T-Billy

Pfft... A mere drop in the bucket. Go ask @A-Jay about jackhammers. After you financially recover from that, ask @AlabamaSpothunter about swimbaits, then inquire about rods and reels. This place has more monkeys than the Amazon. I'm just glad I'm not one of them. ?

Absolutely fish it in the summer. I don't fish Dbombs, but the Sweet Craw I make and fish is similar, with thick claws that don't flap, but give the bait a gliding action. I rig it on a flipping rig with a snelled straight shank, and peg the sinker tight so that it keeps the hook cammed over. The bait glides and spirals similar to a tube on the fall and always lands upright. Deadly from iceout till iceover. 3/8 is my favorite weight as well and only deviate from it when depth, cover, or the fish require it. Once in awhile in warm water a faster fall rate gets bit better, but 3/8 is the standard.

I had to go look it up. I'd never heard of it. Looks like a great bait for pitching deep grass on a flippin rig. I bet it has a great glide with a pegged 3/8 or 1/2oz.

I'm with ya on that. My Lexa 300 HD is 7.4:1 and I like it fine for double 8's, but I don't want any part of pulling 2x10 cowgirls around with it. @WafflesAreGud, I'd recommend a Mod Fast rod rated something like 1/2 - 2oz, in the length of your choice, and a Lew's $99 LFS to get you started. It's a combo you can do alot with, and even when/if you expand your Esox tackle lineup, there will always be a place for this rig.

Yep... Usually it's their fluorocarbon. ?

Well... That would certainly be something to see. I'm kinda hoping they both get skunked next time out now!!!

Perfect IMO. It's just a bit faster than the 7'6" H Flippin stick, which makes it feel more responsive. I can roll cast and skip a 3/8 jig or Trig with it just fine.

Very nice @Darth-Baiter. Congrats. I've actually gotten to the point where I kinda enjoy when someone cuts me off on a bank or encroaches on me. I normally come out on top in those situations.

Zoom if I gotta go with factory baits, but I prefer the baits I make for the most part.

I'll be trying them out on a chatterbait thursday night. I've been finding muskie really shallow at night lately, so I bought some mag shakee blades, and some heavy wire 6/0 hooks to make some upsized baits. I've been getting lots of follows but not many bites on the bucktails in the dark. I'm hoping to change that ratio with big profile chatterbaits. Hopefully get some BIG bass bites on 'em too.

Coffee, water, sammich, snacks of some sort. I'm normally out there at least 8hrs, and often 10 or more.

Funny you should mention this, my guide buddy and I were discussing this the other day. He texted me this pic. LOL. I've seen them look worse. Teeth aren't the only hazard. Those gill rakers will get ya too.

Yeah, I understood your point, and agree that their girth gets exponentially more impressive as they get longer. I was just making the point that they don't need to be 40" before they get "shoulders on them". I'd say this 30 something qualifies.

I've never caught much out of it. Broadleaf pondweed stays green late into the fall around here, and isolated patches of it can be lights out after everything else has died off.

Ah yes.... There's nothing quite like a nice refreshing cup of BEAVER FEVER!!! ?

That's all I've thrown for several years now and I don't see it changing. It gets bit in all lighting conditions and water clarity. If they'll bite a worm, they'll bite a black one.

Congrats!!! That looks like a TON of fun!!

Awesome morning on the water with my bride. @gimruis nailed it. The big orange T got'r dun this morning. We fished from 6 till 11:30 and went four for four. Every fish that bit went into the net. We had 8 more follows, but it was two fish that followed four times each. They were both acting aggressive, but just wouldn't commit. 33-36-40 for me, and the highlight of the trip, getting to net my wife's 38". I was so happy to see her get one!!! As I mentioned they want the bait moving FAST lately and she just doesn't have the strength to generate as much speed as I can. She had five follows and zero bites last week, but the Lord blessed her with a nice fish this morning.

For sure, but time of year plays a big part too. Those females that have a good amount of egg production AND are stuffed full of schooling baitfish in the late fall through early spring get positively obese. That 48 in my avatar was a March fish just weeks away from spawning. 40#'ish fish, maybe a bit over. State record is only a couple inches longer, but that fish's girth is just absolutely ridiculous. OH state record 50.5" 55.13#.

This hasn't been my experience. The TRD bug has out ptoduced the TRD stick every time I've fished them both.

10-4 @gimruis. Our fish get a TON of pressure, but our densities are much higher than yours for sure. My #1 lake is only a little over 1100 acres and is probably the most popular in the state for muskie. There won't be a parking space left by 7am tomorrow. People drive hours to fish there. Lately speed has been the main factor for getting bit. The cranks I'm throwing are small by muskie standards. I'm burning them just as fast as I can make that reel go round, and the IPT on all those reels is 30" or over. The tendinitis in my elbows is on fire, and my hands and wrists are thrashed, but I'm catching more than anyone I've talked to other than my guide buddy. I'm outcatching those guys simply by outworking them, by a wide margin in most cases.

Hmmm... Could be. I'll be sporting the T tomorrow. ? We are blessed here in my area as far as muskie fishing goes. Five lakes within an hour of me that have them. My favorite lake is only 15min from my house. They don't successfully spawn in most of our reservoirs so the ONDR stocks them. The last survey I saw, my favorite lake has a population density of about one per acre. The bay I've been spending most of my time in lately has about 20 acres of weeds in the back. I haven't been seeing many big's but the 30 somethings are really stacked up in the deeper milfoil and coontail. Bigger fish will move in as the water cools. I was just looking through my pics. I'm currently at 16 over 30" on the year, and the fishing's only gonna get better from now till iceover. Fingers crossed for an epic fall.

Roger that. They get air smallmouth can only dream about. I had a 45" do a backflip last fall, then come right back up and tail walk like a tarpon. It gets real crazy when they go ballistic like that on a foot and a half of line after biting on the 8. It was a much tougher bite today. I caught this nice thick 36" on a bucktail early on. I lost another about the same size that bit a Llungen .22 Short crank a little bit later while reaching for the net. It's hard to stay tight on em and get that big net ready at the same time. Had five other follows, but they were back to bolting when they saw the boat. Wouldn't have anything to do with following into the 8. Water's really clear. I could see bare spots on the bottom in 12'. Gonna get the wife out again tomorrow morning. Hopefully they're in a more cooperative mood.

Ark Invoker Pro 7'4" XH F is the best all around heavy cover rod I've ever used. Plenty of power for all but the heaviest of cover, light, very sensitive for a rod of it's power, and well balanced. I have a couple of 'em, and pretty much always have at least one on the deck.

LOL. When I set the hook on that 34", the first thing it did was launch into a 5' high backflip, then three more jumps. Three of the five hooked today were on the 8. Some big time fun.