ChrisAW

I've been wanting to get my hands on some of those, but haven't been able to yet. Until then, I've been using the Yamamoto Swim Senko's.

+1 for Flipping with Invisx (15lb for me.) I had 20# on and I just didn't see a point in using such a heavy line for my application. I stepped down to 15# and haven't had any trouble at all yet. But I agree, if you're using it around heavy cover or rocks, I would probably stick with at LEAST 17 or higher. I have a braid 7'6" pitching rig for heavy cover. I use the 15lb flouro with a shorter rod around docks or area's of sparse cover. I personally like flouro SO much better for pitching. It just comes off the reel and through the guides much smoother, and I can get farther pitches without being anymore than a foot from surface of the water.

Looks like Doctor Spinnerbait got ahold of them at 6:00

This! The only time I would rig the tail flat, is with a keel weighted hook. With a keel weighted hook, I was casting it and letting it fall to the bottom. I would rip it from the bottom, and then let it fall again. When falling with the tail rigged flat on a (1/4) keel hook, the tail would quiver and the body would shimmy side to side on the fall. It has enticed more than a few bites for me during the spring, hopefully it will do the same come fall.

No offense, but they aren't the end all be all of plastic baits. I have a multitude of colors in the rage chunks and craws, as well as toads and shads, and thumper's both big and small. (Notice my avatar, and whats tied on ) The lakes I fish aren't all that big, and they are very pressured. I've almost always had some kind of rage tail tied on and I can't buy a bite with them on these lakes. As soon as I switch to something with less action, I start getting bit. But, when I fish the private lake that my tournament partner lives on, they are absolute killers. They aren't going to work for everyone, no reason to get so defensive when someone says they aren't catching anything on them.

Gander Mountain brand grubs have a 3" and 5" grub in orange. You can likely get them in store at any GM, but if not, they're actually made by Big Bite Baits, the "Fat Grub". Big Bite Fat Grubs.

x2. I rotate the worm as the nose gets torn up. Then I'll bite a 1/4 off and repeat. Funny thing is, I've noticed most of my bites come when i have the worm rigged on its side (dropshot). Most of the worms I use are bi-color top and bottom. I would bet its a coincidence, but if the trend continues, I may be rigging that way from the start here on out.

I've met a few people at work that like the Vicious braid... A couple were Muskie guys, told me that it has a nice tight weave, and is a pretty smooth line. Other guys have tried it all and settled with Vicious, said they seen no point in spending more when their braid was just as good. It feels like good line to me, but I haven't got the chance to use it yet so I couldn't give you my own word on it. I personally use 832, but I will probably spool on some in the future if I "need" braid and want to save 5 bucks.

Temps have been pretty high here just north of you guys as well. I've been fishing a small lake that a friend of mine lives on, and the waters are well up into the 80's but the bass are still very active. We were getting bit on swim jigs, top water, and shallow cranks all day yesterday. Conditions may tell you they should be in one place, but fishing the moment might tell you something different.

Thats just one of the first pictures that came up when I searched Gar Pike. Looks like the same creature by two names? All I know is that is the biggest I've seen.

Gar Pike - Similar creature, but smaller and more abundant. The above picture is a pretty frickin' big Gar Pike, I've never personally seen one above 24". As far as I know, Gar pike is legal to bow-fish (atleast here in MI) But Northern Pike aren't.

I dont think they are bowfishing for Gator Gar, but Gar Pike.

A friend and I decided to head out fishing before I had to work over night. We knew the lake we normally like to fish would be packed with speed boats, wave runners, skiers, and not to mention, other fisherman. So we kept on driving and went to a small lake with a dirt launch that really, no one but a few other fisherman go to. Spend a couple hours catching some dinks and a couple other decent fish. Then I had this one absolutely BLOW UP on a SPRO Popper Frog in open water above weeds. It weighed 4.3 lbs. Took me an hour to stop shaking from the adrenaline, this was the biggest fish I've ever caught on top water, and she gave me a show!

I know what Incheon is saying, they do have a scent that smells just like some other baits that are sold in Powerbait packages. But, this is just the smell of the plastic they use I believe.

I was using the Fighting Frog a lot last year, but started to fish the X-Factor Busy Beaver this year and have been doing great so far. Its actually very similar to MegaStrikes Megabug, but without the four side curl-tail appendages, just two claw appendages. I haven't even gone through a bag of the Busy Beavers yet. But I have been using Mend-It on the one or two that I might use in a day. So far, only one has been thrown away. I'd say 10-12 fish a piece so far without major damage, nothing that I wasn't able to fix and reuse. I was also using the Big Bite Yo Mama. I've heard great things but I haven't been getting bit on them as much so I can't say.

I also use the palomar knot, but only for dropshots with 8# Seaguar InvizX, I have not had a problem yet. But with my jig rod using Trilene 100% 20# flouro, the palomar would not hold, neither would the improved clinch. So far, I found the Uni Knot is the only one I tested that has not once broken at the knot with that 20#.

I flip/pitch with a 7'6" MH/F Vendetta (1/2oz-3oz, don't think its made anymore). Having used it all day the last few times I've been out, I never started to feel tired or that it was heavy. Could just be me I guess.

We got some in at work. As much as I want to try it out, I'm not sure I want to take the chance RIGHT now when I'm entering tournaments and such. Just from handling it, it seems similar to low poundage braid. But one thing I noticed is that it seems to want to curl up, not sure why. Sort of like when you put heat to a strand of hair, it curls. Some of the stands that are attached to the box look like they were wrapped around a needle, and didn't really want to straighten out. I didn't notice this happen with any of the higher rated tests, so who knows.

I had a day off today, and I offered to take one of the girls I work with fishing. We got on the water about noon, and I was fishing how I normally would, but I set her up with something that I know she would be able to catch most any bass that might bite it. She did catch quite a few, and a nice little ~2lb fish, while I just fished away barely catching anything. We were on a run to another part of the lake when I remembered my boss told me about a spot that has produced for him repeatedly in the past, so I thought we would give it a shot. Not only did this place give Kellie the chance to catch a bunch more fish, but I was able to pull this beautiful 4#er! Man, it's been a while since I put a hook in a fish like that. That thing hit my Busy Beaver like a freight train. I knew I had a nice fish when I barely moved it with a heavy rod and 40# braid.

I'm no expert on the dropshot, but I've been using a dropshot almost exclusively for the last week or two just to raise my confidence in this rig. Out of the 30 or so that I've hooked into this week, I only lost 2 fish. Not sure if its luck, or what I'm using. I've been using the Gammy 1/0 Dropshot/Splitshot hook, Which is tied to 8# Invizx, with a 6'9" ML Vendetta, and an Okuma Trio. Any bite, I've almost always had the tip up too high, so I raise my rod above my head and reel. Any time I actually got to reel down taking slack and felt the bite, I just give it a little snapset, not much behind it. Whats weird, is I've actually pinched the barb down because I have trouble getting the hook out of most of the fish's mouths. I've been rigging it by running the hook through the bottom bringing the hook point forward so it sticks just out the front of the bait. Again, I'm no expert, but I've been having pretty good luck so far with it.

Yup, I've been wanting to go to one, but my tournament partner for the NBAA tounaments isn't always available Wednesday nights.

Well I was hoping more people would take a guess, I wanted to see how many peoples mental scales are off, but it was 3 pounds even. So you guys have yours calibrated pretty well haha Hoping to go back out tonight after work, but thry weed killed the lake. Not sure how bad that will effect the fishing, but it also didnt help that we went from 90° to 60° ib one day

For as hot as it was yesterday up here in Michigan, I didn't do too bad. I was only out from sunup to about 10, and the bite died after about 8:30. I had things to get to, so after I caught this guy, I packed it in and headed out. I know everyones probably sick of this game, but what do YOU think it weighed? Dont mind the wind-hawk I had going, It got too hot for a hat

I was given a package of them by my boss when he was to a big Gander Mountain vendor thing. I have to say I'm pretty excited t fish them. I haven't been able to get out and use them yet, and its been killing me. Thanks for the review, I'll probably be putting one on tomorrow, depending on conditions I guess. I also bought the last 3 packages we had of Gary Klein's Deuce trailers in Watermelon Candy. I like twintails as trailers more often that craw trailers, so I figure I'd give them a shot.

I know back when the Trio came out, a lot of people were questioning the strength because of the design of the neck. And anyone who hasn't seen it or doesn't know what I'm talking about, based just by looking at the design, those questions of strength were fair I think. But I'm here to put those doubts to rest. A month or so ago, I decided to let a friend of mine take my Okuma Trio 20, because I had no real application to put it on, and he needed a few spares so he could spend more time fishing instead of swapping lures. Well the other day, he took his son out fishing. After spending a few hours out on the water, he went to load the boat back on the trailer. He didn't notice that the reel, in one of the rod holders, was hanging out on the out side of the boat. He started to winch it in, and suddenly heard a very loud BANG, like a gunshot. The reel was able to deform the 1/8 inch steel fender that the guide bars are welded to, and push that bar forward a good 6 inches before the neck snapped. I'd venture to say that bending that guide back to where it was took a good 100 pounds of force, and even then it still isn't straight. I wasn't just pushing it back, I was leaning into it, and I'm not a small guy. I really was scared I was going to break something, I was putting so much force into bending it back. And I would say that this is also a pretty good endorsement for those cheap Scotty rod holders. I'm surprised they didn't break before the reel.