the reel ess

Isn't there a soft plastic color "Hello Kitty"?

Where I live I feel so confident in black/blue that I bought a 100 pack of Yum Dingers off Amazon and I have less than half left. I would probably say green pumpkin/black flake is a good alternative for clearer water.

I have gotten bites on it every place I've fished except for one, my favorite spot. They simply won't bite it there. I have no idea why. I didn't try this last Saturday, but my buddy did to no avail once more.

You can get virtually a lifetime supply from Amazon dirt cheap. If one slips, use two. I use one on 30# braid and it only slips when I catch one or I get humng up on something. Just push it back down and keep going.

I have straight 30# PowerPro on my flipping/pitching combo. I also use it on my topwaters and trap combo. I just set the drag loose.

My frog rod has taken a beating for about a decade. It's a Cabela's XT Tournament frog-specific rod. It cost $130, but I believe I found it on sale for $100. It's sensitive enough to use as a second jig rod. But I could boat flip a 6 pounder with it. You won't break it on a fish. That would be my concern with an expensive frog rod. The greater the graphite content, the more brittle it becomes.

My daughter made it to the school district spelling bee when she was about 12. The word that put her out was "bandersnatch".

First, sharpen the hook. There is no changing the hook on this bait. It comes dull because of the gold plating on the whole lure. It's a good hook. You just have to get to the point, so to speak. I have used a 3" white curly tail grub as a trailer and that's all. I would probably use a twin tail if I had some. I think the single tail represents more of a baitfish profile once it comes off the edge of the mat and start swimming. It looks like a minnow getting away. I use my frog rod, which is a 7-3 XH/XF with 50# PowerPro braid. I see it as a frog/toad alternative. All three do their thing a little differently. I feel the bite before setting the hook. The spoon can sink and they may go after it again if they miss. Keep a check on the weedguard because it will get bent out of shape after you catch a fish or three. I don't usually wear the fish out with the Silver Minnow, but I've caught some really good fish on it.

Yeah, my frog rod is a XH/XF

I should add that if you do use the Silver Minnow you should definitely sharpen the hook. The gold plating leaves the hook with a dull point.

I bought some and took to a relative's pond. It was an overcast evening with a few sprinkles. Bass were all over it. Getting a good hookset was another story. It's a very thick bait. I was using a 6/0 swimbait hook as someone on this site recommended. Maybe bigger bass would do a better job of finding the hook. I switched to a toad after snatching the bait away from a bunch of dinks. I gave them time to take it. They just couldn't compress the body I guess. I think a trailer hook may be in order.

I'll use a few baits on my frog rod. the Booyah Pad Crasher and the popping Pad Crasher. If fish are aggressive you'll hook them. Often there are only tiny bass in the vegetation. Sometimes bass don't even bite, they just swipe at it. I've had them do this 3 consecutive casts. Be sure to bend those hooks out enough to see space between the frog body and the hooks. It makes a huge difference. Toads. I'll use the paddle type feet sometimes and the curly ones other times. Usually in sparser vegetations where I can keep a steady retrieve. When the bass strikes you can lower your rod, let it sink and be sure they have it before swinging away. Try a Johnson Silver Minnow with a curly tail grub or some sort of trailer. This will get the followers when it falls off the mat or it'll sink a little when they miss on the mat. Be ready, they hit it hard. It's very weedless so you can just reel it back through weeds and pick off the occasional bystander. I bought a Strike King Moss Boss to give a try, but I haven't been somewhere with much vegetation yet due to family health issues, mine and my wife's. I'm planning on Saturday morning. Sometimes they won't bite on the surface, but they'll bite a T rig. My fav for that presentation is the Yum Dinger. I caught my PB on it in lilies at the edge of deeper water. Remember, bigger bass, the kind that will annihilate anything, are loners. If you're getting a lot of misses, it's probably dinks or even bluegills.

I remember when my daughter was little she would complain that my reel sprayed her with mist when I cast. I do so miss the little buddy phase. She's 21 now and about to be a senior in college. We're still buddies. We binge TV shows together. We occasionally hike, but I'm still a little less than 100% from surgery.

My mom died from ALS. It's horrible. I wouldn't wish that disease on my worst enemy. I traded a '66 Mustang in need of some TLC for cousin's 1986 fish & ski when I was about 36. I told the wife it was our family boat. I told my dad we would fish a lot since he no longer had a fishing boat. Well, turns out the wife wasn't really into fishing or boating. After a few years my dad told me he got tired too quickly for fishing. He was getting up in age and not really in good shape. That was a sad day for me. My daughter loved going with me when she was little and I could do no wrong. But that changed when she got a little older and got into girlie stuff. So there I was on the big lake competing with boats loaded with technology for 1-2 lb. bass. Fast forward a few years and I almost gave the boat away to be rid of it. Bought a kayak, then bought a nicer one, then sold it and simplified again. That's my niche. Small, a simple craft on small waters away from anyone else fishing. I've caught more and bigger bass and enjoyed myself more than I ever would have in a bass boat.

Perhaps it's the rod's fault, not the line. I use 15# Big Game for this and spinnerbaits. I use a MH/F rod. I don't even lean into it until I feel the fish. I've never felt I was losing fish due to the line. I also use a trailer hook. But I do use braid for a lot of other presentations and wouldn't hesitate for buzzbaits if for some reason I needed to. Honestly, I like the way the mono knot holds the wire tight.

I have all the things you do usually, except I usually use a T-rig instead of a jig.

I think it's the floating model. Looks like the word FLOATER is scratched off.

20# braid on spinning 30# braid for flipping/pitching 50# braid for frogs 12-15# Berkley Big Game on BC for trebles, spinner/buzzbaits-anywhere a little stretch and forgiveness is appreciated. 15# Big Game is very tough. I feel certain it's stronger than its rating. Braid lasts a very long time. I use a backing of cheap mono and buy smaller spools of braid. Big Game is so cheap you can afford to respool whenever you feel like it. I also keep a spool in my bag in case I birdnest the braid on my pitching combo-it has happened while on vacation. You can use braid twice. Reel it off on another reel, repeat, reel it back onto the first reel. You're now using the unused end. Good as new. You can also use a Sharpie to darken the line when it gets bleached out from use and the sun.

Megastrike Roland Martin Big Bass. I've had the same one, same skirt for 6 or more years. It has a head that swivels 180 degrees so bass can't leverage it as well, a thicker wire so it doesn't break and a closed eye tie. It also comes in golden shiner pattern, which is a must for me. https://www.megastrike.com/bigbassspinnerbait?scrollToProduct=big-bass-spinnerbait-golden-shiner-br-br

I've had several Trions and they've been fantastic reels. I found one unopened in a pawn shop for $18. But if you click the link, they only have a size 40, which I feel is a little too big. I know because I have one-it is a workhorse and will whoop a big bass with a MH/F rod. The President combo is a deal. Basically getting a combo at the retail price of the reel alone. If they had a 2 pc. MH 7' I might grab one for a travel rod.

5-6. As with my own fish, the camera steals a pound and a half. 🤣

I didn't like it either. I'm sure they work, but I can't throw it all day.

I don't even take my own advice on this one, but...fish at night in the dog days.

Comments I've read about them is they do get bites, but few hookups. Of course, you should probably bend up the hooks a little as you would with a frog. I like the hook placement better on this one.

I have yet to catch a fish on a frog or toad this year, not that I've fished a lot. But I went to my buddy's pond last Wednesday that usually has killer frog action and no dice. The lilies had not emerged yet.