gulfcaptain

I think this is how tournaments got started....put a bunch of fisherman together in a meeting and you know we are gonna try and out compete one another.

Sorry to hear of your loss. I'm sure he will be with you each time you go fishing in the memories and experiences the two of you enjoyed together. Being a father I cherish each day I fish with my son and enjoy seeing the passion he has as well. Sounds like you had a great father as well as a great fishing partner. God bless you and your family.

I purchased the baitball squarebill as well and I would say that these are baits to fish in clear water when the bass are on the smaller shad or various minnows. I have a few lakes I fish where once they get on the glass minnows or the 2-3 inch shad they aren't going after anything bigger then that. So the only other choice I've had is the umbrella rig which does work great for me, but this gives me another option and there is less hardware for them to use to free themselves as well. I would fish it from pre-spawn and then post-spawn into summer when conditions are right as well as in the fall. It's a kind of match the hatch bait.

I'm glad I live where I can fish 12 months of the year although when I lived in Oklahoma I always managed to find a way to fish even when it was 3 below one morning. I don't do cold very well now, and if it ever snowed in S. California I wouldn't leave my house. People out here have a hard enough time driving in the rain.

Umm, tackles the cheep part, what do you do when your son who loves to fish wants you to buy a boat? So saving up and maybe next year I think my $600 trip to Bass Pro shops isn't gonna look as bad as that $18,000 bass boat I'll be putting money down on if things go right? The good news, I'll have lots of new places to put all the fishing tackle that's in the house.

Look at the shank up around the bend. The one in the pic you're asking about looks as though it has a bit more curve to it then the regular EWG hooks do. At least that's what I can tell from the website pic.

I used to think that I would NEVER buy a $90.00 lure. Ok, never has come and passed. The guy's here that throw the big swimbaits, $20-30 is pretty cheap. High risk, high reward fishing. It's not for everyone, but once you catch a couple pigs on them you start look at them differently. The one in my profile pic is my first swimbait fish, just under 9lbs, But as one above stated, swimbaits are cheaper if you only fished a couple for a few years opposed to buying packs of plastics at $5.00 ea. I just make sure the more expensive ones float so if I happen to have a line pop, well I can retrieve it.

the way I look at it is I can buy 3-4 crankbaits and it's about the same amount I might spend on 3-4 drinks if I went to a bar. My addiction is swimbaits, it started with a couple and well now I need a bigger drawer to put the back ups to the ones I fish not to mention the ones I have on order and waiting for them to arrive. I just wish they were the same price as crankbaits

yeah, I should have done that with that trout, it had a 4/0 skipgap hook in it's mouth, I'm sure that would have worked just fine had I just left the trout in the water, but didn't know that was gonna happen.

caught a trout fishing for bass on a senko, and when I threw it back it was quickly chased down by a pack of bass and consumed. Now I fish swimbaits.

Sounds like a perfect lake to take some swimbait tactics and fish the big baits if anyone isn't doing it already. Maybe a 10" Triple Trout or a Huddleston. I'm sure if you put a few days on Broken Arrow since it's a clear lake you would probably see quite a few big fish. Just a suggestion from the West Coast.

I'd go with a glass composite for cranking. Looking to get one of the BPS Crankin Stick's this weekend (or 2) with the rod trade in. If you go graphite, I'd look at something in an IM6 as they are a softer graphite blank.

Sounds like you got one someone else took back. Having quite a few Quantum's, go exchange it for the same model. The only thing I would do to it when you get it home is oil it. I have 2 Codes, 2 Accurists, 2 Kenetics, and just purchased an EXO, all work great with a couple drops of oil once a month.

Trying to put together some places in the S. Cal. area that hold decent smallmouth. I think DVL is the closest I can think of but would love to find some small lakes just outside of the metro area that I could hit up without having to drive 2hrs from Long Beach. Anyone able to give me some ideas where to start looking?

I have two of the Falcon Bucco 7m's and use them for cranks and spinnerbaits. My main question would be what your planned usage for the rod is? If it's cranking then you can probably find a BPS "Cranking Stick" composite rod in the rating you're looking for as well as different rod lengths. The Bucco is right about $110-129 depending on the guides(regular or micro).

I use swivels trout fishing. Bass fishing not so much. I know it gets expensive re-spooling but there are ways around this. Backing on your reels saves money. Braid although expensive at first saves money. Some of the braid I've fished for 3yrs and it's still going strong. Much cheaper to add a 10ft topshot of mono or flouro. Those 300yd spools last forever. Also agree with the above statement of retying is good practice. Even if you're fishing a swivel, you should still be checking your line and retying if there is any wear or weak spots.

TW sale ends tomorrow (25th). I'd have to agree with the *** 7'1"MH for what you are looking for. I'd stick with a MH since you're wanting to throw a 10" worm not to mention fish it around pads and weeds. You're gonna want the extra muscle to be able to move a bigger fish out of the cover.

Sorry, the YouTube video clip is Matt Allen and not Mike Long.

My girlfriend tells me I spend too much on tackle and my response is always, "Would you rather have me speed a $100 on tackle or a $100 at the bar?" After that she doesn't complain much and besides, there are worse things to be spending money on and having two son's of my own, I'd rather spend the cash on tackle and have them doing something that will keep them out of the house and off the video games. But beware, my oldest wants me to get a boat now.

Check out Mike Long's YouTube video on swimbait breakdown on where and how he fishes them. Yes he's a West Coast guy but has good info. Also checked out the Southern Trout Eater's DVD when I got into fishing the bigger swimbaits. Lots of useful info.

the reason for the snell knot is pretty simple. When you set the hook, the snell knot pushes down on the eye causing the hook to push up giving it a better chance to get a good bite resulting in a better hook up ratio. Also protects the knot from from the weight. But then I only use it on straight flipping hooks with solid welded eye. If you're using a different style hook( EWG...etc) then your knot is fine.

A chatterbait would be a good bet too. If you find the hydrilla that is still green and alive, may try a rattle trap style bait as well ripped off the tops of the grass. Like the idea of the squarebill as well bounced up and around the wood/timber followed by a jig pitched to the heavier pieces of both. When you catch a few, really look at where/what they were relating to and look for that combo the rest of the day.

Are you fishing weightless senkos? I would look at the number of guides to keep the line slap down and help with the sensitivity. I like the Smoke's, but not a fan of X-fast rods, I tend to break them about 12" from the tip. I have one of the Quantum Tour Tactical's, and really like it, and the only 6'1" rod I have is Academy's house brand H20 Micro and although it's only $80, it's a nice rod, IM8 blank.

I'm gonna have to check some Walmart's out when I get home to see what they have. Fished this series for the last couple yrs and they have held up great, I currently have 6 of them. Very light and sensitive. If you found them for $65, I'd get a few for sure. And have to agree, the 7M spinning rod is awsome. Great wacky and dropshot rod. The 7MH is a great all around rod, and the 7M casting is a great crankbait rod due to the moderate action.

I have one of their Guide Series IM8 7'H rods and use it to fish reds and specks but it's action would be great for a frog rod and they are about $60. If you're looking for a decent reel, shop Academy's H20 series reels, you can get one for about $60 as well and give you a good combo to start. The Black Max combos are a bit soft for what you are looking to do. And if you fish frogs, make sure you use braid. Good luck, hope this helps.