bass2187

Got her today at the campus lake here at SIU. It was an old fish blind in one eye. Caught on a watermelon with black flake horny toad. She did her Jaws impression with wake and all being produced. To bad i didnt have a scale with me. I am guessing between 5-6lbs at least. Rod and reel is a shimano compre and shimano sedona 2500. Rod and reel is my best way of guaging size. I would saw around 20in from the looks of it and probably just as wide! Safely released after a couple pics to catch again another day. Mike

What is the correct way to put line on a spinning reel? I always get twists and stuff. I imagine i am messing up some how. thanks Mike

its something i dont do on purpose. Did it last year once and once i removed the bass from the nest i saw bluegills raid it and start devouring eggs. I felt bad after this so that was the end of me fishing for bedding bass.

Well, those guys eat fish and having a strong population of otters means that they need a strong population of fish to support them. Same with really any predator in a good ecosystem.

I got one not too long ago and have given it a few trys.(got it for i think 50 or 60 dollars on sale) It shows depth really well and gives the same depth changes and things each time i cast and reel in which shows that it is at least consistent. It confuses structure and fish sometimes but showing structure is almost as good as showing fish. Also from what i can tell the depths are correct(from maps) but no way to really tell unless i take a swim. I am happy with it and hopefully once it warms up more and fish are closer to shore i can see how well it does show fish. Since i have no boat i can only shore fish so its a neat little gadget. So far i am happy with it but time will tell if i really like it. Mike

And i got this beauty only after a few casts. Got her on a 4in senko off a recently made beaver dam which i thought was gonna ruin one of my favorite spots. She looks a little skinny in this picture and she probably could have used a little more wieght but it may just look that way because of the Enormous head it had. This is a cellphone pic. Pretty amazing phone. This was probably my biggest bass of the school year so far. I caught 2 more others that were probably around 13in but nice and fat. Can't wait to go out tomarrow. p.s. my head doesnt normaly look that round. I am not sure what my friend did with that picture. Mike

I am pretty sure it is not actually by the gills. More so by the fishes bottom jaw.

What are the differences? Other then size. thanks, Mike

What hooks do you guys use for wacky rigging senkos? I assume mostly circle hooks but what size? I tryed searching for my answer all ready but didnt find anything after my quick search. Today was a decent day fishing in the cold. 3 bass one between 4 and 5 lbs. Probably my biggest this year of school. Got it on a 4in senko t-riged. Now i am all senko excited. thanks, Mike

So many differnt thoughts

I use them but not all the time. Havnt used them long enough to really tell if they add much to the presentation but i think they do. I use chartruse ones with glitter on them. Not sure if i will buy the glitter ones again because it comes off easily in the water and on your hands. I just tip my jigs with them. Mike

What kind of situation would you rather use a red colored hook vrs a normal colored hook? thanks, Mike

http://www.bassresource.com/yabbfiles/Attachments/ika-backwards_003.jpg Thats how i rig mine. Tell me if my explaination of what i saw makes any sense.

Saw something today in i think it was Bass Baits or something like that at barnes and noble. The fat ika was rigged in such a way were the hook do not go through the center of the bait but rather over the tip of the ika and then pushed lightly into the bait. It is kinda hard to explain, it was rigged backwards but done differntly then i do. I didnt think there was a EWG hook big enough to do this without scrunching up the bait. I learned how to rig my ikas from this forum from a picture someone posted. If i can find the post i will show the picture Mike

I convinced him not to try and spinning reel. Now we just need some nice weather for him to practice with. Also, hes got more money then me but i go to school at a great place to fish. I also make fun of him and say he cant fish for crap because of that stuff because he gets angry easily and what are friends for anyways? :

I can fit a 1piece in my saturn however, i live in a dorm and that car acts as basicaly another closet. Holds fishing stuff, work stuff, cloths, books, just basicaly a little of everything. Also u add a friend or 2 in there with that and that makes a bad situation. Mike

probably a shimano sedona2500fb

Was having a conversation with a friend the other day about why i think spinning gear is better then spin casting. He has used spin casting all his life and i personaly think they are crap and only for little kids. I only ever used then for a little while until i switched to spinning at age 6. I am trying to convince my friend to give the spinning a try. My reasons were You get a knot inside the reel and it is a huge pain in the ***. Doesnt look like you can put as much line on it. For some dumb reason the cover has to be on the reel to reel in. Line comes off spool and comes in contact with other pieces of the reel twice before coming out and i imagine this caused friction and decreases the cast. Reels dont seem that smooth. Also i am not sure if the rods are any differnt then baitcasting rods but his rods just seemed like crap. He may just have crappy and old gear though also i am not sure. He dad is cheap and huge *** hole and all his gear was bought by him. Can anyone think of any other reasons? thanks, Mike

i always hear 1 piece rods are better then 2 piece but what makes this so? I am basicaly stuck with 2 piece rods because i am a college student who travels a lot and has a small saturn that always has various junk in it. So until i can sit still in my life the 2 piece rods is the way to go for me. thanks, Mike

What is the best over all line for spinning gear you would recommend? I fish mostly weeds and woody cover in Southern Illinois. I typicaly fish medium or medium heavy rods. I just bought a shimano MH compre. thanks, Mike

i would be using my rod (i am leaning towards MH for various things) probably mostly fat ikas however. I just love that bait.

Which knot is better in most everyday use? I know certain situations may dictate other knots but i just wanna know between these 2. But talking about other knots is cool too. thanks, Mike

preference??

is there much of a difference between medium heavy and medium power in spinning rods? lookin at the shimano compre. thats all, Mike

I am thinking about getting a Shimano Compre Spinning rod. MH 6'6'' fast action Anyone have any experience with these? I have held it in my hand and it seems really nice. http://fish.shimano.com/catalog/fish/products/group_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302036744&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474395181270&bmUID=1168659568075 Model number is CPS66MH2B thanks, Mike