Aaron_H

Not the most incredible numbers for a fall day, but the PB definitely kicks the day up a notch. Still smiling about it, honestly. One thing that surprised me is how skinny the fish still are. Some of the smaller ones were getting that big fall belly, but the two I posted definitely have some bulking up left to do, especially that 5lber. It would be awesome to catch my PB again when she's prespawn and see the difference.

You betcha. This fall has been a little tougher than the past few years, kept feeling like the fish here were getting a late start on the transition vs last year, glad to finally have it pay off. Thanks! I took a picture of her next to my rod, she's around 25.75" long. A little shorter than my prior PB, but a little more belly on her.

Finally had a good fall day. Got out for three hours this evening (3:55-7:00) and hit a pond I've lost a few big ones in. Bass were feeding pretty actively on shad schools in this pond. Caught all of my fish aggressively yo-yoing a Booyah One Knocker, ended up with 10 bass, 4 tilapia (and shook a few others off), a nice sized bluegill, and snagged a 3" shad while working through one of the bait pods. Third bass of the evening went 5lb 1oz. Great fight, took me ~20 yards down the bank before I tired her out. Long fish but skinny, not as fed up as most of the other fish I caught, actually didn't think it was going to break 5 pounds with the lack of belly. For reference, I'm 6'3". Three casts later I hook into what I thought was another ~1lber. Aggressive eat but no fight until it swirled near the bank and realized it was hooked. The first time she jumped, I about jumped, too. Easily an 8lb+ fish, she put up an amazing fight, jumped again and stayed pinned, I thought it was a caught fish. I got down into the water to land her almost between my legs, and as soon as I reached down, I accidentally let off a little pressure on the rod and she was gone. I had to sit down for a minute after that one. But the bite was still active, so I kept at it. About an hour and a half later, wind laid down and the bite slowed. Ended up working my way back through the same area I lost the big one in, and I hooked into another one that felt big. Sure enough, she jumped and I was praying that I wouldn't lose this second chance. Played her as gently as I could, got down in the water but lost my footing on the silty clay bottom and butt planted on the grass. Almost had a heart attack thinking she threw the hook again but she was still there. Scooped her up on the bank and I knew as soon as I saw her, it was my new PB. Came in at 9lb 1oz! Definitely let out a little holler for that one. I've lost a few other truly big fish this year so breaking my PB this close to the end of the year was an amazing feeling.

I would just disengage that one (and two-three others). Having all 6 engaged would be crazy overbraked IMO.

Looks like I should sign up for the Derek Zoolander Center for Kids Who Can't Read Good ? 7/16oz almost made the cut, too.

Congrats on the PB! No need to downplay the size, I don't know any bass angler that would turn their nose up to a three pounder, very fun fight at that size. ? Any time a personal best is broken is a time to be proud, IMO.

Yeah, I only played with the one model (7' M/MF casting) but I was surprised at the feel and action of the rod. The $100 price point is incredibly competitive, so I'd be curious to see how it compares to other well-received rods in that bracket.

You could give the Thunderhawk A10 squarebill a look, the bill is molded as part of the body and seems pretty stout, but I haven't thrown it myself.

It's made up of a single piece of material, in this case carbon fiber. The new rod looks like this:

Was in Academy today picking up a couple of things I forgot to add in my last TW order and saw the new Tac 40 casting rods, the ones with the monocoque handle. I've never been one for most store brand rods, but the 7' Medium/Moderate Fast felt really great in hand. Anyone played around with/bought one of these yet?

I've got that SLX rod that I use for jigs and Texas rigs. I've thrown chatterbaits on it as well, and landed some nice fish with it, including one of my biggest chatterbait fish. Personally I prefer a little more parabolic bend to the rod, I currently throw them on a 7'1" MH/F that's more in between fast and moderate-fast. But your SLX will absolutely work for the technique, I say have at it and see what works best for you. Pairing that with a MH/MF (like a Dobyns 705CB) for cranks will give you a lot of versatility between the two setups.

Depends on where I'm fishing. If I'm taking the boat out on Okeechobee, I'm going to be rolling chatterbaits and spinnerbaits along grass edges, punching hydrilla mats and fishing frogs over mats/pads, so heavy or extra heavy frogging/flipping rods with 65lb braid for all three. If I'm just beating the banks around some neighborhood ponds and canals, I'd bring a Dobyns 705CB for lipless, a 6'10" M/XF for spooks and weightless senkos, and a 7' MH/F for chatterbaits/spinnerbaits.

For my two smaller spinning setups, I run 10# and 15# Power Pro Super Slick.

Caught the first one in my hand a few years ago with the other hook still attached to a snook. Was hoping it was a one-time deal, but I guess fate had other plans.

I've bent out a couple of the Gamakastu EWGs on lipless cranks on ~2lb bass, but as you said never past the point where a round bend would be. Should be able to lean into them easier with the better penetration and avoid overstressing them. Curious to see your results, I do think they're a great hook. Just don't stick yourself in the leg with one like I did this spring, that easy penetration is a double-edged sword... ?

I prefer a stouter hook on WPs, I use the Owner ST-56 for them. I don't see why the Gamakatsu ones wouldn't work though, definitely easier to bend out than the 3x but still a high quality treble; I use them on a lot of my baits.

Somewhere in the 25-28 IPT is my personal sweet spot, which is ~6:1 to 7:1. Just gotta figure out what works best for you.

JP mentions in the video description that it was a goof on his part.

Senko was the numbers bait for me this year, but every fish over 5lb so far this year was on a lipless crankbait.

IIRC, the Gantarel line comes with rotating hook hangers, so I wouldn't worry about hooks binding there. Like others said, it's just the name of the game. You can do everything right and you're still going to lose some, especially with heavy baits like that. Sounds like it was good fun, even if a little heartbreaking. Just sounds like an excuse to get back out there to me.

Would be a nice combo for that, if a little on the heavy side. I have a 7'2" H/F Shimano rod that I use for frogs and it casts 1/2 oz alright, but definitely a bit stiff for that weight; it loads up much better around 3/4-1 oz. Personally, I'd go with the 7'2" MH/F, more than enough backbone for bull reds and more versatile for bass. I would think the heavy would be overkill unless you're fishing thick marshes or around dense cover, but it certainly would not be a poor choice if you go with it.

Great catch! I went out for three hours this evening, bite was tough. Managed seven on the ned rig, not much size to them. Got a 4lb 14oz on that Thunderhawk silent lipless in gold 20 minutes before I packed it in, then right before dark got a 3lb 12 oz on a chatterbait. Those two ended up saving the night.

Never see people talking about these much, but the 4" ones were killer for me on light Texas rigs when I first started out. Great on a drop shot, too. Never got much size on them but definitely a numbers bait. Come to think of it, I might try one on a ned rig next outing, they've been languishing in my tackle bag for too long....

Bumping to update that I got my hands on one of those Thunderhawk silent baits. I was definitely wary given that the company is new, but it's a winner IMO. Comes stock with short shank EWGs, although I did swap out the split rings. Lure tracks true, has a tight wobble, a nice shimmy on the fall, and sits nose down on the bottom every time. Only a hundred or so casts with it, so time will tell, but the paint is holding up well. Still looks brand new, no hook rash or paint chipping from fish or rubbing hard bottom. The rotating hook hangers are a really nice feature, too. I'm going to be picking up some of the rattling ones, as well.

What I came here to post. Still fairly popular and as effective as ever, but I see fewer and fewer people throwing them in favor of bladed jigs. I myself have fallen into that camp....I'll have to fix that.