ChrisD46

As the title states - how do you like to trim your jig skirt lengths : Cut straight across the bottom of the jig skirt or randomly cut various lengths of skirt threads off shorter to look more natural to mimic something a bass would eat ? There is no wrong answer - I have just scratched the surface to do tricks with jig skirts to make them appear more full , or thin out the skirt for a more finesse look , etc. *I thought best that how / why you cut your skirt bottoms for football jig , swim jig , etc. would make for a good topic in itself ... Thanks for replies .

*Mike comes through - time to shop !

I looked at a Chatterbait Mini in 1/4th oz. to compare to in two different stores against the Chatterbait Mini-Max and the Mini in 1/4th oz. is a little larger and heavier than the Mini-Max at 1/4th oz. . Since that is the only size the Mini comes in , there is no comparison to the Mini-Max which comes in 3/8th oz. and 1/2 oz sizes . Blades the same size but again you have to super glue a trailer on to the Mini as no trailer keepers on the Mini . Time to go fish both - if you pay attention to rigging then I'm sure with the right trailer both the Chatterbait Mini and the Mini-Max will catch bass in the Fall and Winter .

Has anyone done a comparison between the Chatterbait Mini versus the Chatterbait Mini-Max in terms of performance , how fast the blade starts up , etc. between the two ? Yes , I know the Mini-Max has the 3/8th and 1/2 oz. weights , a wire wrapped skirt , barbed trailer keeper and a pretty stout 3/0 hook . Conversely , the blade sizes appear to be the same between the two and if you wanted the 1/4th oz. size Chatterbait - then the 50% less expensive Mini in 1/4th oz. may essentially do the same thing as the more expensive Mini-Max Chatterbait in the same 1/4th oz. weight ? Thanks in advance for sharing your experiences !

*The above President XT30 on a Fury 703SF is great ! Load the reel with Power Pro #10 lb. to #15 lb. braid to a FC or Co-Poly leader of #8 lb. to #10 lb. , Zoom Super Fluke (Pearl , White Ice) , Gamakasu EWG 3/0 or 4/0 hooks in RED color if you can find it and you are all set !

Even if staying with a .010 diameter or less FC line on a spinning reel - eventually you will need to open the bail and let line out behind the boat , then reel back in between your fingers to get the coils out . If fishing from the bank I prefer braid + leader on a spinning reel . Yes , braid will eventually coil up as well on a spinning reel but it takes quite a bit longer to be an issue on a spinning reel than with FC (or co-poly , mono as well) .

Revisiting an old friend - the T-Rig ... Nice video !

The H2O rods in the $70 range with cork grips are quite well made - *good luck finding one though at Academy !! ... The H2O line of rods , lures , etc. has been "MIA" for so long now at Academy I have moved on to other options as local Academy Sports near me have a good 60% less fishing tackle (especially H2O line up) for many months now . Not sure what the deal is - but supply chain issues have to be a major factor as I do not believe "we are clearing out present inventory for our new H2O line up" ... That story / excuse has floated around too long now to make any sense .

Thanks A-Jay ! One of the more interesting facts about a paddle tail swim bait with a round ball jig head or weighted under spin is that they can literally be fished at any depth in the water column . That in iteslf makes for a number of approaches to locate and catch Small Mouth , Large Mouth or Spotted Bass .

More often than not - the typical 2.75" ~ 4.75" paddle tail swim bait (Keitech , Rage Swimmer , etc.) are fished slow just off the bottom . At least that is the water column where many prefer to start fishing smaller paddle tail swim baits ... What water column do you seem to have the most success fishing smaller paddle tail swim baits ? The season , lake / river contour , clarity , vegetation , etc. I'm sure play into the decision - just curious regarding the things you consider for what depth you run your smaller paddle tail swimbaits at ?

*I like this new Berkley Power Stinger bladed Jig Trailer - until I saw the price ; $7.99 per pack is too expensive for trailers : Berkley Powerstinger, the ideal bladed jig trailer - Bassmaster . However - the shape and length of the Power Stingers offered are more ideal for bladed jigs than Zako , SK Blade Minnow and ZMan Razor Shadz .

*Great information - thank you !

*Good reminder from Shin : Downsized paddle tail swim baits (2.75" ~ 3.25") can be used up in the water column or swam slowly just above the bottom through all of Fall and often in the Winter too (for those of us in the South or West) ... A deadly , easy to use finesse tactic !

*The Berkley Wakebull has been discontinued ... Not sure why ? The Wakebull was affordable , did not blow out on a fast retrieve , had good colors and was affordable .

Wake Baits come in either a long minnow shape or a short crank bait shape with a near vertical bill for 0 - 1 ft. diving depth and can be deadly in the Fall ... For those who like throwing a Wake Bait in the Fall - what brand / series and favorite colors do you like to use ?

*What rod action is your 6'6" : M or MH ... Fast or Moderate Fast ?

Another quality Bass video Glenn - a worm set up can be very productive in the Fall !

When faced with clear water , highland reservoir conditions in the Fall (i.e. no raain in quite a while) - I am under the impression that your more translucent , shallow crank bait colors plus using smaller size shallow crank baits are the right combination ? A 60mm (2.25") Ghost Shad shallow crank in sunny conditions and the same in a Bone color for cloudy / overcast conditions would be two good colors to cover Fall clear water highland reservoir conditions when Shad is the #1 food source ... Your thoughts and experiences ?

What is your current go to set up for Fall top water set up (i.e. walking lures , poppers , wake baits , etc.) ? ... *In many places now , top water is becoming an all-day event as bass form wolf packs chasing shad shallow .

I'm with G-Man's advice for what he uses with his chatterbaits : Either FC or Co-Poly line (anything but braid) . *You need a little "give" in your line / rod set up as it's too easy to jerk a chatterbait out of a bass's mouth with braid .

Historically I have had Mend It dry up on me for unknown reasons . Besides keeping the cap on tight , I have heard storing Mend It in the Fridge helps keep it in a liquid state .

*I used to think my local Academy stores were having serious supply chain issues - now I question their commitment to fishing ? Prices in some cases are higher than the notoriously expensive other big stores , H2O and other hard / soft baits sell out and are not replaced - not sure what to think currently as we still have plenty of good fishing weather here in the South ?

In reality - the only consistent yardstick of measure is inches per turn as Tom has indicated .

I have noticed a few top spinning reel brands going from 5:2:1 gear ratio up to the faster 6:2:1 gear ratio - what applications would you desire to have a faster gear ratio such as 6:2:1 in a spinning reel ?

Hard Jerk Bait rod ? ... 6'6" ~ 6'10" range best for working the bait , so longer may not be better .