Went to Wal Mart after work this afternoon. We got off early today being our Employee Appreciation Day. Last night I lost my only chatter bait(black and blue), so I replaced it today, also got me a white one and a bag of  Arkie black and blue crawfish jig trailers. A 5 pack bag was only $1.22 so I figured I'd see how they do. Ha! I'm a poet and I didn't know it...lol! ?

On 8/31/2017 at 4:09 PM, nocluefisher said:

Scored a daiwa tatula xt 7' medium baitcaster for $25 and a falcon low rider 6' 10" ml shaky head spinning rod for $42 today.

I'd love to know where you found the Tatula XT, especially for that price!

Long awaited, can't wait to hit this one honey hole where the bluegill are big and abundant and the bass feed on them heavily!

 

i have a problem.....  the first step is admitting it right?

 

snagged a barely used 3:16 baby wake in ayu, pretty stoked to try this one out!

 

Just ordered a NRX 852 spinning rod.

 

Also got a Tatula 6:3 to use a workhorse reel/beater.

1 hour ago, kickerfish1 said:

Just ordered a NRX 852 spinning rod.

Exceptional all around spinning rod you're going to love. Mine gets more wacky rigging duty than anything but it does everything you'd need a spinning rod for very well.

14 hours ago, Jelvas said:

Just found a "to good to pass" deal on a Curado 71HG today...  60€ off + 1 free spool of Sufix Siege:

 

Could not resist it...  it had to come home with me.

Congrats on the reel! I hope that you will like it. I have to say though....23% tax? Holy Canoli!! I thought ours was high at 15%.

4 hours ago, Mumbly said:

Congrats on the reel! I hope that you will like it. I have to say though....23% tax? Holy Canoli!! I thought ours was high at 15%.

I guess I won't complain about 7%! Good grief!

9 hours ago, kickerfish1 said:

Just ordered a NRX 852 spinning rod.

 

Also got a Tatula 6:3 to use a workhorse reel/beater.

 

That rod is 500 bucks! Hope it makes yer coffee for you, too lol

22 hours ago, buzzed bait said:

i have a problem.....  the first step is admitting it right?

 

snagged a barely used 3:16 baby wake in ayu, pretty stoked to try this one out!

 

 

 

That's awesome. Can't find them anywhere anymore, except eBay.

1 hour ago, 12poundbass said:

I love my HUK gear! 

Have you tried their sweat shirt? It's so warm and comfy.

Me Too ~ 

I don't have the sweat skirt but to wear the heck out of the hoodie & waaaay too many raglan, kryptek, trophy & ico long and short sleeve t's . . .

A-JAy

11 hours ago, Mumbly said:

Congrats on the reel! I hope that you will like it. I have to say though....23% tax? Holy Canoli!! I thought ours was high at 15%.

Yep....  that´s the kind of stuff we have to deal with! Unfortunaly, and i can´t imagine why, buying fishing equipment is not considered a medical expense, because if it was it would be only 6%... and now tell me... is there anything better for your mental health than going fishing?

On 9/5/2017 at 9:49 PM, hawgwash said:

Finally going to try my hand at fishing a Senko. Read a really good blog article on how to do this and so I chose my color (black w/blue flake), hooks (Gamakatsu offset 3/0) and got my polarized shades

 

 

Going to practice at this spot where the bass have been really difficult (won't bite on cranks, spinners, etc.). Hopefully I bust them with these babies.

Went down to the bridge this morning to practice again with the senkos. It was raining but the bridge makes excellent cover. Plus there's a lot of nice size rocks along the bank. First cast I was working the bait in and suddenly it felt like I snagged a rock, then the rock moved. I pulled up to set the hook and the rock headed out to the river. I could feel the weight of the fish, it was definitely a big one, probably would have been my PB, but then my line went slack. When I reeled it in all I had was the hook!  Sucker ate my senko!

 

Stayed under the bridge while it was raining for another couple hours and in that time I had the chance to catch five more really nice fish, but each time I pulled back to set the hook it came right out of their mouths. One bass even broke the surface, shook his head and the senko went flying. Exciting stuff.

 

What I'm learning is that senko fishing is really all about patience and watching your line movement. For all five of these fish that I had on this morning I only was able to detect the last one - watched the line till it hit the bottom then it started jerking a little and moving. The other fish I didn't even know I had on until I went to twitch the bait and felt resistance.

 

I will say this, the senko definitely lives up to it's reputation. This same spot is where I've been fishing the last few days (using cranks, spinners, etc.) and producing nothing, not even strikes.

 

Would be nice to find out how to hook set these fish. If anyone knows any tips/suggestions I'm all ears.

20 hours ago, hawgwash said:

Would be nice to find out how to hook set these fish. If anyone knows any tips/suggestions I'm all ears.

 

My experiences with Senkos have been the same as yours where it almost feels like a snag at first.  What I have learned is that if you think it is a snag and you "test" it instead of setting the hook, you are much more likely to lose the fish.

 

I read an article and watched a video both reiterating the point that about 75% of your bites on a weightless senko will occur during the initial fall or when it first makes contact with the ground after the initial fall. Since then I don't work it all the way back to the boat anymore.  I'll cast, let it fall to the bottom on slack line, then twitch it once or twice, let it fall again, then reel in and repeat.

 

A lot of times I never even feel the bite due to the slack line and just how subtle those bites seem to be.  Seems like they just suck it in most of the time.  I detect bites by watching the line for any movement, or more often than not, just a subtle ripple the generates off the line when the bait is sucked in.  I have noticed a majority of the time they don't take it and run with it, they eat it and stay put.  For that reason, I am ready to set the hook anytime I feel resistance on the first twitch just in case I missed anything in watching the line.  I will say, when I set the hook in these instances it has been a fish MANY more times than it has been a snag.  You'd be surprised how often there is something at the end of the line that you were not able to detect by feel or line watching.

 

You can PM me if you have any questions (try to keep this from becoming an extension of the Senko FAQ thread)

Just caught this monster this evening on the Senko (black w/blue flake).....

 

On 9/7/2017 at 0:20 PM, hawgwash said:

Went down to the bridge this morning to practice again with the senkos. It was raining but the bridge makes excellent cover. Plus there's a lot of nice size rocks along the bank. First cast I was working the bait in and suddenly it felt like I snagged a rock, then the rock moved. I pulled up to set the hook and the rock headed out to the river. I could feel the weight of the fish, it was definitely a big one, probably would have been my PB, but then my line went slack. When I reeled it in all I had was the hook!  Sucker ate my senko!

 

Stayed under the bridge while it was raining for another couple hours and in that time I had the chance to catch five more really nice fish, but each time I pulled back to set the hook it came right out of their mouths. One bass even broke the surface, shook his head and the senko went flying. Exciting stuff.

 

What I'm learning is that senko fishing is really all about patience and watching your line movement. For all five of these fish that I had on this morning I only was able to detect the last one - watched the line till it hit the bottom then it started jerking a little and moving. The other fish I didn't even know I had on until I went to twitch the bait and felt resistance.

 

I will say this, the senko definitely lives up to it's reputation. This same spot is where I've been fishing the last few days (using cranks, spinners, etc.) and producing nothing, not even strikes.

 

Would be nice to find out how to hook set these fish. If anyone knows any tips/suggestions I'm all ears.

 

 

I cast mine with hi-VI's yellow Power Pro braid. 

 

 

Once it hits I let it sit and see if the line moves at all. Many times you'll start seeing the line move away and know you have one. 

 

 

If I dont see the line move I'll give it a jerk and start reeling it in. A lot of times there is a fish on there. They hook themselves. 

on the word of a fellow member i ran to canadian tire tonight and picked up a daiwa revros combo 6'6" ml with a 2500 size revros reel total cost of this purchase was $39.93 i bought it for my gf so i spooled her up with 8lb big game for now

3 hours ago, hawgwash said:

Just caught this monster this evening on the Senko (blue w/black flake).....

 

Ugliest, most deformed bass I've ever seen.  Must be a nuclear power plant near where you caught that one. 

7 minutes ago, Gundog said:

Ugliest, most deformed bass I've ever seen.  Must be a nuclear power plant near where you caught that one. 

Looks like it's a catfish or at least it has those whiskerlike things that catfish have. I agree it looks radioactive for sure...lmbo! ?

15 hours ago, tcbass said:

 

 

I cast mine with hi-VI's yellow Power Pro braid. 

 

 

Once it hits I let it sit and see if the line moves at all. Many times you'll start seeing the line move away and know you have one. 

 

 

If I dont see the line move I'll give it a jerk and start reeling it in. A lot of times there is a fish on there. They hook themselves. 

 

I will say this...catching that cat sure made me a believer in Power Pro. I have PP 10lb on my setup and that rod tip was bent all the way over (it was even with the reel half the time) during the fight. I was also impressed that the fluorocarbon leader I tied on held up, too. I've never used a leader and I had to watch a video to learn how to tie it to the braid (I used the Alberto knot).

 

I've read that the PP yellow can fray a lot. Have you had any issues with that?

Checked out a newish place off a rural Missouri highway I'd passed several times now. I couldn't believe how much good stuff they had, I'll be back 

Getting low on sprayed grass sweet beavers. So went to Wally World a little while ago to get some. Well either they were out or don't have em at this one in Pineville so I picked up a few other things. Got some Berkley Havoc 4" Craw Fatties Bobby Lane design watermelon candy color. Was the closest thing I could find in color to the sweet beavers. Grabbed a bag of Zoom Salty Super Flukes in bait fish color and a 3/8oz Booyah pearl white/snow white shad buzzbait. Gonna try them out here in a little bit.

15% off from dsg and found that 110 in person finally

Found a good deal on one of my favorite topwater baits in one of my favorite colors, added tubes for free shipping. Apparently USPS delivers on Sundays...

On 8/30/2017 at 8:30 AM, SummertimeCarl said:

Not a huge purchase, but I finally ordered some "custom" soft plastics I always see on Instagram with fancy pictures, etc.  First impression is they're a little smaller/thinner than I would usually buy.  They smell way different than any other soft plastic I've used too, (which could be a good thing I guess).  Seem to be pretty "floppy" so I'm hoping they have good action.  

 

We'll see how they work out this weekend.

Update:  Tried them out this weekend and was honestly not super impressed with the swimbait/chatterbait trailers.  I guess I'm just used to paddle-tail styled baits but these didn't have quite the action I was expecting.  The brush hogs however looked good in the water and have a really unique smell to them.  No fish on them, though, yet.