Balshy Fishing

New topic will be coming tomorrow! Thanks for your support.

Yet again, you guys are giving some great information. As you've all noticed, you don't need to follow my exact 'layout'--it's just like an outline of things to consider.

Currently, whenever I hit the lake/creek/river, etc, I always have all three of my rods and my tackle box. Unfortunately, the tackle box is the most troublesome to babysit while i'm wading out. What do y'all recommend I invest in for waterproof storage? I can drop down to two rods to make it easier but I need something to get this tackle around in when I'm waist deep. Any suggestions would be phenomenal!

Thank you all for the answers and feedback in the topwater section! Please, continue to answer those if you haven't already to keep up some great discussion. Next, we will be focusing on finesse. While this question may seem a little confusing, it should make sense shortly. When the days get hot and the bass are finicky, finesse presentations are essential. Whether you're dragging a Carolina rig along the bottom, skipping a shakeyhead or just Ned Rigging--we all have a go-to. All presentations are meant to be fished slower and aim to draw out those big bass. While, the Ned Rig is probably my favorite, I will not be selecting it for my choice. Please, read up on the Ned Rig information all over this forum, it gives phenomenal insight. If you want to catch a lot of fish, go with Ned. Anyway, hopefully ya'll enjoy this and continue to post up some great answers and information for other users to try out! I RECOMMEND.... Name of Presentation/Technique: Dropshot Lure: Bass Munitions Hellgremite Location To Use(weather, water clarity, temperature, time of day, etc): Essentially, wherever you would fish a dropshot. My sinkers are the slim cylindrical ones so they don't get hung-up as easily. I was throwing this around pretty big sized boulders in the water and making a killing. I'm assuming it would do just as well when fished around weedlines and the shallows. Notes(does the lure require certain test or type of line?): As with most finesse presentations, I go with lighter line. I switch between #6 mono, #10 mono & #12 fluoro. I use this as a leader with a braid mainline. Why Do You Recommend: The action on this plastic is phenomenal. It is a perfect size and when fished on the correct sized drop-shot hook, it's a killer. I'm not sure how many of ya'll have heard of this product but it's been great so far. I DO NOT RECOMMEND....Name of Lure: Manns Jelly Worm Why Don't You Recommend It?: It's a shame because the lure looks awesome. It looks pretty good in the water but hasn't produced for me at all. This is a common theme with things I do not recommend--if I get skunked multiple times with them, I don't recommend them. I know a good majority of ya'll would recommend this worm due to its size and the fact that it can attract very large bass, but I haven't had such luck!

New topic going up shortly guys! Thanks for all the responses. Also, sorry that I don't recommend the Pompadour, clearly ya'll have had a lot of success with it. I don't fish many lakes anymore, I stick to rivers and creeks and haven't had much luck. I'll give it another go this week!

I'm going to keep this up for another, 2 hours. Then the next topic will go up!

Guys, thanks for the feedback! I appreciate it and I'm sure others do as well. A lot of great lures mentioned! Keep it going.

I did this a year or two ago in a little "series" to get opinions from all of ya'll! Every few days I will be making a new post with a different type of lure for ya'll to suggest. Today, we're focusing on topwater lures. An essential part of a bass fisherman's arsenal, topwaters shine in shallow water and can be retrieved a few ways to maximize their appeal to the bass. Whether you're walking the dog(quick/spaced out rod pops cause the lure to 'walk' side to side. Quick pops keep it one place longer and the back and forth is tighter and vice versa.) or burning a Cavitron Buzzbait back to the boat/shore, we all have our go-to's and favorites. Consider the following questions when revealing your favorite topwater lure that you feel every angler should have in their box! Also, as a way to try and gauge lures that are not preferred, answer a few of those questions if you could! I RECOMMEND.... Name of Lure: Boyd Duckett's BDT105 Color: Bloody Ghost Minnow Conditions To Use(weather, water clarity, temperature, time of day, etc): I've used this lure in bright sunlight with clear water and done well. Notes(does the lure require certain test or type of line?): None in specific. I've been using #10 Suffix Mono on my 6'6 MF. Why Do You Recommend: It's very easily walked fast or slow with little to no effort and features a feathered back treble which increases it's appeal. Very light but you can cast it a mile. Any Specific Techniques w/ the Lure?: As mentioned, I walk it. Sometimes, depending how hard you pop the rod, it'll act as a popper. I DO NOT RECOMMEND.... Name of Lure: Jackall Pompadour Jr. Why Don't You Recommend It?: It's a shame because the lure looks awesome. It looks pretty good in the water but hasn't produced for me at all. Next to the Cavitron, it's the only topwater that hasn't caught a single bass. If you want to add anything else, feel free! The more information you post, the better!

Everybody raves about Cavitrons but I've only caught two bass on them. Granted, I'm obviously not in the right spots and I still think super high of them because they're beautiful coming across the surface. I've had luck with the Strike King Sugar Buzz and a Whopper Plopper. Currently, I"m trying out the Pompadour Jr. by Jackall. There's really no rule as to when you should throw topwaters, HOWEVER--you can get better results in the AM and the PM. Also, if the surface is choppy, as others have mentioned. Get out there and experiment as much as you can!

I'm with you OP, I have a few packs of Swing Impacts and they're BEAUTIFUL through the water. I'm still learning how to throw them and what technique works best. Perhaps you could burn it back to the boat/shore a couple times? Also, twitch your rod a few times while reeling slowly. That could give it that jerky motion and could attract some bass!

Honestly, I started with senkos. I threw those non-stop to pick up the patience and getting accurate with the bait. Then, I moved on to drop-shotting and doing other things with soft plastics. Lately, i'm making the shift to hardbaits and trying to get the techniques down with those. I'm still reading up on locations that produce quality fish in rivers and stuff. You can never stop learning, never forget that.

Fellas, I received a pack of these a couple months ago and just found them again so I'm going to put 'em to use! What would these go best on? I know that's a super vague question but they're size 8. I'm going to start getting into treble replacement stuff and I'd LOVE to know what to hook these up with. Thanks ya'll.

I have the smaller profile Whopper Plopper, and I haven't fished it as much as I would like too. Gonna' throw it a little more tomorrow when I get out. Have heard they produce though from just about everybody!

I only have 3 rods in my arsenal and they all have their own specific uses. 6'6 MF -- I spool that up with #10 mono. I throw my topwaters and senko's on that. Also, lightweight jigs with twister tails. 6'6 MH -- #35 PowerPro to #12 Fluoro. I throw heavier crankbaits and heavy jigs with this. 6'9 ML -- I never use this on the river, everrrr.

I've been out for the past two weeks, just about, before baseball practice looking for good holes. Have caught a few bass here and there but nothing spectacular. I know there's a few hogs lying in there but haven't got 'em yet! Anybody familiar with this creek?

See, I think it's because I'm used to throwing the senko's and getting hammered IMMEDIATELY. I need to have better patience bringing 'em back through. Thank you both for the feedback!

Today, I ended up on a creek I've never fished before. For reference, I'm 5'9! The middle of the creek is about, high-knee to waste deep. From there, it goes up to about your stomach(sometimes all the way to the bank) or it shallows out to about ankle depth. I brought my MF with #10 Suffix Mono and my ML with #20 PowerPro Braid and a #12 Fluorocarbon Leader. Other than topwater(Cavitron Buzzbait & Pompadour Jr), I avoided trebles. I threw senko's and a hellgrammite on a jig, no dice. I focused on the shallows along the shoreline where there were some lilly's and downed tree branches. Still, no dice. What do y'all recommend in these areas?

I run 10lb mono on the MF, 20lb PowerPro to a 6# Seaguar Fluoro leader on the ML and 30lb powerpro to a 12lb fluoro.

Quick question! I Have 3 rods; a 6'6 MF, a 6'6 Medium Heavy & a 6'9 Medium Light spinning rod. I've been throwing worms on the MF and ned rig on the ML. What do you guys recommend overall for all three rods? I"m having a tough time trying to decide what I should dedicate to each rod.

We ended up not going to Safe Harbor, I'll be going there Wednesday after I go to Susquehanna Fishing Tackle's reopening! I'm a shore fisherman: (

Thanks guys. I knew something seemed weird with how I just set it up haha

Heading out to Safe Harbor up past Lancaster, PA and setup a Carolina Rig on my Medium Heavy rod. Now, I have 30lb PowerPro braid on that rod and use a 12lb Seaguar Floro leader. My big question is(because I can't remember for the life of me), do I go braid tied directly to leader to weight & bead to swivel to other leader? Probably a very dumb question but for the life of me, I cannot remember. Thanks yall!

Spinning! Over the summer when I first spooled, it didn't coil.

So, how common is this? I spooled up once last summer and 4 days ago, I respooled. Even decided to try out my KVD Line Conditioner. Went to fish the next day, and it was coming off my line like phone cord. Casting distance was great but the curlyness was a little bothersome. Any suggestions?

Haven't posted in here since the fall, it's been a long while! Excited to get back into the swing of things as it gets warmer but I have a question about current conditions. For the past few days, it's been much warmer out in central PA as temperatures have been in the upper-40's to mid-50's. Today, it was 58 but it rained a bunch. There has been ice along the shallows at the Susquehanna and with all the melting snow and rain recently, the river stage is up quite a bit. Given that temperatures have been rising and there has been ice around the shallows, how would you fish a river with stained/muddy water after a fresh rain? I'm hoping that it'll get some of the fish active even more and I can catch some biggins'. I know that topwater is out but what do y'all recommend? Any help would be phenomenal!