RoLo

As I recall, you also throw a Stanley Ribbit. That's a tough question, I think it depends a lot on bass disposition. Some days my batting average is real good, yet other times it might suck all day. A hollow frog does have the benefit of pausing in place, which can increase the opportunities. In any case, I love toading the scum. My fav is "Hot Feet" (white toad/chartreuse feet) Roger

Looks to be this guy Xenistius californiensis Common name: California Salema (grunt family)

In Lake Huron, I was fighting what I believe was the largest northern pike of my life (including fly-in). The beast jumped 3 times completely out of the water, and I said to my wife "That's A Musky!". I was finally able to pump the tired serpent alongside the boat. I was then ecstatic to see the bean pattern of a pike, which I much preferred to an intermediate musky. Just then my wife did the unthinkable, she momentarily removed the net from the lake to reposition the netting. During that highly anxious moment, my jig fell out of the pike's mouth, and the huge serpent sank slowly out of sight. That was about 30 years ago, and every time it crosses my mind, I still feel that same unhealed, open wound Roger

If you got room in the spaceship, pick up a loaf of whole-wheat bread.

Sorry, I just noticed your post. Yes, it was a new boat, left over. I traded down from a fiberglass Triton to an Alumacraft Classic with Yamaha power. Covid-permitting, she'll be on Lake Ontario in the near future. Roger

Yeah, pound for pound the jack crevalle is one tough monkey Muskies are just big pike. Roger

I don't forsee any problem. Kevlar was the line material that gave braided line a bad name. Kevlar did wear grooves in aluminum oxide inserts, but not polyethylene braid. Roger

Anglers in Pickwick Lake, need to be on a flotsam watch. Roger

IS THIS GOING TO HURT?

I've thrown them both of course, but hang my hat on the safety-pin spinner. In the waters we fish for largemouth, 'weedlessness' is next to godliness. In turbid water with poor clarity, I'll throw a safety-pin spinner with 1 large Colorado blade. That keeps me pretty happy. Roger

I've already gone 6 consecutive days without catching a single bass. That all changed though, when jury duty was over

I’ve used most of the Reaction Innovations plastics, and latched onto 2 of their baits. Their Skinny Dipper is an excellent soft-swimbait, particularly for numbers of bass. The Sweet Beaver is a very good punching trailer, on the order of Missile Baits D Bomb. The name “beaver”, no doubt refers to the broad, flattened ‘Beavertail’.

The choice between rod lengths can get a little tacky, because speed & power move in opposite directions. In other words, the angler is obligated to establish his priorities. As Boomstick mentioned, a longer rod results in higher speed. With respect to hook-setting, many anglers believe that circumferential speed is more important than power. Roger

For sheer "numbers" of bass, you'd be very hard pressed to beat a 6" worm. I typically fish worms larger than 6", but I have no way of knowing for sure, whether large worms attract more large bass, or intimidate more small bass Roger

Berkley discontinued their Havoc line, but the Pit Boss is still available. Funny you should mention Pit Boss. When it was first introduced, I thought it looked laughable. Yet, the Pit Boss has become one of my favorite trailers. Roger

TRUE...but don't you love when that happens (never enough)

My wife & I are rigged-up and ready to roll at all times. We both keep our lures in Velcro lure wrappers, even trebled plugs (not a problem). Before an outing, I just fetch my logbook, install the Lowrance and load the cargo. On the water, I’m 'forever' running my fingers along the line to detect any nicks or frays. As a result, retying takes place mostly on the water. Roger

Shingles?

I had a jackplate on a 24-ft kevlar Hydrasport with a 200 Hp Yamaha. No, I wouldn't opt for another jackplate (the reward didn't justify the outlay). Roger

Even at 50%, that's a great deal of drag tension. 'After' the hook-set, a lightly set drag makes it exponentially harder for a trophy to tear off Roger

More than snapping the line, a more frequent occurrence is the hook tearing out ?

The accepted standard for drag tension is 25 to 30 percent of line test. I've closely adhered to that benchmark for many years, but eventually grew tired of all the redo's caused by every drag tweak made afield. For instance, when horsing a trophy on a short line, I'll often tweak back on drag tension, in anticipation of a boat-side lunge. For the last many years, I've been setting & resetting drag tension afield based on gut-feel, which has served me well. It was Fish Chris who first changed my mind, for those who remember him. Roger

When I launch my rig by myself (almost never), the only change I make to my trailering system, is to attach my dock lines to the boat cleats, so I can hitch the boat while parking the trailer. Roger

The average of which is 6' 9", which is also my target length, opportunity-permitting ? Roger