ChrisD46

+1 ... A 2.5 gal. bucket of water (or kitchen sink with a stopper) is the deal to see which worms float tail up on a shaky head - you can even practice pitching to the bucket as well !! Indoor pools are best used for skipping under diving boards (lol !!) A trick worm doesn't necessarily need to stand straight up (although it doesn't hurt) to work well on a shaky head . I believe the drag / slight lift or pop will get a basses attention before the tail goes neutral or starts to sink slightly. *Member Team9nine has discussed his shaky head success here with trick worms that did not float tail up all that well .

Very well stated Richf !! ... You wrote what I feel about the subject much better than I did . I'm a "bass head" as well and desire more useful content , programming , etc. out of MLF / BPT . I as well do not have a clue then as to who the MLF / BPT target audience is supposed to be for the reasons you stated ?

#15 lb. braid on a bait cast rod ? I would think that braid in such small diameter would dig in to the reel too much ?

+1 ... The T-Mac is a winner for sure . Another "Trick Worm" great for shaky head is the : GrendeBass Air Tail Wiggler Worm 6.5" (at TW) along with the Zman Finesse worm 7" and the Strike King 3X Plastic 7" worm (same thing) .The Davis baits Shaky Worm is also nice . Lastly , the Berkley Power Bait Bottom Hopper made famous by Larry Nixon is a great shaky head worm .

Moving up to a Dobyns 704 SF would be a smart move (and a 702 SF for drop shot later for the trifecta in Dobyns spinning rods) . Conversely , I own a Dobyns 734 Sierra bait cast rod which may work deep with a 3/16th oz. ~ 1/4 oz. shaky head and #20 lb. braid + #10 lb. leader and a 7" worm . Still , I like to get ideas from others and what they use for certain tactics (like deep water shaky head) .

Thanks - not familiar with Major Craft (but will study) ; to find a Daiwa Tatula 7'2" MH / F shaky head spinning rod for $70 is sweet ! ... My current shaky head rod is a n Dobyns Sierra 703 sf spinning rod which I use with a braid mainline + FC leader ... Dobyns power ratings are slightly less than other rods , so my 703 sf is on the lighter side of medium power . Dobyns does make a Sierra 704 sf spinning rod rated up to 1 oz. while the Tatula is rated up to 3/4th oz. I don't want a broom stick - I'll have to see if I can find both the Tatula 7'2" MH / F and the Dobyns 704 sf spinning rods to see which may be best for shaky head fishing in deep water ? It could be that Lucas may need to work on his deep water shaky head technique or use sharper hook shaky heads with a 7' M / F standard power shaky head spinning rod (lol !) I'll have to see specifically if my current Dobyns 703 sf spinning rod for shaky heads is truly handicapping me in 20'+ water depths before I have to resort to springing for a new shaky head spinning rod (although you can never have enough rods !)

I saw a video by Justin Lucas where by he stated that for deeper shaky head fishing (20+ ft.) that a MH / F 7' spinning rod was needed because a M / F spinning rod simply wouldn't have the required back bone to drive the hook home when fishing depths greater than 20' ft. deep . Lucas used a 7' Abu Garcia Veracity 7' MH / F (his sponsor) - but I'm not a fan of Abu Garcia plus the $200 Veracity spinning rod price is a little steep for my budget ... *Looking for a 7'MH / F spinning rod at the $125 to $150 price range that would be good for deeper water shaky head applications that has a good tip , sensitive feel - yet has a bit more back bone than the typical M / F spinning rod ? ... Thanks in advance for recommendations !

Due to KVD's relationship with BPS - it would be great if the BPS stuff was just re-labeled KVD line treatment (most likely it is not ...) .

*If you must , a light vegetable oil plus granulated garlic gently heated up , stired until garlic granuals disolve , cool then apply to soft plastics ... BANG is my favorite spray scent and is now even available at most WM's .

Both are nice Mike ! ... The swim jig pack looks like it would cover a nice range of colors that would would work any where .

*Zman does make the Mag ShroomZ jig head made for the Giant TRD (6/0 hook) : https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Z-Man_Mag_Shroomz_3pk/descpage-ZMMS.html

I appreciate the replies to date ... Perhaps a softer MH / Moderate (parabolic) bait cast rod could do double duty if you don't have a true Medium action bait cast rod ?

*It's nice to know I am not alone - I believe I buy hard body lures , soft plastics , jigs , etc. smartly but the wife just doesn't understand stating : "You will be dead before you can use it all " ! She hates when I reply : "Then great - another day I have cheated death and gone fishing with a new lure , new pack of soft plastics , etc. " ! ... The wife (sigh) is simply not amused .

Currently I have MH/F and H/F action 7'3" bait cast rods and was considering adding a M/F 6'6" or 7' M/F bait cast rod to the line up . *The concern is - I already have a 7' M/F spinning rod , so trying to justify what advantage or applications a M/F bait cast rod set up would offer over a M/F spinning set up ? ... Your thoughts and experiences where a M/F bait cast rod set up excels or offers you a real advantage over a M/F spinning rod set up ? ... Thanks in advance !

*Do not confuse this new offering with the Big TRD ... The Giant TRD is 6 inches long and larger in diameter than your thumb - these things are huge !! This is definitely a monster power tactic TRD meant for flipping with a pegged 1 oz.+ flipping weight or T-Rig with a EWG Super Line 5/0 . I'd also consider the Davey Hite "Drop Dead" tactic using the VMC EWG Drop Dead 5/0 3/32md oz. hook size for this stick bait beast . I myself passed on them currently ; I may try one pack of Green Pumpkin in the Spring to experiment with to research the fall rate , action , etc. ... Did I mention these things are G-I-A-N-T ?

When I think of Brown worms - I think of Pumpkin Seed , Scuppermung or Oxblood (light of dark) . Zoom , Strike King 3X , ZMan , Robo Worm and a few others offer these . I've never been much of a fan of Pumpkinseed as I'd rather use Green Pumpkin , Scuppermung and Oxblood as they would be my Brown color worm choices .

Yes , that is a good idea - also as a trailer for the tiny TRD jig ...

+1 ... Takahiro is ALWAYS in the finals ! I saw MLF Louisiana event footage where I thought Takahiro was Jacob Wheeler's "non - boater" !! ... I had to do a double take to see Takahiro was actually in his own boat (lol !!)

*Not new applications at all - but they are deadly with the TRD & Big TRD ! ... Nothing at all wrong with the Ned Rig but I decided I wanted to try something different that would take advantage of the TRD's size , shape and buoyant characteristics : 1) The Split Shot Rig and 2) The Carolina Rig . Set Up : Split Shot Rig : 7' MF spinning rod 2500 / 3000 size spinning reel #6 lb. ~ #8 lb. Maximu Ultragreen co-poly or Spiderwire Ultracast Mono ZMan Small TRD or 1/2 of a Zman ZinkerZ (Green Pumpkin , Junebug or two-tone colors of your choice) Pegged 1/8th oz. tungsten bullet weight approx. 2.0 ~ 3.0 ft. from TRD Owner #2 or #1 Down Shot Hook Retrieve : Any of the split shot retrieves (i.e. drag , drag & hop , etc.) will cause the small TRD to dart around and float off the bottom slightly looking very natural. Carolina Rig : 7' ~ 7'6" bait cast rod MH/F or H/F 7:1 bait cast Reel AbrazX #15lb. ~ #17 lb. FC main line ; #12 lb. Maxima Ultragreen leader (2.0 to 3.0 ft. leader length) ZMan Big TRD or cut a Zman ZinkerZ down to 4" (Green Pumpkin , Junebug or two - tone colors of your choice) Owner 2/0 ~ 3/0 Down Shot Hook ; Gamakatsu 2/0 ~ 3/0 EWG light wire hook Tungsten or Lead egg shaped weight (1/2oz. to 1 oz.) Spro Power Swivel #4 size #8 size red faceted glass bead or hot orange color plastic bead Retrieve : Standard C-Rig "ball & chain" retrieve (i.e drag slowly drag with rod tip a few feet , reel in slack , repeat) . As with the smaller standard size TRD - the Big TRD will dart and float off of the bottom slightly during the retrieve and looking natural while at rest . Tips : *Use a drop of Loctite super glue (gel) to secure the TRD on the Owner down shot hook *With use , the TRD's will become more buoyant and quiver more during the retrieve Consider giving the above techniques a try for a new / old twist on the TRD ...

+1 ... I have started using Big Bite Bait grubs as well with good success - cost effective as well !

*Is it Hank Cherry ? ... Good stick for sure !

Wait until Rick Clunn , Tommy Biffle and Larry Nixon start rocking the "flat bill" caps - it could happen (LOL !!)

I have not watched the live footage yet ... I'll need to check it out versus the recorded programming . As for Brent Ehrler's "flat bill" cap - the younger kids like it for the style aspect I suppose (it's all good ) .

For those that use finesse swim baits (Keitech FAT 2.8 , 3.3 & 3.8) for small mouth and spotted bass - what is your current spinning set up ? *I'm thinking my same spinning set up for a shaky head (i.e. Dobyns 703sf , Daiwa 3000 size reel , #10lb ~ #15 lb. power pro + #8lb. FC leader 1/8th oz. ~ 3/16th oz. jigheads) would work fairly well with finesse swim baits - your thoughts ?

Shaky head worm set up will spiral down - the worm must be on a shaky head jig type with just the plain bait holder notch on the jig head (i.e. no screw lock ) . The slight hump of the worm on this type of shaky head jig is what causes the spiral .