WRB-2.0

Sunline Diefer Armilo 11# SLX 70 MGL.

I love to fish catching is a bonus. Tom

Don’t feel bad any time someone tries to cast my tuned reels the usually backlash it. My goal is making long cast and free running smooth reel makes easy once you train your thumb. Tom I start a new Shimano reels with 3 on 3 off brakes until I get use to it. Tom

Dobyns Kaden KD713C, full cork handle, MHF, 7’1” 1/4-3/4 oz lures. In your price point and ideal for your presentation. Dobyns Customer Service is outstanding and often has special sales. Tom

Dan tuned your reel now you need to tune your thumb?

A front is a change is the barometer pressure, lower pressure allows clouds to fill in the void, cold front is the front of higher pressure pushing out the low pressure and clouds creating windy clear skies. Bass feel pressure change with their air bladder and simply move up or down in the water depth to compensate. Water temperature and light changes impact their activity level more then slight pressure changes. Storms often have cold rain fall that lower the water temps directly impacting bass activity if they are shallow enough for the surface water to affect them. Tom

Suffix Advance 14 test is .015D, Big Game 15# is .015D, Sunline Armilo Nylon 22# test is .015D. Strength is yield strength Nylon or Mono line yield strength is about 1/3rd the tensile strength or 5 pounds force to stretch 15# mono. 22# test takes 7 pounds force to stretch it. Can’t have higher yield strength with more stretch. Tom PS, what you all feel as stretch is the bow in the line underwater being pulled straight.

Several replies now, do you know what a front is? Tom

Forget the label # test and look at the line diameter, TW is a good resource for diameters. dragging jigs you want smaller diameter line for less coefficient of line drag going through the water, less bow. Sunline Defier Armilo .015 Dia is 22# test, 15# test is .0126 Dia. Tom

Our lakes often get on a specific lure and depth pattern, if you don’t figure that out it’s pick single fish day if you are lucky. Tom

When I wrote my Cosmic Clock Bass Calendar for a local seminar in 1974 none of the information came from books, magazines etc., it was my personal observations over a decade of of bass fishing. Seasonal periods were unknown then until Al Linder publish his In-Fisherman Study Reports prior to the magazine. My method was using analog Dark Ind temperature probe w/ 50’ of wire with markers in 5’ increments. I caught bass and put the probe into the throat to determine the body temp, release the fish and lower the probe until it read the same temp as the bass body. Using flasher sonar I could determine the depth bass preferred at that water temp. It became obvious that water temperature controlled bass behavior because the bass are cold blooded preferring warmer water. Black bass migrated from deeper water in the winter cold water period to warmer shallower water to spawn. Spawn cycle was the visual seasonal period that everyone could see and agree with. Staging was known by the days top bass anglers. It became obvious to me that the spawn cycle was in stages, not 1 migration depending on water temperatures. The 1st stage I call pre or before spawn, the 2nd stage was the bedding egg laying spawn period, the 3 rd stage was after or post spawn. The spawn cycle didn’t start with photo periods as everyone though but water temperature trigger the spawn. The summer period occurs when the spawn cycles are over and lasts until the water starts to cool around 68 degrees, then another migration starts as the Fall period. Fall ends as the. Water temps drop below 55 depress the start of the winter period. That was my calendar in 1974. I am now revisiting the Cosmic Clock Calendar to update it nearly 50 years later. To say today’s bass anglers don’t benefit or need history from pioneers like Buck Perry or trophy bass anglers like Bill Murphy or my Cosmic Clock is a very narrow view if you only see through the looking glass of LiveScope-FFS. Tom

Not a kayak user but see a lot of them being launched using C-Tug Blaza carts on our concrete ramps and looks effortless. Tom

St. Lawrence River The Smallmouth dominate do to the current. If you targeted Largemouth bass they would be located in and around weed beds and your odds go down catching a bass over 5 lbs because fewer LMB that size. I would use the same tactics as the lakes. Tom

3/8 to 1 1/4 and 1/4 to 1 oz makes up the vast majority of JWR Medium and Heavy power fast or extra fast bass rods today. Price point is a given when you prefer Loomis NRX Rods $550 to $600 dollars. Football jigs are fished by casting (Horizontal Jigging) and retrieving the jig along the bottom. If you believe NRX rods improve your ability to cast and detect strikes and willing to pay the price go for it. You asked what rod is better that we have experience with? My answer is a custom build by ALX, the rods I use that weigh 3.8 oz and rated 3/8 to 1 1/4 oz built in 2012 or 10 years ago. I sold 2 of my 3 ALX my rods last year. So...are your jigs weights accurate? My point was selecting a separate 4 power or 5 power jig rod for 1/2 oz and another for 3/4 oz is insane, never implied anyone was a imbecile. Tom

The wine country lakes in NorCal have suffered several years of major wild fire and as the photo posted above shows the debris is massive. The ash in the water is very acidic along with fire retardants that settle down on the lake bottom, not a healthy condition for the ecosystem. Unfortunately this is how our reservoirs age and silt in. Tom

When you read the late Bill Murphy’s book In Pursuit of Giant Bass he states every time you think you know all about bass the green fish prove you don’t. Murphy was working on what he called the last frontier suspended big bass off shore. Bill learned from Mike Lembeck’s tracking studies groups of big bass located in mid lake suspended over very deep structure. These big bass came to join the group while others left the group. Bill made a deep running swim bait using a CD18 Rapala fitted with a rainbow trout soft plastics tail rear section. Bill used this lure trolled on wire line through the big bass group and caught his 75 lb 5 bass limit at San Vicente lake. Murphy didn’t disclose this in his book and may have decided not to share what he learned. Today Live Scope FFS is opening Bill’s frontier. Tom

The OP clearly wants a NRX rod for 1/2 to 3/4 oz jigs retrieved with bottom contact. Several rods in the $350 or lower price point have been offered. The conversation centers around jig weight vs rod power 4 or 5, with the debate between 1/2 oz and 3/4 oz jigs. Any JWR rated Between 3/8 to 1 1/4 oz lures can perform perfectly using 1 rod. Splitting hairs statement is all the conversation about needing to different rods, a 1/2 jig rod and 3/4 oz jig rod. I use the same rod length, power and action for both very successfully. Each to his own, this my opinion and the OP’s choice. Tom

Any of you actually weigh a jig? The package could be marked 1/2 oz and the jig actually weighs 3/4 before adding a trailer. The 3/4 oz jig package is marked 3/4 oz and actually weighs 5/8 oz without a trailer. Some jig makers use the amount of lead the head weighs less hook and skirt. Other makers weight the jig with hook less skirt and others the packaged jig weight with both hook and skirt. Splitting hairs selecting rods by advertised lure weight rating is insane. What matters is how well the rod cast the jig and that varies more with action then power because no standard applies to power, some consensus. With fast and extra fast action. This thread is more about price point then performance imo. Tom

Berkley Power Bait 8” Lizard. Tom

Lake Champlain or St. Claire are both good Smallmouth and Largemouth fisheries. Percentage for bass over 5 lbs goes to Smallmouth with Largemouth a close second. The 2 bass species prefer different areas is both lakes so it comes down to your skill set. Structure angler Smallmouth, cover angler Largemouth. If it was a bet not a tournament I would troll structure areas for a big Smallie to cover as much water as possible to locate big brown bass. Fish weed beds with frogs, buzzers with a toad as Chatterbaits with small swimbait trailer for big Largemouth. Target Smallies on sunny days and LMB on cloudy days. LMB hands down where I fish. Tom

10” black-blue flake Power worm or same color 8” lizard at night with 3/16 oz bullet weight. The lizard during pre spawn and spawn periods during day time. Tom

Rivers that have both LMB and Smallmouth bass the species inhabit different locations. Smallmouth like current, LMB don’t. When targeting LMB locate current breaks that create slack water like wing dams, big lay downs and eddies pockets. Smallmouth current breaks in the current zone like boulders, deep pockets, lay downs and wing dam ends. Your Senko and a variety of soft plastics works for both bass species just need to find a rig that presents the lure in front of the bass at the right depth. Jigs and jig & worm are another good choice. Surface lures like buzzers, smaller spinner baits all work. Tom

?????? Woke up this morning that’s a good start! Tom

Check ALF

A guide I know recently started using Edge Black widow drop shot rod and claims it’s the most sensitive rod he has used. Changing his Loomis NRX’s to Edge Black widows. He says the carbon handle takes a few hours to get use to, once you feel strikes it’s a game changer plus about 1 ounce lighter then NRX rods. Tom