Bladesmith,

We've had a few rains here recently so the water level should be about normal. Last time I was on the lake it was down about 6 inches, a couple weeks ago. Bass were starting to transit into fall patterns but haven't completed the transition yet. I saw shad starting to move toward the creeks. All my fish came in less than 10 feet of water on shad raps and bomber shad imitations. This summer has been tough to pattern because of the unusual weather we have had. My usual places haven't been as productive as previous years so I've been spending some time exploring. Rocky points are always productive here as well as rip rap near creek channels. Wish I could tell you more but haven't been on the lake for a couple weeks and everything can change in that amount of time in Sept.

I never use trailer hooks. If I'm getting short strikes I slow the bait down.

I have been using baitcasters since the Ambassadeur 5000 was state of the art. Now I have Diawas, Shimanos, Lew's, and modern Ambassadeurs. I consider 30 yards to be a very long cast, especially to cast that far with any kind of accuracy. When I see references to people making longer casts than that I think they are either exaggerating or don't know how far 30 yards is. Remember a yard is 3 feet. I didn't make this response to upset anyone but maybe your expectations of casting distance greater than 30 yards may not be realistic.

I have to agree with A-Jay. I am fairly particular, OK really particular about my equipment. Some of it I have had for years, caught many fish on, have many memories attached to. My wife will occasionally pick up one of my rigs, I grit my teeth and tolerate it (she has her own gear and is picky, too) but anyone else, I don't think so. As far as sending one off somewhere out of my immediate sight? No thanks.

I purchased a Lew's combo from Wal Mart this spring (http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lews-Laser-Mark-Rose-6-6-Baitcast-Combo/35680299) and I have used it hard all year so far. Not top of the line Lew's but so far it has performed as well as my Shimanos and Ambassadors. Only time will tell about it's durability. It casts smooth and has enough drag controls (magnetic and mechanical) to make it easy to cast. I consider it a good entry level rig that will not break the bank. The rod is sensitive enough for worm,jig. or any other way you would want to fish it. I originally bought it for a beater to carry around to local ponds but it has earned it's place in my boat's rod rack. I'll have to agree with Raul that you can spend a whole lot more money on a rig (and I have some and they are worth the cost, quality anything is not cheap) but for a man on a budget, I think this might be a good choice. It is $70. bucks so this would leave you some money for Sieberts jigs, and maybe a few other things like some quality line ( mine is spooled with 50# Power Pro).

This spring I bought a Lews combo from Wal Mart. I have used it hard and I really like it. Have more expensive rigs but none that I like better. It's less than $70. bucks and I wish I had gotten 2 of them. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lews-Laser-Mark-Rose-6-6-Baitcast-Combo/35680299. If you decide on a BC, it is a good deal. By the way, I can cast small lures a country mile with it. I hope that link works.

What was the reason the pump was not working?

Around here that is called a "goggle eye". I believe the proper name is warmouth bass.

A "chance" of thunderstorms is usually an indication of an approaching front (prefrontal conditions). I have had some of my best days on the water in prefrontal conditions. That being said, safety is a serious concern. Thunderstorms can bring conditions of stiff winds, heavy rains, as well as lightening. All of those things can be dangerous. I would definitely go but I would not get too far from where I put in just in case I needed to evacuate quickly. Remember also, a chance of thunderstorms also means a chance of no thunderstorms. Take your rain gear and go just remain aware of conditions around you and you should be alright.

I would not begrudge a rifleman the ammo to perfect his craft (I have had to depend on them). Yes, there is an awful lot of waste in the military services but ammo for practice is not wasted.

I have owned and used a lot of older motors over the years. You did not give any identifying information. Who made it, what HP is it, model and serial no. would be helpful.

I have and use 2 different 14 ft. aluminum boats. 1 is a deep "V" for bigger water (it is definitely more stable on rough water) and the other is a flat bottom. Both have casting decks with storage lockers under the decks. I use a portable live well (Bait Ben) which I transfer from boat to boat and I use the same 15 HP Evinrude on both boats. The flat bottom is better in shallower water and the motor pushes it faster. They both have their strong points and disadvantages. It depends upon what kind of water you are going to spend most of your time fishing. I made both the conversions myself which wasn't difficult to do.

If a person zooms up to me on the lake and swamps me with their wake, they are not going to get much info out of me. However, I will readily share info with almost any courteous person. I especially like to encourage young people, or people without much fishing experience.

You didn't really give enough information for anyone to give you a reasonable answer. For instance; what part of the country are you in? How are you fishing, what have you tried, what was the water like (clear, muddy, swift, shallow, deep)? Folks on here will try to help you but it is hard to do without information. Possibly you are doing nothing wrong. Perhaps you are fishing where there are no fish. Many things could be a problem.

He said it right. Now, you are going to want electronics, gas motor, better batteries, and the list goes on........... All that being said though, nothing improved my enjoyment of fishing more than my first boat. It opened up more avenues of catching fish than I ever knew existed. That first boat was in 1970. Since then I have worn out several bass boats with big motors. Now I'm retired and I am back to a 14 ft Aluminum boat and have more fun with it than I did with expensive bass boats.

I have used a lot of frog imitations over the years. I still haven't found any that compare to the old Bill Plummer "Super Frog" They actually sound like a frog when they hit the water and walk just like a real frog. They have been out of production for a few years but I just picked up 3 on E Bay. Those Pad crushers and others with the hooks turned up give me problems with hook ups even when I bend the hook points out slightly. I'll stick with the old tried and proven as long as I can find them. However, those new Savage gear frogs look like they might be worth trying.

I own and manage a small (1/2 acre) bass pond. I have spent time studying the behavior of the bass in this pond. These bass can give you the catalog order no. and retail price of any lure in my box. I find that they will remember a particular lure for a couple weeks. In other words, if I catch a few on a spinner bait this week, I had just as well not use a spinner bait for a couple weeks. I am not saying the bass recognize the particular bait but that type of bait will not catch them for a couple weeks. An interesting point is that I will only catch a few at a time and all the others seem to avoid that type of bait. The exception to this is a plastic worm. Worms seem to produce regardless of how often I use them. Not exactly a scientific experiment just experience with my particular pond.

I do not know if they still make them but there used to be an in line bass spinner that was weedless. It was called a "Snaggless Sally" and I believe it was made by Heddon. My Dad caught many bass on one and another called a "Hawaiian Wiggler" which was also an in line weedless bass spinner. I think they were both made by Heddon or maybe Fred Arbogast.

I don't know if sunscreen would spook a bass. I have never tried to put sunscreen on a bass. However, it is a good idea to wash your hands after handling such things as sunscreen, gasoline, or anything else with a pungent odor before handling your lures or line. I keep a bar of biodegradable soap and a towel in the boat for this purpose.

Thanks, Jeff.

You did one heck of a nice job on that boat!

I am ready to order some tackle largely due to reviews I've seen on this site and I would like to order from site sponsors if they have what I want. I have been unable to find a listing of site sponsors. They may or may not have everything I want but I would like to support our sponsors with what ever business I can give them. Does such a listing exist and I just haven't found it?

Thanks for the review and pics. You must have a really good camera for your pics to be that sharp. This is the best looking frog I've seen since Bill Plummer quit making his. Does one of our site sponsors carry them? I would like a couple. TW has them but I'd rather get them from our sponsors if offered.

I've never fished there but this link will let you get topography of the lake; http://www.navionics.com/en/webapp. You will have to scroll to the lake and enlarge like Google Earth.

I don't know where you are finding fishing water in Cochise Co, but I lived north of San Simone for 6 years and the closest fishing water I could find was the Gila River outside of Cliff, N.M. Also Bill Evans Lake in Cliff. I agree with others; you seem to place too much importance on catching rather than fishing. That being said, try Bill Evans lake. It is a big bass lake (small deep lake big bass). The only thing I found productive there was a black plastic worm fished in the moss beds, especially around the lake's only point. Take sturdy gear and lines as you will have to pull them out of the moss. N.M. state record bass came from there 15 lbs. or so and I caught a 8, and several 6's over a period of 6 weeks. It is an electric only lake so your boat will be just right for it. Relax and enjoy your time on the water.