papajoe222

I’ve used a Finishing nail to add a little weight, but I prefer a heavily salted worm that sinks bit faster. They don’t last as long, but they sure do catch fish.

It depend on whether I'm working it fast or slow. For a fast presentation, I like a7.5in. Culprit worm. For a slower one I like something that floats, or sinks very slowly. A floating Zoom trick worm (I forget what they call them) or a tube with some air blown into it are my favorites. If I'm using a french fry, it will be on a split shot rig.

Of the two, yes. The ball head has a 90 degree line tie which will give the tube more of a spiral and the 60 degree (stupid head) give it more of a gliding fall although it does make a wide spiral. I use internal weights for a weedless presentation that will still spiral. Texas rigging, with a bullet weight doesn't give a tube that action, but is a great option for dragging a tube on the bottom.

One thing I would add: Keep clutter off your deck. It's a time saver to have rigged rods on deck, but stick with the one in your hand. If you want to use something else, reach for that one out of your rod locker or off the rear deck and put the one you're replacing away.. Not only can that be a safety issue, but stepping on a rod you can't see can be a heart breaker.

Although I'm not ready to sell my boat, my situation is similar to yours. The similarity ends with not falling overboard, which I've done four times in the last three years. I'm 74 and I can stand with one foot on the TM with no issues, However, when I bend down or over, my balance suffers. I started wearing an inflatable PFD after the first incident and I've gone to stepping down off the deck when landing fish, or even reaching for my pliers, or phone. There is no one else to take me fishing and I've stopped fishing the big lake. I know there will come a time when I may need to hang it up, but hopefully by then, the grandson will be driving. He already knows how to operate the boat.

About 25 years ago, I was on a day trip with a friend. The temp. Was in the mid 90’s and the humidity was, too. I had a six pack of soda in my cooler and two bottles of water. It was all consumed in the first five hours on the water. All my companion drank was water. My the seventh hour, my head was pounding, I’d stopped sweating and I was becoming increasingly disoriented. We got the boat loaded and he drove into the nearest town and right to the Fire Dept. After an IV and a liter of water I began feeling better. The paramedic told me soda is one of the worst liquids to drink to keep hydrated. Since then, it’s water and a sports drink and I start a day or two in advance.

No rules It's good to see members reading old threads as there is always information that that one hasn't seen, or known about.

I love these things for post frontal conditions when I'm targeting the bottom section of the water column. The get down and stay down and give plenty of feedback with the stock blade. I've even switched out that blade will a willow for when I want a faster presentation. Anyone else use them on a regular basis?

Old thread, but useful information. Fall rate, fast and x-fast for bottom contact presentations and a shorter rod and its uses.

Pardon my ignorance, but what is an accelerator? I tried the superglue, but hated the sound the knot made going through the guides.

wacky worm tube ned rig split shot rig, or jig/worm Fluke

Nice one! I'd venture a guess around 8+lbs. She likely pushed 8 before she dropped her eggs. Welcome to BR. Stick around, there's a lot of good info here and we have a good time too

Summertime is actually my favorite season for catching. The fish have pretty much set up house for the summer and the off shore fish bunch up around here. Stable weather is also a plus. The last few years, the skeeters have been few, but with all the rain recently, I'm preparing for the worst. For me, that means daylight 10:00-4:00, or after midnight fishing.

I stopped using EWG hooks for flukes. I was missing too many fish. I switched to a round bend offset worm hook and now I rarely don't hook up. As for fish getting off, with single hooked soft plastics, I, too, am surprised when it happens and when It does it's almost always because the plastic balled up and the barb never penetrated.

I never go fully unrigged. I always have one rod set with a jig (the trailer I choose may differ). A second rod always has a T-Rig and what I thread on will depend on the conditions. A third rod will have a tube with an internal weight and an EWG hook. Next to them, unrigged, are my cranking sticks (2) and my topwater combo. Those I rig wehn needed.

832, or Smackdown flash green. both are 8 strand, cast well and don't fade. I really like the hi-viz Smackdown as I'm an old fart and it's so much easier to see subtle bites.

I went to launch my boat last week and there were five guys circled around another with a crankbait stuck in his hand. One treble was in his middle finger and the other in his palm. Three of them tried in vain to push the finger hook through and cut the barb so they could work on the one is his palm. I took my side cutters and cut both trebles off of the bait and had both hooks out in a short while. Used the braid hook removal. I would possibly have not intruded, but they were blocking the ramp. On average, I would pull trebles out of my hands a couple of times a season, I fish a lot of cranks. Now it's a Boga Grip with any treble hooked fish.

I'm looking for a silent square bill that will run 6-8ft. deep in the 1/2oz. and under $15 price range. Anyone?

If you decide to go with a ScumFrog, make sure the line tie is closed completely, especially if you tie a loop knot. You can guess how I know. I really like the LiveTarget hollow body frog. Last season, I believe it was the only one I threw.

This is something that I almost always did for bottom, or just off the bottom, presentations. It worked well for me for decades. When I retired and was able to spend more time on the water, I started experimenting with colors that contrasted that of the bottom. What I found was active fish will search out that contrasting color and my catch rate was better. They'd still take something matching if it was presented close and slow, but I could work that off color faster and cover more water. Now I try to combine the two. All of this is from a guy that doesn't believe that color makes a difference the majority of time.

#1 Disrespectful anglers/boaters. I dislike dealing with them so much that I rarely fish on the week-ends. I still have to deal with some, but it's a much smaller percentage. #1 covers the majority of things, but one that really gets me wound up is anglers, fishing from boats, that cut 20yrds or more of line off when snagged. How difficult is it to motor over to the snag and either retrieve your bait, or cut the line off there? I can't tell you how many times I've cut yards of line from my TM.

or a 4in. tube. My go to presentation in your situation would be an Ultra-Vibe Speed Worm. You can cover water fairly quickly, or slow down and let it sit atop the weeds and jerk it to life. My second choice would be a trick worm fished the same way.

I'm more of an isolated,edge of cover on structure kind of guy. The main reason is spots like those are hard to find and it's much easier for guys to target weed beds, rip rap and the like close to structure. I only target heavy cover under cold front conditions, then it hand to hand combat time if there's heavy stuff available.

Very few spots are good year round. My first consideration is the season. Pre-spawn, I'm thinking PM and the area that gets the most sun during the day and doesn't get pounded by the wind. Once the spawn is over, I change my train of thought. Early morning east/shady side of structure and cover. I also am partial to the wind blown shore post-spawn. I'm referring areas where I begin my search. You gotta have a plan A and a plan B. My plan B is an afternoon nap

I much prefer a punch rig to a jig. Not only does it get through the thick stuff better (straighter fall), with a snelled straight shank hook, my hook-ups are better. About the only place I use a jig over one is in pads with no other weeds present.