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I just want to say thanks to all you guys. Ive read and read and read and while Ive fished on and off my whole life, I never went to the pond to catch "the one". I would stop and get some worms, load up the kids and throw the bobbers in and sit and wait it out. Then run back and forth getting all the bluegills off the lines and re-worming them for the kids. Well, I don't know what happened. I caught a few bass and then started buying more lures and most importantly, I googled and found 2 things that made it happen. This site and BassResource on youtube. I have scoured these forums and watched all of the videos and I have learned a ton. From Color selection to water temps to even how to fish a certain lure. I fished this farm pond yesterday that's old and all grown up. With the owners permission, I slid my boat in and started fishing at 8 am on the nose. I caught one baby bass and 2 nice crappie but at 11 am I had thrown everything I had. The water was medium to heavy stained (as all these farm ponds are) and about 2.5 acres. Water temp was 64. Deepest part was 9 feet. So at 11 am I had been throwing a 1/2 ounce black and blue Jig. Had a few nibbles but nothing concrete. Then, I remembered somebody saying " cast your jig, let it land in the shallows then let it set there long enough for the skirt to flare out and then give it 2 small, quick pulls. As I rolled up to the North side of the pond, it had heavy cover and lots of shade. The Sun was straight up and it was hot. I made one side arm cast in low under the tree limbs. My jig landed in about 3 inches of water. I let it set for about 3 seconds and gave it one small jerk which felt light. On the second jerk, it honestly felt like it was on a tree limb but there was no downed trees in there area so I said what the hey and set the hook. Immediately, the fish went nuts. He came toward the boat and I thought "this is gonna be a good one" and then as he got to the boat, he tried to go back under the trees and that's when I felt his wrath. I have never felt anything like that in my life. He was pulling the boat towards the bank!!! So I got him to the boat and he calmed down and I noticed that he was hooked good but I still couldn't focus but it was all too fast and at the same time, I couldn't believe what was happening! By way, He started pulling the star drag and so I turned it until he couldn't pull it. Probably a rookie mistake but I didn't want him to find a downed tree underwater. He didn't pull anymore drag (remember what I said about the drag for later). So buy the time I was ready to pull him up, I swear I had about 3 rods all tangled up from his thrashing so I literally threw my baitcaster to the bottom of the boat and wrapped the line around my hand about 3 times. I finally pulled this joker and and he was freaking huge! I could put my entire fist in his mouth! I took selfies, videos, measured him etc. and then I threw him back. I wanted to make sure he was out and back in quick. I had no scale. You guys can decide. When I got home, I found an unopened bag of 5 lb. Sugar and he was heavier than that but Who cares, he was 5 times bigger then any other bass Ive ever caught in my 42 years. As for that star drag story I told you to remember? After I pulled out to the middle of the pond and got my wheels back under me, I remembered about a big fight possibly setting off a biting frenzy so I trolled right back over, untangled my rods and re casted back in the same spot. And nothing. Once more, nothing. and then BOOM! another hit, same place but HARDER! remember that star drag? It was still locked all the way down. This next joker took off. He never came toward the boat and went straight left and down. My drag was peeling off so hard that the line was digging down into the spool and the drag was STILL spinning!!! Now I know all about fish lies but you guys have to believe me on this one. That fish snapped the line and I never saw him again. I untangled my spool, put about 20 more casts in there and nothing. I was exhausted and headed home. It was truly an Epic day so heres some pics! Thanks again to everyone! You guys rock! C

On Memorial Day, the United States pauses to honor the fallen heroes who died in service to our Nation. With heavy hearts and a sense of profound gratitude, we mourn these women and men -- parents, children, loved ones, comrades-in-arms, friends, and all those known and unknown -- who believed so deeply in what our country could be they were willing to give their lives to protect its promise. Our hearts ache in their absence, but their spirit gives us strength to continue their work of securing and renewing the liberties that all Americans cherish and for which these heroes gave their last full measure of devotion. In solemn reflection, we gather -- in small towns and big cities, on battlefields, in cemeteries, and at sacred places where blood has been shed for freedom's cause -- throughout our country and around the world to remember the unbroken chain of patriots who won independence, saved our Union, defeated fascism, and protected the Nation we love from emerging threats in a changing world. Today, their legacy is carried forward by a new generation of servicemen and women and all who strive to shape a more perfect America; and their enormous sacrifices continue to make our opportunity possible. We owe all those who sacrifice in our name a tremendous debt, including our Nation's mothers and fathers who have given their daughters and sons to America, spouses and partners who shoulder the weight of unthinkable loss, and courageous children in whom the legacies of their parents live on. As a Nation, we must uphold our obligations to these Gold Star families. We have pledged to them that they will never walk alone -- that their country will be there for them always. Our Nation will never forget the valor and distinction of the women and men who defend freedom, justice, and peace. Not mine but still pretty good. A-Jay

I'm not a tournament fisherman. My five biggest bass ever Largemouth 49.13lbs Smallmouth 34.68lbs

A wife who goes onto BassResource to ask what equipment to buy for him?! Sounds like your husband already has everything he needs in life! What a lucky man.

Love my Cores, Curados, and Chronarchs. Never had a problem with any of them. I'm sure Tatulas are just as good. I'm just a Shimano guy. Hootie

When bass miss my frog I drop that rod & follow with a Texas Rig to the exact spot of the miss.

Not in a tournament, because I have never fished one, but my lifetime bag would be 52lb 2 oz. Jeff

As promised, here is the video from my trip there last week! Nailed a ton of good ones. I decided to actually put a description of what I used in the video this time. Enjoy if you want!

I needed to make a trip to Kansas for family reasons but while I was there I had the chance to do some fishing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eoVpgOC8Zc

Let the bass tell ya!

If the weeds aren't too thick pull a fluke or a senko across the top and let the bait fall into the breaks in the vegetation. If there are no breaks then use a frog.

Extra casting distance is probably the last real benefit of them. As mentioned they allow the spool to start up faster. In turn you can cast the same distance with less effort. Also pitching lures is easier since a lower startup inertia is required. Accuracy is also better since you don't have to cast as hard. I've noticed I use less braking on my reels with upgraded bearings. Reason being is mentioned above. On reels with shallow lightweight spools they really seem to shine the best. They can be ran without any oil so you don't have to keep them lubed. With ceramics no oil makes them louder though. For some it's annoying. Anything over the abec 5 rating is not needed. It's purely an enthusiast upgrade in my eyes. Are they worth it? That's really up to you. A deep reel cleaning from a professional would be money better spent honestly.

Some recent catches from my favorite farm pond down the road. I have been fishing there for about 7 years and am always amazed at the number of 3-5 pounders in there because the pond is maybe an acre or so in size. I know there is at least one monster in there. I have named her THE ADMIRAL. I have had he bite several times but not a good hook set and I have seen her follow a blue gill crank bait and she looks MASSIVE. These fish were fought on black Cavitron buzz bait (thanks Retiredbosn) and choppers jig and Rage tail craw trailer. BIG-0, these trailers are awesome. Thanks for all your hard work at strike king on producing some AWESOME products.

I completely disagree that an un-pegged weight will cause your t-rig to hang up! If y'all can not fish a t-rig or jig cleanly through grass its operator error! Most anglers try forcing a t-rig through grass which is all wrong, you finesse it through grass. When you feel the t-rig starting to load up in the grass...STOP! Release the pressure, pull up until you feel the heaviness again but apply slightly more pressure, the release, repeat until it breaks free (at this point ya wanna hold on real tight to your rod cause ya might get your arm broke). You want the motion to be similar to & as fast as working a shaky head, you're just appling more pressure. Worm selection is paramount, ribbon tails will hang on grass more than curl tails & straight tails hang even less. You want to stay as near vertical as possible & maintain constant bottom contact, density of the grass & depth will determine how far off vertical ya wanna go. Grass is the reason I keep a Texas Rig & Jig-N-Craw on my boat deck 24/7/365!

You guys ready for Thursday night? I haven't fished in 23 days.... it hurts, oh how it hurts!!!!!!!!!

I guess I need to state the obvious. Swinging any fish considered to be a cow or a PB is just asking for failure. Net it or lip it.

Considering the conditions you've described and since you're looking to keep your bait "clear of weeds", any type of rig used where the weight in pegged or attached directly to your presentation will be counter productive. Another possible solution is a Carolina rig where the weight & the bait are separated a good distance. I have however had better success with a drop shot type deal. A-Jay

I wasn't planning on spending another $5 on jigs...........?????? if you fish much at all... you better get ready to spend much more than "another $5 on jigs"... lol...

Can someone tell me when I am looking at the Eye's on the rod which guide do i put the line through, the left one or the right one?

my advice: go back to left handed retrieve. I write with my right hand and retrieve with my left. No matter how much I practice, I will never write as well with my left hand, and I have a feeling the same goes for the manipulation of a baitcaster.

If the left hand reeling feels more natural and you have an injury that bothers you doing it the opposite way, then why change it up?

My question is do you have an available sisters. Lol.

Some times they just don't want the frog! They are showing interest in topwater so ya might have to change up. Try reeling that Cut-R wotm on top like a frog or maybe a Zoom Ultra Vibre Speed Craw.

Hate to be the one to break the news, but I'm afraid it is so. Even says it's the NED rig right on the package...Won't beat the crowd, so you might as well join them -T9

Call Jeremy Wade..........

After looking for a while I just went to home depot and bought a few pieces of 1 x 2 and some dowels. It seems to work well and holds them fine.

I've been having the same problem, and so far have fixed it. I have been using the Lake Fork Frog tail hook, it's practically changed everything. It doesn't snag at all, and improves hookups tremendously even when they just slap or charge it. Highly reccomend it, especially since it's only $4.99 on Tackle Warehouse. While I'm spending your money, pick up a Picasso Shad Walker. When bass are keyed on baitfish it's a monster. It walks just like a Spook, but it's completely weedless.

Not that big but fun to land, specially on a very slow day.

Disadvantages.....It's a little harder to get into sports, but you can aways do Rec leagues. You don't have as many friends, although I have plenty. Homeschooling is a lot more relaxed, and if you're not a person that really has initiave and wants to excel, it's a lot easier to get away with things like late assignments and such. My mom used to micromanage my schooling, but now that I'm older I pretty much have my own schedule and such. Procrastination is a lot easier. Thankfully, I have that type of "go-and-get-em" nature, but I know other people who have slacked off a good bit and gotten away with it. I started at age 4 instead of age 5, and so I'm a grade ahead of most public schoolers. Plus, one of my parent's goals in the schooling I get and the curriculum we use is to make me think for myself. My siblings and I are far advanced in thinking and writing for our age. That has actually played into bass fishing, with articles I've written for BR and posts on here. Social skills.....I have lots of friends in my neighbourhood that I play backyard sports with, and friends at church, so I don't struggle to strike up a conversation and make friends. But again, I have an outgoing personality and that helps. It depends on the way you are. One of the things about homeschooling is that you can help your kids make their dreams accessible. For instance, my older sister has no aspirations of future education. She wants to be a mom and a photographer. She's struggled a lot in math and science through the years. She just graduated last week. Well, the last year, she did a lot of photography classes and did a lot of Homeck by making all the meals at home. She still did some regular stuff, but those things helped her far more than Trigonometry would have. For me, my life aspiration is to serve God on the mission field somewhere or be in Pastoral ministry. Alongside with math and science and regular stuff, I do a lot of Bible and do some very advanced theological essays and reading. Instead of taking Spanish or German or something, I'm taking Biblical Greek so that I can translate the bible in it's original language. We're probably pretty unusual in future life goals , but you get my point: you can customize your kids learning experience to their skills and dreams.

Tournament August 2005: Team tournament, 5 bass @ 33.37 August 2003: 5 bass @ 30.667 Non-tournament August 2007: 10.66, 10.89, 8.99 = 30.54; finished with 5 bass @ 42.46

You're new to fishing, why make it more complicated than it needs to be? Spool up with mono and be done with it. You don't need to worry about tying good leader knots until you are at least experienced enough to know why you need a leader. Just fish and have fun, you can get into the minutia later.

Just getting back from Boston, made the trip to watch my daughter graduate with her Masters in Music. She has already enrolled for the fall semester, starting her program for research librarian. Very proud papa!

I have to smack my Honda about daily, lol, I know the feeling.. But it's Daily driver @ 36 mpg so it's worth the hit.. I guess

Berkley Big Game!

Putting the #storm smack down on them!

Got this one today. Second one ever not sight fishing just working on the double haul cast started stripping line and it hit.

The only problem you will find with the most abrasion resistant nylon is that it´s going to be rope thick and coil like a friggin slinky. I´ve fished for more than 25 years with Trilene Big Game and it´s enough resistant to abrasion while not being that stiff, that thick or coil that bad.

One from a quick trip today.

I do "hand" gliding in my car sometimes. Put my hand out the window and let the wind push it up and down, great fun!

I know you're kidding no one seems harmful on this sight. It's like my second home

Maybe they were just chilling out. Sometimes I get caught up in the big boat, find a pattern, cash a check way of fishing. Don't get me wrong, I love fishing wide open for bass but that's not the only way I like to fish. Sometimes it's nice to just grab a tub of worms and a bobber and sit and watch. No science, no pressure, just fishing to be fishing.

Megabass...I know there expensive but there the best and I hardly ever lose them unless the line breaks.

I was drooling over that same yak at the other day. Is that a nrs Chinook pfd? I just got that one it looks similar to that but green.

Why does PA have so many lakes called the "Dead Sea", is it because there are so many crappy anglers. I have two near me, and they both are stellar fishing opportunities. ; )

It depends what type of bait/presentation I am fishing at the time. Light finesse: DX701/Conquest 51S Finesse: NRX802/PX68L or LEC68MXF/Sol Baby Rage Craw: Cumulus 7'1"MH/Core 51 T-rigs and jigs: Megabass Destroyer Phase III Bearing Down/TD-Ito Anything from 1/2-3oz: Megabass X4 Destruction/Calcutta 201DC Anything above 3oz: Megabass Super Red Demon/Lin Black Jungle

As a national account sales manager you would think there would be a certain level of grammatical correctness in his posts.