LrgmouthShad

I fish the PopMax on a 6’6” medium spinning rod with 15 braid to 15lb big game which is basically 22lb. The PopMax is an insanely versatile bait. I have never fished the Pop X. I struggled to get topwater bites for years until I tried the Popmax. It is making a run for the best topwater bait I have ever tried.

Guinness is alright. Guinness Extra Stout takes the concept and perfects it

I pick a 1/2oz colorado/willow spinnerbait. My two colors are 1. white with silver blades 2. chartreuse with gold blades

What is your budget? If no budget, I’d get Tatsu. 6lb fluoro is dangerous. Get the best you can safely afford

Mom visited TX for work. For weeks before coming, she talked about fishing Stillhouse with me while she was here. So we went out in the yaks and she got a nice bass that weighed 3lbs even. That is her first TX fish. And of course she boat flipped it on a spinning rod like she always does 😂. Me: 🦨 We were around some schooling fish in the morning but we could not get them to eat our topwater. They were too focused on the shad balls I guess. Later in the day I found some patches of hydrilla using my electronics and that was a big deal. There were some big fish hanging around the stuff in 10-16ft. They did not like anything in the small collection of stuff I brought. Mom’s fish was off the marina which can be a reliable place to fish. Ate her weighted senko about halfway to the bottom.

7+ lber in Texas. This fish went berserk. Jumped three times with a jig in its mouth and started to dig once it got close to the boat. My PB was also a great fighter. Ran and bulldogged in deeper water. It never surfaced until it was right next to me and of course the first thing I saw was its gaping mouth.

Oldham Eye Max is the best

Phew! Sounds tasty

Otisco, one of the finger lakes. It’s the only finger lake I’ve fished. It was the shortest drive. Or, the Big Piney River in Missouri, with the caveat that I get to go back in time with a healthy rotator cuff, so I could actually float the river in my kayak for smallmouth.

Cold and muddy water Right after a storm with muddy water and sun Any time the water is less than 40 degrees The month of September Bluebird skies without a wisp of wind And any time I think the fishing will be really good, it will be really bad

Nice man. 12lb is the lightest I go on a baitcaster, too. For that, I'm at around 4lbs drag, unless treble. Treble hook baits it depends on the size and thickness of the trebles. I'll go 2-4lbs usually. Most my baitcasting is with 16-20lb line. I go with 5lb drag for that.

Well, real sorry to hear that you lost that great fish. It's tough to know everything that went wrong. To answer your question, I like drag set around 5lbs for most single-hook applications.

Toilette. I got it before the eau de parfum was released.

The best body of water I have fished is a place called Cranberry Pond in NY. It is a secluded pond that is only open for 1-2 days a week and features no boat launch. Kayaks are definitely the best deal there. It is full of lily pads when the water is warm. It is shaped like a bowl. To get to the pond, you need to drive on a winding gravel road. The woods are thick and gorgeous all around. In the fall it is stunning. I had some fantastic days on that pond.

I always recommend the booyah covert series to people who don’t know spinnerbaits a lot because they are an easy spinnerbait to fish. If you are willing to dish out the cash on an SV-3, you can get a covert with that and still have some gas money left over. The SV-3 is a good spinnerbait but fished out of the package, the covert spinnerbaits tend to be much more versatile One thing I will complement the SV-3 with is they are hard to hang up with and they last for many, many fish. The booyah covert does good too.

I admit Tatsu is the exception. I received a couple of Amazon Gift Cards for Christmas last year and put it into a 22lb spool of Tatsu. I jig fished with it for a bit and liked it a lot. There was enough for another spool and I currently have that for c-rigging. Tatsu is the best and it is softer line. Invisx is another great line but it has more stretch and doesn’t hold up to abrasion as good as Sniper.

It’s the greatest stuff I’ve used

Yeah I like that stuff

Megabass SV-3 is a durable spinnerbait. It should last over 20 fish. I’m sure it fishes fine stock.

I have fished with the chef something like four times. If you are wondering why we haven’t posted a report for every trip, it’s because bass are smarter than us. The chef’s beard is just epic. Never shave it.

I sharpie my braid when it starts to get faded. I agree it’s just a confidence thing

Early-mid summer I like to be deeper. Late summer I like to be higher in the water column through September. My favorite time to fish shallow is winter, but this depends on the lake. Stillhouse is fishing shallower than last year but last year I would call 10' shallow. That's because the water was 15-20ft low and very clear. This year water is higher so I would call shallow on that lake 5ft or less.

@ol'crickety nah I just don't think many 18yr olds are inclined to browse forums to learn about bass fishing. They'd rather digest their information from video sources.

Nice fishing @Alex from GA! @ol'crickety I am the youngest active member on here that I know of. BR does not really attract the younger demographic.