Glaucus

50* and 20mph winds today after being in the 30s, 40s, and very low 50s for several days with overnight lows in the 20s. Shut the fish off again and the wind made it brutal this evening. Not even a sniff.

Scott Martin is another serial offender. "That's a freakin' 5 pounder, dude!" *nets bass* ...Is maybe 2lbs

9.58lbs

Adding Crappie into the mix kind of confuses things between a ML and a M. It really depends on what lures you will be using. For small creeks, small ponds, Erie SMB, Crappie ... I'd say a ML rod, 6'6" to 7'. Daiwa Aird X rod with a Pflueger President size 25 reel. The only problem is you will limit yourself to finesse style fishing, but it catches a lot of fish, some really solid fish too. You just won't be able to fish a more broad range of lures.

That's a picture perfect LMB

How about a quote? One I've always loved is, "Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree."

I beat the heck out of one of those combos on the river last year.

I don't know how much this helps but when I first learned I used 12lb mono (good diameter but not too big to become unmanageable), a moderate fast action rod, I cranked the brakes up and tightened the spool to where I would have to give it a slight jiggle to make the bait fall, and I always always always did a smooth side arm cast using both hands and followed through like I was swinging a bat - but I did not cast hard! A smooth follow through. Casting distance will not be good but it built my mechanics and within the day I had the hang of it. Not entirely perfect of course but I slowly back off the brakes and tension over some time, experimented with different casting forms, and slowly increased how hard I "swung" Definitely start slow and build up. Over time you won't need to even thumb the spool on an average cast.

I guess of all concerns (for lack of a better word) my main one was humans catching a hook.

What's up Gronk

I break off so many squarebills and various jig heads in one of the rocky rivers I fish. Part of what got me wondering. I spend time with a few other anglers who love this river too and break off with the same frequency. Part of a rocky river. You're guaranteed to pull up an ancient crankbait at the dam almost every time you go.

It's all good. We're all on the same team. My PB LMB was caught on a 3/16oz spinnerbait and my PB SMB was caught on a Ned Rig. Funny things happen. In the context of the OP I was definitely talking about targeting bigger bass and trying to eliminate smaller bass.

I learn a lot from watching better anglers than myself on YouTube. I also learn a lot from this forum, social media, and time spent on the water. Is the video evidence method of learning a problem?

Small bass will hit big lures and big bass will hit small lures, sure. We're talking about specifically targeting big bass; doing that, increase your lure size. You're looking for those couple of bites rather than numbers. Try telling big swimbait fishermen who fish all day looking for that one bite that big lures don't mean big bass.

I don't feel sorry for people who can't exercise self control. I also don't know anyone who buys expensive gear just because it's expensive. I do, however, know of people on social media and forums who like to brag about their expensive gear. In the end, it's the individuals money to blow or not blow any way they please. The only time I feel bad is when a newbie seeks advice or does research and gets sucked in by either a pro marketing something or another person who thinks one must have the most expensive gear to be able to fish at all. I always keep my mouth shut but when I see someone seeking advice for their first setup and someone suggests the most expensive Loomis rods and $300-$400 reels, it's very off putting and I just have to shake my head. Humans are very good at spending other people's money.

I narrowed down your problem. Teasing of course.

Too many to make it worth posting a list. Most of my casting rods are 6'6", but I have rods at 6'8", 6'9", 6'10", and 7'. A healthy mix of medium and medium heavy powers, with one heavy power. Most in fast actions but a few in moderate fast actions. The majority of my reels are 6 something to 1 gear ratio, with a couple in 7 something to 1. Line is 10-12lb Yo-Zuri Hybrid, 12-14lb Trilene, or 40-50lb Power Pro.

It will be 27* at 6am and 50* by 4pm. I'm going to give it a go, but the whole weekend was cold so it will probably be slow.

People like that are why so many ponds have "No Trespassing" and "No Fishing" signs.

I don't get it.

Very true about hooks. I just don't know how long they actually take to rust like that. A common moral response to someone saying to just cut the line on a gut hooked fish because it will rust out, is to put a hook in a jar of water and tell us how long it takes for it to rust enough to corrode away. But you are right. I've pulled up old crankbaits and wacky rigs that have basically had dust for hooks. I get so mad at people when I see all the trash in and around our water systems. One of my ponds is so clear right now that I noticed a bunch of beer cans in the water. Unbelievable! One of these days I'm probably going to get my jaw broken because if I notice someone leaving trash I tell them they should pick it up in a tone that says I'm not asking and I don't think fondly of them.

Have you ever wondered about the environmental impact of breaking off? When you consider all of the hundreds and thousands of people doing it? Is there an impact? All of the plastic, rubber, metal, lead, tungsten, etc littering our lakes and rivers? At what point is the lake or river so full of hooks that you can't step in them?

Eh seems to be a common problem. I watch gators try to get Roland Martin's lures on YouTube all the time.

I've never really spent good money on spinnerbaits. I've always just picked out Strike King or Booyah in a size and color I needed. However recently I decided to spend some money on nice spinnerbaits and got a few of the Z-Man SlingBladeZ to try. Can't wait. My PB LMB came off a Strike King Lil Mr Money. Imagine that. I think those are 3/16oz.