MarkH024

I would love to participate and take someone on my boat, even you Hooah. Unfortunately for me, we're having my twins 1st birthday party on that day so I'm stuck in IL that weekend. If you go, let us know how it turns out. I bet it will be a great event.

What sets it apart from all the other spinnerbaits out there?

Do it. You won't regret it.

I haven't read through this entire thread...but if not mentioned already, I cut the ends of a q-tips off and place them in each section of my hooks in all my boxes not just terminal. That cotton swap absorbs the moisture or water that drips down. Works great. Anything that has developed rust has been my lack of observation.

The longer they are short of oxygen...the more fatigued they become. Just because you see them swim off, doesn't always mean they won't go belly up. They may be so wiped from the fight and then the extensive time of picture taking that they keel over after release even after they swam off. Yea, they can be out probably a bit longer than the hold your breath method, but like Hooah said, better safe than sorry. Protect our sport at all costs. Best bet is to have your camera, pliers and everything else in spot that easy easily accessible to limit the time you need for a picture. I have all of mine on the deck of the boat so there is no scrambling to get it done.

X2. I have the same rod. It is AWESOME!

Very sorry to hear that. I agree and echo all that you have said.

I have the SK S11 Atlantic in amber. Awesome glasses that wont empty your wallet. Highly recommend them. I prefer amber because they're effective in all lighting conditions. Even at dusk you can see pretty well into shallow water.

Well you missed out. Spring classic at BPS has their boxes 3 for $10. I bought a bunch of the 3700 sizes. You can hold out until next year or fork up the cash. I don't know of any cheaper off brand. All brands seem pretty competitive.

Just a quick report. Got up to my place on Friday afternoon. First time I took my 1 year old twin boys up to the house. Man that was a lot of work itself. Anyway by the time I got them to bed and the boat in the water I was pressed with only about an hour to two hours of fishing time. I expected the lily pads to be grown in a lot more than they were. I started tossing around a Live Target Frog and the lake was on fire. Had a few short strikes so I slowed up on the retrieve and made my frog sit a bit longer than normal. I hit the "power hour" as I like to call it at dusk. I nailed 7 largemouth in less than 1 hour. All in the 16-18 range. Nothing to brag about but a lot of fun! A pretty big cold front passed through Sat-Monday, with Monday being the worst. Water temps Friday were 73, then dropped into the mid 60's the rest of the weekend. It really shut it down so i reverted back to throwing a fluke and a dropshot. The fluke produced a few more largemouth but all in the 12-14" range. Nothing great. The dropshot only seemed to be appealing to the little guys as it didn't score anything big. Overall, a good weekend of fishing with the limited time I had out on the water. I was only able to stay out for an hour or 2 at a time with having my boys up there. Can't wait to get them out there one day. Oh, and the last night my fiance and I were having a cocktail and throwing a frog and swimbait around.......and someone actually enjoyed herself tossing a bait around. Overall.......a great weekend of family and fishing. Here are some pics of Friday night action. I was in such a hurry I forgot my GoPro in the house and had to revert to my cell phone. DOH!

I'll participate but I rarely fish here in IL. I haven't even caught an IL fish yet this year. Like Slonezp, the brownies would probably be best bet for me.

I killed them with a LT Frog this past weekend. Definitely switch to braid as your hook ups will significantly increase. I was throwing it on 40#. I don't mess with the hooks or anything and I landed just about every fish. The ones that missed, which was only 2 I think..........missed the frog completely. It happens.

I have the transom saver bracket on my motor (Evinrude) and I bungee the motor tight to the rings on the back end when I tow. What ever method you do choose, it's important to know whether or not the motor is actually bouncing up and down because that could crack your transom. I'm amazed on how many guys who own boats don't know this.

You need a reason for a company to want to sponsor you. Whether your skills as a business man or your wins on tournament trails. Bottom line, they want someone to sell their products. You need to know the in's and out's of EVERYTHING that company sells or does. So when approaching a sponsor, it is in your best interest to know everything you can about them. What they expect is you working for them. Going to shows, going to seminars, going to store openings etc etc.... It's not just free candy they give out, they expect your hard work and time in return. It's all about work ethic and being able to sell their product/business.

Nice video man, thanks for sharing. Mind sharing the editing software you use? Did you use Trixtor for the super slow motion when holding the fish?

Way to go man! Those are some beauties! Like Steve said they are sores and bruises from spawn.

They are on sale when they do the Bassmaster Classic sale. I got a Chronarch for $50 off. I believe the sale is %25 during the classic.

Oh I already have confidence in them. I love to throw swim jigs and these look amazing. I'm getting on the road in a couple hours and hopefully I'll have one in the boat on my first NSCB jig soon.

For a baitcaster, you're going to want to be in the 20-50# sizes for manageability. The smaller the diameter line, the more likely it is to dig into itself causing backlashes and other issues. Safely, consider PP braid in the 30# or 40# size to start with. Back half your spool with a cheap monofilament so you don't waste a ton of braid on the bottom half of the spool.

When you go get it from the store you have every right to inspect it. if you don't like it, you tell them to ship you another one. Like others said, I'd go for the Medium action. It will better serve you for the fishing you want to do.

I have mine on the same rod, except with 20# PP. I can launch a caffeine shad into outer space. The drag is incredibly smooth as you stated. I got mine on ebay (used lightly) for $135.

Ditto. I haven't been out yet, nor has he. I don't know what the freaking hold up is. My freezer is empty.

I just got my Flip n Swim jigs in Salsa and New Gill today. They look awesome and the craftsman ship is top notch. I will post my review after I put them to work this weekend. Got to look at my trailer options tonight for these bad boys. Hopefully the toothy critters will stay away.

Interseting, I'll have to look into that. From what I was told, no fishing inside the actual harbor at Burnham. There is a no fishing rule on or around the piers period, that I know and they have signs posted up there. I see little kids fishing the walls all the time so I don't really think they'd hassle me but you never know. Especially with 6K slip fees for the guys that own boats! I've been trying to convince the father in law to go try for some smallies but fishing for smallies on a 38' Sea Ray can be challenging. I wouldn't know any places to go and park the boat and cast off for them. His electronics aren't the greatest. He kind of just drives around and hopes he catches a fish or two. We've had some great days with the salmon though.

Mine seemed to dry in an hour or 2,maybe less. You only apply a thin coat. I also left mine overnight..actually days before I even used them if it matters. Only replying again as the others mentioned about giving it a night.