WRB-2.0

The majority of our lakes are gin clear and can be calm for a few hours each day, usually in the mornings. Every type of lure works well at times, including bright colored reaction lures. I agree with Raul....the statement is bunk! Tom

You pay for high strength light weight materials however $200 more for 1/2 oz is $$$. The Tatula weighs 8 oz or close to 9 to 9.5 oz filled with line. The difference between FC and mono is about 1/2 oz per 100 yards, FC being heavier. The weight of an 8 oz reel shouldn't be a big issue, it's weight to durability is outstanding. This issue I have is the width of the newer reels including the this Tatula series, they take some getting use to. I plan to check this reel out at the local tackle shop. I am very interested in the smooth retrieve and longer casting this reel may offer at this price point. Tom

Use a spinnerbait in lieu of a crank bait. Shad have blue, purple, chartreuse and silver. It's vibration that bass react to from a distance and bass can see in off color water....we can't! Tom

Troll

Trying to build up confidence by not catching bass on lures you do not know how to use is futile. Learn new lures when the bass are active. Using high % lures you have had success with is a good place to start, fishing where the bass are located is essential...can't catch them if they are not there! You are catching bass during a club tournament apparently from a boat operated by another angler who puts you onto bass. You know how to catch bass when someone else helps you locate them, so location is your problem. Locating bass is a problem for most anglers, no short cuts, only experience solves that issue. Fishing from the bank limits where and how you can fish. At this time of year it's fall transitioning to winter in most regions, not a easy time to locate active bass. From a bank I would start looking for long points that drop into deeper water and fish there, good location. You can use your T-rigged soft plastics and by adding a glass bead, the pegging the bead about 14" above the hook, you can keep the soft plastic off the bottom a few inches. By using this type of rig you can use a heavier weight to make longer cast to cover more water...works good from the bank. Tom

Contact Dobyn's direct, they often have year end close out sales. Tom

If you are concerned about matching the hatch in a smaller lake, take a look at Rat surface swimmers. A rat is good everywhere! CL8 rats and voles are popular and swim good. CL8 hard bluegill or crappie is another option to look at. Tom

Since you have not shared the region you are located, trying to help you will be difficult. Cold fronts are cold air mass coming from marine, continental or polar zones and the polar zone cold front air mass tends to affect shallower bass more than other cold fronts. Cold fronts that follow low pressure zones are different then a polar cold front, but have a similar affect on bass behavior. A low pressure weather system with clouds usually turns on a bass bite, the post cold front that follows turning off the bite. Tom PS, your chances of catching bass at home are zero! Go fishing.

Age, prey types and bass species all play a roll in how bass teeth develope. Genetics may be a factor, the largemouth bass from lake Guerrero, Mexico, have longer teeth then any other bass that I have caught. Bass feeding on softer prey like bait fish tend to have sharper teeth then the bass feeding on harder prey like crawdads. You can usually tell by the redness in the basses mouth are eating a lot of crawdads, plus feeling the hard lumps in the stomach and crawdad parts in the live well area good indicators. Bass between 2 1/2 to 3 lbs could be a younger female or an older male bass, so size alone doesn't indicate age. Tom

MT = Mister Twisted, how did I miss that! The problem that a twin curl tail grub can cuase an safety pin type spinnerbait bait is the trailer can cuase the roll over. Single tails act as a rudder and help keep the lure run upright. My recommendation is larger blades if the bait fish are bigger size. Tom

You should add Lake Pleasant to you local lakes list. Both Bomber 7A and Norman DD14 in shad colors work well where you plan to fish. Bomber and Norman and a good value, good hooks and work well out of the box. Tom

Since I have no idea what type of trailer a MT is?? If it''s a standard spinnerbait split tail pencil type trailer going longer doesn't change the overall bulk or profile, just makes it longer. Easy to cut off the longer trailer until the bass react: start with 6" and cut off a 1/2" at a time. I usually use 4" GY single tail (curl tail) grubs on spinnerbaits year around and change blade sizes and types to change the profile, speed, depth etc. Tom

Active bass curious about what they see taking a close look at what the strange creature was; your lure! If they didn't strike something wasn't right to the bass. The bass reacted to your lure, you need to make a change, often it's a different type of lure like a spinnerbait verses a crankbait or a change in color or cadence or depth range. If the bass are larger adult size, change to a swimbait! Tom

Newbie like myself is the key ?, not how to catch bass from a boat (kayak).You have been given lots of good advice IF you were a skilled angler and you are not! What type of tackle are you skilled with or plan to fish with? Where you fish with a self power boat like a kayak is limited, what type of lake are you fishing; small natural lake or reservior? Tom

We have a few lakes in SoCal that have been invaded with Quagga mussel. This has caused a lot of problems fishing different local lakes that have clean & dry regulations that differ. The Quagga came from the Black Sea to the Great Lakes, then across country to the Colorado river and continue to spread via trailered boats and migratory birds. Some lakes have a decom wash down before you luanch after passing a clean & dry inspection. Lake Casitas requires a clean & dry inspection, then a 21 day quarantine period before launching with the boat cabled to the trailer. It's best to leave the boat on Castitas if you fish there. Catch & Release live well treatment kills quagga mussel in the live well system. Quagga/zebra mussels attach to rocks, cement, steel, wood and clog up the dam's outflow systems. Tom

People's worm, oxblood w/lt red, MM II, bait ball, blue crawler, Falkstad spl, Aaron's magic w/red flake. Straight and curl tails in 4 1/2 , 6" and 7". Slip shot, drop shot and T-rig. Tom

Jig fishing shallow brush is a more vertical presentation where pitching the jig to specific targets is effective. I would have a hard time fishing just 3' to 5' of water this time of year knowing there should be bass deeper. Your jig is a good choice for brush, good luck. Tom

Outboard engine propeller running at planning speed, the pitch or distance between each slice is even a classic damage. Tom

It comes down to personal preferences like cork, split handles or one piece, fore grip or none and how the rod balances with the reel you use. What feels right to me may not be right for you. Crank bait rods come in longer rod lengths as a general rule and have slower action to properly load the rod for ease of casting, you cast a lot using crank baits. If you plan on deep divers 15'+ models that weigh 3/4 oz+, the a med/hvy to heavy rod in the 7' to 7'6" length works good. The drop shot rod could be a spinning outfit depending on line sizes you choose and ligther weight rods are a advantage feeling bites. You can use a bait casting rod for drop shot if you keep to lighter weight reels. Drop shot rods have moderate fast action, usually between 6'6" to 7'3" long. Off the shelf rods like Dobyn's, Lamiglass, St Croix offer good customer service and warranties. Tom

There is good science regarding bass biology that can help you solve the problem of catching them. Bass are cold blooded animals, live iin fresh water, breath dissolved oxygen and they are carnivors. We can debate the water temperature range, the pH and DO levels however lots of good papers on those topics. How bass use their senses of sight, smell, hearing are also well known, however the science tends to change with added knowledge. You can ignor seasonal period preferences and not take advantage of the basses biological characteristics and still catch bass. There are some good basics to be aware of, however you can fish with a cane pole and bobber with a minnow and do well, it comes down to personal choices and beliefs. Tom

Your ? Is too generic to answer. Trout fishing has more variables than bass fishing. It's like someone asking how to bass fish, the answer takes volumes of books to answer. Be more specific; lake, river or stream. Bait or lures? Spinning or fly tackle??? We know stocked rainbows and possible hold over browns ( browns re rarely stocked on a regular basis). Tom

Weighing a bass with a hook style scale doesn't harm a bass if you place the hook between the gill cover and tongue opening, stay away from the gill rakers. Scales with grippers can tear a large opening in the mouth membrane adjacent the tongue, no garrantee the gripper will not do harm. Weighing a fish in a bag or net works good, just subtract the device weight. Tom

We don't know what we don't know and we know little about how accuracy see at night. The science is changing, so keep an open mind. I believe Catt has more night time bass fishing experience than anyone else on this site, quality time on the water is priceless. If everyone is fishing black at night, then most bass will be caught on black, but that doesn't mean that black is the most effective color. Tom

Night time isn't a good time to learn how to cast, you have poor depth perception along with untrained hand/ eye coordination. Practice your casting in day light where you plan to fish at night, things change dramatically when it's dark. Get yourself a cap with a light, built in or a clip on LED with red and white lights, brightness control. The cap light is inexpensive and you have your hands free to fish. If you have a choice of lakes, pick one with good water clarity as they almost always better night fishing lakes. One of the easiest and better lures to fish at night is Texas rigged soft plastics; worms or crawls. The T-rig cast easy and doesn't hang up very often. You will learn how to detect strikes at night easier then during the day because you must feel them instead of trying to see the strikes. Tom

Take a look at the 3 other fall period ?'s posted. Tom