tcbass

Caught tons of lmb on EWG hooks wacky rigged. That's what I used my first 5 years.

Maybe it's your rods spine. I've used many different hooks for wacky rigging recently and all have worked.

What are your 2 favorite Cavitron buzzbait colors and weights?

I've been using a Strike King 1/4 oz Tour Grade Swim Jig and it amazingly goes through grass well. I did just order a bunch of Siebert's jigs though too because I've heard so much about them on here. Someone told me that some swim jigs have the eyes horizontal rather than vertical and that that helps spread weeds too. Not sure if this is true though.

I was fishing a Ragetail Toad on a Cabelas Tournament ZX Topwater Frog rod with 30lbs. Power Pro and a 33lbs. Cabelas premium swivel snap. I had just caught a 1lbs. bass on the drop/sink (I caught a few more fish on the Ragetail Toad and all of them were on the sink that day, none bit on the retrieve) and cast underneath this dock and let it sink. I felt a bite, reeled up the slack and had a pretty good hookset. When I set the hook line was pulled out from the spool. I reeled in some line and thought I was moving the fish and reeled up again as I pulled the rod up and there was a slight disturbance of the water. Not a huge splash, just like something big had moved just beneath the surface. I reeled in two cranks as I pulled the rod back and pop, the line snapped. Or so I thought. I reeled in the slack and found this, a broken O-ring. I've never had this happen before. I've had the snap part wear out and open up but never an O-ring on a swivel snap actually break. I assumed the fish was a big bass but perhaps it was a big musky or northern. This lake is known for having both. It broke the snap with no effort. Like it just whipped it's tail and was gone. What the swivel snap looked like: The broken O-ring: Here's the dock it was under. Probably about 2'-3' feet deep: I have no clue what it was, it would have been nice to see it. I can't believe it broke that 33lbs. ring so easily. I'd say the biggest a bass could get in this lake would be 5lbs at the most. Do you think a 5lbs bass could do this? Has anyone else ever had a swivel snap fail like that? That led me into looking for a new fast attachment method since I change lures often. This Mustad Fastach Clip looks promising. So, I was wondering if anyone has any experience with these? I looked at the Norman Speed Clips but saw that some people say they aren't good and open sometimes.

Is there a certain size you guys are using?

What size is that?

Where do you get the medical tubing?

Now that people have said a rubber mesh is better I searched for nets and came upon Ego nets ( https://www.adventureproducts.com/fishing.htm ). I see that they have 2 types of nets that are non-tangle/hook free; they are nylon coated mesh and rubber. They don't specifiy why one is better than the other. So what's better for being non-tangle/hook free, nylon coated mesh or rubber? Are there other pros/cons to either one? Is nylon coated mesh more durable than rubber? Are Ego nets good?

Thanks!

I use a snap swivel on all of my rods because I change baits often. I have 2 main baitcasters and 2 main spinning rods. I normally only have the 2 baitcasters and one spinning rod out. I don't use any type of leader for my rods and run straight braid (Power Pro, but ordered some Sufix 832 to try this year). Because I use snap swivels it makes it almost impossible to clip onto buzzbaits and spinnerbaits. So what I do is take about a 6" inch piece of braid and tie it to the lure with a non-slip loop knot at the end. That way I can clip the snap swivel onto the "leader" via the loop and the lure will run correctly. I cut and retie new leader onto the lures every couple of years. So far I have only lost one fish this way and it was because the snap opened up (I should have known as it was a snap that was older and was not staying closed very well). It was about a 1.5lbs bass. Does anyone else tie on a separate leader to their lure and leave the leader attached to the lure and not the line?

I use a swivel snap on all my rods but that's because I'm lazy and hate tying new knots and wasting time too. Especially when I switch so often.

How do you mean vertically? Have a pic of this?

What's a squeaker? Are all Cavitron's squeakers?

I always put Seafoam in all of my motors besides automobiles. It's what I was taught to do and it's always worked. When I read the label though the can says, "Treats 8-25 gallons." My 2000 Crestliner Fishawk (2000 Mercury 115 horse) has a 20 gallon tank I believe. I'd think it would take almost an entire can of Seafoam. What????? What kind of answer is that? I'm sure that the more concentrated it is the better in some cases, but why don't they put a recommended ratio such as 50:1 or 1oz per gallon? So, what is the recommended ratio of ounces per gallon for Seafoam?

I have an older 2000 Mercury 115 horse. Whenever I put gas in it I use Stabil and Seafoam. I have recently found a place that sells non-ethanol treated gas. A boat mechanic who has helped me a lot once told me that if you are using standard gas and you haven't put Stabil in before 5-7 days you might as well not because the gas has already started to break down. That's with standard gas. If I use the non-ethanol treated gas though should I still use Stabil? I'm thinking the answer is no, unless that is could be the last tank of gas I put in the boat before storing it for the winter, and if that is the case then yes, put Stabil in.

I have a large, older, landing net. It's big enough to net a big northern or muskie in. It is hard to stow in my boat. I was thinking about getting a smaller landing net and then it occurred to me if I'm getting a new net, I should get one of the rubber ones that is easier and quicker to use because hooks and line don't get caught up in it. The rubber ones are usually not nearly as deep as the regular style but that's fine, I'm only using it to boat largemouth bass. The lack of depth would be fine and well worth it if hooks and line didn't get tangled in the net. So, are rubber nets considerably better at not getting lines and hooks caught in them that they are worth it? And if so, what's a good net?

So this lake apparently has hungrier bass then most. lol. I agree with that you're saying though. Perhaps a buzzbait would be the ideal bait here even though that would go against how bass traditionally eat buzzbaits.

The reason I ask this is that many people say a buzzbait is best as a mostly early morning and evening lure. Especially effective in the early morning. I've heard others talk about solid body frogs (toads) as "subtle buzzbaits" because they are of very similar action but more subtle. For the last 5 years I've caught the majority of my fish on a Ragetail Toad. I'd say 3/4 on the retrieve and 1/4 on the drop/sink. And I've caught fish at all times of the day from overcast and cloudy to bright bluebird days. Some of my best times have been 11-3pm on bright, hot, bluebird days. The problem with toads is that they get tore up by fish and usually last from 1-7 fish. I'd think that a buzzbait would be more durable. So, do you think that the majority of the fish that were caught on the toads would have also eaten a buzzbait?

What are good buzzbaits? I see the Booyah Buzzbait (two kinds: buzzbait and pond buzz - not sure of the difference) and Cavitron both in black or white seem to be popular. What size is good? I see 1/2, 3/4, and 1/4 oz. With or without a clacker? I see that a lot of people like the ones with clackers too and some companies have models with clackers and some do not. I noticed that a lot of companies like Cavitron does not have a clacker option.

I bet you'd go with a couple! lol. J/K. Thanks. I'll be making my order of your jigs soon. I'll definitely get two 1/4 and probably one 3/8. I swore I was done buying fishing stuff this year, but after the success with the Strike King swim jig and then losing it yesterday to a fish I knew I needed to get some more. And your prices are better than the Strike Kings.

Thanks, so what size would you recommend for me? I see that roadwarrior said 3/8 would cast farther, then another iabass8 said that's untrue. If it does cast farther, that would be a plus.

What buzzbait is this? How can you tell if a buzzbait has a clacker or not?

You say 3/8 is your biggest seller. But that's nationwide. Is 1/4 more common up North? Would you recommend a 1/4 or 3/8 for me? And I'm assuming bluegill like you said in a post about color, correct?

I fish lakes in the Twin Cities, central Minnesota area. These lakes are stained and clear with heavy weed, medium, and light weeds. I've had success with a Strike King Tour Grade Swim Jig (I thought it was a KVD, but it's not) in 1/4 ounce in blue gill color. I've used a KVD Rodent, swimming Senko, Cabelas version of the Rodent, and Zoom Super Chunk with success. (My first cast with the swimming Senko I got the tail bit off. I was wondering if some people cut these in half to make them shorter before using them as a trailer?) I was wondering what the most common size Swim Jig size is? I'm also wondering what the best Seibert Swim Jig for me is since I want to make an order of Swim Jigs from Seibert tomorrow. I've heard good things about his jigs and see that the price is also about $2 less than Strike King's jigs (granted, I'll have to pay shipping which may make them equal out). So what would be the best Seibert Swim jig (model, size, and color) for me in central Minnesota? And what are the best swim jig trailers for Minnesota lakes?