Brad_Coovert

4" Senko, 2/0 EWG or 1/0 Gammy Weedless Finesse Wide Gap (Wacky), 8 lb. line, 7' M spinning rod 5" Senko, 3/0 EWG or 2/0 Gammy Weedless Finesse Wide Gap (Wacky), 15 lb. line, 7' MH casting 6" Senko, 4/0 EWG, 15 lb. line, 7' MH Casting Brad

IMO, the Chatterbait brand is a poor product. I personally like the Gambler Swim Blades best and I have done well with them over the past two years. Brad

Keep some paper clips to push out the pegs. I like the Gambler Flroida Rig weights with the goop in them. Just don't lose the threader! Brad

Welcome to the forum! First off. let us know what your waters are like. Typical cover, water clarity, forage, depth, structure. There are probably plenty of guys here that fish lakes much like yours and maybe even the same waters. Also, what rods reels do you have? Mabny of them may be suited for most bass fishing, some may not. That way, we can suggest baits, etc. to start out with that may be better producers for your fishing. Good luck! Brad

Regular Paca Craw + Big Football Head Jig I'll have this tied on this weekend at Barkley. Once you get the Paca and Baby Paca figured all out, then you can finesse some fish with Tiny Paca craw. Brad

Part of your problem is the braided line. Zero stretch has its drawbacks: 1) Bends hooks easier 2) Also lets you tear a large hole on the hookset, espcially if you have a stout rod along with the braid. Personally, I do not like braid with Crigs. I fish Crigs in rock areas a lot and braid and rocks do not get along. My line of choice is a YoZuri Hybrid in the 15lb to 20 lb. range. My hooks are EWG Gammies. Rod is a 7'6" flipping stick. Never a bent hook and seldom a lost fish. I would suggest using a Gammie Superline EWG hook. Brad

ZOOM makes a yellow with black flake. They call it Banana Seed. It was new color in 2003 and may have been a special run. ZOOM makes a lot of special runs from time to time. That is the only one I know of. Brad

4/0 EWG will work with all three baits. Brad

4/0 EWG Gammie Brad

earthy, Gambler stopped making the screw-in weights when they went under. Now there are several screw in weights by Bullet, Picasso and Tru-Tungsten. When the new owners took over Gambler they came out with the new Florida rig weight that you thread the line through some goop in the center. I use these weights quite a bit and they are excellent weights. The biggest problem is that if you lose the threader, well, you're kinda SOL without it. Brad

ZOOM's tubes are very close to the old Luck E Strike G3 and G4 tubes. They are injected and are close to the same thickness. Brad

I use the Green Pumpkin/Watermelon color and do quite well on it. They are a good bait. Brad

5" and 6" GYCB Senkos, Fat Ikas and Kreatures - Green Pumpkin Lake Fork Live Magic Shads 4 1/2" - Albino Shad and Watermelon NetBait 4" Finesse Worms, 7" TMac Worms, Baby Paca Craws and Paca Craws - Green Pumpkin/Watermelon Laminate Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver - Roadkill 4" Flipping Tube - Roadkill ZOOM Ol' Monster and Brush Hog - Green Pumpkin Case Plastics Wacky Jack and 6" Jack's Worm - Green Pumpkin Gambler Cane Toad and ZOOM Horny Toads - White and Black Just some ideas off the top of my head. BTW - I really like greens, they catch fish everywhere and in all conditions for me. Brad

Bass are not smart creatures. They are no harder to catch on big worms than smaller worms. Big baits are like any other bait, sometimes they work, but sometimes they do not. I have caught bass on big baits in conditions that "call" for small baits and small line. I've had days when the only baits the fish would bite were 10"+ worms or lizards. Big baits also appeal to a lot of different sized fish, not just big fish. I've caught 8" bass on 10" worms in the same spots I caught fish 5lbs. or more on the same bait. The little ones gotta grow somehow. My two basic rigs for big worms is a Texas rig, weighted to meet conditions, and a Carolina rig. My preferred time is spawn through summer. I will crwl and swim a lightly weighted Trig through shallow cover, a heavier weighted Trig on deeper areas and also a Crigged bait on breaks, humps, etc. Brad

Shad, I reread and noticed your fishing from shore and fishing thick grass areas. Another problem you may be having is that the bass are taking your bait and then swimming into the grass. The heavy grass will interfere with a hookset at times. Like some have said, braid will help here as it cuts through grass better than any other line made. Brad

After using various hooks for the Live Magic Shads, I am sold on the Mustad Impact hooks with the plastic keeper. The 4/0 is a great fit on the bait and the bait lasts quite a while on this hook. They are super sharp and they stick the fish. The plastic keeper also works good with super glues. So far, I've lost one fish on this hook, but after a good fight and coming off, he still ate the bait on the very next cast - very aggressive. He did not get off that time. On a side note, I have caught the same bass 4 times this month on the same Albino Shad swim bait. He has been in the exact same spot each time. He has a very distintive mark on his left gill plate, so I know he is the same fish. So much for him being lure shy on this bait. Brad

Zara Spook or other walking baits (I prefer a LC Sammy, Vixen or similar style) - Any baitfish color. Jitterbug - Black Brad

Great hook idea Mike! Brad

2/0 Gammy Weedless Wide Gap or 2/0 Owner Mosquito hooks with rubber Orings Brad

She can do a lot worse than me. She scrapbooks along with various other things. She also has to pay retail prices for her stuff. ;D Mine are all at wholesale.

Trust my wife with my money?

White, Chartreuse and Black. I will throw them in that order. Brad

I know what you mean about storage. When I got my first boat, all I could think about was all that space. Man, did it fill up fast. My next and current boat had more storage, but it too filled up quickly. I could store more, but I leave a whole storage compartment open for my partners. We had a guy that used to be in our club that had a boat. All storage areas were full of tackle AND he brought 2 hard cased boxes with drawers and a large bag as well. Hardly any room in the boat. How he got on plane is beyond me. Brad

Open water - jighead. Cover - Texas rigged with an EWG hook and unpegged/pegged weight. Brad

They are more of a finesse buzzbait IMO. Not a lot of water commotion, but mine still squeaked a lot. It as an OK bait, but I like stnadrad buzzbaits better. Brad