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First and foremost, no offense taken. At the end of the day, I don't really care the personal opinions of anyone here about their fishing choices. I'm good with what I know and what I do. So take this as a friendly discussion from me and shedding light from a different angle. I see dying bluegill (sunfish) more often than you'd think, in pads/slop and open water. Come fish the midwest northern waters where Northern Pike are ferocious predators and are predominately the apex. So much that it can create a tough situation when targeting bass. You'll see fish with razor slits all over them from pike swiping at them. The fish may get away initially, but sooner or later they rise up and if you've ever fileted a live fish, they'll move around for quite some time. The image below is not even in the dead of summer when the slop is at it's worst. (Wisconsin) I fish some pretty dense junk in the summer/fall months as do many others here. The water below me in that picture is probably 20 inches deep with your random holes that drop to 3-3.5 foot. Some areas get to 12 inches that I fish regularly and catch nice bass. There is enough areas of where the pads separate to open water allowing you to do the side to side (spook like action) with any slop bait, (frog, mice, LT Gill etc..). Is the new gill the best tool to use, maybe not. But it's exactly that, a tool. Often I see bluegill and even bass getting stuck up on these giant weed bogs simply chasing/being chased. You can bet when teh frog bite is dying and if I see any signs of gill breaking surface I'll be tying one on. The water is clear enough in the lake that they can certainly see differences in profiles and maybe that fish profile triggers a big bite. You can only eat so much frog legs and mice turds. When I referenced spook, I meant the purpose of the bait is to replicate something similar to a fish at surface struggling and/or fleeing as is this new LT gill. I did not mean it was to have an exact walk the dog action. I personally will never throw this Gill in open water when i have a box of poppers, wake baits, cigar baits etc...that simply do a better job because it's the better tool for the job. I'm sure the gill would get bit too if presented correctly. Good discussion, just don't think it's gimmicky. I see it as a new tool, a pretty tool at that and I have a nice collection of high dollar swimbaits that are mesmerizing to me. The new gill could be all solid black or white and it would probably produce the same, but that's not Live Targets deal. Their selling point is realism...and they do a d**n good job if you ask me.

8 Fogys, 20 Jigs, 3 Spinnerbaits, 4 packs RageTail babies and 1 BADAZZ Tshirt

All of them! There are crayfish developed for just about anywhere there is a wet spot: They live in lakes, rivers, streams, swamps, ditches, and soggy fields hiding in vegetation, under rocks and wood, and burrow into mud. One way to find crays is to explore the shallows at night with a flashlight. The sheer numbers of active craws can be astounding.

And we're done here. LOCKDOWN!!

The top is the new Zillion SV TWS. The bottom is the Zillion TWS.

That about covers it. A-Jay

Don't get a scale! All they are good for is shrinking fish!

I caught this bass on a zoom baby brush hog.

YES, FINALLY!!!!!!!! Recently, my excursions have been terrible. Lot of skunked days or dinks. Today i had a great outing and landed a nice one. Funny thing is that it was on a tiny crank and on a light spinning rod/reel. The way it fought at first i though i had a turtle and then it rolled and i saw mouth open up. About flipped out and surprised the little hooks didn't tear out. I hate to be "that guy", but any guess on weight? No scale or tape measure. Either way I'm super happy. SUPER HAPPY!!!!

Y'all ever see this in your yard?

This !!! I even have crawfish in my back yard. Parts of it is low and stay at least damp. After a big rain and I can see crawdad holes !!!

You would be hard pressed to find any body of water that has a bass population without a crawdad population. Tom

I'm looking to purchase two Lamborghini's and and a helicopter. Anyone know where they can be bought other than that place I know they can be bought? Never mind, I've bought them.

I don't buy it, but the leader material is much harder and more abrasion resistant than regular fluoros. Seems to mostly be saltwater guys and those that fish around toothy fish that use it.

I bought the reel about a month or two ago. The rod came in a few weeks ago - arrived days after ordering. The reel has already seen the master Ian (although I just learned about super tuning not too long ago) and has upgraded gear ratio to 6.3 as well as drag and bearings. This combo will be my go to shallow cranking rod - Mann's 1-, MB 1.2, LC 1.5, you get the idea. Was a little worried about its ability to handle the lower end (1/4oz), but it threw a Mann's 1- plenty far in the yard. Few months and the on the water test will tell. I'll most likely spool it with 12lb sniper. http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/mattbfleming/library/Squarebill%20%20Combo

Follow the advice of Crestliner2008. I'll mention the 3" Lunker City Slug-Go again. This little bait has been around for a long time but it's still as effective as ever. It's even better if you slather it up with MegaStrike. http://www.lunkercity.com/sg.html Another bait that works for me is Missile Baits Drop Craw.

The Zman Project Z is a very nice bait for when I want a bait with a faster vibration. I prefer baits with more thump and being able to customize them to the color I like. Being able to chose the hook and head style is a plus too, which is why I started making my own. This was the color that did really well for me last year, but I switched to a translucent copper colored blade because the water was stained a lot last year.

Still chipping away with reels for the 7 Zodias I just got in the off season.

I'm told "excessive" is like the equivalent of the "F" word.... But yeah patience is potty mouth too!

Awesome package waiting for me tonight from @cadman ... some killer jig heads! hope to tie some up this weekend!

All big brands are out to catch fishermen. That's how they make millions. And they leave it to the pros who represent them to show that their products work on the water by catching fish/winning tournaments, in result making more money for the company. Business is business. I love their frogs, field mice and some cranks. They make a quality product and have resulted in countless numbers for me. Not sure why the gill is being called gimmicky. Bluegill get injured and sometimes die slowly at the surface. Sometimes they flip themselves up in mats or pads and swim/flop on their side to get back in the water. It's no different than a spook imitating a baitfish, why's that not gimmicky? Ill be trying it this summer. It's not first on my list. Not like the new Matt Rat! Patiently waiting Matt!Hook a brother up!

Sorry, I ain't watching the whole thing

Awesome year!! I got my 10th consecutive **AOY award** This season. **Disclaimer: My "league" consists of just me, my wife, our 3 yo daughter, 1 dog and 2 cats

So I bought the house on Lowery a couple of years ago thinking of it as a weekend get-a-way and eventual retirement home. Well, that plan got accelerated, with the divorce final now, it is my full time home. I did not want to mention the divorce until it was over. I can say this, I'm happier than I have been in nearly a decade, my life is back on track and life is good. I had been working off plastic tables and honestly not doing much in the last few months but I had been planning this rod shop for over a year now. Yesterday I finally got started, it's close to complete. I'm going to build a few rods like it is to see if I want to make changes and then I will finish and paint it. 10 ft 2 in by 26 in work bench

I have the calais dc & the met dc & conquest dc and the same reels without dc to compare . The calais dc is top of the line for dc reels. It's only drawback is overall size & weight if that matters to you. The new antare dc is based on the same platform as the calais but will become the new top line standard I'm sure. As mention by others the dc reels are just plan fun to use and to hear the dc whine. They do make casting into the wind very doable. The other dc reel I have is the escence dc. This is the best bang for your bet you buy in a shimano dc. This the reel I would recommend to you. It's around $250 jdm price. I personally like it ever bit as much as the met dc but at a lower price.

I really can't say. I have a whole BUNCH of cranking rods, and they're mostly all graphite, with a few composites, so I don't have any experience with glass. There are advocates for graphite, composite, and glass cranking rods. A lot of it is personal preference in how you want your cranking rod to feel and perform. Advocates of glass feel that the slower action of the rod provides a slight delay to better allow the fish to inhale the bait, and that slower action might also keep the fish pinned better - the advantages of those characteristics then offset whatever weight penalty the glass rod might have. Advocates of graphite might feel that the higher sensitivity of the blank allows them to better feel what's going on with the bait. Advocates of composite want a little of both worlds. These statements aren't absolutes however and there are graphite rods that are pretty slow, and glass rods that are pretty sensitive. So many choices...

Pretty much what dogbone said. On my lure 11.5 i have a lowrance elite 3 with lowrance scupper hole mount. I then have display mounted on left track with wires running behind foot rest and into center console compartment where I store the 12v battery. No drilling...just plug and play

Evan, Most sites allow you to signup for their newsletters/alerts, do it and you will be in the loop.

I hardly spend more then $10 on one specific bait, however last spring I got a gift card for my birthday and while at Dicks I picked up a Live Target field mouse. The very first trip I noticed a lot of topwater activity and decided that was the time to catch my first topwater mouse fish. Tied it on and then looked around for my first target. After noticing a small rare stump in the canal I had been fishing I took my cast, landing 5-6 feet behind my target. My first thought was "perfect" placement. I start to work the mouse back to the boat and as it comes next to the stump I see a HUGE swirl and my bait is traveling sideways. I feel my rod load and set the hook. The very first few seconds I'm thinking I've just hooked into a "teener" and it's stripping line off my reel like nothing ever before. My partner then asks where the stump went that I had castes to and glanced over to notice the stump was now missing. After a couple minutes of chasing and struggling I see a dark shadow under the boat. Then I see the snout and open mouth of teeth with my mouse hooks firmly implanted deep inside of a 5 foot gator. Needless to say the stump was the nose of the gator and I had never noticed. $15 down the drain in ONE cast.....

I like a fast but soft tip for jerkbaits and top waters. I want the action that will help me present the bait the best way to generate strikes. We'll worry about landing them once we hook'em.

Another trick if you are using a jig head without a weed guard, take one of the skirt strands & skin hook it.

@A-Jay Thanks man! Az has been good to me over the yr. Especially the last few weeks. Hows that hard water up in Mi?

I subscribed last Jan. Sub is up now and I won't be renewing, a ton of info but did not help me IMO. Most videos are short, like 2 or 3 minutes short

I own a Lure 11.5 and have a Lowrance Elite 4-HDI mounted on it. I use a scupper mount for the transducer, running the cable into the hull through a 1 1/8" automotive grommet. The display sits on a rail accessory mount. I had a battery in a small Pelican case with a waterproof disconnect, kept in the front hatch. The battery quit after a year, so now I use a battery from my Milwaukee 12V power tools, which lasts a couple of all-day trips. Hope this helps.

Can't help on the kayak rigging other than if you can do thru hull i would do that as it is easier to use and no worries about the whole arm deal off the side. I had a arm on one of my older kayaks and i hated it. As far as FF goes, i will also recommend the Helix units. I have a 5 SI which is out of your price range but the models without SI are in your range. The ease of use is a definite plus for me as is the screen size.

Are you wetting your line when you cinch the knot? Are you checking the knot strength frequently?

That's it, man... Calling TW and asking politely for them to send my d**n sunfish. They've only had my money since what, August? Lol

There is not enough space in this site to list em all!

Although I love tubes, I have to say that my favorite is a home tied hair jig. Just started tying my own because they work so well in cold water and moving water. There's just something about catching fish on something I made that makes it more enjoyable.

Thanks for the clarification, but beginning to seize makes we wonder what type of maintenance the reels were getting in the first place. I have owned DC reels (12-13 currently) since they first came out in both round and lp profiles and have never had a problem with them. Only thing extra is taking a swab with alcohol and cleaning the sensor compared to my non DC reels . All of them get completely striped down on a annual basis just like the rest of my reels. Point is don't be afraid of working on them just because they say DC. Shimano did a real good job of keeping them very simple in my opinion.

You can make a bass look much smaller or bigger depending on the camera angle.These pictures have an angle that make the bass look bigger so it makes it hard to judge the weight.Weigh it next time or at the very least measure it's length and girth!

Nice fish for sure! It's really hard to tell weight from a picture, especially without length. Next time you find yourself in that situation without a scale or tape, cut your bait off, measure the fish with your line and then cut it the length of the fish. Then take the same line, find the largest girth of the fish and tie a simple overhand knot at that distance. Now you can take the line home and measure that to get correct measurements.

Great looking fish, terrible camera angle to guess fish size. Just judging off the size of the fishes' head/mouth compared to your hand, I'd guess around 5 pounds. Length and girth measurements are a huge help in this cases. Or you could spend $2 on a digital scale and get an even better idea. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Portable-40kg-10g-Electronic-Hanging-Fishing-Digital-Pocket-Weight-Hook-Scale-SC-/231714459851?hash=item35f34210cb:g:9mEAAOSw5ZBWFnJj

I love my yak for many reasons but the most important; no longer on the shore.

Two 8.5lbers. One on a SK 10XD crankbait & one on a LC SKT Mag 105 crankbait.

You can use anything as a drop shot bait. I've had success with tubes, soft jerk shads, sluggos, fake leeches, you name it! Don't get too hung up on what you are using for bait; rather, focus on presentation. And here's a hint: you do not have to keep twitching the bait, for it to be effective. With tubes, I just hold it still. Suddenly the rod tip goes down!

My fishing partner and best friend has been a part time multi-species guide for 24 years. Over the last ten, he kept trying to get me to join him, as he was turning away business because he didn't have enough time to do the trips. (we work full time jobs). He kept insisting that I was fully capable and I needed to just get to it. One of the things for me was a trepidation regarding a USCG Captain's license. It is required when you fish navigable waters. I hadn't had to do any serious learning and take a three hour exam in thirty years...that was a concern for me. Finally, I just said okay and threw myself into the course and the exam. Three years later, I'm doing great. It's hard work and a lot of prep of tackle, boats and expensive licensing. It costs me roughly $1200 a year for a MD guides license, boat license and insurance every year and that doesn't include boat and trailer registration fees. (and I'm sure I am missing some other expense...that my wife will always remind me of...LOL) Then there's fuel and maintenance and start up and replacement tackle and ramp fees...get the picture? It's funny when some people scoff at how much a trip costs, believe me, we are not getting rich. Anyone that is an avid fisherman and thinks that it would be a dream job has never done it. It is hard work. The charter Captains I know that are full time work their butts off. For me, once I'm fishing in the black (that what we call it when we have done enough trips to cover our licensing overhead) it is a fun way to make a few dollars doing something you love to do. Every once in a while, usually over cocktails, my buddy will ask, "well, do you love me or hate me for getting you into this life"? I always answer, "yes".

To quote Bocephus: "some of us are born with it; some of em don't ever, ever get it!"

Tom, very sorry about your brother Bob. Wishing you peace to bring comfort, courage to face the days ahead and loving memories to forever hold in your heart. A-Jay

I think Rick Clunn summed it up years ago and his statement still rings true: Catching bass is easy, the challenge is finding them.