Brett Strohl

Lies!!!

I've always just wrapped my braid around a stick or the handle of my pliers and pulled free with that. No way I could wrap that around my arm without cutting myself

We're fishing from a boat, so I guess it doesn't seem practical. I guess the problem I see with flipping is that there is enough fishing pressure in this lake that it will be hard enough to get close to them without spooking them. Usually when I catch fish it's when we're slowly working our way around and I'm casting far in front of the boat.

I've been fishing a small lake with tons of lily pads, and I was wondering if there are any good videos or instructionals about how to get down into them? I have no idea how to do it.

stick baits

I've eaten them in a mess with other fish and couldn't tell a difference.

Is there a purpose to the wacky tool? I just stretch the worms out and roll the O rings on.

I got some o rings on ebay that make the stick baits last a lot longer. They're about $5 for 50, but you could probably get those rubber bands kids put on their braces a lot cheaper and they'd do the same thing

But in defense of the senkos, they do say they are made in America, and IME any stick bait has done a lot better than all but one of my cranks. After I started fishing Yum dingers, I honestly might as well have thrown 95% of the rest of my tackle box in the garbage. I would say the average fisherman, like myself, is going to be better off buying any brand of stick bait and a bag of O rings, than they are going to be spending the same money on crank baits.

I caught the biggest bass of my life last week on a white Yum dinger. I recently got a pack of white senkos in a trade so I'll use both, but if I'm buying from now on I'm going to stick with Yums. I haven't fished the senkos yet, but TBH the Yums look like a better lure, as far as action and having some flakes to maybe get the fish's attention. I'm not going to pay an extra $5 for something that is almost the exact same thing. I don't think the bass know how much you spent on them anyway

I got a pack of Zman finesse wormZ 7" They honestly look like a great bait, I just don't know if I should be fishing these wacky rig like I do my stick baits, or I should be trying to work them in the water a certain way. I don't really want to do anything too complicated. I'm mostly fishing fairly shallow ponds, but I also sometimes get to fish a lake that has a huge drop off next to lily pads all the way around the lake.

Do you use it like a swim bait or something with those rigs? I'm pretty familiar with wacky and texas, but I guess I don't know where else I'd use some of those others, or if there is something different finesse worms do that stick baits don't?

How do you guys fish finesse worms? I got a pack and I really have no idea what to do with them.

I appreciate all the feed back! I found an extra rod in the garage that my dad isn't using so I think that will work ok until I get done with college this december. I just need to find an halfway decent reel. I have no knowledge of brands or quality etc. I might just try to find something inexpensive on Ebay, (and then once I get a job next year I can worry about blowing all my money on a high end set up then lol). What kind of gear ratio should I be looking for?

I appreciate all the advice from everyone and I'll give the circle hooks a try and see how they work.

I read that and I don't totally understand step two and three (push down and pull on hook eye?) It's a little confusing without being able to see someone do it. I mostly only had trouble unhooking the one fish, it's normally pretty easy to use pliers to gently work the hook loose. I would mostly just prefer not to hook the fish in what I assume is a much more sensitive part of their mouths.

Would these hooks be good? They're a lot less expensive than the gamakatsus, but I am not sure if I should pay the extra money for a name brand hook. Also I'm using a lot of 6" stick baits, so will 1/0 still work ok? http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Black-Inline-Circle-Hooks-Size-1-0-Pkg-25-/121653308467?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c531a2c33 Thanks!

I took the shallow scatter out to my friend's pond again and caught probably the nicest crappie I've ever had (although to be honest I've probably caught less than 15 of them in my life). This time I tried tying directly onto the lure with a palomer knot and noticed the action of the lure was much different than when I was using a swivel, but I have caught a lot of fish out of the pond with that thing either way. I think it really just depends on the situation. For that pond I need something that goes under the water and over the tall weeds and the shallow scatter is perfect for that.

I didn't know what hooks to use for a wacky rig, so I ended up with a pack of Eagle Claw "Wacky Hooks," and they are fantastic hooks, except they're so small that I'm running into the problem of hooking the fish on (I'm not sure what it's called) the sphincter in the back of their throat. I actually hooked one so bad tonight that I had to tuck a little bit of it's innards back into the sphincter. So in my estimation the problem is being caused by two things: #1 the hooks are very small, and #2 I sometimes don't know when I'm getting bites until I reel in. I think this is partially b/c I'm letting the stick bait fall to the bottom with some slack and the fish just sit there and try to swallow the worm, or if I'm getting a fish 10" or less I sometimes don't even feel them on the line. I know bad hook ups are just going to be part of fishing, but is there something else I can do that might prevent this problem?

I'm thinking of getting another rod/reel for pan fish and to try that ned rig setup that everyone is talking about. Is there a quality rod/reel for that that I could get for $50 or less? I don't know much about rods and reels, and I don't need anything special, but I don't want to use junk either

My dad and I went to a fairly heavily fished lake today and I got the biggest bass I've ever caught on a white 5" Yum dinger. I have a pack of Yamamotos coming in a trade, so I'm interested in using them. But honestly I just don't see how there is going to be any $5 worth of difference between Yamamotos and the packs of Yums I've been grabbing in discount bins for $2.

I've caught a lot of bass in ponds this year on Yum Wooly Bullee and Yum Dingers, but I have no idea how they'd perform someplace that gets fished more often. I like the 6" Yum dingers the best b/c I can cast them a mile and can also do a lot of different things with them.

If you're going really early in the morning you might try a topwater lure

Ugh, that sucks!

Someone here told me you have to reel them in slowly to avoid them going in circles, and I think that does make a big difference