Todd2

Lol, that reminds me of a guide trip I took on KY lake years ago. I won't mention his name, he's a great guide but one morning we were fishing back in a bay on a channel bank. He was explaining why and that he'd never fish the other side of the bay and pointed to a boat that was over there. He had barely finished his words when we all saw the guy set the hook and bring in a nice bass...bigger than what we were on..the guide mumbled something about a secondary channel. Percentage wise, I know the guide was right...but that was funny.

I read or heard somewhere years ago that Trilene Transoptic was Photochromic just remarketed. Not sure if that's true...I've never used it but I know that Transoptic is still available if blue is not your thing.

I have Original Stren in CBF on all of my reels except one. I use 8-10lb on spinning, 14lb on casting. It's great for line watching day or night(black light). Dr Keith Jones made a comment in his book, based on his studies that Clear Blue Fluorescent might be the least visible to Bass. I don't remember the exact quote but that was the gist of it. I'm playing around with some Stren Magnathin on one reel, and it has a little better sensitivity but I really miss that blue.

Mono? Don't use mono, because <insert professional angler name here> said you need fluorocarbon or braid to catch fish. All attempts at humor aside..Original Stren in 8lb/.011 or Stren Magnathin in 10lb/.010 would work too. I'm very new to Magnathin but I'm liking it so far, if it came in Clear Blue Fluorescent I think I'd make the jump..but it's early.

P-line CX has a little less stretch..a little more sensitive. Stren has better knot strength and handles a little better on spinning gear. Stren also has very good abrasion resistance. It seems there is give and take with every line. Any of those should get the job done.

McCoy, Gamma, P-line CX are ones I've used in the past..but am pretty happy with Original Stren this year.

I think I give the very slight edge to the T-rig. I always read and hear T-Rig for numbers..Jigs for size. I can't really say I've seen that, I've caught a lot of big fish on the T-Rig but it does seem to get me more bites. But I love me some jig too..and drop shot, and etc etc. So many lures..so little time.

Wow...24 whopper ploppers, It hurt my feelings to buy one last summer. I've been throwing it on 17lb Stren so I won't lose it. Maybe I'm cheap. WP seems to be a high risk / high reward deal for me. I don't catch a lot but when I do it's a nice fish and a lot of fun. I've only tried it at night.

On my Humminbird, I just turn up the sensitivity in regular sonar mode. It's very easy to see where the two layers meet. I've double checked it against the Corp website and it always matches up. I'm assuming Garmin would work the same????

This.... Don't mess with cheaper backing. Original Stren is a great middle of road mono in terms of handling..not too limp not too stiff. Good abrasion resistance and great knot strength, it holds up pretty good.

That's exactly what I did. Deck comes off fairly easy, then make sure your tray will drop in safely, make your measurements and mark the bottom of the deck based on the tray dimensions with a thin sharpie. Make your cuts, put the deck back in, drop in your tray, and screw it all back in. There might be a better way but that's how I did it.

Stax are better than Pringles.

Well that bites...hopefully the next one will be better. Stuck thermostat?

Fourth of July..it's Independence day and my birthday!

I put one in my Tracker 175...can't speak for the 170. It was a tight fit but had room between the supports. I lifted the deck and measured twice before cutting..Good luck, hopefully somebody with a 170 will chime in.

Fish at night, you'll catch bigger fish . I'm fishing the same areas as a few people I know and I'm wearing them out while they are struggling there during the day.

There seem to be a lot of self imposed restrictions put on the drop shot. A drop shot is a hook/lure up the line with a weight on the end..that's it. You can use the popular DS type plastics or any other. I throw the same worms I throw on a T-rig. Drag it along with pauses in between. When you hit the sweet spot...let it soak longer on semi tight line. With my lake , the thermocline setups up at 8-12 feet so I'm fishing it more horizontally than vertically. I do use spinning gear..but would have no problem bumping line size on a casting reel, I just don't have a need here. Get out and sling one this summer.

When I see it pop up on my side imaging I know it's even with the back of the boat...and then some by the time I get a good look. So since I'm passed it, I throw out a buoy immediately if I determine its worthy. I'll pass on by setting my waypoint and circle back around. I'll circle it throwing either a jig, Texas rig or drop shot using the buoy and waypoint as a reference. If I'm close to bank..I don't use a buoy. If it's windy, I'll drop an anchor.

I've only been fishing it for a couple of years but I can say I've caught them in cold water..warm water. I've seen it work on clear sunny days in clear water and as I found out this past Sunday night, it also works in stained water at night. Its to the point where when I am throwing something else and not getting bit, I'm eyeballing that DS rod on the deck..maybe too early.

The drop shot has all but replaced the c-rig for me. I haven't thrown the old ball and chain very much at all this year. For me...the advantages are easier bite detection and hooksets. Plus more fish it seems.

I found some old threads on this, but what's a good cheap option?. I tried a rope one and a plastic one that hooks but neither really worked. It's mostly for the family and occasional dips when I'm fishing. Thanks

Hairbands had their big run in the 80's... As far as line twists, I don't have any issues like I read about on here. Almost makes me think I'm doing something wrong. I am using 8-10 Original Stren. I know, using mono on a DS is heresy..but it works great for me.

I've only been throwing a DS for a couple of years but it's worked it's way up in the rotation. My experience has been a little different. I've seen days where shaking seems to work better, but I shake with intervals of pauses on slack line. I like the 3/16 oz thin finesse type weights. As far as the bobber stop trick...I'm trying to wrap my head around that. I'm trying to figure how how dealing with two bobber stops is easier than just tying a Palomar knot with a long tag end that you can adjust drop length by snapping on a DS weight where you want. Not being critical..because it's working, just curious.

3/0 round bend for Texas rig....Eagle Claw L2 Needlepoint for Drop Shot

I agree..at most you might save a few lures when hung up...lol