Bluebasser86

I only use 2-3 feet but I know some other guys like to use a lot longer. Our water is mostly stained so it's not really for the low vis, mainly for abrasion resistance in the rocks and zebra mussels.

When Ike had his City Limits fishing show, there was actually an episode where he hooks a fish and says "It's a giant! It's giant! It's a 2 pounder! It's a giant!" I had to rewind it a few times to make sure I heard it right. It's become somewhat of an inside joke with a couple of my fishing buddies to repeat that line when fighting a small fish to the boat. Then he had another episode he catches a 5 pounder and doesn't say a word while he's fighting it

I have one on mine but it's not one that's easy to take in and out.

I opt for 1 of 2 options. Either you pick up a jig or shakyhead and resign to fishing very slowly and just concentrating on high percentage areas, or you pick up a crankbait/spinnerbait and cover as much water as possible to pick up any active fish you can.

My favorite way would probably be a shakyhead or jig, but there's a ton of different ways I've caught fish off bluff walls, they're one of my favorite pieces of structure/cover to fish.

If I'm getting bites from a fish that can't even get a trick worm in it's mouth, I'm not worried about catching it because it's not the fish I'm looking for.

That's an EXPENSIVE cat! My sister would love to have a bengal but they're crazy money to buy one and usually a long waiting list to get one. I don't mind cats most of the time, but I'd much rather have a dog.

Chartreuse and black back Fat Jon got the fish in my avatar.

Did my wife put you up to this??

Netbait B Bug comes in a 3.5" size in a 12 pack for $4 and a ton of different colors. I really like the bigger version for flipping but if you like the smaller sized baits it might be one to check out.

Welcome!

Welcome!

Welcome!

Of all the bass I catch every year, I doubt I catch more then 2 dozen of them on a drop shot. I can do it, I have some spots where it's a slam dunk technique to catch a fish or two nearly 100% of the time, just not a go to technique for me.

It kind of looks like goosebumps on the fishes skin. Just remember, when you're holding a catfish, they're tasting your hands while you're doing it Catch a bluegill or other baitfish and cut about a 3 or 4 inch long by 1/2 or 3/4 inch wide piece, (I usually just cut right behind the head from top to bottom, you can also use the head with smaller bluegills). Put it on a 1/0 or 2/0 Kahle or similar wide gap bait hook with no weight, bobber, swivel, nothing. Find a likely area and cast it out and allow it settle to the bottom. After it sits for several seconds, very gently and slowly lift the rod tip and move the bait a few inches and let it settle back to the bottom. It's a very slow version of fishing a plastic worm basically but it's a deadly technique for channel cats and much more exciting than sitting and waiting.

I started fishing in an adult bass club when I was 16. I was the youngest member by 12 years but was lucky enough to find a group of guys that would let me fish with them. The potential problem you have is finding a club willing to deal with the liability of having a minor in their club. It would be worth looking and asking though.

The size of a body of water has little to do with it's ability to hold a shad population. We have some 100 acre lakes in this area that get shad so thick you could almost walk across them at times. We have a lot of lakes with no shad too where the bass tend to focus on craws and gills. In those lakes it seems like the bass tend to prefer rocks or weeds a majority of the time. No yellow perch around here (no viable populations anyways) so I really have no idea how they act. IMO, bass in lakes with no shad are much easier to find, catch, and pattern.

Having kept track of numbers before, nearly 1,400 fish in a month is INSANE! And for that to be a 5 year average? My hats off. I had a decent year that year and didn't catch 3,000 all year.

You can wire tie them if you want but small zip ties is the easiest and fastest way to do it.

That's true, they're basically a swimming tongue. You can really see the taste buds on their skin when they get over 20 or 30 pounds.

This is how I feel. There's some I like more than others but some companies have that one bait or even that one color that just works better than everyone else's for some reason or another.

Smallmouth seem to really like the baitfish colors in clear water and the green pumpkin or black in stained water. I do a color that is similar to Lucky Craft's chartreuse shad that they like and then the second one from the bottom in my first post that's similar to War Eagle's Cole Slaw color that they really seem to like.

I wish I could find a cheaper alternative, so far no luck. I put them on a 1/4oz mushroom head and stroke them across gravel/rock points and any walleye, smallmouth, or white bass around will let me know pretty shortly.

Yes, I have the same problem. Some days every knot I tie cinches down tight and is super strong, some days I have to tie every one 2 or 3 times before it cinches down good and I can fish again. I can't seem to figure out a good reason why it happens, but it sure does. It's worth the headache to me though because like you said when I get a good knot tied it isn't going to break.

The only time I've found that I prefer straight shank is flipping with straight braid, otherwise it's all EWG hooks for me.