Lard_Bass

Roadwarrior, Thanks for the heads up. I did think about the drag being set too high. I was fishing with a new reel which I couldn't figure if it had too much line or the drag was too light. It wasn't spooling properly and, in the end, I realized that there was probably too much line on my new reel. Newbie question though, where do you set the drag. I usually set it to where I can pull some line out with a little force. Mud, "just make sure you go out and enjoy the day" ... Amen. I'll take a day of sun and fishing than sitting behind a desk. Avid, Great advice. As my dad always told me, " slow down and be patient...." I also just added Bill Lewis Rat-L-Traps to my tacklebox. It says to retrieve the lures fast, should I slow down the retrieve on these as well? Thanks everyone for getting me more hooked on fishing!

Hey where did you get that lure retriever and what is it called? I am currently using just a 12 oz sinker and sending down my line with a snap. It works knocking a lure loose.

Equity Analyst. I research companies and decide to buy the stock for the funds I help manage. ......as the saying goes, I'd rather be fishing though. Sitting behind a desk and computer all day for all of my working life is just brutal (especially when you see a huge body of water outside your window and people down there fishing off their boats). :'(

I have found talking to other fisherman on that body of water to be helpful. I got skunked my last several outings of shore fishing. I talked to other guys that were bank beating as well and they were coming up with nothing. A guy I saw trolling got nada. I live in the north and the fish bites are slowing. I figure, it may not be me but the fish. They may be in shut down mode. Actually, my most recent story was after fishing for several hours and trying everything, I was about to throw the towel in. I didn't see anyone catch anything that day either. Just when I was about to call it quits, I thought I got a snag. Perfect, I thought, what a way to cap the day. But then it struck me, I had a worm rigged weedless. The next thing I saw was the underside of a 20+ inch bass. Minutes later, my line snapped. > I blame myself for that loss. I had mentally checked out for the day. So, while the fish may be slowing down, just be prepared for when that big one does hit.

Guy who lost his Lucky Craft lure vs. Gator. Gator has no chance. ;D

Too many choices here! Thanks for moving. I am so used to seeing on most forums, just one live thread.

I was thinking of the movie Stand By Me and the story of Lard @ss. Now, who wouldn't mind catching a nice fatty bass.

For Xmas, my wife and I like to give something personnally made as stocking stuffers for the kids. I want to make my kids some bass fishing lures but do not know where to begin. Does anyone have any good website recommedations to help me out? Also, any ideas would be fanastic? I was thinking of making some cool top water poppers.

I like that plucking tip! There's nothing more frustrating on losing / snagging a new lure right out of the box. It's funny, I buy some cheap lures to survey the area when I am casting from shore. When I think the contour is safe, I break out a nice crankbait and then snag it on the next cast. Anyone ever lose a lure to a fish and eventually get it back? I saw a picture once where a guy lost a spoon to a Pike while trolling. He ventured back to the same area and caught the fish and his jig back.

The main reason I ask is that I have rescued the same lure on 2 different occassions after getting snagged close to shore. I just bought a Smithwick Suspending Rogue jerkbait to learn how to use jerkbaits. Well, on a local pond (the first time), it get stuck about 3 feet out in murkey water. I see a branch popping out of water so I decide to go get it. I walk out and the water goes from 1 foot deep to 3 foot deep in a hurry. In the process of saving my $4 lure, I got my car keys wet and my blackberry cell phone wet. Both electronics eventually worked once dried out. Last week, same lure gets stuck at another lake. This time I decide to forget it. I go back to same lake a couple of days later and see it in the water. I decide, what the heck, it doesn't look deep so let's get it. I go in. It gets waist high but the water is freakin frigid. It got so cold that I turned back twice. I finally thought, heck I got wet, might as well show something for it and I got it out. I a curious to hear other stories for a sanity check of my own. My wife already think I am nuts for trying to get those lures out. ;D PS - Next time a get a lure snagged, I rigged a 12 oz sinker on a snap with some line. I plan on sending down the snagged line to hopefully knock it loose.

I am new to bass fishing too and the advice on this forum has been great. My question is, is the walking the dog technique simillar to one you would use on a jerkbait? I have been learning to fish a Smithwick Suspending Rogue. Here's my current technique, jerk, jerk (with my rod angled to my right side), pause. Should I have slack as well? Also, should my rod tip be high or low? Thanks.

I just got a portable fish finder in my canoe (Eagle FishEasy 245). I found it helpful in finding depth and structure. One annoying thing is mounting the suction cup tranducer. I am resolving that issue when I get a trolling motor in the spring and the transducer will be permanently mounted to the motor. FYI, I found this site helpful in researching fish finders: http://www.fishfinder-store.com/eafi240pofi.html One other suggestion, is to make a little platform to hold the portable screen. I got tired looking at the floor while rowing. I made a milk crate with rod holders recently (like kayakers use), similar to this one: http://cybermessageboard.ehost.com/paddlef/viewtopic.php?t=11242&sid=0108304ff1e18afa96bbb58ad1c219bb I added a little 2x4 shelf on the side of my milk crate (instead of the drink holder in the picture). I also put some velcro on the shelf and on the fish finder. I found this crate to help me organize all my fishing gear when I load/unload my canoe. Also, it's nice to that my fish finder doesn't slide around on the floor anymore. Hope this helps.