matuka

I also had a bit of a problem with mine, not bad, just a nuisance. The sideplate has to line up perfectly for mine, no forcing. I don't recall having tension knob issues, but thatis just me. And finally, no, I haven't had this issue with other Shimanos I have. (a lot)

Here's the age old tip that you probably have heard, but really works. Read everything you can, then take all the other tackle out of the boat. Bring an assortment of jig types and trailers but keep it simple. Go out to familiar water and go catch fish using as much of the gear you have. Drag em, hop em and swim them near the top or mid depths. Deadstick em too. Heavy cover to no cover. You will learn more than we can tell you.

Not trying to be a smart---, but use the one the fish are biting the best. Have guidelines as all above have said, but be ready to adjust.

On the dummie baits, take every thing off and attach the baits with screwlocks. On the business end you I like to change the snaps out to a very strong one at the very least. Owner makes a good one. It's easier to change baits this way, but you do run the risk of these things straightening with a big fish. As well the more hardware on the rig, the more the baits foul up. Split rings are much stronger but obviously make changing baits more cumbersome.

It sounds like you fished enough club level stuff that you have some clue about fishing. Go fish your strengths and have fun. Dee Thomas said the competition is always against Mr. Bass, and not the other competitors. He makes a good point to focus on. I remember my first big event several years back. I found my biggest source of anxiety was not about the fishing, it was all the goings on before hand. Launching with 150 + boats without playing bumper cars at the launch site, reg requirements, etc. Heck, the National Anthem even caught me by surprise! Get past that and you'll have a great time. Now go get'em!

I went to a tackle shop in Clear Lake to pick up my permit. I walked out with a new SWaver,( I only had one and nobody has them in stock), a LV 500 in spring craw, (TW has a backorder for one for me, or was it to replace the one that I ended up loosing later that day), a super cool, eight wire bladed A rig, a small handful of Keitechs, (you can never have enough), snaps, rings, a small population of plastics, and oh yeah, a fishing permit.

Has anybody considered the sound that a ripper makes a factor in it's effectiveness? The reason I ask is while pittleing around with my jerkbaits, I noticed that the Megabass 110's bearings have a different, much lower pitch than the LC pointers. I realize they are primarily for casting ease, but they also have to make a sound when jerked around. I don't know about you guys, but the 110 gets me more fish than any other I have tried, and that's a lot of them. I've heard bass are "bassists" and tune in to lower freq. noises. Any thoughts?

I use the Mangroves as well. And I can't get more than a season out of them either, or others I've tried. If you do, you aren't fishing enough. Still a good investment for your skin.

Are you the boater or Co- angler?

So I guess what the non- fishers say is true: "exactly how does having a really fast boat make you catch bigger fish". Nice job.

Now you tell me!

Delivering pizzas when I was sixteen. Then even more fun was driving an ambulance in SF in college.

Red Crawdad. Word of warning if you have not used these before. Don't slap the water with these to shake loose vegetation on the hooks or bill. These bills break off easier than any other crank I've used,(broken)

took the words right out of my mouth

I may represent a minority here, but I don't think a person can emulate the quick rattling sound in a jig like say a lipless. At best you may get a "tic" when it hits bottom. Maybe a soft "tic" when nearly ripped off the bottom and then again when it arches back down from its apex. Years ago I tried to emulate jigging action from the bottom of the pool. It seemed water resistance prevented the jig from moving in a fast noisy jiggle. Just my observation so I don't bother with them anymore. Others won't fish without them and that's great for them.

I agree, Okuma is more than established. But is that combo really what you can use out the door? If not, go after what you want. And I'll take that useless, backward reelin Smoke off your hands for a twenty. Surely you wouldn't want to show it to your other reels, or they might start misbehaving

Fair enough LOL. Swimmers are swimbaits in my vernacular. If I'm not catching fish I'd rather be trying to still catch fish with a swimbait tied on.

This is a takeoff of another thread, but If you were to go fishing and not catch fish, what methods or baits would take the sting out of getting skunked? For me, swimmers, all sizes and shapes.

No fabric softener in my house, so I guess I'd have to buy it too (LOL). I have the KVD spray and love it. A bottle in the boat and one in the garage. Now would KVD spray make my laundry nice and soft?

That could be a killer where I fish. We all say it imitates a craw, but only the bass know why they eat it.

I've been hitting our big public reservoir pretty hard since Thanksgiving. I have stayed away from my standard fair as well. At least 75% of my fish have come on swimbaits. From little bitty 3", most 4 and 5 inchers and a handful on medium sized hard swimmers. I'm learning how many different ways I can rig the small ones.

I don't believe there is a limit. Straight on the bank to 60 feet, an all terrain vehicle.

The senko.

I might be able to help a little here, but it's a big subject. Let's break it down. Hollow bellies: 5-6" Shadeliscious, Bass Magic, Caching minnows: These have very wide swing, and stay up in the water column with an 8/0 3/8 Beast. I like to think of them as a subsurface buzzbait. Pure reaction strike! Heavy equipment. Pull them thru tules, grass patches ,and typical blade or buzz type cover. I have been disappointed with these ones on heavy jighead in deeper water. They wobble funny unless reeled faster than I want. The four inch version of the same baits also require a pretty quick pace to get them to kick right. KVD and others put a jighead on these But I find they roll too much I plain don't get bit like they do. Hippo, 6th sense, Basstrix: Great color selection, and several sizes. Up high in the column with a 6/0 Beast. You can pull them deeper if you put some (a lot) lead tape on the weight or hookshank. Same as above, any cover you want or flats. Pretty good in clear water too. Stick a heavy jig head on the front, or slit the belly and put it inside, and punch the eye thru. In colder water this is a good bottom bouncer. Count the rocks. Solid Bodies: 6" Trash Fish- 8/0 weighted Beast hook . Slow grind these anywhere you please. They don't get real deep, but probably can pull em up from ten feet or so. Huge variety of colors. Some guys throw them on a jighead ;but I haven't yet. Try chucking it out there and let it hit bottom, deadstick it for awhile to get them ticked off then grind it back in. 4" Trash fish- this is one that I get bit alot on with a weighted jighead. You can get good numbers with this too. Keitech- I've been messing with these for about a year. They just plain get bit! Fat SI- Nice swing on all sizes. Use an appropriate jig head for depth and cover. Very nice for grass. Try a weighted swimbait hook too. SI- this basically is a small tapered ringworm with a boot tail. I've been throwing this all winter on clear(ish) water resevoirs. They love it! Darter, shakey, mojo rig and just tried it on a chin spin and they all worked. I like the four inch. Very fragile. Easy shiner- They look great, kind of finessy, more shimmy than wobble. SK/KVD has a similar one that probably taste like Starbucks. (Keitechs taste like squid). these have worked during the tougher times, though I haven't gotten a biggy on these. 4 or 5 inch. Same rig as above but I haven't used them on the chin spin. The 3 inch version of the SI and ES are too small for my taste but I've used them as teasers on an A-Rig. Swimming Senko- I guess this is a swim bait isn't it? On the Delta when the tides aren't right I stick it on a weedless darter head and swim it thru the grass Others- Money Minnows, NetBait, some who's name I can't remember and even some hand pours, all take up space in the garage. BTW-I have used or seen every one of the above on an A-rig. I've also used the fixed hook variety ie, Baitsmith, Osprey, Jerry Rago's, and a few others. These can get some big bites if you are good with these. Heavy equipment and kiss these up next to cover or pull them uphill. For me these log in a lot of casting practice, but the Osprey seems to help me out. That's my repetoire and it takes up too much room in my boat. And we haven't talked about hard baits! Hope this helps

Then the next question is how far forward or back do you want it.