Kongming

Initially thought it was a smallie coming out of the water. Had a nice vibrant brown color to it. Caught in northern WI on a work trip.

Decided to start using spinnerbaits as I don't have much experience with em. Was slow rolling on the bottom and managed to land this chunk. Definitely heavier than a 5lb dumbbell. Did not have my scale with me.

Hasn't clicked for me yet, but I went from consistently skunking to consistently reeling fish in the moment I started "hunting" for bass by casting into cover, rather than into open water and hoping for the best.

The very first bass I hooked into was with a light rod and 6lb test line using a ned hook. I felt something so I set the hook but assumed I snagged as it wasn't budging. Then out of nowhere my drag was peeling. After about 5-10 minutes I finally got him close to the bank and got a good look at the bass. Must've been about 20-22 in long and fat. I did not have a net, and didn't know about lipping, so I tried flipping him in and immediately broke off. I landed one about 15 minutes later but he was half the size and no where near satisfying. I'm still salty about losing my biggun to this day.

I like to use weighted hooks with twistlocks with my flukes. Weight is generally 3/32. Its very weedless, and often I get a strike when I pop it out of some weeds.

I definitely got a nice adrenaline rush. Made even better by the fact that I got one of my buddies into fishing and he got his first bass ever 5 minutes before my catch.

I've got the tackle for drop shotting but have yet to try it. I'll give it a go next time i'm out there. Was planning on going to Diversey harbor in a couple weeks for some kings. Are any of the other harbors better for catching a king?

Went bass fishing last weekend and ended up catching a couple pike. The best part of this catch was my lure broke off on the hookset, so I immediately tied on a new jig and found my other jig hooked to its mouth! Took me a while taking 2 lures off this toothy fish so I didn't get a chance to weigh it.

Thanks for the advice. Finally got my first brown bass!!

I started recently going to harbors to find my first smallmouth with zero success. I've had 1 chase my lure but the rest swim away when they see my bait. So far I have tried ned TRDs/craw/tubes, paddletail swimbaits, and crankbaits. Any suggestions on lures/baits to get smallies to react? I'm going back out there today and will bring my senkos. Also there aren't many openings under the docks for me to skip under so I try getting as close to the docks possible but it seems like only rockbass will take the bait.

What gets me the most are the boaters/kayakers that'll paddle right in front of me while i'm fishing from the bank. Couple weekends ago I was fishing from a pier when a family with 2 kayaks cruised by maybe 10 feet from the pier. About 15 minutes later they were doubling back when I heard a kid in the back suggest they paddle further out so they don't bother us. Since when did children have more common sense than adults?

I told myself I won't be buying another rod this year but the local bait shop is going out of business and they had the St. Croix Mojobass on sale for $110. Now I need to get a new reel to pair with the new rod.

IDK, I'm kinda liking summer right now. Having a lot of success so far, caught over 60 bass this year. For reference, I only caught 22 last year as a noobie bass angler. The weather in Chicago has been pretty mild as well.

A local told me he bends one of the hooks in on the middle treble hook to prevent snags. Haven't tried it yet but it makes sense. Anyone else try this method?

Not the biggest around here but PB for me. My apologies on the blurriness. Was shaking from excitement lol. Didn't have my scale with me. Guesses on weight?

Right now it takes about 2 seconds to hit the water. I noticed it gets worse when I give more power to the cast. I hear a click a split second before the lure hits the water. Is that the brake?

I finally bit the bullet and got myself a 7 ft MH rod and a Daiwa reel. Took it out to the water for the first time today and luckily only 1 bad birds nest. I do have a question though, I noticed that my spool spins faster than the lure but it seems to correct itself right before it hits the water. Is this how its supposed to work? Or should the spool be the same speed and the lure? Tried learning as much as I can with videos but obviously time on the water >> YT videos.

I plan on learning how to use a baitcaster next year in the spring but i figured i might as well buy one during the upcoming black friday to save some money. This will also allow me to practice in my yard before I take it out to the waters. I currently have 3 spinning rods (light, ml, m) that are all under 7ft. Few questions - Should I go with a budget rod combo to learn or invest in something I plan on using for a while? Any suggestions on rods/reels I should buy? My budget is around $300-350.

Chicago guys - Where do yall go for smallies? I've only been able to catch LMB this year at Wolf Lake.

Hello all! Been lurking here for several months, finally decided to register and introduce myself. I went fishing a total of 2 times before this year. Decided to pick up fishing as hobby this spring, then got sucked into the world of bass fishing this summer, and I gotta say i'm hooked. Everything was initially so overwhelming but I've already learned a lot just from this forum alone so thank you! Especially RW and his senko thread, which landed me my first bass last month. My 6 year old even got his first bass! Hoping to learn a lot more as time progresses, and hopefully be a contributor in the near future. Thanks all! Random question: Is there a reason why I'm not allowed to use my protonmail account here?