Steveo-1969

If you Google "What is pegging?" you will probably get results that are NSFW!! Pegging a weight simply means doing something to the bullet weight so it's stationary and won't move up and down the line while fishing it. Lots of different ways to do this. Insert toothpick in weight hole and break off, this pinches the weight to the line. Or there are rubber stops that look like toothpicks that do the same thing. Or a round rubber stop you put on your line above your weight that you can pull down so the weight is tight against the top of the hook and doesn't move. Youtube will have videos on how to "peg a bullet weight". Here is Glenn's take on it: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/pegging-weight-texas.html

"My schedule is open for the next 10 days. Which 2 days am I NOT going fishing?"

I'm going against the majority here, I almost always peg my weight with a rubber bobber stop. I feel I snag less often in my shallow rocky river because when it's not pegged the weight often gets wedged between rocks and I don't even feel it until it's too late. With the weight pegged I can feel it sooner and react more quickly.

Hollywood sure does have a hard time with this kind of thing, don't they? I'm not as much of a gun guy as you but know enough to pick out the obvious things that are wrong. My favorite is hearing the sound of a pump-action shotgun, and then you see the person holding a double-barrel shotgun. Really?!?!?

ATB - "Awesomely Terrific Bait"???

This has been my experience as well. Put a bait in front of a river smallmouth and they are probably going to eat it. Most of my river fishing for smallmouth is in 1' - 6' of water, so pretty shallow. I enjoy using bottom contact baits the most so I'm usually fishing a finesse jig/craw or a t-rigged plastic (Menace Grub/Baby Rage Craw/Dinger). Sometimes swimming a grub or a small swimbait.

Show off...

But... isn't it too late to ask if you already purchased it? j/k I couldn't resist! Seriously I've never used one but have a friend who has 4 Exo baitcasting reels and loves them. Sounds like you got a heck of a deal for only $25 out of pocket!

I've been using 10# Gander Mountain fluorocarbon for a couple months. It's thicker than higher priced brands like Seaguar and Sunline but I don't have any complaints yet. At $20 for 400 yards you can't beat the price either.

Welcome to Bass Resource PHX! I was just in your neck of the woods on vacation last week, my daughter and sister live in Fountain Hills. Beautiful state you have! We shore fished on Saguaro Lake one afternoon and I managed to catch 3 largemouths. My first AZ fish ever. Friendly, knowledgeable and helpful fisherman on this site. Enjoy!

Thanks for the clarification.

I have an MBR 842C NRX and the lure rating is 1/8 - 3/8 oz. Does the GLX have a higher lure weight rating?

Yup, diameter is bigger. I'm using Gander 10# fluoro right now and it has about the same diameter as 12# Invizx. I don't have any complaints with the line yet though. It's a little stiffer than Invizx but also has a little less stretch (IMO). I apply KVD L&L the night before a fishing trip and haven't had any line management issues, and the knots hold well. So far so good. For someone looking for an "economy" fluoro, at $20 for 400 yards it's definitely worth a try. (FWIW, I just recently used Sniper 10# as well and thought it handled/casted a little better than the Gander 10# fluorocarbon.)

A 7 foot MH/F rod sounds just about right to me! If you give us your rod budget it would be easier to make specific manufacturer/model recommendations.

The smallmouth in my river love jigs. I generally use a 3/16 ounce finesse skirted jig because I'm only fishing in 2-8 feet of water and that gets me on the bottom quickly but doesn't snag much. I pair it with a Baby Rage Craw trailer.

Wow, very cool. I just received my first jig order from Siebert on Monday after messaging him here with questions. Mike promptly answered my questions and made a recommendation on which jig would work best for my situation. And now the smallies in my river are in trouble!!

On the Rapala website they only show Trigger X panfish baits, so it looks like they have stopped making bass and walleye plastics. I've used Trigger X grubs and worms and caught fish on them. As Mosster47 said, "if you do your part they will do theirs". Not sure why they stopped making plastics for bass and walleye but if they were profitable they probably wouldn't have stopped... Maybe only the Lindners were using them and they were getting them for free? ha-ha

Welcome to BR! My name is also Steve and I was born and raised in WI, then at 27yo got kicked out of the state for being a Bears fan and relocated to WV because they don't have a resident NFL team here. Enjoy our forums, best bass fishing forum on the Interwebs.

I highly recommend this method. AND you don't get anywhere near the gills of the fish. WIN WIN!!!

I usually weigh my fish by holding it up, guessing the weight and then doubling it... Works for me!

Or go old school and use a red/white Dardevle spoon.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

I don't know about strongest either but I always use a Trilene knot and never had one fail. (That's actually the ONLY knot I use for line to lure for mono, fluoro or braid).

WOW!! After looking at everyone's fish I'm glad I haven't figured out how to post pics on here yet... :-)

I fish a river all year long (it doesn't freeze over where I fish). I've gone 3 months without a fish (ANY fish, not just bass), fishing every Saturday and Sunday for a minimum of 4 hours per outing. Talk about beat me to death! I don't have a boat and the water was too high to safely wade, so this was all from the bank. Luckily that didn't happen this winter. I still got skunked a bunch of times but managed to catch some fish all winter long.