Mobasser

Always very hard for me to say goodbye to a loyal great dog A-Jay. I've been there also. Time helps to heal these things, but I understand, it's never easy.

I'm like A-Jay. I'm an optimist, who's become a realist. Things will go wrong. People won't always act like you'd expect them to. Being a realist helps to deal with things. But, I try to keep my chin up regardless.

You can never go wrong with a plastic worm fished slowly.

I'll second the Diawa Revros 1000 size reel. Smooth and dependable. St. Croix Triumph light spin might work for a rod.

Try to remain healthy, be kind to people, and fish as much as I can.

Maybe you can add a washer to adjust your spool for good line lay.

Original Smithwick Rogue is a good floating jerkbait.

A fluke or similar soft jerkbait. Lightly weighted if you need to.

This is a good thread. Learn the forage- catch more fish.

X fast action med hvy

I think the older Pluegers may have been better. I bought a new President two years ago at Christmas. It felt grindy out of the package, so I exchanged it for another President. It too felt rough. I took it back and ended up with a Lew's Speed Spin- similar price range, that's worked good. I also have an older( wooden handle knob) Triton that still works well. I won't bash anything by Phlueger. I think they still have good products. If you have good luck with them - so be it. But I probably won't buy another one.

Certain baits bring automatic memories for us. It could be a certain fishing trip. Fishing with a friend, or a memorie of a good size fish caught or lost. As an example, every time I see a Beetlespin, I automatically think of Virgil Ward, and his Championship Fishing TV show. When I rig up a tube bait, I automatically think of Guido Hibdon, who became well known for using tube baits. And, when I rig a plastic worm, I automatically think of Larry Nixon, because I attended a seminar he did roughly 25 yrs ago. At the end of his seminar, he held up a plastic worm and said," learn this". Are there any baits that trigger an automatic memory for you?

My daughter gave me two small houses to catch them. They have a small Mason jar attached to the bottom. A hole is drilled at an angle in the side. When the bee goes in, he falls into the water and dies. Sometimes it takes them a couple of days to finally die. I hang these small houses above my back porch. I've probably killed fifty of these carpenter bees over two summers. When the water gets full of bees, empty it out and start the process over again.

After you sharpen the hook, test it by running the point across your fingernail. If it slides across it's due. If it sticks easily it's sharp and ready to fish.

I'll say Yo Zuri Hybrid also.

A-Jay, I'm lucky I have her. She's understanding about all this fishing stuff.

Kline tools make good pliers holsters. Look in the electrical dept at your Home Depot.

I have and use both. For the past several years Ive been fishing a very clear lake. Spin reels and lighter lines work best here. But I still bring baitcast tackle also. Both have they're time and place.

My wife always laughs when I run water in the bathtub or kitchen sink and test the action of a new worm or jig. She laughs when I change my line too much, or choose a certain glitter soft plastic bait over many others. She'll snicker when I explain my scientific approach to bass fishing. She'll snicker again when I need to stop by the tackle shop, knowing that I don't really need anything. When I ask her why she laughs at these things she says:" Fishing is your hobby. You should just relax with your hobby and enjoy it. Don't get so consumed with it that you don't have fun anymore". After thinking about it for a while, I realized my wife is right. It's easy to overthink everything, and lose track of why you started fishing to begin with. You can be a serious fisherman, and have fun too.

A few years ago, a Wal Mart near me had the Lucky Strike 4" and 6" curly tail worms on clearance for .25 per pack. I bought 20 bags. I kept some, gave some to a friend and my grandson. They were stiff, but we boiled them and laid them out on a paper towel. They worked good. The 6" tequila sunrise color was a favourite.

Plug. Old school name for what's now called hard baits.

Cover. Objects ( trees, weeds, etc)that bass hide in. I think structure is the big picture. Cover is what you get hung up on.

You could try a co poly line or straight mono. Both can work.

I agree with Catt here. There could be hundreds of trees, but the bottom countour dictates where the bass will be hanging out. Not all standing timber is productive.

My two votes for big bass go to plastic worms( 7" or longer"). And a spinnerbait at night( dark color).