Bluebasser86

So maybe we need to look at a 2 day at Melvern or Perry so the guys that can't make a 2 day deal can make it for one day?

It was for sure a warmouth and not a shellcracker, or redear sunfish. Shellcrackers have the red "ear" spot on their gill plate and small mouths like a regular bluegill. Warmouth have much larger mouths like a green sunfish or rock bass.

Nobody interested in doing a fall get together? Everyone busy? Or just wanting a time and location to be picked and those that can make it just show up?

A picture would help a lot with this question or at least what reel you're using. Sounds like you're looking at the screw that holds your sideplate and line guide carrier. Some reels have kind of a knob on top of the screw instead of a standard screw head.

Personally, I like a 7' M/F for my multipurpose rod. Soft enough I can use it for cranks, heavy enough to use for T rigs and light jigs. A MH/F is getting to be a little much for cranks and other treble hooked baits, just my opinion though. I've never even picked up a single one of the rods you're looking at though so can't comment on which one of those you should go with.

I have the Super Slick on my shakyhead rod, 10lb test 2lb diameter. I love the stuff so far but this is my first year using it so can't comment on how it last in the long haul but it's been great for about 6 months now.

Are you putting it on a spinning reel or casting reel? For me Power Pro Super Slick has been great on a spinning reel.

I like the #3 Mepp's, however much they weigh, probably around a 1/4oz.

They're a different animal than I expected when I started fishing them. At first I was the same way, couldn't buy a fish with one. I was trying to fish them like a spinnerbait though. They're similar but completely different. Once I started messing with them, forcing myself to fish them, and experimenting more, I started catching fish and understanding them much better. Now they're one of my go to baits that I can catch fish with in almost any situation. I love how hard they hit the things and almost always seem to have them choked instead of barely hooked like happens so often on a spinnerbait. This one was from the 4th of July, about jerked the rod out of my hand while I was winding the bait back super slow along the bottom. The blade and snap were all you could see sticking out of her mouth still.

6' 6" MH/F St. Croix LTB 6:4.1 Lew's Speed Spool 14lb Mustad Ultraline Copolymer

I highly doubt that. I have both, and they both work, but almost no way they're the most popular. They probably were back in their day when there was far fewer lure options though. Jitterbugs work great with a very slow, steady retrieve. The black jitterbug or musky jitterbug at night is a great bait but works very well during the day also.

The XR50 and XRK50 are the best lipless baits on the market IMO. I love the EEratic shad jerkbait too. Wasn't real impressed with the squarebills but they did catch fish for me.

Far from a pro for sure. In clear water it's often best to offer them as little as possible to ID as a fake. That's why small, natural colored finesse baits work so well in clear water. I like the bright trailer for smallmouth because they're a very curious fish and the hard contrast of the trailer to the bait will catch their eye and they just can't help themselves sometimes.

If you're sticking big bass on jigs I wouldn't downgrade to a cheaper jig. The lower quality hooks on cheap jigs will cost you eventually. Losing jigs is just part of jig fishing unfortunately. If I fish all day with the same jig that's a pretty rare day. Brush jigs and football jigs are the 2 head designs that do best for me in rock. If you feel it starting to hang, try not to pull real hard. Usually all that does is wedge the head in the rocks even harder. Try shaking or popping it when it starts to hang and you can work it loose fairly often. Straight braid is another option to lose fewer baits too.

Well I don't take pictures of dinks so it must be the size for me I enjoy catching all of them though and some dinks is way better than a skunk any day.

The ones we get around here are often very colorful fish, and aggressive. This one ate a 1/2oz brush jig.

Chris and I fished Wabaunsee 7/3 at 7:30pm to 10:00am on the 4th. Water was muddy and man there was a lot of people out there! I can't believe for all the grief you get putting a boat on the water that they allow all the stupidity and trash all the campers were creating. I guess maybe they were hoping all the fireworks getting shot into the lake would kill the zebra mussels? Or maybe all the trash will choke their little filters up and kill them. It was loud and frustrating for the first couple hours. We caught a bunch of dink smallies off the dam and that was about as far as we could get from it so we went up and down the dam a few times until it got dark and started quieting down. We both got disappointed by a couple big drum on the dam and it was slow going anytime we'd get into one of the coves, they're holding on main lake summertime stuff for sure. About midnight I finally set the hook into some weight that didn't start rolling. Fish was still much larger than I thought when I swung her in. After that it was just dink smallmouth after dink smallmouth, like smaller than 10" kind of dinks. It got cold around 3 and we were both tired when we got back to the dock but after some sandwiches and a quick power nap in the truck we were back at it at 4. As the sky was just starting to turn dark blue my jig got thumped again. Again the fish was much larger than I thought when I swung it in. Big fish of the night went 4.52 pounds. A couple casts later with the Big Head Wobbler when it got crushed. Chris caught a nice smallie off the corner of the dam on a jig but it flopped out of his grip and back into the water before it's photo shoot. Before we left I had another good one try to swallow the Big Head Wobbler. Was not an easy night by any means but all things considered it was pretty good.

We fished from 7:30 PM to 10:30 AM Thursday/Friday last week. I fished for almost 30 hours straight for bass, muskie, and pike in Minnesota once. Normal trips are 6-12 hours.

Best trap I've found is a gallon milk jug. Cut the top off, pop a bunch of drainage holes in it, bury it up to the top in the mud and bait it. Make sure to cover the top when you pull the trap or they can swim out. They crawl in to eat the bait and either can't swim out or just don't care to because it feels like a safe place to be. The smooth sides of the milk jug are impossible for them to climb too.

Try a War Eagle Screaming Eagle in Mouse or Spot Remover, no trailer in clear water unless you're fishing for smallmouth, then put a bright chartreuse split tail or fluke on the back of it.

I've all but quit fishing spinnerbaits in favor of bladed jigs. They just see so many spinnerbaits around here with our shallow lakes and stained water.

The biggest size Fat Free Shad, Hot Lips, and The Freak all get way down there.

Yes, dunk the entire thing in the clear JJ's. Just don't let it get too hot or it will leak.

If you're fishing baits up to 1oz I'd go with a MH/M, especially if they're deeper running baits. I have 3 different cranking rods for different size/style baits from a 7' M/M to a 7' 8" MH/M.

I've been using the PP Super Slick on my shakyhead rod this year and love it. 10lb test 2lb diameter, cast a mile and I can actually set the hook out a long ways with it. The regular PP is just fine on casting gear but I like 50lb, anything less is too thin IMO and digs in too bad.