Will Wetline

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Solid-Oak-Rod-Racks/737572.uts?productVariantId=1191932&srccode=cii_17588969&cpncode=39-17141454-2&WT.tsrc=CSE&WT.mc_id=GoogleProductAds&WT.z_mc_id1=00007713&rid=20 I think these are still available. It's a furniture quality solid oak rack. I bought a second one when they had a sale a couple of years ago.

Yes. They work.

I've been fishing Shimano Stradics for close to 20 years.

Besides being the fastest fish in freshwater, steelhead are berserk!

*Hootie! I had that same Old Pal box in the mid '60s! Goose52, Being 62 too, my memory is fading . . . but I do think that in a box in the back of a closet lives a Plummer Frog with a melted leg. I think.

Duo Realis Spin Bait 80 Gene Larew 4.3" Biffle Bug on a football swing jig from Do-It's mold Clear water smallies showed considerable interest in these, especially the Spin Bait.

What a fabulous experience. Thanks for the many pics and details.

Cotton Cordell 2 1/4" Big O in chrome for clear water smallies

If you hadn't said, I never would have guessed it was your first attempt - they are exceptionally good for a first batch and all will catch fish. Now, as you've no doubt noted, you see how thread pressure flares the material and how it will move around the hook shank as well. Take your time, think through each step and practice, practice, practice.

5.8 ibs, Caught on a Lucky Craft Pointer 100.

I have heard that braid with a short fluoro leader does not work. It may be that the braid dampens the subtle rolling action. Before fishing the Spin Bait 80 I researched videos and articles quite a bit and found only one comment about braid - and that was to use a 20' fluoro leader. A friend who fishes the same water used braid with a short fluoro leader and did nada in three trips. I had great success last year with 6 lb. fluoro and a 7' ML rod. Reel slowly without imparting any extra action and keep your rod tip low. This technique does take patience but you too may find it well worth it.

Again: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/140083-clear-water-smallies-on-the-first-day-of-summer-62114/

My understanding is that the Jika rig was designed for and excels at mat punching. I was intrigued by the concept of this rig because it would give any bait more movement so I made a few for the 2012 season. I did catch fish on it but ran into the problem you foresaw - the rig getting fouled by algae as the season progressed. When the bottom of the clear water lake I fish for smallies gets covered with slime I go to a presentation that keeps the bait clean: top water of course when conditions are right, a crank or spinnerbait, a dropshot rig cast and retrieved with 14" - 18" of line between the bait and the weight, a wacky rigged soft stickbait twitched over the bottom and, last year, did very well with a Duo Realis Spin Bait 80. I've gotten way off topic with this lengthy response . . . Try the Jika but once the bottom gets algae covered consider the many other presentations in your box to offer the fishes.

This bucktail jig is dressed with an Uncle Josh Spinning Strip which I ordered direct since I couldn't find it elsewhere. Water temp. was in the mid 40ºs and I was dragging it slowly, which is important when the water is that cold. Earlier in the day however, I had taken a 4 1/2 lb. LM on a cinnamon/black flake GYCB Hula Grub. So go figure what is the most important component of presentation in early pre spawn waters. I'd say slow speed with pauses.

After one season the Duo Realis Spin Bait 80 made my go-to list of baits for clear water smallies. You must be a patient angler and retrieve this bait slowly and steadily - if running and gunning and throwing reaction baits is your style the Spin Bait is not for you. Also important to success with this strange looking lure is a precise balance of components: a 7' ML rod and 6 lb. fluoro. (I used Sunline Super FC Sniper.) will give you a presentation that maximizes this bait's effectiveness. You may be interested in this post from last year: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/140083-clear-water-smallies-on-the-first-day-of-summer-62114/ Here are a couple of photos to further whet your appetite:

That is fine work.

That's good advice WRB offers: See if you can make a trip with someone experienced in the techniques you want to learn. Then observe closely and ask lots of questions. Too, are you sure that you're working an area that's holding fish? That, of course, is the first question to ask regardless of presentation. Jigs and T-rigged plastics are go-tos when the fish aren't active enough to bust a reaction bait. I suspect that many of us - self included - fish too fast at times. Have patience. Drag and pause your offering. Don't rush. See how that works.

I dress jigs with bucktail for cold water smallies. I buy the bucktail from Barlow's or another supplier and it doesn't have an odor. Here's a video I found helpful for handling the bucktail: and here's an article I wrote for BR last winter: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/135465-bucktail-jigs-for-smallmouth-bass/

I fish clear water for smallmouth and I was happily surprised at the number and size of the smallies that the Duo Realis Spin Bait 80 produced.

Thoughts of that trip will warm you throughout the winter. Enjoyed the video, A-Jay.

I've been researching this unit since I fish from a rental boat. What I've read is pretty much the same as the comments above. Here are a few pics: http://www.roguefin.com/humminbird-fishin-buddy-portable-fishfinder-review-part-1/ Plenty of reviews on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Humminbird-Fishin-3-5-Inch-Waterproof-Fishfinder/dp/B0012ITCDK#productDetails

I've been thinking about ways to attach a skirt since I got the Do-It mold. Here's something I put together with a Gamakatsu 584 hook, Bio-Silk skirt material and a 5" GYCB trailer: I haven't fished this yet but see no reason why it wouldn't get eaten. Since I like to make/modify baits I'll certainly try it but doubt it would produce significantly better than a Hula Grub. . . . Speaking of Hula Grubs or any other soft plastic bait on the Swing Football Jig connected to an EWG hook, has anyone tried cutting a rubber skirt collar to fit on the short vertical part of the hook shank and used a drop of Loctite Gel between it and the bottom of the bait to help prevent the bait from sliding down the shank? Gotta laugh when I think about all this rigging rigamarole - I caught bass with the baits and weights available 40 years ago! Still having fun, hey.

You da man in Maine!

I like it. Smallies like it. I cast the Football Swing Jig from Do-It's mold and it does come through rocks well.

Note the Super Spook Jr. in the lip of this smallie. Gear was a 6' 6" MF rod, 10 lb. copolymer line. Wait for the weight before you set - a couple of seconds.