JFlynn97

do you think a 1/4oz bullet weight will work just as well too? Apparently the last time I ordered weights I didn't get any 1/8, so 1/4 is the smallest I have at the moment

What do you guys think? I want to get better with soft plastics and worms seem like a good place to start. What do y'all recommend? Texas rigs, shaky heads, wacky rigs, etc? What worms and lengths? I fish smaller ponds from the bank mainly. Thanks!

I'm looking to get a set-up I can use for squarebills, lipless cranks, jerk baits, and maybe other treble hook baits (like poppers or walking baits). Do you guys think this can work? What line do you recommend too?

I only fish from the bank, so it's mostly long casts trying to cover water though I'll occasionally flip and pitch into docks and cover that I'm able to access from the bank. Thanks! How much do you move the tip of your rod for this retrieve? And when you reel in slack line, do you do it until you feel the weight of your jig or do you still leave out a little bit of slack in the water? I'll have to try those other retrieves too. I've tried dragging a couple times but it often ends up with my jig getting snagged and I can't get it out. Is swimming a jig similar to how you'd work a spinner bait or chatter bait?

Does anyone have tips on what to do specifically with your rod and reel while fishing jigs? This is my biggest problem, I always feel like I'm not working it right and it's hurting my confidence. How should you move your rod? When do you reel in slack line and when do you let it sit? And anything else?

Thanks, and thanks to everyone else! I'm still a little nervous but mostly excited!

I've only got 3 rods I really use for bass fishing so I'm good on that, is like a backpack with 3-4 tackle boxes and an assortment of soft plastics probably okay? Like a box with terminal tackle, a jig box, a box for moving baits like crankbaits or spinnerbaits, a box for topwaters, and a couple sandwich bags full of bags of worms, creature baits, swim baits, trailers, etc.? It's sunday morning so I figure I should probably figure all this out.

I have only been fishing for several years and in a couple of weeks I'll most likely be participating in a little for-fun tournament with my university's bass fishing team and another club. The president of the team told me it's a buddy tournament with maybe 10-12 boats, and I'll be paired up with a guy from the other club and go out on their boat and I believe it'll be on the upper Chesapeake bay or upper Delaware bay. I can't help but be a little nervous. It's nothing serious, as far as I'm aware there is no cash prize and he said first place might get a little trophy or something. But I'm afraid I won't be any good or I'll make a fool of myself in front of whoever I'm fishing with. Does anyone have any tips or advice for your first (albeit, casual) tourny? Or any general advice? Thanks!

Holy! Thank you so much, that was incredibly informative and answered practically every question I could think of. I decided on the amber and green mirror, like you said I probably wouldn't be able to notice the differences very well anyway plus having them a little darker because of the mirror might work for using the glasses as a general-use pair in addition to using them for fishing. Thanks again!

I'm looking to buy a pair of Cocoon fitover sunglasses to use over my prescription glasses instead of buying a pair of prescription sunglasses. Currently I can't decide between two options: the straight polarized amber lenses, or the polarized amber and green mirror lenses. Both lenses are polarized and amber colored, but does the one with a green mirror offer anything in addition to the standard ones? Or would they both perform similarly? Thanks!

I feel like I'm only able to consistently catch bass on moving baits like chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, or crankbaits. What tips do you guys have for bottom-contact baits? Things like texas rigs, senkos, and most importantly jigs? When you're using a bottom contact bait, do you typically have your line tight to the point where you can feel the weight of your bait but you're not dragging it, or let it sit on more of a semi-slack line? I feel like if it's sitting on semi-slack I might not feel a hit, but if I have the line tighter I might get over excited and set the hook too early or the line might be more visible to the fish. Also, how do you guys deal with windier conditions? It seems like it's windy every time I go out in my area lately and it gives me trouble keeping up with where my line is and if it's moving or not, but I'm dedicated to learning these types of presentations. Thanks a ton!

I'm right handed and all of my reels are left-handed. To me it makes more sense to have the rod in my right hand where I have more control over the rod and I'm better able to work lures. Plus, I've tried using my rod in my left and retrieving with my right and it just feels off. Not having to switch hands is also a bonus, especially when flipping/pitching.

There's a very similar situation near me. The pond is right near the nearby campus and practically smack dab in the middle of the downtown area. There are signs pointing to it saying to come fish it, it's catch and release only, and they do free fishing days at this pond. But, it's also the pond that holds the record for my personal best bass. The thing that keeps me from getting skunked at that pond practically every time is a chatterbait. Maybe in my area nobody throws chatterbaits, or maybe it's just so different that it makes bass strike, but I can always count on it to get me out of a skunk. Give it a shot! 3/8 ounce green pumpkin with a matching paddletail swimbait is my go-to

Everyone knows bass will munch on things from craws to bluegill to shad to frogs. But what if it's something they haven't seen before or isn't native to their area? For example, throwing a jig with a craw trailer in a small pond that doesn't have crawfish in it, or a shad-colored lure in a body of water that doesn't have shad. Are they still likely to bite, or will they be more weary and stay away from it?

Basically the title, I'm dedicating this season to throwing mainly jigs until I'm confident in them. As a part of this, I'm looking for some that I can keep tied on and find success on, regardless of what kind of water I'm fishing (a tall order, I know). So after a bit of research, I stumbled upon Siebert Outdoors and from what I have read, there is really no other option when it comes to quality jigs at a good price. As it stands, I'm interested in buying the dredge dock rocker jig pack in 3/8oz. The description says it's a great all-around jig, capable of being fished in weeds, rocks, brush, and flipping/pitching. Plus the colors that come in the pack look hard to beat, and cover what I imagine would be most of my bases. What do you guys think? Are there any other better options for me, or should I pull the trigger with Siebert? Thanks in advance!

I've never really been into fishing and keeping trout, but I plan on getting more into it this season so I'm looking for a bit of advice. Is it typically okay to put live trout (straight from the line after removing the hook) into a cooler packed with ice? Is it better to kill and gut them before putting them on ice? If so, whats the best way to kill them and gut/bleed them? I'd rather not keep them alive using a stringer, though if it's the best option I'll make do. I'm a newbie at this, so any and all help would be great!

I can't say enough good things about the Dobyns Sierra. Picked one up recently, it's without a doubt one of my most sensitive rods and wonderfully balanced. They run for $160-170, but if you can stretch your budget a bit I don't think you'll be disappointed.

So I had every intention of buying one of these, but before I was able to it seems like they got discontinued! Does anyone have any they recommend, or know of a place where I can buy that hoodie? Thanks!

I've recently started using the new Gary Yamamoto Zako Swimbait on all of my chatterbaits and I've fallen in love with it.

Currently I only have three rods but I've found them to cover pretty much all of my applications. 6'9" medium-light/fast, 8lb braid used for finesse applications 7' medium-heavy/fast, 6.4:1 casting reel, 30lb braid and 15lb fluoro leader when necessary, used for moving baits (spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, crankbaits, buzzbaits, etc) 7'3" heavy/fast, 8.1:1 casting reel, 30-50lb braid and 15-20lb fluoro leader when necessary, used for texas rigs, jigs, bottom baits, frogs. So far I haven't found a lure I can't reliably use on these rods

Do the techniques he showed in the video also apply to jigs? I'm trying to learn to jig fish but I'm a little lost about what specifically I should be doing with my rod and reel.

Basically the title, I'm looking for any tips to help me find success in jigs in the coming year! The rod I'll be using is a Dobyns Fury, 7'3" heavy/fast paired with a daiwa fuego 8.1:1 and 30 lb power pro. Another bit of information, I typically fish smaller ponds and only from the bank (though I recently joined a bass fishing club at my university so I may get some experience fishing out on a boat). A general theme in my area is that ponds have scattered vegetation, occasionally rocks and hard structure along banks, and stained to muddy water. Any and all tips, tricks, and advice would be greatly appreciated!

I'm going to be picking up some Gamakatsu finesse wide gap hooks to use primarily for wacky rigging senkos. I've heard recommendations for everywhere from size 2 to 4/0. If you had to pick only one size, which would y'all go? I think I'm going to try for 1/0, but I'd love people's opinions!

What about people who don't have boats?

As far as I can tell it's all various species of bluegill and pan fish.