Mobasser

Catt, this is exactly what I was doing. I kept thinking get this bait smoothly through the weeds, with no tangles. The hook tail worm was catching on these weed stems- I could feel it. When I shook the rod tip to free the bait, the bass hit. One of these three fish really popped it, much harder than I expected. I'm glad I tried the hook tail worm in this cover now.

Yes. They are great tools. My next one will be the 26" campers axe. Not sure when this company was started, but I believe 80yrs ago. Maybe longer. Their the ones that all other hammers have to measure up to. We had a guy help us this summer who had a Stilleto. Magnesium head hammer, with a nice axe handle made of hickory. I think he paid 100bucks for this one. All was good untill we had to do some demo, knocking out old studs, lathe and plaster, and pulling old nails on 3 walls. Our 30yr old Estwings ate it for lunch. That's why I still like them the most. I'll stick with the old blue handle any day.

They are so durable they will last a lifetime. Not expensive when you consider how many cheap hammers you can go through. The very worst are the wooden handle 2.99 hammers they sell at some discount stores. Make sure nobody is close whan you swing one of those! If the handle doesn't crack, the head could come flying off, which can really hurt someone. This will never happen with an Estwing. You made a good choice. Estwings have a well earned reputation for durability.

J Francho, you'll own it forever!

I think the only reason I've kept mine so long is I watched it like a hawk.Agree, guys are always trying to steal tools.

Taking a quick coffee break here at work, I'm looking at my Estwing 16oz straight claw hammer I bought almost 30yrs ago. It still does the job now, as it did when it was new. When I first got into carpentry work, I started with a home builder who did much of the work on his houses. He subbed out electrical, and HVAC work but we dod everything else. I quickly noticed each man on his crew carried an Estwing hammer, and many owned two, one for framing, and a lighter one for finish work. There's a reason for this. Estwings are tough, American made quality tools. They last a lifetime. I own four Estwing Tools now, a heavy framing hammer, the 16oz hammer, a 3lb small sledge hammer which belonged to my dad, and a leather handled campers hatchet. All are at least 25 yrs old, and all still get the job done every day. It would be very hard to find a product that's American made, that offers this much durability, for the price. If they start to rust, simply sand them off and and give them a light coat of oil. They'll be good to go for a lifetime. Just like Channel Lock pliers, one of the great American tool companies, still doing it right. I know there are many tradesmen, and retired trademen on this site. Do you still use or have you used Estwing tools. In my opinion,the best hammers on the market. You simply can't go wrong ??

I fish a lake weekly with a big hydrilla growth. It's been coming on for a few years now, and this season it's the thickest I've seen it. I use plastic worm much of the time here. I almost always chose a straight tail worm, usually a Zoom Trick Worm, Roboworm, or Mann's Jelly worm, because I figured they would always come through this cover better than other styles. Recently I put on a Zoom U Tail worm, Texas rigged, and fished it in the thick weeds. As I retrieved slowly along the bottom, it was obvious the tail of this bait was hooking around weed stalks. I caught 3 bass on 3 consecutive cast when the tail became hooked on the weeds, lightly jiggling the worm to free the bait. These 3 strikes were solid, a much harder " tap" than the usual very light hits I normally get on this lake. I'm not sure if the shaking of my rod to free the worm caused these harder hits, or the action of this worm? Either way it worked. I know many folks like to bump hard baits, lipped crankbaits, and lipless baits into wood cover also. I have caught a few bass doing this too. Of course I've snagged and lost baits also. Do you normally fish curly tails in the weed cover, or opt for a straight tail worm, especially in hydrilla? What's your choice? It goes to show that even after all these years at bass fishing, you can always learn something. It was an eye opener for me.

Glad your back at it.Looks like things are going well.

I use Zoom chunk trailers, small and large size.

I don't think a scam. Designed by Zell Rowland, one of the best. This bait is a modern take on an old lure I used as a kid, the South Bend Bass Oreno. A floater, popper, diver. It works

My evening bank trips are around 2hrs. Less now, getting dark by 7:00

I believe that blue was also Bill Dances favorite color for years too.

Tom, I used to love blue also. When the first electric blue worms hit my area years ago they couldn't keep them in stock. I've leaned towards purple and grape for years now too. But I'm sure blue will still work good, and agree that their hard to find also. Every color of blue now is a variation of blue mixed with other colors.

I'm a fan of the Heddon Bayou Boogie also. These are as good if not better than any other lipless bait I've ever used

Slider heads with an offset hook work great for me. I use the Spider slider and Snagless Slider heads with several brands of worms in the 4" size. Rarely have trouble hooking fish with these

One of my favorite spooks, in bone color.

I'll always keep some rattletraps with me. I catch more fish with them than any lipped diving cranks. Versatile baits that can run at any depth or speed

Nice fish!

A-Jay, I just picked up a Qauntum low profile casting reel. It's my first one. I love it.

Catt, I'm not retired yet, but I know how this goes. Once people realize you know how to fix things, it goes on and on. Garbage disposals, hot water tanks, cars, carpentry, the list keeps getting longer.

Good luck. Hope all goes well I plan on catching some crappies for the freezer, maybe fish for some stocked trout with my wife too.She usually outfishes me on the stocked trout. Also, my son in law has a couple of beagles that are ready now, so may do a little rabbit hunting. Havnt hunted rabbits for many years, so it might be fun. Aside from that, stay warm and fish for bass untill the lakes freeze over

I don't care what he uses. I fish ABU, Shimano, Qauntum, and one Diawa. My next reel will be a Lews. After all these years, I know it's not the brand name, but where you fish with them that matters. All these company's make good reels. They'll all catch bass

I love shorter length/ handle for topwaters.Im using an older Fenwick pistol grip rod. Working good so far

As I've said a few times here, my grandson Aiden has been my fishing partner each Saturday for 5yrs now. Aiden recently turned 16, and applied for a job as a grocery sacker at a store in town. He got the job. This will be his first real job, and it will be good for him to work, and learn what it's all about to budget and make money on his own.Saturday is a busy day at the store, and his boss told him that it's important he be there at 8:00 each Saturday morning. So, he can't go fishing with me like we have for the last 5yrs. I ran into an old friend, actually a friend of my older brothers, up in town the other night. Mike is 71. He walks with a limp, and has since 1970, when he returned from Vietnam, with a leg wound from a bullet which came from ground fire and entered a helicopter he was in. He asked me if I still fished, and I said of course. I invited him to go. He said he hadn't fished in 12 yrs. On Thurs night last week, I picked him up and we made a run to Academy where he got new line, some plastic worms, 2 new spinnerbaits, and a new Pop-R. We spooled his reels, cleaned up his rods and tackle, and sharpened the hooks on his older baits. At one time over 12 yrs ago, Mike was a good fisherman, and had a reputation for being a skilled fisherman in our area. When his wife passed away several yrs ago, he kind of gave up on things. The fog was still on the water when we shoved off at daybreak last Saturday morning. He started with his new spinnerbait, me a buzzbait. We got no action for the first half hour, then he hooked a small 10" bass. We moved over some deeper water when a solid 3lb bass hit his spinnerbait. He admired the fish, and turned it loose. Things got quiet for a while. What's up Mike? You ok? He looked over and said " Man, I Love this." I don't really know why I quit fishing, I guess I just kind of quit everything. We finished the trip by noon, using plastic worms over a deeper area that always produced a few fish for Aiden and I. Yes, he backlashed a couple of times, and overshot his cast a few times, but really did pretty good for not having fished for 12 yrs. We made plans to fish on the weekend for the rest of the season, and if Aiden gets a Saturday off by chance of course he can go too. I'm sure within 2 more trips, Mike will be firing off accurate cast just like he did years ago. One more thing: He hasn't ever heard of Kevin Van Dam. I'm pretty sure he doesn't care either. Hes getting his game back now, picking back up where he left off. Soon , he'll gain his reputation back as a skilled fisherman. Hopefully, it will give him a new outlook on life too. I think it's going to work out that way.

My granddaughter lives in Huffman Texas. She called today and was telling me about flooding, heavy winds, and pouring rain there.