jb_adams

OK, I'll take another look at the scales and see if it can be calibrated.

I like your methodology of weights! You added about 4lbs to my fish! ;D Yeah, those are brand new scales and it's srping loaded. I think I'll opt for a nice quality digital scale. Things of this nature are priceless and having an accurate scale is key.

Now don't laugh because I say it's my personal best. This is a nice bass but not a really big one worth saying personal best. I have only fished for bass seriously for about a year now. This is my second season and I don't get to go that often so I am really proud of what I have learned here and from others so far. This bass is a little on the light-weight side considering how long he was. He was about 24 inches in length. My scale said about 2lbs but I don't believe that. I know it weighed every bit of 4lbs. just by the way it field holding it. I know what 4lbs feels like from my free weights on my weightlifting bench. Anyway, he was caught on a private pond in about 4-5ft. of stained muddy water around 8:00AM on a white tri-blade buzzbait with a red dipped/dyed skirt. I caught 12 bass that day and 9 of them were all on that same buzzbait. The 9 bass that I caught are proof of the myth that when a buzzbait leaves a nice bubble trail, the buzz bite is on! Heck, I missed several strikes from short strikers (even with a trailer hook) and a few jumped and got off the buzz. Check out the photos below! It takes talent to retrieve a buzzbait and take a photo of the retrieve for documented proof!

The first time I saw him on TV I thought, "who in the WORLD is this guy?" After several years, he's grown on me a bit. It's all part of being able to syke out the other guy. Just think of how many bites have been missed from all the anglers watching him dance for a 2lb fish. He's not my favorite but I do have to give the guy respect. He's not the best angler but he is a good one.

This is a debate that has gone on for years now. I've heard several pros that are on tour and say they throw topwater the majority of the time and for most of the year. I have caught bass (nothing big) on a spook close to noon in the bright sun. The best thing to do is throw one and see how they react. I'd say when the water temp reaches 60+, throw one morning for sure, in the late evenings, and hi-noon if you are around cover or places where the fish can shade. You'll be surprised what will hit it. My parter throws a buzzbait from dusk to dark this time of year. NO lie!!!

Am I the only one here to use a senko on a spot remover???? Tell me it isn't so!! It's the ultimate dead stick. Very little action so you have to twitch it slightly but the more aggressive fish like them. Sometimes you have to find the right color though. I prefer a camo color blend in various colors like crawfish color and a brown blend or a green and brown. It only seems to work on aggressive fish though. When the fish are not as aggressive, you can't go wrong with a finesse worm for catching numbers. Not quality fish but just catching anything beats no catch at all. Motor oil color with a curled tail is my favorite color for this tecnique. I've caught fish in terrible conditions with this bait tactic. It's one of my preferred go-to baits when the bite is tough. I usually manage to find a fish near structure with this. Find a tree or downed brush, throw the bait just past it and walk it by. "Ringing the doorbell" is what I call it. See if anyone is home! ;D

I may be still a newb but I really don't think there is a "one bait fits all" type spinnerbait. I think it depends on the lake and the geographical location. With that said, there are so many other factors to consider, clarity, temp, colors, blade sizes & colors, textured blades, and thanks to Lightingrod now there are wire configurations! ;D I believe War Eagle are the best all-around spinner baits on my local lake but I usually try others to see if I can utilize a cheaper spinnerbait. I'm ready to now step up and strictly use War Eagle and try Terminator. There are other spinnerbait companies that make awesome looking baits but they catch more anglers than fish I'll bet. I completely agree with the earlier statement that: "it's all about the blades." That will make the biggest impact by far on whether you're catching fish or not. Am I right? If I'm not, let me know. I'm still a newbie.

I saw that same show. The "some guy" was only 19 years old and on his way to pro status. He'd fished that lake since he was a kid and knew it well. It worked for him so it could work for you. Yeah, it will throw the action a bit but you would really have to have some short strikers to require a second treble on the back. I'll admit that I was thinking "hmmmm....that's an idea" when I saw it too. I don't fish cranks enough yet to actually experiment with it. Try it with a really heavy action crank bait and see what happens. Just be prepare to snag it on structure or whatever that much faster.

Thanks! I once heard an FLW Pro say that the shad rap was one of his "go-to" baits when searching for bass. I like the look of them, maybe mine is just one of the smaller models and I need a bigger one. Bass around here just don't seem to strike at smaller baits. Thanks for the tip!

How do you fish them? I've never had a strike with either? Granted I haven't thrown them much because I don't have confidance in them. They're so small, I usually never throw them very often. What works best for you? Shallow water with a crankin' retrieve kicking up silt on the bottom?

I heard that this bait is best for night time use. Is that true or is late afternoon just as good? I would think either would be just as good given certain conditions were right for topwater. Also, I've never gotten around to fishing one yet. How do you retrieve it? Short random pops like a popper or sequential pops and slightly faster?

All you have to do is change out the trailer trebble hook with a feather hook. Hmmmm......I need to do that with a few more of my baits. If it works, there goes the crankbaits. I'll change out anything under a D14 to add some more action to it.

Obey the baitmonkey!! He has a bad temper!!! ;D

You just made me really jealous. All you had to do is say they work! I guess answered my questions, thanks!

Sorry, its "Double Take".....Second look is a type of ceiling tile. Work managed to creep in my post. I figured these things weren't that new. I had the same idea last year so it couldn't be that new. Glad to know they work good. What about the King Kong bait? http://www.tackletour.com/reviewabttitan.html

What do you guys think about the new buzzbait from Strike King (& other new baits from Strike King)?? It's called the "Second Look" and it features two blades (not front to back but side to side). It slows down the retrieve speed and allows the bait to stay in the strike zone longer. I think these have been in production before but I could be wrong. I bought one and I'm planning on tryin it out this season. So what do you think? Also, what about the Strike King, "King Kong" bait? Think that monster is worth having for finding trophy bass?? It seems logical. I may get one just to surprise my fishing buddy so when he sees that bohemuth flying out of the boat, I can tell him "I want it all" like that guy in the insurance commercial. ;D

All of the tactics mentioned so far has me drooling and looking forward to summer now. Thanks a lot guys! ALL tactics are good ones and they all tell me one thing...... I need to start doing something you guys and everyone else on my isn't because the fish are all looking at anything from .99 cent Wal-Mart spinnerbaits to jig-pigs with pork trailers. The fish locally see a lot of pressure. They see patterns during certain times of the year. I think I'll try to use baits that are ahead of their season. For example, jerkbaits are good this time of year. Large plastic worms are good for the summer months and so are jigs. I think I'll use them earlier than anyone else because it's been a while since the bass have seen a buzzbait or a 10" worm. If I stay a month ahead, that will be my technique. If it doesn't work, I'll just do what every other bass jocky is doing.....throw everything but the kitchen sink! ;D

Not to post jack but since this is all about which is better, which retrieve is preferred over the other?? There are three retrieves that I know of that are the most popular. 1.) Very fast erratic retrieve (really makes it zig zag and dance a lot creating tons of vibration) 2.) the yo-yo retrieve (varying speeds that uses a retrieve pause method creating up & down yo-yo) 3.) smooth slow roll (no frills retrieve) I wouldn't think that one vs. the other bait manuf. would have an advantage over the other but I can say that the Booyah does give off more vibration than any of the others. I think it's the blade design and the larger wire loop on the blade that results in more vibration.

I think they will work good with just about any plastic that will fit on it. I have personally had luck with finesse worms, senkos, trick worms (on occasion), but I've never tried using a craw bug....now I have something else to start throwing. Thanks guys! Like I had a hard enough time sticking with one bait! ;D The best thing to do with bait selection is to be mythodical in your selection based on knowledge and conditions, then try as many different ones that will work based on conditions. When you find what plastic works for that day, stick with it and use slight variations.

I am still trying to catch a single fish on any of the chatterbait style baits. I mainly have Rad lures but I have two Booyah Boogies and I has sworn off buying any more of them until I catch a fish with them. This weekend I was at BPS in Branson and I found a new color (Ozark Smoke) which is a light lavender & white smoke color which looks like a great bait. I like the Booyah over all others for quality craftsmanship and the flexible hook is pretty cool. The quality is a lot better than the Gambler Swimblade and the Rad Chatterbait plus, the hooks are sharp right out of the box unlike the Rad lures. The trailers of the Booyah are a lot better quality and last longer. I've had Rad lures trailers merge together while the tackle box was open on a hot summer day. I usually keep the box closed but I think the heat still got to them and melted the two together. I usually just buy replacement spinner bait trailers or use another plastic. My fishing partner caught a few on white chatterbaits (Rad) but I've never caught one and I have tried many lakes and many retrieves. I've had a strike or two but I needed a trailer because I was burning it back to the boat making it dance like crazy and little bass were nipping at it. Lightning Rod has caught some really nice big bass with them. (Rad that is)

Is this club legit?? I've seen a few guys are members here. (Reel Mechanic) Do you really get a great deal of benifits from joining? Do you really get to review quality products and keep them for free?? What do you guys know of this?

That sounds more like what I was expecting. Thanks! What's this snap casting you speak of??

I guess I am going to have to proof read my questions better. You guys misunderstood me. I know what the flipping switch does mechanically to the reel. I know what flipping and pitching is (the basics concept anyway), and I have read the Baitcasters 101 article several times now. I have set my baits to turn 1/4 to 1/2 a rotation after it hits the ground. I guess I described it wrong by saying about 6" per second. That's typically what I look for first and then I check to see if it will hit the ground correctly. Anyway, if I use the tension knob correctly with the correct setting for regular casting, the line doesn't spool off fast enough for pitching or flipping. Even if I turn the mags all the way down to 0. I may be trying to flip or pitch too far away too. Usually, you stay under 20ft. depending on what you're trying to do and what your fishing with. Even at 10-15ft. away from a target, the line just feels like it's restricted too much. I'll play with it some more and find the right setting. It's all in the tension control knob from what you guys are saying.

Oh I have total respect for these guys. I've been on here long enough to know that they really know what they are talking about. Some of these guys have more knowledge than I can even dream of having. It's just my personal opinion that I need to start off small. Here's an example. Some yuppie goes in and buys the most expensive fly fishing equipment that he can buy from a local store that is known for higher prices and catering to the "yuppie" or "rich guy's" market. He then goes out and charters a guided trip in the Colorado or somewhere that he read in a Field and Stream article on how great the trout fishing is. Once arriving with his new Cabelas clothes, waders, and the new GLoomis fishing rods, reels, etc.; he brags about how many articles he's read and how many fish he's going to catch. Long story short, expensive equipment doesn't make the man. The man makes the equipment. Now with that said, it takes an experienced man to fully benifit from the equipment. If you take a beginner and stick a $350 GLoomis rod in his had with a $300 Shimano baitcaster, he'll still backlash, miss bites, can't feel a bite, etc. Talk to any charter captain and he'll tell you the same thing. On the opposite hand, take an experienced angler that can benifit from the advantage GLoomis and St. Croix rods can offer and he will capitolize on their benifits I'm sure. As for me, I'm a beginner. To me, I'm as proud as a tick on a dog's behind to have the confidence I have in a $35 rod when I go fishing up to 1-2 times a month as a B-E-G-I-N-N-E-R. One day, I'll move up to the category of experienced and I'll buy some better quality rods. This is only my first year of serious recreational fishing. In a few years, I'd like to fish in the local tournaments. Until then, $35-100 for a rod is plenty.

I'm getting much better with my new baitcasters. One has a flippin' switch. What's the settings for using this? For regular casting, I adjust the cast control knob to let the bait fall around 6" per second and then fine-tune the magnets on the opp. side as needed. With the flippin' switch on, the line doesn't come off fast enough. If I let off too much, the line baclashes too easily. Are there any articles or threads on this?