Bluebasser86

It's the 110 Whopper Ploppers, if you know where to buy blanks, send me a PM.

Yes, there's a tournament in Texas that anglers can only use Bill Lewis Rattle Traps (and now the Echo squarebills). There's some tournaments that are frog only tournaments in California I believe?

Yes and less difficult to work with than fluoro. I use Big Game and Stren Hi-Impact for a lot of my rods. Seaguar Senshi if I need something a little higher end.

Braid floats, mono is somewhat neutral. I use mono for a lot of bottom contact baits and it works just fine. I also use mono for most of my leaders on braid because it's cheap and so am I.

Sorry to hear about that. As a parent, I can't help but think of my boys when I hear about something bad happening to a child. There must be nothing more awful in this world as a parent than losing a child. My thoughts and condolences are with his friends and family.

It looks great and that fish was a prime example of catch and release working!

I have over a dozen H2O rods from Academy. I find them on sale for under $30 all the time and they fish very similar to the Veritas IMO, great rods for the money.

Yes that will be fine on both.

Rough week. My Imakatsu Gillpop was here Friday from Japan, but I wasn't home to sign for it so I just got a note to pick it up at the PO. Very small town that I live by, PO only open 9-11 on Saturday so I went there right at 9 before my sons soccer practice. The lady informs me it won't be back there until after 10am? I guess they don't unload the trucks each night? Whopper Plopper 110s were supposed to be here today, USPS acting like this guy, My 110's trail so far, Time and date Place Message Saturday, May 27, 2017 2:23 PM KANSAS CITY PROCESSED THROUGH USPS FACILITY Saturday, May 27, 2017 9:29 AM N/A In Transit to Destination Friday, May 26, 2017 2:29 AM KANSAS CITY , KS Departed USPS Destination Facility Friday, May 26, 2017 2:26 AM KANSAS CITY , KS Arrived at USPS Destination Facility Thursday, May 25, 2017 6:09 AM N/A In Transit to Destination Tuesday, May 23, 2017 11:09 PM BELL GARDENS , CA Arrived at USPS Origin Facility Tuesday, May 23, 2017 11:09 PM BELL GARDENS , CA Departed USPS Origin Facility Tuesday, May 23, 2017 7:10 PM SANTA CLARITA , CA Departed Post Office Tuesday, May 23, 2017 5:37 PM SANTA CLARITA , CA Picked Up

That little guy is a sweet little bait. Mine has stood up to a couple dozen fish now and is still going good. The belly hook slot is a little torn, and it looks like a real bluegill that something has tried to eat, but that probably makes it get hit even more.

Maybe I'm not meant to own a 110? Maybe I'll see them Tuesday Time and date Place Message Saturday, May 27, 2017 2:23 PM KANSAS CITY PROCESSED THROUGH USPS FACILITY Saturday, May 27, 2017 9:29 AM N/A In Transit to Destination Friday, May 26, 2017 2:29 AM KANSAS CITY , KS Departed USPS Destination Facility Friday, May 26, 2017 2:26 AM KANSAS CITY , KS Arrived at USPS Destination Facility Thursday, May 25, 2017 6:09 AM N/A In Transit to Destination Tuesday, May 23, 2017 11:09 PM BELL GARDENS , CA Arrived at USPS Origin Facility Tuesday, May 23, 2017 11:09 PM BELL GARDENS , CA Departed USPS Origin Facility Tuesday, May 23, 2017 7:10 PM SANTA CLARITA , CA Departed Post Office Tuesday, May 23, 2017 5:37 PM SANTA CLARITA , CA Picked Up

I don't have sophisticated enough taste to enjoy expensive wines. There's a local place that makes blueberry wine though, a guy could hurt himself with that stuff. I also enjoy sangria wine. We make some homemade sangria occasionally, not as often now that we have kids, but once in awhile. There's a couple store bought brands of sangria that I really enjoy too. My wife spent several months living in Spain when she was in college, so she's the one that got me hooked on sangria.

I don't know for sure about how many bleeders die, but 100% of the ones you cook don't make it.

Smallmouth tend to roam a lot. Find a giant school today, they'll all be gone tomorrow. They do tend to like offshore areas and seem to be more structure oriented than cover oriented like largemouth are a lot of the time. A walking bait fished fast over shallow, rocky points and flats is one of my favorite ways to find and catch smallmouth.

I don't believe it matters most of the time, but I do like painted blades in clear water, usually white or black. I fish a black or red blade a lot, just because that's what the ones I like come with.

Curious as well. I'm trying to make the exact same decision right now. Leaning towards the Daiwa, but not completely sold yet.

Don't have any Lew's, but it's similar in size to a 200 I Curado, just a little taller off the rod. Much smaller than say the old greenie Curados and very light.

First, make sure you can fish in the marina. A lot of them around here don't allow bank fishing and get pretty testy about folks fishing them in general. For a live bluegill, I prefer something around a 4" gill rigged on a 1/0 Kahle hook under a cigar shaped Thill slip float. Another option is freelining, which is effective but is a problem around obstacles because the bluegill will wrap you up just like a bass will. A small, sturdy live bait hook like the ones Gamakatsu makes work well to nose hook the bait and let them swim around to try to find a big bass for you.

T1000, Monkey Butt, Bone, and Sooner are my favorites. I have a T1000 and Bone 110 that should be here today.

Cavitron or Crock-O-Gator

I wire tie all mine. A wire tied skirt should never slip down, but one tied too tight can fall apart because it can cut the skirt material. I smash my tag end down but agree with Angry John that most everything a bass eats is pointed or sharp somewhere, they're probably surprised when they eat something and it doesn't stab or cut them a little bit. I do it more for me, grabbing a jig and stabbing a fingertip with a piece of wire hurts.

I don't cook it, but being from the KC area, I love eating BBQ!

Are you specifically wanting the mold for tubes or other types of baits as well? I drag tubes in a lot of shallow, snaggy rocks and pour a head I use to do the stupid tube rig that snags very little. I would assume it's this mold you're seeing in the pictures you posted though. http://www.barlowstackle.com/Do-It-Weighted-Hook-Mold-P296.aspx

I've never had one get in the boat, but had a couple try. Usually I have the high pitched screams from @gardnerjigman to repel them from the boat though.

In a pond you could be having low oxygen levels, combine that with spawning stress and you'll lose some fish. Fish die though, as long as it's just small numbers, I wouldn't get too concerned.