Tatsu Dave

Not hijacking but everyone should take the time to watch the video that Tom suggested concerning bass rejecting all types of lures while the fisherman is unaware. Amazing to see them in action on the bed and feeding on prey and lures. It will alter your preception, it did mine. Watching them get hooked was interesting as well. Good Thread.

Catt ya just got a way with words...........WRB it was Glen Lau

Hard to do much study on break-off mortality if by definition they actually broke free from angler and swam away. I'd have to figure they had the fish where they could monitor them to know how long they lived and if they expelled the lure. That would mean the hook and lure was put in the bass by someone for the study. You would wonder where this information actually would come from........a study on hook life has proven plated hooks will last a long time even hung in a fishes jaw (they put the hooks there). They dispelled the idea that they were quickly dissolved or rusted away, by the fishes body chemicals, even in salt water. Makes my head hurt considering it, means we should do as good and effective job as possible to remove any such items.....but this question was break-off mortality. Hard to watch or remove from a fish that get's away I suppose.

Adding a tail spinner to stickbaits and throwing it deeper where it helicopters around as it falls. Loose them a lot to toothy fish however.

Nice fish, that 6lb 8ozer would have made my day and then some. My son got a 4lb 8oz when he got to flip a big stick-up in the river the other day, I was sad it wasn't my turn to fish it. Did you get the worm out of the basses throat? Again congrats Dave

Great post from the past, I'd forgot the jig spinners but they were neat as well. I used to call em' budget spinnerbaits. After posting the other day on here about sassy shad I dug out a box of steel hooked jigheads with the big eyes and set up a light rod with 8# hybrid line and threw a bunch of shads and curly tails in a box. Be first time fishing w/them since about 1992. I bet most fish where I go have never seen one..........

Car battery won't take the constant charging and discharging if used without an alternator to Maintain it's charge. Like already said if just starting an outboard and then being charged by it, your pretty good, but on a troller it won't last too long.

This is how I fish as well, no leader's and tied direct. I don't care much about studies and tests that may not be anything like my areas. Son just switched to braid (30lb sufix camo) all he will fish with now. Does it effect his fishing compared to mine with 10# flouro in the same water and boat same diameter w/both lines? YES and he's noticing it of course..........everyday since he left the flouro he has trailed me big time on fish catching, for sure. I caught 3 smallies to every one he caught with the same plastic lure and hook, same color, only difference is line. He thinks its cause the line quickly faded to a light tan color and is very visible in the water while mine is very hard to see. Could it be effecting the action he imparts to his lure compared to me? Maybe but I'm a results driven kind of guy that believes if its working don't mess with it. Only place I feel out lined is when he horses one out of thick stuff where visibility is not much of an issue, otherwise he has fallen out of the sucess ratio he was at. Trolling-casting-deadsticking-power fishing-and top water all worse........he is the king of the heavy weeds and pads however. Don't care why just care about results.......thats my study, why does all the braid fade away on color so fast to require magic marker? See Fins claiming their's is the only braid to hold dark colors, Thats my question...........Dave

Two good calls in your price range.

These are both good rivers, the Susky is the best I've fished probably ever. Up north there are lots of good smallie rivers, gotta do your homework and spend some time on the water.

I think a smallmouth is a master at the high flying sling the lure routine. I do go down with the rod tip when I see them getting ready to go airborne and notice the new Sierra keeps tension on the lure better on abrupt explosions. Sometimes they are gonna get off for sure, and we just live and learn as we go, equipment failure-poor hook penetration-wise and tougher jawed older fish-and just plain fishing as we know it. I am studying EWG hooks vs straight j style bend hooks. One sits parallel to the bait and one sits point ready to penetrate outward, one makes it easy to hook lure straight and the other is a lot of work to keep straight.

My garmin tells me hard from soft bottoms, as already posted the contours just show how steep or gradual the bottom comes up. A good depth finder does it all and gives you a pretty good picture of what is under your boat.

Other day fishing I lost a new rig to a pickerel, that's quite common where I fish actually. My son started throwing right back to the weedline and two cast's later he caught the fish. If and when I figure out how to make pics small enough to post I will post up the pic of him with my new hook, CPS, and senko in his mouth along with the rig my son used to catch him. Wish they all had this type of ending.........

Thats what it must be for me.........I pretend I don't see the old ladies with groceries and usually trip on the litter while trying to avoid seeing the groceries! I'll just have to walk faster..........

Started fishing them when they appeared on shelves and they were quite the bass and striper lures. Guess they were early paddletail swimbaits that seemed to slay stripers and smallmouth when hooked on a dropline hanging below surface poppers. Curly tails and sassy shads were the start of my plastic lure obsession. They used to hand paint them with pearl bellies and various color backs to match different shad where we fished in Md.

Many years ago an old fisherman showed me how to sharpen hooks with three sided cutting edges. Even large hooks will penetrate good when sharp and they are eating craw's and tend to have harder jaws this time of year. Barbless hooks come loose and throw easier, and larger smarter SM's are pretty good at avoiding being landed. I think most would agree that a big SM fights like they are pure energy with fins....thats why they are so much fun to catch.

OK just got done testing the palomar and the trilene knot with sufix 30# braid and couldn't make either slip. Wondered what his rod would take but it didn't break ? used the superglue on braid end and it seems to prevent fraying, Thanks dodgeguy. Both knots impressed me but its up to him which one he wants to use. His color is all but gone already so the color on braid don't mean much, did see a brand that claims no color fade with black at TW. Thanks again for all the advice and information given on the thread. Dave

Heres why the question, set my son up with a 30lb sufix braid set up and he took it out to try. Things were going well pickerel were not biting off and things were good, then he got a hard hit and when he set the hook the braid came back without the texas rig on it. He assumed the pickerel got to it but I could see the tight coils the clinch knot makes at the end like it pulled off. Watched a video by Roland Martin today and he said it was the one knot you shouldn't use with braid. He tied a lure on and clamped the hook and it pulled right out with a good pull. Bingo that's what's happening......Jimmyjoe's post was pure logic and made sense to me. I have taught myself palomar and trilene knots this afternoon. Storm right now but bright and early will test them and see what we have. One thing JJ I don't want to pull any snags or branches off........if I did I carry my folding saw with me for treestand limbing so I'd cut them off. I don't want the line pulling off the hook on a big bass. Thanks to everyone, will have a solution tomorrow morning.

Hmmmmmm, thought you was more durable than that ? take a trip north and we'll leave in the dark and come home in the dark, thats unless you want to do some night fishing as well. Dark thirty is all kinds of room for shore casts - hang ups - and netting insanity (long as you can swim ?)

I've had the Trilene and palomar knots suggested and trilene seems to be a double thru the eye 8 wrap version of the clinch knot. Both seem capable and don't slip what does everyone think?

Sounds like I need a bottle of that to soak my plastics in ?

Wow that got me reved up just looking at the pics! Nice trip....hope you get to return sometime again. Thats the trips that keep me doing it.

If you saw where I fish and catch smallies you would be surprised, but there are certain places that do harbor a lot more due to rocks, gravel, and most important current. Crawfish are a prefered food up here and they can be good size, but shad are another staple that draws them to certain areas as well. Not long ago had a 2 1/2lb fish throw up two intact crawfish a that both went 3 1/2".....and he still hit my 5" stickbait.

8 hours on average always boat and some days I don't want to come off at all.

Bulk pac's are the way to go when you find a lure that works for sure. I know I'll be getting these swimming tube craws.