IndyGlockMan

If you are near a Gander Mountain, they have the Lew's Tournament SX combo on sale for $99 (was $149) Great quality combo and doesn't break the bank. Love my AG black max too!

I caught more fish out of my Kayak yesterday than I have caught in tournaments co-angling on nice glass boats all year. ... it was a good day

I live 5 minutes away from a similar lake here in Indy where there is no bank fishing allowed. My lake has a public park on the large creek that feeds the lake and there are free little boat ramps there for Kayaker's to use. I bought a used Wilderness Systems sit inside style and fished 3 times and love it. Keep searching for a used Yak and watch for garage sales. I only paid $225 for mine, then I spent another $50 on a paddle and cheap life vest. If there's a place on your lake you can put it for cheap or free, go for it!

I have pulled up Bassresource on my phone while fishing... Love it!

I just got my first Kayak a few weeks ago. bought it from a friend who was moving and needed to get rid of it for $250 14' Wilderness Systems (sit inside style). It's not a "fishing Kayak", but it's green and he installed rod holders and it works pretty good. Very stable and tracks straight when paddling being 14' long. Fished out of it 3 times now and it's great. I really love it. Caught 4-6 LMB every time out. Figured I would use it for the next year or so, then upgrade to a better quality yak

I caught 4 nice bass today around docks with green pumpkin Rage craws That's the "go to" color around here year 'round unless the water is really stained I use black/blue The Rage Bama Craw color works great too

I just joined my first club this year. I started "bass fishing" local ponds last summer and also have limited experience. It was only $25 to join the club for a year and their charter said the welcomed new members with any experience level and I didn't have to own a boat. I've fished 5-6 tournaments so far this year and have done OK. Learning a lot too. Pick one that's not too expensive and try it for the rest of the season. I think that the cheaper clubs are less serious, you will have a better time, and won't get yelled at by some guy who is trying to be Kevin Van Dam. I would stay away from any serious clubs like that, but that's just me. Don't try to be competitive, just go to have fun and learn as much as you can. By the end of the season you'll know if you want to stay or try another club.

I thought about this too as I am on a limited budget and I don't have a truck. I can pull a flat bottom boat with my car. My club just requires a live well, so I'd have to rig up a cooler or something like that to comply.

What color did you get? I still have not see any reports about the translucent color.

I wonder how visible it is underwater? The "trans" color looks too white, but it's hard to tell. Green might be a good choice.

Fished 2 local neighborhood ponds tonight and the bluegills would not leave my bait alone. Texas rigged a Rage Craw with a pegged bullet weight. Anyway, after the 2nd cast a big mean bluegill tore one of the arms off my Rage craw! As I was about to pull the bait off and get a new one, I thought to myself... self, don't some crawdads only have 1 pincher? Sure they do! So, I kept it on and caught ten, yes 10, 1 - 3 pound largemouth bass in about 2 hours. so, if you loose a pincher, don't fret... cast it and keep fishing!

My new pride & joy... Les Baer Stinger stainless 45 Trijicon HD sights Smith & Alexander Magwell VZ grips

Find a local bass fishing club and join it. I'm sure you won't have any trouble getting a ride as a co-angler. Most clubs don't require any skill level. I'm there's a club or two down there

Congrats on your fist AR. Nothing wrong with 5.56 especially for your first. AR's are cheap right now and you can get a lot of bang for the buck. I was going to suggest going on-line to AIM Surplus, CDNN, or Grabagun and getting an AR for around $500 The Colt M4 Magpul edition is a great value at $899 http://grabagun.com/colt-s-manufacturing-magpul-m4-carb-5-56-16-fde-30r.html Get you some 20 round mags. 30's are good too, but harder to use when shooting on a bench or laying down because they hang down so far. Magpul mags are great. Prices are down to $10-12 so stock up.

I have a Sig 1911 Nightmare 5" Nice gun, super accurate.

What color were your Big Bite Craws? You said the water was super muddy... If they were green or brown, the fish probably had a hard time seeing them. I go to a black/blue color in muddy water because it makes a contrast that the fish can see better.

I had the same issue with a Rapala scatter lip. I returned it to the store and got another one. the 2nd one was better. Looked fine on the outside but I think it was out of balance or something.

How is the NED rig different than a "Shaky head" rig? Looks like the NED is more 90 degree straight up where a Shaky is at an angle. Fished the same way? Same technique?

Been wanting to try it out bank fishing. Right now, the bass around here are slamming the Keitech swim baits, so it may have to wait a bit!

There's still going to be some skill involved to catch the bigger bass. They are not going to jump out of the water in to your lap. Might be a good time to try out some different baits you wouldn't normally use and see how it goes.

Here in Indiana, bluegill colors and brown/orange craw colors work best for me. Most of the water I fish is murky with some occasional clear water, but it's never super clear.

Try a black/blue jig with craw trailer. Rattles are a plus. I fished in a pond near here yesterday with very stirred up muddy water. Caught 2 descent bass in 30 minutes about 4-5 feet from shore with that jig. The dirtier the water, the darker the color (most of the time)

Thanks for the tip. Just another way to fish a jig in the 'ole arsenal. I've been having good luck on jigs lately. I was at a local retention pond after work yesterday and the water was all churned up and stained from high winds and rail earlier. I was planning to try a NED rig, but I set it aside and grabbed a black/blue jig with a blue craw trailer and caught two nice bass in 30 minutes.

I just bought some NED rig 1/6oz jig heads (black) and two packs of the Zman worms - Money and California Craw Those were the only 2 colors the shop had in stock. Heard good things about the money color The NED rig seems an awful lot like a Shakey Head but with some minor differences. I'd like to try a Rage Craw on that Ned rig jig head. The craw should stand up pretty well on there.

I foresee a Ned rig in my future!