Bankbeater

My favorite are catfish and muskie. They hit hard and put up a good fight. My least favorite is getting to be warmouth. They bite hard, and then you set the hook and they come flying out of the water.

I fish with the BPS Stik-o and Yum Dingers. These baits work around here when the bass want them.

I thought the only thing I would be needing this year is replacement hooks for some of my crankbaits. A couple of weeks ago my old President finally wore out, and my Daiwa reel that I have been babying along finally gave it up today. I will be looking at new spinning reels and baitcasters tomorrow.

Nice! That smallie is a chunk.

I would take a few dozen pictures of the bass, the scale, the tape measure, and then release the bass back into the water. If word ever got out that a new state record was caught, the lake and the grounds around it would be destroyed. About 20 years ago someone caught a 12 lb largemouth at one of the conservation areas I fish. This is around 1-3/4 pounds from the state record. The person that caught it had it weighed at a certified scale at the conservation site, and of course they took pics of it. They put a pic up at the concession stand and then took the pic down about a week later because of the ruckus it was causing.

If I start breaking the line when I'm tightening down a knot then I put new line on.

I usually have better luck with watermelon red when the water is on the clearer side.

When you feel a bite don't let them go very long. I try and fish with baits that won't sink down too far into the weeds, so the bass have to come out and get the bait. Sometimes they get wrapped up in the weeds, and as long as you keep a tight line on them they can't swim. When this happens you have to go and get them.

No trebles unless I have a straight shot through the weeds. No long casts. I cast wake style baits so they don't dive too deep. Small jigs. Usually around 1/8 size. If the jig snags in the weeds, I reel down and give the rod a quick snap to get it loose. Most of the time it comes free, but sometimes you still drag in a salad. Split shot rig with a straight worm, or weightless. I work it across the top of the vegetation.

That's milfoil. The end of coontail, looks like a raccoon's tail.

My best skill is probably fishing in vegetation. I love fishing in and around matted and submerged vegetation. My worst skill is only focusing on where I am casting or pitching to. I tend to hit a lot of branches I didn't see until I hit them.

No matter what type of lousy day I've had at work, when I get on this site it makes me feel better.

Try fishing around areas that has ground runoff going into the main body of water.

I've been on a roll this year with the crappie. I got this one on a Pop-R cast straight out from the bank.

Jigs Texas rigs Crankbaits

I like to fish a jig vertically round standing timber. I try and get as close as possible to the wood as I can, then I just drop the jig. I let it fall straight down until it hits the bottom,

What is wrong with some people.

@Mike L, Congratulations and good luck!

I've never used the tiny size. The 1/4 ounce size works good this time of year, and the 3/8 ounce size usually starts working when the temps start to cool down. The Mann's worked for me, but I think that the Subwart catches more bass.

6'6" MH/F casting rod, Tatula CT100H, 15# Big Game, 3/0 Gammy EWG hook.

I would work a weightless worm across the surface, or maybe a 1/8 oz. jig. The small jig will pull free of the vegetation pretty easy. Maybe a popping frog if you can get it to stop moving over the holes. I'd also cast a wake bait if you have some straight shots. Don't worry about being seen, and having to make long casts. Those thick weeds will hide you.

Mine are easy. Wear PFD when the motor is on while moving to a new spot. This includes the trolling motor. No standing up while moving to a new spot. No alcohol. No griping. If the thunder gets closer then we go in, I don't care how good they are biting.

Welcome to the forums.

Here is a pic of my 73 Chevy Nova. The first car I ever owned. My parents bought it during the 73 oil embargo because my mom's impala basically just up and died, It had a factory 350 in it, and my folks got a really good deal because of the standard transmission. My mom hated driving a stick in city traffic so when I was old enough they signed it over to me. Wild thing was about three years after I got rid of it, I was driving home from work, and it passed me on the highway.

Either one.