Junk Fisherman

A wobble head jig would be a good choice to imitate crawfish quickly covering water on the bottom. 3/8th oz tungsten with your favorite craw would be a good starting point. I would throw a 3"-4" swimbait on a round jighead higher in the water column but you can use that to tick off rocks on the bottom as well. A Dark Sleeper would be a good choice too since you can fish it fast like a swimbait or slow it down and scoot it on the bottom. Good luck.

It doesn't slip on heavier braid that I use on baitcasters or the 15-20 lb braid on spinning reels. It is only when I go to the 8 lb/ 2 lb diameter braid that I have slippage. I'll make a cast and the whole leader goes sailing. That has never happened with my baitcasters and only a few times with the 20 lb braid on spinning reels.

This is what I am going to experiment with first. I meant half hitches in my original post not clinch knots. Looks like I'll have to take another look at the Rizzuto. Maybe I am tying it wrong because it was considerably thicker than the FG knot and the half hitches I was tying. Thanks for the responses everyone.

I've had problems before with having the FG knot slip with 2 lb diameter braid to a 8 lb leader. I go to the Alberto knot and have no issues and I use the FG knot with thicker lines on baitcasters and have no problems. So for those of you tying the FG knot with 2 and 4 lb diameter braids, how are you finishing the knot? I was going to try 4 alternating clinch knots to finish. I've tried the Rizzuto finish but that makes the knot as thick as the Alberto and defeats the purpose of the FG to begin with. Any advice is appreciated.

Nitro- it is interesting that you bring this up. One of the things over the last year that I have been trying to reduce is my fishing anxiety. I worry about boat, motor, and trailer issues all the time so I have been trying to be more proactive with maintenance going above and beyond what is on the maintenance schedule for my motor and trailer. My next purchase is going to be a lithium battery dedicated to my electronics so I'll have no doubt that I am not trying to get too much out of my starting battery. Sure, I am going beyond what I am confident would work in some cases but if it makes me worry less then it is worth it. And to answer your question, BoatUS with the towing is a good option. When I had Progressive, they had an inexpensive on-water towing package. Good luck.

I know the feeling Panda. Hang in there. One of my favorite lakes opens on March 1st and it is a powerplant lake so the water will be in the 50s and the fish will be very active. Looking forward to that!

Thanks for the reply. It would seem like a soft mat flooring could be used like wrestling mats to provide the best of both worlds. While the ease of cleaning is definitely an advantage with the surface you have, comfort for me legs is more important. LOL- just wait 10 years or so and you'll know what I mean.

How soft is that flooring?

Last year I picked up a Dobyns DX 742C and paired it with a Curado 70 MGL specifically for pitching dropshots on all the breakwalls I fish. I ended up liking it so much that it became my primary dropshot rig that I'll use anywhere. I use 30 lb PP Super8Slick and a 8 lb leader. My main sinker weight is a 3/8 oz but I have dropped down to 1/4. Works like champ!

So it's 20 degrees here with a foot of snow and a foot of ice so I am thinking about the future and taking spring fishing trips when I retire. If you were taking a 2-week, spring trip in February/March to any of the Fork, Rayburn, Toledo Bend lakes, when and where would you go? I am looking for the textbook prespawn, 50 degree, fish moving up scenarios. Any advice is appreciated.

Here are some things I didn't see mentioned. Superglue. I glue my Neds and finesse swimbaits. While I have a bunch prepared, every once in a while I need to glue something on the boat. Rechargeable battery for my phone. I use this every time I go out. Extra headphones in case I forgot mine. I listen to podcasts and music for most of the day when I fish so I usually run my phone down over the course of a day. Empty coffee container and wetwipes. While it's mandotory for a #2, it is nice if you are around people and need to pee. Sitting at the console peeing in a container is much better than going over the side. F%$#@# reading glasses. First aid kit Hand warmers Small survival kit- matches, candle, emergency blanket, thin rope; plastic, small catalytic heater in cold weather

I was a member for a few years back when I waded the Kank a lot. Good group if you are into river smallies. The forum has a lot of good members that share good, fishing-catching info.

This is a great question. My measure of success is dependent on where and when I go fishing. If I don't average 20 lbs a day and multiple 5s when I take my trip up north during the smallie spawn, then it is disappointing. I measure success much differently when fishing the heavily pressured Chicagoland waters around my house. There, a 12 lb limit can be a successful day. But overall I measure my success on whether I enjoyed myself, made good decisions on the water, fished hard throughout the day, worked on something new, learned something, and scouted at least one new area.

100% agreed! Too many trailer issues and broken rods over the last couple years have made me appreciative coming home with everything intact. Losing a big fish or not catching as many as the next guy is small potatoes compared to breaking something.

One of my main presentations is a 4"Keitech Swing Impact non-fat with a 3/0 3/16th oz round jighead. I also use the 3.8 Jackall Rhythm Shad. The non-fat Swing Impact have been so good to me that I've never used the fat for smallies except for on an A-rig. I use the 3.8 fat with a weighted t-rig hook for largemouth in grassy lakes with much success. I probably should experiment with the fats for smallies.

7 lb Gamma Touch is great line and it has lasted me an entire season on a spinning reel. I wouldn't hesitate to go up to 8 lb if I wanted something a little stronger. Traditional P-Line Fluoro served me well for many years before primarily going to a braid/leader setup. Based on all the recommendations, I tried straight 8 lb Tatsu on a spinning reel last year and was disappointed. For the price, I expected a much more manageable line. Maybe I got a bad spool.

Dobyns Champ 704CB + Zillion SV TW 10 lb P-Line Fluoro

When I was shopping for my boat, I spent so much time thinking about maxing out my motor and top end speed. The reality is 90% of the time I am traveling 30-40 mi/hr when on plane just like in my old boat. AJay is 100% correct- the difference between 35 mi/hr and 55 mi/hr is huge on the water.

I enjoy the reviews on Tackle Tour and their forum has some great information. I'll post questions on here looking for advice about products as well. The nice thing about getting reviews on forums is that you know many of the posters so some of the reviews you can really value. I value the Tackle Warehouse reviews the least but I will look for trends. For the most part, I don't put much stock in tackle recommendations from pros since they are often just pushing their sponsors's products. The how, what colors, and when to use the bait are important and what I listen to but I stick to the brands I have confidence in.

Love mine. Used it last year for pitching dropshots. Then I started using it for 4" finesse swimbaits. Loved it with both presentations. And I am comparing it to a bunch of Tatulas and Zillions. You won't be disappointed.

I know. I'd rather have a Lexus than a Toyota too.

Without having done research on both models, I would get the Ranger since the brand and what it means is important to me. From their reputation, Ranger has the higher quality, with a better trailer, better carpet, seats, ect. Plus, I would rather say I own a Ranger than a Tracker.

A couple years ago it would have been about 95% spinning and 5% casting but last year I picked up a finesse baitcasting rod originally for pitching dropshots on breakwalls but then it became my main dropshot rod in any situation. I then used that rod for 3.5"-4" finesse swimbaits and I liked it so much that I picked up another one of the rods. And with my jerkbait success last fall and my hope to add that as a core presentation of mine in the future, I could see my casting/spinning smallmouth ratio to be much closer to 50/50 moving forward. Neds, 3", 1/8th oz swimbaits, spybaits, hairjigs, and tubes will all be used on spinning but 4" swimbaits, dropshots, jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, swinghead jigs, and bigger swimbaits will all on casting.

Sorry. I don't use those. I use a lot of the 4" Swing Impact (nonfat), 3.8 Rhythm Shad, and 3" Sparkshads. My initial thought is that with a shorter but fatter bait you'd want a 2/0, shorter shank hook on the jig. 75% of the time I am using a 3/16th oz jig but I'll drop down to 1/8 if it is calm or I want to crawl the bait on the bottom and keep getting hung up. Owner and Keitech are the jigs I use. I do not like the Gammy ballhead jigs since their baitkeeper tears up the plastic and I always superglue the bait to the head. Hope it helps.

Superstitions are silly.