Bluebasser86

Probably oil for my boat. Stuff is stupid expensive and doesn't suck to buy so bad with a gift card.

I've been on several forums, still pop into a couple more specialized ones on occasion. I got tired of the bickering and bullying on other sites. To me, this site, much like fishing itself, is supposed to be an escape as well as learn. Having differing opinions is just fine, trying to "shout" someone down or resort to name calling because they don't agree, is not. That's what I got tired of very quickly, and it isn't allowed here so that's why I settled down here. I hated how new people and beginners were often treated like idiots too. We were all beginners at one point and asked the silly questions. Talking down to them now just because a lot of us are no longer beginners isn't going to help them and isn't going to grow the sport. I have no doubt that I disagree with a lot of people on here on a lot of subjects, but the way it's kept fishing related and the hot button topics are kept off limits is great too. I get enough of the rest of it jammed down my throat everywhere else, I don't need it here, I just want to talk fishing with my online friends and forget about that stuff.

Welcome!

It's a good bait. Get the big one, not the JR.

Had to afford the new one somehow ?. Put my order in for the new Old Town Topwater 120 PDL today, supposed to arrive in September since they aren't out yet. Really looking forward to jumping into the world of pedal kayaks.

Popping Pad Crasher and FishLab Rattle Toad.

Some types of rock are soft enough a hook will penetrate a bit. Others just get spots where a hook can catch them just right. Now we have the added feature of zebra mussels making any rock catchable, if they don't cut your line first.

Pitching a jig is my favorite way to fish. Big rod, big line, heavy hookset. Not worried about breaking them off, not often they come off once they're stuck, and they're usually good quality fish.

I think a 1oz brush jig is about the heaviest I've seen without getting something custom made.

Fishing gloves aren't all about protection from fish spines or the cold though. I mostly wear them for skin protection from the sun. It's very difficult to get sun block on your hands and keep it on and your hands are constantly exposed to the sun while fishing. I worked with some old timers in the fishing department at Cabela's that always had band-aids on their hands covering different spots they'd had chunks of skin cancer cut out of their hands from a lifetime of fishing without any protection from the sun. They always told me they'd wished they'd had that kind of protection from the sun a long time ago so they didn't have to go through the cancer removal treatments. I burn easy so it's a constant concern of mine.

Whoever says you need line conditioner for Tatsu is out of their mind. Of course, I don't use that mess on any line, but Tatsu is so limp even in the heaviest sizes. It's a 200 yard spool too, bigger than most expensive fluorocarbons. I usually spool up 3-4 times off each spool so it cuts the price down to to less than $15 a fill up so it doesn't hurt so bad.

Okuma TCS 7' 11" H/F "Matt Daddy". They're on clearance on TW for $110 right now too.

I use it for both and catch them both on the same baits.

Colorado bladed spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, jigs, and T rigs. Occasionally I'll mix in some buzzbaits, topwater, and swimbaits but I try to avoid topwater and especially treble hooks at night. Dark colors tend to be best, with black and blue or solid blue being my favorites, unless the moon is bright, then I do better with white or natural colors.

If it's working, it's not wrong.

2 trips in a row I've had great weather and the fish were just tough to come by. I swore this was a bluegill or really small bass when I missed it the first bite, but the fishing was so tough I couldn't afford to skip by it without giving it another chance to prove me wrong. Thankfully it did, because it represented half the bass I caught this morning and a quarter of the fish I caught.

Impossible to tell without catching it really. I've had big bass inhale crankbaits and feel like almost nothing. I've swung on plenty of rocks and limbs I swore were bites. I had a 2 or 3lb carp that I snagged in the side on a shad rap a couple winters ago that I was sure was monster bass until I saw it. My dad fought a stick all the way to the boat once calling for the net the whole time because it was a long stick that was swinging and appeared to be moving side to side because of the water resistance, I've had a couple rocks do pretty similar.

Welcome!

No such thing as too hot for coffee.

I've used solar green braid for frogging before and it didn't seem to bother them.

Another one for me. Not so much that they don't catch fish, although they're never as productive as they seem like they should be, they're just horribly boring to fish with. I still carry a few, but it's rare I use one.

I rarely use anything other than 1/8oz.

I've got some custom painted KO blanks, mostly wiggle warts. Also have some handmade and custom painted balsa cranks, they run about $40 apiece.

Up to 3/8oz I use mostly lead. Anything bigger is when I feel like I start to really see the benefits of tungsten.

3.5-3.75 pounds.