K_Mac

While football jigs are designed to be fished in rocks, grass jigs through grass, swim jigs swum , and an arkie kind of a general purpose, at the end of the day a jig is just a jig. Sometimes subtle differences are important as 00 mod's post shows, but size, presentation, and color are for more important than head shape most of the time in my opinion. I have caught good fish swimming a 1/2 oz football jig down a rocky slope...

The SX is a nice reel. A friend just bought a couple, and I used one to pitch with for a few minutes the other day. I liked it. I just added a fourth BPS Pro Qualifier to my collection. At $80 it is a very good value. I don't know if it matches as far as color goes. It has never occurred to me to worry about color when selecting rods or reels.

Many of the pros have endorsed all sorts of junk. I don't really blame them too much. They are just trying to make a living. I just am careful what I buy. KVD is a very smart guy, and as for as I know, everything that has his name on it is a good quality product at a fair price. I know that when you are at the top it is easier to discriminate when choosing sponsors, but he has won my respect as a fisherman and as an honest guy. Whether or not his signature stuff is worth what you have to pay is a personal decision.

My favorite lake has a slot limit that allows anglers to keep 5 fish under 14" and one over 18". It has a very healthy bass population and we catch many fish over 18". I would be OK with not allowing any bigger fish to be kept, but the slot limit seems to be working fine.

I am a big supporter of catch and release. I have no illusions that all released fish survive though, and understand that selective harvest of fish is a good thing on many bodies of water. I get tired of the derisive comments about people who keep fish. Fishing is a blood sport, and while I think education regarding catch and release, and enforcement of creel limits is important to maintain healthy fisheries, I accept the reality that some fish die as a result of my catching them. As I said in the other "bucket fisherman" thread, within the limits of the law, "they" have every right to keep their catch. It is the revenue generated by fishermen that supports stocking and management of public waters.

TW has it in one gallon bottles.

The "bucket fisherman" who keep fish within the limits of the law have every right to do so. Not giving them your fish is completely reasonable, but condemning anyone for doing something that is legal to do, whether they are Latino, European, Asian, Eastern, Western, Northern, Southern, just like you , or very different is a waste of energy. I once kept some small bluegill from a local lake to fry for my parents. It was all we could catch, and was the last time I had the chance to do it. If you would have told me to get food stamps instead of keeping legal fish, you would not have liked my response.

Roadwarrior has posted this many times over the years. It is very good advice.

Funny you bring this up. I made my version of a cut tail from some ribbon tail worms Tuesday evening. I had run out of beavers and only had worms in the right color. They wanted a smaller bait. When I cut down the worms everything was good again. Modifying plastics is a great way of adapting to conditions and saving money.

12# CXX for small to medium jigs and worms. 15# CXX for heavier jigs/hooks, bigger worms, deeper water, or heavier cover. The actual breaking strength of these lines is much higher than the rating.

The combo you now have will probably work well for spinnerbaits, but not so much for cranks. A good multi-purpose spinnerbait rod will make a decent worm/jig rod, but for cranks not so much. A dedicated crankbait rod will work well for cranks...see where I'm going here? EDIT: I just noticed this is your first post. Welcome to the forum. There is much great info available in the articles section that is worth a look. Enjoy!

Hooked and lost! I lost a monster last Monday as my wife tried to net it (on a Bandit 100 crank). My wife was more upset than me. Knowing there are big girls in the area is good information. I also learned I probably should have been using a softer rod. It's all good, and is all part of what makes fishing great IMO. EDIT: I am now using a softer rod

All excellent suggestions. I would add one more: don't overlook areas inside the grass line. We caught the better fish yesterday pitching T-rigged beavers to cover inside the grass. The filamentous algae is a serious pain when mixed with coontail without a doubt, but don't let it keep you from going after the fish that are hanging out in there.

Have you priced 2x4s lately?! And while I'm at it, I just returned from the grocery store where I paid $2.69 for a cantaloupe and $2.99 each for a couple of watermelons that were not much bigger than the cantaloupe! Kind of puts tackle prices in perspective... OK I feel a little better now.

Been there, done that as far as keys and locksmith. All is well that ends well. That is the kind of meal that makes a man glad to be alive, and and a happy wife is something that is hard to put a price on. Good job and congrats on 9 years.

It takes a little time to learn to use a spinning reel properly. First, 17# mono is way too heavy for any reel sized for bass fishing. I use 6# copolymer (CXX) on my spinning reels with good success. 8# Stren should be fine. Second, how you spool line on the reel is important. Laying the spool flat and reeling it on to your reel so that it doesn't twist is key. If after a few turns of the handle the line wants to twist, turn the spool over and try again. You can always let it trail behind the boat or in the yard to remove excessive twist . Third, learning to stop the line as you bait touches down will make line management much easier. I use my index finger to feather the line and control distance, or you can do the same with your other hand. Fourth, as the bait touches down lift the tip of the rod slightly and close the bail with your other hand. This will minimize twisting and make life much happier. Finally, do not continue to crank when the drag is slipping. Doing so will twist the snot out of your line. Following these step will become second nature in short order and will make spinning reels much less of a pain.Good luck.

While wind is a pain, often the fishing makes up for it and there are usually some spots that are fishable even in heavy wind. I'm with 200racing: cold, muddy water or oppressive heat and humidity take the fun out of fishing for me.

Tom D. with all due respect, I completely disagree with this view. What I choose to buy may be a reflection of my values when comes to material things, or it may just be a reflection of my financial success or lack of success. In either case these are superficial issues in my opinion. Who I am as a person has very little to do with the content of my rod locker. What a person owns is a very poor indicator of who they are in my experience.

BB it was not from anything you said. I have been reading posts on this board for a long time, and that sentiment is often thinly veiled. PM me if you wish.

I continue to read comments about saving until the exact combo wanted can be purchased. While this is a fine practice in all aspects of life, sometimes it is an ego driven comment implying that those of us who have several "inferior" combos are not as enlightened. I enjoy having several combos. Yes I could have a couple high-end rigs instead, but I have made my choice based on cost, how I fish and the benefits of having different combos for specific purposes. I have made an informed decision to use lower priced gear. Having one combo as half of my investment in gear is not something I choose to do. I do not have contempt for the guy with guy $100K or more in boat and gear. I do not look down on the guy with a Zebco fishing from the bank. If I out-fish a friend with a new glass boat or win a tourney from my tin boat all that means is I had a better day. It tickles me that Bassn Blvd can afford to buy nice stuff and is unapologetic about it. That is the way it should be. I am unapologetic about using lower-end stuff. Judge me by what I say and do, not what I own.

I caught a couple crappie the other day while bass fishing. I was not offended by this...

You may be able to find the original post from several years back in which Roadwarrior said that night fishing is just like day fishing only darker, or something to that effect. I think this in large part true. Using what worked during the day is a good place to start. Conventional wisdom is that darker colors are easier for the fish to see in low-light hours. I love fishing a big jig or worm at night. Bouncing a single colorado blade spinnerbait like a jig, or slow rolling it just off the bottom has also worked well. A buzzbait, jitterbug, spook, or something else on top works as well.There is nothing like setting the hook on a big fish at night. The adrenaline rush is very cool. Good luck!

I have three BPS Pro Qualifier reels that between me and my wife get a lot of use. They have worked flawlessly since day one. At that price range they are a very good value in my opinion.

Because of ongoing medical expenses my disposable income is limited. For this reason I have to carefully weigh the benefits of quality verses price. Most of my gear is in the lower to mid-range on the price continuum. It is, I believe, a reasonable compromise that is "good enough". With that said, I have used enough high-end gear to know there is a difference. If I could afford to invest in better equipment, or made a living fishing I would have the best available. There are those who will argue that all that matters is talent and skill, and cheap gear is as good as any. It is not. There are others who will argue that high-end gear is necessary to be a good fisherman. It is not. At the extremes one camp says, "My Ugly stick is as good as your NRX, and spending that much on a rod is silly". The other camp says, "Fishing with an Ugly Stick is foolish and no serious bass fisherman uses anything but the best". Both of these views are egocentric. For most of us fishing is about having a good time. We come to this site to learn what's the latest and greatest in the world of bass fishing; what we do with that information is a personal choice...

SirSnook, I used to run around with a guy who was lousy at cards, pool, golf, darts, and anything else you could come up with. Funny thing was, he always seemed to win the money, drinks, or whatever was being wagered...some guys are just lucky that way.