T-Billy

Lol. Hadn't seen you over there lately and thought you might like those. I'm only working a few days the first half of April. Hopefully there's a bunch more to come.

In the meantime you oughta pay a visit to the other species thread, ya slacker. ?

@A-Jay if you decide to try this setup, look on the big auction site for your sinkers. These are made with Do-it's mold and are a bit more compact than most I see because of the eye design. Compare this one with the sinker in the post above. These will lay nicely up under the "chin" of the bait.

Yeah, 100% the hooks were the reason to try this. I couldn't find any 1/8 oz jigheads with a hook bigger than 3/0, and none of my molds would give me what I wanted either. The sinkers in the pic are 3/16, because they're all I could find local. I just recieved some 1/8 in the mail today. They're gonna get powder coated red. 1/8 is my go to weight in 15' of water or less. Turns out, the keitechs have a lot more roll to go with that wide tail wag when using the sinker/flippin hook combo. Dunno how much difference that makes to the fish, but it's definitely there. The plastic keeper on the flippin hooks holds the swimmers VERY securely too. I'm gonna stick with this setup even on my lighter bass rigs.

Thanks A-Jay. Yeah, the bass are getting an early and late season reprieve. The rig has truly been a game changer for me. It was so successful last fall, I got busy in the T-Billy Skunkworks this winter and built some truly esox worthy rigs. All stainless construction including the swivels. .051 wires all mechanically locked and soldered together inside a piece of stainless tubing to form the head. The 48# hyperwire split rings are the weakest link. Jigheads have been replaced with a bell sinker and 5/0 flippin hook. Running 4.8 Keitechs. I now have a rig I can be confident in when leaning hard into those big girls. Edit to add: These rigs only cost me about $5 apiece to make, and I can build one in about 15 minutes.

I don't weigh them because I don't want to risk injuring them by hanging them from that gripper. That's a lot of weight to hang from such a small point. I'd guess that big girl at 40# +. OH State record is 50.5" 55.13#.

Careful. He doesn't catch wolves, but he does catch lots of skunks. You could end up with a bunch of them via "special delivery".

No offense Russ, but I like gimruis's story better. LOL. Back after 'em again today. Caught three, lost one. 34" 40" and a new PB. 47.5" What a beast!!! Caught it on my last stop on the way back to the ramp at the mouth of a little cut that's been good to me many times in the past. POW!!! Just a 1/2" shy of hanging on the wall. She pooped all over me and the boat. Look close, she's squirting a mess as the pic snapped. ?

Surface temp is 38-40. Same as when I hung it up last Dec. Extended forecast is looking good. It's only gonna get better for the next few weeks!!! Hang on, Muskiepalooza 23 spring edition is underway!!!

First outing of 23 today. Guess it seems fitting the temp was 23 when I launched at 7. Fought icing guides and level wind all morning. First bite came about 9:30. The fish came unbuttoned before I got to see it but it felt pretty good. Didn't get another bite until about 1:00. It was a 36"-38" ish fish that shook off at boat side while I was reaching for the net. Grrr.... I found redemption about five minutes later when I put this obese 44" in the net. One for three ain't good, but given this is the one, I'll gladly take it. I'll be back after 'em tomorrow. Great to be back on the water.

Always. There will be schools of bait and/or cover also, but it's always on some type of structure, usually a point or flat adjacent to deep water.

I occasionally run into a big school early or late in the year, but it happens most often for me with post spawn bass at night. It can be fast and furious with a chatterbait after dark.

All of it. Rock, wood, weeds, docks... It's seasonal.

Welcome aboard.

I'm still with ya Darlin. ? Gonna get started next week, but it'll be a grind. Snowing right now, I expect water temps in the high 30's - low 40's when I hit the lake next Monday. It'll feel good to be out though, even if it's a skunking.

7' MH XF Ark, Tharp Series "Hammer".

Well... I've been at it for 4+ decades now and have ONE trophy bass on the wall, and I'm a better angler than most so...... pretty sure there wouldn't be 30 million big bass harvested over a short period.

That's the only reason I won't get into the swimbait gig. Y'all know what swims in the lakes I fish. It would get expensive very quickly.

100% agree. Big fish have reproduced many times by the time they reach trophy size. Their genes are out there in the younger generations. No harm or shame in getting a skin mount done when you get that fish of a lifetime if you want. That's how I roll, and I'm unapologetic about it.

Congratulations!!!

I'm fine with FFS. I'm sure I'll buy a unit one of these days, maybe soon. I am however, opposed to Randy Blaukat's B.S.

I'd be happy with either. My belt size and my IQ are the same number, and I'm so ugly, when I was a kid, my mom had to tie a porkchop around my neck just to get the dog to play with me.

Say What? ?

7'4" - 7'6" Heavy Fast. 40# or 50# straight braid.