ClackerBuzz

I have Lunker City Swimmin' Ribster's on my next TW order list

i tie direct. like bluebasser said with snaps you'll retie less which means lost lures/fish b/c you're not being as aware of nicks in ur line. tying on new lures makes you a good line checker. also swivels pick up algae and weeds like static cling

wow i never thought about it all that much. if i want a winter time edge i just use pork. or maybe add scent to any artificial jig? and if i'm still not catching fish break out the live bait. i feel no shame in using worms or minnows when i can barely feel my hands and have snot frozen on my face (same applies in summer if its my only day off work that week and i want to have fun catching fish).

get a couple cheap and nice baits. why? nothing worse than backlasing an expensive swimbait and watching it sail off into the sunset. think of it for more of a casting learning curve than catching fish. use the cheap ones to learn now to cast heavy lures. the bass will still hit them. with heavier baits (2 oz and up takes most bass anglers out of their comfort zone; catfish experience obviously will help here) you really have to dial in ur drag and pay attention to ur casting strenghts/weaknesses (casting into wind and back handed casts usually aren't most guys strengths). braid cuts like butter during a back lash so using co-poly or mono as ur mainline and/or as a very long leader helps a lot as a backlash shock absorber

i take a nap. no kidding. working lures with too much ADD action can mean little to no bites when the fish want something low and slow. if you put warm sun on anyone's face in my family they are sure to doze off. and that's exactly when i feel a bite. i've been so much more successful since adding a 'power nap' retrieve to my toolbox

lol i suffer from reading too fast dyslexia too Have you heard the one about the dyslexia guy that walked into this bra... Or the dyslexic prostitute? apparently she cooks sock (delete if that doesn't make the p-13 rating). I only dabble in deep cranking and use use braid to fluro leader

yup you'll be amazed how far you can cast 4lb test on a noodle rod. i only have one rod with 4#. my other 3 finesse rods have 6 lb and i change out to an 8 lb leader when needed (with braid as mainline). this is all great advice so the only thing i'll add is working ur lure on slack line ie do not keep constant tension on it. let the line lay on the bottom of the lake in between lure movement. it seems like clear water/skittish fish are far more sensitive to a taut line. in this situation it's better to error on too much slack in ur line so keep a bow. believe it or not you'll still feel the bite. now if you gut hook 3 fish in a row make adjustments (and use this http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/12981-how-do-i-remove-a-hook-a-bass-has-swallowed/page-2) watch Kriet work his shaky on slack line. watch the video's first with sound and then watch a second time with the mute on focusing on just the action of rod tip (i believe that was Flukes great suggestion). Bobby does it with his jigs at 2:28:

he carries his rods in a golf bag?

opps. i just got done cleaning 5 reels and used the star grease on the drags but also the gears... for the 3 yr year in a row so are my gears going to be moving faster or slower once i switch to ardent reel butter? or any other gear grease suggestions?

Every time I log into BR and I see pix of monster bass posted I'm reminded that I'm just a dink whisperer

I feel like fishing retailers are missing out on profits by not offering more off-season sales to us cooped up anglers. seems like there isn't really a sale from Christmas till Memorial day (isn't Presidents day sale next?). I'm sweet on fishing and could use some Valentines chocolate lures. Or drunken St Patty's day bait monkey..? April Fools who spent their entire paycheck on gear..?

now how do you expect companies to sell $2 shaky head jigs with informative posts like that Roger? ur taking food right out of their mouths (i mean mercedes right out of their drive way)

great tips. only thing i'll add is building on what mitch said. hook up ratio is much better with drop shot so i prefer it when getting rocked in 15 mph winds (a lot for my small canoe!) and/or with numb hands in cold weather. the weight is below the lure so the bass hold on longer and basically hook themselves on the small sticky hooks. let alone when you lift the rod tip to move it again.

add fish

you def want to search http://www.ncangler.com/ just type keowee in the search bar. tons of great info on nc but keowee is listed too b/c of border. lots of meet up's too.

11- do not ignore or downplay a bite. remember the location and always think of that spot as a fishy/big bass spot. bite locations are fish holding areas so think of them as good not bad. it's easy to get down b/c u missed a fish but a bite is v-e-r-y important clue that reveals ur in a fish holding location. it's not as important on ponds. but very important when bank fishing lakes/reservoirs etc (and equally important when fishing from kayak or 18ft boat; mark a GPS point if u have a unit). if you got skunked that day but got 4 bites....go back to those 4 locations tomorrow and from that day forward. make them ur priority spots. try to figure out the bite right then and there. cast back immediately with something different (something closely related to what you were doing when you got the bite ie you gave up on ur dead sticking/slow dragging ur senko and just started reeling ur line in when a bass slammed it but he didn't commit. the 'fleeing' bait got a reaction out of the bass. tie on a similar color jig and cast back immediately. dead stick it for 60 sec to get his interest (like the senko did) and then go straight to reeling it back experimenting with slow to fast reaction retrieve, pops, rips etc.

i beat the bank for years and was a certified pond master before moving off shore. ponds are like fishing in a barrel BUT it still take awhile to learn how to: consistently catch fish, catch the biggest fish in the pond and learn how to read what's going on above and below the water. 1 ponds have a feeder stream, either above ground or underground. the feeder stream brings fresh water/oxygen/food. the influx of water during heavy rain and flooding flushes out a pit where they like to hold. there will always be fish hanging there, especially in summer b/c its like air conditioning. you can usually see the feeder creek above ground. if the pond is underground/spring fed the surface area can sill looks 'swampy' ie you won't trek thru that area without waders; you can smell the moisture in the air; there is beaver activity; tall cat tails, bullies etc. 2 the water must exit the pond as well. this area also holds fish but in my experience not as big. 3 streams meander thru a large lake like a snake. they don't have quite the opportunity to zig zag from bank to bank in a small pond. at the very least the underwater stream favorites one side of the pond. this will be the deeper side and it holds better fish. the opposite side is usually shallow, more stagnant water w/ slimy algae on the surface and on the bottom, and tapers very slowly out to the middle. it has stumps and logs jammed in the muck etc. this would be the pond flat or cove side. i always try this area but it produces best during spawn, spring, fall. bass don't worry about predators from above as much in low light conditions so they will be more bold about sitting in this shallow water at dusk/dawn/night fishing or with wind chop on the surface or rain. i hate this area in the summer b/c its the hottest part of the pond w/ no current or wind. but i love fishing it during the cold season b/c the water warms up the fastest so bass sunbath in these pond coves or corners. its hard to get a 'big lure over their head in this shallow water b/c even a 4" senko casts a bald eagle like shadow. i try my normal lures but keep them far off shore to draw the fish out to them. if they aren't chasing or are skiddish i go with a 1/8 Mepps in-line spinner. its the only thing i've found can be cast right over their heads and not spook them from above or below in 12" of water. a lot of times the thumping/vibration from a double willow spinnerbait just scares the crap out of them in stable pond water this shallow. there are aggressive feeding times where they love it so i start big but quickly downsize if i'm just scaring bass. the more you analyze ponds and what's going on above water the easier it become to read whats going on underneath. ponds are more shallow so it's easy to see bass reacting negatively to vibrating lures. learn from their reaction and make adjustments immediately. 4 if there is a dock never walk out onto it b/c you'll spook all the fish on that side of the pond. first stealth cast both sides and then the front from both direction. then slowly tip toe out to access deeper water. never walk directly up to the waters edge. i make my first cast from 10-15ft back. i've seen other guys laugh at me bc i'm elmer fudd but there's nothing better than silently flipping a lure 6ft off shore and having a giant bass smash it. vise versa there's nothing worse than walking right up to the waters edge only to spook a nice bass out to the deep. most guys see the swirling bass take off and think 'oh there's good activity today'. but really you just spooked a bass you could have caught. 5 fan casting is the way to go. i'll fan cast an area and move on. i don't fish, i hunt fish. ur first cast to an area has the best chance of catching the biggest bass and/or the most aggressive bass. so why not relocate often. some guys sit in the same spot all day long. probably bc that's how they were taught to fish. i've literally caught 3 fish approaching a guy...walked around him...and caught 3 more bass as i hiked up shore. he finally came over to ask me what my magic lure was. i know it took alot for him to approach me so i explained the lure changes each day but my hunting/hiking fish style will always be the same. it was probably the last time he used a lawn chair for bass fishing. 6 if ur not catching fish change lures often. if i fan cast 3 different locations with a spinnerbait and don't catch a bass, it's time to change lures. ponds are small so it's easy to locate and/or draw fish in. i'm quick to change lures and go from reaction lure w/ vibration... to reaction w/ no vibration (swim jig/senko/swimbait etc)... to bottom bounding something like a t-rig, c-rig, split shot... to flipping wacky senkos... to dead sticking senkos, drop shot or bottom crawling jigs. you only have so much shore/casting real estate from shore so i'm quick change lures. and i'm quick to slow down my retrieves and/or be patient. 7 analyze what comes back on ur hook. the two best things are green vibrant weeds and/or clean leaves. these areas hold bass so if ur hook comes back with either you are in the right place. the worst thing to bring back is green slim algae=keep hiking up shore. fountains or aerators are also fish magnets b/c of the oxygen/food and cover. i fished a pond for years that had no weeds but it had an aerator. it created an underwater current system and fresh mulched leaves would gather in a nice pocket 30ft away. this is where i always caught the biggest bass. it took a 80ft cast to get out there. if i couldn't draw them back with a reaction bait i would just bombed a jig out and slowly worked it till they crushed it. 8 i hate frogs . no matter how stealth i am, they are better. a frog jumping into the water is like an alarm to bass that gives away my position. if i spook a frog into the water at a good location i wait a few minutes before casting. i just check my text messages, tie my shoe, put on new lure etc. let the spot settle until the bass drops his guard again. 9 use braid mainline with leader of ur choice. i also carry 2 rods and use a fanny pack. One spinning and one casting rod. both have a braid (10lb and 30lb) with yo zuri leaders (6, 8, 12, 15 or 17 lb). i keep a bunch of 12ft leaders wrapped up with a piece of tape around each. it takes up virtually no room and weighs next to nothing yet i'm prepared for any situation. if the cover gets nasty i just remove the leaders and fish straight braid. 10 skip buying ur next two rods and buy a kayak. it will get you off shore and open so many possibilities. so many angles, constant fresh water, access to deeper water, ultra stealth. spring is coming and every box store will have one for under $300. it will change ur fishing life. Good article by Hank Parker on Pond fishing: http://www.bassresource.com/hank-parker-fishing/pond-fishing-tactics.html

it could have been the slight braid difference but more likely ur retrieve was 'off'. stop what ur doing and watch what he is doing with the tip of his rod. sometimes just keeping tension on the line can spook them compared to the guy next to you leaving his line slack. i use hi viz yellow braid with no issues.

on 'big water' i work it like my jig and drop shot....fast until i hit rock bottom or a stump, brush etc. then i slow wayyyyy down and keep it in the fishy zone (little hops keeps it from getting hung up as much). in ponds i just start slow b/c its like fishing in a barrel

nobody was hurt so i there's a part of me that just wants it to be real.

it hurts my brain to think about him doing this for real. it also hurts to think about someone staging this for ratings. it looks awfully real.

buying from the forums can save you 50-75%. i recently bought 3 lots with over $80 of soft plastics for $15 each. yes you can figure out a specific soft plastic color on fisheries. but a lot of places bass will bite any size shape or color plastic you have tied on. that why i love buying up these lots. i have 2 sets of soft plastics: 1organized lot for difficult fisheries where i need simplicity to learn patterns and build confidence. 2 junk lot of plastics for fisheries where will bass eat anything. also got jigs for $1-2 each. $200 rods for $110. $2 strike king spinnerbaits.

i haven't seen the mpg or towing specs on them. is this truck for 90% for commuting? but you don't want to be left in the cold when towing? i tend to agree with something my grandfather used to say: never buy a vehicle based on fuel economy. run the numbers b/c the savings between a 6v and 8v might only be $600 per year. that adds up after 5 years but it could also mean not getting into an accident, stuck on a steep boat ramp, mud etc.

Cool article in his 'Breaking the Rules' series where he lets a 20" tag end on lures and still pulls in fish. (BR member Team9nine. love ur site bro). http://www.bigindianabass.com/big_indiana_bass/2012/06/breaking-the-rules-tag-ends.html

baby steps now so you can give'm hell later.