smalljaw67

Did you look at the Yo-Zuri 3DS minnow in the Luminescent Aurora Chartreuse ? That really resembles your description and I'd post a link but the site doesn't allow links from non board sponsors.

I have more than 20 floating rogues and as many suspending models and it isn't an exaggeration and I've only had one break in 20+ years of using them. My one bad one was a chrome/blue back Jim Bitter signature Rogue with Xcalibur rotating treble hooks. What you need to do is contact Smithwick and let them know and hopefully you kept the package handy so you can give them the numbers as they may have a bad batch of lips or glue. Is the bill breaking off leaving a piece of it in the body or is it coming out of the slot in one piece? Are you hitting it on the bottom or off of cover? Which model is it? The model number can be found near the bar code, it will be letters followed by a 4 digit number.

I have a few of them and in my opinion they are an enthusiast bait, I would never suggest them for someone just learning about jerkbaits. I have the regular Vision 110 and the 110 hi-float and I grabbed the high float one time during the early spring/late winter and I can tell you it was the only floating jerkbait I ever caught fish on in cold water. Right now I'd say that if you want a bait that is going to catch fish, you don't need to spend that much money, the RC STX has a similar action, it was copied almost exact and even has the same tight action, the difference is the roll on the 110 is a little more pronounced but that is it. I messed with a lot of jerkbaits and 1 expensive jerkbait I believe you should get is a Lucky Craft Pointer 100 or 78, the reason is they suspend great at a wider range of temperatures than other baits, some baits suspend better in warmer water and other do better in colod water but the Lucky Craft is really good in the 42 to 52 degree range. Now, if you have to ask yourself if the Megabass Vision 110 is worth the money then the answer, for you, is no, because you are looking at it as another lure while a lot of anglers look at it as a functional piece of art with the Japanese mystique and that alone makes it worth the price to some. Don't get me wrong, they work, I purchased mine when I was fishing for smallmouth with a friend and he was catching 4 to my one on a Vision 110, that was all I needed to see and it happens which is why they have such a good reputation. They are fragile, the same guy who showed me how effective they can be also showed me how fragile as he just nicked a rock and broke the bill, so no banging into cover with it for sure. The last thing is about the fish catching, I believe you should have a few different brands because I have had my hat handed to me on a 110 but I also had days where my Smithwick super rogue was outfishing the 110 by a wide margin, and it is because every brand of jerkbait works, they just use different triggering qualities, so get an assortment and if you get a few bucks you can part with, grab a 110 and try it out and make the decision on whether to get more or leave it at 1 but they are a good bait, it just comes down to how much you value form in addition to function.

Jerkbaits are second only to spinnerbaits on my list of favorite baits, they are tremendous fish catchers. Everyone has their favorites and one thing I noticed is that you will be on bodies of water or even just certain days where one bait is getting hammered and any other bait gets ignored. For that reason I believe it is important to have a wide variety of baits but you don't have to spend big bucks, I have expensive baits but I found there are good ones that work at a fraction of the cost. A must have is an X-Rap in the 10 size and the 8 size, you will want to have 1 in olive green and one in glass ghost. The Smithwick Rattlin' Rogue, there are a ton of different models and it makes it confusing but the easy ones to find and work well are the Elite 8 in clown and emerald shiner, and this next one is only available at Cabela's, it is the G-Finish Rogues, get the black glass and Tennessee Shad. The one expensive bait I think is a must have is a Lucky Craft Pointer, some will say that a Megabass Vision 110 should be on a must have list but I don't think so for a beginner, the reason being is that bait is more for an experienced jerkbait angler, and if you are curious you can get the Luck-E-Strike RC STX, they have the same look along with a similar action but the Megbass is built better but it is also 3 times the cost. Anyway, the Lucky Craft Pointer 100 and if you can get a second one it would be a Pointer 78 and if you are going to get 1 color to start, either get Ghost Minnow or Aurora Black, the ghost minnow is very subtle while the Aurora Black is flashy but still natural. Good luck!!!

One knockers are going to be to your liking, the Rapala Clackin' Rap is very good and is completely different than the Xcalibur one knockers. The Cotton Cordell Super Spots I put into low frequency range as well, the reason is they vibrate and make noise at slower retrieve rates than other lipless cranks but you have to make sure you get the right ones. There are the ones they have on sale all the time at Wally World that come in a blister pack, you don't want those, you want the ones that come in a box, the plastic is different and they work at slower speeds, the blister packs are either seconds or purposely made cheaper, I'm not sure but the super spot sold in a box is what you want to look at.

Go to TW and look under hard baits at Yo-Zuri and find the 3DS Minnow, there is a color called "Luminescent Aurora Chartreuse" , I think it may be that because that is an awesome color for a minnow bait.

That is a Yum Craw bug, the reason I say that is I used those after the Mooneyham Mad Man Craw went out. The one difference is the antennae, the Man Man craw tube had longer ones and the color of the bait pictured is crawdad, a color Mad Man didn't have. EDIT: I looked that the wrong picture, the Op's picture is a different color but it is still the Craw bug as the antennae are too short.

It depends on the bass gear but the rod will need to be long and a lighter power, the equipment for that fish is crazy. I went with a friend who uses long whippy spinning rods and what I learned is that bass may or may not be line shy but steelhead, they are line shy big time! We had to use 4lb leaders to get bit, and that was with fluorocarbon, but it isn't just about the fish seeing the line, it is how it hinders the bait from moving and the difference between 4 and 6lb line may not seem like a lot but that little difference was enough to allow the bait to fall a little more naturally and the fish would then bite. They are exciting to catch but it is too finesse for my liking, and I do like some finesse fishing for bass but finesse fishing for bass would be like power fishing for steelhead, that is really finesse.

That requires a special insert and you aren't going to make copies of those, at least not like they come from the factory. The other thing is Paca Craws aren't expensive, you're better of buying them.

You can make RTV or plaster of paris molds easily enough. Go to you tube and check out mold making videos and the give it a shot. I will tell you that if you never poured plastic before you may want to make the molds and give them to someone who makes soft plastics to pour them for you, a lot more to it than just heating it up and pouring into a mold.

I can help you if I knew which kind of spinner, Hildebrandt makes Idaho spinners, the little flicker spinners, snagless sally's and so on. If you just say an in-line that is a size 4.5 it does my no good, it is like saying I want pork for supper, pork loin, pork chops,etc. , my wife would kill me...LOL. Seriously, which in-line and I'll know where to get it.

Are you tying pre made jig or are you pouring, painting, and tying jigs? If you buy the heads then you are tying them, if you're making them you are pouring.

The Curado is over filled and the Tatula is under filled. On the Tatula you'll notice the bevel in the spool, that is where you want your line to go but not over it, the Curado is filled a little over the bevel.

What you have is an experiment, it is a custom spinnerbait that has Dakota Blades instead of the standard willow or Colorado blades you normally see.

I remember when I started catching fish on the Big-O, it was 1983 or 84 and I read an article about how deadly these cranks were so I got some and I didn't get as much as a sniff. So one day me an my fishing buddy from work were out and nothing was happening, and so as I contemplated on what to do, I see a swirl about 10' or 12' off the bank so we tossed T-rigged worms and jigs all around the area with no luck. I was running out of options and so in my box I look and staring me in the face is a chrome with black back Big-O, so I tied it and began to work it. I made the first cast nothing, the second cast and the third and after about the 15th cast or so I was thinking this isn't going to work and that is when it happened. I was about 1/4 way back to the boat when my Big-O hit a stump or a rock but it wasn't a strike, it hit something solid and for a second it felt like my bait turned over on its side but 2 seconds later a solid 16" largemouth inhaled my bait and that is when the light bulb in my head went on and after that I paid more attention to the areas I fished with them. Now what I do is I have a selection that goes from 1' down to about 6' and when fishing a spot between docks that doesn't have any stumps or anything on it I try to gauge the depth, if it is shallow enough that my square bill can hit the bottom then that is what I use but I want it to be able to hit the bottom in area where there isn't any stumps or deadfalls or even rock. Another spot I use them all the time is rip rap, that stuff is great when you get dialed in because it has high and low spots. I normally start within a foot of the bank and work my way out but if you're in the 2' to 3' zone and your reeling in the bait you'll find with rip rap that you'll be going for 10 cranks with no contact then you'll be grinding for a few feet and then no contact and then you'll just graze a rock and that is the trigger, the sudden movement left or right and if one is tracking it that is usually when you get hammered. Don't give up, once you get bit, you'll find you will start catching them, some days nothing can beat a square bill crank.

You should not have a problem with pork trailers, they have a hole that is cut and they can be a pain to take off but you don't need glue with pork.

Your hook wasn't the problem, I try to use the smallest hook possible because it leaves more of the worm free which means more action. Look at 6" finesse worms that are nose hooked with a size 1 octopus hook, bass normally hit the head or the entire worm, if you were missing fish it was most likely due to fish just mouthing the tail and not really interested, I've seen them do that. The hook up ratio on the craw tells me a lot more, it is telling me they wanted the craw so they were eating but more importantly you still missed 2 out of 10 which doesn't normally happen when they are really on. Now, you can go up to a 4/0 hook but remember, the larger the hook the less action and when fish are negative or neutral the fact it has less action could work for you.

I wouldn't mind the cranking rod but the lower power fast action rods seem to act like the JDM style of rods, my buddy stopped by yesterday to show me his MBR 843 and it has too much flex for a fast action rod. He told me the heavy power like the 844 isn't whippy but he needed something a little more versatile and was told by the shop owner that it will fish much better than it feels in hand so we'll see this week how it is but I don't care for the feel of them just holding them so I have to see on the water performance.

I have 2 rods for those and it depends on where I'm throwing them. If I'm on the river or I'm fishing an open water area with no cover or vegetation then I'm using my 6'6" ML-M finesse cranking rod, if I'm fishing cover or rip rap then I'm using a 7'2" M-MF that is rated 3/8oz to 1oz, it is a medium but with the MF action it is a little more stiff and is great for lipless and square bills in rock or cover.

I don't use braid for spinnerbaits and I use them in grass a lot. I also agree braid rips through grass much better than anything else but I need to have a little stretch, not much but more than braid. I'm not the type to knock it before I tried it and I have tried it, braid isn't for me when it comes to spinnerbaits, for me it is a quality mono or copolymer when spinnerbaits are being uses even in grass. The 2 advantages brad has over mono is strength for diameter of line and the way it cuts through grass, that is basically it. Mono on the other hand offer some stretch which means you won't be in much danger of pulling the hook out of the fish and you don't need a leader in clear water so less knots to worry about but I don't see needing a leader with braid for a spinnerbait but a lot will especially in lightly stained or clear water.

I see you are partial to Elegy Bone!!! That is a favorite of mine too!!!

I'm with the 6'6" for spooks! I tried 6'8", 6'9", 6'10" and 7' and I could never get the rhythm down. I also used a 6' and a 6'2" that worked really well with spooks and poppers but 6'6" gives me more casting distance with the same amount of control I get from the shorter rods. My current spook rod is my 2nd cheapest set up, it is a Team Daiwa Advantage on a 1st generation Abu Garcia Vendetta 6'6" M-F, it is a medium that is forgiving enough to fish larger treble hooks with but even though it is rated 1/4oz to 5/8oz I have no trouble throwing a 3/4oz spook on it. I got that rod to try and use it for an all purpose set up in the jon boat as I'm limited to 3 rods max so they have to be versatile. I'll also be honest and say that particular model makes for one awesome topwater rod, it is unique in that it has the backbone of medium heavy but it has the forgiveness of a medium, a big complaint of the Abu Garcia rods is that they are under rated meaning a medium is a medium heavy and while they are a little under rated it isn't quite a medium heavy, I'd say like a light medium heavy if that makes sense. I will tell you that I only use it for large topwaters that use size 4 hooks or larger, the smallest walker I use is a Super Spook Jr. and the smallest popper I use is a Storm Rattlin' Chug Bug because the rod is forgiving enough for those trebles but a little too stiff for smaller size 6 trebles.

It isn't a bad rod, I really like the handles on them but at the $200 dollar price point there are a lot more rods that are better. At $200 they are heavy, heavier than most rods that are 1/2 the price and they use good guides but a lot will argue, myself included, that are the current price they could have put alconites on the rod. I put the GL2 is the same category as the Dobyns Saavy, good rods that are way over priced for what you get, in my opinion I would say the GL2 should be around $100 to $115, then it would be a good rod, at $125 to $140 it is a decent stick. My biggest problem is they made it close to the GL3 in price and the GL3 is a much better rod so if you are going to spend that much why not add a few bucks and go to the GL3. BTW I'm a fan of G.Loomis rods, at one time is was pretty much the only rods I used other than my customs.

Rapala DT Fat 3, Mann's Baby 1 minus and Baby X, Bomber Square A, and the Rapala Fat rap, and they still make them but only in 4 colors. Those are my favorite shallow diving baits for largemouth, mid depth would be the DT-6 and DT-10, DT Flat 7, Bandit 300 series. There are a ton that I really like and what is going to sound strange is there are a lot of baits I like more than the favorites I listed, and before anyone asks why I didn't list baits I really like as a favorite, its because I listed top producers and the baits I reach for when I need to get bit. An example is the Xcalibur XCS square bills, I love the 100 and 200 series, the 100 real craws are killer and it is one of my favorites but the truth of the matter is a DT Fat 3 will out produce it in the waters I fish, the same with that little Bomber Square A, the little bait is 3/8oz, well it is listed as 3/8oz but I can wing it pretty good. Anyway, I will often bang around rip rap the first thing in the morning and if a square bill doesn't get bit after 20 minutes or so, rather than put it away all together I'll tie on the little square A and most of the time I'll get one within the first 10 casts, it may not be a big fish all the time but it draws strikes from both small fish and big ones.

Most rods that snap on people do so because of misuse, plain and simple. The two biggest causes of broken rods when on the water is high sticking and boat flipping fish. I posted a video that demonstrated what high sticking is and even though it showed a fly rod it still applies to conventional rods as well. Boat flipping fish, even when done properly is still wrong, the rods were not designed for that, I mean just because you can hammer a screw into a piece of wood doesn't mean it is right, it just means it can be done. The lightning rod shock has a slower action as it is meant to use with braided line, so if you aren't using braid I wouldn't consider that rod because sensitivity is going to be very low and you may have a difficult time with hook sets because of the slower action. So for $50 bucks there aren't many except for store brands, but there is the Abu Garcia Vengeance series and Cabelas has their exclusive Fenwick Silverhawk rods with Fuji alconite guides on sale for $69.99.