the reel ess

Submerged bottom grass. And "better" not "great". I was getting some bites and LOTS of grass with the lead bullet weights. Tungsten has a much smaller profile for the same weight.

There are some courses that allow fishing before 7 AM and after 7 PM. I stay at a condo in Pawley's Island, SC that seems to have this policy. I've seen others doing it, but I haven't tried it. There's one in Sunset Beach, NC that allows kayaks and small boats and is accessible form a public road. I've seen people on it too.

Come through grass on the bottom better. Here's a potential drawback. They don't dent or bend so they can be abrasive on your line knot. I've been using a glass bead between the tungsten weight and the hook. It protects the knot and certainly doesn't seem to be hurting anything. I heard Scott Martin refer to this as a sort of T-rig rattle.

I like mono for trebles. I like braid for single hooks like T-rigs. But not as a hard-fast rule. I recently had to rely on a MH BC combo for T-rigs because I had braid and a frog on my T-rig combo. It did well enough to land a PB. It was 15# mono and a Gamakatsu hook. It wasn't 8# and a wimpy M spinning combo.

Here it is http://www.7thart.com/films/Bass-Man

MI\ine was on T rigged Zoom Speed Craw. I've caught some good ones on that too.

There's one about BASS that followed Rick Clunn and Takahiro Omori among others as they went on the tourney trail. It showed Omori going fishing with Clunn to learn from him. Omori didn't even fish, just observed Clunn while he fished. In fact, he didn't speak any English at the time. I saw it on Sundance or IFC years ago. It was pretty good. But I can't remember the name now.

Anyone have experience here? I went by this morning with my daughter to have a look around. There was NO ONE there at 10:00. It looks very fishy with lilies around the edges and a good sandy bottom. Water the color of iced tea.

Really? Nobody I know (besides all of you) fishes them. I'm all alone.

So you keep 9 fish on a stringer and if you don't catch the 10th you throw them all back?

No, not where I fish. But then I primarily fish private properties.

I've actually caught them with crappie jigs in a local city reservoir.

I went years with no luck on Spooks. Now all of a sudden it's my best lure. Well, the Chug'n Spook, Jr. I got 2 fish over 5# in a week on it. I own 4 Spooks. I was thinking of going out one evening with all 4 tied on different rods. This is largemouth I'm talking about though.

He's like Satan like that. The greatest trick the bait monkey ever pulled was making you think he doesn't exist.

Me too, but that's still not a $600 reel. It's a BPS Johnny Morris I bought off Ebay and then sent to BPS to fix. Got $70 in it. Even if I bought it new today it would only be $159. But you can really feel the quality in it. That thing's bearings have bearings. I think I'll buy another when I need a replacement. Now I just need to wait for one to break. I never considered it before, but that's a great way to save some dough. Buy someone's worn out junk and get them to fix it for $20.

I guess I don't have as much as you guys, but why would you want to avoid the bait monkey? There are still techniques I have yet to try because I haven't BOUGHT into them.

The first two times I used them late spring I couldn't keep fish off the hook. Now that they're in a summer pattern, they can't buy a strike. But I think part of the reason is that most people simply don't use them so they're new to fish and fish are curious creatures. After every fish in the pond has either bitten or seen one they won't produce as well. They're a great bait if you're in the back of the boat. You'll get some fish that just ignore the more traditional baits he's throwing.

I have a place a friend lets me use that's overpopulated. I keep everything per his wishes and put half in his basket he keeps at the pier. What I consider too small I leave for him. If he wants to release them, they're his. I caught my (at the time) PB, 6.5#, there years ago. But since then it's been all less than or right at 2 lbs except for a couple. I try my best to cull with the lures I use but I still get dink bites all day.

in SC, you won't get away with that very long because there seem to be so many game wardens. And if they have any idea you're an illegal they won't let you leave until you or someone else pays the fine on the spot. I went down the Wateree R last May or June and the stripers were off-limits (spawning run). There were some guys taking pics and releasing them. There were wardens all over the boat landing in Camden, SC. I got a written warning for not having a whistle in my kayak. I later found out it's illegal to even attempt to catch stripers with traditional striper lures during that season. Taking the pics was illegal too. I caught and released one on a craw crank.

Get an electric knife and get some practice with it. It'll go fast.

I don't "bleed" them. I just try to either keep them alive or on ice until I get home. Stringer, livewell or cooler. You can leave them overnight on ice if it's too late. Then I fillet them and they go into a freezer bag and in the fridge. If, after a day I haven't used them, they go into the freezer. My friend soaks them in a little brine overnight. But that's all I do.

I've been going last two hours of the day and doing quite well on a Chug'n Spook, Jr. in frog pattern. Caught a couple on a Booyah Pad Crasher and a whopper on T-rigged Zoom Speed Craw.

I have a crush on Gamakatsu

I might have caught a new personal best on the Zoom Ultra Vibe Speed craw Tuesday evening. I didn't have a scale or even a phone to take pics. But it fought harder and looked bigger than any bass I've ever caught. So my 3 biggest fish have come on...drum roll please... Zoom Craw, T rigged, black sapphire Snag Proof Original Frog Zoom Trick Worm, bubble gum

Are any of you anyone doing this? at about 11:00, he explains the snell knot. I just tied one and I can tell it would definitely increase the hookup percentage. Seems like it might also have your weight crooked against the hook all day. I guess you need to pull the nose of the plastic over the hook eye. But I've been using a black glass bead between the tungsten weight and the hook knot to avoid the weight cutting the knot.