Bluebasser86

I would also fish the shallower lake. Shallower fish tend to be more aggressive and easier to catch in my experience. I've never had much luck catching suspended fish either.

I hope I'm right about the fall bite turning on too! I'll find out Sunday, Kanasbassfisher08 and I are headed to Melvern to hopefully smack some smallies and whites around. Wouldn't be mad about getting a few keeper walleye either

I use baitcaster more than I do spinning rods but I wouldn't even think about going fishing without a spinning rod. Shakeyheads, dropshots, wacky rigging, swimming a grub, skipping a tube, light cranks and jerks, all things I use a spinning combo for.

That's the unfortunate truth, doesn't matter how many of them get killed, another will always be right there to take their place.

They are great, just wish they weren't so expensive! Probably a good thing they are seasonal, one of those things sliced up with some peanut butter or Nutella is one of my favorite snacks!

Nice trout! I caught one similar sized on an XRK50 this spring during a tournament. Very disappointing when you're after good bass. It suffered the same fate since it had my bait completely engulfed and was bleeding badly when I got it to the boat. I've caught several on 78 pointers fishing for bass also, usually large ones.

The Eeratic shad has a more subdued action like Hooligan said. It is a very consistant bait and casts well and catchs fish. I also found it to be a good if not my best option in colder water. I'm a fan of them as I caught my biggest largemouth of the year on one.

I don't think there really is any way to get a deep diving jerkbait to get the same action as a shallow runner. The resistance and weight of the longer bill won't allow them to slash and roll like a shallow runner. I still fish them with a similar retrieve but it's more of a slide and shimmy than a slash and roll. They are effective baits in their own right. I haven't fished the deep diving pointers but the Lucky Craft Staysee is a very good bait for deeper water fish.

If you are just trying to get into jigs just do a little research. Try to find what the popular ones are in your area and the popular colors and stick with those at first. One of the hardest parts of learning a jig is actually fishing it enough to get some confidence in it. As far as the differences you asked about. A swim jig typically will have the line tie towards the very end of the nose of the jig and a keel shaped head because they are cast and reeled past cover, or "swam" back to the boat. The also typically have lighter hooks and thinner weedguards. Flipping jigs have a line tie a little further back to protect the knot when coming through heavy cover. The will tend to be heavier weights, thicker weedguards, and heavier hooks to help them get into cover, get out of cover, and bring big fish with them. Flipping jigs tend to have rattles on them more often than swimming jigs do also. In most cases when companies have a standard and pro model jig you will just have better componets on the pro model, better hooks and eyes are two of the more common changes. Like I said though, keep it simple starting out and get some confidence in jigs in general, then worry about really breaking them down.

The 6'6" ML should be a pretty good rod for smaller poppers and jerkbaits but I probably wouldn't use it for anything bigger than a spook JR. I didn't mind the Premier crankbait rods but I like the St. Croix Pro Glass crankbait rod a lot better.

There is also a tool you can buy to size the rod tip after you get the tip off. All tips are placed on with glue and can be removed with the method that DVT suggested, unless it's one of those innerline rods that St.Croix does not make. Remove the tip and find the biggest post that will fit inside the tip. Then if you want to just order whatever type of tip you want you can replace it yourself.

Some sinking lures will give you a fall rate somewhere on the package. I'm pretty sure countdown Rapalas have their fall rate in the packaging.

Different people get different labels from me. Someone I don't know usually gets the "hey man." If you got gold,silver,platinum that you don't need in your mouth and your pants are 5 sizes to big it's "dog" or "homie" If you're inside at night and wearing sunglasses and more than half a bottle of hair gel in your hair it's "bro"

One of the great things about a jig is there really is no "correct" way to fish a jig. I've caught jigs every way imaginable and at all times of the year and in any condition imaginable. Jigs do a great job imitating something that a fish would naturally eat and you can get a jig to places that the fish live. As for matching the trailer, you don't have to match it at all. Sometimes a mismatched jig and trailer catches more than a matching combo. I found when I was learning how to fish a jig that the hardest part of learning it was actually getting myself to pick it up and fish with it.

Along with what others have said it's great on a C-rig because it floats off the bottom.

Get a lure that sinks approximately 1 foot a second, cast and count it down. Not exact but close.

Never fished a Powell but the must be pretty good to have a following like they do. I like my 50E and it's not supertuned, but I don't use it for plastics. P-line is one of my go to lines. I'd say 8/10 just because you have all that to fish senkos My shakeyhead combo: Rod:6'8" M Legend Tournament Bass spinning Reel:Pfluegar Supreme XT 30 size Line:8lb InvizX

As much as that gut feeling sucks when you realize you forgot the plug, it sucks so much when you frantically try to get the motor to start and it won't and the bilge can't keep up. Lucky for me it was on a small lake and I made it back to the side of the ramp so when the water started coming over the back and my boat sank completely it didn't sink far and settled in nice soft mud Getting an 18' Ranger off the bottom and onto a trailer and out of the water is not fun and neither is explaining to the boat mechanic why you had 6 gallons of water in your gas tank. And don't let that boat salesman BS you, you can sink a Ranger.

I don't chase ducks until deer season closes in January if I hunt them at all.

If it's their screw up it's on them. I paid 60 dollars apiece for my big maxx marine batteries because Wal-Mart mislabeled them.

Went to Douglas State Lake Sunday while my wife went to the Maple Leaf Festival. First time I've fished it since it reopened and there is tons of fish in it but they are serious dinks. I caught 31 in 2 hours with the biggest being maybe 15" and it was way bigger than most. I did get a double on an Excalibur XR50 rattlebait, a pair of 9 inchers. Fished Wyandotte for about two and half hours today and caught 20, 17 largemouth and 3 smallmouth. Caught fish on a chatterbait, Excalibur XR50, shakeyhead, and homemade jig. The wind was a killer so it was nice that they were hitting a moving bait. I had a ton more fish hit the chatterbait but couldn't get them to hookup and they don't eat it nearly as well with a trailer hook for some reason. Seems like this cold weather might have finally woke them up and got them feeding!

How did you do? Looks like I might be headed down there this weekend. Staying at my friends lakehouse but I have no idea where that is and he doesn't seem to be really sure either Got a bunch of new jigs I need to toss around and wouldn't mind throwing a Huddleston at some docks to try and get a big bite.

9/10, the 50 just doesn't feel right in my hands fishing plastics and jigs. Rod:6'8" M Legend Tournament Bass spinning Reel:Pfluegar Supreme XT 30 size Line:8lb InvizX

I have the Bazooka Pro case, it is telescopic and fits rods from 73" up to 102". It's easy to adjust and I've had 7 1/2' one piece rods in it with no problem. It got my rods back and forth to Mexico twice with no problems.