T-Billy

Good luck tomorrow. We had cooler temps and showers here this morning. I was able to catch a half dozen on top water. Z-Man Billy Goat. Caught another half dozen pitching a T-rig, and a couple on a fooball jig. It was an enjoyable morning, didn't even break out the rain gear. Showers felt good so I just let 'em soak me.

Absolutely. Rule #2, Love your neighbor as you love yourself.

I used to get bent out of shape over people crowding me or cutting me off. Now days I don't sweat it. Most guys that pull that crap are less than stellar fisherman anyway. Catch a few while they zero, and they'll fire up and go pester someone else. As far as them blowing up the area, I haven't seen it. The fish are used to boat traffic in the small highly pressured lakes we have in my neck of the woods. I just keep on doing my thing. I'm with A-jay on tactics. I'm out there from ice out to ice over. I love the cold water periods, and I night fish alot in the summer. In most of my pictures with big'uns, I'm either bundled up or it's dark. Definitely a trend there.

That's REALLY sorry. I ALWAYS give Yaks and bank fisherman lots of space. They have limited range. I have the whole lake. No biggie for me to go hit another spot.

Boy'd this turn into a great info filled thread in a hurry!!! I've not had much success punching milfoil here in OH. I think it's just as described above. It's topped out and matted but, I don't believe there's enough open space beneath for them to get in there. I do much better fishing the edges, and openings. That Ol Monster works great here too!!! I love SLOW rolling it on a 16th or 8th oz T-rig. They CRUSH it. Pondweed is another story. The broad leaf variety that looks like willow leaves. I can generally get through it with a 3/8 or 1/2 and our bass love getting under that stuff, especially if there's wood in there too. NoShoes, Try punching that stuff with the heaviest rig you have, and see how it goes before investing in a dedicated punch rig. If you're getting bit, then make the investment. Or do as I do and FEED THE MONKEY!!! I just gave my grandkids 16 combos. Now I only have 39 left. ?

I just became a straight braid believer this year. Several times this season I've tied the same bait on braid and mono (Quit that flouro crap a few years ago) and alternated between them. Not once did I notice a drop off in bites on the braid rod, even when visibility was around 10' and I was fishing open water chunk rock. I've had a love hate relationship with braid for years. Wish I had the money back for all the braid I've got frustrated with and pitched. This spring it finally sunk into my thick skull to try it on a moderate taper rod. BINGO!!! No more ripping holes in fishes mouths. No more hanging up on every piece of wood my bait touched. Mod rods do a great job of keeping them buttoned. I just load it up, put the tip down to the surface, and wind on 'em. I'm losing very few, and I love the fact that it gives me the same hook setting power at 60' as it does at 6'. You can do alot with a MH crankin stick spooled with braid. Cranks, Chatterbaits, Jigs, spinnerbaits, all kinds of rigs. That soft tip is great for skipping too. My 7' 11" H Veritas winch is my favorite all around flippin/pitchin stick, with a 7'10" SLX H MF backing it up for the REALLY thick stuff. As far as abrasion goes, all braids are not created equal. FAR from it. 832 is my hands down favorite that I've tried, and it's good enough that I've quit looking around. It's pretty smooth, handles well, and is plenty abraision resistant. I fish alot of rock and I seldom need to retie more than once a day dragging T-rigs on 30# or 40#. The love hate relationship has gone to pretty much just loving it. With the exception of those pesky tip wraps.

Bait Monkey says, EVERY stream fisherman needs some Z-Man Slim Swimz in his life.

I bought a couple Penn's this spring. Spinfisher VI and a Battle III. Sealed reels so anti reverse switch isn't an option. Was weird at first, but once I got used to just pulling a little line out when I need it, it's not an issue for me. Now I find myself doing the same when using my reels with a switch. Loving these reels so far. Butter smooth. My older reels will get replaced with Penn's as they wear out. Chris that Regal should serve you well. I have several, and they just keep on ticking year after year. Tough reel to beat at it's price point IMO.

Barometer and fronts go hand in hand and generally have the biggest influence on my success, of the factors listed. The others effect how I fish, but sometimes a front can shut 'em down to a point where it doesn't matter what I do. It ain't gonna happen. Alternatively, a front can get 'em biting like there's no tomorrow too. Generally, front side good, back side bad.

Not sure what happened to my post. Seems whoever posted ^this^ edited it for me. Anyhow I had mentioned staying focused and keeping your rod in position to set the hook was an important skill to have. For EXACTLY the reason posted above. This is one of several reasons I've become a big fan of braid. If I get bit with the rod up in the 10 o'clock position, I can hook them instantly without having to reel down first, and I still have plenty of power to drive a heavy flippin hook home.

I'm with A-Jay on this one. Bright nights, I chase the shade just like on bright sunny days. I also throw more bottom contact baits. Football jigs, (Both standard and swing), big worms, and my favorite, a chatterbait crawled along the bottom. I powder coat my chatter blades. I don't want any flash from them. Since I started doing this they seem to eat it better, both in number of strikes, and how deep they take it.

Z-Man Goat and Billy Goat have been working great for me on top.

Reel down, feel for it...... gone. WRB state in another post that his success with BIG BASS was setting the hook QUICKLY.

Black Ol Monsters work well for me in any color water.

^^^THIS^^^

Exactly why I quit using it. XT and 832 serve me well. Breakoffs are rare indeed, and breaks at the knot are even more rare. Palomar for braid, and Trilene for mono. Edit to add: Flippin hooks get the Tharp Snell Knot. Easiest snell I've found and have never had one fail.

X2

Glad you got the info you were looking for PotatoLake. That rod should serve you well. There really isn't a right or wrong on this question. Simply a matter of what works best for you. With the little exposed hooks involved, a reel set is all that's needed even with a fairly limber rod and mono. The SLX I use is rated fast but, feels more like a mod/fast. I fish a ned on 6# XT, and just reel into 'em. Not many get away. I'm with ya 100% on this site. Great place to hang out.

I'm in the fast or modfast camp. A soft tip helps keep from tearing the small hook out, and does a better job of keeping them pinned. 7' SLX ML works great for me.

I have 5 impoundments within a hour of me that I've been fishing my whole life. All between 1k -2k acres. All HEAVILY pressured. This year basically out of boredom, I started fishing areas of them I either hadn't fished before, or hadn't fished for years. It's really paying off. I'm finding fish in areas that don't get beat to death, because there's no obvious structure or visible cover to attract anglers attention. I'm having a ball searching out new stuff on old familiar waters. It kinda makes these waters new to me again. Sometimes I spend time graphing, sometimes I just go junk fishing. Some days I leave some gear home to force myself to work on the weaker areas of my game. It's all enjoyable, and I don't view any of it as wasted time.

^This^ From the thermocline up to the shallowest I mark large schools of bait. That's generally only 4-5 feet above it. My other most reliable option is to go real shallow into the THICK stuff.

You might consider a 7'3" or 7'6" MH Veritas too. The Abu rods are on the stout side for their ratings, where the Dobyns are on the lighter side. My MH Veritas rods in those lengths are stouter than the 735 Fury without being pool cues. Either will handle jigs n rigs just fine, but the Abu's will be better for the big swimmers. Both brands have proven durable and very capable rods for me.

Fury 735 was my first thought too. One of the most versatile in my lineup. It's on the light side for those big swimbaits, but everything else you listed is right in its wheelhouse.

Fought a 2# smallie to the boat and had it shake off at boatside. Rigged another wacky worm, threw it back into the same current break, and landed the same fish with half of the first worm sticking out of it's gullet.

I like slow rolling a 10" ribbontail, T-rigged, with a 1/16 or 1/8 weight through and over shallow grass. Any heavier weight gets the tail moving too fast. I want it moving just fast enough to get that long tail waving.