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I tie a lot of hair jigs and I use a lot of different material and anglers not familiar with them have a difficult time understanding of exactly what the "action" is. On a bucktail jig, there really isn't a lot of movement, what makes bucktail work so well, especially in cold water, is that when it gets wet it makes a perfect small minnow profile and while there is a little movement, it is very subtle and that perfectly mimics the movement of minnows in cold water. Marabou will compress when wet and it gets very thin in the water when it is moving but when you stop it the hair will expand and move but it has to be tied properly for that to happen. Craft fur has a very fluid like movement, and so does rabbit hair, the craft fur will compress into a minnow shape like bucktail when it is moving but when you stop it it will wave back and forth in the water very life like but in extreme cold like 34 degree water, it may have too much movement. Hair jigs work any time of year but the reason they work in cold water is because they have a subtle movement and that is more natural. Fish are cold blooded and when they get cold it isn't the same as us getting cold, their muscles that allow them to swim can onlt move a little bit and it is the very reason flat sided craks work well in cold water as the tighter action is more natural as that is the movement the fish are seeing. So, when you are fishing a hair jig don't expect it to have a real dramatic action, instead it will be the opposite, a very subtle type action as the main drawing feature is the profile with action being the triggering aspect of the bait.

Rivers for me are most productive during the middle of the day. No matter what time it is, you still have to fish where the bass are. Unless the middle of the river has some sort of structure to break the current, you probably won't find much there. I don't know what river you fish or how deep it is. Is wading a possibility? I like to fish the shaded side of the river along fallen trees. Where the current is fast, the fish will hold close to rocks or trees that block the flow so they don't have to fight the current. As a bank fisherman, look for bridge supports, or retaining walls. Bass will hold tight to the walls or in the eddies created on the downstream side. Because of current, the water temp is usually pretty consistent deep or shallow. You don't have to fish a river deeper during the heat of the day. Feeding fish follow the food and deep river fish are often inactive and not feeding. I recently got most of my best fish in just enough water to cover their backs.

A local FWC officer explained it to me like this,"you can row a U.S Navy battle ship with no registration, but if you put a trolling motor on a log, you need to get registration".

I was up in Western NC visiting with my brother and I went out for a few hours on Saturday despite the call for rain. It started out with a drizzle and then poured on me, i mean i got soaked. BUT after a bite or two, seems like you forget how miserable you really are!! Air temps were at 56 and the water temp was a constant 60 all day. I've been really lucky lately with the spinnerbait and it was the same story on Saturday. All strikes and fish landed were on the spinnerbait, EXCEPT for one guy that fell victim to my new Siebert DockRocker jig! This lake had been drawn down for about a year working on it and filled up back in early August. This was my first time back up there and was very glad to see the draw down hadn't impacted the lake like i thought it would. Anyhow, good day even though i was cold and wet when it was all over with. Biggest one of the day went 18.5" A few pics:

2015 Edition: "Cowabunga!" Jeff

Well i just finished up my 30 days of leave back home in the great state of michigan. I literally did not have one day of bad fishing. My last day out we caught 21.5lbs on our best 5 largemouth all on jigs in 40 degree weather and rain right after some serious cold fronts. Fall bite is just kicking off in Mi get out on the water. What i loved best is we were the only people on the water on any lake we picked this time of yr. They are either bowhunting or to cold to get out lol. What a riot. Also was hammering them on the MS slammer swim bait. 2 6lbrs outta the kayak within 1 hr of each other. Had to find ppl on the shore to take pics. Which 6s are rarely caught in michigan and i managed 2. Man i didnt want to come back to arizona but had to be done…unless i wanted to be AWOL lol. Enjoy the pictures. 19LBS of smallies. on spinnerbaits 21.5LBS of largemouth on jigs Second day of smallie smack down. Smaller bag. 6.56lb Slammer largemouth 6.37 lb Slammer largemouth. Another slammer hog

Hey guys. I just caught my PB largemouth bass over the weekend. I was really excited about it and just had to share! I'm pretty new here and to bass fishing in general so my PB may not be all that impressive. In fact, I don't even know how much it weighed because I don't own a scale. Anyways, here is my story. I've been regularly fishing a local lake specifically targeting LMB. My go-to rig is the drop shot with 4" soft plastic worms and I've been doing very well with it, it definitely catches fish. This time, I tried switching things up a bit by using a double hook drop shot rig. Starting from the bottom, I had a 1/4 oz drop shot weight. 12" up was the first hook and 12" further, a second hook. Both were Gamakatsu 1/0 drop shot hooks tied with a Palomar knot, and each hook was baited with a nose hooked soft plastic 4" worm. I generally switch between Roboworms and Bio Spawn Plasma Tails. I caught 3 small bass (under 1lb) and was about to call it a day when I got another bite after pitching it towards a boat dock. From the bite, I thought it was just another small bass, but once it started fighting I could tell it was a good size. I was a bit nervous landing this one since it was my biggest LMB to date, but it went without any issues. I caught, photographed, and released all fish. Unfortunately, I was fishing alone and couldn't get a really nice photo. Here is what I ended up with. Thanks for reading The rig: First catch: Last catch:

Simple, fish before 11am and after 5pm. Clearly all the fish are at work during that 11-5 time.

Bass usually come in three sizes ~ There's the Small ones. Then there's the Medium ones. And then there's The One That Got Away. A-Jay

The best time is any time I can go!

New combo to replace a lost rod & reel. Custom St Croix 5C74HF-B expertly done by board member Scott Hovanec and a new Shimano Exsence DC.

This is the time of year to catch lunkers on crankbaits. Here's how http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/cranking-big-bass.html

10/12/15, Monday, Alligator Alley north side, 7:00-11:00, mostly sunny, wind N/W 5-10, water very light stain, visibility excellent. Went out solo this morning, most friends were working. Started with a new spinnerbait with not so much as a sniff. Switched to a hollow body and slowed way down, no one was chasing baits. After an hour switched again to a 4" senko type bait. The bite started on the first cast. You had to let the bait soak to catch any. From 8-10 the bite was on. After 10 the switch turned off completely. Finish the day at 11:00 catching 18 bass, the largest a 6lb. and a 6.5lb and lost a monster way back in the pads.. There were also a bunch of 2's. Caught all bass on the stick-o back in the pads. A fun, low stress, enjoyable day without another boat in sight. A little bit of heaven.

I let the fish tell me when I need to use a trailer but I tend to use a trailer when the water first gets into hair jig range and for me it is the low 50s. If the water is 52 degrees and I can't get a reaction bite, I will use a rabbit hair jig I tie called a "creeper jig" that I make specifically to use with a chunk style trailer. When the water is in the mid to upper 40s then I will often use a bucktail jig with skirt material strands tied on it and I won't use a trailer, the silicone skirt material will provide just a little more movement and bulk without having to incorporate a trailer. When the water is in the low 40s to upper 30s the only trailer I'll use is tied on the jig and it is almost always a rabbit strip tail, it adds very little bulk and it will provide me some action if I needed it but not too much. The lower 30s is a time when the hair is used plain, I use bucktail or marabou, that is it and no trailer. As for dragging and swimming, it depends on the type of water and the mood of the fish, the way we drag is just slowly reel with the rod pointed right at the bait and it is only one or two cranks and then stop for a bit. We will drag it of give a slow lift and drop depending on what the fish want and what kind of jig, for example is I use a rabbit hair craw jig tied on a football head, well that jig is one I use with a drag or hop bottom presentation while a small 1/6oz or 3/32oz marabou jig will be slowly swam along the bottom with a few pauses during the retrieve but it depends on the mood of the fish and I'll usually start based on the weather conditions like warming or cooling trends.

To be honest, I have fished Lake Erie a lot more than I have been on Lake St. Clair, but if I were to tell someone who hasn't been to each and were going for the first time, I would choose Lake St. Clair. Lake Erie definitely yields bigger Smallmouth, but it is a huge place and it will take time to learn it, which someone coming up for a few days just doesn't get the luxury to do. I think the fish numbers in Lake St. Clair make it easier for someone looking for fish in a short period of time to locate and catch fish.

I think TW sales are pretty standard "sitewide" with some brand exceptions. Their best sale IMO is the one they have during ther "x Days of Christmas" when I think they put their gift cards up at 10% off. Grab a stack of those, wait for their usual 20% off sitewide sale, apply the gift card, bam, 30% off.

Spending good money on a NEW reel..having that reel fail, having that failure cost you money in broken braid and lost lures..perhaps not a big deal to you...

I'd call losing lures by grooves cutting line a big deal

"Hair" can mean any number of things. Beyond the manipulations you make, what hair jigs offer in terms of triggers are speed (they tend to able to be fished slow), and the wake (water moved) they make. Bucktail is great for both bc of its buoyancy. "Craft hair" is quite soft so it can move in the water and being a synthetic offers more and brighter color choices. If you are fixed on material's movement, you need really soft hair such as rabbit or, the best, marabou feathers. A heavier jighead also allows the material to move more when you pop, jig, or shake. Otherwise, the addition of a trailer is what gives the movement. Bottom line I guess is, hair jigs work great, esp in colder water, bc they can be fished slowly, and if tied fairly bulky, can pull a meaty wake -which bass always appreciate. If you want movement in the jig materials as a trigger, and it can be helpful at times -esp when the fish don't have all that much get-up-and-go- try a marabou jig with a pork strip (pre-softened). I tied my own marabou jigs, fished with a pork trailer -the Uncle Josh' "Spinning Strip". It was killer.

I fish the biggest river in the U.S. from bank and the middle of the day can be real good. I like to throw inexpensive spinners on rip rap banks . Beetle spins , H&H , SK mini spins... I cast upstream. Sometimes casting next to bank , sometimes casting in deeper water but always up stream . I let the bait sink until it touches bottom then quickly lift it up and retrieve just fast enough to feel the blades . You will lose some lures this way , that is why I go cheap but its a good way to catch fish . The rip rap holds bait and lots of species of game fish . The best days are in the summer with heavy barge traffic . The waves created by barges crashing against the rocks stun baitfish and crawdads and the bass will get aggressive . I use 1/4 ounce Beetle spins and I add a small weight to the shank of the mini spins .Heavy in lines would work well or anything cheap that will sink .

It won't be very realistic since no matter what you cast it will slide along fairly well on smooth concrete. In water, your bait is going to slow down or stop completely much faster.

The extra cover is also going to give your bass fry the next few years a lot more area to hide. Provided they don't mess with your water levels a bunch during the spawn you might see a big population increase in the coming years.

I'm right handed. All baitcaster right hand retrieve, spinning are all left hand retrieve and I CANNOT interchange the two.

They still have your typical JDM tapers. They're a very versatile rod. I've spoken with Gary a good bit about them. When he tells you what they're good at he's giving you first hand info. I had my emtf out today for 3hrs. I cycled through a handful of lures and it handled them all great. I'll be waiting on purchasing a Levante until he's had s chance to use them and tell me how the tapers compare to the xx. I got my eye on a dsr. 1/2 spinnerbait 1.5 squarebill 1/16 jig head with 4" stick bait 1/2 lipless crank 1/4 with baby paca craw 3/8 jig with baby paca craw

Right handed; all left hand crank.

Too Young to Feel This **** Old by Garth Brooks

Oh sorry, wrong thread. That's better. A-Jay

I keep it simple. Always reel with my left hand. I don't get why people would ever want to cast then switch hands to reel, or why they want to work the bait with their non dominate hand... Just my 2 cents

The biggest bass are caught between 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM

Yesterday I ordered the St Croix Legend elite at the factory sale price of $252 shipped. I consider that a possibility in the $250 class. Update: received the Rod yesterday and was delighted!! Brand new Rod , perfect in every way. I put a SOL on it lasts night with 10# Sunline mono and rigged it with a VMC weighted hook and a Keitech 3.8 Swing Impact Fat and will head out to the bayous tomorrow to try it. I've had an LTB and I have an AVID now and the Legend Elite seems to surpass them both. Now I'll have to see how it performs.

Walmart-Evil, won't buy from them, heck I would be happy if the whole d**n company went away! Cabelas-OK but they think bass fishing is an afterthought up north Academy-None locally but good for online purchases BPS-None locally and it's a hassle to buy from them online TW-The best place to buy online in my opinion. I got sick of driving around town looking for jigs so I started making my own. I order most of the parts from fishing skirts.com.

I despise Walmart ! In my area when they first opened Walmart had a huge fishing section, remarkable selection of top lures, well stocked and replenished, all at really good prices. They literally ran the majority of the small tackle shops out of business. Once the small independants went out of business Walmart reduced the size of their fishing section, minimized the selection, never have "new" products in their line, and don't replenish their inventory very often. With most of the smaller shops now gone you had to order online. Fortunately a BPS opened a couple of months ago in our area. Do they have anything and everything you could possibly want ? Of course they don't, but think about it, with all the products, sizes, colors, models, etc that is virtually impossible ! After watching what Walmart did locally they could rot for all I care.

I am really not a fan of BPS. They are a quantity over quality retailer. They kinda scratch the backs of the HUGE lure companies (Strike King, Zoom, ect) , which isn't a bad thing. They don't sell a ton of those brands that are really good at one or two things. TW is where it's at.

I was able to spend the whole day on the water. It was a slow, but steady day. I had my first bass before sun-up on a jig/craw trailer in some old railroad trestle pilings. Moved locations and fished a Ned Rig on an ultralight spinning set up. What fun! I caught several White Crappie, a small Channel Catfish, and a 3 lb. 9 oz. largemouth out of the same small area. Another move got me more crappies and one more decent largemouth. Seems like there's never a shortage of action with the Ned Rig. By afternoon, I was looking for a spot to fish that was out of the wind (it was very windy all weekend here). I found a nice calm spot and started working a long rip-rap bank, hoping to find a smallmouth or two. No luck. I did find two lures in the trees along the bank, though. One was a Strike King Red Eye Shad lipless crank in Bleeding Shad color. The other was a square bill crank bait in some sort of Chartreuse Shad color. I tied on the square bill to see it if ran OK. At that point, I came to an old tree trunk laying down the bank and into the water, partly submerged. I threw that square bill over the submerged part and as soon as I started winding, a big bass ATE it. I couldn't even see the lure when I got the bass next to the boat. I went to work with the pliers and hemostats and got her unhooked fairly easily. I hung her on the scale to find she was 4 lbs. 4 oz. That made me smile! A free lure caught my biggest fish of the day! I never tried throwing the lipless crank I found... what was I thinking?!! I moved to a long patch of weeds that are still up and threw a lightly-weighted T-rigged Pit Boss. After two pike and a pickerel, I gave up. All in all, it was a decent day; not many bass, but a couple of good ones. The sun was shining and the fall colors were looking good. And it may be the last 70-degree day we see in my neck of the woods for another five or six months! I hope everyone got to enjoy the long weekend. Tight lines, Bob

If a boater showed you a brush pile that he sank personally, and no one else knew about it, I wouldn't fish it. But many of his "spots" are probably well known areas and free for the fishing. What are you supposed to do, stay away from every ledge on the lake just because he brought you there before?

The Cards have played well against him all year. As good as he is, Superman he ain't! He is a beast though. This game is a long way from over...

I catch the most and largest between 10 AM and 2 PM any time of year.

Now I'm trying to find a fish or something fishing related.

I tie braid directly to the bait. But water's not very clear here. Lately it's downright stained after a lot of rain. I will say the PowerPro green was less visible in water than the Fireline smoke. The black color eventually wears off the Fireline and it looks kinda grey. Still, I was catching fish with it.

I catch fish all day long.

You want pumpkins. For those close to Providence, I highly recommend the Roger Williams Park, Pumpkin or Jack-o-lantern Spectacular. It runs evenings for the month of October into the first few days in November. It's a half hour to forty minute walk through the meandering paths in the park.

I carry a flashlight every day for my job (Streamlight 2AAA). It's become such a routine that I have it, my Leatherman, and a folding knife on me every day, even when fishing. The cylindrical shape of the flashlight makes it great to pull snags out!

40' of water and swift current.... EASY! I'd stay home. Lol

Take the motor off, problem solved.

i feel like there is such a long list of lures other than the frog that are more effective in the fall. pretty much everything else in the box it's not that they don't work....just that other things work so much better

It appears that the fish pictured have bacterial infections most likely due to stress that can be attributed to a variety of factors, low water, very warm water, drought, high fishing pressure, poor water quality. A variety of diseases, viruses and infections can cause the hemorrhaging that you are seeing. The only sure way to know is to get a sample from a live fish to a fish pathologist. I think that is most likely Aeromonas or Strep.

Chemtrails there dropping nano viruses.