WRB-2.0

The term cold front can be confusing as it’s actually the back of a low pressure system; the front of colder air windy weather; ie Saturday.

Weedless spoon. Tom PS, TW has a clearance sale on Bagley weedless spoons?

This thread has a grey beard and solved over a year ago. Tom

The SLX 70 MGL has aluminum frame and brass gears and should be able to handle braid and frogs. I use it with 11# Armilo for utility presentations from top water to T-rigs. My last outing actually used it for top water frog in heavy floating debris and caught several bass, not ideal line but the reel is solid and very easy to cast in tight quarters. Tom PS, the SLX MGL is equal to the Curado MGL for $100 less, can’t believe Shimano will continue to offer it much longer.

American-Legacy-Fishing is having a Spring Sale. They offer 10% off and free shipping as a standard discount. Shimano SLX 70 MGL normally $150 would be $135 plus any sale discount. Sweet reel! Tom

Our local reservoirs are water storage and flood control lakes. It’s normal for these lakes to drop water level anywhere from 8’ to over 50’ during the fall when colder temps are occurring. The Crawdads go down with the water level and burrow into clay or mud banks. It’s important to note the level the crawdads are burrowing during the winter months as the water raises. The majority of our crawdads are dormant in the burrows until the water warms into the low 50’s and start to emerge at the depth they burrowed during the fall lower pool. This depth is your target zone for bass feeding on crawdads during pre spawn. This simple knowledge helped me catch 100’s of big bass over the decades. Knowing your bass prey habits is critical to becoming a good bass angler. Tom

Myth #1 is crayfish (crawdads) hibernate. I once thought they did because of witnessing Crawdads emerging from clay burrows when the water temps hit about 55 degrees. Myth#2 is crawdads live in rocks. Rocks like rip rap give a crawdad a good hiding area but provide little food. Crawdads are scavengers and eat both vegetation and meat. Crawdads often live in tiny creeks, golf club ponds or stated everywhere in every waterway where bass live. Myth#3 bass prefer Crawdads with pincher claws. In my experience removing a claw actually increase bass striking a live crawdad. When fishing with live Crawdads in the 60’s bass preferred Crawdads about 3” body length and no claws as long as the crawdad was lively. A dead crawdad has little appeal to bass. Where I fish in SoCal we do not have native crayfish, the only native is the Signal Crayfish found in NorCal and the Delta. We also don’t have any native bass! So both bass and Crawdads are transplants. The Southern Swamp Crayfish is a common Crawdads in SoCal waters. The high % areas in our lakes are clay to rocky transition areas and pre spawn is by far the active feeding time for bass eating Crawdads. Since Crawdads are more active in low light or night becomes a good time to fish with jigs imitating them. Tom PS; Crayfish,Crawfish or Crawdad?

Welcome to BR! We have several forums and 1 for Rods, Reels, Line and knots. Tackle Warehouse is a good resource to study reels and rods to determine prices. Daiwa, Shimano and Lew’s are all popular brands and TW indicates “Best Seller” to help decide. Tom

My favorite 8’ deep running tandom bladed spinnerbait was Nichols Pulsator with Indiana blades. Speed, blade size and type plus weight all contribute to mid depth running. Spinner baits sink if not retrieved so you cast and let it hit bottom. Most fall about 1’ per second, count down and start your retrieve keeping the rod tip down. Tom

Unsafe to use a Craw worm at night? Tom

One of the oldest jig designs is the banana head dates back into 1920’s, put eyes on it and you have today’s “swim jig”. Popular paddle tail soft plastic swimmers date back to the 1960’s, nothing new just modernized and renamed. Peace, Tom

When I was selling my tackle a few years back every lure brought back memories of bye gone days over decades of using those lures. The reason I still use my hair jigs with pork trailers is like fishing with a friend every trip. Tom

Crank the reel 3 turns fast = 6’ of line recovered then sweep the rod back firmly. This eliminates line bow for all types of line including braid. Tom

Shorten the trailer and change colors. Tom

Before a jig had a nose hook eye it was called a bullet head, then a grass jig, that became swim jig. Hook with a lead head or a tungsten head is still a bass jig. How it’s retrieved defines what it is. Tom

What’s a swim jig? You can “swim” any jig in any water temps. I call it Horizontal Jigging. 55 degrees is early to mid pre spawn.

Peacock bass are very strong fish, stronger then Striper for example and they jump. Lures like 6” to 8” Wood Choppers require strong reels like a Tranx, not light weights. You will be standing to cast and I suggest you practice by casting standing up. Keep your elbow down to your side and double hand cast using your wrist near your ear and other hand on the rod butt as it moves forward. When the rod loads up on the back swing pull towards your elbow as it moves forward. Don’t try a baseball bat swim, it isn’t necessary plus tiring casting motion. Practice with a big lure until the motion becomes natural. Have a great trip, get all the needed shots well in advance. Tom

Excellent dog walking lure and one of my favorites but not a pencil pooper.? Tom

Tri Cities area? IMO trout swimbaits are thinner profile and easier for bass to engulf. Bluegill shape are short and wide full of dorsal spines and difficult for bass to engulf and tend to strike to kill. Crappies are in between and better strike to hook ratio then bluegills. With all that said crawdads are the top prey so jigs with craw trailer are the ticket. Tom

Castiac is a tough lake for bass over 6 lbs the past 10 years. The Lagoon is very small and electric only but still produces a few DD’s (for Butch Brown who nearly lives on the Lagoon). Casitas produces larger size LMB on average and a few DD’s each year, get lower fishing pressure do to quagga restrictions. We have nothing to compete with Clear Lake or the Delta. Tom

#1. custom hair jig w/pork trailer. #2. 8” & 68 Hudd Trout Swimbait. Today I only use #1. Tom

Search with sonar catch bass with lures appropriate to where the bass are located. Tom

If you are worried about bending a medium wire premium jig hook on a bass it doesn’t happen! Bent hooks happen occasionally trying to force a snagged jig or when removing any hook improperly by pounding on it or hanking it out. I use 5/0 Gamakatsu #114 jig hooks with .047D forged wire considered a lighter wire hook and never bent it open on a fish. Tom

Your local Tracker dealer should have a spare tire. Look at the mfr date as age not wear is the issue with trailer tires. Over 8 should replace. Tom

I believe the concern is damaging the Gill raker, the hook has already done damage and removing without causing more injury is better then snipping off the hook imo. Tom