Bluebasser86

Baitfish are available year round while there is a period during the extreme cold weather when craws are almost completely off the menu. As far as "preferred" I believe a bass' preferred meal is the next one or easiest one. When I used to help feed the fish when I worked at Cabela's, the big bass would eat whatever was nearest and easiest for them to catch. If there were two items that were both easy to catch and near them, they'd usually opt for the larger of the two items, more reward for less effort. My other thought is that baitfish are much less likely to put up a fight whereas a large craw is going to go down scratching, clawing, and pinching. The analogy I've always used is if you had to chose between 2 cheeseburgers, one was a regular burger, the other full of glass shards, which do you choose? I know bass don't possess the reasoning ability to think through that amount of detail, but it makes sense to me

I try to stay back off them and fish up to shallow water, fishing across prime areas, and then from the shallow to out in deeper water. Sometimes it's all about finding the right angle and right cast to trigger them to bite. If the wind is blowing into a point, I start on the upwind side and fish in, taking special care to fish any mudlines created by the wind.

Berkley Big Game, Stren High Impact, or Mustad Ultra Line. All available in bulk for cheap so I can change it anytime I feel the need to and not feel bad about it. A local camping store here has the Mustad line in something like a 6,000 yard spool of 10lb for $10 I've got at least half a dozen spools of it squirreled away in my garage.

I had the same issue. Even though I own expensive swimbaits, the reports of how fragile the 110's are kept me from fishing them effectively. I fish the RC stix a ton and catch lots of fish on them so I sold my Megabass and just carry RC Stix and don't regret a thing.

All our Wal Marts ever do is take $.50 off the price of anything. I'm always checking for these big sales but they never seem to happen then all the sales stuff is just gone one day. I'm assuming shipped to another store where the stuff is selling.

I'm planning on riding Curt's coattails to victory!

That was the next thing I was going to suggest seeing that you were close to an Academy. Their Ethos rods are very nice and very light. They don't have quite the variety of actions and powers but I have 2, one spinning and one casting, and I really like both. You can wait until they go on sale and get their nano rods for $60 each.

They're light, sensitive, in your price range, available in a wide range of powers and actions, and if anything happens to them caused by a defect, BPS will take care of you. If you're set on one of those 3 I'd go with the Bucoo. The Shimanos are nice, light, and sensitive, but I've had Compres and Crucial jigs and plastic rods and they just didn't do it for me. They do have the over the counter lifetime warranty though.

It will work just fine for a frog rod. I use a 7' 3" MH/MF LTB for frogging all the time and it does just what I need it to. Personally I like the MF tip for frogging because it loads a little better on the cast to launch Kermy a little further.

X2. One of my best days last year we started before dark and got off the water around 9am. We just killed them all night long on jigs and 10" worms, largies and smallies.

With all the wind and shallow lakes we have around here I'd love to own one. I've seen some cheap, homemade options that are probably going to be what I end up with since I just have a plain tin boat anyways.

A 6:4 would be just fine for those G2's. High 5s to mid 6s are my preferred ratios for swimbaits.

Plus you don't have to listen to the screaming

I'm telling you they make better bait than they do table fare

And I get caught up in the fun of catching green sunfish for flathead bait.... I'd have a hard time leaving those to go fish for something else I believe.

Those wipers are a blast. We get a lot of them in some of the lakes around here. That's all I can catch some days during the winter on the power plant lakes. I set the goal of getting a DD wiper several years ago. My first trip out I caught a 9 1/4, still my biggest to this day. Dozens of 4-7 pounders every year but I can't seem to get that 10+. I've netted 2 over 10 for friends, just never been lucky enough to get one myself. Had one day this winter they were just pounding a jerkbait all day long on the same point, my wrist hurt by the end of the day from fighting them suckers. Some of the fattest wipers I've ever seen too.

I have the 7' 6" MH/MF LTB and it's been a great pitching/light flipping rod for me. It would also make a good Carolina rigging rod or frog rod if you needed it to be.

Carbonlite....

I mainly fish St. Croix LTBs but also have a 2 Avids, 3 Mojos, a Pro Glass, and 2 Premiers. I'm not so stuck on brand I won't buy something else though. I've recently picked up a couple of the Academy Ethos rods and they've really impressed me so far, I'll be picking up a couple more for sure.

I think they're VMCs actually. Mine have 3 #6 Gamakatsu round bends on them now and suspend just fine.

One of my favorite jerkbaits. The Staysees are good in deeper water but I have other deep running jerks that I like better because they fish a little easier.

#3 Mepps dressed.

I've had some very good days in clear water lakes with the silent RES.

The 5 1/4" Stick O is my go to wacky rig and shakyhead bait. Their magnum Finicky worm is a good weightless or shakyhead worm also. I've done pretty well on their tubes and prerigged swimbaits as well.