Oklahoma Mike

Almost always it's a senko. If it was a senko I was fishing to begin with, I will usual throw it over them another time or two, and possibly try changing colors. If that doesn't work I'll try a reaction bait like a lipless crank or a bladed jog.

Think of it like adding a spinner for a little flash to draw more attention and it will make more sense to you.

I have one from Live Target that I throw all the time and absolutely love. Here's a link: http://www.livetargetlures.com/freshwater/frog-popper

As mentioned multiple times above, you can throw topwaters all day long. However, I do feel they are most productive during the morning and evening times of the warmer seasons. Like any other bait, there will be certain conditions that are generally more productive than others, but you'll find that these patterns don't always hold true for whatever reason, so don't hesitate to experiment. As to fishing topwaters at midday, I find a lot more success with poppers and spooks during this time than I do with buzzbaits (even though buzzbaits are probably my #1 confidence bait). No idea why that seems to be the case for me, but it generally holds true. Yet every once in a while, when the fishing gods deem it so, I will wreck them with a buzzbait at high noon with zero cloud cover. If you figure it out, please let me know.

Went out looking for a new flipping stick this weekend. Didn't find what I was looking for, but took advantage of some sales at Bass Pro, DSG, and Academy. The Z-Man plastics were on sale at Academy for $2.48. The manager told me they were clearing out most of their Z-Man stuff, so I will head to the other Academy near my work at lunch today to see if I can score some more.

Trilene Big Game is pretty tough to beat for the price.

Welcome to the BR forums! The Scorpion 70 with the Zodias will be a great setup, though for my personal preference I'd probably go with the MH since I think it's a little better suited for an "all around" rod. Shimano will not warranty JDM reels here in the US. Your best bet there would be to find someone local for repair work, or ship them off to someone like forum sponsor DVT for service.

Came to say this. That suspense and anticipation of knowing a big 'un could explode on the surface at any moment - and that heat-thumping moment when it actually happens - is what makes topwater fishing my favorite.

T-rigged and as a trailer.

^^^Nice. I bought that same color PopMax last week. A couple of weeks back I bought 4 PopMax poppers on the bay for like $7 total. The guy had them listed as "unknown poppers."

I usually scream, "Holy *****, I actually got a fish!" I kid, I kid... I'm not sure what I say if anything at all this thread has made me become self-aware, so now I will start paying attention.

I have the team lews magnesium and absolutely love it. In fact, it is probably my favorite reel. Smooth casting, can't seem to get it to backlash if I try, and feels very ergonomic in my hand. I do fish for extended periods and the lighter weight makes a difference to me.

Good info! I have never fished the Neko Rig but it looks awesome and I'm gonna give it a try. Thanks to all above for the valuable info - this kind of thing is why I started coming to this forum!

GYCB red shad laminate Just yesterday was fishing some very heavily pressured water. Couldn't get bit on anything - cranks, spinners, poppers, jigs, you name it. Went to fishing senkos on an excruciatingly slow presentation. Went through the standard colors with a few nibbles but no commitment. Switched to the red shad laminate and immediately hauled in (2) 4lb'ers and a 5. I think the oddball colors are great for this situation, when you want to give them something they aren't seeing all day every day.

Why Your Palomar Knot Fails

I don't think you can go wrong with either one, as they are both great reels. I was making this very decision about a month ago and went with the Supreme because of the magnesium frame as George mentioned above, and I also just liked the feel of it in my hands a little better.

Lol, that's some pretty bad acting in that video. Hilarious. Who is throwing his line near enough to an open flame that the flammability is a concern? Anyway, I agree that these products work without question. For me it is a must with flouro.

I assume we are talking about a casting rod and not a spinning rod? In that price range I will recommend the Avid X over the E6X all day long. I just think you get a lot more bang for your buck there. I would also suggest you check out Hammer rods. They have been getting great reviews, so I just picked up a 7' MH. I haven't had the chance to fish it yet, but it is definitely quality and feels great.

I faced this same concern. There is a certain pond near me that has no bank access. I want to be able to punch some thick mats in this pond but don't feel I can do that effectively without standing. I don't like the idea of trying to stand in a kayak and I also don't like the limited space. So here's what I decided to do... I took a Pelican Monaco DLX and cut out the fiberglass top. I removed the peddle gear and rutter, then installed a support frame and plywood platform top. I'm close to finishing this project and am very happy so far with the results. I'll post pics once it's done. By the way, I was inspired by this: http://www.livewatersports.com/products/l2fish I just didn't want to cough up $2300 just to fish this one pond, but if you don't mind spending that kind of dough, that L2Fish rig might be a good option.

No, nothing at all "wrong" with mono. I fished with nothing but Stren or Big Game for a few decades and it served me just fine. Nowadays I use braid on some of my setups, fc on some, copoly on some, and mono on others. That's just personal preference based on what I like for different techniques, but you can certainly use mono on everything. One could even argue that it's the best all-purpose line available. If I were only allowed one type of line (without the benefit of leaders) for the rest of my life, I would choose mono and it would be an easy decision.

I keep them in the bags in which they came. A little trick I've found that works pretty well for me... Whatever plastics I'm taking out for the day - typically average around 20-30 bags - I will run a shoestring through the holes in the bag and then connect the ends with a loop knot. Compact and easy to transport (just throw this down in my tackle bag) and I don't even need to untie this to open the packages and take out the baits.

Black or white belly depending on conditions. Outside of that any color will do, and as has already been mentioned here, a pink or yellow color makes it easier to see that your bait is no longer sitting on the water.

I use a snap for cranks only, tie everything else direct. I never use a swivel, but I do see where an argument could be made for using one with certain lures with spinning gear to prevent line twist.

Some pretty good advice in here. When I'm in a slump, I try to get back to the basics. For me this means keeping it to three baits (my confidence baits): A rooster tail, a senko, and a buzzbait. I will stick to those three and work them according to the conditions/time of day, and I will force myself to be patient with them until I've come out of the dry spell. I feel the rooster tail is the best of the slump busters, because I can fish it at a range of speeds and elevations, can cover a lot of water with it, and can haul in some other species besides just bass, which helps a lot with the frustration of catching nothing at all.