the reel ess

I was stubborn about that purple worm myself until I started fishing other places and found that color preference by the fish was mainly a location thing. I don't know if that's due to forage, water clarity, quality or what. But when you go to your buddy's regular place and he says "use this color", you use that color.

Remove all bass you can catch except for the largest and feed the bream regularly in the spring/summer so they'll make more babies to eat. That's really about all you can do on your own. Beyond that, contact a pond management specialist. Every pond is different. They could have ideas no one here has. To tell you the truth, having 2-3 lb bass in a pond is not that bad. I go to one that has very few over a pound. Probably the biggest bass I've caught there in a decade was 2 lb. and we keep them all. Yours may not be out of balance as badly as you think.

My dad only wanted to fish a T-rigged 6" purple worm. EVER. The last time we ever fished together I handed him a spinning rod with a weightless Trick Worm and he caught fish. I usually carry 6 or 7 combos in the truck "just in case". But most of the time I catch all the fish on two rods (or less). It's not that I think I need 7 rods to catch a few dink bass. But they're specialized for techniques and I will catch more over time having those rigged and ready when conditions warrant. I know that I'm more addicted to buying the equipment to catch bass than actually catching the bass. Every lure that I look at, I imagine myself simply slaying them with it next time out. Usually, what happens is the opposite and I put the bait back in the box for another try at a later date. On the other hand, I went cheaper on the boat by getting a kayak. So there's that.

This is about as cheap as I'd go on a BC reel. https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/h2o-xpress™-mettle-mt2-baitcast-reel-right-handed#repChildCatid=903506 I really wouldn't feel comfy with a $60 reel, so I went here instead. And I have some $130 Lew's reels. They're a bargain at that price. https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/h2o-xpress-tac-40-baitcast-reel#repChildCatid=3918504 I know $100 ain't peanuts, but if you get the el cheapo and have to replace it next season, you'll probably spend more. Spend a little more now, less later. Avoid the graphite or composite frames (I know some will argue-they're wrong, LOL) and plastic gears. You'll end up with a lighter, better performing reel for years to come. A cheap reel won't break on a 2 pounder. It'' break on a possible PB.

If you aren't fishing very clear water, you can use a mono leader or straight braid. I put on a backing of cheap 15# mono, then I finish off with Power Pro braid. I use 50# braid on the frog combo and 30# with a 15# mono leader, tied with a surgeon's knot on the worm/jig combo. of course I could use straight mono and avoid an extra knot, but I love the no-stretch factor of the braid and the small diameter-to-lb. test ratio. I retie the leader every couple trips because it's Big Game, a good line when new, but it tends to get frayed easily. Hey you can buy 900 yds of it cheaper than one refill of most premium mono/copolymers. I've been using this spool for about 4 years. I still use Big Game 15# mono on my trebles and spinner/buzzbait rods. I went to braid on both my spinning combos because it all but eliminates line twist. I just use a mono leader when I feel it's necessary.

They like a slower tip as well. Rods are stiffer than they were years ago when that bait was more popular.

I use them most trips to my bud's pond because he has good size bluegill and it seems to cull the small ones. To that end, I use a 1/4 oz. Rooster Tail. I had one that was rainbow trout/gold blade that just slayed the bream and bass, but i cast it once and the 6 lb. test broke and it just kept flying. I replaced it with a white/silver and it doesn't seem to work as well. I've started adding a quality swivel to help with line twist.

Oh, I see. The black ones we call fox squirrels around here and they shun people like the plague. It is rare to spot one and most have a little white on the body.

Wow! I can't imagine that. It's the most plentiful game animal we have here. If society ever crumbles you could easily live off squirrels here.

I forgot the 14' canoe. It's how I came to realize I needed a kayak.

I was the same. I wore my dad out. He got where he let me run the boat and he sat back. Then he got where he sat in the back of my boat. Then he got where he didn't want to go anymore. He was getting into his late 60's then. I did get him to go to a family friend's pond and walk the bank a little about 8 months before he passed away unexpectedly. And he caught some! Then he got tired and went to sit on my tailgate and talk to our friend while I fished. I'm really glad we did that one more time.

24' pontoon 16' Ryan Craft aluminum semi-V hull bassboat. It was a riveted hull and we were constantly replacing rivets 20' Pontoon 16.5' ProCraft Fish & Ski (still have it and might use in the winter) Pescador Pro Kayak (my current ride)

I usually fish alone Yeah, with nobody else And you know, when I fish alone I prefer to be by myself. Honestly, I enjoy my own company better than anyone else's. Other people bug me. I have two buddies I occasionally fish with and that's about that. Most people I know don't want to go out in the middle of summer when the temp is in the mid 90's with high humidity and only catch 2 dinks. But I'm just stupid like that.

Yeah, the extra length is for leverage to get bass to the top of vegetation. Even smaller bass can be a handful if they get their head buried in the slop. Really, the 3" of extra rod is hardly noticeable.

About any 7'3" Hvy Fast should do the trick. Look for a light one because great sensitivity is not necessary for either of those techniques. I might suggest a store brand. https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/h2o-xpress-ethos-hd-micro-baitcast-rod#repChildCatid=3898114 https://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/fishing-rods/casting-rods/pc/104793480/c/104764680/sc/104823180/cabelas-fish-eagle-casting-rods/2430565.uts?slotId=1 Here's what I got for frogs and it's on sale now. I got the frog model. It's a great frog rod. I don't fish swimbaits though. https://www.cabelas.com/product/fishing/fishing-rods/casting-rods/pc/104793480/c/104764680/sc/104823180/cabelas-tournament-zx-bass-casting-rods/1619298.uts?slotId=4

Any color worm will do as long as it's purple Just kidding. Black, purple, watermelon or pumpkin are good starters. My all time fav pond bait is the Zoom Trick Worm in bubble gum.

Welcome to the board. I can't think of a much better bait than a 6" Texas rigged worm for starters. I'd throw about everything I have in the box except for deep divers until I figured it out. Early or late I'd try topwaters because I love them.

I can get three spoolings from a 150 yd spool. Here's another thrifty trick. When you get tired of seeing that faded out used end, you can spool it onto another reel and you'll be using the other end of it, which is new and still has the original color. The stuff doesn't wear out unless you fish around a lot of rocks.

Ditto, except I use 50# on the frog combo. It's very good stuff. When you factor in how long it lasts and use some cheap backing line to fill the first half spool, it doesn't cost much more than mono.

My dad and I did this once. We took off from our own boat launch so the trailer was still in the water. We got maybe half a mile and the water was around our ankles. We turned around quickly and headed back to the launch taking on water the whole way. We tried to drive up on the trailer, but had to winch it on and wait for it to drain. We were lucky. It was an older aluminum bassboat and I wouldn't trust the flotation.

I think they won't grow in water deeper than sunlight can penetrate well. In my area, the water is permanently stained so they don't grow much deeper than 3' or so. That's a good thing because they won't completely cover a pond if it's got some areas deeper than that and most do. And they don't grow in every body of water here either. I grew up fishing Lake Wateree, SC, which apparently was not ideal for them. All we had was water willow. We didn't even have that when I was really young. It's invasive. I'm constantly surprised how shallow bass will get under them, even in hot weather. The hollow body frog is just the ticket for them. Anywhere another form of cover or structure coincides with lilies is prime habitat. I think they're better in shallower ponds. If the fish can't go "deep" to beat the heat they're more likely to be in the pads in heat of the day. If they can get deep in the summer they will. Pads in places like that won't always hold fish. I always have a frog tied on and when i see a bass chasing bait in the pads I'll toss it right in there. Stealth is not the goal. That fish is feeding so get its attention.

All topwaters just before dark. Trick Worm & Finesse Worm Frog (oh, yeah, that's a topwater) any time of day, but better early and late Lipless crank. That seems to get a few bites from the weedy depths of my favorite reservoir. But you never know when it'll be a big'un. Big crappie will bite it too. Small craw on a jighead

You can do this without other people pressuring the fish as well. That's more important than you think. It's hotter than hades, fish are stressed by lower oxygen levels and they see more artificial lures. In smaller bodies of water, you can show a lure to fish that haven't seen one in a while and you know you'll drag it by some because where are they going to go? They can't go deep when deep is 3-4 feet. Another good tactic is going in the evening until dark. You'll just get more bites during low light periods in the summer. And since I'm a topwater nut, that is my favorite time. I also work, but there are still 4 hours left of daylight when I get off at 5:00. Also, downsizing will get you more bites. I like the Zoom 4" Finesse Worm. Try it on a small jighead or dropshot or a "finesse Carolina rig". That's a splitshot rig with a fancy name. I'll use more natural colors when the bite is tough. Less bubble gum and chartreuse. I'll also keep a craw on a plain Arky jighead handy. A Yamamoto Hula Grub gets some bites as well. Something about the craw when they aren't active can be too much for them to ignore. But if they aren't biting the big baits, the whole skirted jig might be too much.

Pros swear by them. IMO, they serve more of a purpose on baits that might sit still longer like a Pop R. You pause it a lot depending on the retrieve the fish prefer. I don't pause the Spook as much because it's more of a search bait. Fish just get the profile of it, not a long look at it. Sometimes fish don't smash the Pop R, but rather they kinda slurp it in from behind and only get the back hook. The idea is that bass see a lure that's in the rough shape of a fish and make a decision based on instinct. The dressed hook looks like a tail whereas a lot of baits don't have one. Anyway, they can't hurt, right?

Yeah! 10 lbs is kind of what I was thinking of.