papajoe222

You can land some big fish on a ML casting rod given the right conditions. Not only that, but in those situations, the fun factor is multiplied. You'll need to decide where it's applicable, but I say go for it. I have one that I built specifically for smallmouth, that I've used for everything from crappie to largemouth.

I only have two one knocker lipless cranks and I very rarely reach for them. If I'm not getting bit on a crank, or topwater with rattles, my first change is to a 'silent' version. I've gone as far as drilling holes in lipless baits and filling the cavities with glue to silence the rattles.

I've joined the majority that calls any worm rigged weedless a Texas rigged worm. I don't know many that don't rig a split shot weedless.

My go to split shot is a Zoom Trick worm in either black grape, or green pumpkin magic, depending on water clarity.

A local club that I fish fairly regularly had a similar situation for years; An abundance of small bass and just a handfull of fish over 3lb. They turned the lake around by changing size/limit restrictions and encouraging angles to keep some of the fish under 12in. By the fifth year after implimentation, not only did the number of quality fish caught increase, the number of smaller fish diminished. Sometimes nature needs a hand to get to where we would like her to be.

The abrasion advantage of fluoro over a quality mono like Original Stren or Trilene XT is minimal. If you're getting line twist using mono, you're likely getting line twist using braid. With braid, you won't notice it until it gets excessive and then you'll be frustrated with it constantly wrapping around your rod tip. Using a small, quality ball bearing swivel to attach your leader or adding one 18in. or so up your mono line will eliminate most of the line twist issues. Manually closing the bail on your spinning reel will also eliminate a lot of twist.

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Go with the the lay of the grass with a willow blade spinnerbait. If topwater is your preference, a buzzbait, or toad. For a bottom presentation, fish a swim jig on the bottom, or a T-rig, but peg the sinker.

Original Rapala floating minnow T-rigged Culprit worm Short arm spinnerbait Bomber Model A Arkie jig/trailer

I've found that adding a small split shot a foot or more above the worm will give it more action than adding one directly above the hook eye. The downside is strike detection is delayed, so watching your line is paramount.

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I guess it would depend on the individual. If you're asking across the board ratio, your guess is as good as anyones. Personally, if I fail to land 20% of the fish I set a hook on, I'm doing something wrong. That's on strikes that I detect. I would imagine another 20% go undetected. 5

You said that you haven't been able to locate any deep weedlines. At what depth do the weeds stop growing? Unless you are marking baitfish at a certain depth, that's the depth I'd begin my search. I'd be looking for two things. Cover of some sort at that depth, or a change in bottom composition especially if there is little or no cover to be found. Add access to deeper water to that mix. Both entrances to that cove that MN Fisher pointed out look promising, especially if either of those two are present there.

When I think 'show them something different,' I'm thinking something different from what the majority of anglers are throwing. Paddle tail swim bait vs. a spinnerbait, silent crank vs. one with rattles, straight tai worm vs. a ribbon tail and my favorite is a tube vs. a skirted jig/trailer.

T Thread your weight on the line, then one end of the swivel. Next, tie on your hook and run it through the nose of your worm. Run the hook through the other end of the swivel and insert the hook into the worm. I did this for years until Glen posted about using heavy mono run through the worm and hook eye. It not only works great, it doesn't pick up snot moss like the swivel.

I’m guessing you don’t throw many baits with three trebles. it can be tricky landing a fish, but other than that, I, personally, don’t see a reason to eliminate any hooks. If you feel differently, I suggest removing the front hook as that will give it a nose up attitude. Removing the middle one shouldn’t have much effect if you add a second split ring to the hanger.

To the question about docks. I've found that docks with metal poles for supports will hold bass at their base as many have rocks and small boulders to prevent erosion. The downside to those style docks is that the fish don't relate to the supports the same as they do to wood pilings. The areas under the dock (shade) and the base of the pilings are your best targets.

I'm not familiar with Lake Monona, WI, but I do fish a bunch of the smaller lakes around Lake Geneva. I only have one question and I'll offer up a suggestion or two. Are there pike, or musky in the lake? Their presence will have a big impact on bass location as they will cruise the outside edges of coontail and milfoil along with entire patches of cabbage. This forces the bass out of the prime weed areas. If there isn't too much open water above the weeds, that is a good place to start. If you can, get a jig to drop vertically into the weeds, or use a punch rig. Lastly, look for other forms of cover such as docks, brush and deadfalls. Pike and musky aren't bottom feeders and bass will head to the bottom if there is no where else to escape

Some bass will remain shallow throughout the day. That doesn't mean that they are active and you need to adjust your presentation accordingly. Slowing down and precise casting to targets will increase your odds of tempting those fish with a very small strike window. I go to the extreme at times and dead stick a small Senko. Downsizing will help, too. If you fish as if it were post frontal conditions, you could add a few fish midday.

Are you fishing from a boat, or from shore? Any more info you can provide would narrow things down.

I use 3/0 light wire hooks on 10in. worms all the time. I'll move up to a 4/0 if the worm is thicker bodied. A 5/0 superline is, IMO, over kill for all but heavy cover situations. With the light weight that you're employing, I would lean more toward it being strike detection, unless you're using the same hook/weight setup for standard T-ring, then

If you're picking up pond weed with your spinnerbait, it's one of two things causing it. You're either letting it drop into the weeds before starting your retrieve (very common using spinning gear), or the spinnerbait is too heavy. With the shallow water you descrived, unless you can get that bait moving when it hits the water, there are other options such as swimming a worm, that are better suited for your situation.

If you have toothy critters in the lakes you fish, you'll like the closed line tie and a leader, not to mention the attractive price. The pike up in my neck of the woods tear up a spinnerbait in no time and the Reed Runners hold up as well, or better than other brands.

I normally only purchase one or two new lures to try a season. For those, like scaleface, it's just the one until it proves it's worth. I have a big box of those. Otherwise, my purchases are to replace productive baits that I've lost.

LOL. Actually, it has likely been ten years since I purchased an actual Rat-L-Trap.