Boomstick

^10 On a related note, here's Dweezil Zappa talking about meeting his childhood hero and playing his guitar at his school talent show when he was 12 and then playing Eruption. I imagine he was the coolest 12 year old or whatever in town...

I will usually put the frogs away when the water drops below 60, the buzzbaits away when it hits 55 but poppers are quite effective when the water is around 50!

I have been seriously considering dropping some money on a more expensive rod for T-Rigs and jigs (lures I have tied on almost all the time) - outside of cover one of these days, and the Megabass rods are on on the list.

I believe this update is similar to the updates they did with the Tatula SV. They changed the gear ratio on the 7.1:1 to 7.3:1 and made it slightly smaller and lighter.

I really like my Daiwa Tatula rods. I think the Dobyns Sierra would be more on par with the other rods on this list. The Mojo Bass rods are also good rods, and in terms of being able to detect a very weak bite they might be the most sensitive in that regards (other than the 6'10" MH/F Tatula which has a thinner than usual tip) but I feel I get overall better input on the Tatulas as to what I'm feeling, it's hard to describe but those with both should know what I mean. I have no personal experience with the Irod Genesis, but many people really like them as well. I had the tip break off on a 6'8" M/XF topwater rod. St Croix replaced it for me under warranty free of charge, so they did right by me. The rod's power and action is perfect for what I use it for, and so far the replacement has been better.

Usually transparent silver colors are good in clear water, but I've had luck throwing a variety of colors at times. A few clouds usually never hurt either, but more important is if there are rocks or stumps to deflect them off of - at which point square bills can really produce.

No they are not. Given that it's glass and they're less sensitive by nature, you would think there would be a flatter curve among glass rods but that couldn't be further from the truth. I am really impressed by the Daiwa Tatula glass rods that I have. They are surprisingly sensitive for glass to the point it's easy to forget they're glass.

I only handled them once in a store. It's hard to get the best feel for a rod without line on it, especially rods at that quality - bbut I have always heard they are on par with more expensive rods.

Is the line causing the chipping? The line shouldn't be touching that area...

With a $1000 limit, I would look at an Old Town Sportsman or Topwater (same thing, they renamed them to the Sportsman and upgraded the seat a little). The 12' model is right around $1000, comes with 3 rod holders (one is to change lures but you can't really paddle using it) and 2 cup holders so pretty well equipped out of the box. They track decently and they are very stable, I'm 6'3" and 300lbs and I have no trouble standing in my kids' 12' Topwater at all. What you will need additionally: YakAttack BlackPak or similar to hold tackle and 3+ more rods. $130 or so YakAttack Leverloc Anchor Trolley HD - $45 5lb mushroom anchor - $20 A paddle. I'd probably spend at least $160 on a paddle A PFD - $20 - 130. All in all, that will run closer to $1500 or so, but you're basically ready to fish at this point.

If it was kept inside, not too hot or too cold, then I would keep mono from 2019 until 2021 and use it early in the year as soon as everything thaws but when it risks exposure to cold, so I'm likely to be replacing line more often than usual Typically I buy new mono every season and if I have any leftover from the prior season, that's fine too

I said small QC issue because it can be easily resolved, although I have few doubts it's systemic at this point. Terrible QC would mean you bought a brand new reel and it's no more useful than a glorified paper weight.

I have 7 reels and the kids have another 4 each and I still have a lot of that 16oz bottle left too. It lasts a while.

I own three older Tatula SV reels. Both 6.3:1s are as smooth as any reel I've ever used but the 7.1:1 (or is it 7.3:1?) wasn't nearly as smooth for the same reason. I think they may have a small QC issue with greasing reels, but nothing that's difficult to fix. I'll likely pick up a couple of 2020 models for next season to add some more versatility to my setup.

What I would do is buy some small ones to carry with you, and a gallon to keep at home for when that runs out. The 16oz bottle I have lasted me a couple of seasons, so that's not bad!

My goto T-Rig rod is a first generation Daiwa Tatula 6'10" MH/F. It has a thinner tip similar to higher end Daiwa rods for extra sensitivity and I really like the split grip because I can easily balance it in one hand if I'm deadsticking it (which I don't do a lot) or need my other hand for something else and detect even the weakest of bites. Most of my rods are Tatula second gens and almost all are in that general price range, but this was the first baitcaster I ever bought and in hindsight it was a good choice. That said, if I ever drop a lot more money on a rod, it would be a rod that I would use for T-Rigs and jigs. I pretty much always have at least one rigged up now since I bought a kayak and extra sensitivity is the most important for bottom contact baits you use n the middle of summer when the fish aren't usually hammering it.

Also I believe what you wanted to say was 1992-2003 called and wants their lure back

So are you saying my lure preference matches my music preference aka dated? They still work, at times better than Senkos.

I am not sure what the bait of the year is. I caught my biggest bass of the year on a spinnerbait and it definitely made a good run starting in late August. I believe I caught the most fish on either a Berkley Powerworm but it also may have been on an arky head jig.

No problem - and I have to second what @Ktho said as well. If the area I mentioned doesn't produce, try the southern part. There's a ton of shoreline in a smaller area so it might be an easier area to cover if nothing else.

You're going to get a lot of different responses here. I'll just keep it simple and say that you get what you pay for, but there is a point where the return per dollar spent drops off significantly as well. Is spending $300+ worth it to you? That's for you to decide based on how much you can afford to spend, what you will fish on it and how often you use that type of presentation.

^10 On a similar vibe...

My first thought is you are getting smaller fish like panfish. Like others suggested, you could try a shorter worm and roughly the same size hook or just a size smaller and see if you land any fish. I would take it one step further. Try using a shorter worm and seeing if you can recreate the same scenario. And if you can, then try a Ned rig in the same spot. If you're getting panfish or smaller bass, you'll likely land a couple and that will tell you. There is a spot where the same always happened to me but the shorter worm had no better luck so I threw a Ned rig and got some pretty good sized rainbow trout and some bluegill and rock bass.

I've had good luck with several Lucky Craft silent squarebills, Norman Fat Boys and several others, but the one that I would throw in your situation would be the River2Sea Biggie, probably in the smalls size. They have a very natural looking wobble to them - I've fished it in schools of baitfish and it moves surprisingly close to them! I have some Lucky Crafts LC silent models that are similar. KVD 1.5s are also a safe bet for most scenarios. I've also had great luck with Megabass S Cranks and the Booyah Flex 2 both which have a more aggressive wobble and when the fish are really biting, they will hammer them.

Looking at the map, there seems to be several points that look promising, which makes finding an area without knowing the lake rather difficult. If you find a handful of shallow spots near drop offs, you can bet one of them is going to produce but with lakes like this, that's essentially the entire lake. This is where knowing the lake really comes into play. One spot that I see that does stand out is the eastern bank just west of Snodgrass road due to the curving slopes which can keep your bait in the strike zone for a longer period of time. Any fallen trees or weeds may produce as well as the bass could be holed up there waiting for baitfish - and of course if you see schools of baitfish, that's a good start. I would think a spinnerbait would be a good bet this time of year and on a windy day - I would stick with Willow blades or at the very least Indiana blades - once the water drops to 58 is when I start mixing in Colorado blades and at 55, slow rolling a Colorado blade becomes my go to along with a jerkbait and/or popper. Is there any stumps? If so you may want to try a Square Bill which could also be productive.