papajoe222

yep

As for times to use them...............NOW! Pre-spawn through winter, a Fluke will catch fish. Once the spawn is over, I'll use a heavier gauge hook to add weight and allow it to sink deeper.

If I'm fishing above the dam, I target the rip-rap looking for slower areas of current. If I'm fishing below the dam, which I prefer, I look for anything that breaks the current, or current seams. This is providing the dam is pulling water.

High barometric pressure and east winds go hand in hand and we all know that high pressure means tough fishing.

The knot that Shaw Grigsby shows is just a Double Pitzen. You don't need as many wraps using double line and that is the knot I use for any single hook presentation.

I'd go with slower moving presentations now, whether vertical (fluke-weightless worm), or horizontal (tube or wacky rigged worm). Adjust speed or fall rate until you get bit.

When I ventured into baitcasting, Abu Garcia round reels are the ones I used. When Low profile reels hit the scene, way back when, I purchased my first Daiwa which I still have. The overwhelming majority of the reels I currently own are Daiwas and none of my baitcasters are round ones. Curiously, none of my spinning reels are Daiwas.

I've caught every species from flathead catfish to crappie using them, so that's no surprise for me.

A blade bait. I'll begin throwing one when there's still ice on the water. Normally, it's a 1/4oz. but I'll go to a 3/16oz. before abandoning them. My other bait is a hair jig/grub combo which I can also fish as a bottom presentation.

This for me, too.

An original Bluegill Fat Gitzit tube, unless the water is too stained to see it well. Then it's a Pearl White one. If I can cast past the bed and hop it onto the bed and let it sit. If they're bedding deeper than 5ft.-6ft. I'll go with a split-shot lizzard, or a Baby Brush Hog. I cut the front 'legs away from the body at the front attachment and the action and appearance is very similar.

I love to fish a C-rig, so it was natural for me to use a split-shot as the alternative, finesse presentation. I switched to the mojo weights a while back and actually used them with a stopper and a small glass bead. I love that set up.

Like Deleted account, I use round bend offset worm hooks for a few reasons. First, the hook point sits farther back than a EWG. Second, they are made with a thinner wire diameter, so they penetrate easier and third, the relationship of the hook point to the eye offers more bite for the hook-set.

That flat in the northeast (upper right) corner looks like a prime area for spawning. The point directly below could be the one used in pre-spawn and post-spawn movements. The point itself should produce throughout the season.

I must admit, bling is my thing. My Daiwa reels are colorful and all my rods have decorative wraps. Not that I turn a blind eye to performance, mind you.

My favorite head design was on the Terminator Titanium. The downside was the paint adhesion, which was poor to say the least. The Stanley Vibrashaft's head design is the one I currently prefer. Of course, that's my second favorite.

Dude! I was quoting TOXIC, not responding to your original post.

You and I differ greatly in what we use as search, or locating baits for active fish. I use cranks and spinnerbaits to search out active fish and then switch to Senko's and drop-shot. Different strokes I guess.

I never really thought about it, but that about sums up my choices. The one exception is using a C-rig for early pre-spawn. Then it's a small, action tail.

When water temps get that high up here, I'm throwing just about anything in my tackle box. Then again, that's sometime around late April, or early May.

Most likely not 1K casts, but a jerkbait. It took me the better part of a season to catch a fish with one. I fished Original Rapalas for decades like a crank. Now, it's one of the first baits I tie on after ice-out and there's usually one attached to one of the rods on my deck throughout the season.

In rod building, especially salt water rods, building on the spline, or it's opposite is done to eliminate angler fatigue when the rod is under strain. For freshwater rods, the trend has been to build on the straightest axis as that twisting force is minimal and rarely noticeable. I'm with Tom on this one though. If it's that noticeable, return it.

I still have one SubWart and five Terminator spinnerbaits, but I don't have any with that beveled turtle blade. That was an awesome blade design and a killer spring bait. For me, it'd be the Mann's RazorBack and TwoFer

I was a fan of both the Trap and Spot until StrikeKing came out with the Diamond Shad. If they weren't chrome or gold, I didn't buy them. I lost my last DS two days into a week long trip and the LSG only had painted ones. I've been experimenting with different color schemes since, but always start out with something chrome or gold. The introduction of the RedEye Shad got me into fishing them all season long. Other than topwater, nothing gets clobbered like a lipless.

On a trip up to Leech Lake a few years ago, I stopped at Swanson's Bait and Tackle in Hackensack, MN. I wish there was a place like that within 100mi. because I'd be visiting there monthly. I have a Bass Pro and a Cabella's both within an hour drive and maybe visit them once a year.