RoLo

Nice combo Todd. With that setup I'd probably use a 4/0 Gamakatsu Round-Bend Hook (forged needlepoint - Z-shank keeper - 0.053" wire) Roger

PHEW! What your requesting is very broad-based and would create a book. As my grandmother used to say: "Bite off more than you can chew, and it will grow in your mouth" You'll need to be more specific, for instance, let's address one aquatic plant species at a time. Roger

Judging from your avatar, your preference is 'Indica' (body high) Roger

Before anyone can accurately recommend a 'hook size', they'd need to know a few things: > Assuming it'll be T-rigged, will the worm be fished 'weighted' or 'unweighted'? > What 'sink rate' are you looking for? (very slow - slow - medium - brisk - rapid) > What's the worm diameter and shape where the hook is inserted? (length is immaterial) Roger

Light Ripple to Light Chop We're all keenly aware of every bass that busts the surface, but we're not aware of the many bass that pass-up our lure. Predators seem most reluctant to break water when the surface is calm & mirror-flat, when the flaws in presentation are most conspicuous. All things equal, my favorite surface turbulence for topwater fishing is a light to moderate ripple (during reduced vision). To prevent the lure from getting lost in the shuffle, I make sure that Lure Disturbance is always greater than Water Turbulence. No matter how turbulent the surface becomes, if your lure produces greater disturbance, you are still in the game. But once water turbulence exceeds the disturbance of your most aggressive topwater, it's time to switch to a subsurface lure. Roger

I'm not touching that one

As the members can attest, I fished with spinning gear almost exclusively for many years. Yet in the ocean, I fished with conventional gear almost exclusively (conventional = saltwater casting). Since I've been on both sides of the fence, I can fully understand why an angler might use spinning gear exclusively, or use casting gear exclusively, or better yet, a combination of both (they're both super tools). Fatigue? Well, even at my advanced age, fatigue from spinning gear or casting gear has never been an issue. Fatigue could be the result of flawed technique. Roger

I've dislodged dozens of embedded ticks from my body, but if you discover them during the 1st or 2nd day they won't become engorged with blood. If the tick isn't deeply embedded, we occasionally got them to back out by holding a match nearby or pouring rubbing alcohol on them. Nevertheless, once their head is buried in skin, that will not work. That's when I grab them with a tweezers and YANK them out....that works every time Roger

Very cool. Those are 'fishing-catching' machines" Roger

Years ago I did a lot of woodchuck hunting with a 270 rifle (we called it hog-busting and were welcomed by farmers). Back in the 60s and 70s, the clover fields in Whitehouse, NJ were "teeming" with deer ticks. This was before Lyme Disease made press, so I always came home with a few dozen ticks on my body. Before taking to the fields, I would place an elastic band around the bottom of each pant leg and that did the trick. When I came home in the evening, there'd be a dozen or more ticks around the bottom of each ankle band. Granted, I was young, dumb and impetuous back then, and would take more precautionary measures today, but a couple of ticks is nothing to freak-out about. Roger

Exactly, otherwise you'll be playing switch-hands all day Roger

Hootie, do you cast with your right-arm or left arm? If you're right-handed, do you pass your rod to your left hand after every cast? I'm right-handed, and for years I fished with reels with a right-side crank, but offshore fishing caused me to switch. With a left-side crank, the power arm of a right-handed angler is always available for 'casting', 'hook-setting' & 'pumping big fish' to the boat (the left hand just takes up slack line). Roger

2011 Honda Pilot 4WD (250 hp) Roger

It's important to make the distinction between 'water depth' and 'bass depth'. Although the water depth may be 20 feet, bass may be suspended 5 ft below the surface. In any case, unless there is surface activity, I rarely fish surface lures in water deeper than 6 feet. (BTW: A smallmouth bass will rise a lot higher and a lot faster than a largemouth bass) Roger

I agree with Dwight, 'stiffness' rather than 'smoothness' is what reduces wind-knots (if that's your concern). For this reason, the heavier the 'line-test' the stiffer the line, the fewer the wind-knots. I use '30-lb' braid when I'm serious, so wind-knots and line-burrowing aren't an issue, even with limp Trilene braid, another 8-member braid. Roger

When you guys say "100", you really mean "101", right? Can't be that many southpaws on the forum. Roger

I'm with you, I also prefer northern pike to walleyes. I'm sure you'll find that bass flesh is right up there with northern pike and chain pickerel. In addition, bass are a snap to fillet, which don't have them pesky 'Y' bones to carve around Roger

Really couldn't tell you, but it makes great webbing for my tennis rackets

No words can describe my day, but there are many hand gestures that can ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I must be emotionally constipated, because I haven't given a crap all week. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A successful marriage is like a "workshop", where the husband Works & the wife Shops ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Life is short, 'Smile' while you still have teeth. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Occasionally I'll drink of glass of water, just to surprise my liver ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roger

That's definitely a warmouth, which are definitely aggressive and definitely strike bass lures. As Kevin pointed out, warmouth are often confused with green sunfish. Colors may vary but the 'cheeks' are the best place to look for quick positive ID:. > Warmouth: A few brownish cheek-stripes fan-out at eye level > Green Sunfish: A few squiggly blue cheek-lines run beneath the eyes. Roger

In reality, you'll find that most brands of braid are quite similar, it boils down to personal preference. I've used Power-Pro Braid for several seasons but eventually switched to Berkley Trilene Braid (I won't go into detail) Trilene Braid consists of 8 braided strands similar to Sufix 832. However, Trilene braid is not offered in 15-lb test, so I have one outfit rigged with 15-lb Sufix 832. Roger

If we're looking for a lure with fast area-coverage, the 'crankbait' has few rivals. Nevertheless, if your chucking crankbaits when bass are groveling on the lake floor, your "search" is predestined to fail. This takes us full-circle, back to the gray matter between our ears Roger

That's a fact. It was a day with temps in the mid 90s, when I realized that I was cooler in a long-sleeved polyester shirt, than I'd be in a short-sleeved cotton shirt, which I used to wear. Roger

I think you nailed it Bob. Other than over-cooking, there are two other possibilities: > Someone who simply doesn't like fish......unless it tastes like chicken (that would describe my brother) > Eating bass caught from a sewage treatment plant =========================================================================== I've eaten catfish that tasted like 'mud', and crappies that were completely 'tasteless', but I don't remember any bass tasting like 'grass' (they're carnivores, by the way). Frankly the worst tasting fish I encounter is always in a restaurant, not home-cooked fish, I couldn't describe the terrible taste of some fish served in restaurants, but 'grassy' would be a compliment. Roger

The botanical name is "Potamogeton", the common name is 'pondweed'. In the northern states and Canada the local moniker for pondweed is 'cabbage', but in the southern states and Florida it's called 'peppergrass'. This plant is a good example why biologists only use scientific names. Roger