Brocephus Fishing

For all we know, those brush piles could have long been planted before the classic. And if he did plant 50+ such piles then I would imagine it fair game to all those in the tournament. Still doesn't mean the fish will bite around those areas. Now if he was hiding baskets somewhere that would be a different arguement...well not much of one since it would be completely illegal, obviously. However, far too much integrity (I believe) at that level to ever do so. So, plant those brush piles and allow the fish to hold to them if they will. Then hope and pray those fish hold to the "key ones". Home field advantage if you will.

Looked like Casey was throwing a grub on an underspin some and a fluke (possibly on a C-rig) at times. Tough to tell with how fast they would change camera angles when showing him with a catch. Ike was definetly throwing a jig a lot. If I had to guess, which I'm having to since Dean wasn't on camera all day, I would guess he's been throwing a combination of a crank, jig, and jerkbiat, but who knows. And as far as Skeet is concerned, he's being rather secretive, but he's on something for sure.

I haven't seen one within either league. However, it would be nice to see such a group within the leagues. Possible prizes to be had??? Heck, I'd take a sticker at least for sure, if anything to simply advertise and advocate for this excellent site.

Make a list of confidence baits, go into the store, leave with what you know you'll fish = less overwhelming/less choices/less urge to purchase based on impulse if there is a sale that's "too good to be true". I've been a huge tackle junky in the past, but have found it much easier to go into those stores and get what I'm looking for based on my list of baits I know I have confidence in and will use. Now if only I could do the same in regards to my saltwater fishing and my hunting purchases.

Chatterbait - Bruiser Baits Evil Twin, Super Swimmer Jr or Rad Shad (all have worked well for me) ... Rad Shad or Zoom Fluke for that matter works well as the blad will provide the necessary vibration you need. Buzzbait - Z-Man Split Tail (place a trailer hook over top of it and virtually never have to replace it) or Zoom Split Tail (also with a trailer hook over top of it) Both trailers in white if you're throwing a bait with a white skirt. However, feel free to experiment with a chartreuse or shad colored trailer. I have found that both work well in certain situations. If you plan on working a buzzbait without the skit, virtually any smaller sized swimbait will be sufice, but fluke style baits have proven themselves more than worthy for me to this point. I've never used a slide off weed guard. However, I'm prett sure the 3/8oz Z-Man chatterbait has 3/0, possibly a 4/0, hook on it. At $2.79 for the weed guards you could always purchase both and see what fits. Unfortunately I am not of much help with the exact size. I have found that I can work a chatterbait through just about anything, as well as a buzzbait.

I'll be sticking with my usual brands ... Falcon and Cousins. But, I'm really looking forward to getting my hands on one of the new Falcon Lowriders and seeing how they compare to the previous version.

To me ... it's all a marketing scheme ... lets add something new and watch everyone go nuts over it because it might be just a little more in terms of IPT or give a little more speed or give whatever you want to call it. 7.1:1 has always and will always be more than enough in regards to IPT for me. I don't see much, if any, advantage in purchasing and using a 8:1 ratio reel. When you break it down, it ultimately comes down to personal preference for me. If I felt the need to use a 8:1 ratio reel I would, however I don't.

Although you mentioned a sub $150 price range, the Falcon Lowrider 20 LFC-7-173S "Pitchin Stick" (their 7'3 Heavy Fast) model has worked well in both situations for me. Also, for $150 the Cousins Raze Series 7'3 Heavy XFast has also worked well and will accomodate lures from 1/4oz-1oz.

Lighter Topwater: Lews Tournament MB 7.5:1, Falcon Original FC-4-17 Mansfield (use this mostly for my poppers) Heavier Topwater: Lews Tournament MB 7.5:1, Falcon Cara CC-7-1611S-T7 (use this mostly for my walking baits as I typically throw 3/4oz-1oz walking baits) After much trail and such I have settled on Lews and Falcon. However, I do like the Cousins rod brand as well. The Cousins IM8 Graphite Series 7' MH F is another great topwater rod that is rated for lures 1/4oz-3/4oz.

Boss Outdoors jig heads have done well for me. I have no issues with them and their customer service has been OUTSTANDING when I've needed a special order or had a problem (which has been few and far between) with any product. I haven't tried their swing jig heads, but all other jig heads that I have used made by them have been exceptional. If you still have questions about the swing jig head give them a call and ask to speak to Erin. She's straight up and will answer any and all questions you have. She really knows her stuff!

Thanks for the heads up BobP

Impressive!

I haven't had any issues with slow, moderate, or fast retrieval speeds.

The red and gold bladed ones with the holes in them are Cavitrons (well at least the picture looks exactly like them). Tough to beat a Cavitron buzzbait. Those and Lunker Lure buzzbaits are the only buzzbaits you'll find tied on to my topwater rods.

Since pinching the wire shut has been brought up, what is the best method for doing so? I can't seem to pinch mine shut the way I like, which is how I feel it should work in terms of effectively allowing the blade to "wobble" in the way that it should. I've since resulted to attaching split rings to closed eye heads instead, but would like to be able to still build chatterbait style baits with the opened eye heads that I have laying around.

X2

That mold should work just fine. Attaching a split ring isn't an issue for the most part from my experience as the only time I've really had any real issue is coming through thicker grass causing the grass to get wrapped up in the split ring a little and preventing the blade from "wobbling" fully. But, the split ring has really been a non-issue. Just get some solid split rings that won't bend out when attaching them. Barlows Tackle is a great place to get your rings. Hope this helps.

I would do the same. I use power pro as well and I've only had that happen one time when I was really getting into fishing and I feel that it was due to me trying to "over-throw" the bait. I've since learned that it doesn't take that much effort to cast a spook on 25# braid, with the right rod, the distance that I want which is typically a long distance.

Thanks for the help smalljaw67. I'll have to check into doing that.

You're welcome dreamertino

I own several. So far so good with the first time using them yielding a 3lber and the several times I've used it after that yielding other 2-3lbers and short fish. I haven't had a ton of time to use them yet, but based on the amount that I have so far I can say that I really like them.

Well said

Trailer: Zoom Ultra Vibe Chunk, Bruiser Baits Evil Twin Trailer, Gambler Twin Tail, Reaction Innovations Twerk Swimbait: Keitech Swimg Impact Fat, Reaction Innovations Skinny/Little Dipper, Kicker Fish Bait Co. Tail Slapper (doing my reasearch on these) Craws: V&M Wild Thang Craw, Strike King Rage Craw Frogs: Reaction Innovations Trixie Shark That pretty much covers it for me. Just all depends on location and how I'm fishing my bladed jigs, which in turn depends on what the bass want. Typically speaking, I fish the "typical" trailers and craw trailers when I'm bottom hopping or working it along the bottom with a stop-and-go, and fish the frog and swimbati trailers in open water, through grass, around rock and wood ... really when I'm trying to cover water. You can really mix it up and get creative at times. I just keep experimenting with new things unless it already works. Hope that helps.

I tend to rub my finger across them just enough where I won't get stuck/cut/pricked/etc. to see how "sticky sharp" they are, but I can mostly tell the quality of the hook right out of the package based on looks. Generally, as mentioned by tbone1993, the more expensive baits have a sharper hook on them and don't need replacing. If I feel the need to replace I replace them and run the bait through the water to be sure it's maintaining whatever bouyancy it has and that it still runs true (replacing with the wrong size or weight can cause the bait to not run true). However, if they do need to be replaced I typically use VMC and Owner brand trebles. One thing to consider is replacing the line tie split ring with an oval split ring.

Ditto, 6'6'' or 7' Heavy or Medium Heavy with a Fast action. But if you must know my opinion on particular brand, I stand by anything Falcon.