Bluebasser86

They're effective at times but sometimes they're completely worthless, just like a lot of baits. When they're good, they're great. I just spent the better part of 5 days lobbing one around Bull Shoals and Beaver Lakes in Arkansas and they were just pounding it but they wouldn't hardly touch anything else. I still have yet to catch more than one at a time on one but with fish like these eating them who cares

I picked one of these up this week. First impression, it's huge! Not heavy, but a huge jerkbait at 5 1/2 inches, at least by my standards. It fishes very easy though, even though it gets down deep. We could not find a good jerkbait bite all week but I still managed to get one little spotted bass to smack it off the end of a deep water dock.

Just got back from 5 days of Bull Shoals and Beaver Lake tonight. Spent a lot of time catching fish on swing impacts and A-rigs but I did toss a Scatter Rap a bit with some decent results. It was fished up against a Spro Little John and LC 1.5DD which both failed to produce a strike. I believe I had around a dozen on my Smash colored Scatter Rap and my buddy Jon tossed it a bit when I put it down and caught a few more. Caught largemouth, smallies, and spots on it too and the fish that hit it crushed it. First fish on it was a chunky spot. Several healthy spots and largemouth ate it off the same point where they were chasing shad. I'd say that it was just because they were actively feeding but they wouldn't eat a jerkbait or a Little Jon at the same location at the same time so it wasn't just that they were feeding. All the spots were feeding very heavily and fought very hard. The spots seemed to be running into the bait more than they were eating it but the largemouths I caught were knocking slack in my line and choking the bait. I ground the bait through a lot of rocks and over several laydowns and never lost the bill. My final review, I like it. It isn't a magic bullet and I won't own them in every color or anything but certainly worth having a couple in your arsenal.

Looking like we're going to hit it right on the head I think as far as timing goes guys. I have very few people who've replied with what they're bringing or if they're for sure going or not. I have the teams/people who've said they are/might attend listed on the first post with the pairings I have so far and the food listings below the teams listed. Take a look and let me know if you are or aren't planning on attending so I can update the roster and we can get things set.

Caught a smallmouth on a 78 pointer last year that was shorter than the pointer.

4" Huddleston weedless shad or Grass Minnow. 6" Hudd is a great little bit bigger bait. ABT Banshee is a really good segmented bait for cheap. The H20 4" baits are pretty decent for the money. The Optima Baby Line Thru, Mattlures trout, lots of good cheaper options. The Storm baits can work but far from the best option for bass in most situations.

I remember watching him on TV when I was a little kid and learned a lot from him. RIP Bass Professor.

This technique generates some of the hardest strikes I've ever had in cold water and is a great way to catch big fish.

Sounds like a great day and congrats on the win! What were you getting them on?

I really wish they would start to utilize the Asian Carp to feed people at homeless shelters. Seems like one of the best ways to combat them and get some use out of them. They're supposed to be pretty good to eat and I would think they would be a good, cheap source of protein for them also.

Shad raps, warts, traps, and little johns are some of my favorite cold water cranks.

When I get down to the really small cranks I like to fish them on spinning gear. I use spinning gear for 0.5 Lucky Crafts, KVD 1.0, #5 shad raps, and similar baits. You can fish them on casting gear, it's just easier to do with spinning gear.

I got some 3" ones and put them on a 3/32oz jighead, it's a sweet looking little set up. Planning on tossing it for some trout and walleye and wouldn't be surprised at all to catch some big crappie on it.

I'm not sure how it works with fish but in Kansas someone can give you a large game animal but you have to have their tag. In Kansas a possession limit is 2 daily bags for a total of 10 bass over 15". A lot of our lakes don't have limits on white bass and guys will literally fill the bottom of their boats with them at times.

Very well done. Would have loved to get out today. Days like today are some of my best days in the spring it seems like.

It will be interesting. I don't really know the lake at all other than what I've read about it and what little I've learned about it from my two half days I've fished it. I know I had a lot of fun catching fish both times so hopefully we'll do the same this time. We'll be fishing around the dam and won't be able to run far with my little boat but I'm sure we'll figure something out.

Walleye is the only freshwater fish we have close by that I'll eat and only if it goes straight from the lake to the grease. IMO that is the only way to eat fish. My uncle loves to eat drum. They have a really white, firm meat and they eat a lot of craws and clams in our lakes so they may very well be great eating, but I'll never know.

My boat is loaded down with stuff right now. Trying to get as much stuff ready as possible to head to the White River and Bull Shoals Sunday night. Of course as nice as it's supposed to be and with it being the weekend I could probably just hop from boat to boat at La Cygne tomorrow

I love it when a bait gets chewed up, seems like they catch fish better when they get like that. Sometimes the realistic finishes do make a difference though.

A river slick is just a shiner from the river right? We'd discussed possibly trying to find some craws under the river rocks or catch some sculpins with small jigs if the jerks just aren't working. How do they catch the slicks? traps or throw nets?

My dad hooked me in the top of a head with a big, deep diving crank. The impact of the bait hitting my head was the most painful part. Hooked myself in the back of the calf with a small rapala floater, pushed the barb through and cut the hook, for sure the most painless one. Had a fish jump and fire a baby -1 back at me. I put my arm up to block it (I was in a 2 man so no where to run) and buried it in my forearm. Lucky enough the point had gone in and popped out the other side so a quick clip and it was back out. Was posing for a picture with my PB brown trout with the jerkbait still in it's mouth. It flopped and drove the hook into the side of my index finger. Again I got lucky and she flopped again and ripped the hook back out. It hurt but it was over so fast that it wasn't as bad as having to do it myself. Worse one was when my dog grabbed my buddies original Rapala when he wasn't paying attention and got a hook in the upper lip. I tried to grab him by the muzzle so he didn't get the rest of the bait in his mouth but he jumped back right when I grabbed him and he stuck me in the back of my index finger with the other hook. I just laid on top of him to hold him down while my buddy clipped the hook that had gone right through my dogs lip. The hook in my finger was all the way to the bend in the hook so I had to make a trip to the ER. Have a 50 pound scared dog attatched to you by a hook is not a good time.

I don't consider to be in poor taste as long as someone is polite. I make stuff up to mess with my friends and in tournaments but I like helping others catch fish when I'm just fishing for fun.

Only report I've been able to find has been flyfishing reports and I'm not taking a fly rod. We're planning on catching them on a jerkbait or not catching them at all.

I hope he enjoys his record while he has it because I'm going to break it at the White River this week

By the end of the day the water temps were 45 degrees by the dam, all the way up from 41.5 in the morning. We saw temps all the way up to 47 by a small waterfall. We're getting there.