Bluebasser86

Jail isn't that bad, I've spent the last 10 years of my life in jail

I stay away from trebles at night. Dangerous enough unhooking a bass on trebles when you can see them well. Plus I've had too many baits that I couldn't see speeding back at me through the darkness after a premature hookset. Night fishing is prime time for the KISS method. I use a bladed jig, single colorado bladed spinnerbait, big worm, or a jig. Only other baits I might fish would be a buzzbait or swimbait. I like darker colors except when the moon is bright, then I go with white or other bright colors. I love night fishing and didn't get to do nearly enough of it this year but my biggest fish of the year so far was at night a few weeks ago. Night time is the right time for the big girls when it's hot though!

Welcome!

It was actually 12lb test on a Zebco 33, I think I'd prefer the ultralight if I had to pick between the 2 Without knowing the power of the rods it's hard to say but most likely an ugly stick that size would handle them. One of the rods I use is an 8' Cabela's version of an Ugly Stick (Saltwater Whoppin Stick), and it performs very well. Kind of out of a boat and kind of on the bank. I like to drive the boat to where I'm fishing and beach it. It keeps my setup stable but allows me to follow a big fish if I need to.

I use a 7' 3" H/F rod for frogs and would have no problem handling baits up to the size you listed. I use to have the Mojo slop and frog rod, it's an awful frog rod, doesn't load at all which makes casting really difficult.

That's awful. I guess at least they found him so his family wasn't stuck wondering what happened.

I upload mine to Youtube and use their basic editing feature. I'm not trying to start a Youtube channel or make a fishing video so I'm not real worried about making a professional looking video.

It was on them though, not in them. Apparently there's a big difference

We need the thinnest, hardest to see line so bass won't notice it while they're eating one of the 5 baits on my wire armed Arig

I don't use either.

Pfluegar President is the best spinning reel under $100 IMO. Symetres are nice, until they get wet (a bit of a problem with a fishing reel), then they start to bind and stick badly. I liked the Supremes, but then both had problems (drag tightening on it's own and stripped gears). I have an Orra 20 now that gets knots as bad as any spinning reel I've ever seen regardless of bait fish or line used. The 4 Presidents I have aren't flashy, but there's a reason they're so popular. They're a workhorse reel that deals with the use and abuse anglers put them through and keep on working.

Welcome!

The biggest difference you're going to run into between most of your large ocean gamefish and the flathead catfish the OP is targeting is the cover the fish inhabits. Flatheads like to live in nasty places, the bigger and nastier the snag, the bigger and meaner the fish typically. Flatheads are brutes, I've seen 20-30 pounders flat whip guys much bigger than me. You have to move them quickly or they're gone whereas you can take your time and play out a big fish in open water. Even a little 10 pounder will give you a pretty stout run for cover the initial run and if you let him get there you're going to have a heck of a time getting him back out. I'm not saying you can't handle them on lighter gear, but if you're going to take the time to target them (1-6 bites a night is pretty typical for flatheads), I'd suggest having the right gear to get them out of their hiding places. I've landed 20+ pound fish on 4lb test when I hooked them in open water, then again I've had little guys give me all I could handle in bad places. I had to work really hard to get this scrappy little guy back out of a nasty root wad, even with an 8' H rod and 65lb braid By comparison, I had no problems handling this 40+ pound fish with 14lb fluoro and a 7' MH jig rod, because it was in open water off the edge of a rocky ledge. So take into consideration what kind of cover you'll mainly be fishing as well as the size of the fish and select your gear accordingly.

I would not suggest trying to get a rod and reel for both big catfish and carp, just 2 very different animals IMO. Carp you'll be better off with lighter line and a high capacity reel and lighter rod to play them out. Carp are very sensitive and can be very line/pressure shy when examining/taking a bait while catfish (flatheads especially), could generally care less and sometimes will react even more aggressively when they feel pressure because they think their food is trying to get away. Plus, carp have very soft lips that you can easily pull a hook from with a stiff rod that you'll want for catfish. For cats in that 40lb range you'll be able to find good options in the 7 or 8 foot rods. Make sure it has plenty of backbone to move a fish quickly away from cover where you'll generally find flatheads or you're going to get disappointed a lot.

I have a 80lb Maxxum on my 189VLO Stratos, it'll be more than enough to move the boat you have.

I believe Xtools makes one that tracks your biggest 5 for the day.

Sweet shoalie! I'd love to catch one.

I use the Garmin Virb Elite for my videos. Super easy to setup, lots of accessories out there, and like A-jay said it's pretty much idiot proof. I'm pretty technologically challenged and I figured it out really quickly.

Looks like a really nice rig to me. I fished out of a Tyee once, crazy how much room there is in those boats.

Get a Mettle from Academy when they go on sale for $40 or $50. I bought one when they were all the way down to $30 hoping to maybe get a year out of it. 3 years later it's still going strong and has become one of my starting lineup right along with my Curados and Lew's. I liked it so well that I bought 2 more when they were $40 this summer. They cast a mile, are a very smooth reel, and unlike most lower end reels they're metal instead of plastic inside where it counts. I've even heard of a guy that fishes them with A-rigs for stripers on Beaver Lake, AR who says they hold up just fine. If they'll handle throwing A-rigs for a big striper, there's nothing a bass can throw at them that's going to break them.

Sounds like you're looking for living rubber.

I like Owner St 36's, especially for baits like jerkbaits where they'll often just swat at them. #6 or #4 will most likely be all you need for jerkbaits.

A jig for around docks. For something like a bridge piling I like a jigging spoon or, as much as I hate fishing them, a dropshot.

Welcome!

The way I see it, the lure companies want their baits to be effective so you'll buy more. So in my mind they aren't going to add something to their bait if it would be more effective without it. If there's a ring on it, that's what I'm tying to.