WRB-2.0

I think I have answered this same ? Several times. Ignor them and fish as if you can't see them. Pre spawn transition cruisers are usually not interested in feeding. Go fish the deeper breaks or cover a lot of shallow flat areas with Scrounger jig or chatter bait jigs. Sometimes a 1/8 oz dart jig with a 5" curl tail worm will get bit by a cruiser...sometimes! Tom

I buy painted brass bullet weights because I don't like the bright brass color! I also like black or dull colored lead bullet weight with darker shades of soft plastics. Paint my jig heads with Testers model paint black or brown for darker color skirts and plain the lighter color skirts. The question of does it matter to bass? the answers is sometimes. Like Bo I fished jigs with plain heads for decades without any issues that I know of. I feel more confident when the lead matches the trailer color somewhat. I don't use lead bullet weight very much anymore because the nose hole tends to get pounded closed from vibration when stored. I have little use for tungsten weights, unless using weights over 5/8 oz, then the smaller size tends to work better than lead of brass. Tom PS; if you are in the business of selling weights and jigs, then they must look good to the angler.

Scrounger lures have a long history, invented by John Waters back in the early 60's to fish SoCals surf fish with light tackle, the original Scrounger came rigged with a spear shaped worm. Like most lures it took a back seat after about a decade. In the late 70's a new lure was introduced called a Sluggo and for whatever reason I received the trout colored 6" Sluggo to test. The Sluggo was ugly, fat and stiff, so the package got put away in my salt water lures. Long story, the short version is I put a Sluggo on a Scrounger jig for Calico bass fishing and it worked great, except the hook was too small. I modified the original Scrounger by Jogn Waters, by cutting off the hook at the bend, straightened it out and tied a 5/0 straight shank worm hook on by wrapping with line and super gluing it. The rest is history, I caught a lot of DD LMB using the modified Scrounger, the word got out after a few years and Aaron Martins along with a few others copied the modified Scroungers. Since the original Scroungers were out of production and hard to find, a local mold shop started making a Wiggle head jig, the name Scrounger was a trade name, and the lure had another 10 year run, then died out again. Aaron Martens decided to make the Scroungers and used the name, was sued for trade name infringement by the Waters family and Aaron sold it. The original Scroungers had a shorter bill, the Wiggle head version a longer bill, both were popular and Aaron decided to offer both. I prefer the shorter bill with straight shaped trailers to create a very tight wiggle, like the original Rapala lures. Big bass seem to prefer straight trailers with tight wiggle over trailers with tails or appendages that tend to kill the wiggle action. The long bill is very good in cover as it tends to become a weed gaurd. I don't like the long molded lead collar design, it is about 1/4" too long and should be removed for better hook sets. A 4" Sluggo shaped soft plastic type straight trailer like a Fluke is ideal for the 1/4 oz Scrounger, 6" for the heavier Scroungers. I like to present Scroungers parallel to point side walls and bump the structure. Tom

This old Tom, like mom, is older and wiser.

Your local high school football field, when vacant, is a good place to determine how far you can cast. Stand on the goal line with both feet in the same position you normally stand when casting and let fly. The grass doesn't hurt the line and yard markers are accurate. No telephone lines or trees to bother you and the field is level. For all of you who believe they can cast over 50 yards, here is your chance to prove it. If you have a hula hoop, set it out where you think you can put the lure into it and practice accuracy at a distance. This way you are using the rod/reel/line/lure you normally fish with. You can also use the yard lines to measure the line and use a Sharpie to mark the line Tom

My casting jig rods are all 6'10" and my standard length cast is 90' and fishing deep clear structured lakes to a depth of 35-40 feet. Longer rods may increase your casting distance a few yards, have little to do with achieving a good hook set with the jig over 40' away. You should more concerned with the rods power (4 to 5) and casting ability. Learn to reel set followed by a firm rod sweep, when making longer casts. Tom

Organized drag racing is a good sport, street racing kills innocent people.I am not someone trying to tell anyone how they should live their life, drag race your heart out, just not at someone else's expense. Grew up racing fuel cars and boats, love speed and knew where and when to go fast. Tom

The Bait Monkey loves crankbaits, nothing is more of a fad lure! Norman DD series (deep diving) ruled the field for a decade before the flat sides became the latest and greatest. Remember this simple fact; bass can't read! The only reason the DD series isn't still catching bass is they are in the tackle box and not on the end of your line. DD-14 and DD-22 belong as a standard crankbait for every bass angler who usies deep divers. Well made and run good out of the box, good quality hooks. The basic colors; white/green fleck, fire tiger and red/black work everywhere. Tom

Mass produced rod blanks are made off shore in China, S.Korea, Mexico, Melasenia Pacific Rim countries, etc. Each year a contract is awarded to one or more of those countries to build rods and reels of various models. Expecting a mass produced rod to be similar year to year with the same make and model number is unrealistic. Quality control doesn't exist in the countries that make these mass produced rods, you are the quality control, so take it or send it back for another rod, that is how it's done today with this type of product. Tom

One persons avocation is another's vocation; one persons hobbie is another's career. There can be real harm to your vocation wasting time with avocations or hobbies, fishing included. You're first responsibility is establishing a career, very few can make their avocation a vocation and bass fishing, and other hobbies, has caused a lot of heartbreak, lost careers! Boys don't out grow their toys, just the time needed to play with them. Tom

I have not used this, however they are popular out west; Drop shot weight keeper by Reel Time Designs.Tom

I would fish a 1/4 oz Scrounger with a smaller size Fluke for a trailer at night, unless you are fishing in heavy weeds. The Scrounger collar pushes a lot of water creating sound waves for the bass to target. Another option is a Chatter jig for the same reasons. Tom

The history behind pegging the weight comes from Florida; a pegged Texas rig sliding sinker is called a Florida rig! The reason should be obvious shallow weedy water verses deep structured water. I like the glass n brass T-rig; sliding painted brass sinker, tempered faceted glass, Owner or Gamakatsu straight shank hooks. Every one of those components are essential for the way I fish a T-rig; the glass bead creates sound and subtle flash, the painted brass weight slides very easy on the line and reduces line drag for good feel of light strikes and allow separation of the weight from the soft plastic, the straight shank hook optimizes hooks sets. I also peg (Peg-It) the glass bead to create a quick finesse C-rig sometimes. I rarely peg a bullet weight and may when fishing docks or at night in brush or heavy weeds. Prefer to use a sled head jig and worm or a screw in rattling bullet weight for night fishing cover. Tom

Spinnerbait blades come 3 basic styles; Willow, Indiana and Colorado, plus a few others like Rick Clunn's modified wedge willow etc. The willow design has less water resistance, allow the spinnerbait to ride high in the water column at faster speed. The Indiana is inbetween the willow and Colorado, has more water resistance then the willow, rides lower in the water column at moderate speed. The Colorado has the most water resistance, rides deeper in the water column at slower speeds. The size of the blade also creates more or less water resistance depending on size; size 1 being small up to size 7 being very large. The larger the blade the more flash it produces. Combinations are designed to speed up or slow down the spinnerbait speed and stay at a preferred depth. The modified wedge blade allow maximum flash, depth and speed. The spinner jig head design/ weight also affects depth, so everything should be considered when selecting spinnerbait blades. How big are the bait fish, big bait big blades, smaller bait smaller blades. Your average off the shelf spinnerbait is 3/8 oz with #1 Colorado and #3 willow, runs about 3' deep at medium retrieve speed. The same spinnerbait, 3/8 oz with #2 and #3 Indiana blades , runs about 5' deep at medium retrieve speed, speed it up a little to run 3' or slow down a little to run 7'. So many options! Tom

You are missing a lot bass without drop shotting tubes. The internal tube,Bobby Garland design, jig with hook exposed (Canyon -Plastics) lets the tube fall with spiral action that works good. The large size Tora Tube with over size internal jig, forgotten today, still works great. Tom

My standard T-rig set up is with a tempered glass faceted 7mm or 8 mm bead, painted Top Brass bullet weigh 3/16 or 1/4 oz owner 5103 size 3/0 to 5/0, 8 to 14 lb FC line, 3 or 4 power 6'10" worm/ jig rod, Ardent or Daiwa reels depending on the line, weight and soft plastic combination. I fish hand poured soft plastic worm from 6" to 16" and a variety of creatures on this rig in water from 1' to 40' Next to jig a T-rig versitle for year around presentations. Tom

The transducer signal is like a flash light beam or your shower water; it's about 1" diameter at the transducer face and spreads out in a cone shape. Most fresh water transducers use a 20 degree cone angle some are wider 38 degrees. Yes your transducer signal is pointed straight down. It's true the signal diameter, like the flash light spot size, is about 1/3 as wide as the water is deep; 15 foot water depth, the signal spot on the bottom is about 5 feet in diameter. Keep in mind the cone gets smaller the closer the return signal is to the transducer. At 15 foot depth, the bottom signal is 5 feet in diameter and if the fish is 10 feet deep, the cone is only 3 feet in diameter where the fish is located...small area! Also keep mind your sonar screen only shows you a history of what you have passed over; everything displayed is behind you!* I didn't read the link offered and it may define all this more clearly. Don Iovino's book Finesse Bass Fishing and the Sonar Connection is written for bass fisherman, easy read and very informative. Tom * the far right edge of the screen is in real time.

Just read the opening post and missed the fact you are using a 4" creature until you identified the soft plastic as Rattling Crawler, soft plastic crawdad lure. Are pegging the weight? Gene Larew uses salt water plastic that is fairly tough and durable, it also can create the problem you are having. The body looks about 3/4" wide X 1/2" thick and that is a lot of plastic. A trick that helps is cut a 1" long X 1/4" deep slice (pocket) in the belly like a Fluke has, leave about 1/8" of plastic on the back to hold the hook point in place. This will help your hook sets. Pegged weight create a condition like a jig head that can wedge behind the inside lip ridge of big bass with the mouth closed and the weight prevents the hook from moving when you hook set, again a timing issue and hook set technique problem. You have 2 choices; the snap set if the strike occurs within 30 feet or the reel set if you make longer casts. The snap set you drop the rod tip a little and snap or whip set into slack line. The reel set is a combination of pointing the rod tip at the bass, reeling fast to load up the rod and making a firm rod sleep at the same motion. Both I will drive the sharp hook point through the basses hard mouth areas. The typical cross their eyes rod set applies minimum force on the hook set. Tom

I try to avoid responding to any thread that is titled "best". You will get opinions based on personal bias and my bais is no different. My experience fishing deep rocky structured lakes with jig for big bass is over 50 years. During that time period I have fished with a lot of rods including G.L. Loomis, Lamiglas, Fenwhick etc. all excellent rods. The past few years my rods are custom made by ALX rods and now Alex offers off the shelf Zolo-B series within your price range. OBC-4-85F is ideal for your foot ball jigs between 1/4 to 1 oz. Take a look online at ALX "Dream rod" review, this is a 3 power rod, the ALX site defines power verses medium heavy. Tom

You are obviously not a skilled reel technician and few of us are or we don't have replacement parts. Discount reels from the big box stores like BPS, Cableas etc do not inspect reels they sell or warrant them. If something vibrated loose or was assembled incorrectly, you are the quality control. 2 choices; return the reel or send it out for repair; DVT for example. Tom

The whole issue of rules and laws comes down to how ethical the local people are, you can't change that. If your pond or lake has been posted with a sign that clearly has a penal code where people enter the area to fish and they don't care about the rules or law, it's a public waterway. All you should do is make a call and report poaching. If that doesn't work, then find somewhere else to fish, it's not your property and not your fish. Catch & Release bass fishing has gone over the top, fish are a renewable resource and catching over populated size fish with fishing tackle will not severely harm the fishery. Your local game warden may know that some harvesting is needed and considers the bucket fisherman a balance to the catch & release everything fisherman. I have a problem with targeting big female bed bass during the spawn and that is legal. Those who care about this have had some success getting a few spawning areas posted "no fishing" in those area during the spawn, it's not a state or local rule or enforceable penal code, it's an honor system that lowers the public traffic and keeps out tournament anglers because it's posted as a closed area. Tom

The vintage L.S. MirrOLure in the 50's and 60's was a very popular bass lure, in fact 1 model was called a "Bass Master"! The jointed 5" sinking model was the go to lure for bass anglers. Take off the hooks and split rings, clean over night by soaking in a mild baking soda/ water solution, the rinse in warm tap water. Depending on the lure size replace the treble hooks with VMC size 2 or 4 and same size split rings. The 4" to 5" models work well, unless you like to troll, the larger sizes are not worth the effort up date. Bass haven't seen this lure in a few generations and should work. Tom

Mono means one or single filament; monofilament. Nylon a polymer that is extruded into a single filament line has become ther Oldschool term for mono. Copolymer is a blend of 2 more polymers or co extruded with 2 polymers; inner core polymer and outer jacket polymer, sometimes called a hybrid when Nylon has a fluorocarbon jacket. Gets confusing because fluorocarbon is simply a polymer like Nylon therefore is also a monofilament line like all the other single filament line; FC, copolymer, Nylon and hybrid. The advantage of mono line (Nylon) is the fact it has been produced for over 60 years and is a fine tuned process and very consistant, good casting, good knot strength and lower price. What some angler don't like is mono floats on top of the water, like braid does. The advantage of FC or fluorocarbon line is lower refraction of light reflection, better UV protection, wider temperature range, less coeffient of drag in water and slightly less stretch under pulling force. Abrasion resistance between mono and FC is equal, however some copolymer mono line has better abrasion resistance. Down side of FC line is knot strength compared to equal diameters of mono line. FC is water proof, does not absorb water, mono does, so FC line needs to have added lubricant to aid in casting and knot tying. Braided line has been around for over 100 years and has changed as new yarns has become available. Today's (super) braids use high strength mircdema fibers like Spectra to make very small diameter high strength fishing line. Today's braid has Teflon lubricant added to prevent the fibers from cutting through reel parts and rod line guides because the yarn is very abrasive. Super braid is very strong compared by diameter to mono or FC line. It's very small diameter is difficult to handle on some reels, so angler use braid by diameters equal to the mono or FC line the reels are designed to cast; 65 lb test braid is about equal to 15 lb mono for example. I rarely bass fish with braided line, don't need to in clear deep structured lakes. I do fish with both mono copolymer line for everything except bottom contact lures, then I use FC line because of the lower water drag allows me to feel the lure better. Tom

Late pre spawner's that are cruising can be frustrating, the key is don't try to catch fish you can see that are not holding on bed sites. The chatter bait is very good under these circumstances, cover the shallow flats and deeper brakes. Tom

Just looked at the photo, nice bass and photo!Tom