BaitMonkey1984

I used to but now if I am on a pattern I will take a couple and put them into a ziplock bag with the scent. That way lures stay fresh, because I have seen scent screw up plastics.For example, a gulp scent I used turned my white flukes a slight tint of blue. Worked great, but did change the lure.

BPS 6" Tournament special in green/white laminate.

Live and die by the GYCB Senkos. Although finally tried one of probably 100 strike king ocohos this weekend and they produced well. I would be skeptical of the authenticity of the GYCB senko for $1 a pack, as I am with most things at a flea market. DO you have a pic of the bag/ do they look legit? If so, that is an awesome deal.

Exactly. I initially bought this rod for a salmon/trout trolling rod. I only fish for those species a few times a year. I decided to try it out with a small jig head and grub or the small gulp minnows. Works great for those finesse applications

x2. Go Pats!

I fish wacky a lot, and swear by the gammy octopus hooks. They are sharp and better yet stay sharp. Very little lost fish.

I am the opposite of Bluebasser. Many of the lakes around her are very clear, although under good conditions (cloud and a bit of chop) spinnerbaits still produce well. I have never really gave buzz baits a real chance, prefer a popper. However, I have tried chatter baits a lot in the past 5 years because I know the majority of people swear by them, and go so far as to say they make spinnerbaits obsolete. Unfortunately, they just don't produce up here/or I must be doing something wrong. I will stick to my spinners.

Awesome. 3 of my favorites from the Bassmaster Elites right there.

I picked one combo last winter based upon aesthetics. It was a team daiawa rod and a HD Quantum Escalade Baitcaster reel. My best looking combo with black and blue on both. Worst d**n combo I have. It sits in the rod locker the majority of the time. Lesson learned for me, no more caring about looks.

No, basically LMB, SMB, pickerel, white and yellow perch and very few, small horn pout. Def. did not fight like a pickerel.

So like many of my northern anglers, this year has been extremely difficult for me. Numbers and quality of fish are down. I do not know if it is due to the harsh winter or the very dry summer, but the fish are simply not cooperating. Yesterday, got on the water early with my father. Hit up our favorite lake and on our second spot after bombing out a 6" BPS senko wacky rigged bait, I got bit as soon as the lure hit the water. Had a Medium Heavy 6'6 st croix spinning reel with 6 lb nanofil and it felt like a freight train hit my line. I use octopus hooks so really no need to set the hook but i reel set it anyhow. I tell my Father to grab the net. One minute later and I have barely moved the fish. It fought like no fish I have ever hooked. Have a 6lber and probably 40 5 lbers under my belt. This felt like a bucket of dead weight and every then so often, two twitches. He just hunkered down- I had never experienced this before. I had by then got him 5 feet away from the boat and then I make a crank of the reel thinking he is close enough to net- he fights back and runs under the boat- my line snaps and I get a fleeting glimpse of a whitish/yellowish belly on a monster fish. My buddy landed a 7lb 2 oz bass from this lake earlier this year and this thing fought harder/longer than his and looked bigger from the fleeting glance I got. Fished 1 hour more but heart wasn't in it. Sitting here at work today and still beating myself up about losing a toad. I think I am going to need to make a big TW order to get my head on back straight.

I am glad you asked. I fish the MA/NH border. This has been my worst summer fishing in 10+ years. The numbers and quality of fish are both down. I go 4 times a week so I have a rotating cast of family and friends that I take fishing with me. For them, it is the same, with the exception of one friend who has not caught a lot of fish, but the right kind. He has got a 7lb 2 oz bass which is huge for these parts, and a 6+lb pickerel. I usually get a half dozen of so 5lb bass a year, majority right after ice out. I have one fish at 4lbs and then biggest after that is prob 2.5 lb. Pathetic. I almost broke down and got some shiners to see if I could catch a decent fish. I do not know if it was the long winter or the hot/dry summer but the fishing is off. Maybe it is the fish gods for punishing me for keeping a 6lb bass last year. The only silver lining is that come deer archery season October 1 I will not be torn between fishing or hunting if this keeps up.

Well that response settles my old age dilemma of what I would do if I moved out of the northeast. I like fishing more so thought I would fish more than hunt, but I like your idea of doing both in the same day.

This is another part of the equation that I failed to mention. I do not have a place nearby where I could get ethanol even if I wanted to. My fill-up routine is this: premium gas, star ton stabilizer,marvel mystery, and seafoam. Every other fill up I use fuel system cleaner. It isn't cheap but it's cheaper then repairing/replacing my 150hp max. Have had boat 5 years and not a single fuel issue, knock on wood.

So I just read the new article posted to the site regarding the fact that 91% of boat owners want ethanol free gas. I thought to myself, in my two boats I have had minimal problems. I have had zero problems in my Ranger. In my aluminum bat with a 1988 motor I had to replace the fuel lines and clean the carbs a couple of times over the past 10 years. Yet, I cannot definitively say that these were not due to some other problem. The gas lines were the original gas lines- rubber eventually wears out and was a quick $10.00 fix at the autoparts store. Problem solved. I then thought, well I sure would save money on full additives as they won't be necessary and I use at every fill-up, year round. This is costly. But even if the fuel was ethanol free, I would still still use seafoam to clean the engine from the inside out and stabilizer to keep the fuel fresh. Thus, in my experience I am fortunate to say that I do not PERSONALLY see a need for ethanol free gas- for me. Just wondering what the opposing school of thought is on this issue and everyone else's luck or lack thereof with ethanol.

Found a new favorite crawfish lure this summer, Powerboat crazy legs chigger craw. The bass absolutely kill these and the powerboat scent actually works. I have never had fish hold onto a lure for so long, but d**n they love these things. I can't seem to keep my tackle box stocked with these. Try them T-rigged and they will not disappoint.

Replace the hooks with better quality hooks. Also, perhaps you should move one side up. Also, I would follow the advice of the posts above and use a crankbait specific rod, it will be more forging when the fish makes a run by the yak. Also, not sure what line you are using but a co-polymer has more stretch than braid. Good luck,

I have had the same fish break off a buddies bait and then bite my bait twice within the past week. Same baits too so not like following it up with a different presentation. After 10+ years of fishing, they never quit surprising you.

Always good to get a fellow yankee on here. I am 45 min north of boston on the MA/NH border. If your ever around my neck of the woods hit me up and I will take you to some local lakes or give you some advice. Go Pats!

At the beginning of this year I absolutely crushed them with a keitech ez shiner on a keel weighted hook. I found that the yum money minnow swimbait hooks worked awesome. They were the perfect size and are a good stout hook so once you set the hook you have almost 100% hookup ratio. The fish would hit this and not very similar looking baits, I think the strong squid scent was the difference maker. I am not one of those guys that complains about durability of baits. If thats what your talking about than your catching fish, and thats my main objective. I use GYCB and keitech religiously, which are basically one fish bites in my opinion- so I am curious as to how many bags of bait you went through.

The "Motor guide" version.

I know that the units are repairable however it is often not cost/effective. Also, down south you probably have more marinas then up here in the North but I can tell you that i found one place willing to work on the motor and it was 30 miles away. I would check for obvious problems, such as fishing line inside the motor behind the prop. If not, I would replace it so you don't have to mess with it anymore. Trolling motors aren't entirely expensive.

Motor ran fine tonight. Fingers crossed.

Many years ago, I was in the same position as you. I did not have confidence in soft plastics and opted rather for spinner baits, inline spinners, or rappel jerk baits and crank baits. I has tried several worms and crawfish style baits without success. Part of the reason was my equipment, you need a sensitive tip to detect the some times subtle bites. More importantly though, you need to slow down your presentation. I was workign my baits too fast. A crawdad swimming through the middle of the water column isn't realistic. Slow down, and start with 5" inch wacky rigged worms with a circle hook. You will catch fish and get confidence, then you can move onto other soft plastics.

I don't count snagged fish. However, I would count this fish. In my mind it is analogous to catching a fish on a crank bait and having him become undone on the treble hook in his mouth but still landed on a hook up by the dorsal fin. Happens to me quite often.