MarVaBC

Thanks guys! Basspro 48: It was a smoke lizard (not sure who makes it) that I've had laying around forever.

BEAUTY!

Sweet! Nice Looking Fish!

Wow what a fish man!!! I still have yet to catch one of those. I came close last year on the James, but it came off close to the boat, and it was strictly due to putting too much pressure on the fish! I had on 30 lb braid, so I got a little anxious. Great job...you are killin them (and smallies) down there on the New!

That is just great! I can only imagine how happy/proud that makes you. I hope I am lucky enough to do the same oneday.

Got out to a local reservoir last weekend and caught my new PB smallie. It was just over 20" and just over 4 pounds on my buddies boga grip. My previous best was 3 lb. so this was a big upgrade . Gotta love the smallies!

Not trying to sound like a jerk here, but could it have been a tail-biting fish like rock bass or sunfish of some sort? They like to mess up bass baits for sure. Usually they bite in a rapid sucession tap-tap-tap-tap instead of the usual THUMP of a bass. If they are for sure bass...then do what RW said, and maybe let them have it for a second longer.

That's cool....In my experience with those smaller flows, You'll catch a whole bunch of 8-12 inch smallies which are the majority, but there are some big fish around to be caught. You just need to find the best big fish habitat and youll eventually get a good one. Fishing bigger baits will probably help too...like if your catching a bunch of dinks on a 4" kinami, switch up to a 6'' senko or whatever and you may get some better quality.

Are you in a lake or river? I'd suggest trying tubes. Get some 3.5-4 in tubes in a dark color like grn. pumpkin - rig with a 1/8 oz. insert head w/ a weed/rock guard. Work slowly along the bottom. That will catch all size fish, but bigguns like the tube. Also some dark senko style baits 4-5", and buzzbaits when it heats up.

Bronc - As far as cheap rod holders go, get some PVC pipe and cut into 12" or so sections...then affix to boat hoever you see fit. Either rig some type of clamping system, or use twist ties, or other. I suggest just going to Lowes or Home Depot and walk around...you will get ideas just looking at different hardware, adapters, etc. Cheap Anchor- thats easy, just get decent sized rope, and anything heavy like a dumbell, cinder block, etc.

I just got some materials last night to try and experiment/make something. Total cost was $10, and they should take about 30 min to install. I got some 1'' conduit PVC pipe (thicker walled than reg. PVC), couplers, 90 deg. elbows, end caps, and a metal adapter to attach to the trailer. The pipe is really sturdy, and I think it will work based on the fact that I just need them to line up my jon boat going back on the trailer, and not to support any weight. We'll see how it goes. I'll post pics when I am finished.

Yeah the bunk-type would be fine as well, and probably easier to make, but I guess the hard part is finding or making the metal angled piece. I don't know of any metal places around, but I'll check around and see what I can find. Thanks for the ideas.

Does anyone know how to make a pair of guide-ons to straighten the boat out on the trailer something like this? http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_16106_200004006_200000000_200004000_200-4-6 I'd like to have them, but I don't feel like paying $80+ for them.....so making a pair would be much cheaper I'd imagine. I know there are some handy people on here, so hopefully someone here has made a set. Any help greatly appreciated.

Awesome color on that baby! Nice work

Yeah I agree with the above statements too, WhiteMike. However you can still accomplish some goals, just take baby steps. Here are a few suggestions. -Buy some lure making materials using out of pocket expenses. A spinnerbait mold, materials, etc. and get good at cranking them out and painting them. -Start a website (you can do this yourself for like $10 a year) with your products and maybe have a fishing report/weather local to your area. -Go to your local events you mentioned with some stickers and promote your website. Some sample baits may be a good Idea as well. Have a couple t-shirts made up and wear them around, you never know who will see the web address and look it up. This way you will still have a "business", maybe not as upscale as you'de like, but you gotta start somewhere. Also this can be achieved with very little $ and risk. Good Luck - Ben

I just did a yahoo search on meanmouths....they look exactly like those ones that fishchris was catching. I'm not saying that his fish were definitly them, but they look a lot like them. Maybe the ones in that lake are hybridized with something else? However aside from those huge pigs that he caught....some of the smaller (5-6 lb )ones did look like true smallies in shape and coloration.

That sounds like a lot of fun! So do you just pull off the road and fish? Does that reqiure a freshwater, or saltwater license?

Agreed....3.5-4'' tubes w. 1/8 oz jighead Green Pumkin color Also buzzbaits when it warms up and crayfish colored cranks. And bigger jerkbaits like rouges or pointers or x-raps.

I am visiting some family in the Naples area at the end beginning of April. I will have access to a small boat and a lot of backwater to fish. What are some sure fire tactics this time of year for backwaters in that area? I would love to catch snook, but anything would be great. I have been before and had some success, but this time I'd like to do much better. Any help is much appreciated....thanks. -Also, are there any places close to Naples for Peacock? LM?

First Off....learning how to fish a tube well, and with confidence will not happen overnight. It's a gradual trial and error process. I was new to tubes until a couple years ago and now they are my #1 goto bait for smallmouth....and catch alot of greenies as well. Get a tube that matches crayfish or bottom color...my standard is green pumkin..I usually stay w. dark colors. I rig with a 1/8 oz weedless insert jighead...sometimes you need heavier, but not much. Your retreive is the hard part....finding that area of doing what the fish will eat vs. getting snagged on the bottom is a fine line. Slow is the key! You will lose baits regularly...but as they say: If your not losing them, your not fishing them right. Another tough part in the beginning is noticing the difference in bumping stuff, and a bite. You will swing and miss alot at first. It will all come together in due time...tubes are fish catchers. Good Luck!

Any of these 4 -chartruse shad -ghost minnow -american shad -pearl ayu

Hands down the Sammy. It is well worth the $15 price tag. Ease of walking, great colors and detail, awesome hooks, the fact that you shouldn't lose them easily make them worth it. I recommend the 100 size, it walks the best for me, and its perfect sized. It will catch you a ton of fish. I prefer the Chart. Shad color. It works in pretty much any water, even murky because it rattles like crazy and makes a ton of commotion.

Definitley don't give up on it...it was like my #1 fish catcher last year. First off, what size do you have? The 100 "walks" the best for me. You need to wait till they warm up and want to bite topwaters first....once they do, you should be getting hit non-stop on it. I throw it out as far as I can and immediately start walking it back. Depending on your position, your rod tip will vary. If i'm on land or in kayak, my rod tip is up...if i'm in a boat its down. Just experiment to see which way you can get it to walk the best....also I use a spinning rod which is a little un-orthodox for this method...I just like twitching w./ my right hand and reeling lefty. Walk it back at a medium pace....you should get "blowed up" soon after! It takes some practice but you should get confidence with it....if not i'll give you my shipping address and you can send it my way!!! Good luck

Spiroh, From my experience, the 112 is not too big for them. You'll probably catch less numbers than the 97, but better quality fish. The 97 will put more in the boat, but maybe not as many good ones. As far as color for the stained water.....anything flashy should work.

OK, I stand corrected. Usually when they refer to "pieces" its per bait as in 72 bags times X number of baits.