WanderLust

Sounds about right - I was getting ready to start a support group but I didn't know what to call it . . . 8-) A-Jay LOL - I hear you. Smallies were great until last night. Then it was a dead zone.

ummm... wow. I'll pass on turtle soup.

Thanks birdy. Been having some great luck lately. We have temps in the high 90's now though so my SMB run has probably come to an end. Here's another though:

Welcome from the Green Mountains

I have and use both but the spook has been x10 more successful for me.

Black on Black Cavitron buzzbait with a trailer.... Work it late at night or early morning near the most likely spots. I catch a ton of 3-5 pounders and will continue to catch them... for life. Would like to join 10# club but 3-4 smallie is a great fish.

Shimano Curado is a great reel and cheaper than the Zillion or get the Core which around the same price and is incredible!!! I'm sure the Zillion is sweet but Curado / Revo is cheaper. Core is supposed to be insane as well. Demo from TW and let us know what you pick.

Good luck! I fish Lake Champlain 3 times a week at least. Those estimates seem a bit high but would love to be proven wrong. Senkos (watermelon seed, green pumkin) and tubes (junebug, crazy craw) have been insane for me lately.

Depends on where I am fishing and what for... Weightless Texas rig is my perferred way... Carolina rig is a great rig in the right situtation. http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/bass-fishing-articles.html#techniques http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/Texas_Carolina_bass_fishing.html ^ Check here for some info. Then again if we are talking catfish specific I would make sure you use the proper gear and tailor your rigs to fit your environment. I would use a slip sinker rig or slip bobber depending on conditions. Normally with a circle hook.

I've had more than a few incidents where anglers have used their boat to position themselves in front of where I am fishing; even my kids... I normally find that if you politely ask them to move on they will. Its unfortunate that people choose to act like that...

Went through (2) bags of Yum 4" Dingers in watermelonseed on Friday... It was unreal. I picked GYBC just because I caught more fish using senkos...

Berkley Braid Knot is a must for braid for me. It was a PITA at first for me but once I learned it I used it quite a bit... Suffix is super durable... Power pro casts great but breaks alot.

Weightless senko is my go to bait. Watermelon with black flake for sunny days and darker colors as conditions allow. Yum dingers work great for me but they aren't very durable. I am really getting into the jig lately though... so here's how my setup goes normally. 1) Weightless senko 2) Jig or tube jig 3) Carolina Rig or crank Haven't used cranks nearly as much this year and I've got some nice smallies and bucketmouths. I have a bag of Zoom trick worms in June Bug I want to try as well.

Golden shiner is a great pike bait but suckers & big minnows under a float will produce as well.

Tubes, jigs and senkos been killing smallies for me lately! On Friday my sons and I caught 17 smallies on weightless t-rigged senkos, tubes and jigs. Over half of them were 2 pounds+; so much fun.

LOL - So the list on the G Loomis stuff is about what I wanted to spend on the whole package. I've never fished a G Loomis rod... Question being is it that good.

Thanks for the replies! Extremely helpful.

What's everyone's opinion on a senko / bottom contact setup? General use might be a better term but I use a ton of senkos, tubes and other bottom contact methods. I looked at a ton of options / other threads but now want to some actual realtime data before I decide. Seem to be favoring these reels although open to opinions. Familar with BPS Pro-Qual and Daiwa Exceler. Shimano Curado Abu Garcia Revo STX I'm new to higher end rods but was think St. Croix Avid series... Basic question, if you had $400 for a bottom contact setup... What would you buy and why? Thanks so much! ~Wander

Bandit 200 / 300 are awesome. Shiney perch one is a pike magnet. had really good luck with a bunch of them.

^ I going to try this when the weather gets warmer for sure. Thanks for the info!

and another one from this evening.

Nice fish!!! I rock some pretty hurting tan lines as well. Been fishin weightless senkos and tubes lately. Where do you normally fish? Here's on from Allen Point:

Finding an open charter during that time frame might be tough... Maybe check http://www.fishvermont.com/ and ask for a local referal if they are full. Best of luck. They is a ton of good fishing from shore on LC this time of year. Let me know if you want some advice on where to go.

Daiwa Exceler combo from Cabelas fits this price range. Its good if its your 1st baitcaster. Only thing I would say is buy the absolute best combo you can for the money you want to spend. Make sure it fits your main applications as well.

This is the best smallie I've ever caught. Didn't have a scale. Destroyed a 3.5" Yum Tube (June Bug)