Lard_Bass

When I went back, the few Aruka Shad were gone. The customer service guy at checkout told me that they are not going to carry SPRO hardbaits this year. Looks like they loaded up on them last year and barely moved. I ended getting some Prop20, Prop25, Deep Diving Crank25, and ChugMinnow 35. The cheapest I found any of these on the web is $5. I am pretty impressed with the craftsmanship of the baits. Actually, I find both Gander and Sportsman Warehouse frustrating. Neither do a good job of advertising their specials. You have to visit them to see what specials are going on. Once you step inside, it's hard to get that bait monkey off your back.

Hey RW, I got the pic from an article on Bass D0zer. I tried posting the link but Bass D0zer gets replaced with Bassresource. Just google "Fat Ika Backwards" and it looks like he rigs it weightless too.

Does it matter if the plastics are stored in a cold garage? I see RW has a nice climate controlled room.

You can do it either way but backwards (in the picture) is the one a lot of people like to do lately. When it hits the water, the tail will have more action.

check this one out (it was just a couple of threads down). Also, if you search Fat Ika either on these forums or on google, you will get some very good tips too. http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1170897455

Do you have any experience with the Prop25 crankbait? I picked up some at those low prices (similar to a rat l trap but with a little propeller).

Stumpyfd, Welcome aboard. Here's a post I put up a couple of weeks ago just about Yo Zuri Hybrid Ultra Soft. http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1169428805 Roadwarrior is the in-house guru on this line. I found the smaller spools of it at Gander Mt. I know Cabelas and Bass Pro have the bigger spools. I am making a run to Cabelas in the near future to get a bunch of stuff and the UltraSoft is on the list.

I am with CrazedL.IFisherman. I originally had a little binder but as the bait monkey has taken over my life, I have gone to Ziplock bags too. Some guys will recommend a tackle bag made by Falcon but I decided that the Ziplock was an easier way for me to organize my plastics. I have one bag for worms, one for grubs/craws/creatures, and one for tubes/swimbaits. I keep the soft plastics in their original bags and toss them in the large 1 gallon ziplock bag. I don't want the salt and original scent to mix.

Here was a recent poll on primary worm color: http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1168872747

Okay, The bait monkey went loose and dropped another $50. I was only going to pick up $20-25 worth of SPRO hardbaits but I went to another Gander Mountain and they had a ton of stuff on clearance. I rifled through a table and found a bunch of Mann's stone jigs underneath some Mann's Cranks. They were marked down to $1.97 and I couldn't resist. I also found some Terminator Finesse jigs for $1.47. Here's other stuff the was marked down that I passed up: Strike King Spinnerbaits Stanley Spinnerbaits Berkley Power Tubes Mister Twister Grubs Smithwick Rogues Mann's Baby Minus -4 / -8 Crankbaits Spoons (didn't see the manufacturer) Various Cranks Stren Fishing Line Yo Zuri Hybrid Line (not UltraSoft :-[) The guy at the customer service desk told me that they just had a big corporate meeting to decide what to carry for the upcoming fishing season. They are unloading a lot of stuff that they won't be carrying going forward. Hence, all the aforementioned items are being discounted heavily. BTW, the best deal I got was a .10 bag of Lizards by Waveworm. I went across the street to Wallyworld before I went into Gander Mt. and found a bag that was marked 10 cents. All the other bags were a 1.00 on clearance. As stated in a previous thread FLW (Mann's) plastics and Waveworms are being sold on clearance at Wally World.

Unfortunately you can only buy from the store. Okay, going to turn the bait monkey lose. Someone keep me in their prayers.

I was wondering through Gander mountain and saw they still have SPRO lures on sale ($1.99 each). I resisted the first time but may cave in. There are several lures that I am looking at: DD Crank 25: Looks like a decent crank that dives to 10 ft. (possible cheap substitute for a Rapala DT-10) DD Crank 30: a DT-16 wannabe Aruku Shad: possible Rat-L-Trap substitute There were several others like a chug minnow but the first two caught my attention. Here's more info: http://spro.com/shop/index.php?cPath=22&osCsid=cd1c1e68f2bf4b69698855f6e951497c Anyone have any experience with Spro?

Got a second tackle bag this Christmas and filled it up. One tackle bag has about 25 bags of soft plastics. My other tackle bag has probably 50 cranks and an assortment of hooks. I am limiting the bait monkey to 2 bags (one for soft and the other for hard). Wife doesn't understand why I catch and release. If I go through all the trouble of buying equipment and catching the fish, why not eat it. I eat saltwater fish but not much of fan of freshwater. Since she doesn't understand my hobby, I don't bother telling her how many lures I have!

For those whose bait monkey needs sunglasses, these guys usually have good deals: http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=24504&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226

Just dawned upon me, what knot does everyone use on this? I have been using a cinch and palomar knot. I think if I use the rapala knot, the Johnson silver minnow would have more wobble / action.

Thanks Long Mike (and same to you as well). Actually, my depth finder is a portable unit. The whole console can be carried away. Inside, the transducer, battery pack, and power cord are stored. The whole console is velcroed to a small plywood ledge that I attached to my crate with an L-bracket. BTW, how do you power your fish finder? Also, what kind of inflatable raft do you use? Does you have a trolling motor attached to it?

Here's mine. The only thing missing that I plan on attaching is a cup holder right behind the platform holding my fish finder.

I saw the clearance stuff a week ago and passed until I found out the baits were made by Mann's (I should've checked the back of the bag before I passed them up the first time). I got a bag of junebug red finesse worm, green pumpkin finesse worm, green pumpkin lizard, and a bunch of 3/8 jigs (blue/ black and crawdad). All for less than $15! There were a bunch of pork trailers, tube baits, some Storm tubes baits, Mann's cranks, some 3x worms, and other jigs. I may go back up there so feed the bait monkey again.

Randall, What type of hook do you like to use on the trick worm? I was wondering if you use a fine wire hook size 1 so the rate of fall is not too quick.

From the article: "Chief Executive Lee Scott has said that in communities like Plano, Wal-Mart's sports department should shift from a traditional emphasis on hunting and fishing to more home fitness and exercise products."

Here's an article I found that supports that Walmart is de-emphasizing hunting / fishing: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12316692 Also, I did a google and it looks like CJBasswacker is right that Mann's made the soft plastics and lures. I picked up a couple of bags of finesse worms and several jigs with trailers. Both Walmarts by my house are liquidating FLW stuff. Also, there are some Strike King 3x worms on clearance.

Hey RW, How's this line (especially #6) in trying to pull fish out of slop? I have used a snagless rat / frog and remember that usually a heavier test is needed to pull the fish out.

How about some love for Joe's Flies! Also, try to find a CP Swing, a buddy of mine told me they are a classic. Tough to find.

Randall, What a coincidence. I just read in a book the exact techinique of split shotting. The chapter title is called "Split Shotting for Finicky Bass." Mike Folkestad, a former BASS champ, talks about using the split shot technique in less than 20 feet of water. Besides a worm, he also recommends a 4 in grub. Your insight to larger bass and how you catch them must show that they are truly finicky. Have you used this split shot technique in deeper water (more than 20 feet)?

Does it matter to match color of the skirt and trailer? Also, how do you chose which type of trailer (frog legs, double tail grubs, grubs, craws, etc.)?