Aaron_H

Looks like the Tackle Warehouse 20% Black Friday sale is active as of today. Might be time to load up on some purchases I've been putting off.

Here in FL our lifetime hunting/fishing is $1001.50, but for just fresh/saltwater fishing are $301.50 each. I've considered it, would break even after ~12 years and I'm only 34. By the time I'm 65 (if Florida hasn't been subsumed into the ocean by then) it will save me about 1000 in license fees over that time.

I like how customizable it is. Like I use it for species and just keep the lure breakdown in my head for my log, but if I was only counting bass I could instead use the counters for a lure breakdown, or even a color breakdown. Lots of possibilities for what to track with it versus the physical counters.

They work!

Don't you dare give that bait monkey another thing to harass me with! Katie, sorry I got side-tracked in the discussion. I don't have enough data on my topwater-specific bites to say one way or the other, but this sounds about right for my fishing in general. A lot of time I am casting to targets with the understanding that bass are relating to it, and therefore should bite within close range of it. I do still get a lot of bites casting out into the wild blue yonder, but usually only when they're working bait schools.

I hear that big time. I keep track of them too. The fish log for me is something I use to try and establish patterns. I'm not always successful at it, but I do feel it has helped me to become better at targeting larger bass. But we've all got our methods that help us learn and push us to be better, and I've seen the impressive success you have so I know it's working for you!

It's like adding anything else to your routine, it takes some adapting. It's allowed me to ensure 100% that my log data is accurate, but maybe I'm just a nerd about that kind of stuff

Same with the 12lb Big Game, except like Mike I do about 25% give or take depending on spool capacity. I like to have about 75 yards or so of main line to account for retying and break offs. I tie off with a double-uni since it's much faster for me.

I use a click counter app on my phone that allows you to make custom counters. Currently I have one counter for each of the more common species I catch in freshwater, I find it very handy at the end of the day when I fill out my fishing log for the trip.

I have no dog in this fight, but to make a fair comparison between reels, all other variables (rod, line, lure) should be the same.

Just went back through my fish log for this year and tallied the numbers. Since I took this year to really spend time and grind out learning how to be an okay jerkbait fisherman, I'm not surprised jerkbait took first place with 163 fish caught for 2022 so far, 116 of those being on the H2O Xpress Ultimate Jerk Shad, which also caught my three biggest of the year. Second place was the lipless with 146 bass, 92 of which were caught on the Booyah One Knocker. Senko was 3rd at 89 bass, came in clutch during the summer when the storms kept me from doing anything other than tossing a line out behind the house for a few minutes. Chatterbait was 4th with 55 bass, and accounted for two of my biggest five of the year. Then just a hodgepodge of other baits not worth listing. Edit: I forgot to include the setups used per the OP: Jerkbait setup: Most of the year was a Shimano SLX 6'10" M/XF paired with a SLX 151HG spooled with 30lb PowerPro to a 15lb Big Game mono leader. More recently I am throwing them on the newer SLX A 6'10" M/XF paired with a SLX MGL 71HG spooled with 12lb Big Game mono. Lipless crankbait setup: Dobyns Fury 705CB paired with a SLX DC 151HG, spooled with 30lb PowerPro to a 15lb Big Game mono leader. Senko setup: Shimano SLX 7'2" M/XF, paired with a SLX 151HG spooled with 30lb PowerPro to a 15lb Big Game mono leader. I prefer the 6'10" M/XF for weightless senkos, personally, and now that I have another newer jerkbait setup, I'll go back to throwing them on the shorter rod. The 7'2" does a fine job with them, though, and is an awesome Whopper Plopper 110 rod. Chatterbait setup: 13 Fishing Defy Black 7'1" MH/F paired with a SLX 151, spooled with 30lb PowerPro to a 15lb Big Game mono.

Bait monkey says "No sell! Only buy!"

Never tried an airplane, but big baits, big fish, etc.

Thanks! I've been very fortunate with size this year. I don't think I'm quite there yet on being able to really consistently target big bass like some of y'all on here, but I think I'm definitely getting better at it.

Lots. And lots. And even more than that. I can't express to you just how many ponds there are in central FL, since it's a dirty swamp and needs all the drainage it can get just to make it (moderately) habitable. The best advice I can give is to hop on Google Earth Pro, figure out where you'll be staying and just start dropping pins on ponds you find. Anything that isn't fenced and has no signage I would try. Use the past satellite imagery feature to narrow down ponds that are older (10+ years) and have a better chance at holding some quality fish, but if it's just numbers you're after then you can skip that. Just be warned that many, many ponds are going to be privately owned and do not allow fishing either by the homeowner or HOA. FWC has some lakes and ponds listed on their sites with forecasts that you can check out. The Fab Five lakes should all have quality bank access, and all of the urban ponds they list do. If you make the drive down to Hunters Creek area, Bear Creek park (one of the urban ponds) has some very big bass in it, as well as stocked channel catfish if that's your thing. The bass bite can be a little stingy there, but there are some true giants in that pond.

Got another nice fall one on the jerkbait. I am loving this new jerkbait combo! Biggest of the evening went 6lb 1oz: Air temp almost 20 degrees cooler during the day than yesterday, the fish were blowing up on shad schools pretty nicely starting around 3:30 PM or so. Just a bit too far out to get to the really big blowups I was seeing, but I did manage to pick off quite a few smaller bass. Then I saw a nice blowup ~20 feet from the bank off to my left. Made a cast right into where she blew up, twitch twitch BOOM loaded into that 6lber. Fantastic fight, a couple of jumps and some strong runs but she stayed pegged The first bass I hooked into jumped in about 10" of water and my line went slack as soon as it landed, thought I lost it. Reeled up and the rod loaded, jerkbait is hung on the bottom. Water was clear, I could see where it was stuck in the mud, but I couldn't quite see my lure. Then I notice about 8" of bass tail sticking up out of the mud, the fish had nosedived in that shallow water and buried itself in the mud. Got her unstuck and back on her way after a quick laugh. Shout out to the strongest fight of the evening, though: I really had to put some mussel into it. ?

Casting: Dobyns Fury 705CB/Shimano SLX DC 151HG Shimano SLX A 6'10" M/Shimano SLX MGL 71HG Shimano SLX 6'10" M/Shimano SLX 151HG Shimano SLX 7'2" M/Shimano SLX 151HG Shimano SLX 7'2" MH/Shimano SLX 151HG 13 Fishing Defy Black 7'1" MH/Shimano SLX 151 Lew's Laser TXS 6'0" M spincast combo Shimano SLX 7'2" H that is currently awaiting a reel so I can start frogging again Spinning: Shimano SLX 7'0" M/Quantum Smoke S3 PT Inshore Shimano SLX 7'0" M/Quantum Smoke S3 PT Inshore Fenwick Aetos 6'8" MH/Daiwa BG 2500 Fenwick Aetos 6'8" MH/Daiwa BG 2500 Star Stellar Lite 7'0" H/Shimano Sahara 4000

Medium wire is about right, it's not heavy gauge but it's a strong hook. We typically throw them on 20lb braid to a 15-20lb fluoro leader when we throw them inshore. Also a weedless variation that is nice.

Excellent quality, and killer inshore for trout and redfish.

We have some property in SE Alabama, might not be too far of a drive up north from there. I'm currently trying to convince my brother to take a road trip with me to Dale Hollow next year. He tried unsuccessfully to target some smallmouth a few years ago on a trip up the eastern seaboard, he's still salty about it.

Not that far north? I'm in Orlando, Tennessee might as well be Canada to me! ? The idea is still rattling around, I kind of want to make a road trip from here to upstate NY with fishing stops along the way, Tennessee is definitely part of that plan.

Finally got into a nice fall fish, and got it on the new jerkbait combo to boot. Took a page out of @thediscochef's book and caught a 5lber. Couldn't stand getting run out of that spot yesterday by the storm, so went back today for some revenge. Pretty decent wind out of the east, caught most of my fish along the windblown bank on a jerkbait and lipless, including one ~3lber on the lipless. The 5 was the biggest of the evening, got it on the opposite bank twitching the jerkbait next to a point. Also got a stud bluegill on the jerkbait working it through a drain outflow that's kicking pretty good from all the storms. Didn't have my measuring tape with me so I can't submit it to FWC, but took a picture of it laid out on my hand, then measured once I got home. Would've been 10.5", not my biggest but my biggest in a while and a nice surprise. I think I'm starting to get the hang of throwing the jerkbaits on mono. I think my drag was too loose for the first few fish that came off, so used to being ginger with the drag throwing them on braid. I tightened it way down (not cranked down but compared to my old braid setup) and stopped missing those bites. Gotta really lean hard into them to bypass the stretch and load that rod deep/drive those trebles home instead of just reeling/sweeping into them with braid. It's a learning process, but I'm happy to have some nice results. The 5lber jumped 3 times, had a couple of nice runs, but I was able to really lean into her on that 12lb mono and never felt like she was going to come unpinned, and no bent out trebles so far either.

(nice fish!)

LMB will always be my first love, but my goodness look how gorgeous those smallies are! You northern guys are pushing me closer and closer to taking a trip up there to try targeting them (but when it's warmer ??).

Can these storms please be over with so I can fish? Went out to one of my favorite spots after the storm blew through and lightning was ~20 miles away and moving out, thought I'd get into a decent post-storm bite to break in the new jerkbait combo. Instead I made a handful of casts and got run out by a lightning strike just a few miles away from a wonderful surprise storm that wasn't on the radar when I left. You'd think it was summer with how these storms have been lately. I had two fish on before I got run out, but they came off right at the bank. Not used to throwing these jerkbaits on mono, it will take some adjustment on my part. Was worried I was going to get my first skunk for 2022, decided to walk to the canal out back and managed this one tiny ~11" guy. It ain't much but it's no skunk, at least, and first fish on the new combo. 2022 SLX A 6'10" MXF paired with a SLX MGL 151HG spooled with 12lb Big Game. Too early to tell, but rod definitely feels lighter and better balanced than the previous model, and holy moly that MGL is a massive upgrade over the standard SLX reels. I was bombing that 3/8 oz Rapala Shadow Rap Shad with no weight transfer into a hefty wind and getting the same distance as I get with my standard SLX throwing 1/2 oz jerkbaits with a weight transfer in no wind. Still no big fall girls, yet. Couple over 3lb but still on the hunt for Big Momma.