primetime

I melt the older Bomber Long 15A's that were 3/8 instead of the heavier 1/2 ounce they are today. I prefer the newer ones after I do my modifications for fishing like a Ripbait and making sure it holds that Long A roll and action on the pause and rise which is what makes it so good imo. I ruin about 30% of lips I try to melt and bend, and a few get ruined from drilling and loading, sealing is never 100% and it takes me a long time finally get them to where I like them so I buy as many as I can when I find them and I hoard the older models, and I try to do all modifications at one time on a large batch, they are sensitive and a feather just a bit too long can ruin the action, same with weight distribution and making the bill more like the XCALIBUR Bill Dance Floating Minnows from a long time ago since they have a square bill, and rise slower, but are thin and cast far, I love that lure for working fast since it has an awesome darting action and deflects nicely, and has more of the Buckeye Wake up body style as far as being thin, but it actually looks identical to the Rapala Max Rap which is a great shallow suspender to go hand and hand with the flash minnow. I fish topwater and jerkbaits as often as possible, I have been throwing Ref Fins from the surf since I was in Elementary school for Stripers and learned how to load them with water and die it to notice leaking to keep them realistic in the cold and also not roll in the wind. I just trust them to come through, plus the Buckeye is $25 which is steep for a lure that are all essentially easy to fish and action is something not really built in but given, although maybe it has a long cast system which would make it worth it actually. I am convinced that bigger fish will strike a hardbait over grass in pressured lakes, especially after the early spring compared to say a fluke or sluggo, Senko, or Frog, I figure they are sick of seeing the same colors and baits coming buy all day, I think subtle changes are key as well since a lot of guys use minnow baits on the Florida lakes instead of soft baits all day, and I only hear a few colors ever mentioned or thrown.

Here is my theory for what it is worth & I have experimented with all types of leaders & tying direct, and what I have found is that I like to tie direct with Braid in stained to tanic water color and I like the brown or green colored lines. If I am flipping I like the super slick 8 strand blue Power Pro since it is quit compared to a normal 4 strand weave which makes a lot of noise while casting or pitching in the wind, and when it rubs against the pads and weeds. I truly believe that the newer 8 strand braids with smooth coatings not only cast further, rarely dig into the reel & cause less casting issues, plus I am convinced that when fishing in weeds the fish here the braid, but I also use it since it helps me land fish because it cuts through weeds and allows me to fish places that 20-30lb would not, and if it could then I believe that the smaller diameter is an equal trade off....HERE IS A TIP THAT HELPS ME ALOT.. I love to watch my line when throwing texas rigs, drop shot, shaky rigs, punching etc...so if I am going with braid tied direct to the business end, I color the blue line black or dark green (the last 4-6') as it is important to set on a fish in heavy cover as soon as possible in order to get them out. On spinning rods, I will use green or brown braid and I feel that a 20lb test 4lb diameter or 10-15 2lb is better than using a mono or fluoro which is much thicker and fish can feel. As mentioned, a leader is always a good option, I like braid for Carolina rigs or any bottom rig so I can feel the bottom composition and I use a copoly or Fluoro leader tied direct or with a swivel. I find in clear water or open water I think I do better with 6-10lb test mono but that is a confidence thing when fishing a slow bait like a wacky worm etc. Here is a good rule of thumb that a few people who know a lot more than I know have helped me with...If fishing treble hooks on a lure than it is best to use a line that stretches plus you are reeling fast so if fishing a wake bait or zara spook I will put 15lb test trilene big game and go to town, but if I am fishing a rod with a slower action and lots of bend like a cranking stick in heavy cover, I then go with braid and keep the drag set properly, and I only use leaders for c-rigs or slow presentations, topwater I like a clear line for some reason. Now, I know people who fish braid with everything, tie direct and never look back and they do fine. I also know people that hate it and do fine, but I could not live without braid for casting distance, and thin diameter plus the strength. They make braids in colors that are tough to see underwater and you can always copy the Triple fish camo line of coloring 3 strips of brown, green, purple for a good 6 feet and that line and color combo works in the water here in Florida. I would not tie direct with Red braid or Bright blue or white solid colors. Fluoro leader helps me in my mind when I feel as though fish can see my line, so I will at times use 30lb braid on a spinning reel, and a 10lb fluoro leader for the fact I believe in the sinking and invisible properties that may or may not be true, but based on my ramble, there are not right answers, since you are not doing well with straight braid, I would simply change just for some New positive Energy.... Aaron Martins has some great videos on braid and leader etc....Hope that helps a bit.

I am sure the suspenders work in the summer, however I lack confidence in suspenders plus rarely get to fish them in Florida waters unless it is winter/early spring due to weeds/stained water. A super shallow suspending jerkbait like the Max Rap that only dives a foot gets use all year long but only gets used in rare situations, same with the Husky Jerk and Max Raps, shallow suspending shad xrap since they are unique compared to the normal Smithwick suspending Rogues etc.

I always have a 1/8 & 1/4 beetle spin in both the orange with black stripe and white with black spots, and I also put small grubs or panfish baits on them. I use the Roadrunners in cold when nothing is working or if I just want some action on a light rod and have some fun...I have caught a few 3-4lb bass over the years on little beetle spins and road runners, especially in clear water or fishing used up water when they won't look at the bigger stuff. Yakima Makes a cool bait that is only $2.50 at Dicks called the Drum Roller where you can change out the blade quickly, it has a short arm and is designed to spin easy in grass and run shallow, but essentially it is a beetle spin with a light jig head and ZMAN Elaztach minnow...I have not caught much on this lure yet but I think it has potential.

I am a big fan of the Mirrolure line of lures, they come with great hardware and awesome color patterns as well as shapes that bass rarely see although that is changing. I love their topwaters for fresh and salt, plus the 17MR is a great lure and casts a mile for it's size...Yea, if it floats it needs to look injured, I think wake and automatically think V wake or bulge and I plan on working it like a floating ripbait or prop bait with a pull and pause deal....Thanks.

I find with most wake baits if you add weight to the tail end or drag it will keep it higher and also give it more of a wobble & different look which sometimes helps. Adding a larger treble to the rear helps, but a feather helps create added action and gets more strikes imo on the pause or as soon as it hits the water. People do all kinds of modifcations to wakes like melting the lip of the long A so they can keep it higher while fishing it faster. I like a dressed rear treble on most topwaters or wakes, even some square bills, it messes up the acton of a lot of lures so you usually have to make a trade off, go smaller on hooks, or removing a treble,but sometimes adjusting the split rings helps. I like to fish them over heavy grass on heavy braid and if I am throwing a small Manns Baby Minus or 2" version, I like to put a 3x strong treble on the bait and it only seems to run well with 1 treble since the extra weight makes a big difference, plus I beef up the split ring as well..... With the Red Fin, I some times change out the #4 Silver Hooks to #4 VMC Inline in Nickel and that makes it even lighter so I compensate by putting a much larger Treble on the rear which gets more hook ups I have never tried to do the worm on the Roumba deal, but it looks cool, I would think a small 2" curly tail behind a small wake would maybe help as well.

I purchased a few packs of the Texpose hooks a few years ago and I love them and have been meaning to order more, I never see them anywhere however except TW, and that gets expensive if I visit that site. I am surprised no other company has copied the design but they fit the sluggo's and most worms perfectly. I like most Lunker City baits...Sluggo and the ss sluggo is a great bait, not a lot of color choices but watermelonseed and AK shad for ss sluggo are awesome baits no matter how you fish them. I prefer them over trick worms and price is fair.

I purchased a few packs of the Texpose hooks a few years ago and I love them and have been meaning to order more, I never see them anywhere however except TW, and that gets expensive if I visit that site. I am surprised no other company has copied the design but they fit the sluggo's and most worms perfectly. I like most Lunker City baits...Sluggo and the ss sluggo is a great bait, not a lot of color choices but watermelonseed and AK shad for ss sluggo are awesome baits no matter how you fish them. I prefer them over trick worms and price is fair.

I sometimes use a light weighted hook, I like the ZMan Trigger Hooks in 1/16 to 1/8 since I am almost always near soft bottom and c-rigs frustrate me no matter how I modify it unless weeds are not an issue which is rare. I like a sliding texas rig with a light weight and floating baits, or the mojo rig with 2 bobber stops to adjust leader length and I like the elaztach baits...Zman Craws, SKing Zulu, tubes with some foam in them, bass pro makes a floating lizard that is hard but good for topwater and over weeds as well as on the bottom. The "Rage Rig" seems to work well similar to the Jig rig for muddy bottoms as it is light enough and I like to use a bait that has a flat bottom for a gliding action and the straighter the shank the better imo. The trigger hooks fit most worms and creatures pretty well and are sharp, and come with bait buttons to keep baits from sliding and you are not bending those hooks no matter what you do, they are stout and give baits an action unique compared to other weighted hooks. Great for the floating frogs as well.

I add suspend dots to the red fin to cast it further and add an oval line tie to all of them as well. I also will mess with treble hooks and dressed trebles, often removing the middle one, or clipping off the bottom hook point on each treble hook.

Thanks for the advice, I think the steady retrieve makes them look like a healthy baitfish since they look awesome, I think I need to slow down and think of them more like a topwater lure than a wake bait, For some reason I rarely if ever let the floaters sit still or just twitch it, I just go auto pilot and wake them steady with a few hitches in the reel to cause some type of change but I will not give up on them yet....I like the 4" size, I get plenty of fish that strike the large 6-7' red fins and 125mm Magic Swimmers, so I will keep trying them but I may be looking to unload a few and if I do I have a few of each color that was available, all were top patterns, one is the shiner pattern (Dirty something) I can't remember, than a herring and a shad....We have a shop with a bunch of them in wake, SS, FS, all 4" models. If you are interested PM me I can pick some up for you and the price is silly good right now....

I worry about snakes more than Gators since I never fish new areas at night here in florida without knowing if a Large Gator is in the area, usually if you walk up to a spot and here a huge Splash, it is not usually a person swimming or diving into the water, it is usually a good sized gator and they like to sit up on lighted docks at night, but they take off if fishing public lakes and areas 99% of the time since they are usually removed if they bother people in public areas, or communities with ponds since people freak out if they see a big gator (over 4-6 feet) since it threatens their pets and kids and usually they have them removed. I guess my point is to be smart, I never fish new lakes or ponds unless I am with another person who knows the area and I rarely go alone, in fact I only go alone if fishing a pond that is walking distance and has safe shoreline. Pay attention when fishing frogs and topwaters over weeds,especially lily pads, for some reason gators love to chase them and Moccasins will follow them in as well, and if you hook a baby gator that is not a safe area to be in the first place and that was not a good job of scoping the area and fishing it during the day. The babies will make that chirping sound and if you have ever seen the full grown Pre-Historic Sized gators, a gun will not help if the mother comes for you, your only hope is to have a friend with a lot of courage and truly values your friendship, odds are most friends are running for help, but in all seriousness, we were talking about this tonight, it is key to listen, and also to know the lake and area, and make sure you are not walking in weeds and have a clear cut shore to fish from or dock. Make sure to purchase a pair of Steel Tipped boots, then purchase the Hunting socks that have the protective covering in them, not sure what they are called, I have had them forever, and I roll them over my Jeans, do not wear shorts for a few reasons...bugs are awful at night plus shorts leave you vulnerable to a moccasin and they are common, but if paying attention you or your buddy can avoid them. Also never reach in to lip a fish until you know for sure it is a bass, I actually have a cheap pair of orange fishing gloves that were 1.99 that I use to grab fish at night since I never know what I am grabbing since I am famous for losing lights and not having back up batteries, or having my clip on fall off my hat etc.. rattlesnakes are very common in the sandy areas both fresh and salt & if you veer off into vegetation that is when they are trouble, and after it rains they are usually most active if the next day is warm. Put it this way, I met a guy who has been diving for golf balls in Florida for 14 years and he goes at night, in scuba gear, golf courses are notorious for having many large gators, especially one that has fish in them, and he has only been bitten 2x I believe he told me, and he dives all the courses all night long 3-4 days a week, and he will tell you that they are scared of you and the only time they are an issue is if you startle one and step on it etc.... If ever night fishing and you see anyone scuba diving, make sure to talk to him, he was one of the most interesting people I have ever met and he should have a reality TV show, plus he knows which ponds have the biggest fish.... Be safe, smart, and it is more fun with friends anyhow, plus you usually catch more fish since you can all try different things, but don't let gators scare you just use common sense and dress the part, and know your surroundings. Good luck, Night fishing in Florida Summers are necessary, especially in ponds which get super hot.

Just got in from some night fishing, full moon April 3rd, and did well, I fish similar to how I always fish but I try to find open water and weed edges where fish roam or replenish so picking the right area based on structure, depth etc. is important, but my favorite search bait is probably a chatterbait with a swimbait as a trailer, I like a black blade and black and blue skirt trimmed, and 3.5" speed shad in smoke blue flake. I always have a popper tied on, usually the Rebel pop'r and/or Chug bug or the Heddon Pop n image Is good for walking and spitting plus casts well. My go to technique however, for ponds especially or land fishing, is a wake bait or floating minnow bait fished steady and slow to keep a v wake, and my favorite is a Rapala Jointed Gold and black j-9 or J-11 for spinning tackle, the Rebel Tiny Wake'r is great for this time of year with small bait in water, same with a yo-zuri pins minnow as they cast well for their size. A gold 4" redfin is awesome and catches good quality fish but is tough to cast due to it's light weight but you can add some weight to it and it wakes fine, the Rapala DT Fat is good as are any wakes, or floating minnows steadily retrieved so you miss less strikes. A horny toad wakes well if weeds are an issue, and a slug-o is a good alternative to a walking lure like a spook etc....Really same as flats fishing only with weeds in the local ponds, the Spro Popping frog is a great lure for open water or weeds, it is not cheap but is quality, the booyah is solid as well....I know spinnerbaitss and worms work well, jigs, same as during the day, I just like topwater and subsurface, I will let a worm sink if nothing is working on top....I like two tone colors, red shad, any black with contrast in plastics is my preference, or a bead in front of a trick worm for sound and I like the bream color they make.

I like the Yo-zuri Pencil walking bait since it sits horizontal and comes with saltwater trebles great for heavy braid and the colors are really good. The bone with orange belly and the Red color have been pretty good the few times I have tried them and I added a feather to the white one & put a red hook in the front, but they walk easy, can be fished without snagging in only a few inches of water, and you can swing hard as the hooks are 3x strong. Great lure for the money. You can find them for $7-$8 and Yo-zuri makes quality lures for salt and fresh, I have never really fished a yo-zuri lure that I didn't like, the Pin's minnow is a killer when fish are feeding on tiny fry, it casts far and is small but get's action on tough days.

Storm Chug Bugs, Rebel Pop'r, BPS Slim Dog, Ima Skimmer, Rebel T-10...I love topwaters, I also like the Yo-zuri Banana Boat for a walking lure. Other favorites-Spro Poppin Frog, Spro or Booyah Hollow bodies, Light scum Frogs for heavy cover as they come through easy. Honorable Mention-Sebile Splasher - Sebile Bonga Minnow - Heddon Torpedo, Devils Horse, then wakes-Red Fin, Long A, Yo-zuri SS Minnow, Manns Elite wakes......Heddon Pop'n Image is another killer hybrid walker/popper, Gunfish is a great lure as well obviously. I love me some topwaters...

Google Matzuo Nano Popper....It looks identical.

It looks like some of the lure bodies that they sell on barlows, netcraft, hagens, and then you buy your own trebles, feathered etc... That does look like a Matzuo, or an Owner, Strike Pro model.....The color looks like the older Owner's back when they had the zip n ziggy, but Bass Pro has a house brand that has a similar shape when it comes to the mouth....If it is your top producer I would look for one that has a similar sound and size, you can always modify the hooks etc... Good luck, companies like Hurricane, Tsunami, and other's are always making lures then discontinuing them a year later, or it could be an OEM import sold on ebay...I have been seeing a lot of poppers in lots of 6-8 for a buck each that look similar to many versions today.

I throw them like a spinnerbait and start out going fast with a bulge under the surface style action, but I mess around with retrieve speed, stop and go, or will simply shake it every few feet during the retrieve. I like to use the chatterbait in situations where other people are maybe ripping traps out of grass, In the Summer I seem to do better with the heavier versions fished a bit deeper or near the bottom and ripping through weeds will wear out your arm, but sometimes it is a great option compared to a swim jig or trap etc. Versatile lure that generates some awesome strikes at times. Trailers are a big part of the action and removing the skirt is popular or trimming it back and the GYB swim shads are a great trailer, swim senko, rage baits, options are endless and be creative since it is a fun style of fishing.

I have 1 suggestion you may want to check out since I am a fan of Yo-zuri Hybrid line as well. I don't have the chart in front of me, but I am pretty sure that the 6lb test is almost the exact same strength as the 8lb test, plus it is a thinner line which will give you more stealth and longer casts, if you visit the Yo-zuri site they have a chart. I believe the 6lb Hybrid breaks at 12.6 and the 8lb at 12.8 or something like that, the 10lb I believe is something like 16.4 so I have always purchased the #4 (it is over 8lb) #6,#10 for spinning tackle and I am comfortable with the 6lb Hybrid on my spinning gear and even the #4 early in the year and I am not a huge fan of the new ultra soft, it just doesn't seem to be as abrasion resistant. Hope that helps, and I hope that is accurate but pretty sure it is close as I remember using my phone when buying spools of it last year.

I asked for suggestions for wake baits about a month ago and I received a ton of suggestions, and I want to thank everyone for helping out. The BPS Egg for $4 is a winner and thanks for suggesting that model, I like both sizes so far & the Offshore Angler BPS version is a good option with better hooks and different colors as well that is worth checking out. I still want to get a Slammer but waiting to find a deal on one, and my question is in regards to the Spro BBZ swimbaits. A local shop had a batch of the 4" BBZ swimbaits on clearance a few months ago and naturally I went overboard and purchased way too many, so I am stocked on the wakes, Slow sink, and Fast sink, but for some reason I am not doing well with the Floater and I figured that would be my favorite. I have always used a Fast or slow sink model & have had success on occasions but I have never done well with the floaters & not sure why. Here is my question...Do you guys prefer throwing a true floater or Wake, or a slow/Fast sink, and do you work them steady like you would a typical wake bait and keep the V wake or bulge, or is it better to have the option to let the bait sink so you can wake them and then kill them every so often. Any help would be appreciated and I know the larger 4" size is not going to generate as many strikes as the smaller wakes, but for some reason I am not getting much action when throwing the true floater and losing confidence in it, I have a habit of reeling to quickly at times and I am thinking that may be the case but wondering if it is a bait that people like to kill and let sit like a topwater or floating Jerkbait etc. Thanks in advance, I am thinking of selling some of the floaters and sticking with the sinking models because I grabbed a healthy amount of the 4" wakes since the Spro BBZ looks so realistic & the bait Monkey was in beast mode that day.

Bluebasser said it best above......Both have advantages but I have been throwing the bladed jigs he makes more than I throw the other brands the past year and I find I land more fish with his style and designs as the swinging hook helps keep fish on the hook. I like to throw bladed jigs all over the place, early, mid day, and they are my favorite night time lure for covering water which is something I learned last year and now I always throw a black bladed swim jig at night with a trimmed down skirt and black and blue Menace Grub or GYB Grub or piece of a swim senko. I find that if the trailer is bulky and has a lot of built in action like say a Keitech Fat Swing, or Creature style bait, I get a lot of strikes but miss a good percent since the bait is really aggressive, but it also gives away the location of fish. I like to keep the bait near the surface so I can either barely see it or wake it but it is amazing how many fish will roll or swipe at it if you pay attention and most times a texas rig tossed back in the area of the strike produces for me...I don't know if you can fish a chatterbait wrong, I also know that the bend in the blade makes a huge difference, and so does using just a fluke without a skirt etc.... I also throw the bladed jigs in saltwater and the custom models have great hooks and are durable, but Snook will hammer them especially if making a long cast and having the right sized trailer and speed. I prefer to use Mono in 15-20lb test on a Medium heavy rod that has some bend and not too fast, but if fishing in heavy weeds I will go braid with a fast action rod and just make sure I give the fish time once it vanishes or the rod gets ripped out of my hands which is how they often blast it....One tip I like is the sharpie to color the blade as well.....

I never know how my baits will suspend when I take them out on the water since water temps, salinity, line size, clips and type of line all change the way the bait looks and behaves and I find that most suspend well in warmer water & once I change a treble or ring it is never the same. Suspend dots are my favorite way to adjust a jerkbait since it is easy,fast, and not permanent. I don't like messing around with treble hooks on quality lures since it is hard to get them back to normal if you have a good bait and try to adjust rings and hooks etc. However, if you simply replace a dull hook with the same size and style that came with the lure than all should be good....Suspend dots are a great invention for not only suspenders but floaters and crankbaits as well. That Slow rise is often the ticket for a crankbait as well.

I just can't buy the Live Target Bait ball because I have yet to see any reviews of them, plus they sceam of Eye candy for fisherman but I like some Live Target lures, I am sure they are quality and well built, but for $15 I can't buy the baitball lures since I have not found anyone I know who has fished them or even a review online. I see Academy made a copy or similar lure this year, A friend of mine actually put an Eye on a Bomber Long A and then painted some fins on the sides and it kind of looked like 2 fish together but I never heard about it catching fish after seeing it....

Trilene Big Game, XT or XL depending on what is most important, but for diameter and overall performance I am impressed with the Suffix line of mono when it comes to strength and diameter. Stren Original is a good line as well, but Trilene BIg Game is my favorite since it is usually sold super cheap at a local shop so I stock up on it, another great line that is awesome if you can find it is Triple Fish Rx Copoly, the 20 lb has 14lb trilene xl diameter....

shad raps, glass shad raps suspending, and DT Flat 3 and 7 for my areas as the lip on the DT's is not the best so don't bang them on the water, but the Rapala balsa action is great in cold water, as stated the #5 shad rap is a great bait to throw, it is light so spinning gear is best but the suspending glass shad raps are heavier and so are the jointed versions but I never seem to do well with the Jointed shad raps. Bomber makes the Flat A which I like in the crawfish pattern and I like a silent lipless crank at times as well....The Small Cheapo Rebel Wake R and old school wee R are good little cranks, sometimes small is key...Subwarts, small Flat rap minnow baits, Rapala is my confidence in cold and I think sound matters a lot in cold water as does line size and type.