Bdnoble84

Thank you. That makes sense. I bought braided guards from barlows. I was worried about the sharpness of the guards. That seems like an easy solution.

Havent fished with wire weedguards much but I poured some jigs with them last night. They extend pretty far past the hook point. Those of you who use wire weedguard jigs, do you trim them down/ position them a specific way?

I’ve kinda done this with a t-rigged hula grub Using a 1/16 to 1/8oz bullet weight. Hopping it and letting it fall. The resistance of the hula grub causes the bait to seperate from the weight. Ive gotten away from hula grubs since i have gotten into different baits but its a dynamite rig for me in summer.

I cut a slot into the bait and just need to cut a lip. Ill let you know how it goes. I dont know why im surprised. I have a rapala f11 on my bench with a broken lip as well. As well as a homemade crankbait. I dont think i used lexan for that lip though. Rookie mistake. the predator MB WAS the 110+1. Is its molded as part of the bait as far as i can tell. It wouldnt take much of a stress fracture to cause a weak point. Ive fished the rest of the 110’s, 110+1’s, and 110+2’s and banged all those off rocks with no failures. Rock eats up lures faster than anything. Part of why i got into lure making to begin with.

Theyre movin up to spawn

My favorite past time is ticking off smallies. Its why one of my favorite things is to burn a spinnerbait by the same peice of structure/cover over and over

Great mindset. It sounds like your relationship has good bones. This is something i cound never get my ex to do. But the one time i did get her to go, she enjoyed it. It definitely would be good if she could catch something, but beyond that make it fun/relaxing. Make some good snacks. Encourage her to bring a book. An adult beverge might be good. Make it more of a picnic on a boat than fishing. And stay positive!!!

I’ve had good luck on x-raps over the years once the water warms up. Earlier on, a husky jerk has produced some. I bought some vision 110 knock offs to custom paint and pulled up this nice smallie the other night. I like the action so i think they will produce.

Smallmouth being more of a sight predator I dont worry about using many rattling baits. Do you all find there are times when a rattle makes a difference?

I’m adding 3” largo shad and 4” easy shiners to my prespawn list. Smallmouth inhale them and i run into the bonus walleye now and again. Plus i can use an underspin head if i want extra flash and vibration but a spinnerbait isnt producing.

Water temp is hitting 60 so i wont balk at alittle wet wading from this point on but closer to june when the water starts approaching 70 is when ill get serious bout it.

That is about as bassy of a spot as any. Love the description.

Good idea. I have baits that i’ve been able to replace the bill on in the past. Im more wondering if this is a common thing with predator lures.

Doesnt work for crap lol.

Hobby lobby carries iwata neo. Its a decent brush for $70. Do not get the kit with the compressor. The compressor is not powerful enough or offer enough adjustment. I bout a $70 compressor off amazon that has worked pretty well for me so far.

Willows or willow/ colorado combo have always been my choice. Although, i’ve started playing with indianas more.

I find i have this issue with my mod fast mh rod as well when working spinnerbaits and swim jigs (not much experience with chatters for Smallies). I feel its that the softness of the rod leads to a delayed reaction in setting the hook which leads to a less than ideal hook-set. Particularly on slack line hooks where u need to catch up with the fish first and then drive the hook in. I dont have an answer other than i favor my fast action mh if i think im going to be having to catch up to fish alot before setting the hook.

Medium action fenwick eagle 6’6” and a 100$ reel will get you close if you really want a baitcaster. Will work well for 1/8oz and up swimmers and can double for jerkbaits, small spinnerbaits, etc. i had a LEW’s lfs on a fenwick eagle and 20lb braid. It worked just fine for the presentation you are talking. If you are going 1/16 oz and 2” paddletails though. You either need a high end bfs setup or switch to spinning.

Forgot to add a pic.

Bought some blanks from predator lures. Im questioning the quality of them. I have a 110+1 that the bill snapped off on. I barely bumped a rock on bottom. Anyone else use these blanks?

Spinnerbait, jerkbait. I struggle otherwise which i think is more of an issue of finding them this time of year than baits thrown

Yes there is. Bucktail is getting scarce right now. And there is always another color. Rabbit zonkers dont go far at all in the small packs, but if you buy bulk you are going to have a large investment. Marabou is alittle better. But it does payoff to use higher quality blood quill or extra select.

For the price i really like fenwick’s. I own the medium action eagle and its a great rod up to 5/8oz. But i mostly fish, jerkbaits, light spinnerbaits, paddletail swimbaits and topwater on it. Jigs never really felt great on it. So if you are mainly light reaction its a really good rod for the price. It really depends on budget to me and how frequently you fish. Think of it this way. For the price of a victory, you could have 2 fenwicks and money left over for a second rod. If money isnt an option, go with something higher end.

It looks like a berkley chiggercraw on steroids

I see these paint it yourself jointed glide baits. They are already assembled. I cant figure out how one would go about clearcoAting the bait without getting clear in the joints and diminishing action.