txchaser

Thanks y'all. Bass resource overdelivers as usual. The decoy nail bombs are close to what I was I was looking for, and as a bonus Amazon had them. Some of the JDM guys have started selling there and the prices while a little higher aren't crazy for small orders. And the 1/16 pegged with the small owner hook is an interesting way to go too for the snaggy stuff. You'd think someone would make a mushroom head wide gap (ie can be t-rigged) in a size 1 or 2 hook.

Looking for two things: 1) Size 1 EWG-style ned head. The 1/0 work pretty well, but it seems like the action would be different vs a shorter hook. Is this a thing? If so who makes it? I found the owner ball head, but given where the line tie is it seems like it would be different sitting on the bottom. 2) Any recommendation on the best ned heads to crawl through a brushpile? I suppose a spider slider head would word way better, but I'll miss out on how it sits up on the bottom. Or perhaps I'm overthing both!

Somewhere on bassresource I saw a post that suggested that if you don't get a bite in 10-15 minutes, move. I've been watching closely and so far that advice is really good. I'm sure it is not always right, but here's the thing - the number if times I wish I had moved sooner instead of fiddling around throwing something new at them is -almost- 100%. And the skunks in 2019 were 100% staying in the same spot too long. One of the things I've noticed about covering water is this - occassionally I'll get grumpy and drive around dragging more aggressive swimming presentation (chatterbait or crankbait or lipless) and I very often will catch fish when I do it, even if I haven't caught anything that day. But I'm covering a lot of water, and usually a little deeper or further from shore than where they are supposed be. But it requires a few things to be true 1) I know what depth they are generally at/where they are holding in the column 2) I have a few presentations tied on that are appropriate to that spot, at least some of which are high confidence for the situation. An example here might be it is a windy day where fish should be keyed on baitfish and are likely holding in the weeds. If I fish through it with a chatterbait and a keitech and a lipless with no bites, I might throw a senko at higher percentage spots on the spot - best structure, weed points, more defined dropoff, etc. And might run the same pattern on a different location with similar characteristics. If that doesn't work I've had the best luck trying one step earlier or later in where they 'should' be. You could use a similar approach holding on bottom - if they won't bite a worm, a ned rig, or a jig, across a few different presentations, I need to go find other fish - I keep wasting time being convinced I'll figure it out and get them, but I'm not good enough to do that. The $300 for a Deeper Sonar (chirp model) is seeming more and more like a good buy. I can get sonar into any size pocket or situation without trying to drag a boat over fish in 5-8 FOW. "wide" setting is a cone the same as the depth. It's castable. Basically it is a searchbait with no hooks, working in reverse - I can cover a lot of water very fast and know there's no fish there. Related to all this I've been thinking about color changes a lot, and how a lot of people here suggest that it is one of the least important changes most of the time. My personal experience is piling up that that is spot on. For the 10% of the time it really matters, it really matters a lot. But the rest of the time it doesn't seem to make much difference. There's one particular scenario that I'm still struggling with - mid-column suspended florida strain (or heavy hybrid) bass. If a jerkbait or a fluke doesn't work, I'm done, they are just laughing at me. There are a bunch of exceptions to all this, but net net I'd catch more fish if I moved more.

Thanks, but I can't take credit for this one. Ah I meant using the giant TRD in place of a big senko

I'm toying with the idea that they are just the right size when cut in half. Meaty, craw-ish, maybe berkely's research will hold true. I just need to get on a Fat Ika bite and sub them in and see. @A-JayI like your jigworm idea!

After reading the story about Ned and Shin Fukae (probably here) I started painting them red, and have bought a few orange and chartruese.

All of the above. And a special note, the general purpose fishing pliers with the split ring tip are a waste of time. With the TT pliers it takes about the same amount of time to tie a SDJ knot as it does to replace a hook.

These edge boxes are probably Elaztech resistant... The lid is polycarbonate, so it should be fine, and the rest of it is made from much stiffer plastic than a typical box. Might make for nice zman storage. I just wish there was a sideways config Edge where the dividers ran width-wise instead of lengthwise, I won't stand them on end as they might take a set. But for a couple of combos (bubble gum and pink is a no-go) elaztech doesn't seem to bleed at all; one of the zman company videos had a bunch of random stuff crammed in a box, and I think @Team9nine puts random TRD's in a bag with no problems too.

Welp, first over 5lbs for 2020 was on a Ned Rig. Soaking a Lifted Jigs EWG Ned Head (orange), with a GP/Orange TRD.

Plano deep open 3700 is on sale at amazon for $5.37. Great timing for you winter organizers; it is great fror soft plastics. https://www.amazon.com/Plano-23731-01-Stowaway-Deep-Compartment/dp/B000EZ0ELQ

I have a pro plus and a Chirp +, and they are great. Chirp is a serious upgrade too. My favorite story with the deeper is finding a submerged car (didn't know that's what it was at the time) just out at the edge of cast range with a heavy lure... sure looked like good cover, so I chucked at it and was rewarded with a 3.5lb LM out of a city park. And because you can cast it, you can get into places where you might not want to put the boat. Finally, the wide cone (`47 degrees) covers an immense amount of water. Helpful for finding features or figuring out the depth where the bait or fish are. If the choice is one of the 4 or 5 inch finders I think the deeper chirp is a way better buy. Found this. While it is a marketing piece it also is a decent overview.

6th sense minimag squarebill, 8.0lb (PB) runner up was 7.8lb swim senko nearly deadsticked, and with a weighted hook which I almost never do. Found them stacked up and pulled out 10-15 with a keitech on an underspin and a finesse spinnerbait. Big girl was lazy, all that stuff was going too fast.

If I recall correctly from other posts on here with a TRD on it you'll be close to 1/4 oz.

I have both the SV TWS and Tat 100 Elite. At $135 for the SV, it's a no-brainer. It's not better than the Elite for long bomb casts with aerodynamic lures... but it might be the best reel for nearly everything else. It's particularly good for wind or light baits.

Backorder arrival is like an extra mini-Christmas that you didn't know was coming.

8.0 LM 6th sense mini mag silent in greenback shad

Both the swivel-ease/hook keeper method and the tie to belt loop method make the knot much easier to tie clean, tight, and fast.

One of my favorite fishign memories is when my dad connected with about a 12" bass, and he was toying with it on the way back in. A much larger bass decided it was lunchtime and hit it three or four times trying to get the little one in its mouth. I think line tension was keeping it from eating it headfirst enough to get them both. Totally unexpected and all played out in crystal clear water so it was a blast to watch. After pulling a 3 foot snake out of a 3lb bass, I'm convinced that if they are hungry they'll stuff anything in there that might fit.

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Geecrack_Spiron_Creature_Bait/descpage-GS.html

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Megabass_Megadog/descpage-MBMD.html https://img.tacklewarehouse.com/watermark/rs.php?path=MBMD-434-1.jpg Megabass Megadog in a golden-shiner-ish color.

I've bought a few weights and jigheads from them on amazon when I needed it fast, everything seems pretty decent quality.

Love 'em or hate 'em I think the youtubers in all their flavors are helping move these numbers.

This summer I fished all day in Texas heat lots of times, and so I was very serious about finding more good pants for it. My favorite pair are Mountain Hardwear that aren't made anymore. The columbia blood and guts are pretty good. The simms lightweight are not good for real heat. Maybe colorado mountain summer, but muggy and hot in Texas sun, no way. My advice is load up a range of them from amazon and try them all on as they fit differently, and see which ones are actually light enough to give you some airflow. Same deal on shirts too - not all fishing shirts are made the same, and only certain models of the typical brands really have good airflow and/or cooling dots. You didn't ask, but the undies make a big difference too. Ex Officio won hands down.

Baby Bull Shad will throw quite well on that rod, and is basically a mini-swimbait. Or like the posters above mentioned, a keitech. You won't need the owner beast size hooks for the 4.8 - a regular 5/0 owner cps hook (with or without weights or underspins) will be fine.

I feel the same way about BPS/Cabelas. For what it's worth the Cabelas Advanced Angler II series of bags (green) were recommended to me here and are well thought out and super durable. I was upside surprised, especially at the price point. The BPS blue worm binders are the same.