JK Jake

Personally I am very impressed of what that man was able to due, but I bet after a hard days of fishing I would be willing to due the same if I were able to react fast enough.

You'll be just fine with that braid, don't worry about it. It'll work well in all of that heavy cover.

I usually just try to buy nice rods and reels when they are on sale, and I normally get equipment that is about $100-$150. Just remember that most of the time you get what you pay for, so don't buy a cheap baitcaster that will backlash a lot, or a cheap spinning rod that isn't sensitive enough to feel those light dropshot bights.

Just don't overthink it, as soon as I feel a fish bite on my jig, worm, or fluke, I quickly reel in the slack line and set the hook. I would say it's better to set the hook early, don't pause at all, reeling in your slack line gives the fish the split second they need to swallow your bait (If they have not already). With that said there is a difference between a fish tapping your lure and biting it, and learning this comes with experience, and I'm still learning it myself. Some of the time the fish may just peck your lure or snip it before they commit to actually biting the whole thing. Just don't overthink the whole thing and don't really pause for more than a second, and you'll be fine In the majority of your time. With experience you'll understand it more.

It depends. If the water is dirty then the largemouth could be shallow because they like to have some sun on their backs. Just good all around baits that I have confidence in are wacky rigs and jigs. Also mix in a swimbait if the water is clear.

I've only used the zoom super flukes so I can't really compare them to anything else, but they are soft yet pretty durable. I just started fishing flukes this spring and these have worked well for me.

5 inch senko, and a roboworm on a drop shot is close behind that. I probably have the most fun fishing frogs when the conditions are right.

I would have tried looking for a more sheltered creek or cove, and if the bass weren't there then they may have shut off and moved deeper. Pre-Spawn bass can act very wacky some of the time. Your lure choice probably wasn't a big problem unless the bass did just shut down to an inactive state. Like what everyone else said though, that is definitely not a bad morning if you caught a 7 pounder.

Wondering what your opinion is with depth visibility and what yall consider to be clear/stained/muddy water. Here in north Texas I've always seen it as this- Muddy-brown, can't even see a foot deep (as is the case a lot of the time for my local Dallas area lakes) decently Stained- you can about 2-3 feet under the surface Clear- you can see more than 4-5 feet under the surface

I have been dealing with the same question, as I live less than an hour from the heart of Dallas, and as the weather has been very wacky. I've only been serious about lake fishing for bass for about 3 years and I haven't fished many tournaments, but I have read and seen a lot of videos say that the spawn is more based upon the increasing day length and less on water temperature. I went out and fished on Ray Roberts this Saturday and the fish were very inactive as a cold front had just came through, although I heard some other guys were able to find warmer water and more active fish way up in some creeks. Though I don't know too much I found this interesting, drawn out discussion yesterday when I was searching the forums. I guess it's a controversial topic.

Because I have to fish on a budget I have done just fine fishing it on my 7'3" heavy flipping stick on straight braid most of the time, or on my 7'6" medium heavy Carolina rig rod with fluorocarbon. But with that said I fish more stained water so I can get away with using the braid. If I were to create a set up for fishing an Alabama rig I would get a longer rod (at least 7'6") with a heavy power, yet make sure it has a tip with a decent bend. The softer tip helps a lot with casting and setting the hook. 20-25lb fluorocarbon will probably work well. I would get a 6.0:1-6.5:1 gear ratio reel. Most of the time you fish it slowly or on a medium retrieve so you don't want to overwork the rig with a fast reel. Any rod designed to throw big swimbaits in general will probably work well for fishing an Alabama rig. Just don't get some cheap rod that will break just from casting since the rig is so heavy.

There's not too much I would add to what has already been said, but jigs and soft plastic stick worms (senkos) are very good lures that can be used in a lot of different ways and in a wide variety of conditions.

I was fishing some bridge pilings in the summer with a friend of mine and he had a 41/2 inch roboworm tied on. This was a fairly pressured spot and the water was dirty, you could only see 1-2 feet. He caught a 5 pounder. You just never really know what can happen with a drop shot. I've even read about Bassmaster and MLF pros who have won tournaments from fishing drop shots. Generally drop shots are good for numbers but they can be amazing for those bigger bass too.

If more than a foot of the rod got knocked off it probably won't work very well at all, but if you really want to use it then go right ahead. It will probably be extremely stiff since the tip section is gone. If you do use it just don't expect it to perform all that well.

The water is still very cold in some places, such as in the Dallas area. I just went out on lake Ray Hubbard yesterday and the water was 47-48 degrees. Some bass may have been in pre-spawn mode but most of the lake is still being affected by a cold winter. The water here is 10-13 degrees colder than Sam Rayburn just to give you a comparison.

Might be a little late for your outing, but I understand what you're asking. Down here in Texas the weather has been just as wacky, so I normally go in with not to much expectation of what is going to happen. I'm guessing in that situation the fish will be a little less active but fishing rocks and areas with warmer water will probably be your best bet for finding those fish that are more willing to bite.

I never use a spinning rod for these techniques unless I'm fishing a VERY small jig or creature bait. If a spinning rod suits you better then there is definitely nothing illegal about but I have found more benefit in using a baitcasting rod for these techniques. Baitcasting rods tend to have a lot more power and backbone, and spinning reels normally don't come with a strong drag for pulling bass out of vegetation. It is also easier to throw those heaver weights on a baitcasting rod. It is also a whole lot more efficient for you to use a baitcasting rod if you are flipping lures. A spinning rod generally may have more sensitivity, but when you're using big weights and heavy braid I find it a lot better to use a baitcasting rod. Once again if you just can't do baitcasting that is fine but generally baitcasting is the way to go for these techniques.

I would definitely get a heavy power rod with a fast action for fishing jigs and frogs, and braid is a must have for frog fishing. For the reel get one with at least a 7.0 gear ratio, and make sure it has a high drag for pulling bass out of vegetation. For the other baitcasting rod I would get a medium heavy power fast/mod fast action rod, and probably one around 7 foot. I would get at least a 6.0 gear ratio reel a little heavier fluorocarbon. For those spinning rod techniques you would probably want a medium or medium light power rod with a little more backbone than your typical drop shot rod. I would always get a faster reel (6.0 gear ratio) for my spinning set ups. Use braid for your main line and have a fluorocarbon leader. DO NOT put straight fluorocarbon on your spinning reel. You will get line twists and you will not be able to feel your lure as well. The most important thing I can say to all of this is that rod ratings (Power, Action) are very general so I would always check out a rod in person before buying it. The Bass Pro fishing classic is coming up soon so that would be a great for getting new rods and reels.

It really depends on what else you are going to fish. If you want to fish more heavy stuff (Carolina rig, football jig, frog) I would get a rod that has more backbone. If you're thinking about fishing crankbaits more then I would get a rod with a softer action(I haven't tried them but I heard the bps crankin stick is a good rod and its relatively cheap). It's really just personal preference but I think your set up is pretty good for a lot of techniques.

Wacky rig 5" senkos (stick worms). This rig is very simple and easy to fish. I would throw it anywhere no matter the water color. Best in shallow water. Green Pumpkin is a good universal color. I personally love the Bass Pro Stiko worms, they are good in quality and amazing in price. Just cast it out, let it sink, "hop it", and then let it sink again. Throw this on a spinning rod.

I have never tried Sufix, but I have found that PowerPro braid is good and it isn't expensive. It's about $13-$16. I use 25-15 pound braid on my spinning rods.

I live right next to a small 2-3 acre pond that I fish at a lot. Even if the water is dirty (1-2 ft clarity) a drop shot can work fine, just fish slowly. I always use Roboworms in Morning dawn color for my dropshots. Also it really helps when the sun is out.

I've spent a lot of time looking at crankbait rods this past month and I think I have settled on the St. Croix mojo bass glass rod 7'4" Medium power Moderate action. Any thoughts and opinions? This is going to be my first crankbait rod. I know for sure that whatever rod I get I want a glass medium action rod. I will be using 8-15 ft diving crankbaits (3xd, 1.5 deep). I might also use some squarebills. I am open to any other suggestions, as I have never fished crankbaits much at all.