ajschn06

They also side with the buyer 99% of the time- between ebay and paypal, it's really difficult to get screwed unless you aren't willing to go through the effort of opening a case...

7” power worm- motor oil red fleck

Can't do it.... even when I'm fishing a jig it's not sitting still very long...

Hmm you’ve got me thinking.. love the bluegill jackhammer color and liked the look of the watermelon orange zako because it matched the bait perfectly.... but as I picture a bluegill, the back end is darker than the rest of the body- AND they have a wider tail than a zako gives, some may say wider like a vertical menace.... I like the cut of your jib

Had a lot of success with the Menace- specifically the GP on Bhite Delite color. Haven't felt the need to turn them vertically- I think the menace rigged standard has a killer action on the back of a jackhammer

Yes

You don’t need fish grippers to hold a bass, regardless of hand size

Ya know and it kind of depends- I’ve got a 6’9” Abu Garcia MH and a 6’10” Daiwa MH rod- way more backbone in the daiwa for that sort of technique. Versatility is key for me- I’m not going to invest in a rig that would only do one or two things and go months without picking it up.

I caught my first bass when I was 11- on a purple tube. It was only about a pound and a half but we kept it in our freezer for years planning on mounting it. Never did- but I remember going down to look at it often. I skipped stage 2 and have spend most of my life in a combination of 3/4. I still catch fish the way I want to, and am fishing with my son now so stage 5 is where I am. He started out last year with a bobber and worm, and by midsummer he just wanted to cast. His first was a 27" northern on a crankbait, and finally got his first casting bass throwing a finesse swimbait. He would catch 6 or 7 more as the season wore down, and found one that hit 2 pounds even on our last outing of the year...he's asked for a baitcaster for his birthday...

My family has vacationed in brainerd for 30 years.... as a kid, my favorite part of that trip was visiting Marv Koep's tackle shop. It closed many years ago and that's unfortunate, but I don't understand the concept of spending more money just to support a local shop. I just bought a Tatula Elite reel, any shop/store I visited would have cost me 250+tax. I got it brand new shipped to my door for $185. If I was buying $250 worth of lures or plastics, I bet I could find similar discounts shopping online vs local stores. It just doesn't make sense....

I just leave it on the jig

I agree- I was looking for sunfish/bluegill type trailers and I've seen a lot of baits that have this color. It doesn't mesh well with either of those combos for me- maybe it works but I didn't like the look so I didn't fish it. 6th sense does have a jig color, Bluegill Magic, that it pairs really well with though....

Everything you said is correct, but I don’t think that is the purpose of the thread. Obviously anyone would be handicapping themselves going with only one setup, the question is what setup would you use that would allow you to fish many different options somewhat effectively

That's kind of my point. A 7' Medium Heavy is a rod you could fish a jerkbait on, or throw a frog in some heavier vegetation. It's not ideal for either, but you can certainly make it work....

I already have my poles rigged up and ready for my first trip of the season..... I'm in Minnesota...

It’s really not. I fished for Bass for YEARS growing up with only one pole and I threw everything on it. A MH/F can pretty much do anything. Is it ideal for everything? No- is it as efficient as having multiple rods rigged up? No.... but it’s not difficult at all But you COULD do both with a 7’ MH/F rod....

Unfortunately, my "2020 most productive baits" list is quite short. A black and blue Sieberts brush jig with a rage craw did most of the damage. 2nd place, but not a close 2nd, would be the BHite Delite Jackhammer with a GP rage menace. I didn't throw much else for long enough to make them productive. A few on a toad and a few on the Keitech...

I've had a lot of success with the Ayu and Mossback Golden Fat Impacts- I've been wanting to try the TB Finesse head, but it bothered me that it didn't come in anything darker that would go better with that bait. I suppose if @A-Jay is comfortable throwing it out like that, I should be too.....

Awesome- great info. I have fished that exact Tatula 7’3”H so I know how that plays. I was going to throw it on. 6’10” MH Tatula and I’m not sure if I’d consider it close to heavy but it’s definitely stouter than any other MH I’ve handled lately..

Mike's stuff is awesome

Dang if we can do that I'm hopping in your boat

Arguably? He can show me where to find the monster smallies on the Miss.... I gotta bump him to #1

Yeah I think I'm going to have to try these. The perch/Gill/bass patterns aren't ones I've seen on this type of bait. I would have to throw it on a 6'10" Tatula MH fast that's rated 1/4-1 oz though. It's much stouter than the Abu rod with the same rating that I have, but getting up towards that 1 oz worries me a bit....

There are a lot of guys that would fit the bill for me: Wheeler MDJ Skeet Reese sounds like he'd be a hoot to fish with Feider But when it comes down to it, would be hard not to say KVD

Sounds like someone who deserves a nice sock to the nose