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My first Megabass, F2-60X Criffhanger.

This is a quick video of a nice Fatty that choked the Silver Buddy a couple of days ago. She went 4.25 and fought like a champ. I tried moving the camera up to the bow hoping to offer a wider and more encompassing view. Seems to work but with the wind (that ALWAYS blows here) it's a little hard to hear me, but you're not really missing much As the waters cools this bite should only get Hotter. A-Jay ​

New babies!!!!!

Been trying for couple weeks to catch a bass on a frog. Had a dozen or more nice blow-ups but couldn't land one, most my fault. Tonight I put on a Lake Frog Trailer Hook. Well tonight luck finally visited. Stop by pond for a 1 hour limit after work and threw nothing but frogs. After 50 minutes landed the 17 1/4", 3+lb'er below, caught him center of upper lip on trailer hook. Couldn't have been more happy. About 5 minutes after the catch had another bass hit my frog three times in a row, took the frog each time but let it go. Dobyns 735C Curado 7.1:1 reel 50lb braid Scum frog Frog Trailer hook. All in all fun 1 hr.

My wedding video....

Cool ~ Something to remember and this is vital as far as being able to fish the bait correctly. Blade baits work best bouncing along the bottom. So a relatively clean, weed / grass free bottom is Very Important. Sand, gravel and even rock is desirable. Trying to fish these baits down through weeds & or over grass is an exercise in futility and very frustrating. Fishing blade baits around Wood & / or Brush is do able as long as you can stay out of it most of the time. Otherwise you're going spend a lot of time hung up and probably going to lose baits. There are other baits & techniques that are better suited for vegetation & cover than blade baits. Good Luck. A-Jay

This should be tagged with the other thread that showed how to make the "removal tool". lol. Wow... we got a bleeder!

Best trade I ever made!

i broke a gen 1 *** casting rod i had like a moron.... went through the oops replacement and got a different spec ***, but was gen 2 for $50. not a bad deal for me. rod components and everything are a step up from gen 1, full cork handle is nice. BUT, whoever put these guides on was still drunk from the night before. they wobble back and forth like me on some crown and sprites. i mean not terribly bad, but noticeable for sure. anyhow, had to fish it last night and managed a tiny guy in this dumpster looking overflow at some apartment complex near my house. *** black 7'1"MH lew's TP 7.1:1 big game mono 15lb war eagle spinnerbait

Sounds like another rod project!.

Man you are the luckiest man alive, in one visit to a Academy I walked out with a Calais 100A.

Thanks ~ no there's a way to work the bait for best results. I HIGHLY recommend watching (and then doing) the method seen in this video. My area is mainly smallies but during the fall, I catch everything with these baits including largemouth. A-Jay http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/163752-its-almost-blade-bait-time/ ​

Poor villagers in Cambodia, subsistence fishing with a small net. They are rounding up little fish that collect under floating mats. The river is odorous and visibly filthy, strewn all around with garbage. Yes, I'd say we here are very lucky.

Yeah, buddy, these rods are awesome! Landed this lunker with the 68L/bfs on a duo Realis crank 48sr. Handled it like a champ!

You're tellin me!! When our lakes freeze over hard, my boat sounds completely different on it.

Me being pretty much a gear head, I do it with motors. I can pretty much tell you most of the major brand V-6's and a lot of the older mid size and small motors. The lake and area I fish, the big bass boats and the big motors are by far the most popular and those are the ones you see and hear most of the time.

I'd like to see what the reviews would be like if this exact same rod was made by a different company.

I always separate Rage Tail stuff..to me, Rage Tail is about the motion...if I want it subtler, I'll throw something else.

The best casting outfit is my wife's, mine is the second best ;-)

If it's for "feel" type baits (jigs, worms etc) skew the budget in favor of the rod. For moving baits (cranks, spinnerbait. swimbaits etc) skew the budget toward the reel.

What started out as a perfect fishing morning turned into a hard day of fishing but still not disapointed at the quality of the fish in Rust Pond in Wolfeboro, NH We worked onthe idea with it being foggy and water at 65 that top water would work, when that didnt happen turned to crank baits and rattle traps then we started shore fishing after a couple hours scratching out heads we went deep 25-30 ft hitting the bottom with jigs either a green pumpkin spider jig or a black/blue 1/2 oz jig with a rage craw bama or green pumpkin. out of 14 caught in the boat the smallest was a 2.8 SM. What made this exciting was fighting a fish in deep water sometimes 50 yards away then watching them jump at a distance. Biggest for me was a 5lb LG and a 4lb SM if you don't mind launching a small boat or canoe so close to rt28 right next to the ramp then this is a nice quiet pond to fish. I haven't viewed it yet but I have some gopro footage that hopefully came out.

Inexpensive piece of terminal tackle that is disposable. Tom

I really like Strike King 1.5 and 2.5 HC Silent Square Bill baits. They're very well built. I also found a bunch of Norman square bills at BPS for $2 each that seem pretty nice.

Thanks guys! That is a Curado I with Hawgtech. I originally had a Metanium with Hawgtech on there, but just liked the Curado I a little better. Crazy how that little extra 1 oz makes that much of a difference sometimes! Jeff

Hello, I was fishing a weedless jig this evening when I felt something hit it but not hook up. It pulled for a minute and then let go. As is proper, I tossed a whacky rigged Yum Dinger, 4", on my ultralight as a follow-up to the lost bass. This is what bit: This is the third smallest bass I've ever caught, and the smallest in 20 years! My previous smallest this year was about twice as long. Josh

Yeah that's my main concern because most places I fish are big salad bowls lol but what the heck I'll get a few, there are some places I have in mind that should be clear enough by winter to hopefully effectively fish them... Thanks for the tips, hope you continue to catch huge smallies on em this year!

Surface Missile:

Or this:

You and me both, brother. I just stated in another thread that I have something like 3 rods that cost me $150 or slightly more. You won't find a Stella, Core, Zonda, Pixy, etc. in my arsenal. I make $600 a month less than I did 7-8 years ago, but still make more than $150 a week.

This is my home on the water! Toads, Frogs and Punch Jigs... Here he is uncovered...

Years ago all we had available were 4.7:1 reels and throwing buzzbaits when they first came out was an extremely tiring proposition, but then I was in my twenties. I am now in my upper sixties and now have reels from 5.0:1 to 8.5:1 and they each have their purpose. For a single all around ratio I would pick a 6.4:1 or something very close to that speed. That was considered a very high speed reel not too long ago and will fit the bill for all around use. Whether fishing square bills, worms, jigs, rattle traps or any soft plastic you'll be in the ballpark with that speed.

That logic doesn't work. In fact, over 200 new species have been discovered in the last 6 years - just in the Himalayans alone (http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/07/asia/wwf-eastern-himalayas-new-species-report/). With that in mind, there's just no way humans have discovered all there is on this planet. Saying you won't believe it unless you're given solid proof makes sense. I get that. But I wouldn't dismiss it. I think it's possible. If they do exist, I'd really like to understand their role in nature and the ecosystem. I wouldn't fear them, though. If they predated on humans and were dangerous, we'd definitely know about it by now. Until they're "discovered" and scientists learn more about them, they'll be the fodder for skeptics and comedians. At this point, I'm not convinced, but remain open minded. Now krakens, Krakens DO exist! You have been warned!!

I'm not DVT. Mike has more fishing experience than I will ever have. However, I think I know the answer to this question. With "feel" type baits you want the most sensitive rod you can afford. Why? For "feel", naturally. You want to know exactly what is happening with the bait. The reel takes up slack and fights the fish. "Feel" type baits are usually fished slow and moved with the rod. With moving baits you are going to be constantly casting....and cranking. Thus it is better to spend a little more for a quality reel. Obviously we on bassresource prefer both to cost a week's pay.

Welcome to the forum. As you can see, your question is too general. Ask about the best rod/reel for a certain technique and you will get plenty of options.....which may be the best the poster has used, but may not be the best for you or me. Also how can a person say Rod A is the best without having fished every possible example? Limiting yourself to 2 rods means they need to be versatile. It also means you have to decide what type of rods will cover the majority of the fishing you do. Will you need 1 spinning and 1 baitcast combo? Or 2 of one type? Most reels will be satisfactory no matter how you fish. It is the rod that will be more limited. I am severely limited in rods that cost $150 or more. Some guys on here fish with rods starting at about $450 and going up from there. My best and their best are going to be worlds apart. I am going to assume you are rather new to fishing. In that case you want 2 versatile rods to get started. Fish everything on these 2 rods. Later on you can decide what types of techniques are going to be your favorites. Then buy a rod (or rods) that will be better for those techniques. Just remember that a rod that is fantastic at say...fishing jigs...can also handle several other techniques quite well. The general consensus is that a 6' 6" to 7' Medium Fast or Medium Heavy Fast will make a good all-around rod. Consider starting another thread. Let readers know what techniques you like to fish and the type of cover you fish in. Do you fish in deep clear water or shallow stained water? Lakes or rivers? Do you want spinning or baitcast? What is your budget? Give this information as a minimum. You will get so many options it will be necessary to start another thread just to narrow the selection.....which often winds up giving you more options than when you started

We have Walleye, Muskellunge and Chain Pickerel in Virginia's fresh waters. If they are hitting your baits then go and catch them. Just watch their teeth and also be ready to lose some baits to them when they pop your line. Consider bringing a net with you on your next trip to help land them.

Sorry Catch, never used the rig and don't plan to do so in the future. The Alabama rig I used to throw wore me out and I never got a hit. As for your rod handling the extra weight, who knows? Give it a try and let us know what happens. Good luck. Hope you catch two or three on each cast.

The only thing I hate more than pretentious Cubs fans are pretentious Cards fans.

I am both house and boat trained so I'll be visiting soon to help you with your overabundance of big, hungry smallies.

It's said they migrate using rivers and highways. I get unexplained action all year but the hottest action is in September to November. I did notice the smell of my woodstove smoke goes up, over the mountain well into the next valley. So my smell of my world famous bacon cheeseburgers goes in that direction too. My camp is deep in the national forest away from the farms. I get action all the time. It's no joke, it's out there. It took me many years to see a mountain lion after first seeing the tracks. Even a 200lb cat is elusive.

Bluegill used to nibble at my toes when I was swimming. If they were bigger they'd rip me limb from limb like they do crickets and as they're trying to do when they bite a soft plastic.

I am sure the entire Bassresource community would agree that No. 1 is the Skeet Reese Tessera 6'4" Medium Heavy casting rod paired with the Skeet Reese Victory Casting Reel spool with Viscous Fluorocarbon coated line. No. 2 is the Quantum KVD Signature Series 7'11 casting rod paired with the Team KVD Casting reel with Spiderwire Invisi-Braid. Admin please lock thread as this forum topic may be closed due to definitive answer.

6 something is a good all-around ratio.

i would gladly trade my DI capabilities for the GPS.... my 4xhdi doesn't have the GPS and i wish it did. not because i'll get lost, because i would want it for marking waypoints.

I think "bubble gum" still sounds too squirrely girly. I think pink plastics should be called "Gorilla Tongue" instead.

i used to use 7.1:1 gear ratio baitcasters but have since grown to love the 6.4:1 gear ratio as it let's me reel slower but at the same time if i need to speed up , the 6.4:1 ratio allows me to get all the speed i need . there is nothing like trying to reel slowly with a too high of a gear ratio ....

I love bass fishing and have practiced catch and release for a long time. But to many people in the world the purpose of fishing is for food, so to them catching fish to toss them back is pointless, and the morality of it can be questionable. I was in Cambodia a few months ago and the topic of fishing came up with our guide. I tell you, the fellow was incredulous that I spend hours catching fish just for "fun," spend money doing it, injure some of the fish in the process, and then don't even eat them. He had never heard of such folly as that. "If it's a sport," he said, "play football. It doesn't hurt God's creatures." So, maybe it's better to eat a few? Of course, most anything is better than keeping them and not eating them. But maybe it's appropriate to feel just a tiny bit guilty about catch and release, too.

Those Norman spots should eat all winter

Here's a hint for all through hull fittings. To make an absolute, lasting seal with silicone, put a quarter inch bead on the inside of the hull around the hole, and a quarter inch bead on the flange of the through hull fitting. Snug it down by hand until it starts to ooze out around the fitting. Do not tighten it more. Allow it to sit a day or two for the silicone to set up. Then you can tighten it to your heart's content. It will not/cannot ooze out. If you tighten it down with fresh silicone you'll squeeze it out and may not have a good seal. I learned that trick from a tech at a boat yard. I installed new lexan windows in my lobster boat. I put a good bead of silicone around the opening and screwed the windows tight, squeezing out most of the lexan. A year later the windows started to seep water when taking heavy spray running into the waves. I mentioned it to the tech and he told me the trick of not doing the final tightening until the silicone had set up. I ended up with a one sixteenth inch thick silicone gasket that could only be compressed, not force out around the edges. I kept the boat another ten years and never had a drop get past the silicone gasket.

Being my yak is the 2016 model it has the new electronics pod so I'm hoping to utilize that

And if the bass aren't hungry you will catch something on a blade. Bluegill, perch, trout, walleye, catfish.......when it's cold enough to fish a blade I don't care what's biting