papajoe222

The other crank looks a lot like an older Bomber Model A

For the last 40+yrs. it's been the Zara Spook. Different versions of the original, but I still throw the original with some modifications. If you consider a jig a throw-back, then that would be my most productive, hands down.

My go to early season bait. When the blade bait bite dies down is when I break out the jerkbaits.

I don’t use them on a traditional bass jig, but add one to a ball head jig as a down sized offering.

The only time I have any feelings at all about a first catch on a combo, is when it's a family member, or friend that I gifted it to. I get a charge out of watching them fight and land that first one. My own, I'm just excited that I caught something.

Bass Pro offers a utility binder in two sizes. You can sort your spinners by size, blade style color and still have bags left over for trailers, replacement blades or whatever. I use one for jigs and another for spinnerbaits/buzzbaits.

And she says you don't listen to her, right?

I was out in my old V-hull with my wife and two little ones. A storm blew in unexpectedly with winds topping 40mph. I wasted no time firing up the outboard and took off for the launch ramp. Bucking the wind the entire way, we finally made it only to find that I was dragging the anchor the entire way back.

I never know what to say when I get news like this. To the members of the BR family, I say; We will keep his memory alive as he helped so many of us better understand bass and his stories will entertain and enlighten us for years. To his close friends and family, Condolences. I feel your loss and share your sorrow. RIP Tom

It's one of the two days out of 365 that you can stand an egg on its end. I used to go into our local Denny's and order a dozen and then stand them up along the window. It was one of the ways I stayed in touch with my inner child. I don't do it anymore because that child escaped. Longer days are nice to look forward to, but I'd settle for a couple of days in a row above freezing

Thanks!

You're lucky to have non ethanol gas available. In Illinois, that isn't an option. Stabil and drain the carb(s) at the end of the season. To the OP; Reloading and bench rest shooting. It used to be shooting from the prone position, but age had an enormous influence on the switch.

It's the only time of year I'd even consider being Irish. March 17th is what I'm hoping for.

With the preference for longer rods becoming more prevalent, balance becomes a concern for me when building. I just finished a jigging rod for a customer and wanted to balance it as best as I could. I ended up moving the reel seat up the blank a couple of inches and although that reduced that tip heavy concern, it didn't eliminate it. Other than adding weight to the butt, are there any other ways to address this?

I have the same St. Croix as JigMan. I throw everything from Neds to 1/4oz. tubes and it performes better than my old Forecast that I built quite a few years back. I still use that one for the really light stuff, but that St.Croix can toss just about everything it's rated for and has the backbone to land some big fish.

I have to ask; How deep is the water you're targeting? Fish are not going to move far to feed in frigid water at this time of year and that includes going up or down. That +2 that gets down to 10ft. would be an option in 15ft. but if the fish are belly down on the bottom, I'd have serious doubts about getting them to move that far up. If they don't, try switching to a blade bait and gently yo yo it off the bottom and back down.

I've been fishing a lake since I was 13. I'm 76 in three weeks. It's safe to say; I'm well acquainted with it, but I don't know it.

I've been thinning out my crankbait inventory and I'll admit, Bandits were the first to go. Nothing against the quality of the baits, they just did a poor job of producing.

I use a C-rig to cover water quickly, but even in the early spring cold water that isn't what I would consider fast. The only thing I change for different water temps is the leader length.

I'm still working on putting all my stuff in a big pile. I started at 15;50 on the 19th!! When I'm done, you want me to calculate what percentage of it I actually use?? You're a math teacher, aren't you?

I'm just the opposite. I've simplified my approach and in so doing, I've stopped chasing big fish. Now, I just go fishing. No competition, no excessive time scoping out potential spots, no waiting for conditions to be in favor of a great outing. I just go fishing. The more fish I catch, and I don't limit myself to one species, the more I enjoy it. If the fish aren't cooperating, I just enjoy the time on the water.

My mainstay, for as long as I care to admit, has been a jig. To be specific, a skirted, Arkie style one. A close second is an action tail worm, usually a ribbon tail, or speed worm. Up until this year, a tube was my second choice, but I found myself reaching for a worm more often this year.A trick worm rounds out the majority of my soft plastics. For hard baits, Spooks, Cranks (mostly Bombers), spinnerbaits, and prop baits. My biggest LM this year was caught on a spinnerbait, which was a first for me as a jig has held that spot for as long as I can remember.

I don't know if they still make them or if the company is still in business, but TriggerX has/had a tube/creature that's a notch above a craw tube (which I throw, too). The tube part is 4in. and the creature part is another 3in. I have one pack and two spares. I guess I've used them kind of sparingly for both flippin and on a C-rig, but they produce quality+ sized fish.

My only experience is with the wooden, pencil, double prob Devil's Horse. The two retrieves that have produced best for me are two quick, short bursts, pause and then a single short burst. I may slow it down a bit if I don't get any action. The other is a rip, pause, repeat retrieve. The pause is when I'll get bit and I'll play around with its duration until I dial in what works. I may switch out to a Crazy Shad if I feel the need to downsize.

I've been wearing an arthritis glove on my palming hand. Mine have just the very tips of the fingers exposed so I can run the line through them. My cranking hand stays gloveless and I'll put it in my pocket until I need to crank in slack. With the cold, I'll have a HotHands in that pocket. Whatever I toss, it's worked with the rod, that way I can put my hand in my pocket. On a cold, windy day, I may tuck another one inside the glove hand.