JHoss

That's what the say. I think they were supposed to use The Bass Advisory Board that was created last year to do so. Slick posted a reel yesterday that there are rumors going around that BASS accepted a little over a million dollars from Garmin before this season so not make any changes to the FFS rules for 3 years. I don't particularly care for the guy, but he seems to be right more than he's wrong.

I don't but I am trying to get better about incorporating it into my plan. Clarity has always been something that I consider when choosing a bait/color or even how they relate to cover, but I often forget to account for it when trying to decide if I'm going to start deep or shallow.

I've heard people say good things about Sunline Natural, but haven't tried it myself. I only use mono on one spooks and poppers and Big Game has worked just fine for that. If you're switching line, I think it would be worthwhile to test out braid. Works great with chatterbaits- especially on a slower rod. Add a couple bobber stops ahead of the knot on your treble-hooked topwaters and you won't have too many issues with the braid wrapping your hooks. I've tried the Yo Zuri Hybrid on topwaters and find it does still sink more than mono. P Line Topwater is the only copoly I've seen stay on top as well as mono.

If it has to throw a chatter and topwater, mono or braid are your only options. I'm partial to fluoro for my chatters, but I have a dedicated rod for it. I'd be worried about being able to easily clear grass with the combo of a Mod Fast and the stretch of mono, but if you're able to do that then no need to change.

No one is mentioning that they straight up lie some times. I've lost count of the number of times a Strike King Sponsored pro has said he was catching them on a Thunder Cricket only to clearly see the coffin-shaped blade of a bladed jig on Live. The only guy I've seen claim to throw a Thunder Cricket who actually throws a Thunder Cricket during tournaments is KVD. I've heard plenty of stories of guys taking another brand's soft plastic and putting it in their sponsor's packaging.

Could be an issue with Line Guide Bar. But most often I've seen this when I'm frogging and holding the reel at an angle. The line being slightly slack on most retrieves allows it to fall to the lower side of the reel. I either have to be very conscious about it or under-spool the reel so it doesn't rub when one side gets more full.

I've dabbled with the 17lb before. I only ever tried one spool. The first time I put it on a reel, I had a bunch of break off issues, but I think that was because of a backlash that weakened the line in a few spots. It does float better than other copolymers. I don't remember it being more or less prone to hook fouling. I'd think 14-17 would be good for the lures mentioned. I used it for primarily for spooks, ploppers, and the occasional buzz. A few times I would throw a spinnerbait or other subsurface lure on it without any issues, but I think it probably cost a little bit of depth. I've gone back to using mono for my poppers and spooks, fluoro for my buzzbaits, and braid for my frogs and ploppers FWIW.

Fish Monkey makes some good ones. KastKing's aren't bad either.

Agree with most that a lot of times its not bass. But I have found single blow ups in shallow water (like around cypress trees) is very much worth casting too. A lot of time bass are fired up to feed and have something trapped. I'll usually toss a frog up there and get bit enough to make it worth it. I don't think I've ever caught bass when I had to run to them with the trolling motor. Now saltwater species like striped bass, bluefish, and even tuna are a different story.

I'm going through a major garage reorganization and the fishing section is a big part of that. I plan to try some of the hanging organizers like I use for screws and other small parts.

I sure was. Thanks.

MegaBass SV3, Booyah Covert Series, and the 6th Sense Divine are my 3 favorites. War Eagle has been good to me too, but I hate the lack of a bait keeper.

Yeah, I'd say a bowfin is a pretty good test of durability. I've heard those Divine Shaky worms are fish catchers but lack durability because of the thinness of the core plastic, so if they're staying on your hack must be legit.

I was using it the same way but found my hook would regularly rotate from parallel to perpendicular once the worm got "worn in". I had the most issues when using the Nekorama with the Neko Hack (tried Small and Medium). It was extremely rare to ever catch two fish on that combo, which lines up with what Drew Gill says about that setup. I do see that happen with a softer plastic like a Yamamoto Senko. But when I've used the Neko hack, I also had that mid section get worn out and torn up just as quickly. Do you pre-rig a bunch of worms like this before you head out? Seems like it would take a decent bit of time to set up, which I wouldn't want to be doing during a derby.

Do you have an issue with the hook rotating since the points cant bury into the silicone the same way they can a rubber bait? I've experimented pretty heavily with the Neko Hack and Crossover Rings this summer and the Crossover Rings are the clear winner for any worm style bait for me. The Neko Hacks tear up worms much faster, rotate in the worm, and rarely last more then one fish. I do find that I go even smaller than I think I should on the Crossover Rings to really get them to stay in place. I have seen the hook hole split on the Crossover Rings, though that seems to happen less now than when they first started producing them. Even so, I still believe they save me baits (and money) in the long run. Neko Hacks will always be in my box for rigging creature baits and other non-traditional Neko baits.

How close are you putting it to cover? 90% of my wacky fish come from a cast that is within inches of the cover if not in/under it.

Bass After Dark Podcast has an episode for both I believe (100% sure they have crawfish). They bring in real scientists to discuss. May be a good starting point and the expert guests could be your next step.

I feel the same way after using it a few times. Maybe it helped a bit, but not enough to justify one more thing to do the night before a tournament.

Listened to a Trey McKinney interview recently, which hits this pretty well. He was discussing the win on St Clair and how he was getting fish to bite. Essentially he had 5 baits he rotated through for each fish he saw. He'd try each bait once (sometimes giving a break in between and sometime not) to see which they had the most significant reaction to. Then it was a matter of rotating retrieves until he got bit. If he still couldn't get it to bite, he'd start changing casting angles. Essentially, figure out which bait they're having the most significant reaction too and then experiment with every retrieve you can think of. I have noticed the last couple months that color and even brand of worm on my dropshot has been making a huge difference, and had others mention seeing the same thing.

Prevents the braid from wrapping the hooks as easily. The bobber stops make the line stick straight out in front of the bait a little more rigidly.

Nailed it. I've had plenty of issues with the braid looping around a hook on the cast or landing. And the short mono leader is fine until you need to retie- now its two knots instead of one. Also, two potentially weak connections instead of one. If I do resort to throwing a trebled topwater on braid, I put a few bobber stops right up against the knot and that helps a lot.

I'm with @A-Jay and @Jar11591 on this one. The backhand casts accomplishes the same thing as using my left hand but with a lot more precision and power. I had to learn this a couple years ago as a co angler in a 12 foot Jon Boat. And now I mostly fish with my dad in a 14 foot Jon. He's new to bass fishing and his casting could use a few more years of practice, so I usually try to keep the starboard side of the boat towards the target so he's wide open to use a right-handed side arm cast.

I own both and would take the MGL over the DC. The DC was neat when I first got it and wasn't as skilled with casting reels as I am these days. Now, I find the DCs tend to overrun or backlash more than my non-DC reels.

Sure, when it's sitting still they can't see it. When it's walking back and forth, there's some roll to the bait that would let them see the sides. Or consider a bait like an Evergreen Showerblows that rests at a 45 degree angle. The sides become visible to almost every angle and the back is even visible to a fish high in the water column behind the bait.

It's all about the odds. I want my bait to be where the most fish are for as much time as possible in a given day. If I'm fishing a frog against a cypress bank and I start noticing that 90% of my bites are coming in the first 10 feet off the bank, I'm not gonna waste my time working it back the next 90 feet of open water to the boat. I can put my bait in high percentage spots 7 or 8 times in the time it would've taken me to work the frog all the way back to the boat. A steady retrieve bait like a buzzbait or plopper can be a bit different, but even then I'm usually speeding up once I get past the area I expect to get bit.