hawgenvy

I am often a non-boater/coangler on local club tournaments and have really liked taking along my Plano 3700 series bag. There is tons of room for bags of soft plastics and accessories, and it holds four 3700 boxes, has really tough materials and good zippers, both hand and shoulder straps, and a deep molded plastic waterproof base. It is stable on deck when the top is open (unless we're running) and everything is always easily accessible.

...and as far as finesse fishing, what has that got to do with the reel anyway? It's the light line and lighter rod action that does that trick, not the reel, right? If not, what is it I'm not getting?

I use mostly baitcasters. For throwing swimbaits and spinnerbaits in moderate cover I usually use 17 lb FC, which is pretty thick stuff for small spinning reels. Ditto for casting or pitching 50-65 lb braid into thick stuff or onto its surface to work a frog. As far as accuracy, although I can aim a spinning rig as well as I can a BC, my thumb on the spool gives me better distance control with a BC. When I'm pitching a jig or creature into holes in the jungle, with my BC I can usually drop it in gently by slowing the toss with my thumb at the right time while slightly lifting back on the rod tip; and then I'll lower the tip and ease off my thumb to let the bait fall vertically on near total but not total slack. Then with my long heavy stick and strong line, if I'm lucky, I can hoist a big mama out of the green mess. This is why, considering where we find the fish, south Florida bass fishermen tend to prefer bait casters.

Tons of bites x good hook up ratio + versatility/weedlessness = Keitech swimbait awesomeness

Glad you mentioned that; I've been meaning to order a Duz-It to try on Big EZ and also on the Burner Worm.

Oh, yeah! Gambler baits slide 'n' glide so very nice in Florida junk 'n' slime. They smell awful in a good way (the baits) and attract big bites. The past few weeks the blue/black Burner Worm T-rigged with a pegged 1/4 oz weight and a 6-0 EWG has been the ticket for me -- in lily shaded shallows or along weed edges lurking with angry mamas. And when some little guy bites off the tail, you now got a big fat stinky stick worm that'll entice sly old Grandma Chunk into the act to get smoked by your cigar. Luckily, I've got 5 more packs of Burner Worms coming to my doorstep Friday, along with some Burner Craws and VMC Super Duty 6-0 hooks. Love my EZs too! Go Gambler!

Thanks, guys! I'm going to try the VMCs for EWGs. Ordered some already. For flipping I'm happy with snelling my Strike King Hack Attack flipping hooks which do, in fact, have a sealed eye. I like the Trokars, too, which I have never broke off of (yet). Tight lines!

Yeah, I had looked at those on TW, and now glad to have Kevin22's endorsement -- and Ike's! I'll order some. Thanks! But I'm surprised they don't weld closed those dastardly metal hook eyes or machine them differenly. Well, I guess no hook is perfect.

I'll look into those wbeadlescomb. Thank you!

When I broke off upon setting the hook on a huge bass during a tournament two weeks ago it broke my heart. It was 50 lb braid tied to a 6-0 Gama EWG hook. The knot itself was intact but the tiny loop below the knot was severed, probably cut by the gap area in the hook eye. On another occasion when I broke off inspection revealed that the knot and the tiny loop below it were intact -- the knot must have slipped through the gap. I have taken to leaving an old knot on the eye when I retie to protect the line from the gap. Trying to push closed the gap with pliers might help, but there could still be a rough edge. So, I wonder if any of you guys know of a good quality hook brand that has a smoothly welded or protected eye gap. I have had the most problems with big 6-0 EWG worm hooks. Thanks, fellow bassers!

I have #14 braid on a medium spinning rod, #40 and #50 braid on several MH to H bait casters, and #65 braid on a heavy punching rod (bait caster). Here in South Florida, aquatic vegetation is pretty thick, and so are the bass on good days -- hence, the preponderance of heavy line. (I also have rigs with #10 FC for finesse, #15 FC on a crank bait rod, and #20 FC on a MH rod for spinnerbaits/swimbaits/jigs in clear water. And one MH spinning rod with mono.) Hope this helps.

I was looking around for info on bass communication and found this topic on BR. Interesting stuff. As usual, there is not enough scientific data useful to bass fishing. The article in SA on Shreckstoff was interesting and contained a reasonably good model for evaluating chemical warning signals. An interesting way to do the same sort of study in LMB could involve using water from a bass boat live well. If there are stress chemicals from injured and stressed bass, the water from a busy live well has them. Put a cup of that water in a big tank of healthy bass and see how or if they react. If they do react, you could isolate the chemical and maybe even find a way subsequently to counter its effects. Of course, ideally, we'd like to find a chemical that turns them on! Different species behave differently. Schooling dolphin fish are attracted to a hooked classmate. When you hook one, just leave him in the water behind the boat and other dolphin will be attracted to him, they'll light up and can be caught easily. I've caught dozens of dolphin that way. It is a very dramatic phenomenon. I don't know if it's a visual attraction, chemical, sound, or electric field. Years ago I used to catch schooling golden shiners in a canal behind my house with a tiny hook. You could catch up to three -- then the school would flee the area. The water was clear and you could see them take off down the canal. It was very obvious that something was communicating a danger signal to the school.

Maybe it's just me, but I think this is the funniest line in here. I cracked up for ten minutes thinking about it. This topic is awesome. Thanks for starting it, Tweek!

Also, although having confidence with your equipment is always good, it is important to learn new techniques and become confident using different types of lures. New rod and reel? Load on some fluoro and give it a try.

I use FC a lot when the water is clear and not heavy with vegetation. But it can be more difficult to manage on spinning reels.

Quick tip: When retying a hook, especially braid, cut the old line just above the knot and leave the old knot on the hook eye. Slide it down to the eyelet gap before retying. This can prevent the new knot from slipping into the gap of the hook eye, and may reduce break offs when setting the hook on your next fish. Any other quick tips? All of us probably have one or many. I'd like to see them! Post them on this thread.

Decided on the Okuma Helios 7'6" H MF/F and will mate with a Lew's Tournament Pro G 8.3:1 spooled w/ Seaguar Smackdown 50 lb braid. Thanks again, gentlemen!

Those herons aint so smart! He's a redneck doin' the ezact same thing: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__youtu.be_GL8Jh5zODMk&d=CwIFAg&c=sZC6i8O8fFyUAVdBoHZAgg&r=4h90tpBWT0v8OYQRpMIm8hIfSk6n0MPQ-NlRMyLcQQU&m=M0yKvQSBPj_hbyuDvHz9DxQkKgfKO5Vli2FPY2bf_4I&s=zxMTZJSes3KMLinS8RL9zOCAaotqFPnv0ZQNvSDpkho&e=

Thank you so much, guys!

Sounds promising. TCS slightly heavier than Helios line? Not sure of materials quality, weight, or geometry differences between TCS and Helios. Probably I could be happy with either of the 7'6" models. Appreciate your input, Bluebasser. Thanks!

Have a Champ 734, but need much heavier for the jungle, but with some tip. Thanks, though.

Thanks, man. Maybe so.

In the market for a heavy power (but light weight) casting rod with medium fast to fast action, and under $300. Intend to spool up 50 pound braid (maybe 65). The intended use is for casting soft swimbaits or Horny Toad type baits far as I can with accuracy to bring back over heavy greenery, negotiate big-trailered spinnerbaits and bladed jigs through reeds, and also for pitching soft plastics and jigs into reeds and pads. You know, Lake Okeechobee stuff. I have a Dobyns Champ 735c which is a great rod, but I want to add to my arsenal something longer and with a bit less fast action for casting farther easier. I also have a Powell 3D Mag 8-foot heavy and fast stick for punching floating mats but it's a bit of a beast for other applications. I also like the idea of a medium/fast tip for pitching jigs as long as it has a nice heavy backbone, as I think the slightly slower action might actually load up for the set and keep big mamas pinned better than an XF. I was looking at the Okuma Helios HS-C-761H which is 7-6 and looks pretty darn good on paper. I'm interested to hear if anyone has fished with the Helios and can tell me about it; or, of course, if anyone has other advice for other brands. Hoping some of you guys have things to say. Thanks in advance for words of wisdom!

Consider that the biggest challenge to early survival is aquatic predators. That gives pioneer fry an advantage. And what do those tiny pioneers have available to eat? The ubiquitous mosquito larva, as well as minute invertebrates spread by birds, amphibians, and reptiles. There is unfortunately scanty scientific literature regarding dispersion mechanisms of fish. Interestingly, there exists evidence of viable fish eggs found in duck feces that gave rise to fertile fish. Although it is remarkable that fish eggs can survive gut transit or air transport on fish legs, it is not surprising that robust and specific dispersion mechanisms have evolved, given the tremendous species survival advantage afforded by such strategies.

Thanks, man!