DaubsNU1

I agree, 100%! I like to be the first boat off the dock well before daylight. Early bird gets the...er, fish : )

I prefer triple bladed buzz baits...they can be worked slower than the doubles in my experience.

Love it! Love the smell of fresh cut grass. Love the look of straight lines. Love the 2 hours of uninterrupted serenity. Love the smell of diesel in the afternoon. Love keeping these 40+ year old bad-boys running strong!! And in case you were wondering, I love moving snow in the winter as well : )

^^ Same ^^ Solid black, or solid white. Mainly 3/8 oz. I like the triple bladed baits...I can work them slower and stay in strike zone longer.

Agreed, I haven't thrown a Beetle Spin in years, but they always produced in the past. Love the W Plopper...fun times...always love seeing a bass blow up top-water! Threw Chatterbait last weekend and had good success! I'm not a huge spinner-bait fan...but I love, LOVE me some top-water buzz-bait action!

This is good information! My first cranks were lip-less Rattle-Traps in various sizes. Chrome-blue seemed to work best and caught everything from crappie, to bass, and even Musky. Easy to cast and retrieve, they can be worked at many different depths. I've never been a big fan of deep diving cranks...could never get them to the depth I wanted, little success...and with the moss / vegetation here in Nebraska, very much a pain to fish. I recently started throwing square-bills and have actually had some good success. KVD 1.5 in bluegill color does well. I've ordered some 6th Sense 50x. Bluegill colors seem to do well, as well as something natural, and bright silver / shiny. Good luck!

Growing up Mepps and Panther Martin were my go-to lures (1970's and 80's). Dad used to take me and my brother to a stocked trout pond here in Eastern Nebraska. We had a blast using #0 and #1 sized on ultra-light tackle. Fished a small sandpit lake and would catch crappie and bluegill all day long. Loved it! Do twist line a lot. I have a small box in my boat with all my old in-line spinners...I need to break them out one day : )

Sadness. I am sorry for your loss... "Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable. All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind. They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart. Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together...."

My Dad is 81, and doesn't hunt any more...shoulder replacement surgery means he can no longer get a shotgun up to shooting position. Sad, because we chased waterfowl, turkeys, upland...it was a huge part of how we connected as a family. Brother and I are taking him to South Dakota to chase Smallies here in June. Last week he stumbled making his bed, and fell...tore his hamstring and has been in the hospital since last Thursday. He's getting up there and I fear his days fishing are numbered. I understand you and your Dad see things differently. There are sure things my Dad and I don't see eye-to-eye on. My suggestion: let him fish the way he wants to fish...and enjoy the time you have to spend together.

Love me a t-rigged, blue-fleck power worm. But my undisputed king of putting fish in the boat, is a simple white power grub on a lead-head.

Aside from the gimmick 1990's that really stunk (Helicopter lure, Flying lure, Banjo minnow)... Mine would have to be the Zara Spook. Looks great, wonderful action...just never produced. I worked top-water much more when I lived in Missouri...here in Nebraska, the wind always seems to be howling...

6'6" medium spinning rod, with 15lb bright yellow braid to 8lb fluoro.

Still fishing the Cabela's rods I purchased in the 1990's...I estimate spent round $1k on rods alone. Picked up my boat / motor / trailer for $600 back in 2000. I will just stop there : )

I watched the entire video. Yep, the video creator (Todd) was cut off, no doubt about that. It's super easy to criticize and dissect the video and all interactions contained therein. I'm glad Todd included all the footage, and not just the cut-off and brief interaction. Todd did a good job of handling this situation. He did get a few jabs in, and poked-the-bear when he could have just walked away.

Hang in there @Luke Barnes! Every consider a counselor / therapist? I went through rough divorce 13 years ago...we had been married 18 years and had two daughters (ages 12-10). I got custody of the kiddos. Got the daughters a good family counselor, and I found a great counselor for me. My parents, sister & brother, and good friends were there for me. Huge help just talking through things.

Good to know. I've been thinking of getting a new bait-caster. Love the feel of my Curado or Citica's.

$19.60 for two shirts. Hanes Men's Long Sleeve Cool Dri T-Shirt UPF 50+ (Pack of 2)

Hard to beat any Shimano reel. I have three Shimano bait-casters purchased in the early 1990's... With just minimum cleaning and maintenance, all are still performing flawlessly!

Eastern Nebraska, 29" / 6lb-2oz Pike KVD 1.5 square-bill, bluegill colored. 47 degrees, North wind at ~20MPH. Water temps 53-54 degrees. Fish was up shallow, in 4' of water.

Rained pretty steady Thursday, Friday, off and on Saturday. Sunday I planned to fish...and it didn't look good... 47 degrees when I got on the water around 9 AM, wind from the north ~18MPH. Water temps 53-54 degrees. Relatively new lake, opened in 2018, lots of flooded timber. Still catch and release only (I like). I normally prefer finesse fishing -- NED, weightless Senko, etc., but with the wind howling right down the lake, I tied on a KVD 1.5 square-bill to my bait-caster. Much to my surprise, this guy hammered the crank just a few feet from the boat. Made a run under the boat, but the power-pro held strong (no leader) Went 29" / 6lb-2oz. I kept throwing the KVD and boated six small bass, three in or near the trees, three on rip-rap. Normally when the wind blow strong like that, I'm headed home. Nice to gain some confidence with cranks today. I did snip off one hook off the front treble...seemed to help from getting snagged in those trees.

Scheels is my go-to store right now! I live in Nebraska, and my college roommate in 1987 had worked at Cabela's HQ in Sidney, NE for years...Cabela's was THE place for me for a very, very long time. Buddy worked his way up at Cabela's, so did his wife. I've met Dick Cabela on a few occasions. When the company went public in 2004 things began to change. It was all down-hill from there. There is a Bass-Pro across the river in Council Bluffs, and a Cabela's here in town as well. Scheels kicks both their tails on fishing and hunting stuff. Great store!

49 and raining here in Nebraska. Hope to fish tomorrow...expecting water temps in the low 50's. ** fingers crossed **

Following...as the temps here in Nebraska are looking very similar this weekend...

My brother got a Lund Alaskan in similar color. He wanted something different...but the white / silver was a great opportunity and deal. He loves the color. Easy to keep clean. Much like a truck...lighter colors easier, darker colors show everything. My previous truck was dark metallic gray (almost black). Always looked dirty. Current truck is silver...much better!!

What is your method to changing things up? Do you give a lure / technique a specific amount of time before tying on something else? My standard method to the madness: Pre-rig my 6 rods with the lures I like for that particular lake I will fish for a while with one rod / lure / presentation, then switch if things don't produce. Then switch again. If none of the 6 are producing, then it's time to re-configure, (i.e., stare at my tackle-box for a while : ) If one of the 6 is producing, I will ride that horse until it's time to head home. Other ends of the spectrum: My uncle will throw a spinner bait all day, every day, and will rarely ever try anything else. He might change colors, or weight, but it's still spinner-bait...(in some ways, I admire his dedication) I fished with a guy years ago who had a timer hanging around his neck...set for 15 minutes. If he hasn't caught fish in that 15 minute span, he was switching lures.