the reel ess

Pure Fishing was owned by Newell Brands, which was also a holding company. So hopefully nothing changes. I hope not because it's corporate HQ is right here in Columbia, SC.

Don't worry if some never look great. Fish won't care. I used to work with a guy that hung his hardbaits on the clothesline a few days before using them so they'd look "weathered".

Welcome (from SC)

There is a place where we vacation at the beach that will rent kayaks or paddle boards and drop you at the ramp and pick you back up at an appointed time. That sounds pretty cool. I usually just take my own though.

If you know you'll fish tournaments, you'll have to have one. But who says you have to use it when you're not tournament fishing?

I was employing the venerable Texas rigged crawfish. I had previously been using a frog on that same rod and never reset the drag. The great beast engulfed my offering and blasted from the shallows directly toward my vessel then dove under my portside hull. I had to bury the rod halfway into the murky water in a vain attempt to appease her while I fumbled to loosen the drag. I was not quick enough and she was too mighty for my spindly wire hook. Alas, she straightened my hook while my mate waited to boat her. I never glimpsed the great beast, but my mate said he saw her shadow and she was mighty, indeed. Perhaps she was a 9 pounder or greater, which would have shattered my previous personal best effort. I'm being dramatic of course, but I'll never forget it. It was probably 4 years ago and my buddy still talks about it. We'll stop and take extra casts at the spot every trip. It's what keeps me returning to that small lake for bigger bass because I know they're in there.

I seem to recall they had an association with Pflueger about a decade ago. One of the Pfleuger reps, Mark Davis (not the BASS pro, but the guy with the saltwater show), was traveling around giving Pinnacle combos away at shows and tourneys. A guy I know who fished tourneys got a couple for free as door prize or something and gave them to people at work. I think he told me at the time they were essentially Pflueger. So they must have been phased out or absorbed.

An Arky head jig is a good one to cover most of the bases other than football and swim. If you find one with a vertical line tie it makes a good grass jig as well. The Seibert Dockrocker looks like a good one for that. I use a grass jig in brush, mostly because it's so weedy a few places I fish. It's a very weedless jig. One made by a guy on here. He makes all kinds of custom jigs to order. If you want his info, send me a PM.

Not the Dick's nearest to me. It's a good place to go through the clearance because they don't know what to purchase. I call it Fishing Big Lots. You can't count on finding what you need, but there will be something available at a discount. Then, when fall rolls around they cut their fishing department in half. The nearby Academy destroys them. That store is 3X the size of Dick's.

If you do that, they'll warm the blood going into your hands enough to keep you from freezing. I know it won't help tomorrow, but I bought these. They work well enough, but wouldn't be much good if tems got much below freezing. To tell you the truth, the only time I wore them, I took them off because I wanted to feel bites. I'm just not used to gloves https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/cabelas-guidewear-glomitts-for-men?hvarAID=shopping_googleproductextensions&affcode_c=&gclid=CjwKCAiArK_fBRABEiwA0gOOc2egX1D4ZOhrTjKSMtBrXvIFd31nSNefVvrez4ijxOI-XvXXNrMF3RoC_GgQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

If you never said that it would be too soon. cLaSsY

LOL. There's a fat one? Rob's the older one, the veteran. His YouTube channel is LunkersTV. Some of the Googans are really immature and annoying. There is another guy they associate with called LakeForkGuy that acts mature. He's also a grownup.

That's funny. I think Rob wen't off on DSG on Twitter regarding their tactical rifle policy and now they carry his baits.

Is Dumb & Dumber taken? edit: I see just above my post I was barely beaten to it. Just like I used to get up with the chickens and go out to the spot i wanted to fish only to find two boats already there.

TRICK WORM gets them year round! But I'm leaning toward a jig all the time now.

Well, it ain't over yet, but I caught a 7.1 lb that you can see in my profile pic, a few in the 6's and a few in the 5's. It was the best year I've had in a long time in terms of big fish. I had been in an almost 2 year slump. Most of them came in the late summer/early fall transition.

Whatever you buy, just know going in that there is no way to get out of it without taking a bath. The smarter money is probably to buy a gently used one a few years old that has been at least covered. I now have a hulk sitting under my late father's shed. It is more work than it's worth and I'll probably end up just about giving it away. But I paid $4K for it and had a ball for a while. The only ROI is the enjoyment you'll get so use it every opportunity you have. I may someday trade mine in on a pontoon for the wife and daughter.

Yeah, I'm going to do it until I can't do it anymore. It's really no different from the other exercise I do. Kinda like having a killer case of "bass thumb". When you feel it you smile a little inside.

I would say the way I feel is different now that I'm 48. My lower back starts ache when I fish from a boat because I want to stand all day. It's one reason I got a kayak to begin with. It's just easier to fish while sitting and the kayak is a whole lot easier to load and unload compared to hooking up and towing a boat, launching the boat, landing the boat, towing home and unhooking it. I just wanted to combine some fun exercise with my favorite pastime.

Welcome! I've been fishing with a "budget kayak" for about 6 years. I just moved up to a Feefree Lure 13.5. It's like night and day. For bigger waters, I'd recommend a bigger, heavier kayak. Also, if I were looking to fish lakes with powerboats on them, I'd probably go all out and get one you can pedal. Do your homework and make an educated purchase because it's going to be expensive and, if you're like me, you'll have to live with it for a while. I have only used the Lure once. It's a major upgrade, but there are still some things my cheaper Pescador 12' does better. It's more nimble. I can adjust my position with one hand on the paddle. It's closer to the water so it's easier to handle hooked fish and it's an easier platform to paddle from. It will get through flooded timber more easily. But it's less stable, I can't stand on it. It's less comfortable to sit in for long periods. It's more at the mercy of the wind due to its light weight. I may still keep it because it's useful in small waters.

Buy 2 Pad Crashers and 2 popping Pad Crashers. When they're biting them, you'll wear one out.

@Hook2Jaw I'll get used to it.

I should also say, in reference to standing up in a kayak, I'm 6-2, 200 lbs. and not the most agile person.

I tried mine out yesterday and caught 4. I can tell you the seat is pretty comfy. The height adjustability is nice but I didn't prefer it all the way up. The deck stayed completely dry. I fished about 2.5 hrs. I could stand in mine and fish. I did twice, but I'm not still comfortable doing it yet. I didn't need to because I couldn't sight fish yesterday. I may when bass get back on the beds. Even so, it's really good to be able to stretch your legs after sitting a couple hours. This kayak is at least 30 lbs heavier than my last one (Perception Pescador). it's more difficult to load and unload. The wheel in the keel is helpful. Being that much heavier, it doesn't handle as easily. Fish also don't pull it around as easily. edit: Mine already had a graph/GPS on it. The transducer is mounted to the bottom of the console. It's tucked in above the bottom of the hull so you won't damage it dragging or running over stuff. The place I was fishing is so small and shallow, I didn't need it. My hand makes a decent water temp gauge. But if I was fishing a bigger or deeper lake, I'd appreciate it.

I don't exactly love winter fishing. But I get cabin fever after a couple weeks of cold weather. I'll start looking in the forecast for the next day of full sun and temps in the 50's. You can catch your biggest fish of the year in February around here. That might mean you're fishing for one bite in a whole day, but it usually won't be a dink. And you finally get outside for a few hours. Also, you don't need to rise with the chickens to winter fish.