T-Billy

I think weightless senkos and flukes have a better gliding action on braid. With a little slack they'll spiral down.

Merino wool base layer, and whatever is appropriate for the days weather on top of that. Fingers are the only part that ever get problematic for me. Edit to add: I ALWAYS carry a pair of insulated coveralls in a dry bag when fishing the cold water seasons. Hypothermia can get you quick if you take an unintended swim. Gotta have something warm and dry to get into. If it makes you feel any better, I took my first skunking since last spring when the water was in the 40's today. Post frontal, slick calm, and the fish were SUPER spooky. Lots of shallow cruisers that wouldn't even eat a TRD Bug on 6#. Not even the usually pesky redears would touch it. The bass actually ran from a senko. Tried pitching thick tangles looking for a reaction bite. The only reaction was, when my bait quietly dropped in, the bass ran out like the Boogie Man kicked in the door. LOL. Not a single bite in 7hrs.

I'm in agreement with your girlfriend. I pretty much just read one book these days though, with an occasional history book thrown in.

What these guys said. I enjoy hunting too, but fishing... man I'm just obsessed with it. Have been since I was a kid, five decades ago. My grandpa took me for the first time when I was 4. I caught an 18" carp that day, and that was all she wrote, a lifelong fire was ignited.

If I were the devil... Recorded in 1965. Hit the nail square on the head.

Nothing new about it. Been going on since the creation of man. Times change, methods of communication change, people don't. @Catt nailed it.

It's the way to go with any single hook moving bait presentation IMO. Swim jigs, spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, chatterbaits, swimbaits... It gives you great hook setting power at distance, great sensitivity, easier clearing of weed fouling, and power to pull fish out of cover. I'm up to four Ark Invoker 7'4" H MF rods now. 1/2 - 2oz rating. Combined with a 7 speed reel and straight braid, it's an outstanding rig for all the above listed baits. Plenty of tip, and power to spare.

Thought of this thread today after setting the hook into a log, TWICE!!! ?‍♂️ First time there was a dink still on after I poked the hook off the wood. Hook point came out TDC and buried into the log he was hiding under. He's been placed on concussion protocol. Second swing, different log, I missed the fish and landed a chunk of log. Opened up a 4/0 flippin hook a bit both times. #STRAIGHTBRAIDBRIGADE!!! Side note: I like these $6 RiverRuns gloves nearly as well as the $30 Fish Monkey gloves they replaced. Factor in the cost difference, I like 'em a whole bunch better.

Congrats!!!

Nope. I'd recommend switching to XT though. It's lower stretch, more abrasion resistant, and it handles just fine on spinning up to 10# test.

I got a chuckle out of Watsons comment. If they made it five bass and one carp, Wheeler will catch the biggest carp everytime. LOL.

^THIS^ It's a neccesary, if not enjoyable part of the deal.

Fluoro absolutely has the best slack line sensitivity, but that difference can be mitigated to a large degree with good slack line management using both braid and mono. Not all braids are created equal. I fish 40# 832 through rock and wood all the time, and I need to retie it FAR less than I ever did mono or fluoro. Braid also gives me the ability to muscle bass out of places that just wouldn't be possible with those other lines.

Straight braid for all but deep rock. I use a mono leader there to make breaking off easier, and prevent losing long sections of braid.

Watson and Coulter agree, 70% of MLF anglers voted for the five fish format hoping it'll help them be competetive with Wheeler. LOL. I hope Wheels cleans their clocks and gets the AOY in 23.

I'd eat it.

Our local reservoirs were built for flood control, and are drawn down 5-8 feet each fall. I do well pitching jigs and trigs to any wood I can find still in the water on the main lake basins. If there's some wind, rolling a chatterbait or spinnerbait along laydowns can be good.

The Razor Shad is outstanding as far as this style trailer goes. It's what I've been throwing lately, and I've quickly become a fan. Great action and darn near indestructable.

Doesn't need to be on the day the ice melts. Just within the first few weeks while the water is still very cold. It's always gone by the end of March in my area, and it takes weeks for the temps to climb out of the 40's. It's doable, but they probably think nobody wants to watch them struggle to find five bites a day. Personally, I'd be VERY interested to see how the pro's approach that situation.

I've been very happy with their 30# single strand titanium leaders. All quality components.

There goes all the toilet paper again!!! I spose it's ok for some stuff, but it'll get your heart broke flippin cover. Like this?

Or in my experience, a broken banjo string

I like the Yum finesse and flash mob jrs. I throw them on 40# braid and haven't lost one yet. I've pulled up some big limbs, opened up a bunch of hooks, and cleaned a lot of old line up out of the lakes. Took me awhile to catch a fish on one, but as mentioned, once you do, you're hooked. It's getting to be that time of year.

I hope it makes better batteries than it does fishing line.