Fishlegs

Angler psychologist, huh? I like it. Maybe that's what I should start calling my fishing friends. I could tell my wife I'm going to see a therapist, and that the $50 charge is the copay. I'm not sure why they called it a "bait and tackle shop" on the statement. 🤣 Really the only lures I use regularly that I didn't use 30 years ago are bladed jigs, and Ned rigs. I still throw rattle traps, spinnerbaits, soft plastic worms/craws, and topwater poppers/walkers more than anything else. I do occasionally buy some of the trendy lures, but I usually fall back to the tried and true.

I agree with the light dusting vs heavy batter 100%. After reading both of these posts, maybe I need to give swordfish another shot.

I don't have a lot of high end gear, but I'm still pretty careful with my stuff. I don't spend my hard earned money on something unless I like it, and if I decide that it's worth buying then it's worth taking care of. I am not so careful that I won't use it though. If I buy it I plan to use it. I don't generally consider resale value with rods and reels, and I'd sacrifice my gear over losing a PB anyday.

Lipless is one of my favorite lures too. Which one I use depends on the situation. On bright, sunny day I either reach for a chrome original rat l trap, or a silver yo-zuri rattling vibe. On cloudy days I want a chartreuse H2Ox (academy house brand), or Azuma shaker z (not Azuma anymore since someone bought them out). Those two seem almost the same to me. In grassy prespawn areas I’m reaching for a Rayburn red Booyah hard knocker first. Then it’s a red rat l trap after that. If I want a lipless to flutter on the fall I reach for a red eye shad. It’s great at that.

Those look nice, and thick. You're eating good this weekend!

@TnRiver46 I was wondering if that was her, or you yelling at the end of that video when it started going crazy. 😂 Apparently, lowering a drop shot rig into a huge bait ball is a decent way to snag them. It happened to both people in the boat my last time out.

This has been a good thread. Fascinitaing to read thoughtful posts on both sides of the issue. I don't eat bass often, but I enjoy an occasional bass...especially with hushpuppies, and cole slaw. I have a friend who told me that bass tasted gross. We had her family over for a fish fry. When she left she sheepishly admitted that the bass was pretty good. Her husband, and son liked the bass better than the catfish. The only fish that I've tried that I won't eat again are fish that do not taste like fish. Things like shark, swordfish, mahi, etc. If I want something that tastes like steak, or chicken then I'll order steak, or chicken.

Grabbing a gar with treble hooks in it? You're braver than me @TnRiver46! 🤣 @Bluebasser86 It took some patience to get it in. I have become a believer in 6 lb Daiwa Samurai J-Fluoro. I have had multiple experiences where it's proven to be crazy strong.

@Jigfishn10 I caught it in Tennessee, and they do have an angler recognition program. You just need a picture with measurements, and a witness who's willing to verify the catch. I had thoughts of trying to get it in the boat to see if it qualified, but I wasn't 100% sure what species it was, we didn't have a good set of gloves to safely handle it (it had lots of teeth 😂), and it was a long way to the nearest ER if I needed stitches. In light of those things we decided against it. 45 inches is the qualifying length for a longnose gar. It was probably not 5 ft long, but I'm pretty sure it was over 45 inches. The TN state record for a longnose gar is over 38 lbs. I've seen 38 lb fish (other species), and I don't think this one was that heavy. I may have to leave a pair of gloves in my friend's boat just in case it happens again though.

I've looked at some pictures to see what type of gar it is. You're very good at fish ID. Is it a longnose? It was a fun fight. We passed over a large bait ball so I dropped my line down into it just hoping for something to happen. I felt the line move so I set the hook, and this is what was there. I've caught a few gar over the years, but never one this big. It's also the first time I've unintentinally snagged one with a #2 hook, and 6 lb test. Now I know that my hooks, line, and knots are up to the task though. 😂

If that picture is totally unedited then that's an absolute beast! It looks like one of Tom's @WRB-2.0 monster bass. Thanks for sharing @Pat Brown.

On a 60 degree February day we hit the river. The water is very low at this spot at winter pool, but it was just high enough at the ramp to get the boat in. The water temp hovered around 41 all day. We looked for fish shallow, and deep. Pretty much everywhere we usually fish along this stretch with nothing to show for it. We only found one spot with signs of baitfish all morning, but nothing was willing to bite. The only place we had not looked was at the dam. We went up to the dam, but did not see a lot of fish there either. We did manage to find a few baitfish near one corner of the dam so we tried there. My buddy caught a nice crappie, a fat spotted bass, a small catfish, and accidentally snagged a small gar. I managed a 7 lb blue cat, and also accidentally snagged a gar. This gar was pretty big. I've caught catfish heavier than this fish, but this may be the longest fish I've ever caught. We didn't have gloves sufficient to get it in, and neither of us are experienced handling gar so I just told my buddy to snap a picture when I got it to the side of the boat. It's hard to tell from the picture, but we estimated that it was between four and five feet long. It took me over 20 minutes to get it to the surface on 6 lb test. The drag on my reel got a major workout. That reel definitely needs a little TLC before I go out again. We called it a day after that.

@Swamp Girl Anyone who competes with you needs a head start...well, maybe everyone except @Bluebasser86. Y'all are fishing catching machines! Nice one @N Florida Mike!

Sorry to hear that the weather, and the fish didn't cooperate. It still sounds like you had a safe trip with good friends, and caught a few fish so it wasn't all bad. Thanks for sharing. I always enjoy reading your trip reports.

I'm so sorry to hear this, Bob. It sounds like you had a great life together with lots of wonderful memories. She will always be with you in your heart, and through your children. I'll be praying for comfort in the coming days for you, and your family.

I've seen those exact deals at Ollie's in Alabama. Ollie's is hit, or miss for fishing stuff. Ours also had a lot of Yamamoto stuff, but the price for those was not much lower than it is anywhere else.

I can't offer any help to the OP's question, but if there are pictures with @TnRiver46 with rollers in his hair I bet a lot of folks here would pay to see something that funny. 😂 Maybe try offering to trade the tubes for lures? At least you might end up with something useful. Good luck!

I like academy rods. I think I have 5 or 6 of them. I got all of them on a crazy clearance sales, but they’re decent rods. I consider one of them to be really good. I’ll definitely plan to check this one out if they get them in my local store.

Like everyone here, I'd like to fish more, catch more fish, and catch bigger fish. I'd also like to use more of the tackle I have, and buy less. I know how that will go. 🤣🐒 A long term goal that I've been working toward is to catch a fish in every navigable waterway in my county. There are two rivers, and eleven navigable creeks. There are three creeks that I have never fished. Now that I have a kayak I have better access to those creeks. I would like to complete that goal this year. Another thing I hope to do this year is fish with @Smirak. We talked about it last year, but it didn't work out. I hope it will this year. I need him to give me some kayak fishing lessons.

Awesome! Can't wait until the trip report. Just don't let any of those pesky otters sneak up there with you to eat her fish.

Have you ever seen Curt look that happy? 😂

Wow! @Glenn, that’s crazy! Glad to hear no one was hurt. It kind of looks like that massive rock is giving you the side eye. 😂

There are very few on Tom’s level, but don’t sell yourself short @GreenPig. Landing a DD bass takes more than luck.

3 lb 15 oz on a chrome blue back Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap. More details in the latest catch thread.