T-Billy

Looks like a pure strain to me. A Lot of the young ones I catch are spotted up like that.

What time is it? HAMMER TIME!!! LOL. Great to see you back on the water Katie!!! Congrats on a solid start to the year.

Since covid hit Glenn's been letting the mods work from home. He signed on as soon as he learned he could work in his PJ's and go weeks without showering.

You bet. I HIGHLY recommend the Ark Invoker Pro 7'4" Mag HF for an all around pitch'n rod. I have more flippin sticks than any other models and this has become my hands down favorite. It has enough tip to pitch 3/8+ bait just fine, but is an absolute hammer when it comes time to drive that big flipp'n hook home and rip 'em out of cover. It's better balanced and feels more responsive than my 7'6" and longer rods too. I just bought a second one.

The last muskie I caught came rocketing up straight vertical and ate my A-Rig about a foot under the surface. It's momentum carried it clear of the surface and I set the hook while it was still in the air with about 2' of line off the tip of my rod. Utter mayhem ensued. Those three footers go absolutely ballistic. Big fish are easier to deal with. So cool to see that wide open mouth and flared gills suddenly appearing from the depths, like a scene out of Jaws or something. It's a split second in time I'll not soon forget. Several years ago, I had a 40" ish muskie shoot out from under the boat and grab my fluke mid air as I lifted it from the water. It went tail walking away from me like a billfish, then quickly bit through my 10# mono. Very cool moment. I forgot the camera at home the day I caught my PB LM. After admiring it for a minute, I put it back and watched it swim off. When I turned around my wife (then girlfriend) was sitting there looking upset. I asked what was wrong, she replied, I just realized my cell phone is in my purse. DOH!!! I didn't think about it either as I didn't carry a phone back then. I know that feeling well. I've lost two 30" plus saugeye at boatside. First one was a 33"- 34" prespawn female. Pushing state record size. Still haunts me. I can see that little treble hook pulling free like it was yesterday.

10-4. I don't get it. I was hauling fish behind a guy last week too. He was throwing a spinnerbait on a sunny, slick calm day, and I was hauling fish right behind him pitching the Sweet Craw. He didn't leave, but he didn't adjust either. Just kept chucking that spinnerbait. I never saw him catch a fish. I've been on the other end of the stick plenty of times, and they don't have to catch many before I started paying attention, and adjust accordingly.

Nice sack of fish my friend. That D-Bomb will serve you well. I ALWAYS have a Sweet Craw rigged on a flippin stick, from ice out to ice over. Rigging it on a snelled straight shank with the hook point buried in the bait allows me to fish it in places I wouldn't dare put a jig. Easily the best big fish rig I've found. I love the look of those banks in your top couple pics. Overhanging bushes like that are my #1 producer in the summer. #2 would be weed choked laydowns, the gnarlier the better. LM love the shade and overhead protection they provide. The above applies to daylight hours. After dark, a chatterbait around weeds is #1. If they're short striking it, I'll switch to a paddletail swimmer.

Yeah!!! The fish ain't bad either.

Got out for a short trip today after my morning chores. Caught 9 dinks, a 3.55# and a 2.68# in 3.5hrs. Best part was pulling the two quality fish and two smaller ones out of used water. Pulled into a cove to catch a break from the wind, and there were a couple guys starting down the same bank I intended to fish. I figured, what the heck, I'll give it a go, and pulled in a respectful distance behind them. The 3.55 came from the middle of that gnarly pine behind me in the pic. Notice how it didn't break me off @AlabamaSpothunter? ? 50# Vicious braid. Two laydowns later came the 2.68 and a dink. The guys ahead of me fired up and left. Lol.

??#STRAIGHTBRAIDBRIGADE!!!

Congrats @12poundbass.

Happy 50th to Lynn. God bless you both. I haven't been to this section in awhile but, you two are in my prayers every day.

Congrats @Bluebasser86!!! Heckuva Day!!!

I use the braid uni that Salt Strong tested on YT to tie A-Rigs on. Twice through the eye and 10 wraps. Other baits with braid get a palomar or snell. Trilene knot with mono.

I have more Lew's than Daiwa or Shimano. As @bulldog1935 stated, Lew's lack of spool options is their main drawback. It's the only reason I own any Daiwa and Shimano reels. My Lew's are every bit as smooth as my Curados and Scorpions, if not as precise feeling. They stay smooth too. I've had zero durability issues with them after a half dozen years. The Zillion HD's are on another level, but they're also on another price level than any of my reels from the other two brands.

Same here. Senkos skip well, Flukes skip REALLY well. No harm, no foul when I bugger up a skip, which is not an uncommon occurance. If someone politely asked me not to fish their dock, I'd politely agree, wish them a good day, and move on. If they came out being a Richard about it right from the git go, I'd likely stick around and poke the bear awhile.

And coyotes.

Sound advice in your vid Glenn. Homeowners haven't been an issue for me, other anglers behavior have initiated some entertaining conversations though. Many years ago, I tried to catch a jetskier with a deep crank after a couple close passes. The lake patrol put a stop to the antics at that point, and made the jet skier leave the lake. The ranger and I had a good conversation after he was done ripping the jetskier a new one. That crank was tied to that old Gorilla braid. It was about as smooth as barbed wire. That guy would have had a very bad day had he run into my line at the speed he was moving. The fall before last I was fishing a row of docks when a homeowner came walking out a couple docks ahead of me with a squirrel in a live trap with a rope attached to it. He saw me and looked around awkwardly. I smiled and told him to go ahead and drown that little bugger, I don't enjoy listening to them roll walnuts around in my ceiling either. He nodded, gave it the deep six and wished me luck.

There it is, the answer I've been looking for. I've stated on here before that 38 is the magic number. I've had some solid days pitching shallow wood down to 38 degree surface temp, but never any success below that. Now I know why. Thanks Tom.

Daiwa has the most user friendly braking system out there with the magforce IMO. No need for SV, even for a beginner. A Fuego would serve you well and leave more money for a quality rod. Lots of good rod choices within your budget. Ark Tharp or Invoker series, Daiwa Tatula, Falcon Lowrider are a few good choices that come to mind.

Lit 'em up today. No biggins, but I caught a pile of LM in the 1# - 2.5# range plus these two 3+. They went 3.74# and 3.45#. The A-rig muskie bite is dead, but the laydowns are full of bass. Time to switch gears, and work on wearing out the flippin stick. 31 degree start today so I broke out the wolf/squirrel skin cap.

Bottom fish was caught in April, but the top fish was caught in November.

Sounds familiar. Our handful of local reservoirs are 1k-2k acres, with a few tournaments a week on 'em. If you're fishing on a weekend from April - October you're fishing used water all day. I spend more time with a flippin stick in my hand than anything else. I make a habit of putting my bait where few others will. Come Memorial Day, I go nocturnal and get off the water by late morning. I beat the heat and the crowds that way.

Couple mid 30's all chewed up.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CqOZB7ZM8GB/ Saw this below the vid @TnRiver46 posted. Must be pretty common with esox. I've caught a couple mid 30's muskie that had fresh wounds from gettingT-Boned like this.