bigspirit

I’ve been throwing big baits all year and have really enjoyed it. My average size has certainly gone up, but overall catches is lower. That’s completely fine by me though, I’d rather catch *** or 4 lb bass on a glide or wake bait than filter through more smaller sized bass. Obviously you can catch a big bass on a senko or jig but I just find the big baits more exciting to fish.

Down size or maybe try a silent walking bait. Megabass diamante has a silent version that I’ve had good success with

You’re right, but would you have seen it and the point about delayed mortality (thank you @gimruis) if I hadn’t? Maybe or maybe not. It is completely possible you are absolutely right - but for a spot that you fish so much wouldn’t you want to ensure you’re taking the necessary steps to take care of the fish? Think of it as constructive criticism. I didn’t bash you for it, actually quite the opposite. You’re right again though, everyone makes choices…like choosing to take offense over a polite post such as that ? best of luck to you out there and stay safe!

Im only quoting you on this because it’s the next one I saw after my first post but this is not directed just at you - just a general comment. Here’s the thing…you (anybody in this case) would not know if you did kill that bass. If you cause damage to its jaw, it’s not going to just die in your hand. It will swim off as it should (provided normal/decent care was taken) only to have the possibility of dying later because it can’t eat, for example. You may be surprised how many people have released fish that swam off fine, only to die later from stress or handling-induced damage. Again, not directed solely at you - just pointing out the flaw with that statement.

I’m honestly pretty surprised to see the responses in this thread. I personally do not agree with the “not my business” sentiment. It is a resource that is public, why would you not want the general public to do their best to take care of it? Just like littering. It is a rather well known fact that you can damage the jaw of a bass, larger size atleast, by holding them at a 45 degree angle by the lip. Similar to snook. It may not lead to them directly dying - but can affect their ability to feed thus getting the appropriate nutrients. Think of the masses that fish. Truly think about that for a second and then think of the effect it could have. Im not trying to sound like I am on a high-horse. I have certainly mishandled fish before I knew better, but now I do what I can to take the best care of each fish I catch. It’s not hard. Some people just don’t want to hear that they are wrong I guess. However, it’s not a hill I would die on. My bigger gripe/annoyance is putting fish in a live well and bouncing them around all day just to get a picture at the ramp. Especially around the time they are spawning.

Like can’t get the hook point through? I’ve never used them, but assumed they were like Zman. Normally can’t use a molded lead kind of keeper, needs to be more of a barb style

This is super helpful, I like the idea of a spinnerbait especially but would imagine I would be better of using a heavy power rod to make sure I can get them out in time…hopefully. It’s funny you mention that, I am asking this question because I caught my new pb of 9.12lbs cranking a huge Japanese swimbait over the tops. First and only cast I made I caught that fish. I was hoping to find another presentation or two to more thoroughly fish the spot without risking such an expensive bait. I believe my bait at its deepest was still a few feet over the tops of the trees but could easily have a fish come up and grab it and get me wrapped in a hurry. I bet an A-rig would be great, but that only sounds like a good idea if you can run livescope and watch it sink so you can keep it out of them.

25’ depth, upright trees with the tops at about 12’. What kind of presentations would y’all be using for this situation? I’ve primarily been a shallow fisherman but want to work on improving my abilities for offshore structure. This just sounds like a situation that would be hard to get fish out of. I imagine some form of vertical presentation to reduce the chance of snagging but don’t have experience fishing structure like this.

Thanks for the help y’all. Gave me the confidence to cut it off and even lengthened both black and red to have some more reach.

Just picked up a new Garmin 93sv. The issue I have is the hole I need to run the wire though to hide it is smaller than the threaded locking ring on the one end and the yellow inline fuse on the other. To get around this, could I cut off the fuse where my arrow is, run the wire, and then reconnect by stripping and reconnecting with heatshrink?

I saw that, and probably should have specified but I’m wanting the newer 56 transducer for my setup. Hopefully they’ll do that this November!

Does anyone remember if there were deals on Garmin Echomaps last year?

Another vote for the bull wake!

Pretty sure they also have a forward facing ducer for running on plane? Thought I saw that one time. It was a thru-hull design.

So another thread got me to thinking, if you could only have ONE unit on your boat, which would it be? The FFS live-imaging or a unit that does side/down scan and why? I do not have any experience with livescope or similar, and limited experience with side scan but curious what some of you that do have experience think about this.

I see both sides. I understand what those see talking about when they say you still have to get fish to eat, but at the end of the day I can’t imagine more fish being put in the boat simply based on the fact that you are finding many new suspended fish that likely have not been pressured much. I do think it’s become a game where in many (maybe most) cases, the guy with the best electronics will come out on top.

I never use a ned but IMO, that hook does look a bit too big; if you’re catching fish though I wouldn’t be too tempted to change it.

Ha, I’m actually positive the last couple of months. Have settled into a niche since spring and have stuck with it and plan to do so going forward so I’ve sold off some of the clutter that was in the garage and boat. Stuff such as baits that I haven’t used and probably won’t. Do have some plans for this fall though that will tip the scale the other way.

Maybe do 3.3s on the dummies and a 4.3 on the back. I have one that has 5 wires, 2 dummies and 3 hooks. Just to test this, I put 4 3” baits and the center that was farther back I put a 4.3 in the same color and I think I have only caught 1 fish that wasn’t on the 4.3.

I often find myself fishing what I WANT to fish. Yes, I know it sounds dumb but I’d rather catch a couple fish throwing what I enjoy like a topwater, spinnerbait (I enjoy fishing them but can’t catch a cold with one), or a big glide bait. Worms and jigs are just too boring for me honestly. Now don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of worms and jigs and will use them but I really have to be in a mood to do it.

I lost a magdraft freestyle due to similar issues last night. Especially when skipping the hook wants to ride up and stick out making it extremely snag prone - so now my last one is fastened nicely to a crossbeam under a dock. I thought of Mend It like has already been mentioned, but I imagine it’s just a temporary fix that will last 10 minutes.

I’ve heard of people having similar issues like they get a bad batch or something. Maybe contact Sunline? Who knows, maybe they’ll send you a replacement. I’d be hesitant to respool with it. My luck id hook into my PB and lose it.

There is also a Strike King called the burner, tiny blades for moving it fast. Might be worth a look even though you already got some war eagles.

Welcome, I had to laugh though. I’m in the northern half of Georgia as well and am getting into the swimbait part (have actually given up taking conventional gear with me anymore) so let me know if you’ve got some things to get rid of! ?

Totally get what you are saying and it is wild to me that some people order so much and don’t have an issue. I however do not believe in coincidences happening multiple times. In this case, the last 2 times I’ve had to deal with fraudulent charges have been directly after dealing with TW. And both times we’re using my credit card through PayPal after going through the TW login. If it was only PayPal, why the correlation to TW when I have used it for other purchases and never had an issue? Either way, I will not be tempting fate again. I’ve spent hours cancelling orders that were made with my card so that the sellers do not ship a product and never receive payment. I’m glad some of you haven’t had to deal with it, but in my case I do not believe lightning strikes the same place twice.