Aaron_H

That one was on a 1/2 oz Booyah One Knocker (pictured, but it's top down so hard to identify). Lipless cranks have been my most productive lure for them, my PB was caught on a Red-Eyed Shad in chili craw. I have also caught them on jerkbaits (which they react very strongly to), chatterbaits (tougher to hook them on, they usually will short strike and bite the tail off the trailer, but again they are very aggressive towards it and I often have them "hunt" it all the way to the bank), and soft plastics.

Florida Fish and Wildlife: "TiLaPiA aRe RaReLy CaUgHt On ArTiFiCiAl LuReS" Me, who seemingly cannot escape them: I've caught almost 50 of them already this year, all hooked in the mouth on aggressive strikes. No big ones so far this year, one ~5lbs. I've caught a few over 7lb and my biggest is 8lb 10oz, good fighters when they get that size, great at using their flat sides to their advantage.

Had a few hours to fish this evening, did decent numbers but nothing with any real size. Ended up with 20 bass and 3 tilapia, about half the bass were chunky 1.75-2lbers, the rest were ~12 inches. Rain has the water raised about a foot or so, pushed the bank up about 4-5 feet in some spots. The bank here is usually a little steep right where it meets the water due to erosion from the plecos, this created a nice ledge today that the bass were pushed up against. I got a few in more open water that were busting on bait, but the overwhelming majority of them were caught running a lipless parallel to that ledge as close as I could get it. A few on the jerkbait as well. This one was about the upper end of the fish I caught today, came in right at 2lb even. Hung up my jerkbait a couple of hours in, thought it was a big submerged branch as I could feel it give slightly but couldn't get it unstuck. Finally coaxed the "branch" off the bottom and got it in, only to find I hung someone's old minnow trap. Gee, thanks. Got my lure back at least, and won't have to worry about that snag in the future.

Fish selfies are definitely a challenge in and of themselves. Great catches, man, thanks for sharing.

FWC finally sent me one of the Bass Pro gift cards from the TrophyCatch program. Yadda yadda yadda, 20 minutes later I have a few new baits that should be here Wednesday. Picked up two Berkley Stunnas (gold and table rock), two Booyah One Knockers in flashy momma (to replace one I broke off earlier this year), a Red-Eyed Shad in blue gizzard shad (also a replacement for one I broke off two days after the Booyah), and trying out that 3" Savage Gear Pulse Tail RTF Bluegill in pumpkinseed. Don't have pumpkinseeds here but it's a dead ringer for a shellcracker IMO. That 3" size should be really good right now as those smaller sunfish are schooling up hard at the moment.

Berkley Stunna on sale at Bass Pro as part of the Spring Classic for $11.99 for anyone looking to check them out or stock up on them. Red-Eyed Shads and quite a few other good ones are part of it, as well.

The proportions on that bass are absolutely bonkers.

In December I became acutely aware of my shortcomings with the jerkbait and decided that 2022 would be the Year of the Jerkbait™ for me. I was worried that the beginning of the venture would be too rough and discourage me, but the learning curve wasn't too steep to at least be able to trigger bites. I still have a long way to go before I really feel dialed in, but I've been very pleased with the results so far and my three biggest bass of the year came on the jerkbait. It has really helped me to feel less anxious about putting in time with other techniques I have little confidence in, and I look forward to whatever I choose to focus on for 2023.

That makes sense, I do the same with the treble hooks that get bent out. Can only take so much abuse before the metal weakens.

Had a big boy get a little squirrely with me earlier, ran me out of one of my favorite spots. We're starting to get into the early part of their mating season, and there's a river not too far away that they'll often move out of into these little ponds to mate and then move on. I came around the bank and saw it probably 80 feet away, eaaaasy 8-9 footer but doubt it was 10. Saw me and spooked off, figured I was good but I stayed well up away from the bank while casting just in case. Keeping my head on a swivel but it's been a bit and I still haven't seen this gator come back up. Pick up my rods to move further away and as soon as I turn back, he had popped up not 15 yards away from me with his nose on the bank eyes locked on me in the two seconds I turned my head. Massive head, biggest gator I've seen up close in a long time. Noped out of there immediately, on the walk back I could hear it bellow twice loud and clear, and I was 1,300 feet away at that point. This will be the first gator I contact FWC to have trapped, a lot of people walk their dogs around these ponds and there are a lot of kids in the neighborhood that like to run around there. They were already closed when I called earlier but I'll ring them again first thing tomorrow.

I meant no offense, was only ribbing. I don't throw spinnerbaits often so I have no opinion on how many fish they last for.

This is how the 1% live ?

The 705CB is my main interest. I love my FR705CB but the grip is less comfortable than some of my other rods. If the Maverick's EVA grip has enough give in it without a huge sacrifice in sensitivity, I could see replacing it.

1/2 oz gold/black Red-Eyed Shad, ~26" long. They work! But can they see why kids love the taste of Cinnamon Toast Crunch?

The rod I use for these techniques (minus lipless and squarebill but would do well for them given you're using copoly) is a simple 13 Fishing Defy Black 7'1" MH/F. It's a fairly parabolic rod with good backbone. It's no NRX+, but for $60 I have been impressed with the sensitivity, comes fairly close to the SLX and Dobyns Fury rods. Better options out there for your $200 budget, but if you want to go budget as a go-to pond rod it's definitely one to look at.

Please do! I've been eyeing them, curious to see how they compare to the Fury as well as where they sit in comparison to other rods at the $99 price point.

When I throw a chatterbait I typically am only trying to imitate bluegill, I stick with green pumpkin for that. Sometimes I do want to throw something more shad-like and I have white/chartreuse for that. I've thought about picking up a couple in fire craw to try, but have yet to be so bold. 95% of the time I'm throwing the green pumpkin.

(on a more light hearted note) I realize that's a good deal for Tatsu but man, I am not rich enough for that. WHEW.

I have some of the Trokar TK130s, after I run out of them I don't think I'll buy them again. Like A-Jay said, that point is hell on plastics and I find the fish almost always have a larger wound than with a traditional conical point. For sharpening round points, I've been very happy with the Dr. Slick 4" file. https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Dr_Slick_Hook_Sharpener_File_4/descpage-DRHF.html

I haven't experimented much with different braided lines, I like PowerPro well enough to stick with it. Original on my casting reels, and Super Slick on my spinning reels.

>goes striper fishing >catches fatty black bass instead That's my kind of striper fishing right there, friend.

Just reiterating that rabies can only be carried by mammals. Black racers can be a little bitey compared to, say, a red rat snake, but are harmless and their bites are not painful. Shoo them away or leave them alone, don't kill them just for the crime of existing. I don't see water moccasins too often, usually see maybe a dozen a year around the banks. Mostly they're just sitting there sunning, give them some space and they're cool to chill and leave me alone. I wouldn't carry any tools specifically for that, just keep your eyes peeled. Snake boots if you're super worried about it.

I'll throw in another vote to the Fury 705CB, I've been very happy with it as my dedicated lipless rod.

You might be missing out on some nice fish.... ?