papajoe222

First off, thanks for your service. What will matter more than the cooler temps. at that point will be how long the weather will be stable. When there is a drastic change in air temps. in a short period of time is when the fish react negatively. Once things stabilize, their activity level should return to normal. Just think of it as a front that moves in to an area. Post frontal conditions can be the toughest, but a few days after it passes, not so much so. The same situation applies to a front that stalls out over an area, things stabilize. Ask around about water temps. and if there has been a significant change you could be in for some good action. There's no better welcome home than family, friends, home cooking and good fishing. Enjoy

I was thinking MH also. HXF on that rod, you'd better be throwing 1/2oz. or better the majority of the time. Either that or only flipping with it.

It depends on the depth of the water, but normally that'll be 4ft. or so and I'll go with 1/8oz. unless it's windy then I'll go up to 3/16oz. You can likely get away with something lighter on spinning gear.

The wife recently had surgery to repair her hiatal hernia as her entire stomach was above her diaphram. Scary when you think about it. I was never one to go to the Dr. for every ache and pain, but ignoring them isn't the answer. I lost a good friend that ignored lower bowel discomfort only to find out too late that it was cancer that could have been successfully addressed if he had only seen a doctor early on. We only have one body and all too often, like so many other things, we take it for granted.

For ease of skipping, nothing compares to a tube, IMO, even when rigged with an internal jig head. BPS tender tubes have a small profile and the BK Tube is a big fish producer. I like to lengthen the skirt by an inch or so with my scissors. Awesome action and it doesn't take anything away from its ability to skip easily. As for targets, I like hanging tree limbs that almost touch the water, especially an isolated one on an otherwise treeless shore. Docks are great too, but get a lot of pressure. You can easily skip a tube well back under a dock, more so than a jig.

Unless I missed it, I didn't see an Original Floating Rapala mentioned. This is the one that got me hooked on topwater and when I learned about what a bait sitting motionless can do to a bass' state of mind.

One word...............Braid

I wear both. The conventional when I'm running the boat and the auto inflateable when I'm on the front deck. The only time I don't have either on is when I'm anchored and there is someone else in the boat. I've fallen overboard a few times and I can tell you from experience that with no one else around and your boat floating away faster than you can swim 'dead in the water is your first thought. Well maybe not for you young studs that can swim a mile or two, but this old fart is smart enough not to rely on swimming to shore as the only option.

I have both within easy driving distance and BPS is the better of the two for fishing gear. For an all around sporting goods store, Cabela's gets the nod from me. Gander Mtn. is the closest to me, but unless I go in for one of their sales, I don't visit it.

Just read through this thread for the first time. Laughed so hard I farted and almost soiled myself. Thanks"......I think. Oh yea, been there and done that. Never became addicted.

I like to match the trailer to the jig skirt and give the whole package darker or lighter 'highlights' A different color head or dipping the tips of the trailer in a contrasting color.

Basically it's a membership they offer that entitles you to discounted pricing. For an occasional, small purchase it isn't worth the cost. If you are contemplating a major purchase, or shop on line a lot, you will save some cash. I purchased a generator and it was priced over $60 less for members. The membership costs like $29.............. No brainer.

As far as glass, graphite, or composite is concerned, you need to decide what you want from your cranking rod and base that on the type of cover you crank most frequently. I prefer a rod that transmits a lot of information back to me. I don't bottom bounce cranks much, so it's important to me to be able to feel the line going over a tree limb, or a hook catching the first weed top. A glass rod won't do that as well as a graphite one does and even a composite rod can loose a lot of sensitivity depending on the formulation of the blank. Yes, there is such a thing as too fast when cranking. You'll know when you've reached that speed as the lure will 'kick out' or spin and you'll feel the loss of vibration when it does. Some baits don't handle fast retrieves well and for others, there isn't a reel fast enough.

Tom is right on the money when he talks about green weeds and fall bass on lakes without shad. The farther into the season, the more important green weeds are. Come winter time, the deep weeds that haven't died off will be the home of the forage and the bass and other gamefish will be close by. Generally, this is a shallow to deep transition, but don't give up on shallow weeds as long as they're holding baitfish. Shad, minnows or bluegill, the bass will only abandon shallow water if there is no forage there.

My best success slow rolling has been at night with a short arm spinner working up a drop. I don't do it often enough to work it from shallow to deep.

What BobP said about the fish nipping or just swiping at the bait. Sometimes the fish will change their mind and turn away or not attempt to inhale it after making a commitment. A color change or speeding up your retrieve can make the difference. If this were your first outing with your cranking gear, I would suspect either it or your hook set. It sounds like this is not a common occurrence, so I woulndt recommend any drastic changes maybe upgrade your hooks if it'll make you feel better.

Not to disagree with others, as I don't. Picture yourself ten years from now and you're looking back on your decision whichever it may be. Would you be constantly wishing you had done things differently? There is always time for fishing, even if it's only an hour or so at a local pond now and then. Golf is always a time consuming venture. Both have their own rewards and you don't need to give up one to enjoy the benefits of the other. Right now, at this point in your life, I think you know which benefits will serve you best, both now and in the future. Good luck

Don't rule out topwater. Buzzers, poppers or walkers produce throughout most of the fishing season and there is nothing more exciting that seeing a fish explode on top. If nothing else, they'll take your fishing to a new level of excitement and anticipation.

I haven't really gotten on board using swimbaits for bass, but the pike and muskie really go for an 8in. hollow body rigged with a keel weighted 5/0 VMC and a 1/0 3X treble. I would imagine a smaller hook of the same design minus the treble trailer would be a good option for bass. You won't get the same fall rate by weight as you did rigging with a worm weight, but you'll likely get more fish when you start swimming it.

Thanks for sharing, great catches. I have a 6lb.+ largemouth that my wife allowed me to have mounted. It sits on the wall here in my study.

Generally speaking, Road Warrior is right for in those particular series of rods. St. Croix rates their rods power lighter than most, but across the board attempting to compare brands/powers can confuse just about anyone. This is why I like the technique specific ratings that a lot of brands are going to. Match up what you want to use a rod for and the weight of your intended baits along with line ratings and you should be okay.

If I'm dragging a tube, I prefer to rig it either with an internal weight and a stout worm hook, or I'll 'stupid' rig it with a 3/16oz. or a 14oz. jig. The only negative to internal weights or jigs is that you loose the feed back that you get from the sinker or jig being on the outside. I get a lot of bites when the tube tumbles over an obstruction before it settles back to the bottom.

Come to think about it, maybe we all could use a little help in the stress department. Okay, I'll buy the first round, but d-camarena needs to sober up first. Popcorn in the oven???

Dressed trebles are normally added to baits that are paused during retrieve giving the feathers or hair a chance to pulsate. The appearance is supposed to imitate a tail flutter. They also add drag to the bait which allows the head of the bait to move more than the tail. If you frequently pause that bait, I would recommend sticking with a dressed treble. If you work it quickly and without pauses, you can get by without them, but the lure designer opted for a dressed treble for a reason and if you aren't pausing during the retrieve, maybe you should try it first. I would stick with whatever material was originally used, unless you are partial to hair or feathers or whatever.