Pkfish49

Please clarify - I'm not familiar with a shop or chain called "Cables." Ty

Ty - I'll try this.

Thanks! In addition to working well with plastic worms, I find my #4 EWG hooks are great for catch and release, as they are very easy to remove. I tried out one of my favorite crankbaits in this lake and was able to unhook it, but in the past I've killed panfish with deeply embedded treble hooks that I was unable to remove without tearing through the fish. No trauma, as they were all headed for the frying pan anyway, but my Bass fishing now is all catch and release, and I don't want to kill or harm any of the fish. I'm off to YouTube to find some vids on how to safely remove treble hooks.

The good news is that I found a workable GoPro head strap and figured out the best angle to record myself shore fishing. I haven’t used the camera in years and see that I need to clean the lens, but the picture is clear enough to show the catch. While I have the video, I was wondering if some of the experienced anglers here could critique my technique. How am I doing? Was the hookset good? Did I reel in correctly? I’m getting better all the time, but I believe most of the folks on this forum are better fisherman than I, and I’d appreciate any advice you’d have about improving my technique. Thanks https://i.imgur.com/KkkmZmN.mp4

Funny you should mention this - I just set my PB last week in a small residential lake. Quick calculation has it at around 1.5 acres. Living in a Bass fisherman's paradise, I'm confident I'll be breaking this in the near future.

I can catch Bass all day in a small, private residential lake, but have had no luck anywhere else. I was on the Arthur Marshall Canoe trail last Saturday and didn't get anything. I'm a canoe guy. I tend to fall out of kayaks, and don't want to be alligator food. I didn't do the entire trail. I probably went around a mile and a half or so. Guys were catching small Bass on the dock and some guys who ventured off the path caught some big ones, but none of the other fisherman on the trail that I ran into got any bites. I wanted to go back to Arthur Marshall on Saturday, but threats of thunderstorms kept me away. I'm hoping the rain can bypass us most of the next long weekend so I can go back. Let me know if you get anything on the trail and if so, what you used. Good luck.

It was a fun catch. I got bored using plastic worms and decided to switch to the Cotton Cordell Wally Diver you see in the pic. As long as a lake isn't weedy, I have great success with that crankbait. It wasn't a huge fight, but a lot more than the thin Largemouth bass I had been catching all day. The weird thing was that when I pulled it out the water, it was starting to fold, as if it were experiencing rigor mortis.

Thanks for the replies. I'm a new resident of the state. The Bluegill and Sunfish that I've caught in new York State over the years have different colorings and I wasn't sure what this one was.

Wow! I caught a Florida Blue Tilapia. How the heck did that get in my lake?

I thought it was at first, but the shape and coloring is different than most of the Bass in the lake that I caught it in, and the dorsal and tail fins are much larger than I normally encounter with Largemouth bass. It came in at 1.36 pounds, in case this helps with the ID. Thanks.

It swam away very very healthfully when I released it.

I caught this in Boynton beach, Florida this afternoon. I did "Google up" 'Florida Sunfish," but I can't figure out whether this is a Redbreast sunfish, or a Spotted sunfish.

I'm not using in-line spinners. I'm using the Penn Pursuit reel. I have at least one of the model III, but most of mine are the model II. The spoolers leave space, they don't usually fill it to the rim. I close the bail manually. Appreciate all of the advice and will not rule out user error. I think my best idea is to go fishing with some experienced folks so they can show me what (if anything) I'm doing wrong. I plan on doing that as soon as it is safe to do so.

I've been back to freshwater fishing since 2017 and am improving every year, but I still have beginner questions about line. I don't spool myself. I rely on local bait and tackle shops and sporting good stores. I just had a problem with two freshly spooled reels that I seem to have with almost every new spooled reel. I always use 10 LB mono on my 4000 series spinning reels. I have the problem with different brands. After some initial casts, I spot a a potential knot on the spool. I open the bail, pull out the line past the problem, close the bail and then tighten the line and reel in. After I cast out far, I may have to repeat the process a few times, but eventually the kink goes away. The problem is that I usually run into the same issue later in the day. I don't always catch the kink and then have to cut off some line and re-tie on my rig. I've seen the bassresource video about straightening out line from a motorboat, but I'm mostly shore-casting these days. I'm not 100% ruling out user error, but I believe I'm taking the right steps to keep my line tight. What's going on? Are the shops doing a bad job of spooling that's causing the knots? Now that I'm a full time Florida resident, I'll be fishing a lot and don't mind investing in a spooler. If that's the way to go, what do you guys recommend? Should I dip my spools in something for a while before spooling? Should I use a line conditioner? I'm sick and tired of this! What is the solution? Thanks

Thanks for all the replies. I'm not going to be relocating any fish into the lake. I know that people catch huge Bass in a lot of the nearby canals and I thought it would be a fun idea to relocate some lunkers into the lake to catch again. It's a precious lake and I realize it's not appropriate to take even the tiniest risk to harm it.

No bucket for my catch and release Bass, but bringing something with a known weight and adding the little ones to it makes sense. I like setting goals and breaking personal records. The next time I go fishing and figure out how to weigh everything, (I'm going to take A-Js suggestion and put 3-5 pounds of tackle in a bag to use as a baseline, and then add small Bass to it and do the subtraction) I'm going to add up all the weight of my Bass that I catch that day. That will be my first record and I'll strive to beat it. I wanted to start doing this a few days ago, but couldn't because of the scale's inability to weigh the little ones.

I assume this is in the right forum. If not, mods please move it to the appropriate one. I emailed Rapala customer support this question, but an AI bot replied with a prepared answer about pride in their products and their warranty policy. I'm comfortable with the accuracy of my Rapala RHCDS50 scale as I've used it on objects with known weights. The problem is that when I catch small bass under a pound, the scale often registers 0.0.0. This is the second unit I had the same issue with. I had lost one and purchased another. Is this a known issue with this scale or digital fish scales? Can this be user error? Should I be gripping in a different spot? Gravity is gravity, so I I understand this question may sound strange, but I find this very puzzling and am looking for an explanation. Thanks

I fish in a small, private, residential lake. I catch and release Largemouth bass in the lake. Just past a dividing wall, there is a canal which I believe feeds the lake, as I see drainpipes and what appears to be a release valve. If I catch a largemouth Bass in the canal, would it be illegal or ecologically wrong to release it into the lake? I know nothing about the history of the lake. I don't know whether the fish were once stocked, or if they are continually stocked. I don't know if Bass are are deliberately put in the lake from the drainpipes, or if the small ones accidentally get there. What I do know is that Bass never leave the lake. Other than myself, only one other person fishes there and we both release everything. Would it be illegal, or ecologically wrong for me to relocate a canal Largemouth bass into the lake? Ty

Never did. If I try it, I'll let you know how it worked out. That hook is an EWG 4/0 I just bought an assortment of EWG hooks and compared them with mine.

The Wacky RIG was the first Senko setup I used because it was the easiest and fastest to setup. I caught Bass with it, but gave up on the WR because I was donating plastic to the lake all day when the worm would wear out in the center and fly off the hook. I know I can get protectors, but I haven't had any less success with other plastic worm rigs, so I didn't bother with them. I don't know whether the worms spin around when they sink, but when my retrieve is close enough, I often watch them spin as I'm reeling in. I was curious as to why and was wondering whether I can consistently replicate the action to see if the spin will get me more bites. I've been told before that it's better to tie on, rather than use my snap swivel setup. I like my setup because I can quickly change lures or hooks, without having to retie anything. This was a big advantage when I fished a lot in the cold, wet, Northeast, as my fingers didn't work too well under the conditions. Now that I'm in Florida full time, it won't be that much of an inconvenience. In any event, I believe I have 3 or 4 working poles now, so I can dedicate one to plastic worm fishing and keep an EWG hook directly tied on.

Working out for me that I wasn't descriptive enough, as I need help with follow-up replies. Most importantly, what type and size hook is this? It is perfect for my Senko rig and I need to buy more. Also, I don't have the threading down to an exact science. Sometimes, the worm rotates sideways with the retrieval and sometimes it doesn't. The sideways motion isn't necessary to land bass, as I often catch them without the movement, but I'd like to know how to hook up the worm to create the movement. Does it depend on how far I thread the hook, or how much I expose the hook? Here is one of my setups. I don't remember if this was one of the spinners: Thanks. Edit - Now that I'm thinking about it, often after I hook up the plastic worm, it spins for a while, then after a number of retrieves, it stops spinning, so I assume that the weight of the worm causes the hook placement to change which changes the character of setup.

Many thanks - I was definitely in a double canoe. I'll try your idea next time.

The big swivel that I'm using may look out of place. It's designed for bigger rigs. I believe it rated something like 45 LB test. The problem is that when I use smaller swivels, they rip off a lot.

Does this help? I edited myself out of the selfie to focus on the rig.

I was in the rear seat. My heavy tackle box was also in the back, so your explanation makes sense. So, should I move myself and my heavy gear into the front if I want to front paddle into the wind? Ty