RoLo

I'll drink to that The vast majority of my most productive holding sites were found at home on a contour map and not on the lake. It doesn't matter if the lake is 2,000 miles away (last year it came close), I'll painstakingly select the most promising trial sites based on bottom contour, inlets, outlets, shoreline configuration and the like. Once I reach the lake, nearly all my time on the water will be spent evaluating the "cover" at each trial site. Some sites will immediately be eliminated, others will be upgraded, but most of the lake's area will be totally ignored. Roger

To my mind, the greatest 'trick' performed by the Trick Worm is that it looks, feels and acts like a "Plastic Worm". If you broadly classify all long, slender plastic lures as "worms", then hands-down, plastic worms have caught more bass than any other lure. There are countless ways to fish a plastic worm, simply because it's so difficult to fish them wrong. A lure manufacturer has only to introduce a 'new kink' to a long, slender plastic lure, and it'll have a high likelihood of becoming the next barnburner. It all started with Nick Creme's Scoundrel in 1951, then called a "rubber worm". A nightmarish contraption with red beads and internal spinners, the Creme worm was a dynamite bass killer! Then in 1967, Johnny Mann senior introduced Manns Jelly Worm, a softer composition with no bells-&-whistles. In fairly rapid succession, the baton was passed to Berkley Power Worm, Ditto Gator Tail, Mister Twister Phenom, Lunker City Slug-Go, Brewers Slider Worm, Gambler Ribbon Tail, Yamamoto Senko, Zoom Finesse Worm and Zoom Trick Worm. Every plastic worm catches bass and every worm maintains a separatist faction of anglers who continue to fish that worm with confidence. For instance, I'm still partial to the Original Culprit Worm, and although stick worms like the Senko are great, the Culprit Worm still maintains a comfortable lead. Roger

I'm partial to the 1/4 oz Outkast Swim Jig with a Zoom Big Critter Craw. I don't swim the jig, but prefer the swim-jig's ability to slide through the vegees. Roger

Instead of trying to mimic the colors of local crayfish, I'm more concerned with lure visibility. Ironically, crayfish display nearly every primary color there is, so we'd have trouble not using crayfish colors if we tried. For visibility sake, I like to mix a dark and light color, that way I'm never more than half wrong under any lighting conditions. I'm not sure what bass prefer, but I like plastic craws with a Green-Pumpkin body and Orange claws, or a Pumpkin body with Chartreuse claws, or a Black body w/ Chartreuse claws, et al. In the final analysis, we probably worry about color more than bass Roger

I've probably spent more time in saltwater than I have in freshwater. I wasn't going to respond, but posts by Lowe Budget Hookers & Panamoka_Bassin struck a chord that only the ocean can ignite. Below is a partial list of saltwater species I boated in New Jersey (I excluded Florida so the list could end): Local Moniker True Name Flounder Winter Flounder Fluke Summer Flounder Kingfish Northern Kingfish (King Mackerel are not true kingfish) Porgy Jolthead Porgy Seabass Black Seabass Blackfish Tautog (squeteague in New England) Whiting Silver Hake Ling Red Hake Black Drum Black Drum (related to Red Drum [redfish]) Boston Mackerel Name was changed to Atlantic Mackerel Weakfish Gray Weakfish (similar to spotted seatrout of Florida) Bluefish Bluefish Striper Striped Bass Skipjack Skipjack Tuna (chum) False Albacore Little Tunny (not a typo) Bonito Atlantic Bonito Yellowfin Tuna Yellowfin Tuna Bluefin Tuna Bluefin Tuna (money fish) Dolphin Common Dolphinfish Blue Shark Blue Shark (tube shark) Brown Shark Brown Shark Hammerhead Hammerhead Shark Mako Mako Shark (never caught a tiger or white shark) Roger

Thanks a bunch gang for all your kind words, they're truly appreciated. As LBH stated, it seems I put a few too many irons in the fire :-[ I'm really looking forward to getting back in here, full-time. It WAS Gary???? Hey fellows, let's hear it for the Mods, they don't come any finer Roger

I just wanted to stop in say hello to everyone. Sorry I couldn't make the Fork Outing, but from what I've read, the boys and girls had a really Great Time! I think we could sell the "Muddy Saga" to Jay Leno (The Glenn & Keri account laid me out). Since my long radio-silence, I see a bunch of new names on the roster...Way To Go! Now that I've fallen out-of-the-loop, there's got to be a bunch of members saying, "Who the HECK is he?" Otherwise, everything else looks pretty much the same. I see that Roadwarrior is still pushing the "Senko". I could be wrong, but I seen him fishing the other day with a guy that looked just like Gary ;D After I clean up a few loose ends fellows, I'm really looking forward to getting back on the forum. I miss the lively interaction, and not only that, but you guys have had it too good lately Roger

The front of the boat is fine as long as the transducer stays under the water. Position the tranducer interface so the leading edge is about 1/16" higher than the trailing edge (assures good water pressure). If mounted dead parallel or tail-up, the transducer tends to cavitate at higher speeds and may obliterate readings underway. You may alternatively mount the tranducer inboard, provided the interface is surrounded by a pool of water (shoots through the hull) I personally would not bother with the fish ID icons (fool's gold), but learn the look-and-feel of those arched lines. Roger

Yum Crawbug (hollow) and Zoom Big Critter Craw (solid) Whatever color elicits the greatest confidence. Roger

5-turn Uni-knot

I wholeheartedly agree: Shimano Symetre 750 Front-Drag (SSY750FI) Roger

It sounds like you boys had a really Great Time!!!!! I can honestly say that I've thought about you guys every day. Hurry back and fill us in Roger

Gambler Ugly Otter Roger

You make a good point, 0119 To my mind at least, bass in a neutral disposition are more inclined NOT to sieze a lure, so the most positive influence would be a morsel that makes Slow Vulnerable progress and spends a lot of time within easy striking distance. By itself, I can't imagine that fine-diameter fluorocarbon line will light the fire of bass in a neutral to negative mood. In any case, the debate rages on Roger

> Can bass see my braided line? I can see fluorocarbon line, and bass have better eyesight than me > Does it matter? Bass swallow far stranger-looking things than a fine filament of line. Bass are known to strike shiny snaps, wire leader and small globular floats, purely out of curiosity. The stomach contents of bass have revealed ignition keys, the foil from cigarette packs and bottle caps. It's unthinkable that a hungry bass would pass up a meal because of a slender strand of spaghetti. On the other hand, comparing small diameter line to heavy diameter line is a whole other ball game. The larger the line diameter the greater the line drag, and the more it disrupts the natural action of the lure, but this has nothing at all to do with 'line visibility'. Roger

I almost wish this topic hasn't come up, because I'm an incorrigible fan of Daiwa rods The problem is, my wife fishes too, so if I succumb to a Steez outfit, I'll have to buy TWO combos! > Roger

Chartreuse Crawdad (1/2 oz Bill Lewis) Roger

With respect to bass location, weeds are normally the most important feature in the majority of "natural lakes". However, most manmade impoundments lack robust natural weed growth, as a result, river channels and creek channels are the single most important feature for bass location in artificial reservoirs (followed distantly by wood). Although channel edges act like magnets to bass, I don't subscribe to the Buck Perry theory of migration routes, where channels serve as highways and byways for visual bass migration. It is my firm believe that seasonal shifts involve movements that run "perpendicular" to the depth lines (contour lines), rather than parallel to the depth lines. If a bedding flat adjoins a channel edge that drops off into water 25 feet or more, it may well serve as a 'year-round site'. The "channels" in an artificial reservoir (river & creek) offer two distinct advantages for gamefish. 1. The channel offers rapid depth change if it's traversed perpendicular to the depth lines (particularly important in winter). 2. Channels are conduits for water current, which is a huge asset and commonly play host to baitfish migrations. I personally would not spend anytime in a channel that crests more than 30 feet deep. Though many would argue that they've caught bass deeper than 30 feet, that's not the same as playing the odds. Instead, I would continue following the creek channel into the back-end of the creek arm until the channel ledge crests in water between 5 & 20 ft deep. The basin of the channel can be ANY depth (300 ft is okay) because bass are relating to the drop-off at the top ledge, not the basin. Roger

A Pocket Fisherman might be handy for a motorcyclist. Roger

Back-to-back Uni-knots will join anything-to-anything. Roger

You beat me to it Matt Roger

Poppers and chuggers are FAR from crankbaits!

Good point Brad. Used as a "surface" lure, I'm one of the few anglers who's not entralled with the zoom horny toad. The horny toad does not float, so it enforces a faster retrieve than I prefer to use on the surface. In any case, I like your follow-up concept, and intend to give that a try. Roger

I'll say, they're not even in Danny Joe's catalog! Roger

Because I'm having trouble finding 100-lb braid Roger