On 7/10/2019 at 5:42 PM, JediAmoeba said:

So this is a fun topic I have seen in a hockey forum - as long as people keep it civil.  What is a popular opinion within the fishing industry you disagree with?

 

For instance one thing I have always disagreed with is the fact manufacturers make 50 different colors of baits and people still want more...  I think this is overkill and more marketing than anything else.  If a bass was hot for your midnight blue craw with red flakes he would have eaten your midnight craw with green flakes.  The industry has made us believe we need 50 colors in our tackle bags so we buy more.  It's brilliant!  

 

So what are some things you see in the fishing community you believe are B.S.?  

 

The industry makes products to catch fisherman not so much fish.  They want you to believe a subtle change in color will make the difference.  If bass were that picky they would starve to death.  Yes you might want a darker color at night, and earth tones during the day.  The key is placement, and proximity to where their staying, not so much color or size.

10 hours ago, Glaucus said:

Here I've noticed that when bluegill are the primary food source, the bass are skinnier.

That’s an interesting insight. I know this may sound strange, but I swear it’s true. When I fish with live bream , EVERY fish I catch on one is super filled out and healthy. What’s also strange is that many of the fish I catch on artificials ARE skinny. There’s got to be something to it. Almost makes you think the super healthy ones are healthy BECAUSE they eat bream, and the ones that aren’t don’t eat bream , or don’t eat them primarily.

Sorry, I know this has gotten off topic.

My #1 is the theory that you need a different rod for every single lure in the box. Completely untrue, completely over analytical. I'm amazed how complicated some people make it. But hey, not my money! 

Several popular trains of thought that through my own personal exp. and time on the water I find to not have any merit for me are:

 

You can't crank effectively with braid....my exp. is the exact opposite, I can not crank effectively with anything but braid. BUT...I fish grass. YMMV in wood/rock/etc...

 

GYCB Senkos are superior to knock offs.....this is a half truth, if your primarily fishing them weightless , then yes, a Senko is the better choice. Add ANY weight to a Senko, and it becomes an expensive, less durable, and no more effective option than any number of other brands of stick baits. And often the salt laden GYCB plastic is the wrong choice in a few applications.

 

You need to snell big straight shank hooks for flipping...I never snell, it is a PITA....and I use big EWG's more times than not when flipping and punching. My hook up rate is fine.

That all brands other than Shimano or Diawa are garbage.

Sometimes you want the line to stretch.  That's a job for mono.

 

I've never been convinced that you should only use dark lures in murky water.  I've never been convinced that fish care about color as much as fishermen do.

 

I am also skeptical that expensive lures are better than their inexpensive counterparts.  

13 minutes ago, billmac said:

Sometimes you want the line to stretch.  That's a job for mono.

 

I've never been convinced that you should only use dark lures in murky water.  I've never been convinced that fish care about color as much as fishermen do.

 

I am also skeptical that expensive lures are better than their inexpensive counterparts.  

If you read or watch fishing videos enough, you'll eventually hear the same fishermen say they like dark colors AND they like chartreuse or firetiger for the same muddy water. In late winter here, when the water has a permanent muddy stain to it, my best spinnerbait color is still gold with gold blades. Fish don't change what they eat to only include dark prey, so their usual forage colors should work. 

That if you fish braid around metal docks and rocks it will be cut like a hot knife through butter. 

17 minutes ago, Bassin' Brad said:

That if you fish braid around metal docks and rocks it will be cut like a hot knife through butter. 

Yeah, meanwhile I almost have to get out the pole saw in the shop to cut the stuff..lol

35 minutes ago, Bassin' Brad said:

That if you fish braid around metal docks and rocks it will be cut like a hot knife through butter. 

If something has happened to a few people, it circulates as regurgitated facts that will happen every time. Also, if someone high profile says something, it also circulates as regurgitated facts. The truth is, things can happen, but it doesn't mean they will; and the truth is, high profile people, namely pros, fish for big money and can't afford anything to go wrong. They have to stack the deck in their favor in all things. This usually means little to nothing for the rest of us, but most of us can't comprehend this.

On 7/13/2019 at 11:38 AM, geo g said:

The industry makes products to catch fisherman not so much fish.  They want you to believe a subtle change in color will make the difference.  If bass were that picky they would starve to death.  Yes you might want a darker color at night, and earth tones during the day.  The key is placement, and proximity to where their staying, not so much color or size.

 

I love this one. If I should have been using green pumpkin with red, instead of watermelon with red, then why the heck do fish eat a #3 Mepps with yellow braid tied right to it? I love some of these guys on youtube that have 8 3700 boxes of the same exact plastic in all 26 colors it comes in. What a joke. 

 

The only plastics I use are black/blues, green/browns, and pearls. I don't catch any more fish with any other colors, but I certainly catch fewer. This applies to lakes, ponds, clear streams, and murky rivers. It just works. 

2 hours ago, Bassin' Brad said:

That if you fish braid around metal docks and rocks it will be cut like a hot knife through butter. 

Not all rocks are equal.  

1 hour ago, Scuba Steve said:

 

I love this one. If I should have been using green pumpkin with red, instead of watermelon with red, then why the heck do fish eat a #3 Mepps with yellow braid tied right to it? I love some of these guys on youtube that have 8 3700 boxes of the same exact plastic in all 26 colors it comes in. What a joke. 

 

The only plastics I use are black/blues, green/browns, and pearls. I don't catch any more fish with any other colors, but I certainly catch fewer. This applies to lakes, ponds, clear streams, and murky rivers. It just works. 

 

Fish just aren't that picky.  If it's in their strike zone, or just close to their hang out, and their hungry they take it.  If their that picky their going to die!

Lure color, especially for sinking or deep diving baits. If lure colour really mattered as much as manufacturers claimed, they'd make almost all deep diving crankbaits black/blue, or white. That's just how the color spectrum works. Truth is, almost everything between orange and purple on the colour spectrum looks the same in 20+ feet.

 

 

Fish are line shy, is my biggest beef.

 

Like the the split rings, plastic bills, treble hooks and acid trip color schemes, dont make them bait shy?

Y'all should fish a winter smallmouth tournament with 65 lb braid and see how well you place 

On ‎7‎/‎13‎/‎2019 at 9:56 PM, Scuba Steve said:

My #1 is the theory that you need a different rod for every single lure in the box. Completely untrue, completely over analytical. I'm amazed how complicated some people make it. But hey, not my money! 

Agreed, I got away with a trout rod and my old ugly stick for almost every style of fishing for a long time. Now I have about 16 rods in my boat one for every style, yes, I am that guy. hahah!

Some popular opinions I disagree with: 

 

1.  Crankbaits are great bass fishing lures.  Nope!  They are a low percentage lure acording to Bill Murphy's In Pursuit of Giant Bass and I have to agree with that.  And he nails it right on the head - the reason everybody thinks crankbaits are a great lure is because so many bass fishermen use them so yes, they are bound to catch some bass.  

 

2.  Monofilament is old line. Nope!  Mono is the best line you can use!  Fluro is too stiff and braid is easy to see in the water. 

 

3.  You need a baitcaster for bass fishing.  NOPE!  When I started bass fishing I used two spinning reel and I caught a lot of bass.  All my big bass all caught with the spinner reels.  I have never caught a big bass with my baitcaster.  

That using braid on treble hook baits is a bad idea because it pulls out hooks. I've never had this issue. I use a softer rod and back the drag off to fish trebles. 

 

Another one is Trokar hooks. I despise them. In my experience they do their job too well and end up cutting a large hole in the fishes mouth which allows them to jump off easier. 

That anything matters, until it does.

On 7/15/2019 at 12:17 PM, Scuba Steve said:

 

I love this one. If I should have been using green pumpkin with red, instead of watermelon with red, then why the heck do fish eat a #3 Mepps with yellow braid tied right to it? I love some of these guys on youtube that have 8 3700 boxes of the same exact plastic in all 26 colors it comes in. What a joke. 

 

The only plastics I use are black/blues, green/browns, and pearls. I don't catch any more fish with any other colors, but I certainly catch fewer. This applies to lakes, ponds, clear streams, and murky rivers. It just works. 

  Remember the TV guys get their plastics for free, we have to pay for ours with hard earned cash.  If they want to give me 28 different colors I'll take them.  Throw where they live and they will probably all catch fish.  Example I have caught on bubble gum, given to me at X-mas.

Baitcasting reels are not that difficult to disassemble lube and assemble. The  old ambassaduers I could take apart  , new reels I'm batting about a .125  .

Reaction strike!

 

They are all reaction strikes!

 

Bass sees lure, bass reacts ?

On 7/16/2019 at 10:44 AM, Armtx77 said:

Fish are line shy, is my biggest beef.

 

Like the the split rings, plastic bills, treble hooks and acid trip color schemes, dont make them bait shy?

 

I don't agree or disagree when people say this.  Who knows what a line sticking out for as far as the bass's eye can see triggers in their little brains, as opposed to the hardware that is part of the lure.  Maybe they see it as something different.  Maybe not.  We don't have to decide, yes or no, that fish are line shy or not.  As humans, we don't know how bass see these things.  We can just choose to live with uncertainty and declare that without definitive evidence we really don't know for sure. 

My wife saying that I have too many lures. I DISAGREE!