Brian_Reeves

I've used some swimbaits and they really aren't my deal. I like them for covering water like a crankbait. I use smaller ones when and if I throw them. I'm not a all-the-time trophy hunter, so it's rare that I feel the need to pull them out anymore. Welcome back avid!!

The biggest difference is the size. The claws on the lobster are pretty big and very aggressive. Another difference is that the space monkey is a frog-style body. The lobster looks like a craw.

At that time of day in the summer, depending on the lake, the bass may not be interested on a lure on the bottem. Use a lighter weight and pull your rod tip up high to get it up there a bit. That may help a bit. If you've caught bass out of the lake before, you may want to consider matching your worms to be about the same size as other lures that work. Sometimes a 7inch worm is just too big. Scaling down may help out some too. As far as colors, if it's watermelonseed or watermelon red, you're doing something right in my book

There is with mine. I just can't get it to track straight unless I'm practically pulling the thing out of the water. I have to let the line unspin after every retrieve. I'm rigging it like it shows but I guess I'm just doing something wrong. What color, type of line and what pound test, and what size and style hook are you using? Big-O will go on the hunt when it comes to any of his lures not acting right, so any info you can give I'll pass along to him if he doesn't see it here. I have only had one out of god knows how many spin on me.

When you're fishing the rage shads, I recommend a 4/0 hook. They just seem to work a bit better for me, but 5/0s are fine too. Another thing to experiment with is different retrieve speeds with different rod angles. This bait has a ton of different actions. By playing with it, you can make it real subtle or REAL aggressive.

Anytime that I'm fishing heavy grass, I prefer a flordia rigged rage craw or anaconda over a jig 10-1. The reason is that jigs can become real grass catchers and they don't move through the heavy vegitation as well. I pour a 30degree bullet jig that does a great job, but I don't have the supplies to make any right now. I don't have any for even myself :'( You might want to check out the Oldhams Trailer Hitch jigs. These things are built around a heavy Owner hook. You won't be bending very many hooks unless you hook into a submarine and they are razor sharp. They come through sparse and medium grass very well and they have good skirt colors/action. I fish all of my jigs with a rage tail chunk or a rage tail craw as a trailer 90% of the time.

For years I flipped and pitched with a 6.3:1. I tried the 5:1 ratio reels and the 7:1 burners. I personally like the 7:1 because I can take up slack faster and get the fish out of the cover quickly. With the technology going into reels these days, the 7:1 reels have plenty of torque to get fish out of cover that they may have buried into.

I'm not sure about the other villans, but I hope that they skip over the stupid ones...ie Penguin, Riddler, Mr. Freeze. I hope DC Comics sticks with ones that are somewhat intimidating and respectable. Those dudes are just goofy. I mean joker is kind of out there, but at least he doesn't eat raw fish and waddle.

I hate to be the one to brag...BUT I GOT SOME AND THEY ROCK!!! ;D

Thanks Burley. It's been a long day and I needed something to laugh at. Kayaking is a lot of fun. I've ever even seen those that you posted up and I don't have the experience in kayaks to say how they perform, but I'm sure that you'll have a good time. That's what its all about, right?

This is a bit off topic, but with the rage tail shad, changing your rod angle will change the action of the bait. I'm convinced that this lure will work on most days, but figuring out which presentation is best can be a weird challenge. But once you figure it out, look out!!! These things get VICOUS topwater strikes.

100,000...wow. If that doesn't make a statement, nothing does.

Getting a few pics of eagles would be cool. With brackish water, I always look for moving water. Areas where the tide drains from the backwaters or is dumping into them should get some attention from game fish. I'd probably spend a lot of time with a T-rigged rage craw and a crankbait that ticks the bottom. Never underestimate the power of the shaky head though

Look out Toledo

When it comes down to it, craws don't have much in the way of eyes to begin with. But by putting the eye on the back of the bait, it creates a different profile and presentation to fish. I wouldn't call it overthinking at all. I'd call it a unique application and look that may be worth trying in pressured waters.

Ronnie and Russ, I could see how y'all would be kinda torn about it. I actually had to read Ronnie's post twice and give it a little thought before I posted. I wouldn't say that I'm anything worth looking up to or whatever for shrugging off a loss. Yeah, that bracelet meant something to me, but it was also a relic from a chapter in my life that is quickly closing. In fact, it will be completely closed on the 15th of next month. This is actually an interesting evolution in this year's event. This new MOJO does something that the old one never could. It tells its own story. That is a strange thing for an object to be able to do. Unique, and probably more special than the first. I do not see this as a loss, but rather as a very interesting development. Now, not only does the MOJO show one soldier's determination and love for family, but it shows a bond between, lets face it, complete strangers across a country. The key piece of the event was lost, but replaced by a very creative substitute and the event to honor soldiers worldwide continues. That says something, man. Now if it gets lost again, we all need to storm our local post offices. 15,000 of them ;D I can't wait to see where it ends up next. Thanks to all who have participated so far. And a special thanks to Ronnie for your creativity and drive to keep this deal going for the rest of the season. LBH, I would thank you for coming up with this whole idea, but the event isn't over yet, so you gotta wait for your official shout out. ;D

Might knock the catfish out on the retrieve too. That would be beneficial. I guess for tight lining, I might actually consider trying it.

Branuss, I hung into a nice, non-targeted species with it. I got about a 50lb flathead catfish next to the boat...the first bite on the baby bass...and the d**n thing rolled, popping the line. I fought that fish for like 30 minutes. I guess it just wasn't meant to be. Sorry man

What I've heard so far is that the expected release will be sometime around October. Details are sketchy right now and I'm sure that Big-O will keep us filled in.

Hey Ronnie, it happens. That bracelet was just a thing. I don't get very sentimental and attached over things because I know that sh...stuff happens. What counts the most is the spirit of the event. This whole deal was created by LBH this year to honor soldiers worldwide, not just me. The irony in this is about 25% of my care packages that my family sent to me were lost in the mail. I had also sent my dad a keychain that I had attached to my armor during my first tour. The envelope was sealed, but the keychain was missing. Strange things happen with the post office. Maybe we should have used courier pigeons or something. The replacement will definitely suffice and tells the story well. I personally would like to thank you for your creativity in the replacement. In a way, that will end up meaning more than the original MOJO because it will show an ongoing history and tell a unique story. I don't think I have anything like that. I'm not sure that many people do. I guess that bracelet was like General Patton. Destined to never be killed in battle, only to die in transit stateside. Long live the MOJO! :'( Maybe Kevin Van Dam sucked the rest of its luck and life out of it with that win at Kentucky lake Few things could survive that encounter lol

There will be durability issues, so you will have to eat rubber. Hook inserts will be a problem as well. Oh yeah...and no one would buy it, so it might not be worth it Bassn. The rock idea is funny to me. It's like a pet rock for fishermen. Now if they design a bobber out of rock, I'm sold. That would be COOL!

I think I'm looking more at the jointed wake baits. Do those types of lures dive at all or can you burn them over the surface?

Hey Big M, do you get more action on the single or double jointed wake baits? I'm really looking into these for an alternative topwater lure, but don't know much about them. Also, how long are they? I'm still planning to hit you up for a few lures as soon as I get moved into my new place. I haven't forgotten about you

Ok. I'm getting really interested in these dudes, but I don't know really anything about them. So guys who are wake baiting out there (not to be confused with wake boarding), whats the lowdown on these things? A couple of questions to start it off... Where are you using them? What presentations have been paying off? When is the best time to use them? What are the -must have- wake baits out there? Which sizes and colors are preferable? How effective are they as a topwater vs other topwater lures? Are there any good, cheap ones out there? And last question, wood or plastic? Thanks for any help. I'm looking at the new Strike King Wake Shad, but I really don't know what I'm looking at. I've never used any baits like this and they seem to be a bit pricey. I'd like to be a little educated before I buy something that will probably cause my wife to beat me. ;D

10 inches is big for this lure. Any bigger and big bass would reconsider eating it. This thing is very alive and has a big, solid profile. The 7incher is my top producing worms for this year. To put that in perspective, I have been using them for just over a month now. From Jan. until then, it was the usual zoom, culprit, and berkley 7inch worms. These things have boated tons of fish for me rigged in all sorts of ways.