Bluebasser86

Wow carp are usually ugly but that one is especially ugly! I've caught several catfish on pit bosses too along with some monster green sunfish and warmouth. Even caught a couple white bass and one walleye while I was reeling the bait in.

One of the other guys on here had one of the best days I've ever heard of anyone having out there 2 weeks ago despite the heat, caught them up shallow too. Tough to beat a shakeyhead this time of year, or a small craw colored tube. I usually do my best on flat rock points, usually in surprisingly shallow water, less than 8' most of the time.

I love a shakeyhead with finesse worms or a baby Rage craw in rivers. Natural colors are usually best.

I've got one spinning reel with 8lb and one with 12lb Nanofil, both have flouro leaders. I've been attaching mine with back to back uni knots and skipping swimbaits under cables and senkos under docks, pulling fish back across crossbars with no issues. The main thing for me has been to throughly check my knots before I starting to fish with it. I really like the stuff and enjoy fishing with it. I could count the number of breakoffs I've had on one hand.

What kind of bass are in the river? Water color? Slow flow or fast? Bottom comp?

If it's happening repeatedly then something in your presentation/retrieve isn't quite right. There's been several good suggestions like slowing down, switching baits, and having a throw back bait. You might try switching colors also.

Melvern is the closest place to KC with lots of good smallmouth. Milford, Wilson, and Glen Elder are all good options too if you're willing to drive further. Wyandotte is the only lake that is really close that has smallmouth. All of them have fish over 5lbs too.

You can catch fish walking a frog through open water too. My favorites are a Cavitron or Zell pop. The regular Spro frog and Spro popping frog get quite a bit of use too.

I've fished some ponds that are as tough if not tougher than big lakes too. Heavily pressured ponds with big fish turns almost more into hunting than it does fishing. I've fished some of those ponds where I'm literally trying find something they won't try to eat.

A couple months ago when my buddy and I were bass fishing with buzzbaits right at dark when a 34" muskie ate his bait about a foot from the boat, that scared both of us. Had a 5lb bass absolutely destroy a spook a few feet from the boat while I was night fishing by myself, that got my heart going. The 40lb flathead that crushed my jig this spring hit it so hard I was almost afraid to set the hook.

Man my two trips south of the border weren't nearly that productive! Awesome time I'm sure!

I try to wear natural colors, occasionally camo. Not sure that it makes a big difference in the stained water we have but it can't hurt.

I've got a Plano box for shallow/topwater, medium, and deep divers because that's all I have room for in my boat with the limit storage space. They usually look about the same when I get a bait out. I figured this was going to be a hook in hand thread when I read it.

I keep thinking about making the drive up there but haven't gotten around to it. My buddy keeps telling me it's not any good but I keep seeing pictures and hearing reports that say otherwise.

Must be a local company. You might try a Google search for bait companies based out of that area.

Good looking fish. Where'd you get it at? I've heard they're starting to release water upstream of us so I may be on the river looking for another big catfish. I finally broke down and bought a 100lb scale so maybe this time I could actually get a weight on them. Either that or I may go punish myself at Wyco. My new little honeyhole has been great for the numbers of solid 15-18 inch fish but I don't want to beat it up too bad, not yet anyways.

Wow, I caught a 36" king on heavy casting gear in Florida a few years ago and that was a heck of a fight. I bet that one had line flying off your reel.

Rods:St. Croix Reels:Shimano, Abu, and Pfluegar Line:Seaguar and P-Line Cranks:LC, luck e strike, and strike king Spinnerbaits:War Eagle Jerks:LC, Xcaliber Jigs:homemade Plastics:Zoom, Netbait, and Berkley, specifially the Havoc line up. Very few of those am I completely "loyal" to though, always looks for a better mouse trap.

1/4 for most of my fishing, 3/8 for heavier wood and water willows, 1/2-3/4 for C-rigs or the really thick stuff.

Looks like a custom poured bait to me.

I'm sending 2 of my main reels to get serviced while it's reel hot again. Get them ready to roll for when it starts to cool down and the fish start biting again. Hopefully it will work out the same way with your trailer.

More than likely in a small lake you're going to be dealing with flatheads if they're getting 20-40 pounds. That being the case flatheads are almost strictly predatorial. Live bluegill, green sunfish, bullheads, and goldfish will all catch flatheads. Rig them up on a heavy slip sinker rig (just like a carolina rig) and hook them just below and back from the dorsal fin or through the nostrils. Flatheads will eat fresh live bait from time to time but you'll be much better off with livebait.

It was actually 3 times now that I think about it, once with my old johnboat and twice with the boat I have now. I lost the dust cover off my johnboat trailer and a small rock got into the axle and wrecked the bearing. First time with my boat I have now was because I hadn't regreased the bearings in a long time. Second time was because Wal-Mart sold me the wrong tires. Each time sucked real bad.

I'd much rather fish at night than during the day during the hot summer months. Bigger catfish, especially flatheads and blues seem to become almost completely nocturnal during the summer and big bass move shallower and feed much more aggressively at night during the summer.

I had a lefthanded Revo STX for about a month before I gave up. I just could not get my left hand under control good enough to reel left handed without it being very difficult. Lost my grip on the handle constantly and moved the rod way too much while I was reeling. Ended up traded it for a right handed Revo S to another member on the forum. I wish I could have made it work but just couldn't do it.