Functional

yea if I spend $1100 on fishing its either in the form of electronics or a trip. My "cheap" swimbait at $50 hurts enough.

I currently have a Tharp Hammer and Catalyzer and my brother inlaw has an Invoker. For the price they are extremely hard to beat. I'm a little surprised at how well the catalyzer fishes for me given the price. I originally bought it as a cheap rod to keep at my inlaws but it hasnt made it out of the boat I've enjoyed it so much. I always look at ARK as an option when I need a new rod.

My wife knew my hobbies before we even started dating so it was never unexpected. Many may disagree but we have a joint and our own personal accounts. We always put in more to our joint than our bills and the rest of our paychecks go into our personal however we want to split it (savings, checking, etc.). We both didnt want the other to feel like they couldnt do/buy what they wanted if everything was in one joint account. We both are the type to feel we are taking from the other and would rarely do/get anything for ourselves if that was the case. We still talk everything over with each other before most purchases regardless of dollar value. Our only main rule is never do something where we couldnt contribute to our joint and always have enough in savings to cover any family trips or emergencies. Theres more into all of that but broad picture thats how we run. With our hobbies disproportionately expensive I make sure to spoil her quite bit extra on Christmas and her Birthday...shes got quite a few grand in nice sewing machines now.

1) boat positioning 2) reading weather/lake conditions 3) knowing bass behavior (seasonal and weather effects) 4) knowing and understanding primary forage for the lake 5) Your own strengths and weaknesses *6) knowing how to use your sonar Thats it, if you cant find them and put yourself in the best position to catch em you are just spending time on the water. Nothing wrong with that but if you want to be good at it and catch numbers or quality you arent doing it without the 5 above. beyond that lure selection will come down to what you how you like to fish (power, vs finesse), where you fish and techniques you like. There is a huge range of baits/styles that fit multiple situations, which is nice we arent shoe horned into one type and can pick something that fits us as individuals better. *added 6 because my thoughts are jumbled today and I forgot about it.

In general my experience has been the same as @Pat Brown I will say when people say "early morning bite" its not early enough. There seems to be 3 main feed windows and thats (in general) 1-2 hours before last light, somewhere around midnight-1am and then again like 4amish. A little loose but it depends on when sun comes up and goes down pending time of the year. I'd say activity at hours other than above are more effected by season than anything else. As with all bass fishing there is no hard and fast rule, just my experience pulling all nighters up NY frequently and seeing similar patterns now that I'm fishing more frequently down south.

@Pat Brown I was thinking the same thing when I saw all of those weeds/pads. If not a hollow body at least a horny toad turning up the surface. Hell @ol'crickety if you dont have a frog I may have to send you one just so I can have peace of mind it was fished with a frog 😂

me too...I went and made myself hungry. Going to have to make a grocery store trip tonight.

i usually take it a step further being from an Italian family. fresh slices of Italian bread, mozzarella cheese slice (the round ones or logs in water, not the fake stuff), thick slice of tomato, a pinch of salt, high quality olive oil with a little chopped basil on top and I like to add a little drizzle of balsamic glaze on top of it before the top bread. Some dry red wine with a splash of gingerale makes for a really nice lunch.

@Bass Rutten I had seen great feedback on that rod but I'm looking for a spinning rod. Unless I missed something I've only seen that in casting. @Reel a spinning expride is on my short list but I ruled out the zodias based on the metal/plastic grip above the reel seat. I'd prefer cork or if I have to Eva. @A-Jay thank you for the suggestions. I looked and I'm not sure the avid would fit my bill. The 6'8 is extra fast and like you I agree I think an XF would be too much for a JB rod. I also think 6'6 is too short, at that length I might as well use my PA casting rod. Really looking for a 6'8 to 6'10 , my boat sits higher like yours but I'm short and the 7' rods I've been working have been slapping in water often enough as is. I was told as a young engineer one of the stupidest things I could do is to ever turn down free advice.... so if you have any on reels I'm open to hear it. @Brian11719 the spinning series of fury rods only have a plastic reel nut above the reel seat. With my grip (entire hand above the reel stem) I'm grabbing bare reel nut and rod blank. Not the most comfortable and it doesn't give me the control/grip I'd like out of a rod. I bought it long ago before I really started getting a feel for what I wanted. The blank itself I'd say is nice for the money, almost debating seeing if a rod guy can swap the whole grip setup to something I like.

Walks out to bunker, shuts the door but leaves a 1" gap for my lips to peek out and quietly yell "Green Pumpkin". Immediately slams the door and throw the locks.... seriously though straight up GP does not work for me in worms, jigs, swim jigs, spinnerbaits, etc. I have to go to a watermelon that works very well but the minute i switch to GP its like Im fishing in a bath tub. More translucent greens, browns, black/blue and deep purples are the most productive in soft plastics. Shad colors for moving baits (jerkbaits excluded) and florescent green under bellies for frogs.

My 3yo daughter has been acting like a monkey lately....might be time for one of them ancestry DNA tests...would certainly explain the condition my boat is in.

I always share info....weather its the right info is another question 😂

@king fisher my grandfather had his 2nd wedding and reception on a boat and all I could think about was how I could get a rod over the side and which staff member would I have to bribe. Also all I hear is you admiring a creature in Gods creation....how can that be negative? Worship in another form....or I'm wrong and there are a lot of us who have a little creative explaining to do when the end comes! 😅

nah thats a watermelon w/ red flake senko.

Jerkbaits have now become a steady part of my fishing ( I blame you @A-Jay) and I'm looking for a rod that is going to fit me and the technique better. I've been playing with what I have on hand to get a feel for what I want between casting and spinning and power/action. For reference I keep my entire hand in front of the reel on spinning setups. I also use braid to leader on my spinning setups and do not intend to do anything different here. Tried List: 6'10" Poison Adrena Casting - Liked it but like the distance of spinning better and less wind issues 7' 703 Dobyns Fury - Best hookup and keeping them pinned, tip is a smidge soft for action but workable, I hate the grip with my preferred hand position. Would also prefer a bit shorter ALX Zolo ML+ 7' - Tip is better to get action but seems hookup and keeping them on is a bit more challenging because of it. Grip is good, overall could be a bit shorter. Basically I'm looking for something like the Fury with a better grip, more sensitivity and can handle up to 1/2oz jerkbaits. I can look at rods all day long but have little chance to get hands on to see the action and need to defer to your experiences. For cost I'd prefer to keep it 200ish and below but if there is an outstanding choice closer to 300 I'll be game. Been eyeing the Daiwa tatula 6'8" (current favorite), St. Croix Victory 6'8" for the "low" end and the Shimano Exprid B 6'8", Megabass Orochi XX 6'8 ML. Open to others with similar handles that fit the action/power bill. If anything I have listed doesnt work like I want, I'm all ears. For reel I've been eyeing a shimano vanford/ vanford FA (is the only difference long stroke vs non?), shimano stradic FM, Daiwa Tatula MQ LT What do you all have for recommendations to match up to what I want?

That's one strong woman!

Booyah Counter Strike double willow Chatterbait mini max Scum Frog trophy series heddon super spook Megabass Vision 110 jr +1 6th sense divine swim jig Zoom z hog Zoom mag 2 worm Reaction Innovations sweet beaver Seibert archy jig this is ignoring the need for trailers on a few of these. No particular order, if I cant catch using these in a day I'm packing it in.

If I believe they are on points and I blank out on a point I'll move ONTOP of the point in the shallow part and cast out deep and bring the lure in from deep to shallow. This year in particular I've had better luck sitting on top of the point and casing out.

I use 8, 10 and 12 YZH on a lot of reels and never had an issue. SDJ for any line that isnt braid Palomar for braid FG for braid to leader. Typically my leaders are floro so I cant comment on YZH used as a leader.

@Bankc oddly enough I experience the same thing. For 2 years I could catch fish on a spinnerbait anytime I wanted then the next year I couldn't catch a single thing. They preferred the chatterbait last year and I haven't been out enough this year to see which they prefer. I thought maybe I overplayed my hand with a spinner but it was across all the lakes I fish regardless of frequency. Weird.

I must be weird... I fish a spinnerbait when its almost dead calm, just wisp of ripple. With willow blades I feel it gives a much more subtle action and slow rolling it around has produced well for me. When the wind picks up I switch to the more aggressive chatterbait UNLESS I'm throwing into heavy wood. Heavy wood gets the spinnerbait always, light wood or a branch or 2 the chatterbait is ok. This is when I'm picking between the two.

Agreed with @Tennessee Boy and @Mike L. I have a few different techniques/lures I'm confident in but I'll match up where I expect the fish to be and be doing before I pick one of them. I cant force feed a Trig to bass that are looking for a jerkbait. I try to be decent at a few lures that can cover top, middle and bottom, hard cover and weeds and pick based on where I need to fish. For the fun of the thread, if I'm picking 1 from each depth level... Top: Frog Middle: Swim Jig Bottom: ribbon tail 10" worm, Triged with 1/8 to 3/8oz bullet weight. If I have to pick 1 only...its the 10" ribbon tail. I can make that do things in ever part of the water column and have caught fish doing it. Not ideal in all levels but it will do.

Agreed with everyone overall. If you fish long enough its going to happen, along with a tongue hook and gill hook and eye hook, etc., etc. They all suck but its part of the risk of fishing. For me, those bad gut hooks and tongue hooks become food. No sense in wasting a fish that is 90%+ chance of dying. It sounds like it could be one or both of 2 things. 1) your bite detection needs work. Keep your finger tip on the line when at a pause or fall helps tremendously. Keep just enough tension on the line to feel the bait but not move it (hard/impossible to do with weightless). 2) you are waiting too long to set the hook. Pretty much what everyone has said but things to possibly improve on.

I think something else missed here is the dangers for women chasing a life in the professional circuit. Its a life on the road in hotels/motels and unless they have someone they do it with would be more dangerous for a female to be doing than a male. As is can already be sketchy enough for men to do it and if I recall right there have been recent comments made by some of our own members here that attest to that. A lone female is going to present a seemingly easier target than a lone male. This alone is probably enough to turn off a good portion of women who want to try their hand but don't want that type of risk. If you ever have or will follow Kristine Fischer she even admits she doesnt do hotels or motels, she finds air bnbs or bunks up with other people she knows from the tour. As far as the sport itself there is nothing physically limiting that would prevent females from competing just as high level as men. I'm sure there are plenty of men who would get bent out of shape being beaten by a female but that is the case in nearly ever other coed sport. As for statistics think of it this way...if only 10% of the male fishing population competes in general and only 3-5% of that is in the pro level it makes sense why only a handful of females are at or approaching that level. (I've pulled those percentages from thin air, but I believe the sentiment should get my point across)

I usually use a small nail weight but I put it in the bait right where my band is. I dont have a good reason why I do it that way but if I'm using a wacky rig I figured why put a nail in one end and make it like a very light Trig. I was looking for a horizontal fall and that seemed like the best spot for it to achieve that. I think this way would achieve @gimruis natural fall comments.