wdp

Nice! I especially like the extra effort to have the tiny bass mounted properly, lol. ?

Nah, remember we had this discussion in the other thread you started. I haven't found anybody local that will work on a rod and/or reel & would do a professional type job. I'd prefer somebody that really knows what they're doing work on em.

I've been there 5 or 6 times now. They have a decent selection of used cranks, spinnerbaits, etc. at a decent price. Few nice new baits, some made by guys in the area & surrounding states like Arkansas. Thought about getting a reel cleaned & worked on there. But then one day I saw the guy spraying the heck outta a reel with WD40. And I thought, nah, better take my reel elsewhere. But, I will say the guy must be pretty cool cause he's a Mississippi State fan, lol. Even if he doesn't clean a reel with the right stuff. Dont know anything about how they might repair a rod, sorry.

Looked like a zoom horny toad that he used. I've also seen this done before in a fishing video, but have never tried it. I thought at first he had messed up when he went back in that creek towards the end of the third period. But he pulled it off. Shows that he was smart too when he changed baits when the bite dried up with the topwater.

10 - 20 lb power pro braid.

Maybe try a slightly heavier jig. Sometimes the faster rate of fall will get a reaction bite.

+1, best buzz frog hook out there. They work & fit perfectly on the Ribbit frog. They work on a horny toad too, but it takes more effort to get the double hooks seated just right around the body. But worth the extra effort imo.

LFT Live Magic Shad works well on a scrounger jig head too.

Yeah, maybe I should give it another try.

Dang! You caught that big one in the middle pic at Johnson in the pond with the fountains? I only caught a couple dinks outta there the 2 times I went. Figured it didn't have any decent ones.

The thing I like about a brick & mortar store is seeing something in person. It's not just rods, but I like to look at lures & baits too. Sometimes, a picture on an internet site really doesn't cut it.

Throw a weightless t rigged craw in the gaps of lily pads & in sparse grass. Or the edges of thick grass. It'll make a believer outta ya. ?

I also bought a vortex on sale for $13 about 3 yrs ago. I've been using it for pond hopping & figured I wouldn't mind if it gets beat up since it was so cheap. I actually bought it at a G Mtn tho. Been using it for shakey heads, flukes, worms, & some topwater. It's actually a decent rod, especially for $13.

I agree. I've never bought a rod without checking it out 1st at a store. Not sure I will ever buy one online, unless it's a model I already own & I'm buying another exactly like it.

This is very interesting info on how it started. Pretty cool. @Team9nine how did you find out all this info? Sounds like you used to tourney fish a lot so I'm wondering if you know some of the elites involved with its incarnation.

?

Agreed!

Nice one! I'm game when you are....... unless it's too cold. I'm ready for spring. We might work out some Saturday then, if you can get off at 3. Won't be long til the days start getting longer.

I don't think some of the pros care for the MLF format. Not to drop names (yeah, I really am ?) but I was actually joking with Ed Evers & Rick Clunn about MLF. Evers had just recently won a cup event on MLF. I was talking to Clunn & I jokingly asked Evers when was he gonna talk Clunn into start fishing some of the MLF tourneys. RC said doesn't like the format. Said he thinks it leads to too much crowding and guys fishing on top of each other. He's a cool dude & def old skool, but I knew what he meant. My mind immediately went to an episode where Hackney was slaying em on a shallow bite in some flats. By end of 2nd period, half the field was fishing the same spot. At start of 3rd period I think the whole field was fishing those flats. Lol. In the elite series it's kinda an unwritten code that when somebody's on the fish with a chance to win, you stay outta their way & off their spot. Although, some don't abide by this "code", I think most of them do, especially the seasoned veterans.

I like owner 5/0 twist lock on a big Zoom super speed craw. Works well as a topwater too.

Heck yeah. I wear em out. I mean, it's the king of beers. Why wouldn't it work?

????

I had a co-worker that hunted a lot but had only fished a few times - the usual bobber & crickets or worms. I was always talking bout fishing & he kept asking how I could fish so much since it was so boring. I kept telling him that's not the way I fish for bass - that it was actually more like hunting. Fast forward a few months & I get him on the water at a small lake with a phenomenal top water bite on buzz frogs. Needless to say, he was hooked. Didn't even wanna leave that day. A week later I was meeting him as Bass Pro to help him buy a rod, reel & some lures. ?

I'm thinking it's usually mid February.

Shhhhhhhhhh......... ?