Todd2

I have really shifted to finesse fishing in the last 3 to 4 years, like Tom mentions, the Ned is very popular and has got the lion's share of my day so far this year. But I also use Sliders, light ball heads, slip shots, and drop shots. Non of my setups are technique specific, just low to medium priced Medium Spinning rods; some with braid some with mono.

I've taken the back treble off in the past and had success fishing it in spots where you'd normally hang quite a bit.

The TRD's are working so good for me this Spring that I don't use anything else...lol. I don't even know how to fish it, I can't remember the 6 "official" retrieves when I'm on the water so I just drag or hop it along with a decent 5-10 sec pause between any movement..then repeat. I had a killer day last Thursday on it...my buddy said "did they hit anything else". I said, "I have no idea, I never put it down."

Wow..no shortage of Armilo fans here ....which end of the range does it fall in terms of sensitivity/stretch? It seems with most monos, less stretch means more sensitive but sometimes that comes at a price in other categories..like knot strength. I might have to give it a try. ***Edit, I just checked the price...nevermind...lol***

Mccoy, XL, Original Stren are all good handling lines. Stren Magnathin handles as good as any of those and is stronger with noticeably less stretch and more sensitivity.

You had me at jig tips.

So do we... ?

Kentucky Largemouth Bass 13 lbs., 10.4 ozs. Dale Wilson

John Hope's tracking led him to say that once a Bass reached 7 lbs it mainly becomes nocturnal. I think night fishing is a key for catching more larger bass. I know I can fish the same areas that I do during the day and almost always I'll have a bigger bag at night on those spots. But my PB came in the afternoon on a windy late Fall day.

So what's the difference between a keeper spot vs big fish spot? I need to learn this. Keep in mind, anything over 4 here I consider big. I apparently have the 2 lb spot down pat.

I tested the two side by side in a bucket and the TRD floats up a little higher with the Ned head. It floated up with Crappie Slider too, just at a lower angle if that makes sense. The Crappie Slider hook is a little bigger than the Ned so it's fair to say it would inhibit the action some, but I haven't noticed a difference in bites or hookups. The weedless nature more than offsets any negative at this point for me, but I'm still playing around with it. I plan to fish them both for a while.

And if they don't...lightly shake it and then wait some more.

Those look good, I guess at some point it gets away from being a "Ned" so that means it won't catch fish...lol. I'm still playing around with it but right now my favorite is a TRD on a Crappie Slider. I put it on the Slider, pull it down a little and dab some super glue in that little depression on top of the TRD and then slide up to the slider head and hold for a few secs. You can catch many fish without having to do much at all. I make up 2 or 3 before I go, but so far I usually only use the one unless I lose it because they are so durable and comes through all kinds of cover.

I don't know of any mono or copoly that handles better than McCoy. Especially on spinning gear.

Yeah, I've added the Ned rig to my finesse arsenal (sliders, drop shot, etc.). Our temps dropped about 20 degress yesterday afternoon as the front passed. I went out to a local pond and caught about 30 in 2 hours on the Ned after the front. Mostly small ones and its a private pond, but it was still a lot of fun.

I've never been able to tell much of a difference between copolymers and monos. Some of both are limp some of both are stiffer. McCoy is a very good copoly for spinning gear, it feels about like Stren or Xl which are monos.

Thanks for the responses, this thread has opened up my eyes a little. I'm not going to skip some of these spots anymore. I came across this article that kind of reinforces what's been said here. https://www.bassresource.com/fish_biology/ambush_bass.html According to the article, Bass are more flushers than ambushers, so instead of hitting every laydown you see, back off and fish the areas where the bass are cruising for dinner. But it does say repeated casts to that cover can turn those inactive fish on. It's an interesting article.

Thanks...Yeah, I pass this stuff up all of the time, especially beach areas and mud banks. I guess I've been drilled with points, cuts, drop offs and any of those three with wood (we don't have much grass) is a bonus. Do you guys scan these "do nothing" banks first or just start throwing the Ned? Just seems strange..I get the no pressure part though. In the summer, sometimes I don't even hit points because it's a party on those.

This is indirectly another Ned Rig thread so I apologize up front...lol. I've been somewhat late to the party of fishing an actual Ned rig although I've thrown light sliders for years with a lot of success but I've started thowing a finessee TRD on Ned heads and on Crappie Sliders (which I really like as a "weedless Ned"). In short, its been my best producer this early Spring. On to the question....I decided to read up some and I see a lot of mentioning of Ned's really excelling on "Nothing Looking" banks and I'm trying to wrap my head around this. Are people talking about just big muddy flats which I normally ignore? Areas with no structure or cover...what gives? I see it mentioned a lot. Thanks....

I have several different ones but Abu Garcia and Shimano are my two favorites of what I have now.

At night in the summer is when I consistently catch the biggest bags all year except maybe prespawn. The funny thing is I do it in one area about the size of a football field.

Yup..my PB from the bank was on a white spinnerbait right at the bank right when I was ready to lift it out.... many years ago.

The Trick worm has become my main "finesse worm". I've got about 5 different colors and they all work. I've been using them more on drop shots than anything, but yeah I drag and hop them along the bottom on t-rigs, sliders and slip shot rigs. Just my opinion here, but I think the flat bottom is the key to it's action and why it produces on all rigs. BTW..welcome to the board. Stick around here and you'll learn a bunch from these guys..I know I have.

2 Arkie Jigs (Black/Blue - 3/8 oz) - $3.92 2 Arkie Jigs (Bluegill - 3/8 oz) - $3.92 Netbait Paca Craw (Black/Blue) - $4.92 Netbait Paca Craw (Green Pumpkin) -$4.92 Dr. Pepper - $1.25 Ky Sales Tax - 6% - $1.07 Total - $20 Lol..that was fun, makes me want to make a tackle run on lunch break.

Ronin is one of my favorite movies...great car chases. There is one scene where Robert De Niro is asked how he knew that they were going to be ambushed under the bridge. He replied..."when there is doubt, there is no doubt". That's my bite detect philosophy...lol. If I feel anything while the rod is still I reel down and swing.