VTFan

You just solved what happened to my knot. As you said before, 40 wraps was way too many and not all the wraps cinched down. You just proved it.

That's a nice looking FG you got there @Happybeerbuzz I retied yesterday using only 20 wraps...10 per side, 4 half hitches, wet it completely, tensioned, clipped tag end, Rizzuto finish, tensioned again. No slippage. We'll see.

Ok. I always get confused on how the wraps are counted. To me...and maybe I've been doing this wrong... I counted one wrap as every time I wound the fluro under the braid. Hence 20 in front and 20 behind were 40 wraps. Please educate me here! 😆

35 to 40 wraps, 2 half hitches with Rizzuto finish. I have 2 dowel rods wrapped with duct tape to wrap the line around to pull. 15 lb Strike King Contra fluro and 40 lb PowerPro braid.

Just curious, you guys that use the FG knot, let's say you are using 40 lb braid, what's the smallest fluro line leader you'd consider using? The reason I'm asking is, I was watching Bill Dance the other day and he was was fishing a Texas rig on a baitcasting outfit using 30 lb braid with a 30 lb leader. So...one of my bc's that I don't use that often is spooled with 40 lb braid so I decided to tie on a 17 lb leader using the FG knot and give Bill's method a whirl. I Do know how to tie the FG, use it on my spinning stuff all the time and never had an issue. I actually tied this one twice because I wasn't satisfied with the wraps on the first one. Did everything right, number of wraps, kept tension, two half hitches to lock it down, pulled hard....really hard to cinch it down. No slippage. None. Went to the pond and after a number of cast I hung a fish only to have the fluro slip right through the braid. The one thing I did forget to do when tying the knot was lube the wraps before cinching. So my question after saying all that is, #1... Is 17 lb fluro too small to use for leader with 40 lb braid, and #2...and I guess this may be a no brainer...did me forgetting to lube the wraps have a something to do with the knot slipping? Sorry for this being so long and thanks in advance.

I hate those days. It just makes you feel like going back home and going straight back to bed.

Man I'm glad you made it back safely too!!! I will be 70 in a couple months and hate the fact that my days of fishing solo in my boat are almost a thing of the past. Fortunately I have a pond nearby that gets me through the days when my brother can't take off work to go.

Just wondering if any of you have tried the Hayabusa Trailer & Trailer Hook Keepers? I just happened to see a video that Skeet Reese did on them. He said he's not sponsored by them so it wasn't a promo. I dearly love catching fish but I hate fishing plastics due to the wear and tear on them and according to Skeet these will help prolong the life of a plastic. You can find his video on YouTube. Also, Tackle Warehouse sells them.

Heat wave here in Virginia, highs yesterday 101-105. We didn't launch until around 5 p.m. Temp was 102 then. The lake had a thermocline down about 8'. All of our fish (roughly a dozen each) were caught in the shallow end, 6' or less, and in grass. Most of mine were caught on a weightless fluke and most of my brothers were on either a swim bait or wacky.

Personally I don't. Just a me thing. I did see Bill Dance one day throwing a crankbait using spinning gear so it can't be all taboo I guess.

Try as I may I cannot get into drop shotting. I feel like I'm sitting there with a cane pole again. My brother can tear 'em up with a DS. My hats off to anyone that has the patience for it. JMHO. I'll be the first to admit I do not have the patience for it. It's a fault of mine and my hats off to those that can. I know it's a tried and proven method.

Correction....mine is a model SM2A with the spool button on the side and no centrifigal brakes etc...

Mine is a PS15 model with the spool button on the side. You had to hold the spool with your right thumb and press the spool button with your left in order to cast. Younger guys...and even myself...shake their heads in wonder at that thing.

The first baitcaster I ever owned was a Daiwa Procaster that I bought back in the early 80's and it had no centrifugal breaks, only the spool tension knob. I fished it on a 5' 6" Ugly Stik rod with a pistol grip handle. Yeah!!! That was an interesting thing to cast with really light lures and especially into the wind. I still have that reel.

I don't fish a lot of cranks but when I do it's a KVD 1.5 size.

Power Pro for me so far. The only other braid I tried was spiderwire and all I'll say about that is...Never Again"!! PP was on a reel that was given to me and I liked it and see no reason to change for sake of changing. JMHO.

I've never done it myself but I did see an episode of Bill Dance Outdoors one day and he was using inline single hooks on his crankbait that day. He said it was great for less hangups.

Pitching and flipping in the yard I'm an ace. Casting in the yard, underhand roll cast, I'm about 90% accurate. Get me in a boat casting toward the bank and I may hit where I want to 1 out of 10 times. It's something about those bushes over there that intimidate me LOL!!!

Looks like you've got a couple bent hooks there. I went to using Mustad UltraPoint KVD Elite Triple Grip Treble Hooks and haven't regretted it. JMHO

15, 17 Fluro, and 30, 40 braid

I was using 40 lb PowerPro but cut back to 30 lb. since I don't do much punching. The only thing I've noticed different is that I get more casting distance. JMHO

I agree with what others have said about the pro's using what their sponsors tell them to use. How often do you see a pro really get down in the dumps because he had a bad tournament? Seldom, or at least I don't. Why? Because at the end of the day they know they have a paycheck coming in from sponsors. As for original bladed jig vs ThunderCricket...as a retiree who mostly pond fishes with the occasional trip to the lake with the boat, the original is fine with me. Don't need the latest and greatest. JMHO.

I too use Mustad KVD Elite Short Shank Triple Grip treble hooks on my cranks and they have yet to fail me. Gamy's on the other hand...I've had no less than two 2/0 and ***/0 EWG break and cost me fish. Needless to say I don't use Gamy's any longer.

I started with the exact same gear. Still have one of my old pistol grip Ugli Stik rods and the first baitcaster I ever owned (a Daiwa Procaster) that had the side button for casting.

I got a pair of these and love them!!! Thanks for the tip.