JayW

Nice fish! Are you sure that the scales were right? Looks bigger than that in the pic.

Shimano over Zebco any day.

You know... I bought another one and began taking off the old one when I found out that the guy who installed it didn't heat up the heat shrink enough and the connector was wet and green with corrosion! I paid Phillips (Central Florida Trolling Motors) $1,200 for the trolling motor, batteries, wiring, install, ETC... and this is what I got. I stopped by there Monday and the guy was a jerk to me. Told me that nothing was under warranty and then wanted me to pay for him looking at it for 5 minutes! Then he told me to get out of the store. Anyway, I fixed it myself. It's just sad that some people are so nice until after you pay for their service and then it the old "screw you" deal. >

Thanks man, that's what I was "trying" to say. Some times I'm just not good with words. Sorry for the confusion.

When you say exposed... you are talking about the back side of the hook, right? If so... then yes. You are correct. I use Zoom Finesse worms 90% of the time. I always cut off 1" (makes it about a 4" worm that way) of the worm and use a 1/0 hook. I caught 2 Bass over 10lbs last month using them and a friend with me caught one almost 10 lbs using the same method. I catch a LOT of Bass this way and quite a few large fish.

Anyone here have any problems with them? I've had one for about 7-8 months now and it just quit working. someone told me they get water in them and don't last too long. I have no choice but to get a new one. There's not way I'm going to operate the off/on by hand. Maybe this was just a fluke???

Sounds like a great day of fishing (except for the mudfish -vs- rod story).

Congrats on your new PB!

Well, I do agree with you about the other guys fish. It looks like a 1 lb fish or in that area. I just know that some times a pic can be deceiving. When I looked at the pic of the 12.11 I couldn't believe how much smaller it looked than in person. I mean, that fish was 27" long! The other 2 people with me said the same thing. Anyway, no big deal. I'm still upset to this day that that's the only pic I have of that fish. She was so pretty in real life. Maybe that's what I get for not bringing my good camera that day. :'(

Dude, you're WAY off! #1 Bass 26'' 10.6 lbs #2 Bass 27'' 12.11 lbs #3 Bass 26" 13.1 lbs These are true weights and lengths. I have no reason to lie. You're WAY off! That's why I say pics can be deceptive. The 12.11 Bass looks smaller than the 10.6 but it was no where near as big in real life. I had 2 people with me when I caught the 12.11 and 4 other boats came up to look at the fish. That fish was a monster but the pic just looks like crap. Maybe it was the fact that it was a cheap camera phone? The 13.1 was back in '98 and taken with a disposable camera. The 10.6 was last month and taken with my digital camera. 12.11 was also last month and taken with my cheapo phone. BTW, I'm 6' 1" and weigh 215#'s so maybe they look bigger with a smaller person holding them??? Here's another pic of the 13.1 taken with a polaroid in '98 Do you still think it's 5.5 lbs? :-?

Nope! I'll tell soon. Wanna guess their length?

I agree. If it's actually a 16" fish it could be around 2#'s. I think we're all just guessing since there's no way of knowing exactly how long the butt grip, real seat and fore grip on that rod is. 8-) Look at it based on the size of the reel, that fish is tiny. Looks 10 inches. Rods and grips can be all sizes, but that reel must be the size of my head then! Even without looking at anything BUT the fish, it just doesn't have the look of anything over 1.5 lbs. Well, I don't know how big the reel is. I don't even know what model it is. If you want to get technical. I'd say it was in the 1# range. I know that pics can be deceiving though. Tell you what... just for fun... I'm going to post 3 Bass I've caught. You try and guess what they weigh and I'll tell you later.

Let's see... I've caught Cat fish on plastic worms and crank baits. Then I've caught Bluegill on spinner baits, plastic worms, lizards and even on top water plugs. I even caught a huge Nile Perch on a jig one time!

Well, I think you did the right thing. I'm not one to back down either, but sometimes you have to sit back and think about what might come of it. No need to really hurt some kids or get shot or go to jail when you can avoid it. Sometimes if it can't be avoided... you just have to do what you have to do. Most of the time it can be avoided though. This reminds me of a 2 friends who got into it at the boat ramp with 2 other guys over something stupid. My 2 friends really hurt the other 2 guys and they both ended up in the hospital. Both friends went to jail over this and it cost them a LOT of money with lawyers and so forth and all over something stupid that could have been avoided. I always try to avoid these situations these days. It's just not worth it unless someone actually attacks you or something. I have a teenage daughter and understand what you are saying though. It would be very hard to hold back!

If a spinning rod has new line or too much line they will tend to jump off the spool after the bait hits the water. I always finger the line and stop it when it hits the water. Also... It's best to lay the spool flat when putting on line for a spinning reel. If it starts to kink up real bad while re-lining... flip over the spool.

Are you using a bait caster or a spinning reel? If it's a bait caster you may need to do some adjustments to the magnetic brake system or the tighten the spool. You may also have too much line on the reel. It could be a lot of different things. If it's a spinning reel... it could be too much line as well. I let the line brush my finger on casts when I use a spinning reel. That said... I never have any problems with a bait caster or a spinning reel, but it takes practice. I've been using them since the mid 80's so I'm used to them. What kind of reel are you using, what kind of line and test and what weight lures?

Well, I've seen a lot of pretty lakes, ponds, pits, etc... From Florida, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee... I guess my favorite would be my local big lake which is only 1/2 mile from my home. It's Lk Ariana in Central Fl. It's about 7 miles around it (from what I remember) and it pretty much a bowl shaped lake. It has depths as deep a 30' according to the depth finder. My largest came from this lake in '98 and she was 13.1 lbs! Here's a pic from Friday when I went fishing.

I agree. If it's actually a 16" fish it could be around 2#'s. I think we're all just guessing since there's no way of knowing exactly how long the butt grip, real seat and fore grip on that rod is. 8-)

I'd say you're about right. Somewhere between 1-2 lbs.

One more thing... where did you catch her or at least what town? That place looks awful familiar! I live in central Florida too. EDIT: I just saw in your profile that you live in Lk Alfred. Heck, I live in Auburndale. Small world!

Nice! She looks kinda skinny, but really long! How long was that fish? To bad it was a post spawn fish or you would have broke 10#'s easy!

Well, when the fish aren't biting... I have been known to say a little prayer.

Well, I use Calcutta's and my own custom built rods. I don't think it matters what you use, but it sure can make it more enjoyable with a nice reel and a nice balanced rod. I know of a local guy who caught a 17+ Bass a few years back on a Zebco 33 combo and a wild shiner fishing a private phosphate pit. Anything can work (although I'm surprised the 33 did) ;D

Thanks guys. I love the set up of this boat. I forgot to add that it has a Bob's hydraulic flats jack and a 4 blade SS prop. I know those 2 items alone are probably another $1K alone or at least close. I do a little Snook and Red fishing from time to time, but I'm 99.9% Bass all the way! I remember guys telling me "once you hook a Snook... you'll never go back to Bass fishing". Well, when I finally went Snook fishing for the first time... it was a lot of fun, but on the trip back, I remember passing by a old phosphate pit and thinking... "Man, I wish I could get in there!" I guess Bass fishing is just in my blood!

Nice! Looks like a lot of fun. Hey, how come you didn't try to catch that snake? I hear they just looooove jigs! ;D