hawgenvy

Fluorocarbon can be problematic on spinning reels, but on baitcasters it's great stuff. It sinks better, is more sensitive, and is less visible underwater than standard mono. And it has a bit less stretch. Personally, I use Seguar InvizX or AbrazX. Consider using a palomar or San Diego jam knot, though, as some knots don't hold as well with FC, because it is more slippery than mono.

About half my casting rigs are spooled with #40 Smackdown. Smooth, thin, quiet, strong. Knots hold great but I always use the super-strong San Diego Jam. Smackdown hasn't let me down yet.

In my opinion the 734 is a more versatile rod than the 735. The Champ 734c can do pretty much anything in bass fishing besides heavy punching or the lightest finesse applications.

I have some Champion series 735c and 734c rods. The 734c is my preferred jig rod because it's strong but has some tip, and the 735c I use primarily for hollow body frogs, buzzbaits, and 130 Whopper Ploppers because it's stout enough to set a big frog hook from a good distance away and pull in a fish through weeds. The 5 is a bit too stout for jigs in my opinion, at least with braid line. In fact, today I was jig fishing with the 734c and for about 2 ecstatic minutes I thought I had a 15+ pound LM bass on the line. ("Please be a bass, please be a bass!," I kept saying.) Turns out it was a big old Florida soft shell snapping turtle. I'm glad I got the hook out without getting my finger bit off. Anyway, the 734c set the hook through some awfully tough turtle tissue and handled the ensuing wrestling match very well. My reel was spooled with #40 braid.

Fly fishing, Colorado Rockies, Aug 2016

I often fish alone. What should I do, hire a photographer?

Fishing with a regular ol' jig is not my strong suit, so that's why every once in a while, like today, I try to use one exclusively, mainly to keep my jig skills up, but also because I like how a jig bite feels. There is one particular black/blue jig with which I sometimes have some success, and I tend to pick that one out of my box if I can find it in the jumble of silicone tendrils. I don't know what brand it is, the paint and eyes are long gone, the skirt is ragged and mostly missing, it has a bent wire trailer keep, but it works. With the help of a Rage craw and a hook sharpener, this 5 pound 10 oz fat bellied beast was tricked by that old jig this evening. I do believe that old lure has a few more lunkers still in its future. Fishing with a regular ol' jig is not my strong suit, so that's why every once in a while, like today, I try to use one exclusively, mainly to keep my jig skills up, but also because I like how a jig bite feels. There is one particular black/blue jig with which I sometimes have some success, and I tend to pick that one out of my box if I can find it in the jumble of silicone tendrils. I don't know what brand it is, the paint and eyes are long gone, the skirt is ragged and mostly missing, it has a bent wire trailer keep, but it works. With the help of a Rage craw and a hook sharpener, this 5 pound 10 oz fat bellied beast was tricked by that old jig this evening. I do believe that old lure has a few more lunkers still in its future.

I'm partial to my Dobyns Champion XP 705cb (graphite). It's moderate action casts a mile and imparts the ideal (to me) action to jerkbaits, keeps the trebles pinned perfectly on jerks and traps, and has the backbone to muscle in toads (except in heavy vegetation). Couple it with some FC line on a light weight reel -- I have a Lew's Pro Magnesium screwed on -- and it's a really sweet rig for jerking, running lipless traps, and for small to medium lipped crankbaits. I nailed a nice 6+ pounder on that rig X-mas day at sunset, on a 1/2 oz trap, from the bank. The rod helped me bring her in nice and easy, letting the springiness of the rod's moderate action tire her out and bring her right to my thumb, even though she was barely hooked.

Oh, and Bass Turd, my friend, I have sent you a PM with some links.

Once you get into the the level of quality of mid-range gear, most of the benefit of higher end stuff is psychological -- like having an expensive car to commute to work. But if the budget allows (it my case it doesn't) it may be really satisfying to have the smoothest and lightest reel, or the lightest and most sensitive rod. Even though you may not catch more fish, you may have a more satisfying experience with a rod that you can feel a fly landing on the tip, and with a reel that's as smooth as silk and light as a feather. If it makes you feel good, and you get a sense of pride in owning the best, and you appreciate the beauty of the craftsmanship, and it doesn't hurt your budget -- then go for it.

Would have answered sooner but just saw this topic. My wife and I were in a similar situation a couple of years ago, and since then our son is clean -- or at least we think he is. It turns out that there are some excellent support groups for parents of drug/alcohol addicts, and one such group was very helpful in our case. You are not alone. The support groups are free and are focused on helping the parent deal with guilt and helplessness, and they stress the importance of avoiding enabling the addict. Such a group will allow you to meet and talk with loving parents who are in the exact same lousy gut-wrenching situation. There are probably several such groups in your area, and some will have folks you can relate to better than some other groups, so you have to investigate and go to some meetings.

Gambler Burner Worm, t-rigged with a pegged bullet weight and a 6-0 EWG. It's beefy, it swims, it smells, it catches.

My off season is summer, when the fishing is lousy and the sun unbearable. Of course, I fish then anyway. But winter bass fishing here is awesome, and temps are usually in the 70s, so come on down!

I just PM'd you.

You've got problems, man! Have you checked out the Bait Monkey Victim Support Group? (Latest Tackle Purchase Thread thread?)

Yup, that's how they get ya! Then the next day you realize you forgot to order something you really needed, like maybe a pack of 3-0 hooks. And there goes another $50!

The trouble with Tackle Warehouse is that whenever I intend to order about $8 worth of stuff I end up spending over $50. That price point for free shipping is genius.

I can dead stick a worm or jig -- but only for 5 seconds. Sad.

Yep, it's a Livetarget Golden Shiner, and it has been a great lure for me in the winter and spring. I always change out the hooks. The lures are not cheap but they are durable. After many hours of use, superficial tooth marks are the only damage.

My Christmas Pig. 6 pounds, 3 oz. Caught at sunset today from the bank on a Livetarget Trap

Last month I was fishing the bank one evening at a little golf course pond. I looked down and this little puppy was right there, just three feet from my feet. I think he may have been attracted to the lure I had just retrieved. He stayed perfectly still while I got my phone out for a photo. Here in Florida, I'm sometimes hesitant to reach below the surface for a stuck lure, or a golf ball.

All bass baits work well in Florida. But keep in mind when choosing which baits to bring, that, especially in S Fl, there is heavy vegetation in many areas, and open water spots are often shallow, and bottoms are usually grassy or lined with algae muck.

I've developed over the past few months a sickening addiction to $25 Megabass Ito Vision 110 jerkbaits. It's maybe a matter of confidence or imagination, but when I tie on other brands, I don't catch as much. It all started when I was dazzled by a Sexy French Pearl at Dick's. Now it's my disease.