Tatsu Dave

Using an owner CPS on any hook is a very good choice, don't care for the ones that use a hook to attach. Prefer to thread the CPS on and know it will stay straight myself. For me there are owner CPS and there's all the other screw loc designs that I take off and replace with owner's. I've got two film containers that are full of non owners I will give to anybody that lives in my area.

Make sure to get some stickbaits, I like 5" mostly. Pick up some owner, gamma, or mustad swimbait hooks and a pack of small size owner screw locs. Some of the hooks come already equipped with the screwlocs and you can try them and see how they work for you. They will keep your senko style bait's straight and will hold up thru more hits. Work well for any plastics and are easy to fish, get a small hook hone and or sharpening file and keep hooks SHARP. Grubs, ribbon or sickle tail worms, crawfish imitator's, and creature baits all work in given conditions. Good Fishing!

I buy and use both myself, use the black on dark and light colored plastics and the GP on the light colored one's. Does it matter? Probably not, but it seems to keep my OCD from kicking in

Willy Wacks and out in the Puckerbrush are two descriptive terms for areas like this. Its a 45th parallel thing you know For me it comes right along with cutting and splitting 12 cords of wood each fall.

NO not crazy just prepared for that day one choose's to go

Crime scene can best be described as a maroon belly with turquoise and green flakes and a dark green top with heavy green flakes. Watermelon Candy is another with the heavy green flakes. Green seems very attracting to bass in general but smallmouth in particular. Watermelon gold flake is best represented by what BBB calls huisache HEAVY gold flake. Pink is a spring favorite for bed fisherman on many lakes due to the fact you can see it so well. Bubblegum as its called is an incredible producer in northern waters due to brook and rainbow trout forage fish with the pink bellies. Rainbow Trout and Bubble Scum both utilize this look. I actually like both above mentioned green's better than green flash senkos.

They remind me of BBB Trick Sticks in shape w/hookslot and weight is about the same. I'm real taken with the XZone True Center's, bubble scum is a real neat color and movement pretty much mimic's the senko, has a hand poured feel.

They've caught fish for decades and never stopped. I like Kalin and Berkley Powerbaits in 4-5" on a tungsten jig head. They have their days when it seems like just what the fish want for size and swimming action, easy to fish shallow or deep.

Good question and will get quite a few varied answers. I fish with 5 rigs and 4 will all have different color stickbaits to start, how do I pick the color's? I have developed a group of different colors that seem to work best for me in varied light conditions, I have them rigged on different rods. For me the water color I fish is always about the same with the exception of muddy, so full sun - partially cloudy - full overcast - and low light at dawn and dusk. I've posted it before and its always the same ones Crime Scene - Rainbow Trout - Junebug - Watermelon Gold Flake - Trophy Hunter (pumpkin red flake/junebug). I will fish with each one and see whats drawing the strikes for the day best. One of the last fishing trips my son started with watermelon magnum (heavy red flake) and me with my highest confidence bait, rainbow trout, The RT accounted for half a dozen fish and his got two strikes but no fish, he changed to RT with me and started to catch at the same pace I was. Light combined with water color and what the color of what bass are feeding on will dial you right in with one of those colors. Its why Munky Butt is a top color in whopper ploppers, another name for rainbow trout. Low light and junebug or trophy hunter should click. Full sun crime scene and watermelon gold flake (the more gold flake the better).

Well this is something we may suspect and certain things may point us to this conclusion but we will never know. No tests I know of have been done..........I grew up fishing in the mighty Susky from the flats to the tailrace, Dam was about 100' high and it backed up the river into a 6000 acre lake. inlet valves would suck in entire fish and spit them out into a raging tailrace. Had to always be ready to cut an anchor rope if it started to pull your bow under. River below would jump up about 25' and if you drifted you would hum along at good speed. I say all this cause the smallmouth used to spawn a couple large spots along the river edge and the only cover they had was behind large rocks. A 5 pounder in the current was almost unstoppable and took heavy gear to land from shore. You could barely stand in the current 100yds below the dam. The fish were long and somewhat slender and the tails were much wider than lake fish we caught. Yes I believe they are stronger and the fight is memorable, remember my Dad was with me trolling for stripers and got hit so hard it almost took his rod! he was a big guy and held on looking at me and saying I can't hold him at all. We started the motor and chased him downstream for quite a ways till he tired and I got a net under him, he was only 3 1/2lbs! Slender body cuts thru the current better, wider tail has greater power in current, and they never get a break unless they are sheltered below large rocks. They're lean mean fighting machines Where we fish up here in Maine we catch lake and river smallies and I feel I can tell the difference in fight....but maybe I'm just biased, I LIKE river smallmouth. Dave

I like how you are hitting and solving problems, shortcomings, and making it more fishable. Your skills and tweaks are awesome, It won't be long before you are the envy of fellow Pelican owners Try the stickbaits I recommended and just throw them out texas rigged and let sink and retrieve in twitches. They will catch bass and you will quickly perfect your skills at feeling bites and setting the hook. keep up the work on your fishing machine and keep us posted! Dave

Oh its just a 12' aluminum boat with a 9.9hp outboard. I will say 10-11mph sure doesn't feel scary fast if you want to catch some bass get some 5" senko baits w/ 2/0-3/0 hooks and get them in junebug, watermelon red flake, or rainbow trout and you will catch some bass. High percentage bait that works.

Truer words I've Never Heard.......

Never used real winter/mud tires in Maines worst winters, just 4wd was always enough. Mine goes from 2 to 4wd high range while at speed if it suddenly gets bad. That changed when I put a quick mount plow on the truck to keep my own drive clear. That's where the lugs on the more aggressive tires became important and necessary. Going up tote (woods) roads to hunt also became less stressful, although I've been on more than a few with regular multi purpose tires. Wet deep snow fill the tread on the multi purpose and they slip and loose traction easier.

Welcome aboard! Sounds like where I fish, plenty of smallies to always keep the fishing interesting. My son would rather catch one nice smallmouth than a largemouth any day I'm 50/50 the smallies got the fight (especially the one's growing up in river currents) but the largemouth get bigger in size. Will look for you on the forum........Dave

Be interested in your watercraft mods and experiences, its what makes these threads overflow with ideas and interesting discoveries. Welcome to the forum and seeing the learning process in action! Son and I can only manage 10mph with us and fishing gear, 11mph tops with a tailwind and calm water Don't need speed to catch bass however, just the right lures and technique. Good Fishing and keep us posted on your boat work. Dave

I'm not going to bore you with my many learning adventures but the first was a good one. Took my new to me boat and trailer to the lake, waited till no one was there and we backed it in. Told my son to get in the boat and I would push it off the trailer and park the rig, off it went and it was at that point it dawned on me it had no launch rope attached!! Boy was pretty young to try and give a coming in lesson from shore so I jumped in and swam out to boat and pulled it in. Needless to say I made a launch rope and snap for next time and learned that lesson first launch Sure glad we waited till no one was there! Dave

When I was starting out in fishing I had no mentor to teach and guide me, did in hunting but not in fishing. Wasn't an internet and forums like this to guide me, I had one desire (and it wasn't equipment) it was KNOWLEDGE and hands on experience. Bought some tackle and let people that ran tackle shops guide me (that's not always the best way but it was all I had), fished from shore till I bought a cheap used 12' boat and put a small outboard on it. Now I was on the water and the fish started teaching me, watched other fisherman closely as to what they used when possible. Heck went to a local national tournament and hung out there the two days the pros were checking things out, saw pros like Gary Klein, Roland Martin, and Larry Nixon as they fished past me on the weed lines, nice guys by the way. Now the fishing world is at your keyboard and videos abound, almost any question you could ask will be answered on a site like this. Places like TW pretty much have it all, and the fishing world and tactics are all laid out for you. Watch the vid's, ask questions on here, and let the fish teach and show you now. Like mentioned already, you can get an inexpensive rod/reel combo and some hooks and plastic baits........your ready for less than $100. Good Fishing and welcome aboard!

Priced right and should be perfect for the weights you intend to use.

Yeah....it was, I figure any member that doesn't answer is sand bagging. What fisherman goes all winter without any purchase of anything???? Just sayin'

Asking the different members that chose to respond what their favorite caliber/cartridge for deer was meant to show the diversity among different hunters and make the thread an interesting read, there was no right or wrong answer Some may site ballistics for their choice but it wasn't necessary, up here the 30/30 was number1 into the eighties when the 308 passed it. They ask all hunters what cartridge they used at deer check/tag station's and the state actually keep's track of it. I have found the answers to be quite varied and interesting myself. I thought it was along the lines of asking fisherman what their favorite bass lure is. The answer is it's what you like and or use, so there is no wrong answer I shot the biggest buck I've seen in a lifetime of hunting with an open sighted 30/30 94 Winchester, Keep the replies coming........Dave

Yeah Keith it is an odd thing.......I've shot some pretty heavy kickers in my time and they are one thing at the bench and another altogether when your looking at a game animal and focused as well as charging up with adrenaline. I've watched guys cycle three 3 1/2" magnums thru a 12 gauge at waterfowl and never even feel the massive recoil.

Thank You for the experiences, I have researched this and believe they will be a great pairing, your posts confirmed this. Dave

I'm looking at a Dobyns Sierra spinning rod along with a Pflueger Supreme XT reel. Also want to grab a big spool of 10# tatsu line. That ought to fix me up.........how about others?

Wow I guess that's hard on tackle for sure pickerel aren't so bad I guess ?