Im hoping these shake the rod out of my hand. Middle one mainly for night. Quarter on blade for size reference. Next up is getting some matching split tails from an in-state source that looks promising.

I had to drive through Richmond today. Bass pro is visible from I 95, so I had to go in. First tackle store I've found in 2 months with blade bait in stock, and now I may have missed the window but I've got some to try. Anda few other things 😉

Photo coming later, left bag in my truck in hotel parking. 

Well I got the Swimbait hooks from Omina on a good deal. Then the next day Berkley stuff went on sale. Instead of buying 2-3 of a new lure I decided to try just one. I really like the 6th sense hyperjerk, but it runs high in the water column. I really hope the finisher will have a similar action lower in the water column. The profile of the bait is much thinner though. 
 

Then tonight I saw the new Rapala swimbaits at farm and fleet so I picked up two packages of 4” baits to give them a go. 

Tackle warehouse order showed up.  I got a pile of the 1/4 and the 3/8 oz red eye shad in green gizzard, blue gizzard and shizzle.  I am a big fan of the smaller ones in shallow water and I'm just about always fishing these things in 0-2 feet so.  Here we are.  Also snagged a few more of the 3/8 oz Hammer Trap because they handle a lot like the red eye shad in terms of shallow water and rising up some on the retrieve.    Got a silent Damiki Tremor and ThunderHawk SGT (not pictured/already in the tackle bag) in bone color.

 

I got some fun topwater/Wakebait stuff to try.  Heddon Swim'n Image to go with my spit'n image.  Strike King Wake Bait, Cl8 Baits Mighty Mouse (which I predict will get destroyed), Cotton Cordell Rippling Redfin (cold water), 6th Sense Trace Floater in the Shad Burst, Suspending Quake in the Table Rock Pro and some suspend strips and Owner ST36s to round out the order with some terminal odds and ends.

 

Feeling extremely ready for the spring this year.  Can't wait for night time lows to start going up so we can really get the party rolling!

 

12 hours ago, FishTax said:

I had to drive through Richmond today. Bass pro is visible from I 95, so I had to go in. First tackle store I've found in 2 months with blade bait in stock, and now I may have missed the window but I've got some to try. Anda few other things 😉

Photo coming later, left bag in my truck in hotel parking. 

 

I use blades all year long in all depths. They represent a dying fish on the bottom. Fish die all year long. There is no reason to limit yourself to a few months. 

Last 2 boxes arrived from Tackle Warehouse & Bass Pro, should be good through at least this season. 

 

 

 

 

I went by Bass Pro yesterday to pick up a new fishing license for 2024.  While I was there I bought a Chatterbait in fire craw.  Now I need to start looking at trailers.

2 hours ago, Bankbeater said:

I went by Bass Pro yesterday to pick up a new fishing license for 2024.  While I was there I bought a Chatterbait in fire craw.  Now I need to start looking at trailers.

Nice  ~

How about Fire Craw ~

Watrmln Copper Org Red Laminate

or

Spring Craw ?

A-Jay

This is going to be a fun bait. Now to get a 10/0 beast shake head?

12 hours ago, JediAmoeba said:

This is going to be a fun bait. Now to get a 10/0 beast shake head?

I grabbed a couple packs of those last year at the show. Havnt used them yet. 

42 minutes ago, NorthernBasser said:

 

Daiwa DX Type-H Glass. 7'3 H/Mod. Again, one I had my eye on for a while as an extra bladed jig rod as well as big ploppers. I then saw @A-Jay had a handful of them. When he said they remind him of the glass rods of yesterday, I was sold. Now, it's a heavy rod (6.13 oz), which is to be expected. But I didn't think it'd be that heavy. My 7'11 XH Expride punching rod weighs 5.88 oz. But then I slapped a reel on it and thought "ok, this may work". It doesn't balance perfectly, but I didn't expect it to. It still balances well enough tho, especially considering it'll be fished tip-down.

Now I just need the ice on our lakes to skedaddle.

 

Nice ~ 

Hope you're able to offer an update on how you like that Daiwa DX Type-H Glass stick.

If it turns out not to be your cup of tea, 

let me know, I might be able to relieve you of said stick.

Good Luck

A-Jay

 

1 hour ago, NorthernBasser said:

Decided to grab a few new rods to try out. I always say, I love my higher end rods. But there's just something about finding gems in that $150ish range, especially when you can get them at 20% off.

 

Halo HFX. 7' MH/F. Been wanting to give Halo a try for a while now. The fit/finish on this rod is very nice. When I weighed it out of the tube, I was surprised how heavy it was (5.17 oz). It's very well-balanced and doesn't feel that heavy at all. 

 

Daiwa DX Type-H Glass. 7'3 H/Mod. Again, one I had my eye on for a while as an extra bladed jig rod as well as big ploppers. I then saw @A-Jay had a handful of them. When he said they remind him of the glass rods of yesterday, I was sold. Now, it's a heavy rod (6.13 oz), which is to be expected. But I didn't think it'd be that heavy. My 7'11 XH Expride punching rod weighs 5.88 oz. But then I slapped a reel on it and thought "ok, this may work". It doesn't balance perfectly, but I didn't expect it to. It still balances well enough tho, especially considering it'll be fished tip-down.

 

I went and found some open spots on the river today to test it out throwing a 3/8 oz Jackhammer. Yup, I'm a fan already. This thing loooaaads up and LAUNCHES. This won't be my most used Chatterbait rod, but it'll definitely get the call when I'm covering more open water and wanna bomb the baits out there. 

 

Ark Randall Tharp. 7'3 MH/F. I have the 7' Hammer in the previous Tharp Series and love it. I had been wanting to get a few other models to try out but never got around to it. I know @T-Billy is a big fan as well. When I saw they were bringing out a new model I thought "oh shoot, I hope they don't mess this up". They definitely didn't from what I can see. I believe the blanks and guides are the same. But they're supposed to be 10% lighter. They changed the grip and reel seat for sure. SUPER comfortable. This rod weighs only 4.13 oz. This is the same weight as my 7'1 MH/F Kistler Helium! My 7'2 MH/F Expride A's weighs 4.60 oz. 6'11 Megabass Levante Jerkbait Specials weighs 4.26 oz. 7'2 Orochi Diablo, 4.98 oz. This is pretty insane for a $140 ($112 on sale), 7'3 MH/F rod. This just feels like a much higher priced rod. Total steal, especially with that sale price. 

 

Now I just need the ice on our lakes to skedaddle.

 

I have tried to like glass-type rods for chatterbaits and just can't get used to it. I much prefer an xf graphite rod with direct feedback. 

58 minutes ago, JediAmoeba said:

I have tried to like glass-type rods for chatterbaits and just can't get used to it. I much prefer an xf graphite rod with direct feedback. 

I use both. I like graphite better is fishing around grass/cover. Overall my favorite rod has been a Kistler Feel N Reel composite rod. Kind of best of both worlds.

-dozen acrylic lure stand

-spooling station

-some hook removers

-rod holder for wall

-some bobber stopper

They are small but still working:

I recently got a couple of the largemouth Hudds

1 hour ago, ATA said:

-dozen acrylic lure stand

-spooling station

-some hook removers

-rod holder for wall

-some bobber stopper

They are small but still working:

Dang a Hinkle Trout.....rarest and most expensive bait I've seen posted.

 

What are the other two in the front row?    Awesome stuff and cool display.  

4 hours ago, gimruis said:

I like these.  Had a lot of success in recent years with them.

I’ve used them with success as spinnerbait trailers in MM Moonlight on big black spinnerbaits at night. Zoom now makes a black split tail so that will probably become my primary night trailer. Have also used them as jig trailers with success (the Menace). Planning on seeing what happens with them on a chatterbait in different colors this year. Will also see what happens with speed worms on both SB & CB as trailers.

@RipzLipz I like the shorter, stubbier profile that it presents in lakes where bluegills are the primary forage. It looks a lot like a small wounded sunfish when it goes through the water. I did really good with it in 2020 at night time (the first pandemic year).

@gimruis I like it, but I’m experimenting with vibration a bit - plus I’m fishing a completely different lake the past 18 months which produced some pushing 7lbs but most were caught during the day. Trying to adjust night presentation to see what they prefer. I may be choosing lures & combos with too much thump, if that’s even possible. I know there’s panfish in this place but they’re gorging on something else & I’m almost convinced it isn’t shad. This year I’m going to try & get that figured out or at least add more pieces to the puzzle, hopefully with assistance from a little ‘bird whose call is a distinct pinging sound. 😉😎

@JediAmoeba or @Derek1 is that the 7" Slobster? Are they still making those?

4 hours ago, RipzLipz said:

@JediAmoeba or @Derek1 is that the 7" Slobster? Are they still making those?

7” sounds about right. It’s a serious piece of plastic. 

7 hours ago, RipzLipz said:

@JediAmoeba or @Derek1 is that the 7" Slobster? Are they still making those?

They do make them but only sell them at shows I guess. They were at the NE Expo this past weekend. 

Slowly getting ready for spring

@JediAmoeba Out of reactions for the day. Thank you!

I had asked people on BR for recommendations for flat sided crank baits and got many replies and suggestions -- these are the ones I purchased (thru several companies/sales) -- I look forward to giving them a try this spring !