TOXIC

I guarantee you that in 800 acres there are weed edges somewhere. It's hard to believe that a body of water that big is only 7 feet deep throughout with 1 14ft hole.....Even with it being 7 foot deep, there has to be "holes" in the grass. Throw a frog in the thick stuff, T-Rigged plastics on the edges, Jigs on the rockpiles and Dropshot in the deepest water if it's only 14 feet.

As has been said, there's only one way to find out and that's to throw your hat in the ring (i.e. entry fee) and give it a go. And as Bluebasser says, there's a huge difference when you get into tournament mode. I worked with a High School fishing team by donating my boat and services to them for practice and tournaments. The 2 anglers I took out in practice did very well but when tournament day came around, they struggled. I was not allowed to offer advice or help them in any way during the tournament. I was the boat driver only. But what I saw was a TOTAL change in the way they fished as compared to practice. They were impatient, wanted to run and gun more, worked their baits differently and it showed in their results.

I can say that my Bass Hunter was double hulled although I wouldn't categorize it as a Jon per say. It's done for added strength and rigidity. It also had flotation foam in between the 2 layers.

Purely cost and they use the knock offs as a locating bait. When the tournament $$ is on the line, they want to be able to catch more fish or get the more finicky ones to bite using the Senko. When locating, they will also clip the ends of the hooks off so that they don't "stick" their fish. Also, my guide fee was reduced or discounted when taking out tournament fishermen who just wanted to put together a pattern. I was basically their Uber driver. If they hired me at full guide price, I would have furnished them the baits as part of the fee. Yamamoto is very, very selective on their pro-staff. Not like a majority of the plastics who have different tiers of sponsorship and hundreds of pro-staffers. If I had to guess, it is because they don't need the promotion.

And just for the record. Largemouth bass may not be "Native" to some waters, but it is not "Invasive". Micropterus salmoides (Lacepède, 1802) Common name: Largemouth Bass Taxonomy: available through Identification: Becker (1983); Etnier and Starnes (1993); Jenkins and Burkhead (1994); Moyle (2002); Page and Burr (2011). Size: 97 cm. Native Range: St. Lawrence and Great Lakes, Hudson Bay (Red River), and Mississippi River basins from southern Quebec to Minnesota and south to the Gulf; Atlantic Slope drainages from North Carolina to Florida; Gulf Slope drainages from southern Florida into northern Mexico (Page and Burr 2011).

Look, I'm not trying to change anyone's opinion about snakeheads and I have talked with Odenkirk about the issue. His opinion is not different from the official stance that they are an exotic invasive species and the watershed would be better off without them. Just because they haven't impacted the ecosystem as bad as was originally predicted (though a lot of that was media hype) and the science proves that out with the stomach surveys, electrofishing, etc., doesn't mean they are a welcome addition. One reason they have been kept in check is the bowfishing element that harvests hundreds of pounds an outing. Making them a viable food fish was also a good move. There are many species of fish that are killed and thrown into a dumpster by bow fishermen including some species of carp and gar. Do they not deserve your protection as well? Snakehead are not a sportfish so don't label them that way. They are an unwelcome, non-native fish. When DNR says to stop killing them I will, that is a decision based on science not emotion and if I choose to keep them to eat I will.

I don't understand what your problem is with killing a Snakehead. I kill Crappie/Bluegills/Walleye/Perch/catfish and a few other species to eat, I can legally kill Bass too, up to the legal creel limit. I have eaten snakehead and it is very good but I don't regularly bring a separate cooler to keep them in. Every other fish I consume can be kept live. Snakeheads cannot. The DNR asks that they be killed so I do. Not wanton waste. Sorry if I offended your moral high ground.

No because the DNR does not ask me to.

I-N-V-A-S-I-V-E. I have -0- problem dispatching them. All fish life is not sacred.

To kill every caught Snakehead is an option and DNR "asks" that they be killed no matter whether you keep them or not. I pulled the quote from your post. My post just relayed what we do. We kill them. We are not mandated to..... and we are not breaking any regulations by doing so. You can live release if you want to, you can keep and kill (mandated) or you can catch and kill without keeping. Not too hard to understand. Being that the DNR asks us to kill them whether or not they are kept, we choose to do so. A lot of fishermen kill them and bring them in for disposal at the ramp. Makes for 1 stinky dumpster. In this case the "catch and release" fervor doesn't apply the same as it does with Bass. DNR is pretty clear, they are an invasive and they want them dead.

I thought the biggest reason for tin over stainless is that the tin props bend and save the lower unit whereas a stainless prop will be more likely to take the lower unit with it.

No you are completely wrong. Go to your DNR website....better yet I'll put it here for you to read. Emphasis added for you. Snakehead It is against Maryland, Virginia, and federal laws to possess, import, or transport live northern snakehead. If you catch a snakehead and want to keep it, you must immediately kill the fish by removing its head, gutting it or removing its gill arches. Anglers are encouraged to catch and keep northern snakeheads year round. There is no minimum size or creel limit for snakeheads.

Lilly pads are in relatively shallow water. You don't need weight. Texas rig a Senko on a 4.0 EWG Wide Gap hook and learn to bring it through and over the pads. I fish a Senko in all types of heavy cover and there is a knack to gently pulling, putting pressure on and then letting it go slack to get a Senko to work it's way through heavy grass and/or pads. Wood is a totally different technique.

When I damaged my prop it was the first time I ever dinged one up. I threw an ear on one but never ground one down. Situational awareness is high on my list but sometimes you just get caught. I was on water I had navigated for 21 years in Wisconsin and knew exactly where all of the rock outcroppings and shallow points were. I was waiting for the family to catch up in the pontoon boat while I sat facing the main lake in a canal. My mistake was not turning around and looking at my position before I throttled down. The wind/waves had drifted me in close to shore and was at my back. BTW, that's the first time I ever in 21 years threw my extra prop in the truck. Glad I had it. When I got back to Virginia, I sent the damaged on off to be repaired and to have them add a little cup so that it lifted the nose of my heavy Ranger. I forgot to tell them I wanted the lift at lower RPMs so although my prop lifts much better, it does it at WOT. I wanted the lift for rough water slower runs.

Yamamoto 967 Goby is as close as they get. I have used it and it is a good color. All of Yamamoto's Green Pumpkin are darker.

I get my Senko's in bulk packs and use this plano for storing them. 2 sided and the compartments are pretty close to perfect.

The best thing to do if you have a steel prop is to buy new and get your prop shaft checked. I would get the damaged one repaired and keep it for a spare the next time you bung it up. If you have a stainless prop then it is more$$ but they are readily fixable. I munched some rocks in Wisconsin a few years ago and had the prop repaired. I also have a spare. I took the opportunity to have my prop blueprinted and worked as long as it had to go in for repair.

Any bottom hugging fish or turtle will displace mud and release gas (usually methane) from decaying matter. I have even seen the pressure from my boat hull cause the release.

Make the wind work for you. I fished a tournament with my partner in 30mph winds. I picked up a weightless Senko.....He looked at me like I was cray-cray....I told him that if he positioned the boat correctly, I could fish it. I caught 3 of our 5 and 1 was the kicker.

I would rig your bait of choice Texas style, weedless. Any jig head is going to get buried in the grass since you are on the shore and bringing the bait back to you.

True tragity.

Monster Peacock Bass on the Amazon. Not really a bass but carries the name.

Looks like the KeelShield will fit that hull.

My trolling motor has more hours than my big motor!! It is a piece of equipment that is well worth upgrading.

Your responses will be all over the place because rods are very personal in appeal. Having been on BPS pro-staff for 15 years, I never had a problem with their rods or reels. I am with Quantum now but I would still recommend the BPS offerings. Held up well and fished above their price point. I put them through their paces guiding. Since you have "free money" go ahead and give one a try.