bugman

You can't beat the CuradoE 7.1:1 for flipping/pitching. This reel is smooth, fast and the HEG gears can crank up a truck.

My brother just gave me three Rebel spoonbill minnows and I would like to know if anyone likes this lure. They seem lite and I thought that one or two storm dots would help out.

Bill leis r-trap & red eye shad also did well with a Yo-zuri in a white craw color late last summer.

Soft bait = Fat Ika (rigged backwards with a 5/0 gammie superline EWG) Hard bait = R-Trap or Red Eye shad

Hey Smallieking, being from Cleveland I'd like to pile on you about the live pointer, lol but I agree that one mans junk is another treasure. By the way do you ever get up to Presque Isle Bay? If so what jerks do you use? Keep catching those smallies on that live pointer. Good Luck

I will be fishing some ledges for prespawn smallmouths this spring and would like to try some deep diving jerkbaits. The ledges are about 15 to 25 feet deep. I would like to get about 10' deep if I can.

I don't have a Kayak but I know that a few fly fishermen fish out of Kayaks on the grand river. You might want to check out some fly shops or steelhead sites to contact other Kayakers. I also see many Kayaks on Ladue but most seem to just be joy riding not fishing. Good Luck

Anyone fish Presque Isle Bay PA yet? Any smallie or pike action yet? I would appriciate any info as I don't want to make the long trip for no reason. Thanks

I'm right handed and only use a right handed bait casting reel. The reason is that I palm my reel with my left hand as soon as I cast. I tried this with a left handed reel and it is more difficult. With the right handed reel I cast with my right hand, palm with my left hand then crank with my right hand. With a left handed reel I would have to cast with my right hand, crank the handle to stop the spool, grip the rod so that I can palm the reel with my right hand then go back and crank with left hand. This may sound confusing but give it a try if you like to palm the reel. I do this because I can control the rod better when palming than holding the rod by the trigger grip. With a spinning outfit I don't palm the reel, so I cast and grip the rod with my right hand and crank with my left hand.

OMG, IMHO I would ask what would KVD do on LSC or PIB. lol Just Kidding! Tubes, Hard jerkbaits, Blades, spinnerbaits and traps on he drop offs can be the ticket. Give the flats at the west end a try also. The pike should also be in the lagoons at that time. Good luck

My dad lives on a lake in central Florida that at best is 10' deep in a few places. 90% of the time he fishes in 3' of water or less. The water is tea stained from decaying vegitation which makes spotting beds tough. Lipless cranks along the K-grass edge and pitching to isolated pads and brush with senkos or light jigs gets most of his fish. Keep your eyes for bait fish out in the open water as schooling bass can be a great chance to get into some fast and furious fishing. Good Luck

Solved the BMF Barb problem! Went to the local hardware store and found a pack of 3/32 poly shrink tubing used for insulating wire. The pack has enough tubing for about 60 hooks and only cost $3.99. They go on real easy. If you are not sure what i'm talking about there is an article in the February 2009 Bass Master mag on Beaver baits that will show the setup.

I picked up a pack of RI BMF Hooks for rigging a Beaver Bait. I see that RI has a shrink tube called the BMF Barb that you slip over the hook then heat. This Barb looks like it should hold the Beaver type bait in place. If you have used this barb please let me know how it works. I looked on the net but could not find any in stock. I was thinking about buying some shrink tubing and making my own. I'm not sure where I could find shrink tubing so any help would be appriciated. Thanks

13 yrs old, I would teach him to cast a spinning outfit. jmho

I have fished the Curado but never the Chronarch because I could not justify the extra cost. Now that the Chronarch B is on clearence at about the same price as the Curado E, I would like your opinion on which reel you think is better.

Look around, I just picked up a St.Croix AC60MHF on clearence for $109.00. I will match it with my Curado e7 I picked up this past fall. I know a 6'6" or 7' is the more popular size for worm/jig but I have always liked the shorter 6' rod myself. I will also pair a e7 with a AC62MXF for weightless plastics & traps. One of the best things about the e7 is that it is a burner but has the cranking power of a slower ratio reel.

I have a St.Croix AVC73MHF that I use for pitch/flip, swimbaits,frogs & C-rigs. I do have different reels that I like to use with the different baits though. I don't think you need a rod for each type of bait but having three or four rods that you can use for different groups of baits works for me.

I had my eye on a St.Croix AC60MHF that was on clearence and the bait monkey finaly got the best of me. I know this will be my T-rig rod and was thinking using it for casting jigs also. Up until now I have only pitched or flipped jig & pig with a flipping stick or light lined a shakey head with a spinning outfit. I'm looking for suggestions on what jigs to use with a horizonal presentation. Thanks

I do alot of steelhead fishing on the Eie tribs and we build leaders in three sections. I use the double surgens knot on all three sections. It's easy to tie and is very strong.

My most productive baits this fall have been traps and hot-n-tots. LM,SM and even a steelhead on Lake Erie rock walls with the Tot.

Here on Lake Erie we use the Drop Shot rig with Goby baits for Smallies about 75% of the time.

Check out the November issue of Bass Master it has a good article on Shaky Head fishing.

On the back cover of the November Bass Master is a ad for a fishing game based on flipping/pitching. This game sells for $99.99, I'll sell you four whipcream tubs and a shoebox foe $19.95. Hurry while supplies last! LOL ;D