38 Super Fan

Cumberland Lake

A lot of the lakes I fish have all three species in good numbers, but "decent size spots" can be tricky. I catch quite a few little ones though.

I'm into gun collecting and gun forums were the first forums I ever joined years ago. So I stuck with the same screen name when I came here, and on Corvette forum too. A little more in depth, I love the 1911 pistol and own a couple chambered in the less common 38 Super cartridge. The cartridge has an interesting history and is an excellent shooter as well. I always thought the cartridge was underrated, so I wanted to let people know I was a fan.

I'm a 1911 guy, which you may have guessed from my screen name:

If I were trying to make a jerkbait/topwater combo, I'd probably go with yo zuri hybrid for my line choice. I don't like braid at all for a hard jerkbait, for soft jerkbaits it's OK. I don't carry a lot of rods in my little boat, so I've tried to make that same jerk/topwater combo in the past, it never did work very well for me though, so I ended up using two different rods.

Norris was crazy high back in late April, I was down there when it was 7 foot above summer pool, I've never seen it even close to that.

Thanks! That one was on Cumberland. These lakes all look the same don't they?

I'd love to run into some big spots like that. Good luck tomorrow!

Dang jerkbait just keeps on working, I think I'll just start leaving the rest of my stuff at home!

I let my subscription to Bassmaster run out a couple months ago, and I haven't missed it too much.

I heard that! Back when I bank fished a lot I used my spinning gear a lot more. Now I just think of it as gear for anything too light to throw well on a casting reel. But clearly that's not the case for everyone. I'm just not very accurate with a spinning rod, also they take up more space in my little Bass Tracker.

I run into a big post spawner every now and again, but not really often. The early pre-spawn when they very first move up (generally March here) is the best time of year to get the big ones, and numbers of them, here in my neck of the woods.

Aren't small jigs also known as finesse jigs? I got a couple on a jig yesterday, and a few on a buzzbait, so I'm managing to get away from the jerkbait a little bit more. It still caught the majority of my fish yesterday though, and also the biggest fish. Jerking those dang jerkabits hard all day sure can get old! Any change of pace is very welcome.

I just can't seem to catch much of anything unless I'm throwing a hard jerkbait. I'm not complaining, I think I caught over a dozen bass yesterday, and it's been working great for me since January, but I really wanted to become more versatile this year. So far though, I'm more one dimensional than I've ever been. I have managed a little topwater action this year though, this used to be one of my strengths, but was just awful for me last year. So that's been a bright spot, but the jig, spinnerbait, crankbait, and swimbait bites have been almost non existent for me. I even brought a spinning rod a few times this year, but I never did catch a fish with any of that finesse stuff, so I tucked it back away in the garage. I just thought I'd share that, I find it interesting that in 80 degree water, the jerkbait is still my go to lure. Any advice or similar stories of one dimensional anglers are welcome!

Welcome aboard!

I was out on Norris Lake Friday and it was already pretty bad, there's no way I'd go today.

The ones I've seen here always keep their distance. I seem to see at least one snake every trip to the lake this time of year.

Nice! Sounds like quite a lake.

Well done! I figured Cherokee was fishing pretty tough now, it has really come up.

Nearly 100% casting gear for me. I used to use spinning gear all the time, then a few years ago I got bored with it. I've tried to warm back up to finesse fishing, but I just can't do it anymore. I fish deep super clear lakes that are known for finesse fishing too.

I like to fish them pretty quick in summer. A lot of bites will occur on the fall, or right after the jig has reached the bottom anyway. So from there, a lot of the time I'll just slow reel it back in. Or, I'll give the reel a few quick turns of the handle, pause, then keep my rod tip up and let the jig drift back down on a tight line until it hits the bottom, then let it set and maybe shake it a second or two, then reel it quickly for a few turns again and repeat. Crawdads are actually really fast when they want to be, so that's something to keep in mind. Just dragging a jig can definitely work, and you should try it, but sometimes you can waste a lot of time doing that.

Hard jerkbaits for me. They have been my best producers over the past few years. Probably a jig, then a walking bait behind that.

St Croix rod tapers are a little faster than they label them too. So a fast is more like a Extra Fast. I don't care much for an Extra Fast myself, especially when using braid. There's just no flex in the system then, which gives me a very awkward feel, and makes fighting the fish more difficult.

Welcome from Leslie Co.!

Good luck! I'd offer some advice, but I've been doing pretty poorly down there lately. We've had a lot of rain lately, and the lake is really coming up, I'd say that will spread the fish out quite a bit.