WRB-2.0

Bass when the water temps drop below 40 degrees it’s time to hang it up. Fishing in general when the line freezes to the guides it’s time to go home. Those who drill holes in the ice to fish, enjoy your toddies. Tom

Try spraying with WD-40 and wiping then off. Tom

You shouldn’t have white corrosion products on lead. If you do it’s carbonate in the lead and vinegar water solution should neutralize it. Be careful as lead oxides can be harmful. Tom

BFS will never be accepted by power bass anglers. To me it’s a transition away from spinning tackle bass fishing. Where I fished most of my life 3 lb bass are a good size fish and fun to catch on finesse tackle. 3 lb bass are not the average anywhere 2 lb bass are closer to average. Both 2 & 3 lb bass are over powered but the tackle the average bass anglers uses daily. The spinning tackle on the other hand 2 & 3 lb bass give the angler a good fight. These average size bass BFS is ideal for. 4 lb bass on either spinning or BFS tackle are a real battle requiring some skill to land, can’t bubba sky 4 lb with finesse tackle. I still use my Jig rod with 12 lb FC line targeting bass over 5 lbs. learned my BFS tackle can handle bigger bass in open water OK, just slow down and enjoy the fight. Tom

More likely the rotor metal is aluminum in lieu of composite but don’t try to remove the existing paint without knowing what the base material is. Suggest adding the reel make and model to determine what is what. Tom

I believe Most if not all spinning reel rotors are anodized not painted. Paint adds thickness that could be a problem. Tom

Clear is very good June before the algae bloom. Can’t imagine the east coast kayakers being competitive on Clear Lake with western anglers knowing the big lake so well. The 1st 3 events are full of Cypress trees and alligators. Tom

Lure weight is only 1 factor to consider casting lures. The lure aerodynamics are a big factor how easy they are to cast. Rapala Shad Rap shallow #5 weighs 3/16 oz (less hooks) and has a good aerodynamic shape. You can easily cast a #5 Shad Rap using Medium fast or mod fast casting rod using standard casting reels and 10# mono. Flatter light weight less aerodynamic lures that catch air and kite during the cast are a different issue. Tom

Shallow spool capacity line over .011 diameter will be less then 50 yards at full spool. 5 or 6 lb FC or mono line 0080-.0090 D works good with 60+ yards capacity. Tom

It comes down to when to hold em and when to fold em. Tom

When bass attack a small school of bait fish they try to get a mouth full, not usually 1 fish. Using A-rigs the bass I caught had more then I swimmer. The strokes are violent. Tom

A-rigs or umbrella rigs replicate a small school of small bait fish in lieu of a single bait fish. When a bait ball gets broken up small groups of bait stay together and that what the bass attack because the odds go way up the bass will be successful. The reason you want minnows with hooks located at the bottom is because the attack from below coming up. Tom

It’s BFS Bait Finesse System for a reason, you need the rod and line not just a spool. Tom

Glenn challenge you to put away your finesse spinning combo’s and try Bait Finesse System. You use the 6 lb Tatsu line and finesse lures, 7’1” light casting rod and BFS reel. What do you say, make a new video! Tom

8 year old new small lake with decaying wood that consumes dissolved oxygen that should nearly over by now. How big are the LMB and Crappie are you catching? In a smaller lake the Crappie will school wherever minnows are located. Crappie tend to stick up vertically easy to locate on sonar. The LMB bass however don’t tend to move around very much and probably stick around where the Bluegill are or near the Crappie. This isn’t a run and gun type lake, it’s more of a saturation presentation thoroughly working over areas you have confidence in. Tom

Slide off all 4 brakes and try casting to determine it’s not the brake drum. Nice Reels now 12 years use. Suggest having a pro tech like Mike at DVL clean and tune your reels. Tom

The 2019 year stands out to me because it was the last time I fished with son before he was diagnosed with terminal stage 4 renal cancer. This would also be my last fishing trips with Don Iovino. Don always got a new bass boat every year and for some reason wanted me to help him shake it out. We would fish of course but making sure all the new goodies were working before Don took out paying customers. 2019 Don was into the nail weight worm rig now called Neko rig. Don has tiny tungsten nail 1/16- 3/32 oz weights and cutting off the end of his worms to create flat nose. On this outing we were dialed into the nail weight worm rig having a good time catching lots of bass, the boat was working great good time and would be the last time. Didn’t know that then. I took my son Tommy out and showed him the Iovino nail weight worm rig and dart jigs and we had a good time catching lots of bass. This would also be my trip with my son. The Neko rig today is the hot ticket along with Hoover jig rig basically the dart jig with soft plastic minnow made famous by Dick Trask. Next trip I will add both rigs to my BFS presentations, I know Iovino will be smiling. Tom

Daiwa T Wing takes up about .300 more real estate then traditional level winds. Therefore the reel frame is wider to accommodate the T Wing. Therefore reels are not higher just wider. To narrow the T Wing frame the spool needs to be narrowed and impacts line capacity. We are talking bout the width of a wooden pencil wider, not a major factor considering Daiwa’s many improvements and casting controls. I have small hands and prefer Shimano BFS Alderman reels. Each to his own madness. Tom

Tackle Warehouse, has everything you need. Tom

Smithwick made several “Devil Horse”name top water lures. The Devil Horse known today is the pencil shape double prop lure. The fatter Devil Horse is Ma Scooter, Pa Scooter and Buck ‘n Brawl are single rear prop lures. My personal favorite is the 3” Buck ‘n Brawl wooden lure. I still use this when I get the chance because it’s similar in size to Threadfin shad. What is unique about the red prop lures is the front end has a tapered flat surface that allows these lures to pop under the surface then jump back out of the water…killer action. Rarely use the double prop Devils Horse. I use shad colors, the older wooden models with single rear prop. Fish it like surface jerk bait and run it about 3’ to 5’ before pausing. Change the hooks to Owner size 4 ST-36 or Zo wire STX-46. Adding a white feather rear treble hook works. Tom

Not trying to identify your lost lure, just a suggestion for the lures you have. Swim Whiz makes a large hollow plastic musky lure but the name is molded into it. Tom

Lots of musky lures are locally made by hand. Suggest you use a Sharpie pen or vibration engraving pen and identity the lures.ie; Mouldy’s Hawg Wobbler. Tom

2 piece ML and M casting rods, good price if you are the market for those specific rods. Tom

Congratulations kayak will broaden your casting techniques when standing, you are already an expert sitting. Tom

If you have made several casts without any strikes the odds are you spooked any active bass or the bass there are not active at that time. By leaving and letting the bass settle or return in most situations your odds go way up. Yes you can camp out and hope bass become active or move in but why waste good fishing opportunities at another spot? The risk of moving is another boat could move onto your spot. Depends on the situation. Tom