Leaderboard

It cracks me up that you find the time to reply to this thread with "USE THE SEARCHBAR!" yet it would have taken you less time to list your favorite frog and move on. Live Target frogs would be my choice.

Just the wife and I. We eat out more than we should. Groceries run us about $100 a week. But with 2 large breed dogs that both eat the 30lb bag of food every 3 weeks. Their food is another $125 a month. Jeff

Drive 5000 miles, towing a boat. 3 hours of sleep, practice day, tournament meeting, media day, more practice, very little sleep.... I bet you there's some amphetamines kicking around. Iaconelli also recounts many nights drinking heavily, and he wasn't alone. You can't tell me fishing with a hangover is an advantage. I bet there's a little helper going on there. I'm not accusing all pros, or any specific ones. Just saying it's not as unlikely as you think. I think airborne angler brought up an interesting point.

For me, the only time they don't catch fish, is if there are no fish.

I thought PETA was just a bunch of freaks until I met a PETA person that actually wasn't a nut case. This person was against people being cruel to animals but also seemed to understand the recreational angler and hunter. I think any group is unfortunately defined by the vocal folks that get the most attention. I don't feel fishing is cruel but I do know that there are anglers out there that are less than ethical and couldn't care less about the sport and the true spirit of the pursuit. Most folks I want to hunt and fish with revere the animals we are pursuing. This is a spiritual thing to me. We eat what we kill. We handle the fish with care. We hone our craft so we don't gut hook fish. We pick up after ourselves and make sure we leave nature better than we found it etc. etc. My point here is no matter which group you belong to here, there are some crazy idiots in your camp. I'm not sure we should judge all PETA folks the same just like I hope they don't judge all anglers by the stupidity of a few.

I think you need to go on active duty back to Afghanistan where you will be safe.

I loved the show. I watched it more as entertainment rather than as a fishing show. With a show like Top Shot, its easy to come up with interesting challenges. With Top Hooker, the challenges were corny and silly but its always fun to watch a competition like that. Not because I'm biased but I think Chris was the best overall angler even though he didnt win. That shark changed the whole ball game.

Looks like a good list going so far, I would add the 6th Sense Crush 300DD

Fished Gerrards tourny outta the north end sat. came in second with 22-02. Only got to fish till about noon when lightning chased us off the water. Fishing was pretty tough we were just lucky enough to find a few good fish, had one 6.43 and 2 more around 5 a piece. Second tourny I have fished with a buddy of mine where we had some good fish and had to come in outta the storms early, hate summer fishing.

That's quite a list of calamities right there. Perhaps viewing it as "experience gained" will help you through it. My Dad always insisted that assuming responsibility for and then learning from "Bad Luck", helps reduce the majority of it. A-Jay

Welcome. I'd probably look at combos from Bass Pro Shop catalogs. They have a variety of prices to choose from. I still have the first spinning rod I ever bought from there, that was a long time ago. Good luck.

For spinning there's the Berkeley Rod Shock 7' medium for around $36 and a Shimano Sellus 7"1 medium $39 at walmart online. Both are very good for under $40. For reels the Pflueger President can be had for $50-60 depending on reel size and dealer. You can also look on ebay for cheaper prices from a reputable dealer.

Welcome to Bass Resource!

If I don't have one on the back of a Jig, I have it rigged on a 4.0 1/4oz Stroker hook Raged Rigged. The only two ways I fish them. Prespawn I killed it on a Green Pumpkin Purple Gold!

After losing fish after fish to mono I switched to Excalibur silver thread copolymer. My days of losing fish are over. Plus the mono is very stretchy too. My next thing is to sharpen all my hooks too.

I once had an '86 Tracker. To get to the fuse panel I had to lay on my back and squirm myself under the console. Mind you, I'm six/three and tip the scales at about 225. By the time I got under the console my feet were sticking up in the air like a loose woman in a bawdy house. To make matters worse, I could work with only one hand. . It didn't take me but a couple of visits under there to convince me to assemble my own fuse panel. So I built a fuse panel I could reach without having to go inverted. About a month later I sold the boat.

Colors are the question always, some people say light colors in clear water? But if everyone's throwing that maybe the bass want a black worm instead?? The feel of a bite is something that comes with time.

A Rage Rigged Space Monkey and Anaconda work well too... except maybe in parking lots

Bro... that's one upping the Allstate Mayhem guy. Incredibly bad luck but you're still here with your boys and have incredibly bright days ahead. You'll look back at this and laugh some day. Probably just won't be tomorrow...

Can you have your son teach me how to catch a fish on a senko wacky rigged? Thanks.

Awesome job with the kids and welcome to the forums.

This will save me a thousand words.

What are you looking for help with? Bass fishing I found to be one or the most expensive and endless things out there: there are rigs, poles, reels, lines, baits, lures, scents, glasses, ect that are endless. If you are new to bass fishing my biggest tip to you is YOU DON'T NEED EVERY BAIT YOU SEE ON TV THAT CATCHES A FISH. That's how I thought It was and I spend way to much money on things that I don't use. Find what types of baits and techniques you use and become proficient at those. A lot of people say bass fishing is all about you ability to adapt to conditions which I agree with, but don't go out and spend 500 on a loomis drop shot rod to find you don't like drop shot or they don't work well in the waters you fish. Glad to see you entered the BR family and welcome. Hope to see some good replies of fish you caught.

Nice! Looks to be 4-5lbs.

Gavin enjoyed reading the responses so thanks Gents. Basser, Gavin said he is ready to go anytime you want and is ready for you to net his first muskie in .5 seconds like you used to do.

try a skirt when punching. sieberts outdoors sell the whole thing together. it's a tungsten weight/skirt/hook together. you can build these yourself with ease but you can also buy them together.

I'm good. First, I had my tetanus shot updated last fall. Second, the wound is closed, it's more than two days old now and barely even noticeable. Not sore, just nothing at all. Just barely a little scab. I guess it didn't go very deep. It went past the barb but it was sideways instead of straight down. There's no bruise or anything. Also, I've had staph infections before so I know what that's like and I NEVER want that again. At the first sign of infection I'll be at the doctor's office. But as of now, there's not even any redness. It seriously looks more like just a little scratch than anything else. The hook was just a #6 on a Bandit 200 crankbait.

i recently did the same was missing the tail and all so i made it nice again and now i cant catch anything off it lol

Wear it like a badge of honor! I've deep hooked myself several times. 3 times in the hand/finger, 2 of wich I was able to remove myself. One time in my chest, which I removed. But my best one happened pretty much the same way as yousr, except I caught it right in the nose! I went home and made a half-hearted attempt to remove the hook while standing in front of a mirror before going to the walk in. The best part was when I check in, with a 2 1/2 inch popper dangling from my nose, the girl doing my paper work asks " Soooo, you're here for the fish hook in your nose......right?" LOL. "No," i said, "thats just a fashion statment!"

Stay away from Spiderwire braid. I broke off more than a few fish using it. I switched to Power Pro and haven't lost a fish due to broken line since and I target the thickest/nastiest cover you can find with jigs and frogs. I only fish one lake that demands the use of braid and when i have a tournament there i will rig up multiple reels with it. After the tournament I can take the braid back off and put it on the original spool. Been doing this for two years without an issue. You can't however do this with mono, at least I haven't found a way to do it. Big Game mono has a pretty good reputation and is cheaper than most others.

Well you could try a 6XD or a Rapala DT20 since you're already familiar with those brands. I like the Spro LJ DD very much, it's one of my two favorite deep divers along with the 6XD. You may also want to check out Norman's DD22 and the Spro Fat Papa. The Fat Papa only dives to 14 feet but I really like it, it has a really wide thumping action.

"Survival of the fittest" refers to an organisms ability to procreate and pass its genes into the next generation. It has nothing to do with who is physically stronger, or who is on top of the food chain. "Fitness," in an evolutionary sense, refers to an organisms reproduction rate. If environmental pressures allow an organism with a unique genetic trait to reproduce more often/successfully/etc. than other members of its species, then this organism is considered to be more "fit." And because this trait gives the organism greater reproductive ability, the trait will be passed on to future generations more frequently and will become more widspread throughout the population. So what I'm trying to say is that a fish (or a bird, or a tree or an ameoba) can be just as "fit" as a human, Sorry, I had to be that guy. Oh, and PETA sucks!

Basshole, I do and have done the mods you have mentioned, except the hole with the paper clip. You actually find that the hole in the rear actually helps with drainage instead of contributing to taking on water? The hole, stays right at or below the water line depending on how you work your frog. The only time I take on water is after a good missed strike. Hole or not after a strike as violent as a bass strike and can't see that little hole draining water. Please help me clarify.

I sprayed my car down with KVD L&L. It's faster and it gets better mileage.

We have several la carretas here in east Tennessee and they are awesome too.

Try using a Shell Cracker rigged flat on a Rage Rig. It falls is a spiral. The bass just destroy it.

Yup have had the reel foot brake off of spinning reels using, no stretch lines, heavy drag setups, and stiff rod tips...... My fix was going back to mono, on proper action rods, with proper drag setups...

Went fishing this morning with my buddy to some ponds that are over 40 years old. We get there around 6am and his first cast we hear a monster attack his frog but he missed it, he said he thought it was a 12lb. Double digit fish are common in all the ponds in this golf community. At around 7:15 I cast my frog along the bank and see a huge wake come towards my frog and then nothing. I reel it in and let it sit by some pads. All of a sudden a 10# comes out of nowhere and grabs my frog I tried to set the hook but it spit it out. Now to the fish that was landed lol My buddy was using a tilapia colored trick worm on a weighted hook, and I switched to a Tsunami Swim Shad. He was walking along the bank and saw a 15# sitting by a mat. He throws his worm out and the fish crushed it he went to set the hook but the fish bit the worm off there was about 2" or worm left of the hook. So I cast my swim bait in that area and then out of nowhere two more fish show up next to the massive one. It turns around and as my shad is coming towards it the second biggest one slams it. I set the hook and the fight was on. Out of nowhere my Pflueger Presidential reel with 30# braid on a 6'9" St Croix Mojo Bass rod, breaks off!! Then the fish starts going back out towards deeper water. I grab my braid and then manage to pull the fish to land and grab it. When I took the hook out there was no way it was getting off it inhaled the swim bait. So we had to postpone our trip and go to Academy Sports and buy a new reel. I bought a Abu Garcia OrraSX30 with 30# braid. So that fish cost me $130 lol 24 inches. New Top 5: 19, 20, 20, 21, 24 = 104

I can't see you going wrong trying P-Line CXX in 12 or 15 lb. size. You aren't going to break it easily, and it work fine with the applications you mentioned.

Don't forget. In an emergency situation, you can step on the motor and use the electric trim switch on the motor to help you get back in the boat.

Mitchell has some cool stuff coming out soon. They have always offered decent reels at decent prices. I have buddies that use them. They are similar to other Pure Fishing products out there. the new stuff looks very unique, though: http://www.tackletour.com/reviewicast2013mitchell.html

Bmlum, We will be coming out with a new swept carbon fiber handle in about two weeks. It will be less bulky than our current handle. The profile shape is designed to be universal...I've measured dozens of star drag dimensions, and sized it accordingly so there will not be issues with fit. If you want, I can send you some renderings of the 3D design, so you can see if it is something you might be interested in. I think the enthusiast types are really going to like this new handle.

I'm almost 16 and in the last year I spent every pay check I could on bass fishing stuff on every part I could. I wish I could re do it. Just go slow, you can only fish 1 bait at a time you don't need 300 to catch fish. Fish the techniques and baits you have confidence in, don't buy 200$ in drop shot setups and weights if your not goin to use it.

get a good paying job...seriously fishing is tough on the wallet lol

Fish what you have man! You've got a lot of areas covered there and all of them should catch you fish. Put in the time with what you have and trust me, the fish will come.

That meal isn't actually that bad. The main reason is that we use canola oil versus anything else. Peanut and corn oils have a lot more saturated fat (50-100% more) -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canola_oil#Comparison_to_other_vegetable_oils . Unsaturated fat (especially poly unsaturated) and omega fatty acids are important for various biological functions so having them in moderation is healthy. A meal like that is good every couple days. Especially with all the omega 3 in the fish. Personally I'm on the thin side -- BMI 20. I try to eat around 2000-2500 calories per day and that meal probably was around 1000 calories in the portions I had (2 fillets and some cornbread). Some days we don't have any meat for dinner, just vegetables with some beans or lentils for protein. IMO everything god created is good; a lot of it just needs some moderation.

They get pissy because they wanted to do things their way, no matter proper procedure....I have somewhat changed my view of law enforcement since retiring , and looking at things from the outside...Cops have a tendency to get high and mighty with a badge on and a gun on their side,consequently not always living up to their motto "To Protect and Serve", but , instead using their assigned power as an ego trip to some degree....Of course, not all officers, but, more than you might think.

If you do use the Devcon, make sure it has some type of UV inhibitor, if you do not, your lures will turn colors after just a while on the deck. Also I have seen some heat the epoxy with a propane torch after applying it, this gets the air bubbles out, just a quick touch with the torch though, it will make a disaster of your job if not done correctly. I personally use a two part automotive clear coat, this can be applied by pouring it on, and letting the lure spin in a rotisserie, I currently spin over 80 lures at a time doing this, and when you finish the first clear, go back and clear once more and your done. I have lures all over the world and had only compliments on how much the clear holds up and how good things look after years of use. Not sure if this is for everyone, but that is my thoughts on that.. Kenneth..

They work great as a trailer on a spinner bait or on a scrounger jig.

I was fishing in the spill way at Rodman Dam a two or three years ago fishing for Strippers when they come up there and slay the big shad. I stuck something that was BIG and powerful it felt like a 35-40# stripper and the current at the spill way is really fast and strong so I was in the fight about 25 minutes and this thing just didnt stop it make 40-50 yard runs with (Daiwa pluton and 50# braid) and ide slowly bring it back and then bam run again... after about 45-50 minutes I landed it and it was a 8X10 foot piece of window screen... You couldnt believe how it was fighting I mean it fought just like a large stripper pulling line off on big unstoppable runs and then at times diving... That current rolling pulling it down deeper and deeper and then it grabbing the running current when I would get it up some and then back to diving it was unreal how much it felt like a fish... when it would shake and turn in the current it felt like head shaking.. I had about 10 boats and every one on the dam watching me and cheering me on lol as they thought I had a huge stripper just like I did it was something I will never forget and a few of my bass tourney buddies was out there sticking some strippers during the run and they still to this day rib me anytime we have a tourney at rodman about it.