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Watching my grandson Aiden flip his jig under the dock, seeing the realization on his face when the bass sucked it in, & then a quick hookset! He said he watched the strike! And yes y'all gonna see the pic a lot!

Scott, the first time you posted a pic of one of those Rod Geeks green blanks, I said to myself, self, that is one fugly blank. Well, dip me in sewage and shoot me for stinkin if I wasn't wrong. That blank, wrapped like that, with such an incredible handle is beautiful. If it were mine I couldn't fish with it. I'd have to frame it and hang it on the wall.

My third and first girl Kenadie was born today at 6:30pm. She was 4.13lbs and 17half long. She was originally due on Sept 7 but due to the placenta fluids was low, they decided to perform the C-section today.

I wasn't gonna post these, but they were just sitting there on my phone SCREAMING "LET ME OUT, LET ME OUT", So, I present to you: Project Pea Soup

I fully expect to top my p.b. of 5 pounds in about 9 months boys. Just found out today that I'm going to have a little fishing partner on the way. Whether it's a boy or a girl doesn't matter I.Just want healthy

One morning, 83 fish, most over 4lbs, including 2 over 10. Got to the point where you would raise your rod over your head and try to make the fish jump. If it wasn't over 7lbs, you gave it slack to try and get free. Never again have I had anything close to this, but man do I hope it happens again. All on crankbaits! the stats- 2 over 10, 1 over 9, 1 over 8, 4 over 7, 10 over 6 and 10 over 5. 2 biggest were 10lbs 9 oz and 10lbs 2 oz. Jeff

My thought for a phone app? Shut it off...stick it in the glove box....fish.

No way to call one the best but the day I caught a 30lb 2oz 5 fish limit in Kansas was way up the list. First fish of the day was a 7lb 2oz fish and by the end of the day my smallest in my top 5 was 5 even. The bass and wipers had the shad pushed up into a shallow, flat cove and point. It never made it above freezing so I was the only boat on the water and there was an area the size of a football field that almost constantly had fish blowing up somewhere on it. On top of the bass I caught over 40 wipers from 4 to 8lbs 2ozs as well.

I've got two. #1: Fishing from a johnboat on bass that had never seen a topwater before. Sure, it was half cheating, but seeing 20+ fish blow up on your Hula Popper in less than an hour was fun! That's a bass every three minutes. The hard part was taking out the trebles. #2: A hot, hot afternoon in NC. One fish. Of course, that fish just happened to be 7 3/4 pounds, my pb. Funnest fight ever!

I don't understand why so many are still skeptical after all the proven reports on here. If 99 out of 100 people say the sky is blue, I'm going with that.

Scott, this rod turned out incredible! Better than I could have ever thought. I am extremely excited to put this rod into action!!!

Lock down drag Keep pressure on the spool with your thumb Turn the handle a few times Pull line until said backlash comes free If it doesn't pull free, rinse and repeat. And if that doesn't work, you got a nasty mess on your hands and will need to be cut free. The technique above has always worked for me though.

Not that they can't be, I have built some really expensive ones. You can spend $200 on a blank, $75 on a handle and $75 on guides before you even start on labor, but you don't have to. I have a client who he and his wife both work average jobs, have 2 kids in school, and have normal financial challenges. They are both passionate about fishing and always wanted custom rods but could not justify spending the money on a hobby. Can they afford custom rods? Absolutely, and here is how. Just like JC Pennys spring white sale, rod and component manufacturers, from time to time, sell really good stuff for cheap. When they do this I buy lots of it and stockpile it for future builds. Here is the example Castaway Intermediate Mod FS 782 blank 6'-6" MH fast in gloss white Forecast size 16 exposed trigger seat EVA rear grip and fighting butt ATC Duralite guides and tip I would put the performance and balance of this rod up against most at BPS. Add the paint and thread work and you have a truly one of a kind custom that fits in any budget. The handle with the trigger set at 8.5 inches. He fishes out of a Yak most of the time so he wanted short handles. He is also a Gator fan so it will be decked out in Tangerine and Wild Blueberry.

I catch alot of fish on a dirty jigs swim jig and a rage craw trailer. Its my go to confidence bait. Here is a twist

Fishing around rocks you have to constantly check your line for any signs of wear. There's no silver bullet or magic mono to fix that. I'd keep fishing what you're fishing, just check the line often and retie as needed.

Excluding big fish, best day by myself was last summer. Caught 4 bluegills all over a pound each, 4 tarpon between 20 and 40, 4 bass between 4 and 5, two reds over 30 inches each, and about 25 snook, mostly 20 to 25 inches each. All caught on the same lure within 150 yards of each other. Had the boat on the trailer at 11:30 am. Couldn't sleep for 2 nights. The best day with someone else was many years ago when my son was about 12. Hit an offfshore ledge just right. He caught 17 bass on 17 casts while I caught 24 on 24 casts, missed one then caught another 15 in a row. I think we caught about 75 total that day. Most were about 2 to 3 with a few over 5. Great day with a young kid.

This makes me hate you guys in the south. Lol My biggest limit here in PA was 26lbs and I damned near got struck by lightning trying to get off the water. It was absolute craziness. A buddy who was on the water with me also put together a bag in the 20lb range. I've also had some weird/freak days on the Susquehanna where we'd catch 20-30 smallmouth, a handful of channel cats, hook into a 20+Lb carp on light gear, and have a musky blow up a spook.

43# bag in February 46 degree water. Lake Monticello TX

Navionics!

I fished too many knock offs of the senko and there is no equal. With that said, I will not pay $7+ for a bag. I wait until DSG has them on sale, use a coupon and stock up. I usually end up paying about $3.50 to $4.00 a bag. At that price, they are worth it.

Welcome to the forums. They are another style of sinker commonly called casting sinkers. No sure exactly what their specific use is, but I'm guessing some sort of trolling or surf usage.

I had planned on doing some night fishing the evening before heading north on my yearly trip in July. A severe storm blew it and I canceled the idea, but headed out early the next morning to get in an hour or two before leaving with the family. I caught 23 bass in less than two hours, 21 of them on topwater. I headed home, packed up the family and headed out on the six hour drive. Fifteen minutes after we arrived I was on the water. Seven smallies, four largemouth all over 3lb. and four pike later, I thought the Lord was preparing me for my demise. I almost had a heart attack when I hooked into my biggest muskie to date. Needless to say, I didn't sleep that night. I couldn't stop thinking about getting out there again in the morning.

Psycho Doc's psycho trout likes to slide this way and then swim that way. Pretty neat, huh? 2013 Bass-a-Thon special color.

You'd like the Red Label better if you restricted it's use to leader material.....I hate to say never, but I don't ever see myself EVER using FC line of ANY BRAND as main line again, IMHO it all handles like crap when compared to braid. I drop shot with 10lb Power Pro braid, and rod's length or so ( 6'- 7') leader of 8lb Red Label. Been doing this for several years now, and have had ZERO line issue. Won my fair share of local tournament beer money with this set up too...............I call it good enough, good performance, good price, never let me down,

One thing I haven't seen anyone say above, wetting your knot before you pull it tight. My partner in a tournament a few weeks ago wasn't used to fishing braid. Had his line break several times at the knot. If it is dry at all where you pull it tight you will damage that part of the line causing weak spots which then lead to well failed spots in the line followed by a few 4 letter words.

The issue with braid is it can not handle instant shock all at once. Like for instance getting a backlash mid cast and snapping off a lure. Are you hammering home your hook sets and doing it with a bunch of slack in the line? That right there can be a problem. Even if it doesn't break right away it can be breaking strands on the inside and gradually making it weaker. That happens with braid over time even though you can't see it. If it's the knot possibly I would recommend a Uni or SDJ.

Ahhh shes finally here, bright and early!! Can I be in love with my reel and not be weird? Haha pretty good shape too. I was expecting the marks to look a little worse, but they're not at all in my opinion. Hopefully by the end of next week I'll have another surprise from Japan!!

I primarily use car doors and ceiling fans to shorten mine from the other end.

Each to his own. I'm an old man and my regimen is on the water at the crack of dawn, weather permitting, and fish the morning bite for a few hours. Then done. Mist on the water with your favorite top water with a vicious strike is hard to beat to start the day. The Old School Basser...

After a little research I was all set on buying a Stradic FK reel from one of my favorite JDM sites to round out my bass fishing gear. As I logged onto the site, a voice kept whispering a name in the most convincing voice "Stella... Stella... Stella..." Initially I resisted the urge, but the voice led my wandering hands to click on the Stella image. "Stradic" I said out loud while my right index finger added a 2014 Stella C2500HGS to my cart. Often times I'll talk myself out of the 25 pack of hooks and settle on the 10 pack, I can be cheap sometimes - but there was no such cash saving impulse. As I glanced at the Stella in my cart, I did not hesitate to click "Pay with Paypal." The was no rationalization as I clicked the "Pay Now" button. Oddly, there was no regret or remorse when I received the "You just sent an obscene amount of money for a fishing reel to XXXXXX" email from Paypal. All I feel now is excitement. A special kind of excitement that I will in no way whatsoever share with my wife. I bought a Stella and it's in an airplane on it's way to me right now.

Exactly the sort of advice I'm looking for. Thanks Ned. Oh, and Go Pack! :-) Open to other thoughts too folks. - D

Some had three hooks, beads with a prop. It was 1963 creme worms, natural colors, black, I think purple was before red maybe. Mickey Mantle was playing LF for the Yankees. Old number 7 met him, watched him play. It feels like a another lifetime.

40lb braid on your fenwick use it for frogs, T-rigged stuff, jigs, 10 or 12 lb mono on the shimano baitcaster you can use this as your crankbait, topwater, spinnerbait rod, 15 lb braid on your spinning rod with a flouro leader, you can use this for any finesse techniques dropshot,weightless senkos. I started with the same rods except I had a medium for cranking and it worked well enough for me. If you have end up getting the higher speed reel use it on the braid rod. Good Luck.

Here is the pic of my setup. I run my trolling motor up front with the trolling motor power and fish finder power into the plug at the front of the boat. I have the inline fuse for the trolling motor spliced into the wire before it joins the TM wire because it requires less amperage. It's stuffed behind the unit in the picture. The inline fuse for the TM is in back at the battery.

Best day recently was probably last week when I caught a 4.5, a 3.5 and 3 in about five minutes of fishing

Hold the reel the way it feels good and works for you. Look at Hank Parker. I don't see how he ever catches a fish holding the rod the way he does, but he's got two Classic trophies. Personally I palm the reel, cast with either hand, or both hands, depending on what I'm doing. The rod just goes to the hand it wants to be in and I cast. Never even think about it, but I'm been fishing for over 60 years so it's second nature to me.

ah. See, I got a hedgehog studio spool pin tool when all the scratched ones were on sale. It is ridiculous how expensive the tools that perform that function are.

15 lb braid may be too small diameter for your reel and is digging into itself causing line damage. Go up to 30 lb, not for the strength for the increased diameter. Standard Palomar isn't the best knot for braid, slips. Power Pro recommends double line knots, use them. Tom

you could be tying you palomar knot wrong, that happened to my dad, resulting in like five rainbow trout receiving free spoon-style lip piercings. if that's not the case then switch to maybe 30 pound line. its pretty thin and you may want that anyway for your punching applications.

I like pea soup! Nicely done sir.

St croix mf or mxf.

I have been looking for a month or so now for my first kayak. I have a canoe, which I'm selling, because I want to try the kayak thing. Well, most of what I've seen has not been what I'm looking for, and what I am looking for is $500-800. I know that's not expensive for a yak but I'm in my Nitro most of the time; I just like to float some small water once in a while and kayak fishing really looks fun. Well I saw this thing at Tractor Supply on clearance for $250...I couldn't help myself; cheap paddle and all. I might use it 3 times per year. I do plan on getting a portable fish finder, like the HB 571 HD Di. There are some small areas I have been wondering what was in them for structure. Oh well, I own it now. Who knows, maybe an upgrade will be in order in a couple of years if I really like it. This will get me out in one for now at least. Anyone have any experience with this brand/length?

Nail weights, split shot, weightless, shakeyhead, dropshot, texas rig, the Fluke is a classic. Can't go wrong!

Really, I can't see anything being better than regular 10# power pro uni-uni'd to 6-8lb red label leader. Invizx is great, too, but for a 6 ft leader I don't think even a 50% cost increase to be justifiable. High vis braid is definitely a great choice for your mainline.

Nicely done. Maine bass fishing at its finest.

Been catching my bass lately on a 10 inch power worm, also like flipping creature baits.

Carolina rig fluke.

Lipless crankbaits, rapala floating minnows, Texas rig.

It's always hot here in S.E. New Mexico in the summer time . This week is predicted to be 103 for the next 6 days so summertime I use topwater baits, Damiki Rambler 120 and a Cavitron buzzbait in the mornings and evenings. Rest of the time is a Texas rigged worm. Tore them up yesterday on a T-rigged red shad trickworm.

I'm in Texas. Hotter than a firecracker here right now. I use a Zoom Trick Worm in Green Pumpkin, just one I use, draggin' it real slow. The Zoom Finesse Worm in Watermelon with Red is killer, too. Work it real slow. 3/16 to 1/4 oz. on baitcaster with 10 or 12 lb. test or 1/8 oz. with spinning and 10lb. test. Worms can go anywhere. You can drag 'em, hop 'em and swim 'em. All work in the Summer time. Never saw any need to use anything else.. The Old School Basser...