papajoe222

I fish Havoc Bottom Hoppers on my ultra light both nose hooked with a circle hook and T-rig style with a 1/0 light wire EWG . When using the latter, I keep my casts short to reduce the amount of stretch on the 4lb. line and set the hook more than once. I loose a fish occasionally, but that's fine by me. It works great for crappie cranks and beetle spins too.

SuperSpook Jr, but if the buzzbait bite is on, you know I'll be throwing a black, double blade.

I'll be fishing the St.Croix area in northwest Wi opening week. Water temps on the two lakes I fish (both under 1000 acres) tend to be in the low to mid 50's. I should mention that they are both natural/deep lakes with clear water and hard bottoms throughout. Even on shallower lakes with muck or silt bottoms, I doubt if the water temps would be much above 60 which means bass and gills will not be on beds yet. The good news is the fish should be active if the weather is stable for a few days prior to the opener. They may even be cruising the shallows in the afternoon. More than likely, though, they'll be somewhere close to shallow coves or flats the majority of the day, Either that, or suspending in the warmer upper layer of water in those same areas. If by chance there has been a steady breeze from the southwest fo most of the day, or a couple of days, check out the northern coves and flats. They'll likely hold the most active fish.

I'm always amazed at the number of good size bass I catch while fishing for pike and muskie. I don't know if it's because they don't often see forage that size, or because of the areas I fish. My thinking leans toward the latter. Location is the key, no matter what species you target. Bass that live in waters where they aren't the predominate species tend to expand their forage choice, so bigger baits are a good option.

I was also going to suggest going with a lighter lipless. Also, try starting your retrieve as soon as the bait hits the water and if you're using spinning gear, reel faster as the line recovery is less than with a baitcaster

You can upsize or downsize the bait and/or weight as you see fit to. I prefer a smaller hook when nose hooking the bait and larger when I T-rig.

My guess is that, like some shotguns, they are meant to be collector pieces.

Unlike safety pin type spinnerbaits, you can't change the blade on an in-line for a deeper presentation. Lighter line isn't the answer either. Your only options are to either go bigger, or add weight ahead of the bait. Using one on a Booyah Bo Rig might be an option, but I haven't heard of anyone trying it.

BBQing melons? Those California guys! Next thing you know they'll be putting pineapple on pizzas. Awesome color for a tube though.

When I'm fishing weeds, it's some variation of green. I'll often dip the tail in chartreuse. If I'm fishing rock or sand bottom, I try to match the bottom color with something having black or red flakes.

Are you looking at spinning or casting?

Glen did a video on learning how to detect bites with soft plastic baits and a jig bite is often very similar. http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/feel-bite.html If you are familiar with fishing a T-rig, you should be able to detect a jig bite. One suggestion: slow down. If your line is always moving, you're fishing too fast. Pause between hops, or after dragging the jig a short distance. Dragging it along the bottom, using the rod to do so, will transmit valuable information about the bottom and the presence of cover more than hopping it. The majority of hits when fishing a jig occur on the initial fall. This is why it's the perfect presentation when flipping or pitching and why it's used more for 'target fishing' than say covering a flat with multiple casts. Check out the pinned topic at the top of this forum. There is a bunch of great info in some of the responses.

That would depend on a number of things, the most important being; Where are they and how deep are they? If they're holding or suspending at 10-12ft. it would be an option, but if they're at 20+ft. I think you know the answer.

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/zara-spook.html

Up until a few seasons ago, hair jigs were my go to presentation when faced with cold front conditions. I just recently got into using spinning gear and for some reason never tie one on. A bulky buck tail has a nice slow fall an when tied with some body hair moves with the slightest current.

For sub-surface, I like the Bill Norman line of cranks. The DeepLittle N is a great numbers crank. For top water, I'm normally a Spook guy, but early post-spawn females seem to prefer a CrazyShad fished with long pauses. If they are really tight lipped, a wacky rigged 4in. stick worm seems to get them to open their mouths.

I have two; Luhr Jensen WoodChopper and Cordell CrazyShad.

One of the best ways to 'read' the bottom is by using a heavy jig or C-rig. Changes in the bottom type and the presence and type of cover will be transmitted up the line to you better than other types of lures. By dragging either set-up along the bottom, you'll also be able to tell when there is an increase in depth (when you can't feel the bottom the weight is either dropping, or a fish has picked up your offering. By counting down your presentation you'll have a good idea of the depth where your cast landed. The other benefit to these two presentations is that they can be worked as slow or fast as you like, though you may need to go heavy if you want to work extremely fast. Did I mention they are fish catchers? Once you find fish, you can always go to another technique as you will know the depth and type of cover or structure. All you need to do is pick one that works best for those conditions, or you could just stick with what you're using.

I like a Kalin's Lunker grub ghost (clear salt and pepper) or smoke.

First cast was a #3 Mepps squirrel tail. First five bass were on a single Colorado blade spinnerbait.

Gee. The game has been played for over a hundred years on a professional level. I've been a fan for over sixty years and I can't recall ever reading that the way the game is supposed to be played included language that prohibited over running or sliding being an automatic out for anyone other than that runner. Deep dish sports shows try's to make it sound like the rule was always there. Then why not just enforce the existing ruling?

With the longer lengths offered currently, this 'problem' isn't going to be easily solved. Think of it as balancing out the rod on a fulcrum with the pivot point being the grip. Without moving that pivot point, your best option is to add weight to the short end. You can take the reel out of the formula as its weight is being held by the angler. Add a lure hanging from the rod tip and you are again dealing with a tip heavy rod. Now change the angle of the rod to bring its center of gravity below the reel. You've accomplished the same thing without adding weight. The solution, IMO, is to hold the rod tip up at 10:00-11:00 rather than straight out or only slightly raised

Are you nose hooking the bait?

I use a 7ft. Med./Fast for the majority of my tube fishing. I can toss a 3-4in. tube with a 1/16oz. jig with no problem. The only time I go to a Light action rod is when I downsize to 2.5in. or smaller tubes.

I use 30lb. braid on both baitcasters and spinning reels, but I wouldn't use it on any spinning reel smaller than say a 30 size.