Big Rick

Aw, man!! You had me going there. I was cruising the thread titles and BAM there's a new PB thread!!! Thinking I was gonna get to see a big fish and congratulate a great accomplishment I opened the thread to this....... Dude.... Good one there. You sure fooled us!! Oh yeah, try throwing it in the DAYLIGHT.. You might be surprised at what you can "miss".... lol!

Quick update: Got my clips in and went fishing. No issues with them bending out. Quality is outstanding. I learned a shortcut on baits that have a split ring, by the way. I just bypass the split ring and connect directly to the lure tie. I leave the split ring on. Just put the clip above the split ring. Have had no issues with that. In fact, it was quite the opposite. The clip will snap right on the lure tie very easily and the action of the lure is totally unaffected. I tried several different topwater lures; poppers, walking baits, and Whopper Plopper. Caught some fish as well. Thanks to everyone allaying my fears of these clips failing during a fish battle. They definitely work, really cut down on swap time, and ultimately help the baits action.

^^THIS^^ And, add a paddle tail swimbait trailer. Not too big to overwhelm the bait but big enough that you can see the tail waving side to side on the retrieve. Also, remember a spinnerbait is not a one trick pony. Varying your retrieve can produce many actions. I have often switched from a bladed jig to a spinnerbait because the bladed jig was too much vibration and water movement. I was spooking fish. Switched to a spinnerbait and start catching.

Very well said. If I could add one more thing it would be stay in the MIDDLE of the back deck. Nothing more aggravating than steering a foot control trolling motor while the boat is tilted to one side and rocking.

There are 5 gazillion threads on Senko's. Also some videos. Very informative and entertaining. May I suggest the search tab..

I'm a Shimano fan, so don't take this the wrong way. The SV spool in the Daiwa reels totally changed my ability to skip. It has been night and day change for the better. I was amazed at my newfound accuracy and ability to skip with ease. It really is just that good. Again, I like Shimano. Some of the smoothest and well put together reels on the market. And my Daiwa Tatula SV reels can't match the Shimano in that aspect. Maybe the Zillion would but thats above my budget. But, for casting very light baits and skipping pretty much anything that will skip, for less than $200 my Tatula with the SV spool is amazing. FWIW...

While this sounds like a good idea sadly it doesn't work. My favorite lake has plenty of both gators and carp. The carp are out-producing the gators ability to eat them. I've also found that where the carp are all gathered up the bass are GONE. If I fish into an area that carp has infested the bite dies off quickly. Also, for what it's worth, that gar pic isn't a gator gar, LOL!! Gator gar have a short ROUNDED snout, not the long pointed one in the pic...... Being reared in La all my life and ruining many baits with the toothy critters gives me a little street cred, I guess....

TackleWarehouse order. This board is bad for my play money..... Then again...

My paid for setup. I've since added a Ultrex 80, which I love, and a Helix 7, that I'm still figuring out!

On the flip side, fishing it like the old Devil's Horse produces a lot more noise. Jerking it with short pauses causes the props to bubble and froth the water a bit. I've not caught a fish on it because, honestly, it's HUGE and my confidence in it is not established over other baits that serve the same purpose.

Also some bait attractant sprayed on the jig and trailer will often make a bass hold it longer. That'll give you a few precious seconds to set the hook. At least Berkley thinks so, lol!!

These answers will vary greatly depending on the part of the country we are located. That said, in the South my favorite is topwater..... popper, buzz bait, walking bait.

I don't think any newer GM products have a number pad. However, the right criminal can get in there relatively easy with no evidence of a break in. Just watch a few you tube videos and it'll make you scared to leave anything in the open.

If it's not prying too much, what type of truck do you have? The reason I'm asking is here in our fine state the newer Ford trucks that have the number pad on the door are being stolen like candy. Jackson Ms has had over a hundred stolen in the last 18 months, if my source is correct. The number pad is easily defeated and very obvious to see on a drive by while casing the neighborhood for the nights activities. It also shuts off any vehicle theft preventative when it unlocks the doors. I was just curious if this might be the case for you...

Not sure how you meant this.... but it came across as putting Russ in his place. Otherwise, he would not have responded by defending his actions. But, thanks for the apology. That takes a man.

You did nothing wrong. Negligent? yes... wrong?? NO, unless your state has laws that prohibit you from having a gun in your vehicle. Don't beat yourself up over this. Just learn from the experience and move on. You can't undo it. Nobody is perfect except on forums and boards where small men can hide behind big keyboards. I am in a court proceeding right now because a thug broke into my house, stole my keys, opened my locked vehicle, and proceeded to steal my firearm. It was hidden in my car. My car was in my garage. The ONLY thing that I could've done to prevent this is to take the gun out. In my state it's legal to have a firearm in your vehicle. I am a retired LEO with the rank of Captain. I don't flaunt that, but at the same time I'm not some snowflake that has no clue how to handle a gun. I'm happy to say that I have my gun back. The grand jury will decide what happens to the perp this week. And, like in your case, he has broken into many homes. It's a thousand miracles he's not been killed already. I'm sure that I'll get some flack from this by people that believe themselves superior. They've already chimed in on what you did wrong. However, we are not perfect. Just fishermen. Take a deep breath and let the law do it's thing. Go fishing.

Video or it didn't happen, lol!!!

I feel your pain, Russ. Arm chair quarterbacks are always Super Bowl winners. It's always easy to criticize a man when he opens himself up for scrutiny. But, rest easy, as these mods won't let this thread continue down this path for very long. There are way more of us that are in your corner than the few that are quick to put you in your place.

His last visit was 3/6/2105. I doubt you'll get any response.

I bought a spool of the red and it turned my thumb and spool red for the first few fishing trips.

Worm gear and pawl need replacing because they stay engaged during the cast and wear out double quick. This is the main Achilles heel on these old reels. They are inherently tough as nails and very dependable. A venerable winch. You got your work cut out for you because the braking system will be your biggest challenge. However, I have 8 or 10 of these in various sizes that my kids learn on and they can't be beat for dependability, as long as you keep plenty of pawls handy. Good luck with your project and keep us in the loop!

Thanks, everyone for chiming in with your thoughts. I've got some on my wishlist on TW. I couldn't find them at any retail stores. BP, Acadamy, DSG, or Field and Stream. So, I'll just order them online. Thanks again!!

I've tried those. My biggest issue is the bend at the clasp is so tight that some hook eyes on baits like under spins and such won't hardly fit.

Most of the time braided line biting into the spool is caused from a stout, quick pull on the line like a hook set or trying to get a bait loose. If you anticipate that you can be prepared on the next cast by casting much softer to reach the point of the bite-in and pull it free. It the hazards of using braid, especially with methods that invite a slack spool like frogging, jigging, and the like.

If you don't get to fish as often FC can develop spool memory and give you fits. One easy way to solve that is to spray your spool with line conditioner the night before and then the day of your trip hook your bait on something solid, unspool about 50 yards or so. Then hold tension on the line for about 5-10 seconds. When you give it slack it should lay limp and smooth. If not, repeat the steps. Then, wind it all back in and go fishing.