Jig Man

That’s an awfully big jig for such a small hook. What are you trying to accomplish?

We fish highland reservoirs in MO and Northern AR. Ned has been a good producer in the fall and winter. We’ve been on Table Rock lake in the upper James River which is large mouth county, upper White River which is spotted bass country and lower Beaver lake in AR where smallmouth are predominant. Shaky and jigs are working but Ned is terrible. Most of our fish are coming on very rocky areas. If it is working for you, what kind of water are you fishing.

Full cork covered with shrink tubing.

So what are you floating? Several floaters hang around Phil Lillies Ozark Anglers site.

I guess hammer because with projects my motto is beat it to fit then paint it to match!!

I’m kind of a jig guy. I like to keep mine readily available and easy to see and choose so I like clear plastic boxes. The jigs producing best right now are the Jewell Pee Wee so I have them separated from others. The back row are store bought and the front are home made knockoffs.

I use the same reels for top water that I use for Arigs, Shimano Curado 5:1. I do go to mh rods for top water.

I only have one keep putting 1000 bass in the boat.

I didn’t notice anyone addressing the shaft. You better keep a sharp eye out for lower unit leaks if you don’t replace it. If you have insurance you probably have enough for a claim unless your deductible is high.

Allen that color looks to me like motor oil with some pumpkin seed added.

Jigs…8 or 10 sizes in 20 or more color combinations Shaky…6 jig head sizes with 15 or more Elaztech colors Keitech swim baits…8 colors in 4 sizes with jig heads in 1/8, 1/4, 3/8 Ned…6 head weights with 22 colors of TRDs Crankbaits… wiggle warts, rock crawlers Top waters… Zara Spooks mostly

I like to stay an hour or less from home. I have lakes almost every direction from my house within that radius. Pomme de Terre 15000+ acres 75 miles Stockton 26000+ acres 50 miles Bull Shoals 40000+ acres 65 miles Table Rock 40000+ acres 32 miles Beaver Lake 40000+ acres 70 miles There are some smaller lakes but they have motor restrictions so I can’t launch at them. They all have largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass. Walleye, stripers, hybrids and musky are also in some of them. Our lakes are over run with tournaments which I believe is harming them but there is too much money involved for change to occur in the near future.

That short of time isn’t enough to have any effect on your battery. My batteries were out of my boat for 2 months last fall while it was at the factory for warranty work.

To me a long cast is one that went too far and got hung in the rocky bank otherwise they are too short or acceptable.

I had no clue what type of mold it was. That puppy is going to be a hard pour for anyone.

I wasn’t referring to ffs. I was referring to quality units with decent sized screens. On the power poles idea. Give that some serious thought before you sink that kind of money. I put them on my last boat and used them very seldom because my boat is normally deeper than they will reach. I lost $1500 on that little experiment. Now spot lock is a different story. I use it several times a day. Spot lock jog is one very great feature also. I can tell you that I fish 4 lakes and normally go twice each week. With the hundreds and hundreds of boats that I see with “electric anchors “ I have never seen a boat with them deployed.

Okay you have chosen a boat. Keep in mind most of them come with small sonar units and lower powered trolling motors and low amp chargers. In many cases you can get upgrades a lot more reasonable at purchase or order than you can later on.

I think I can offer you a site where you might get info but I can’t list it here. If you pm me a phone number I will send you a text then you can decide for yourself.

Don’t scrimp on the trolling motor if you get a tin boat. I’ve had 3 of them and they blow around a lot. Spot lock will help.

The electronics guys that I use coil the wire and zip tie it.

Tom I used to smoke molds before Cadman introduced me to Frankfort Arsenal Dropout spray. I had a mold that no amount of smoke worked. It is cleaner, stays on longer and works better than smoke.

Our water temps are in the mid to low 50s right now. The bass on upper Table Rock seem to be scattered though still shallow. Rarely do we catch more than 1 or 2 in an area. The baits we have been using are jigs, jerks, shaky and Ned. The jerks aren’t producing much and Ned (which should be good) is worthless. Jigs and Elaztech worms rigged shaky are all that have been producing.

Lead melts at around 620°. If you have alloys in it you need higher temps. When I used a Lee pot I ran it on 10 all the time. Frankfort Arsenal drop out spray will help. I have it on all of my molds. If you have acetone clean your mold with it. Dry it and let everything evaporate before using the release agent. Wait a few hours after coating the mold before you pour. Try holding the mold up to the filler when you open it. Sometimes that helps. If you are working in a cold area you may have to heat the hooks. Once in a while you run across a mold that has to be “cracked”. That means slightly opening the mold as you pour. I had a Poison Tail mold that would not fill one of the cavities unless I put a couple of pieces of paper in it next to the handle. A penny wrapper was perfect for that job. Please report back on your progress.

I’ve been trying fg knots for a few months and like it. I’ve had 5 hand surgeries and could use a good tool. I looked it up and saw several offered. Any of you have experience with them and can point me to the best one?

You can take pliers and dip the jig in the pot to melt off the lead but you will have to clean residue off the hook. I prefer to hold it over the pot with pliers and melt the lead off with my little propane torch. The hook comes out clean and can be reused as soon as it cools. I have reused 100s and had no problems with the hooks.