the reel ess

I would still consider that a catch. You caught it. I mean you probably would have released it anyway.

Yeah, it's an averages thing. My buddy has caught a 9 lb largemouth on a crappie jig, trolling for crappie. But I'll guess the averages lean toward larger baits for larger bass. All I can say is I don't catch big bass with finesse tactics except around the spawn. It seems big bass will attack almost anything you show them as spawn approaches.

I have the Bucoo SR rod in the 6'10" Hvy-Fast jig model. I love it. It has the right tip and plenty of backbone for fishing jigs in heavy cover with the drag all but locked down. I bought mine off Amazon. The next rod I buy will probably also be one of this line. The only rod I maybe like better is a Falcon LowRider.

The north shore thing doesn't seem to have any effect on my lake. Believe me, I try it. Most of the deeper structure is on the south side. And fish seem reluctant to stray from that area until they know spring is imminent.

Well, we don't have ice here. But you can generally assume you'll get no bites in cold water and any you do get are just icing. Just be happy to be out of doors. The first part of winter has been very good for me, getting 4 or more bites per 3 hour trip. But it just turned much colder and I would expect a real slowdown.

I used to use firetiger hardbaits in the local hydro lake with good success. I always assumed it was an imitation of yellow perch. But now I usually fish a place where they don't work so well. I think the only baits in firetiger I get bites on are topwaters. And fish can't see at least half the bait on topwaters. Coincidentally, there are no yellow perch here. But there are gold shiners and they love gold metallic patterns.

Of the 7 rods I use most often there are 4 brands represented. Falcon, Berkley, Cabela's and Kast King. I'm not married to any brands, but the Falcons are nice. I would own more of them.

In my experience the fish in deeper water are not as susceptible to pressure swings. And the water down there doesn't warm or cool very quickly. So, in terms of getting some bites, I'd say yes. But then I don't go fishing in 30 degree weather very often. I may never do it again. LOL Oh yeah, big crappie will bite in deep, cold water.

I second that question. I am almost exclusively using braid nowadays. I still have mono on my spinnerbait rod. I fished with a guide once who used 30 lb or more braid on every rod. I asked him why and he said he couldn't afford to constantly lose lures. He said big fish don't seem to care, just don't horse the big ones. I mean if they'll bite an A rig, they don't care about a little bit of visible line.

If you want it to work well as topwater trailer, like with a Johnson spoon, rig it tail down. It will slap the surface. Otherwise, I doubt it matters. I see the pre-rigged Roadrunner is tail down.

These are the days I like to pitch the jig to specific wood targets. But being a kayak fisherman, calm days are the easiest for me to fish. I got my PB at about 10:00 AM on a spinnerbait on a day with full sun and no breeze.

Most of the same baits. Jig, lipless, spinnerbait, Trick Worm, fluke, etc. Add topwaters in warmer weather. I don't really like most finesse techniques unless they are necessary. You just never know what a crazy ol' bass will bite.

Most jig bites don't feel like anything. You just either feel resistance or the lure gets lighter. I jig fish a good bit. Most of the bites I get are detected by seeing the line move in a direction I'm not retrieving. The bass has it and is swimming somewhere else to eat it. If you're lucky they swim away from cover to deeper water to eat it. But the biggest bass (plural) I've caught on the jig yanked the jig and didn't give it up even if they felt my resistance. The ones that give the familiar "tap-tap" bite on the jig are usually small bass in my experience.

I have a rule that I won't fish in wind much greater than 10 MPH. But I've broken it many times. When they're on the bed I'll go anyway because I can get back in some skinny water and still catch 'em up. The last 3 times I went it was windy, but I persevered. It's more like real exercise. I also have another place that's down in a depression that's not effected as much by wind.

A bunch

What Up!

Heddon Sonar blade bait in gold. It's what I'm catching most bass (and crappie bycatch) on right now. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000309RUQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1 If you're buying one, buy 3 or more. You'll lose some. I finally decided to fish them on straight 30 lb. braid so I could yank them out of snags. The fish don't seem to care one bit about the somewhat visible braid. But I still broke off two yesterday on 2 different rods. It happened during the cast! I respooled with new braid when I got home. Runner up has to be a T-rig for pitching, but it's a distant 2nd place. I've caught one on a slow rolled spinnerbait and one on a 1/2 oz. football swinghead craw.

Today I could have taken one rod. Still caught 1 bass and 5 crappie on the blade bait though.

I like to say most trips I could have left all but 2 rods at home. But I never know which 2, though I might strongly suspect. Right now I would expect the blade bait and jig to be my best bets.

Cool. Can the bass be wearing a 1980s trucker hat? Nailed it! Ever notice nobody draws skinny bass like we catch 90% of the time? Even if you catch a big, skinny bass and have it mounted, it will come back with a healthy gut.

I imagine their parents bought those boats or they're hand-me-downs from dad or relatives-the old family discount. When I was 22 I could barely make a car payment to get to and from my low paying job. LOL. I often had to make some decisions between spending or eating. Bologna and hot dogs became delicacies. There are lots of older boats out there pretty cheap. Throw the modern electronics on them as you save up and fish. I actually sold a 17' 1986 Procraft F&S for $1000 a while back and was glad to be rid of it. I only gave $3K for it about 10 years before. The guy fixed a head gasket himself cheap and has a running bass boat with graph and trolling motor, 135 HP Merc. If you just want to get out there and fish, find an older jon boat and get busy rigging it for bass. Try putting $20-30 per paycheck into a fund. It will grow pretty quickly. After you're used to not having that money in the checking account you'll adjust. I don't even try to afford a boat anymore. I only kayak fish or I go with my buddy. Bota ownership is not all rainbows and unicorns.

Me gusta la moosica!

If the reel comes with centrifugal brakes under the side plate, it's usually 6 of them. Engage 3 of the 6 in a staggered pattern. Adjust the cast control on the right (right handed reels) so that the lure drops slowly when you push the thumb bar. If your reel has magnetic cast control (left side) set it a bit higher than halfway, then adjust it down as you experiment. You can adjust any of these settings as you gain experience. The first one I would adjust would be the mag brake. I always leave half the centrifugal ones engaged on any reel that has them. One universal truth is heavier lures work better with baitcasters. Also, using the right length, action and power rod for the technique will cut down on some backlashes and allow longer casts. And it's not a sin to stop the spool with your thumb. Also, go to YouTube and watch videos about fixing a backlash. It works.

The wife and I decided not to spend a lot on each other because we basically buy whatever we want throughout the year. So we did stocking stuffers. I got 3 Heddon Sonars, 2 packs of Rage Bugs and 2 packs of Rage Craws. And she gave me a $50 gift certificate to Cabelas/BPS.

I ordered a "Whopper Plopper" 75 off Amazon without reading the small print. They sent me 2 knockoffs, 1 in the color bone that I ordered and one loon (black). So buyer beware! I complained about them using a trademarked name to pass off fakes and they refunded me the entire amount and said not to ship them back. Apparently, shipping them cost them more than giving them away. I have yet to use them, but they appear to be pretty good quality. I'll give them a try soon. I really do love the 110 size though.