blckshirt98

I tend to grab a little of everything, but have the most of GYCB kut tails.

Kinami and GYCB are the exact same bait, same plastic formula, even the same colors in many instances just named differently by Kinami. Only difference was usually the bait count per package. If I recall correctly the Kinami line was made more for retail at the big box stores like Sports Authority and Wal-Mart. Think of it as a marketing gimmick where GYCB didn't want his flagship line to seem watered down or a cheap budget brand like Mr. Twister. Kinami allowed the GYCB senkos to stay in the specialty tackle stores as a "hobby only" type of lure.

Looking through this list I'm going to add a whistle to my fishing bag. I fish alone most of the time and one bad fall in some of the places I go could really put me in the sh*ts quickly.

I'll usually bring a spinning rod for finesse (dropshot) and a casting rod for a reaction bite (squarebill/chatterbait) - I'm more comfortable and confident fishing a dropshot so I'll start there, but will switch to reaction depending on the time of year and what the water is telling me. LIke right now in the fall where I'm at, a reaction bite with a squarebill is probably a better bet because the bass are chasing shad, but other times of the year I'll look for baitfish boils on the surface or look for them scattering along the shoreline because a hungry bass is chasing them. That's when I'll start chucking the crankbait/chatterbait near those boils. On the flipside one of the guys at the local tackle shop likes to fish crankbaits as close to 100% of the time as he can, any season, any time of day, burning them as fast as he can, and does well.

Maybe a finger cot or two, in case you really gash a finger with a hook or knife and a bandage/gauge won't do, but otherwise you seem to have it covered. I keep my first aid stuff in the small plastic fishing license holder that I always carry in my backpack. Full disclosure I steal the little single use antibiotic ointment packs from the first aid kit at work, they're small and fit perfectly

Time of day has a lot to do with success bank fishing. I fish 100% from the bank and unless it's dawn or dusk, I won't fish. Dawn and dusk more fish will be actively feeding in the shallows, when the sun comes out and it gets scorching hot they'll retreat to deeper water/cover that you may not be able to reach from the bank. One thing you'll notice from the bank is that unless it's spawn season when bass will hunker down on a bed, the bass will be "cruising the shallows" looking for food. One spot you've fished with no luck may suddenly have a feeding bass pass through and then suddenly you'll get bit. It's one of the reasons why I like fishing a drop shot where I'll cast out at an angle from shore, maybe 20 feet out, and I'll let the bait sit there and I'll lightly "tick" it for 4-5 minutes. The 4-5 minute window is to give a feeding bass cruising the shallows a chance to swim by to see it and eat it. If I don't get bit I'll try a different size/color until I find what's working that day, and then stick with it. You can up your odds by moving along the shoreline looking for structure/dropoffs/coves/points where fish might congregate/stage/feed, but that comes with fishing that particular body of water and becoming familiar with hotspots that produce.

Gross. And that's why I'll never eat a freshwater bass.

Bass are chasing shad and fattening up for winter...I like 1.5/2.5 size squarebills fished shallow! I imagine swimbaits would work great as well.

How about punching right through the lillies or trying a frog right through the top of all that crud?

Be aware of structure from shore, as your options to free a snag are limited. It's why I get nervous throwing expensive baits that sink/dive from shore (topwater I usually feel safe unless there's timber sticking out of the water.)

Bait Monkey? It sounds like he has two tackle boxes to "shop" through already

True junkies and fishing degenerates will make sure they have plenty of their favorite confidence baits on hand every season, and then buy 5x as much other non-favorite/new baits that they'll never throw or catch fish on

We really only get 2 kinds of surface activity here - carp jumping or baitfish scattering. Baitfish I always throw into, carp jumping I ignore.

I'm in California so I'm just hoping we get a lot of rain so there's water to fish in next year.

I just got in a small cache of G2 Shellcrackers! Now I just need to catch something on them...

The pros killed it this year and last using big spoons (flutter spoon, magnum spoon, etc) but I never see anyone locally or on forums talk about using them to catch any bass.

It really comes to preference, and to some extent manliness. I kind of look at using baitcasting reels vs spinning reels as learning to drive a stick shift vs sticking with an automatic transmission. I fished with strictly spinning gear for the first 3 or so years of bass fishing and I was able to throw pretty much everything I needed to on a spinning reel, just needed to get a heavier spinning rod and reel with heavier braid for certain applications. I could target cast with a spinning outfit with pretty good accuracy as well. I just started to use baitcasters this year and they're fun to use, but I'd just as much be OK with using spinning reels if that's all I had available. Use whatever is comfortable to use there's no right or wrong, for example on the west coast it's all about using a round baitcaster in the surf to throw irons and swimbaits, on the east coast the striper fisherman still favor beefy spinning reels. Both styles catch fish as long as you have them set up with the right line and rod.

Used on various forums, the bay, online/brick and mortar retailers when they have closeouts/sales. I just keep my eye open for deals and snap them up, worry about pairing them with a rod later since rods seem to be a lot easier to find on sale.

I would worry less about overall rod weight and worry more about making sure it's balanced properly with the reel size/line you have paired with it. You can have the lightest rod on the list but if you pair it with the wrong reel where the fulcrum is in the wrong spot, your shoulder will feel like it will fall off after casting all day.

They're chasing shad so find the baitfish and throw something shad-ish!

I started using a glass rod for crankbaits/chatterbaits earlier this year and like them much better than graphite. With the softer tip, if you're using the right size lure, the rod loads and slingshot launches amazingly easy where I can reel in, whip back and cast, reel in, whip back and cast, and repeat nonstop, with very little effort. Highly recommend you try a glass rod, plus they're usually more affordable then graphite rods.

I only picked up bass fishing a few years back and LMB were always intimidating for me since I last fished in jr high. I started out wacky rigging a senko because it was the easiest to tie/set up. I tried C-Rig, T-Rig, but what really made my confidence skyrocket was learning how to dropshot. I started to catch fish left and right and eventually for about a period of 2.5 years fished a dropshot about 90% of the time. Just this past year I made a firm decision to rely less on dropshotting and started branching out to new techniques more regularly, but if you're a beginner learn to tie a dropshot and you'll catch fish.

Agree with the stiffness of the baits. I got a few bags mixed and matched on sale once, and never got around to using them because the plastic just didn't seem that pliable. When you squeeze them in the bag they have very little give and they just didn't give me any confidence - they had the same stiffness as Gulp, and Gulp is a proven killer for me so I always went that route. Newer versions seemed to have a different plastic formula where they felt softer, but by then it was too late for me to give them another look.

I use a smaller size 4 or 6 Owner Mosquito Hook because I'm always wary of larger hooks, but Aaron Martens uses a 1 or 1/0 hook when he dropshots, even when nose hooking, and he seems to do alright lol

Grab a used Citica E - won't break the bank and good enough where if you get proficient and start buying higher end low profile reels, it'll still have a spot in your arsenal.