BASS fisherman

Good job. Now win it next week and take pictures!!

Not retarded at all. There are no stupid questions. First though it should be noted that in bass fishing just like war there are going to be casualties. In order to learn how to guide a spinnerbait through a bunch of weeds, your going to have to loose some spinnerbaits. Same with every other lure there is. Your finding out why you see all these bass anglers with multiple rods and reels-setups. The setup you have is good for trout. What you need is something for bass. Rod: A 6' 6" med hvy action rod is a decent all around rod. You can use it for fishing plastics, to fishing cranks and spinners through that grass. (With practice) Reel: In my experience a baitcaster is ideal for weedy waters. Think of the BC as a winch. When you hook a bass and she dives into those weeds, you literaly have to winch that girl out of there. The added power is key. Line: Different strokes for different folks here. Here are my personal line preferences: Mono: I like mono for crankbaits because it stretches a little bit. I think the little bit of stretch helps sink those hooks in better. Mono also sinks and is not so good around weeds. I usually use 10# or 12# mono. Flourocarbon: I like flouro for plastics and jigs because the techniques require the bass to get close to the lure. Flourocarbon is said to be less visable underwater. Flourocarbon line floats. I like mono for all my treble baits, but some people like flouro for topwaters because it floats. Flourocarbon line is ok around weeds. I prefer using 12#, or 15# around weeds. Briad: Braided line is tough! Braided line has no stretch. Braid is great for fishing around tricky bass hangouts such as laydowns, and weeds. If you use braided line you will be able to pull out a tree if your snagged on it. Provided you dont straighten the hook or break your rod first. Braid can be used for pretty much all lures and baits however a certain care is needed with certain lures. Crankbaits and braid can be tricky because the braid has no give to it. When you set the hook on a crankbait fish and braided line the crankbait can rip out of the fishes mouth. The positive side of that is when your fishing a crank through weeds on braid, and you get stuck in the weeds, you can rip the bait out of the grass. This usually illicits a response. You can not do that with mono, and its hard to do with flouro. About the only techniques I use braid for is frog fishing over weeds, and jig fishing in heavy thick weeds. It is up to you what line you prefer, however I would suggest Trilene 12# flourocarbon. If your fishing lakes that have huge bass you may want to jump it up to 15# or 17# line. Again you will loose lures. Thats just the name of the game. Also get used to pulling weeds off your lures every cast. 99.9 % of bass will not hit a lure with weeds hanging off it. Remember this: If your not loosing lures your not throwing them where the bass hide. The trick is learning how NOT to loose lures. It just takes practice once you have the proper gear. Its a neat feeling when you can dance a crankbait through a laydown tree and not get hung up.

Which way did he go? Which way did he go? I can see that too! Hiker 1: Ouch I just got bit by a snake! Hiker 2: Was it a poisonous snake? Hiker 1: I dont know! I heard once your supposed to catch the snake and take it with you to the hospital. Hiker 2: Oh ok. Which way did it go? Hiker 1: I dont know Ill look over here. You look over there bywer swizzle shing jink mo mo. Hiker 2: ILets get you to the hospital!!!!

This guy is a member here!!! Ha ha couldn't resist!!

Not to mention most snake bites are sustained by people who cant leave the thing alone. However I can understand killing it to protect pets, children, and livestock. Personally I would rather relocate the animal than kill it. Theres always exceptions though when an animal can easily kill you. Now if it bites you and its poisonous they say your supposed to kill it so the hospital can identify it correctly and give you the appropriate anti-venom? Anyone know if that is still true?

Bioligists say there are several reasons bass bite lures. Off the top of my head some of those reasons include: Anger: The bass will bite at a fish to get it out of its territory. Hunger: The bass is feeding. Curiousity: The bass wants to know what something is so it feels it, and tastes it. Reaction: A bass sees an injured fish swimming odd, his instinct drives him to eat it because it is an easy meal. Or what looks like an easy meal as it flies past its head crashing into rocks and stumps. Im sure there are more too. Those are just off the top of my head.

I personally use the spring scale from Rapala. I like the spring model better because it is less likely to break from being banged around or from getting wet. The very first scale I had was the $20 electronic scale from Rapala which at the time was $30. I had it maybe 2 months before I had it out in the rain and fried it. Thats why I like the spring scale. I can put it into my bag and not have to worry about it getting wet or bumped around. As far as how to use the models with the hook, all you do is place the hook into the gill slit, without touching the gills. Its important that you dont touch the gills.

it sounds like lots of things. Your hooks may be dull, or the point may be turned over. It may be your using too small of a hook for the plastic you are throwing. You may be setting the hook before the fish has the hook in it's mouth. Sometimes bass pickup a plastic by the tail and swim away with it. When you set the hook, you bring back a baitless lure, or a ripped plastic. I have had days when the fish only pick the plastic by the tail. I have tried feeling them out but its tough to tell which thump is the one you need to set on. If you wait too long you can gut hook the fish. They like what your throwing, but not enough to engulf it. Try different colors- I figure the fish who pick up lures like that have been caught and they are testing it to see if its fake or not. They probably see the same old colors all the time so try and use those less common colors when the bass are being picky. Sometimes even a subtle change in lure style works too. Say the bass are being picky with tubes. Tie on a craw tube and give that a try. Or instead of a regular space monkey, rip the arms off for a different action. Or you could also try tipping the plastic with JJ's magic. I can almost promise you wont miss those picky biters. The bass get enraged when they taste or smell garlic for some reason. Adding that may help the fish engulf the lure rather than playing patty cake with it. I would suggest loosening your drag a tiny bit. It sounds like with 65# braid your drags too tight and your creating a hole as you bring him in. In order for that fish with the hole to get off, he'd need slack line. Just keep your line tight and your tip up and it should solve that problem. However when you feel the bass about to jump, lower your rod tip to one side or the other, maintaining that tight line, and the leverage he needs to jump and throw that hook is gone. I dont see how a snell would help other than if your line is snapping completely. But if your using 65# test you are probably getting knicks in your line and when the fight happens, your line fails. The knicks usually occur in the first 5 foot or so above your lure. Mainly when fishing rocks though. So if your line breaks due to a knick, you would most likely assume it was a knot failure. Which is not likely with a polamer knot and braid. If the stuff your fishing is as nasty as it sounds, tieing a snell could only help. Hopefully this helps Try these tips and see what happens. Keep us posted

I wonder how many hours of dive time those guys on Hook -n- look get before they have enough usable footage? I remember when those underwater cameras started selling again a few years back. I thought it was a great idea however all the videos are so cloudy. The visability is next to nothing on the videos I have seen. Atleast you got some practice in anyway. I have never dived nor would I do this, but I heard once that if your diving in cold water, a trick to do is to pee in your suit. Sounds feasible but also sounds like something an old timer tells a newb just to watch him squirm.

Do you guide? Maybe you should start.

Bingo! The key is keeping the rod tip up.

me too-

So thats the lure you used, wheres the fish at? Ha ha Beautiful fish! Nice to know the area is getting back to normal.

Next Saturday May 21st I will be in G-burg and have to hit some old spots. I plan on hitting the G-burg college pond, and the old fish hatchery pond off of orrtanaa-close to the applesauce place. Anyone fish those spots recently? Its been about 5 years since Ive been there. If anyone wants to meet up and fish, we can do that but atm I dont know what time I will be there.

No problem at all. Glad to help! Just be sure to stick with it. You ARE going to get many many backlashes. And you will become proficient at pulling them out......if you stick with it. In the 5 years or so I have been using a baitcaster, I have had maybe 6 backlashes that were so bad that I had to take a pair of scissors to the nest. Each time it was very discouraging, and to some that is enough to get rid of it and stick with spinning gear. The key is learning to adjust the reel properly for each new lure. Feathering or thumbing the lure as it is flying through the air so you dont get cosmic backlashes is the second part of the reel equation. Alot of guys giveup because it is tricky to learn, however once you do, you can drop a lure anywhere you want.

Ouch!, it happens to everyone eventualy. You just have to becareful when your reaching for a mouthful of hooks. From your post it sounds like you reach into the water and lip the bass with a crank in its mouth. The best thing to do is pull the fish out of the water before you grab it. Other ideas: Instead of lipping the fish, grab it behind the shoulders. It stops the fish from moving and you can easily remove the lure. Another thing you may think about is investing in a set of fish grippers. They make them cheaper where they look like a plastic pair of pliers with a big oversized gripper on it. http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops%c2%ae-Fish-Gripper-Pliers/product/52268/-1015015 Here is a more expensive option too: http://www.basspro.com/Berkley%c2%ae-Big-Game-Digital-Lip-Grip/product/50327/-995319 That way if your fishing lures with too many hooks, you dont have to even come close to getting stuck again.

Totally! You can find much better deals at Dick's, Gander Mtn, BPS, Cabela's, and dont forget about the tackle sites that sponsor this site too.

They prey on "suckers". They sell you promises and a high priced piece of junk. Id compare the ethics of this company to those of a thief. To me, its no different than the people who con elderly people out of money. Just another type of scam. A "legal" scam if you will.

I didnt even look at the link and my answer is NO! Gimmick 100% the company should be sued for false advertising.

Its a good thing you had pictures!!! Way to go man!

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/ http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_articles.html

Simply having to ask the question, Im going to say no.

KVD line and lure conditioner

ook here goes: Secure the reel on a rod. Looking down at the combo in your hand, for directions sake lets say it is a right handed reel. The dial on the left with the numbers is the magnetic brake. 10 is the "tightest" 1 is the "loosest" Start it at 10 untill you get the feel for it, then slowely turn it down. Basically this dial is your thumb control meter. The higher it is the less you will thumb a lure, the lower it is the more you will thumb. Learning to feather a lure is the main goal. That helps you precisely place a lure where you want it. I usually kept mine about 4 or 5. On the right side you see a small gold knob. This is the mechanical brake. This is critical and should be adjusted for each new lure tied on!! You want to turn the knob clockwise to tighten it. When you tie on a new lure you want to set the fall of the lure. Hold the rod tip up and press the button on the reel. Now turn that little knob untill the lure is falling very very slowely, if at all. This helps to tighten down the spool so it doesnt go super cosmic and give you a backlash. Remember thumb control when you cast. The last thing and equally important....the star looking thingy. Thats the drag! Tighten it down clockwise and then easy back until your happy with it. Im assuming you fish with spinning gear......... Now spooling her up: The fishing line must go onto the reel the same way it comes off of the spool. So id suggest putting a pencil in the line spool and having a helper hold it so that as you strip line off the spool, it spins. That is key! You DO NOT want the line peeling off the side of the spool as you fill the reel! This helps to prevent line twist which is bad. Take the end of the line from the spool, and feed it down the eyelets of the rod. Be sure to feed the line through the prawl, thats the eyelet or guide on the reel that lays the line down evenly as you reel. Personally I like to tie my line directly into the little holes on the spool in the reel. Most firshermen loop the line around the spool and tie a basic overhand knot with another overhand knot tied on the end (arbor knot) to prevent it slipping out. Now you reel and fill er up! Keep the line tight as you can- more of a medium tautness. Every 50 turns or so stop and move closer to the person holding the line spool. This alows slack to form and this is important......as you move closer to the helper the line should not twist up around itself. If it does, the line is coming off of the line spool incorrectly. Have them turn the spool 180* and reel in some more and try it again. You can have a tiny amount of twist....it will twist really slow, but none is better!!! Some companies spool their line odd so if holding the spool the "right way" doesnt work, try the "wrong way". Dont overfill the reel. You want about 1/8 or more of the reel spool showing. Now you can cut the line spool and tie on a lure cause its time to go fishin! Some tips: Reel spools hold alot of line. I like to buy super cheap bargin bin line to use as backing on my BC reels. All your doing is filling up a bit less than half of the spool with cheaper line and then the rest of the way with good line. That way when you need to replace line, you only have to replace 150 yards instead of 300. Dont get discouraged with it. Practice alot!!!! Then practice somemore!!!! Your backyard is the best place to practice. The backyard gives you the ability to stop and concentrate on the task at hand rather than trying to fish AND learn the baitcaster. Good luck and keep me posted

Hey, way togo guys!! Good show!