live in it.if you dont want to be bothered by the likes go to montana for vacation.

there is now s-glass as well as e-glass and composite (glass/graphite)glass rods are slower response at strike.less chance of pulling away and /or pulling treble hooks out of a fishes mouth.grahite when it loads up has a equal response,on single hooks that is good but on trebles that is bad.glass has a parabolic bend and when it loads it holds that load against the fish thru out the fight ,tiring the fish out.kinda like a big rubber band.my land rate has gone up dramatically since going to a composite rod(kistler magnesium t.s. composite )

they are using heavy line on cranks in areas they might get wrapped,cut or have to horse a bigun out w/.

in my personal opinion and not to dis anyone elses opinion,crankin is all about the rod.to maximize the experience proper reel and line also,but if you dont have a slow action rod you will miss more fish than you will catch.for med. crankin to be technique specific you need at least a 7' rod for distance and leverage.it needs to be a glass or composite rod w/ a SLOW action.graphite reacts to quick and will result in missed strikes or barely hooked fish.the forgiveness of the glass or composite rod coupled w/ the length will keep a bass from pulling free and /or spittin the hook.for med. crankin especially if your going to use it for traps a 6 :1 reel is fine any thing deeper than 10-12' you will kill you arm w/ a hi speed reel and you wont get the depth like you would w/ a 5:1.line optimally should be flouro or co-polymer no heavier than 12# test. my med.crank set-up :7' med. kistler magnesium t.s. composite rod tdxl 6:1 for med.cranks and traps/or a quantum pt 5:1 for deeper cranks up to a dd14. 8# yo-zuri hybrid hope this helps

1-drop shot....in 50' of water 2-chatter bait in early spring 3-dd22's-open water structure fishin 4-jig w/ craw trailer,caught some fish ,but just wont stick w/ it being a predominantly bank beater i spent a large amout of my time in open water learning how to structure fish,and use my electronics better. for 07 1-invest in and learn to use a gps 2-refine my drop shot and shakey head techniques 3-learn to be more proficient w/ a jig in the suwannee river

mike bat,i apoligize if you thought i was dissn your post.i thought i was makin a general statement on my personal views of using certain lines for certain situations.didnt mean for it to sound personal.

yeah, and you can fish and catch bass on a zebco 202(if they still make them)but most bassers dont.one can use any line they want and make it work.but the fact is certain lines have certain properties that are best suited for certain baits and techniques.to maximize the experience use whats deemed most suitable for the situation.the properties of flourocarbon line is not the best choice for topwater baits.if i had one rod and reel for all bass fishing i would use 14# mono for all aplications.but i dont i have 10 rods all rigged differently for all situations,and when i can justify buying some more i'll add some others to fill in the gaps off the technique specifics i dont have....i played golf w/ a 7 iron one time and shot in the 80's,but you play golf w/ 13 clubs to maximize your performance,its the same w/ bass fishin...

i feel there are more important factors for useing braid for topwater and jerkbaits than fish seeing the line.#1 is braid floats and will impart a better action to your bait.personally,i only use braid in heavy cover,and on my frog rod.i use heavy mono on top water,spinnerbaits.and flouro on plastics and cranks

im in total agreement on not useing flouro for topwater,or any bait that you dont want to fish on bottom or get to bottom,i.e. crankbaits.even mono, i use at least 17# test because the thicker line floats better especially on slack line.for suspending baits there is a moment that you will have slack and flouro is going to sink below your suspended bait,which is going to result in missed bites.again, i use mono but i would think braid would work as well.i have heard of taking fly line dressing(wax) and applying it to about 10-15' of flouro for those who use it for topwater.i also believe the lack of stretch in flouro will have to fast of action and cause some missed bites from jerking the bait out of a fishes mouth before they can get a good bite on it.

as stated above shaky head is the counterpart to drop shotting.d.s. is off the bottom shaky head is on bottom.both were designed for finess fishing in pressured waters or for a tough bite.idealy,both are lite line,small bait techniques,but can be used in any sitiation.it is becoming widely accepted that at times of neutral or negative fish moods,bass want a stationary bait,w/ little or no movement.fished as intended ,both are shook at intervals w/o moving the bait from its location on a tite line.you would have to experiment but for me i want a worm that doesnt move at all.i.e. zoom finess or trick worm and only shook only once in a min. time.this seems like eternity but is what gets inactive bass to pick it up...not movement.