BigBassLoveSenkos

Agreed. Forget the leader. We still dont know if the OP is dealing with clear or stained water. Even if it is clear, the pads themselves should help conceal the braid.

I'd fish in death valley if there was a lake there, but no way I'd fish at the north pole. Thankfully Indiana weather isnt so extreme in the summer. Dusk/dawn/night fishing is perfect for me during the week. On the weekends, if I'm on the water mid-day, I target deeper waters, boat docks, and shaded areas. Pre-spawn is the best period hands-down, but summer can be extremely productive for both numbers and weight.

I've used as light as 20# power pro around smaller lily pads, up to 65# braid in the swamp. Hope this helps.

Soft plastics, all day all night. I'd also use braid and base the weight on the thickness of the pad stalks. If the water is super clear, a fluoro leader will help. Senkos, frogs, jigs. Medium/heavy rod. Have fun!

If I could only have one, I probably wouldnt tell anyone what it was

I was tearing thru bags of senkos too. After every catch I had to replace the worm. Some days I would go thru 3+ bags of 5 inchers. That's over $20 of plastic. The guy at the local store put me onto this ----> Maaaaaaaaaannnnnnnn. It's called an O-wacky tool and it simply slips an O ring onto the senko, eliminating the need for the hook to pierce the senko. In other words, I can reuse senkos now! After somewhere between 5 and 10 catches the senko will start looking rough. I've been swapping out for a new one after 4-5 catches. Still, I'm now spending 400-500% less on senkos, with absolutely zero impact on the senko magic. Here's what the senko looks like rigged ----> Hope this helps some of yall

weightless and near pads or grass

65# Power Pro and dark colored senkos!

When you say this this year has been down, do you mean that the bigguns are sparce, or that fishing as a whole has been down? Since the thaw, I've noticed on our lake that numbers of 1-3 pounders is way up, and anything heavier is way down.

a 10? Nice! If you ever need a coplilot, let me know!

this

i start casting side-armed. lol

You think the private lakes and pits are holding bigger bass than the reservoirs? Interesting. I also live on a private lake on Indy's northside and my best out of it is 6.5. My best out of Geist is 8.5. I've reeled in 10+ # wipers on the private lake, not to mention some monster cats and carp. This year has been much better than last. The long winter seems to have helped all local fisheries. To the OP, there are some unorthodox alternatives on the northside, such as 6 pounders in golf course ponds, that will surprise you! Are you looking to boat or shore fish?

weightless wacky rig

Same here, senko's have been killing it for me on a wacky rig for the past 3 weeks. Crazy colors too like pink and white.

I have this unit on my boat and love it. I rarely need to use the tri screen, I'm usually using sonar or downview in a single screen. The Elite 4 HDI is currently at my bow, but I'll move it to the console once I get the 7" model..

^ This

Clear water: 5" Senko (Bubble Gum) Stained: 5" Senko (Plum w Emerald Flakes)

Largemouth are on the banks, in my normal smallmouth positions. Senko's have been my best daytime weapon. 1-2 pound males are at 5' or less, you gotta work a little harder for the females. In low light I'm having good light with a heddon spook. I'm not sure if smallies have spawned yet or are currently spawning. Havent seen them in a week. Wipers are smashing DT 16 cranks and spro 16' cranks in open water. The wiper bite is so good, 2 of my 6 rigs are dedicated to them at the moment.

Wally World sporting goods department managers are not the brightest. I found one over the weekend labeled a lightening stick for $25.

I have 2 triumph rods, and I'm not really feelin them. I was hoping for a smoother casting rod than what I got. They are better than some of the rods in the same price range, like Skeet Reese rods, but I wish I would have just bought Duckett

Bill Dance must read this forum. He covered this topic in his show today.

Went out this morning. Water temps around 65. There was a big bite going on, but mostly with 1 pounders and only on wacky rig senkos.

If the bite is really slow, I'll throw topwater in the middle of the day. If nothing is working I'll mix it up. It has worked a couple times for me.

morning - buzzbait day and night - spinnerbaits