AlabamaSpothunter

I finally got my first taste of the big swimbait kool-aid this afternoon just playing around with a few baits I bought, and the new rod that came in yesterday. Threw a JDM Zillion SV TW on it just for the day. Ultimately now I see the rod was the biggest factor in the equation. Only threw this 5"/sub 2oz Gizzard Shad, but man am I gonna have to work on landing these baits more quietly. This bait has a really cool strong magnet that holds the front hook perfectly inline and in place. Swims regardless how fast you retrieve, dynamite action on a simple straight retrieve, but I give it a twitch occasionally or when it was passing something I thought might have a fish. Didn't throw it but 2-3 dozen times and caught a nice chunky 3lb class fish. Fish crushed the bait too. That fish did wonders for my confidence going forward. Thanks to all who replied, seems like this is an investment I'm okay making

Wow that's very cool you are writing an article for Bassresource......as I've said before your passion translates so well because of the incredible amount of hard work you put in to fish the way you do. The energy of a "possessed teenager" is what always jumps to mind. You really have to love catching Bass to put in that level of effort. Your fishing style is the embodiment of spartan fishing......a term I've used mainly to describe saltwater fishing boats. What an appropriate article for you to be writing! Please post a link when it's done, your fan club here will be waiting ?

Posts like these are what used to make up the backbone of every great tech forum. Loomis rods are fantastic. Love mine. I want to fish in Portugal

Thanks Katie! The bolded part is why we'd make perfect fishing partners. I love your philosophy on fishing, and one that I strive for each time out on the water. Stay positive, don't be afraid to work hard at fishing, and most importantly take joy in all the things you're blessed with while fishing. You got it brother, and I'd love to have a fishing buddy. The only thing that is limiting it right now is the boat. I mean it's spartan as it gets lol. I'm hoping to get a better dedicated boat by Xmas, but if you can deal with this jon boat, we'll have to get something in the works soon. Catfishing from it is significantly easier I'd imagine. Who was right........this guy was hahaha. I told you the real fisherman are never done even when they say they are. You and Katie are great examples. Both produced exceptional days and fish even when you said it was over for the season. Bass heads can't help themselves, it's a compulsion I truly believe. I get when it ices over, but I'm always thinking about the fish I'm not gonna catch because I was lazy, didn't want to be cold, etc. Beautiful chunky fish too!

Thanks friend, and one night or afternoon we should target these fish. I'm positive there are much bigger ones than this. I lost one on that same setup last week that wouldn't even stop. Yeah I just used the video "Crappie fishing with a bobber and live minnows" by Richard Gene the Fishing Machine on YT. Used those little Thills, and BB sized split shots about a foot up. Those little minnows catch everything it seems. LOL on the net, talk about stupid. I had tried everything to get that fish netted, but every time he saw the net, he bolted.......then I got the hair brained idea to scoop him while reversing. It worked until his weight was in the net which pushed the net back into the prop, then he swam right out of the net. You can tell I have no idea how to handle these Cats both fighting them, and landing them. Just a totally different beast. Nice one, and catching em on a buzzbait is always wild. I wish I had confidence in it, or topwater in general.

First Catfish I've caught since I was in high school, and likely the biggest. Pretty sure I need to now figure out how big they are in my home lake. They've stolen a LuckyCraft BDS, Jackall 60MR, and Chatterbait Flashback Mini over the last month (2/3 were on Bass baitcast gear), but atlas I land one on a micro hook, 8lb stren, and a 1" Tuffy Minnow.....fishing ?

Lol, I can catch everything but a darn Crappie when I'm fishing for them. Caught a few small Spots on Tuffy Minnows, and then this happened......I had my revenge over Whiskers

I use something similar in Lake Fork's Live Magic Shad, not nearly as detailed and doesn't have the fins. To me the money spent on the fins and eyes with those are going to waste. You can likely get that same awesome action from ZMAN's Razor Shads or my preferance while softer less durable, the Live Magic Shad. I'd fish those on an Underspin or Scrounger head to take advantage of how nice, and detailed they are.

Absolutely. Perfect blend between the two. You are the only one that seems to post meanmouths on the reg. I get it, they are controversial, but in many ways it's the perfect Bass if I was drawing one up from scratch. If they could reach the DD threshold, they'd be the perfect Bass. What's the biggest one you know about being caught?

Compare the size of this reply with mine right below....it's normal it seems

Naw I've never noticed, and figured it was just doing that because it's used to posting huge strings of awesome Bass in the Latest Catch thread ?

Very true, happens on every hobby forum I've been a member of. At least they are easy to spot after awhile. The only way I can make my posts look like yours with the big white space below is to keep hitting enter after the last sentence.

Beautiful couple:) Here's why I love A-Jay's video far beyond the beautiful kino he produces along with world class sized Brown fish.......he's illustrating a respect for the fish all anglers including myself should take notes from. You can brag on YT You can promote and shill on YT OR You can teach and just share exciting moments of your life with your community and friends on YT I think this site's CoC has no problem with doing the last one, or really even the first one to answer the OP's question. It seems to be a somewhat nuanced policy but shilling for sales or subs seems pretty cut and dry no go. Personally, I won't post any YT video other than ones I make myself for a non-monetized channel. I love the TacticalBassin videos, but only mention that I watched xyz on their channel, not link it.

@Bluebasser86 Just watched those videos, awesome stuff man, and yeah that sucks in the manner in which you lost that bait. You are just like my fishing mentor.....dude would push it up to the limit or boundary wherever he found one. He gave me my love for Dams, but equally taught me how dang scary they are. What an absolute champion your pupper is in that first video......I didn't even notice it until mid video ? Nothing has ever intimidated me in all of Bass fishing outside of big Swimbait fishing, since a kid reading about folks like WRB and the like on Castaic I remember thinking this is epic, but never in a million years could I see myself undertaking the challenge. Doesn't seem to be something you can half donkey, it's a full send technique. The cost, the actual labor of working these baits, and ultimately a whole new skillset to master is a commitment. These baits excite me, watching you guys fish them, knowing they give you a fantastic shot at huge fish, that's what it's all about besides catching the actual Bass. It's the pursuit of challenging yourself to learn new techniques that will ultimately result in more and larger fish. The Chatterbait was a revelation to my fishing game not just on the macro level with the bait itself but opening my mind to the things out there that could be improving my success by orders of magnitude. Alpha Angler Wide Glide is arriving today. WA to AL in 3days.....not to shabby. Really loving this company right now, nice to be able to talk with the owner of a rod company.

Got to resize the image to under 1.46 mb. That sucks because I use a lot Project Z weedless series with brush guards.

Tag. I need to create a system for my Chatterbaits

"Nantucket Sleigh Ride".....that's epic. Moby Dick is still one of my favorite books. While the Whaling industry was tragic, it was full of daring and exciting stories. It's no surprise that Herman Melville wrote a book that touched on this. I currently hunting my "white whale" "Yeah I'm kinda of a big deal around these parts, I got a IGFA World Record" "Wow, what species" "That's my phone ringing, I'll see you later" ?

Great stuff brother.....look forward to watching the videos. Looks FREEZING lol

Nice brown piggy! I'd love to Musky fish! Honestly with your amazing results, I wouldn't change or add a thing. That said, it's too fun to tickle the tackle monkey to not always be trying new stuff. I'm the same way with your whopper plopper, I intend to try those this summer. So many lures, so little time haha

Haha, Mako Sharks were my favorite "animal" growing up. Talk about an amazing fish. Do you ever target anything besides those beautiful Maine Bass? It's all but impossible for me to target fish other than Bass when freshwater fishing. I love to catch every type of fish even Carp and Gar, but you know this better than anyone perhaps in this thread......Bass get ahold of your soul, and make you beyond obsessed. I don't go to bed dreaming about catching a PB Crappie, Catfish, etc., but I do for every species of Bass.

Brother you aren't hijacking anything, that's quality posting on your part. Really appreciate the pics. The Steez looks exactly like the pics, and one of the main reasons why I wanted to get it over the HD, the profile is so sexy looking, the way it tapers in the back. Love the cork handles on these Daiwa reels, did it on my OG BFS Steez. I'm gonna put the round cork ones on the Zillion HD. Great stuff man, congrats on the new beautiful reel. You'll find a use for it somewhere, a Basshead always does

Learned a new trick how to catch Bass 100% of the time today: GO CRAPPIE FISHING ? I went and bought 3 dozen Tuffy minnows because the last three days have been brutal for Bass. I made a deal with myself, I could take one Bass setup, and one lure. I took a Jackhammer, and three spinning reels along with the minnows. Caught half of dozen nice 1-2lb LGMs on the Jackhammer before the Live Magic Shad trailer gave up the ghost. In between throwing the Jackhammer a little bit, I was tossing these Tuffy minnows on a GL3 Medium Fast 6ft rod, and 4lb test around deep brush piles. Every single brush pile I dipped a minnow on, I ended up in a several minute fight with quality sized Spots. When I say I was fighting these fish for minutes, that's not a lie. I hooked 7, and 4 broke me off. Ridiculous amounts of fun, albeit moments of shear frustration. I did catch a beautiful hand sized Bluegill. Overall caught a number of Bass, and one Bluegill....no Crappie, yet that's what I was fishing for.....fishing never fails to make you look like a fool ?

Lol, that's why I want to buy from Digitaka more than anything else.....it's amazing how fast they ship these reels from Japan

Love it brother, your style of fishing is so exciting!

The reality is Economy is Scale crushes anything that's not truly innovative these days. A mega corporation like Bass Pro Shops is impossible to compete with. WalMart has been doing this for decades with every other mom N pop product or service. Just the world we live in. To me your focus should either be more innovative, or purely for enjoyment, and maybe cost saving on an individual level. Reloaders don't do it to save money, and most home tackle builders don't do it to make money is what I've found in both hobbies. Not to discourage you, just being pragmatic about it.