Tennessee Boy

I'm always amazed at how the lakes in my area are similar but so very different in the way they fish. That said when a bad cold front passes through, all the fish in all the lakes seem to notice.

I read the concerns about FFS and I think either people have gone crazy or I’m crazy. The things people say on this topic boggle my mind. The original article in this thread is a perfect example when Carson said “I’m really worried that if all the retailers are selling is spinning tackle, light line, jig heads, and plastic minnows, the sales of all other tackle are going to struggle in a big way, and that doesn’t leave the fishing industry in a healthy place” Does anyone really think that in the near future there will be tackle stores with no baitcasting reels, no plastic worms, and no crankbaits? All because of FFS? Really?

I looked at one on Tackle Warehouse and it said it was expected to be in stock on August 9th.

I don’t know if it will catch fish but it caught me. Looking for a place to buy now.

@Team9nine that video is hilarious. It has convinced me that the Hydrowave has to be banned.

“I relied on it (FFS) purely because I’m tired of getting my butt whooped by it. So, I pinged a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Jerk Shad on a medium light 7’2” Fenwick walleye rod to catch every fish. But I’m really worried that if all the retailers are selling is spinning tackle, light line, jig heads, and plastic minnows, the sales of all other tackle are going to struggle in a big way, and that doesn’t leave the fishing industry in a healthy place,” adds Carson from a realistic perspective. His concern for the tackle industry brought a tear to my eye. 🥲

For catfish Tennessee has a limit of one fish over 34 inches and no limit on fishing under 34 inches. I think something like that would make sense for a lot of other species, especially crappie. Fill your freezer with dinks and let the big ones grow to be trophies.

Yes I think you’re good with that.

Well that could pull in the neighborhood of 900 watts worse case if my math is right. Do you need a 50 foot cord? If so make sure it can handle 1000 watts or around 10 amps AC.

It’s safe assuming you’re not running a 200ft cord or using a 50 amp charger. I run a single heavy cord that powers both of my chargers. The battery chargers that most fishermen use do not use that much power.

I love snaps but never use them. They allow me to change baits without retying. Retying is a good thing.

Would you mind sharing some links?

I agree but there is no shortage of people here and elsewhere that think it’s harming fisheries. There is very little scientific data on it now. I expect we will see a lot of articles being published in the near future. I’m all for changing size and creel limits to improve fisheries. I just think they should be based on science not emotion. I have FFS and would welcome different limits for those using it. That would make more sense than what Mississippi did in my opinion. I would also love to see the data that drove Mississippi’s decision.

Great video. Thank for posting it. Please watch this video if you think the world is about to end due to over fishing and FFS. Please! This kid has 368K subscribers to his channel. That's huge. He needs to learn the difference between structure and cover.

I watched a little of the Opening Ceremony before I got distracted looking for online contour maps for the River Seine.

We need to discuss this topic sometime on this forum. Here's a quote on how we are approaching this issue in Tennessee Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency regional fisheries biologist Mike Jolley said they have not thoroughly examined the impact of FFS on fish populations yet, however, “We haven’t seen any reductions (in crappie populations) that we could attribute directly to FFS. We did start (in our region) including a few questions on our creel surveys regarding FFS in two reservoirs last year. We are still looking at that data … it will take some time to acquire a good data base since creel is not conducted on every reservoir every year in our region. “It is probably safe to say that FFS usage and harvest has increased by crappie fishermen,” said Jolley. “However, some populations (here) may be able to withstand added pressure. Again, this will vary among reservoirs.” Jolley went on to say, “I think the change in Mississippi will certainly lead to more related discussions by wildlife agencies and anglers.” He added, however, “I can think of other situations where new technologies have provoked much thought regarding the impact on fish populations (in our state). For example, spider rigging for crappie was argued by many to be the end of crappie populations years ago in reservoirs like Kentucky Lake. And the ‘Alabama Rig’ was going to be detrimental to bass populations and (our Agency) did have to define a legal array for fishing under the ‘statewide hook restriction.’ However, to my knowledge, neither of these technologies had significant impacts to those populations or at least no data to prove it. That doesn’t mean FFS may not be different.” - Quote from crappienow.com

There are smallmouth in Guntersville but it’s not known as a great smallmouth lake. I’ve fished Guntersville a lot and never caught a smallmouth. You would probably have a better chance the further up river you go where you’re fishing the river instead of the lake.

If you’re pushing the limit using light tackle then pay close attention to your knots. Choose one that is proven to be strong and more importantly make sure you tie it correctly. If you’re using line that is 3 times stronger than it needs to be then your knot doesn’t matter much. Says the guy who only uses 0.012 inch diameter braid. 😀

I’m not one to argue against the effectiveness of a worm and we’re getting dangerously close to high jacking this thread. That said, I’ve heard for years about these studies but have never been able to find one. I would love to know how you “prove” a bass cannot remember something. Also to say it’s the only lure with this quality you would need to test all of the other lures. That’s a difficult task. I can say for sure no one ever contacted me about testing my homemade lures. Someone please let me know which scientific journals these studies were published in so I can look them up. 😆

Logical Tennessee Boy: I have no confidence that a worm is the secret to catching fish. The great thing about a worm is it's versatility. When I think of all of the difference places fish could be set up on a lake, a worm will allow me to effectively fish a very high percentage of them. Emotional Tennessee Boy: I love a worm. It's my favorite way to fish.

It certainly could be. I hope it's a prediction based on logic.

It was pretty common 30 years ago for me to visit a news stand 2-3 times a week. I haven't bought a magazine in 15 years. I avoid printed material. I prefer to read on my iPad and spend way to much time looking at my iPad. I read a lot. I check out library books and get them delivered straight to my iPad. I buy ebooks. I have a document scanner and will scan stuff so I can read it on my iPad. I will not subscribe to anything that is print only. My wife is the exact opposite. She still enjoys holding a book in her hands.

When it comes to fishing, the word 'confidence' means mental bias to me. I try very hard not to have mental biases. I don't start with tackle; I start with a hypothetical fish. For example, I might say to myself that there is a fish on this point. She's in 10 feet of water, facing into the current, on the backside of the point. She would probably enjoy a shad for lunch. Maybe it's just an educated guess that the fish is there, or maybe I can see the fish on my electronics. Once I have a target in mind, I start thinking about how I can present a shad imitation to that fish. What bait will imitate a shad at the desired depth? Do I have the line, rod, and reel to fish the bait? I think it's a common mistake to start with your 'confidence' tackle and look for a fish you can catch with that tackle. I should add that while I try very hard not to have mental biases, I know I still do. It’s human nature.

They added Tim’s Ford to the latest LakeMaster. The legacy maps don’t have it. I’m pretty sure Navionics has it. That’s something to consider if you fish that lake.

I would prefer the older LakeMaster maps over Navionics. The LakeMaster maps of the Tennessee river are excellent. I have the old and new versions. The update is more about the way the maps are displayed on the screen than updated contour lines.