Bluebasser86

Welcome!

2 pounds out of the money. 1st and 2nd both went to guides on the lake and 10th was a guide and Elite pro so we didn't do bad. Lots of guys without limits and it wasn't looking good for us there until Chris went on a tear and caught 3 keepers between 1 and 1:30. We just needed a kicker. All our keepers were on C&C baits though so that was pretty cool .

These LOZ bass didn't seem to mind either.

The tail is actually very long, way longer than I like. I think it will be way better than the Live Target and will probably get a couple because I like popping frogs and they have somedifferent colors. I don't expect it to be any different than any other popping frog though.

Most every BPS bait I've every seen either says BPS or XPS on it somewhere so you might check if it has writing on it anywhere. It looks like an XPS crankbait that my buddies stepson used to always do well on. They no longer have them on their website that I see though. It's been several years since I've seen one last but they had a line up of baits that were their high end cranks that sold for around 6 or 7 dollars, I'm pretty sure they all came with red hooks too.

Jerkbaits, jigs, shakyheads, jigging spoons, grubs, A rigs. I'm working on my blade bait fishing with my inspiration from @A-Jay catching big cold water bass on them. Haven't had much luck yet but I caught a few last winter after having never had a bite on one, so it's a start.

Fall here the water temps range from mid 70's to low 50's and even high 40's some years. It's the time of year when most all of my tackle gets used at some point or another in just a couple months span. One of my favorites that's on the entire time is my bladed jigs. I catch fish on them all year round and they always seem to produce good quality.

It makes sense now. When I first saw the frog on that glass rod my eye started to twitch a little. Glad you cleared that up.

I've never tried smelling it, but I don't really use it for the scent so much as to lube up the bait.

I use a 7' 3" H/F for frogs and love it (not a TCS just the same specs). I do have another TCS and it's been a great rod so I'd certainly give it a try.

Supposed to be in the 70's the next 2 days while I'm hunting, then 50's for highs and 20's for lows the next 3 days while I'm fishing a tournament at LOZ. I hate the weatherman.

Funny story about that. Me and @basshunter0731 hired a guide the first time we went to the White River to trout fish. He was a nice enough guy, but a horrible guide. Told him we wanted big browns, so he broke out a can of corn and parked us on a school of dink 'bows that made me feel like we might as well be bluegill fishing. I had a brand new Rage spinning rod and Supreme spinning reel I'd bought just for the trip. I was fishing a little jerkbait because I wanted browns instead of their food like we were catching. Apparently the guide liked how it looked, because about an hour into it he asked to see my rod and reel and started fishing with it and passed his 5' 2 piece Shakespeare that he'd baited with corn to me. If it wasn't for the fact the guy was probably 75 I don't think I could have kept my cool. Thankfully I had a couple other good rods with me because that piece of junk he had wouldn't make the cut for a trunk rod for me. It got better at the end of the trip when he hit a rock and the entire motor jumped off the back of the boat and sank while we were 3-4 miles downriver from the ramp.

Does it have to be bass? My wife and I usually end up at a lake on our trips and get some fishing in. She's like me and enjoys catching more than just bass. The next place I'd like to take her is the White River below Bull Shoals dam to fish for trout. It's relatively easy style of fishing and catching fish is rarely a problem unless you're targeting the big browns. It's a very scenic place if she likes to take pictures or just relax and take in the scenery. Lots of cabins along the river to rent and plenty of great guides that could put you on fish for one day and then you can use that knowledge to fish on your own the rest of the time. If you're only an hour from Table Rock then the White can't be too far away. If you get bored with the trout then you can always jump up onto the lake and fish for bass. If you're looking for something closer then Taneycomo is easy trout fishing (good bass fishing too if you look for them), and lots of other things for her to do right there in Branson. Of course, Table Rock is right there too so you can switch to bass fishing if you get the urge there as well.

Welcome!

20 and 30. I have a rod for each style bait I was talking about. I use the 20 for poppers and 30 for WTD and Whopper Plopper 90s.

Just personal preference mostly. I like the fish to be able to pull the bait down and get it fully and I feel like I pull the bait away from the fish with a buzzbait a little more. Plus if the line ever wraps around the blade with braid it's a nightmare.

Looks like it's between 10 and 12 pound XL diameter.

I don't have much experience with Fireline, but unless they've added a new version, it's a fused line, not a braid, which is why the diameter is a little different. Actually, if you look at the listed diameter of the line in MM, it's .015, which is the same diameter listed as Trilene XL 17 pound mono. To get the same diameter as 8lb mono, you'd have to go to 10 pound Fireline.

French pearl is my number 1 producing color for smallmouth. It's hard to go wrong with Pro Blue as well though.

Got to have some slack for a WTD bait to work properly. Buzzbait or WTD bait would be my choice in fall.

Whichever one feels better to you. They're both good reels so pick the one you prefer if you can get somewhere you can handle both. What I like in a reel and what you like in a reel are potentially very different. It even comes down to things not often thought of, like comfort. I can't fish some of the small reels that other guys love, because they don't fit in my hands well and end up causing me discomfort. Or a reel like the Revos, they're too long and I can't grip them well, so I don't own any even though many others like them.

Whatever one they're eating. I guess if this is a gun to your head you have to make a decision, plain black catches fish everywhere under all situations.

Like WRB said, get better FC if you're having a problem with memory. Honestly though, you can get by with 12 pound FC with football jigs usually because normally they're more of a structure bait, not used around heavy cover. You just have to make sure to tie a good knot and check your line often because it will need retied a lot from dragging through the rocks. I mainly fish copolymer with my football jigs and don't feel like I miss any fish that I was catching on FC and it's much cheaper.

I use braid for walking baits and poppers (frogs too obviously but assuming you're not asking about those). I really like braid for those baits because it stays on the surface and allows the bait to work properly and doesn't have the drag of the other lines. The downside is on windy days but I'm not normally fishing topwater on really windy days and if I am, I'm moving them fast enough that the wind isn't able to have much effect. One big benefit that I've found is because of the low stretch there really is no need for a hookset, I just reel into them. This is really nice because if a fish misses the bait, I didn't pull the bait away with a hookset, maybe just moved it a foot or so when I started reeling. I do not like braid for buzzbaits or prop baits.