Bluebasser86

Curado 300E. Also have an Okuma Citrix 364 that I like really well.

I've been using a custom red Menace KO, and a Havoc Devil's Spear in Merthiolate. The Big Bite Baits Swimon in Flamethrower will be the next trailer I buy for them but I've got about 15 bags of the Devil's Spear to burn through first. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Big_Bite_Baits_Kamikaze_Swimon_6pk/descpage-BBBKS.html

Fishlab Bio Gill Wake 5" is a SWEET little bait for not much money. The glide and jointed versions they have are nice too. I prefer the 5" versions all around. Savage Gear has their new Pulse Tail bluegills with a jig hook and weedless version. I've got both and they're awesome little baits for $10 and $12.

Hated the Trokar flipping hooks, that point cuts the plastic so bad and then they hang up constantly, sometimes ruins the bait without ever catching fish. The Owner Jungle hook is nice. For me the biggest thing was using braid. I couldn't get a hard enough hookset with any other kind of line, so I save them for flipping with braid and use EWG hooks for any other kind of line.

1/2oz Cavitron, black on black or red and black. 3/4oz Croc-o-gator black on black Trailer hook, maybe, any other kind of trailer, no.

YUM still makes a real nice lizard. This is funny this topic popped up because I just dug out some 6" green pumpkin YUM lizards with the intention of tossing them this week.

Amazing how much more a girthy fish can weigh than a long fish. I caught 2 from the same lake 2 months apart that were great examples. One was 24.5" inches long, but wasn't very fat and only weighed 7.51. 2 Months later I caught a 22" fatty that was about to explode that weighed 7.76. Depends a lot on the lakes I catch them from here too. One lake by my house, an 18" fish will average 3lbs. The power plant lake I fish during the winter, an 18" fish will be over 4 pounds.

The spin shot hooks a neat concept but a pain to deal with. I've found a much better hookup ratio with the Owner cover shot hooks than any other hook I've tried.

Welcome! Congrats on the big fish!

I've got 3 6 pounders from the bank, can't think of one bigger than 6 that I've caught from shore but I don't bank fish a lot. Neighborhood pond on a Ned rig. Wife's family rock quarry on a 6" YUM ribbontail worm. Hidden pond in the woods on a 7" Slammer.

Still holding onto hope I'll get to take my boys to a Royal's game this year. I loved going the few times I got to go with my dad when I was a kid. Now I get to do the same for them.

7' H/F, assuming you're talking about toads like a Horny Toad. Some guys call a Buzz Frog the bait with a buzzbait arm and toad body. I fish those on a 6' 10" MH/F like I do the rest of my buzzbaits.

Daiwa Tatula TWS SV. I was a Shimano guy until I fished one. Only Shimanos I have left are a couple swimbait reels.

I tried Hybrid once (10lb). The way it came off the spool reminded me of rolls of electric fence wire. I didn't even use it for a whole trip.

If you're talking real swimbaits, not Keitechs and holly belly things, no. I wouldn't even attempt to fish for muskie with it. Even if you do land them, you risk having to play a large fish too long and having them die from exhaustion.

I learned how to cast a baitcaster with my dad's 200B Curado while he was at work when I was 10 or 11. He didn't think I was old enough to use it but I had read enough I was convinced I could. Tightened the breaks up and figured it out in back yard and never blew it up bad enough I couldn't get it out. First one of my own I can remember having was a silverish Shimano, maybe a Calyx? It was 70-80 dollar range and a pretty decent reel for a first one. I was 12 or 13 when I bought that.

I know right where that is, I camped close to there once fishing the White River for trout. Honestly, they probably could just stand up most areas through there and walk out of the river, but that water is still cold all year round since it's coming from the bottom of a big lake (Bull Shoals).

I like AGM also. Mine are Duracells from Sam's Club.

I feel mine occasionally to check for sharpness. I have a small compartment in the boat with nothing but replacement trebles in it and swap them out whenever it's needed.

Not anymore, they've been swapped out in favor of baits like the Lucky Craft Staysee and Spro McRip.

Green pumpkin or black, either will catch fish in almost any water color.

One of my favorite WTD smallie topwaters out there. If it had any paint on it to start with, my bone colored Super Spook Jr wouldn't have any paint left on it.

Welcome!

Welcome!

Welcome!