FatBoy

Well, like I said, I'm just reporting what I read. But the article clearly indicated that this effect has to do with the biology of the eye (NOT water conditions) and it happens in most cold-blooded animals (fish, frogs, etc.). It was only one article and I haven't seen the original research. But it certainly makes sense from a biological perspective.

MattFly, Thanks for the info on bass vision. I think I've heard most of that before, but only in bits and pieces. So it's good to see it all together in one place. I think you missed the point about the cold water, though... According to the article, the effect of colder water is on the biology of the eye itself. It has nothing to do with water clarity (obviously clarity also will effect how well the bass sees). I'm not a fish biologist, so I'm just reporting what I read. In water where a human can see 1 ft, a bass can see 5 ft. But according to the article, if a fish can see 5 ft in dirty water at 60 deg, he can only see, say, 3 ft in the SAME water at 75 deg. (or at least he would see much less clearly out to 5 ft in the warmer water).

Not sure what you mean by "bass see in pixels." We all see in pixels, in the sense that 1 cell (rod/cone) = 1 "pixel." Maybe you mean that bass have less cells per area, in other words lower resolution? Could be. But that doesn't affect whether their vision is better in colder water or not.

Yep, I agree. They may see the bait perfectly 30 ft away in 40 deg water, but if it takes them 30 min to swim over there... The article was talking a bit about the difference in vision being most significant when you talk about water at 60 deg versus 75 deg, for example.

Exactly! We don't have that problem 'cause we're warm blooded and have constant body temp.

The hgiher density of the cold water is definitely why the senkos sink slower in colder water. But that's not the issue with the vision (according to the article I read). The photoreceptors (rods/cones) in fish's eyes are way more sensitive than ours. Just a very little bit of light striking the retina causes the cells to fire off a signal down the nerve to the brain. BUT the cells are so senstive that when they are warmer (in warmer water), the cells sometimes fire off a signal randomly. So in warmer water, the fish's vision starts to look more like a fuzzy/snowy tv channel. (The same thing happens with photomultiplier tubes (light detectors). In that case it's called "dark noise." I was surprised that the same thing can happen in biology.)

After sleeping on this a bit I'm going to change my tune slightly. Originally I said that you are better off going with the rules of thumb "that we all know." Well, maybe we don't all know the rules of thumb, or we have different ones (and some may be better than others). If your system can essentially provide an alternative to those rules of thumb, that could be a big benefit for those of us with less experience. For example, if your system could tell me that on an overcast, summer day with clear water and water temp about 75-80, I should try dragging a big, craw-colored jig-n-pig near the tops of humps and ends of points (I have no idea if that would be correct; it's just an example) then that could be very valuable for me. So to the extent that your system is meant to provide general rules of thumb, and not the "optimal" bait for the day, I think you might be onto something. Good luck and keep us posted!

I was just reading a crappie magazine and came across some tidbits that I had not heard before. Fish can see something like 5x farther underwater than a human (that I knew) AND they can actually see farther and with better acuity in colder water!!! This doesn't have anything to do with water clarity issues. The fish eye actually works better in colder water. (The article specifically said that this applies to both crappie and bass, and to most fish in general). Now, I haven't figured out what this means for bass fishing or what to do with this information yet. But I just thought it was pretty interesting. And I'm sure some of you can chime in with suggestions on how to use this info, for example in choosing baits/lures for the fall and winter.

FIN-S-R, I'm an engineer and I really like any kind of quantitative analysis like this. So I hate to rain on your parade, but there are just too many variables, with too much error in each one, for this to work. I think you're better off just going with the rules of thumb that we all use to pick a starting lure. There are just too many experienced anglers out there who have already done the "experiments." I don't think your analysis can beat decades of collective experience from thousands of fishermen. But, like someone else said, if you've got the time to work on it, go for it...

I don't have the patience for deadsticking a bait most of the time. The one time it worked for me I was fishing a super fluke and picking out a "backlash" just like RW said. Except I WAS using spinning gear! Don't think it's possible to "backlash" a spinning reel? Well, that's a story for another thread, but believe me, I've screwed up every way possible.

I've gotta throw in another vote for the Manns baby 1- . I love these things. They have a really, really W-I-D-E wobble. Their finishes are not so realistic, but I wouldn't get too hung up on that. With cranks you're usually going for a reaction strike anyway.

Not quite. I don't remember what Raul said in his earlier post. But here's the deal. We measure barometric pressure in "inches of mercury." So what matters is the relative density of mercury (not air) versus water. Mercury is 13.6x more dense than water. If the barometric pressure increases by 1" (say from 29" to 30") that's equivalent to 13.6" of water. The fish will feel like it's 13.6" (or about a foot) deeper. Still, given that a 1" swing in barometric pressure is pretty big, and most fish move up and down more than 1 foot all the time, I don't expect a fish will be affected by barometric pressure directly. (on the other hand, I wouldn't expect that a fish could detect a crawfish scratching along the bottom in pitch black night just by feeling vibrations through nerve cells in its side, but I would be wrong there...)

Anybody have a link with current information and schedules? I googled it but came up with really old info and a lot of garbage.

Here's my story. Just this past weekend I bought a new SPRO bronzeye frog. I was fishing it on 30 lb Powerpro around some fall downs and other woody stuff. I knew my line was rubbing against the wood, but, come on, it's braid after all, right? Wrong! I made a cast from the bank all the way across to the other side of a small inlet. As soon as I let it go, I knew something didn't feel right. And as I watched the $8 frog (supposedly) heading for the opposite bank, it just kept going...and going...right over the inlet and about 15 yds into the brush on the other side. I was able to walk around to the other side and after about 10 mins of digging around I found the frog. I saved the bait AND learned my lesson. The problem wasn't my knot. The line just broke right off about a foot up from the knot. If I had hooked a fish, even a dink, it would have broke me off AND I would have lost the lure. I definitely dodged the bullet this time.

There's a small pond I've fished a few times for smallmouth. The bank is lined with rip rap most of the way around. The water is not too clear, but not murky either. I've never caught a fish standing on the rip rap. BUT, if I SIT DOWN on the rip rap, I can catch em. So, yep, they can see me, even if I can't see them. They know I'm there.

How do you set the hook? It seems like I would need to run backwards up the bank for 10 yds to take out all the slack...

How do you fish in windy conditions? I'm not talking about a light breeze or a gentle spring zephyr. I'm talking downright blustery. I'm talking days when you make a 15 yard cast and you have a 15 yard wide bow in the line. I'm talking about 6-8" chop on the surface. What kind of lure CAN you throw on those days?

I have one question about this. At what angle to the shore are you talking about making your cast. If you cast parallel to shore, you can't get the bait 10-15 yds out (heck, if you REALLY cast parallel to the shore you will NEVER get the bait off the shore at all). The angle is important because the closer to parallel the longer the cast and the farther you will have to get the bait back to you. The more perpendicular the cast, the less time the bait will spend in the strike zone. Is 45 degrees a good compromise between length of cast and length of time the bait is in the strike zone?

Watermelon w/ red flake all the way baby!!! I can't buy a fish on anything resembling red or purple (red shad, tequila sunrise, etc.).

I'll add another vote that pond fishing has been sloooow lately (although I good luck with my challenge this morning ). We've also had the cooler than normal weather and a lot of rain. Just keep at it I guess.

...and if you lip enough big bass that your thumb DOES start to bleed, believe me you will be having such a good time you won't care!!! ;D ;D ;D

The rain itself is irrelevant since the fish are already wet . What you have to consider is how the rain changes the water conditions. It disturbs the surface and you're generally talking about lower light levels, so that's (I think) why some people go to topwater in the rain. Another consideration is if there's a lot of run-off into the pond, the visibility may go down so you may want to go with darker colors, noisier lures, and/or bigger baits. Finally, if you believe in the effect of barometric pressure on the fishing, once it's raining a front has probably already moved through and the pressure is low. Some people will tell you that will kill the bite. JMO...

Everybody else has already covered it pretty much...you just gotta do it. Another thing I will add, though, is make sure you grab the lip good and tight. There's a good chance the fish will shake if he's not completely tired out. If you don't have a good grip, he'll slip out. At least two bad things can happen at that point. If the hook is still in his mouth, you can get stuck. And MUCH worse, if it's a big enough fish and your rod is in the wrong position (like pointing straight up) the weight of the fish can break your rod. You can fish with a bandage on your thumb or even a few stitches. But a broken rod? Man, THAT bites!!!

Texas rig is WAAAAAAAYYYYYY easier to learn than a Carolina rig. Don't even go to the C-rig til you've mastered the t-rig (IMO). As for standard colors, the answer is probably no. Everybody has their favorites and the "best" varies from day to day. But for me (and to quote roadwarrior) I like DARK. Watermelon (w/ some flake, red or black or both), green pumpkin, and black are MY standards.

Breaking concentration - whether it's biting bugs, buzzing gnats, swollen bladder, or sunbathing beauties - is the BEST thing that can happen to you......cause that's ALWAYS when the fish hits your bait!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D