Bluebasser86

I'd look at the Dobyn's Fury swimbait rods. I have the 795 and it works great for baits up to around 3.5oz. It's rated to 5 oz, but I'd step up to the bigger rod if you're going much bigger than 3oz.

That's a steal. I don't need one, but I'd buy it for a few more bucks than a President.

Tail looks similar to the YUM swimming dinger tail. I'll probably try those when it needs replaced to see how it works.

I've done it. It was great, as much as a dropshot hangs up for me, it allowed me to lose baits twice as fast!

I have a 40 size in morning dawn and a 30 in chrome. Both of them work well and I've not had the same issues described, or at least not enough that I've noticed it being an issue. Any bait can tangle on the line during the cast, and I have plenty that the hooks will catch on the bill. The tail is flexible so it's going to catch on the hook occasionally. I guess I just write that stuff off as things that I can expect to happen when I buy them. If a bait is effective, I'll deal with minor issues like that though.

I've seen it happen pretty often actually. Had a smallmouth a few years ago that my buddy broke off in the morning, went back that afternoon and caught it with his bait still in it's mouth. Actually had it happen last week where the guy I was fishing with missed a bite and lost his wacky worm. We fished the spot again a few hours later and I caught the fish that threw up his bait right as it got to the boat. Caught a smallie on a guide trip a few weeks ago that ate my plopper. When I got it to the boat, it threw up a Ned rig, had another Ned stuck in the roof of it's mouth, and had a darter head with a Kalin's Sizmic grub sticking out of it's throat. I imagine that fish was pretty relieved to have all that junk removed from it's face before being released again.

Hookup ratio may suffer a bit, but being able to run them in places a plopper can't go is a trade off I'm willing to make. The grass is hitting the surface at one of my favorite smallie lakes, and I should have mine in time to give them a test run when my dad and I go there in a couple weeks. Hopefully have a good report on them by then.

^Those are what you're looking for. Hooks like the Mustad Grip Pin work great with Z-man, or you can go with a straight shank flipping style hook with the keeper on the top.

The clackers are great, no way a bass can ignore that noisy thing going over their heads.

Welcome! I too recently got into fishing from a kayak. While I still fish from my bass boat a majority of the time, the simplicity and added challenge of fishing from a kayak has been really enjoyable.

We caught smallmouth, spotted bass, largemouth, and meanmouth while we were down there. All of the first 3 can be found in large numbers in Table Rock, and the meanmouths are becoming more and more common. The 3rd picture from the bottom is a very rotund spotted bass that was only a little over 16" and nearly 3 pounds.

8lb test would be very light line to try to set the hook and drive in a 7/0 hook, even if it was exposed which I'm assuming it wasn't considering your bait choice. I'm assuming you're fishing a spinning rod? I would certainly opt for braid if you are. I fish those paddletail swimbaits on braid and a MH casting rod to make sure I can get a solid hookset.

What you're suggesting folks should do is illegal in many states, it is here in Kansas. http://ksoutdoors.com/Fishing/Aquatic-Nuisance-Species K.A.R. 115-8-12: Don't dump bait. You cannot stock or release wildlife on department lands or waters, navigable publicly-owned waters and federal reservoirs unless authorized. Dispose of unused bait on dry ground or in an approved bait receptacle. It's an easy way to move invasive species like zebra and quagga mussels, Asian carp, curly-leaf pond weed, Eurasian water milfoil, white perch, or the rusty crawfish. If you want to help out the fish in a body of water, talk to the local biologist and see what the fish population density is. If it's towards the high side, maybe keep a limit of smaller keepers to thin out the herd a little, effectively making it so there's more food for the remaining fish. To stick with your hunting analogy, it's similar to culling a herd of deer of the older animals to make it possible for maturing animals to reach their full potential.

Glad you're still making it out buddy. Need to get Jacky down here to get whatever he wants to hunt with sighted in to be ready for deer season. I've been getting lots of pictures on my new food plot, some nice velvet bucks, lots of does, couple turkey, and at least 1 bobcat.

I love Table Rock. If I could fish only 1 lake the rest of my life, that would be it. It gets tons of fishing pressure and the boat traffic is starting to rival Lake of the Ozarks though. A boat on every good point or bank and a couple more waiting their turn isn't uncommon. I prefer to fish the colder months to get away from some of that. My last couple trips there have been excellent. @gardnerjigman and I won a tournament there in March, it was a blast.

No problem, I used to fish the weedless shads a ton and still fish the 68's, it makes a big difference in the life of the bait.

I use Megastrike, but any kind of slippery scent that sticks to the bait works well. Makes it slide through their teeth easier, which reduces damage to the bait, and helps with hookups.

It's either a 100 or a Footloose, and I believe you'd be able to see the bill on a Footloose since they point almost directly downward.

One of my favorite quotes. I know a lot of those men and women that chase the boogeyman back into the shadows.

I use the SDJ for fluoro, Palomar for everything else. SDJ is a great knot and easy to tie, but you have to make sure to wet the line well when cinching it down or you'll burn your line and weaken it badly.

I use a 6' 9" H/F Hammer rod and a 6' 10" MH/F Ethos for my spinnerbait and buzzbaits. Both are great, just depends how much you want to spend.

You have to run a thin coating on the inside of the ring on the side with the brakes. Open the side plate and put a drop on a Q-tip and run it around the inside of the ring, just enough that you can tell that there is actually oil on it. You'll have to do it about once a month to every couple weeks depending on how often you fish. It was more hassle than I was willing to deal with. Kept my 70, it's just the perfect size, but all the 200 I's are long gone.

I'd have a custom jig rod built with a St. Croix Legend Xtreme blank.

If I was using a spinning rod for a do all rod, I'd be running straight braid without question.

Make sure to use some glue/mend it before you fish them, and lube them up real good when you do fish them so they'll last a little longer.