BigAngus752

I have had a 2016 Ranger RT188 with a Merc 115 for two years now and I have not a single regret. I was able to try out Tracker, Crestliner, and Lund before hand. The only one that compared (in my mind) is Lund but at the time the Lunds that were available were not nearly as well equipped for what I paid for the RT188 (that may not always be the case). I have also had a Lund owner on my boat and he exclaimed repeatedly about how solid the RT188 is in the water. He felt the front deck was more stable on my boat than his 17ft Lund but I'm guessing my RT188 has more beam. I would not hesitate to buy a Lund or a Ranger aluminum. There are only two things I would change about my boat; I wish it had more storage (but there is never enough) and when it's windy I desperately want a heavy fiberglass boat. But I take my Ranger aluminum into places that I would never take a Ranger fiberglass so it's a fair trade IMO. If I had it all to do over again I would buy the same boat. If I fished in lakes that I was never going to drag or bump my boat over rocks and stumps I would buy fiberglass. Oh, and my RT188 has the center rod storage which holds 8ft rods. Happy shopping!

I had seen a Powell M/XF spinning rod on the clearance rack at my local Field and Stream about a month ago and it was exactly what I had been looking for. They wanted $79 (retail $99) and that wasn't enough discount for me. My wife wanted some new workout clothes so she wanted to be at Dick's on T-Giving when they opened at 6pm for their sale. I tagged along and sure enough the Powell was still there. Got it for $54. Then I noticed a Fenwick Elite Tech casting rod on the clearance rack ($150 retail). I bought that for $74. Then I got home and saw a post on this forum that Duckett had a deal if you buy one Terex for $100 (normally $130) they send you a second Terex MH casting rod for free! So I bought a Terex spinning rod. I just couldn't pass these deals up. Normally I don't even shop on Black Friday! LOL

Man, you've got that right. I love the Trick Worm. I've got two bags of Senkos that have been sitting for two years.

Here's the problem that I ran into by depending upon "search baits"; earlier this year I fished a long shoreline using my typical "search bait" and best bass catcher, a lipless crankbait (why it's my best bass catcher is part of the problem also). I fished along not getting any bites until I hit a point that I knew tapered into a deep channel. The sun was perfect, the season ideal for the depth, the structure was exactly what it should have been but I didn't get anything. I was so convinced that instead of moving on I kept throwing the lipless. Nothing. I was so sure that I stayed longer. Finally I decided to throw a t-rig with a trick worm. Immediately caught a bass. Then another. Then I decided to go back down that same shoreline I had just investigated with my best "search bait". I caught two more. I went from a skunk to a good day by slowing down. I no longer believe in "search baits". I pick areas based on the totality of the circumstances. I search that area and I use several baits. Depending upon the circumstances, I will usually run the entire water column from top to bottom and from fast to slow. AS I get more experience I expect that I will be able to zero in on what works more quickly.

I fish a small lake consisting of one half all standing trees in 15 feet of water and the other half a flat, nearly featureless expanse of gently sloping flatland toward the dam. In that large flat are there are just a few very lonely "humps" that stand anywhere from 5ft to 15ft off the bottom. These spots generally have at least one or two crappie fisherman stuck to them all day. My question for you; is there a "prime condition" and not-so-prime for bass to be holding in an area like this? Season? Weather?

This is how I'm planning my life right now! ? It's 18 at night and I'm watching the lakes skim over right now...BUT Saturday is 50 degrees and 90% chance of rain. So it's a battle. Maybe ice out on Sunday for a little bank fishing. Where can I move to that it's always fishing weather?

Not to hijack, but this was my exact dilemma just this morning. I was standing in front of the fishing line display in the store and I almost grabbed a spool of 6lb Berkley Vanish for my new "finesse" rig. I picked up a Powell XF "shaky head" spinning rod for half price on Friday and I put a KastKing 2000 on it. I was already using 8lb mono on the reel so I left it but I was pondering the fluoro this morning. With an XF rod (and it feels fast) would I be better off just leaving the mono?

God blesses us when he makes our lives interesting. For good or for bad.

Best idea I've heard today, sir. Done.

Is it just faintly purple/violet on top? That would be Sexy Lavender Shad. If it's more of a blue-ish it would be Sexy Blue Back Herring. I love those things.

That, my friend, will be the most epic backlash ever.

Sweet!

I tried to order a spinning rod but couldn't get the free casting rod with it. Very disappointing. I was pretty excited there for a second!

There are also several dietary supplements used for various things that promote vasodilation. The popular weightlifting supplement nitric oxide is readily available. The problem is that vasodilation only provides the FEELING of warmth by increasing blood flow. It's true effect, though, is to drastically increase the LOSS of body heat as the expansion of capillaries bring them closer to the surface of the skin allowing your body head to escape more quickly (while still having a feeling of "warmness" and a "flushed" appearance to your complexion). You can see how that could be dangerous while outdoors in the cold. That sounds awesome! I'm Googling now...

The Great Escape Last time I went out the water temp was in the 40s and the water was like sludge from all the rain and flooding. Got skunked. But the campgrounds were closed, the docks were pulled up, not a soul around. I floated in a cove and ate my lunch and saw two red foxes on a peninsula not 25 yards from me. It's peace I'm fishing for.

Yup. Unseasonably cold in central Illinois. Water temps are already at 50 or below and there are several nights this week down into the teens. Ridiculous for this time of year. Really shortened the fishing season. Winterizing the boat and putting together a shore fishing bag just in case a good day pops up.

@CroakHunter fixed you up perfectly. Pad Crasher or Bronzeye. Get a couple dark bellies, couple light bellies, couple paddle tail (NOT a Toadrunner) or make your own paddle tails, couple popping frogs (light/dark bellies) and you're done. All my frogs fit in a single 3700 (except spares) and I fish a frog for at least a little while every single time I go fishing. You'll almost never lose a frog. You will have to replace them after the bass tear them up, but it's a freak accident to lose one by snagging it (although I did it once this year in a high wind 20ft up into a tree ?).

This makes sense. I ran out and picked up a couple 1/4 and 3/16 jigs today. I plan to try them on my spinning gear tomorrow just to see how I interpret the "feel" as compared to the jigs I've tried to fish so far on casting gear.

This is exactly what I'm thinking at the moment. I'm going to work on my jig skills with some smaller jigs on spinning gear an hopefully get my confidence up.

Well based on that I think my next trip out I will try a 1/4oz jig with small trailer on my current spinning set up. That will at least give me an idea if spinning will help my interpretation of the feedback from a jig on the bottom. Thanks. Of course I just gave Mr Siebert $100 but didn’t order any of the tungsten! LOL. Thanks

I thought about picking up a couple 1/4 and trying them with my current M/F spinning that's rated to 5/8 but I feel like that's too light for bottom-dragging a 3/8 with trailer?

I don't have many spinning set ups. My favorite is a Lews Carbon Fire M/F that is rated 1/4-5/8. It's got a Daiwa Fuego 2500 on it loaded with 20lb Sufix 832 and I use various leaders depending upon what's tied on. I know the Carbon Fire is not "high end" but I can really feel the bottom and the taps well with that rod. It's a bit stiff for casting but I love the bottom feel. The others are old rods from my childhood and a couple ugly sticks. Nothing rated for more than 5/8. I felt like that was too light? Your thoughts? I'm due for a new spinning set up so if there's a suitable choice for around $100 (rod only) I'm game. I would probably put another Fuego on it. The best "feeling" casting rods I have right now are Powell and Fenwick. I considered searching for a similar spinning rod.

I am NOT a successful jig fisherman. I want to be. After experimenting for a couple years with jigs on baitcasting gear I've decided that my biggest hurdle is the "feel". I know many will advise that I just need practice with the casting stuff but in order to take the easy path I want to try jigs on spinning gear. I can feel everything really well on the bottom using a Texas rig, etc. and spinning rod so I want to try spinning gear with jigs. The set up will be used mostly for hopping/dragging/rarely swimming, usually 3/8 arkies and footballs. Probably primarily Siebert's Dredge jigs. If I'm flipping around extremely heavy cover or docks I will likely just tie a flipping jig on one of my baitcasting frog rods. For spinning, are you using a MH or H rod? I'm envisioning a 7-7'3" MH rod with a rating up to about 1oz. If you love your spinning rod for jigs please let me know what it is. Also, I read an article that suggested a 4000 size reel with the thought that you want to run 40-65lb braid on the spinning gear for jigs. What main line are you fishing? I was thinking 30lb braid to 15lb fluoro leader. Would you advise larger main line? Any experience, thoughts or suggestions are appreciated! Thanks

Daiwa Fuego CT available on Ebay from several reputable sellers for $65. Unless you stumble upon a great deal on a used or closeout reel you won't find a better baitcaster for a better price IMHO.

I always use a fluoro leader on braid when fishing anything on the bottom. I don't have enough fishing expertise to tell you if the bass can see the braid. The primary reason I use the leader is because both of my home lakes are flooded timber and I break off a lot of texas rigs and so forth. I use a swivel and a leader for that purpose and I use flouro because it's just darn tough line. Maybe the fish can see braid so that would be a bonus.