Banned User

Couple hours and a few spots last night, spinnerbait, paddletail, buzzbait, ribbon tail worm... nothing. Was freezing out, couldn't feel my fingers at one point. 💯 I've definitely decided this is mega, especially for some particular water bodies more than others

@DogBone_384 I'm on the north shore not far from NH at all, moved here a bit ago and my fishing buddy lives about 2 hours away in Halifax. Happy to meet up sometime time and hit the water when you're up this way. What did you catch it on and what was the weather, time of year, cover etc? I only have one this year too, boy did I have to work for it. Black and blue paddletail on weighted swimbait hooks, day after some rain, cooler night a few weeks ago, just by the bank in some grass beside a spill way from the dam. Slight increase in water flow must've had them waiting for snacks to come by.

Hands were so cold last night the one time I thought I got a bite I couldn't tell if it was a bite and missed the hook set - I feel better telling myself it was just a small branch. Last week in the yak I started dancing my toes to bring the feeling back, what you wearing for boots/socks? I just had rubber waders and regular socks - I ordered some thermal socks to see if it helps You on a yak?

@LrgmouthShad i tried telling you bro, you don't know my pain

My man @Pat Brown laying the encouragement on thick, I'm gonna hit with couple banks tonight and hopefully the yak tomorrow night - I'll letchyou how it goes @gimruisi see what I did there, clarified the topic. What you said definitely makes sense, I'll certainly consider it if i can ever fish with the living. But I'm basically bound to the night like a pescatarian vampire who likes to play with his food and throw it back like a picky toddler

I'm well read and well experienced in night fishing, but I haven't ever really done it past September in the northeast. I can already tell there's a difference, I know the fish spread out a bit and move around a bit, but on cold nights are they ambushing shallow or will more of them more likely be in deeper water? Mostly ponds, lots of grass and weeds and muck. A lot of people tout top water in October - but that's daytime, when fish are trying to catch some warmth. Still throw a buzzbait on a cold October night? What about November when it's significantly colder? Obviously you lucky Texas and Fla fisherman don't understand my pain, but can anybody else offer some insight on cold weather night bassin?

@Alpster of those 9 thousand rods you've built what are your top 3 and why?

You ever get around to it? Curious what you think

Which blanks have you built on and what do you use them for?

I'm genuinely skipping one or two meals often to make up for my tackle irresponsibility. Bologna can be found $1.87 a pound - best price per oz on this list- kinda like a yum finger

More than my wife realizes haha I know it's tacky to invite yourself, but I'll be right over 🥴

7/10 - solid rating for me, I'm usually pretty picky. I'd honestly give about the same for what I'll share below, because he smashed a few too many syllables into a line too many times and got sloppy. But I'm diggin this Lanie track and I'll peep more. @slonezpand @Motoboss I used to bump Tom, we built this house was incredible. But dude just keeps recycling the same material now for like 5 years, making the same song to a different beat. Plus he started pandering just a little too hard without much of an attempt at any critical logical analytical investigation into any opposing or at least neutral perspective. When he mentions the nonsense of the political junk he's right, but then goes right back to pandering like he forgot he just said he knows it's all pretend anyway.

Dick's sucks, I avoid them at all costs (get it) but every now and then they have that 50% and makes it reasonable

The technology isn't perfect, but watch this video, and then imagine AI integration to identify species and body mass, along with weather data and historical catch data, speed the fish is swimming at and projected distance at its rate of speed in X seconds.... Why don't we just I host professional competitions at the aquarium?

That's a good Fish! What color and what part of the state?

Right back atchyou my man, I think being able to have a respectful discussion, and even to disagree respectfully, is a lost art. Usually the culture just devolves a disagreement into some sort of insult fest or virtue signaling party. As for the fish Finders, I feel you on that, but it's the level of engagement that the technology affords that makes the difference. You can cast at an arch that isn't moving until you move over it all day, but when you can basically watch a fish on TV and see what to do or not do - because there's no reason that shouldn't be the next logical step with the tech - just cameras all around the boat underwater with super lenses and heat signature options just showing you absolutely everything.

"way more skill"? Nah bro, I didn't even know the fish had taken my bait yet and my buddy just said set the hook... I caught that fish that he saw take my lure. I might've felt it and set the hook eventually, but it also coulda spit it out and I never woulda knew - without FFS I wouldn't have just randomly set the hook on a subtle in felt bite. It takes skill to recognize water level, temp, wind, sun angle, casting angle, which part of the water column to hit, how fast to move the lure, when to "move on," where in relation to the shore and cover the bass are hanging... I targeted outside weed edges and caught bass on a spinnerbait, I targeted docks and caught on a buzzbait, I saw the water level and fished offshore where I could see the depth about the same and caught on spinnerbait and Ned rig. Dude I was fishing with basically just drove around looking for bass and casting a jig head and plastic all day. He crushed my numbers because he didn't have to waste the time I did when he could see there were no fish. He could see when to pop or twitch or pause or set the hook. Again, I don't care in real life, but for professional level competition... It's a stain on the sport like using a drone camera to hunt.

I watched a local body of water so over harvested I couldn't even catch a sunfish. I saw people taking buckets full of everything they caught with absolutely no descrimination - every size bass, gill, eel, anything... absolutely devestated the ecosystem.

Just quoted for emphasis Dude, that would be cheating because it eliminates some of the skill required that should be present at professional tournament level competition, at least according to BASS haha

This is the skill that it eliminates @Tennessee Boy The line should be not having to fish while being a professional tournament fisherman, any technology that means you literally don't have to fish should not be allowed. Clearly my contention is less about over harvesting, aside from @ol'crickety 's point about damaging reproduction during the spawn, but professional level competition has always created boundaries that protect the integrity of the sport.

You no longer have to go fishing to find a fish, you can just drive around and find fish. Without fishing. And you right about the kayak scene, I thought I'd get into some local kayak tourneys, until I saw that I would need to drop 4 grand on electronics to be able to have a fair competition. I be out there casting at nothing while dudes be like "I can see there's no fish here, I'm moving on" It's not that it makes it easy to catch fish, it makes it easy to givefind where fish aren't, and easy to find where fish are. And it does make it easier to dial in your lure selection and retrieve... So actually I take it back, it absolutely makes it easier (doesn't make it easy) to catch bass. I was fishing with a buddy who has it, but I didn't have it. He would point out where he saw fish on the scope, we would both cast. But he could see what the fish were doing and make adjustments mid retrieve, and he would get the bites. Then he would let me catch one, by describing what I should while he was watching the scope and then I could pause or twitch at precise times and entice bites. It takes the fishing out of fishing, which is a guess and check activity. It helps to put the fish into the barrel so you can fish for them. But they didn't have a gold star with a little "you're here" and then little red stars where all the fish were, that's the difference. Pros used to have to go and search for the treasure, they had to fish to find fish, now they get the treasure map marked with an "X"

I'm still catching up on the 6 pages, but I've been making this point since FFS entered mainstream competition. FFS is searching for fish with technology, trolling is searching for fish with fishing... Uuhhhh Also, they banned the Umbrella Rig and the reasoning stated was: "Rules Committee members believe the rig eliminates some of the skill that should be required in tournament competition at the highest level... A Rules Committee member added, “I don’t have a problem with the use of umbrella rigs or multi-lure rigs to catch bass. If you are out fun fishing, there may be nothing more fun to use. However, our events represent the highest level of professionalism in our sport and I think as participants of these events, we should be held to a higher standard, as well." FFS absolutely eliminates some of the skill that should be required in tournament competition at the highest level. This is precisely the point - we are talking about professional level competition. This is why boxers can't put weights in their gloves, you can't cork a baseball bat, can't use glue on your hands in football. The point is preserving the sport, just like they said they banned Alabama rig for. Go use your FFS all day and night and catch teeners, just don't do it in a professional competition. Do you think we should allow trolling?

@DogBone_384 North shore, but even my trips up to Maine the water level has been the lowest I've seen in 8 years - never went to Maine before that. So much mud at the banks now and all the weeds are topped out where they shouldn't be

That's wild bro, this is some of the lowest water I've ever seen. I've practically been despondent over it because it's really messed the fish up and bank fishing has been skunk city.

I feel like the water levels being so ridiculously low has really fudged the fish up, been a crap summer for me. I basically only fish at night cuz the kids, and even that has been garbage.