Pkfish49

Thanks - the 5/0 seems familiar. I am looking for old pictures and I thought I took pictures of the package, but can't find it.

Among the posters here, I probably have the least Bass fishing experience, but I used both the Wacky and Texas Rigs when last fishing for Bass and I'll throw my 2 cents in: Without any O rings or anything else but the worm and the hook, I was losing the fake worms all day with the Wacky Rig, as they kept flying off the hook mid cast. When I switched to the Texas Rig, that never happened. In the small lake that I was fishing, the Largemouths were going after both setups equally, so my vote is for the Texas Rig.

This past winter, I was having a blast reeling in the Largemouths with Senkos, but I am out of these hooks and don't remember the size that I had been using. Can somebody please take a peek at the embedded picture and tell me what size hook this is. Thanks.

Are you guys sure this isn't a European Rudd? Notice the Red fin. For me, it is hard to tell the difference between the species.

Thanks! I'm not going fishing for three weeks, but will try the improved technique then and let you know how it worked out.

I'm beginning to suspect that the problem is with my technique, not my equipment. I do flip the bail gently and lift the rod up a bit, but I don't stop the line with my finger. Could this be the root cause of the tangles?

I wasn't over-spooled, as I kept having the problem after cutting away a lot line due to unmanageable tangles and I always flip the bail by hand. I was able to stop the unmanageable tangles by flipping the bail just before the bait hit the water, but the line kept trying to come in behind the reel and I had to push it back by hand. The line also kept coming off just past the reel, but didn't continue to go up through the pole. I then had to manually pull the line through the eye, until it got past the mess, then flip the bail, then pull the line tight. I'd like to go fishing without having to deal with this crap all day. I like mono, but if the only way so solve this is to go to braid, then it is worth ripping up my finger to not get these tangles. I'm gonna try some line conditioner first, then a braid leader.

I'm using spinning reels now because that is what I am being taught how to use, (I was told that the drag would be awful with a spincast) but don't knock a spincast. As a child I caught a huge pickerel with a cheap Zebco. I don't remember the model number but seem to remember that it came pre-spooled with 8 LB test and was around $10.00. I also remember how easy it was to cast by holding and releasing your thumb on the button and what a pain it was learning to cast with a spinning reel and how much the line kept cutting up my index finger. This thread and watching some kids (earlier today) catch bass from shore using spincast reels makes me want to go out and get one!

This is a recurring pattern with me, using spinning reels with 8 pound test: The line wraps around behind the spool and then gets stuck under the spool. I then have to take the drag off and untangle the line. Often, it is so messed up that I have to cut it away and re-setup the pole. It is not a drag setting as it happens when it is tight or loose. I suspect it is related to line tension, but a lot of my lures are very light. HELP!!!!!!!!!! Thanks

Florida - Palm Beach County.

Thanks for the color ID tip. Regarding braid, a few years ago, I saltwater surf fished with 20 LB braid and it ripped a deep painful cut on my casting finger that took months to heal. I've been using mono since and haven't had any issues. I need to learn more knots. Right now, the only knot that I know is the improved clinch. I use it to tie on leaders, swivels, and to directly tie on hooks.

Thanks for all of the replies! Regarding my setup: A cheap ($29.99) pole/spinning reel combo, spooled with 10 LB green mono. The Senko worm lure that you see in the first picture was hooked up "wacky rig" style, without a sinker, so it top floated. This is my first bass and it was a ton of fun! When the line dropped like a brick, I thought that I got the hook caught on the bottom of the lake and it took me a little while to realize that I indeed had a fish! Regarding the Largemouth identification: What features determined this?

This fish put up a heck of a fight for the size. What exactly is it? Largemouth bass? Smallmouth bass? Or something else? If it is essential for identification to know where I caught it, I'll post the location, but was hoping this could be identified by the fins or some other distinct marking by itself. Thanks

Thanks for the replies. I just checked the original picture and unfortunately the back of the net is behind me, so i can't use this as a reference. I don't have that rod anymore, but it was probably a normal spinning rod/reel combo, so if I can find something similar, I'll have something (the distance between the rod guides) to use a scale.

I'm trying hard to figure out the size of a fish from an old scanned picture. This picture was part of a larger picture, showing me holding a large pickerel. It's an embarrassing picture of me as a kid which is why I cropped myself out. I think there is a way to figure out the exact size of the fish. Assuming that the oar is a standard size wooden oar (from the late 1970s) and there is something standard about the way it is placed in the oar holder, somebody should be able to determine the exact length of the part of the oar, from the oar holder (from the base where it is screwed into the boat) to the visible tip. I can then measure both that length of oar and the fish as they appear on my PC screen, (Edit - probably more accurate to measure in Photoshop) do the math, and determine the exact size of the fish. Math is not my strong point, but this seems logical to me, so I have 2 questions: 1 - Is my logic correct? 2 - If so, what is the exact length from the base of the oar holder to the thin, visible tip? Thanks

It does appear that the line test makes a difference. I use mono with all of my reels. I have 2 saltwater reels, one with 15 LB test, the other 30, and I've always tied the knot with 7 turns. This always holds well. I recently put some 6 LB mono on my lake reel and it kept breaking after I tried to finalize the knot. I had thought that this was due to some crappy quality line, as I bought some cheap bulk spool, but maybe this is simply the nature of the lighter test.

I use the improved clinch knot to tie on leaders, swivels, hooks, and to directly tie lures on. I twist seven times before finalizing the knot, but have seen online resources advise on as few as five turns. What is the best practice for the number of turns? Does it depend on the type and test of the line? There must be some exact mathematics regarding the knot strenght differences with different number of twists. I wonder if the "Knot Wars" folks or anybody else have tested this.

I'm new to the forum and hope it is appropriate to post this story here. It is too funny not to share: Many years ago in late spring, I took a drive up to the N.Y. Catskill mountains to go trout fishing. I hadn't been fishing in years and didn't do any research at all. I showed up and the lakes were all still frozen. Somebody directed me to a local hatchery that had a pay to fish program. I paid to fish, then paid by the pound of what I caught. I don't remember the type of trout that I caught, but it was easier than fishing in a barrel. The hatchery gutted the fish for me and sold me a container and some ice to travel with. I brought the fish back to a friend's house to cook up and made up a story about hiking miles into the woods to a secret stream that very few people knew about, where I caught the fish. The problem with my story was that one of my friends noticed that I never removed the hatchery tags from the fish, and he busted me. I admitted the truth to him.

Thanks for all of the replies. My main issue is that I'm going to be fishing some lakes where pickerel are present. I'm not always going to be targeting them, but would wouldn't want to lose any keepers and don't want to get my 8 LB mono cut off by their teeth. I'm not going fishing until March and I'll try both ways. I'll reply to the thread and let everybody know how it worked out.

When I go saltwater fishing, I use green line and wire leader and when the fish are biting, I have no problem catching them. People are telling me that for lake fishing, I need to use clear line and shouldn't use wire leader, because the fish will spot the equipment and will not take the bait or lure. Why can I use this stuff for saltwater fish but not freshwater fish? Are freshwater fish smarter than saltwater fish?

Thanks for all of the advice. Eager to hit the lakes again next spring and summer, I've bought a ton of lures;a number of crankbaits amongst them and I can't wait to try them out. Regarding the line, I'm sticking with mono for a while. Taking the advice of a bait and tackle shop owner, I fished with 20 LB test braid last fall. The line ripped a deep hole in my casting finger which hurt like hell when I casted and took months to heal. I did buy a few cast protectors, but I kept losing them or forgetting to bring them.

Thanks for the quick reply. I'm not going fishing until March, when I'm sure to hit a snag or 2, or 3, and will try your techniques. I'll reply to the thread and let you know how it worked out.

Hi, I “like” your Facebook page and have been having tons of fun watching your instructional videos. I need help with a problem that I am having and am wondering if you can either answer with a video, or a reply. I am not a dedicated Bass fisherman, but will probably be landing a bunch of Largemouth, Smallmouth, and Rock Bass, next summer. I still consider myself a beginner fisherman, but I’ve been salt water shore casting for the last two years and went lake fishing earlier this fall. I’m having the same problem lake fishing that I was having salt water fishing: When I shore cast with a lure, (I hope I’m not violating any forum rules by mentioning brand names – I’m not associated with any of the companies) either a spoon, or a shiny Kastmaster, or a Rapala, or any kind of plug, often the hook gets stuck on the bottom as I am reeling in. I can figure out how to free it, so I have cut off the line, losing the lure and some line in the process. You post videos where an underwater camera captures the caster deliberately scraping the bottom structures in order to “get a feel” for area. The lures never get caught on the bottom and nothing in the video shows anybody worrying about this. Is there some technique that I can use to avoid losing so many lures by getting caught on the bottom? For my freshwater setup, I’m using a 6 foot pole with a spinning reel, spooled up with 8 LB mono. Thanks