Leaderboard

February 16th, 2016 25" Weight Unknown (fish calculator says 10.4) 1/8oz SK Football Shakey Head x Nikko Baits 6" Club Tail Bass Worm Green Pumpkin St. Croix 6'8" Medium x Shimano Symetre 3000 10lb Stren Braid x 8lb P-Line Fluoroclear (No I don't usually use copoly for leaders, don't make fun of me) Lake Anna, Va, "Hot Side"

I've always thought of it as a very short injured Senko. A-Jay

I can tell you what it mimics -----> it mimics food, doesn´t matter which kind of food. Overcomplicating things.

indigenous swimbait December 11lb-2oz 26.5" Florida rapala tail dancer May 7lbs-6oz 22.5" Pennsylvania

10lb 2oz GA Bass

October 2014, 7lbs 1 oz. Conesus Lake. Caught on a homemade 1 oz flipping jig w/Havoc pit boss trailer, pitched into a small isolated deep grass bed in 18' FOW that I could only see on my graph. August 2013, 6lbs 12oz. Silver Lake (one of two fish that I have caught that same exact weight on Silver). This one was caught during one of my 3 hour, 3 fish Thursday evening tournaments. Took lunker, and helped wnybassman and I win the tournament with 13.69 lb for our 3 fish limit. Caught in about 10 FOW on a 5" green pumpkin wacky rigged yum dinger on a 1/16th oz. wacky jig head................I am more "proud" of this one than the 7lber. 7lber's are not all that rare, but also not common on Conesus, every year at least one or two get weighed in in tournaments. I have fished tournaments for over 10 years now on Silver, and not once in those 10 years..............either before, or after I caught that 6-12, has one bigger came across my scales, or any other tournaments that I don't run the scales...............I keep tabs LOL. Some day one will...............I just hope it's me that does it again.

What to do when Bass season is not open? Sometimes I go some place that it is ~ A-Jay

New PB... North Mississippi

Some people like to cut them down even shorter to whatever length stores easiest and mount an old reel with braided line and tie one of those lure retrievers to it.

It kinda looks like anything and everything. Here's a good quote from the late great Tony Dean (courtesy of T-9). "If you've come around to realize that the exact imitation isn't nearly as important as coming up with something that kinda looks like the real thing and put it where it should go, you've pretty much figured out what it takes to be called a good fisherman."

I think it's designed so that no one will know you bought a Flooger!

What to do when Bass season is not open AND WHEN IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE ?

I night fish a lot so I aint much of a line watcher! Maintain contact with your jig at all times, allow the jig to free-fall unrestricted, but without letting slack form in the line; follow your jig down with your rod tip. Once on the bottom feeling a jig bite requires keeping a certain amount of tension on your line while at the same time keeping a certain amount of slackness in your line. To the average angler this makes no sense at all but to the experienced jig fishermen it makes total sense.

I always try to let the jig fall straight down on a slack line as that generates more bites on the drop for me. I estimate that 75% of the strikes I get I feel either a "tick" or a preferably a "POW" travel up the line. I fish jigs on a baitcasting setup with heavy monofilament line. For the other 25% of the time I generally detect a different feel when I "weigh my jig". If the weather conditions are really crappy then most of my casts will be short (like 15 to 25 feet). I catch them at night on jigs when it is totally based on feel. As to when is a good time to throw a jig I subscribe to the "always" theory! Good luck and keep throwing jigs.

Nice Bass for sure ~ Congrats Catch & release is a good thing but with the release aspect there is usually a certain level & expectation of survival. Clearly keeping them allows no chance for survival but allowing fish to roll round in the dirt so one can take / post a picture, doesn't show much imagination or effort in the area of actually aiding in a successful release. Shore bound anglers can easily carry a section of flexible material to be used as a mat. Almost any clean, flat, non-absorbent item will work nicely. It can be rinsed & wiped & rolled up for easy use, carry / storage. And it's re-useable too. Please consider it. The bass gods will thank you. A-Jay

Wonder if he's fishing in the BBB? Wouldn't want a big, dumb fish swimming around for that. I still think that fish looks deader than dead in that basket picture.

Use it to hold the spool when re-spooling your baitcasters.

My first DC reel ever on my first G. Loomis rod. The Exsence DC is definitely heavy, but it feels like a tank. I'm still debating whether I keep it or sell it to get a Met DC instead. I think it would work great in my next trip to Argentina

To the OP - as you can see, everyone usually has some good reasons on why certain boats are good for them. Your mission is to figure out what works best for you. If you search through this forum you will find a number of threads that you might want to read to get even more opinions. As to your original post - you mention that you fish alone half the time. What about the other half - do you want a boat big enough for two anglers? If so, you will have to look at tandem kayaks or canoes of 14 ft. minimum. My boat is 11'6" and while it originally had two seats it would absolutely not accommodate two anglers. Regarding some of the above generalizations about canoes - as I posted before, there are canoes, and then there are CANOES. Generalizations often do not apply. Examples: Get on the water fast: My boat does take about 12 minutes to rig, from the time I pull up to the lake with the boat on the roof of the car until I push off. Not bad. Awkward to load and unload: My bare hull weighs 34 pounds - compare that to kayak weights. Not awkward for me. Transportability? No special roof rack needed, no lifting aid needed - I just pick it up, put it on the roof of the car,and strap it down . Now, I'm only 63 and someday when I get "old" I might have to get a special rack and a lifting aid - that will be a few years down the road hopefully. AND, I have enough clearance to drive into the garage and be ready to leave the next day - no unpacking/repacking: Room - especially standing room? I've got some: State of the art electronics? Well, I've got DI/SI sonar. I don't have 360 imaging but could rig it if I wanted it. What other electronics do I need? High winds? I just spent three days in a row on the lake with winds of 15-20 mph, gusts up to 30. Not fun, but doable. That's why I have a 55lb trolling motor... Standing capability: I literally stand all day, only sitting down to change baits, bring in fish, and eat lunch. I fished seated the first season that I used this boat and it drove me crazy. For the past 5 years it's been all standing. Not only standing, but standing while under power so I can cast and work an area while underway - especially handy when the fish are shallow and you're "beating the bank". In the photo below, I was under power, working down that shoreline. Why bother with a pimped out canoe - why not get a real boat: Well, as I pointed out in my earlier post, it's a matter of capability - not vessel type. The pimped out canoe does everything I need it to, without gasoline, a trailer, a consumed garage bay, maintenance, etc. How much boat does one need for lakes 200 acres or smaller. Storage? Along one sidewall of the garage and still have room for a vehicle in that bay: Rough water / heavy rain: I have to concede that. Kayaks are MUCH better in those situations - especially for white water or in the salt. However, in my case, where I live, heavy rain often means lightning as well and it's off the water for me in that case. If heavy rain is forecast, I don't go in the boat that day - I fish from the bank. On the occasions when I do get caught in heavy rain, I usually pull up to some shoreline cover, and bail the boat out as necessary. So, the above are some of the counterpoints to issues raised above that apply to my particular boat, rigging, and needs. AND, another benefit of having a lot of inboard room is that you don't have to handle fish like this in your LAP... As I said in my earlier post, some types of small watercraft (canoes, kayaks, bass raiders, float tubes, pontoons, inflatables, etc.) are perfect for some people. No one type of small watercraft is perfect for all people. AND, generalized statements often do not apply to all situations... Different "floats" for different folks... It's all good... (if some reading this think it sounds familiar - it's because much of it was in the February thread... )

So...a couple years ago, the guy who was supposed to join me on a Canadian trip had to back out (he had a good reason, family medical issues). I happened to mention this at a meeting I had for a local conservation group. One of the guys at the meeting spoke up and indicated he'd like to go if there was room. We'd fished together a a few times, and while he hadn't been the best partner I'd ever fished with, he hadn't been terrible. I thought about it a while and thought, "What the heck, how bad can it be?" Here's how bad: Didn't want to come up the night before and pre-pack the boat and truck so we could get going on time. One of his "tackle boxes" was a 5 gallon bucket...the other one was a 12 pack Leinie's corrugated box. Lure organization was...a pile. We were 40 minutes down the road when he remembered he'd left his passport in his truck. Sat at a different table when we stopped to eat on the way up. On the first day of fishing, at the end of the day...this plays out: When I'm done for the day in Canada, I like to spend some time straightening up the boat at the dock so it's not a three-legged cluster #@%$ in the morning...so I start doing this, putting stuff away, cleaning off fish schmutz... My fishing partner...let's call him "Bob"...picks up his three rods, his Leinie's box and his bucket and takes off for the cabin...keep in mind that there's a dozen boats at the dock, with tens of thousands of dollars worth of tackle and gear n them...all better than his... I think to myself, "What the heck?"...and then I thought, "NO problem, he's probably going to fix dinner." I finished cleaning up the boat, headed back to the cabin, walked in, where "Bob" greats me with, "Hey, I hope you've got something to eat, I just brought enough of this for myself." BTW...he was standing there drinking one of my beers... ...so I warmed up some killer chili I'd brought along...about the time it was done, he says "That sure smells good, can I have some?" I said, "Sure." and I went to bed. When I get up in the AM, the chili is still on the stove and when fumblenuts stumbles out of his bed a while later, he let me know, "Hey! You left the chili out last night." All week long, he wanted to fish for walleyes and lake trout...even though they were not biting and pike, muskies and smallies were killing each other to get to our lures. He never...not once...helped net a fish, all week. He never commented when he had a follow on a fish...in fact...the few times I saw him have a follow, he try to hide it, or flat out deny it. He's a musky guy and never boated one all week...mostly because he kept throwing huge baits when they told us, clear as a bell on day one, that they liked stuff that was about 7" - 8" long... He sulked for two days when I caught 3 muskies in an hour... He didn't offter to drive at all on the way home...just sat in the passenger seat and complained that the sun was too hot on him and that we needed to turn the A/C in the truck down (it was set at 70°). "Bob" and I don't fish together any more...he keeps asking...but oddly, I've always got all the seats in my boat full for that trip...

Second fish is a tank. Congrats? On a sidenote, what's the deal with all the fish on the ground pictures lately.

Went to Melvern on Sunday. Primarily fished TC & Eisenhower due to the wind. Was very slow on my boat but caught a few including one nice fish in TC on a Ivy BHW

Got the news today of the passing of this legend, the report included that today was also his 79th birthday. A tremendous talent who wrote over 700 songs and made a huge impact in country music as well as a lot of lives, your music will live on Hag! Thoughts and prayers are sent out to family and friends, truly a great loss, may God bless and be with you all.

Pretty good so far. 6.43, 5.2, 3.2, and 2.8 in two full days. Drop shotting is about all that works. Good fish for Oregon.

Both are just tremendous fish Dwight. Did the smallmouth put up a great fight?

I think we have had this discussion. It's days that do not end with a "Y".

Now on its new permanent home. Orochi XX Perfect Pitch Balance is very good for a rod of its power rating.

I don´t pay any attention to reviews, most of the reviews on "cheap" combos are done by people who don´t fish on a regular basis so they don´t put the gear to real wear and tear. BPS has good rods and junk rods, the same applies to reels, some combos are good or even excellent and others are utter trash; "higher end" ( like for example a ProQualifier reel paired to a an Extreme rod ) are the ones you want to purchase.

mount this on the boat

If it were a expensive rod, id try the method WRB mentioned. Be a good winter project. Otherwise, strip the giudes,tip off for extras. The handle makes an excellent fly or wife swatter

I had the tires replaced and "knock on wood" the trailer is smooth and no issues. Hopefully this solved my problem. Thanks for the input everyone!

Good question, but way too many factors to add into the formula for a "one shoe fits all" answer. May I suggest reading all you can about the bass' behavior? I do not want to appear flippant and would love to give you the "right" answer, but with water clarity, water temperature, wind, air temperature, biometric pressure, moon phases, depth, structure, cover, dogwood trees, cold fronts, warm fronts, blue bird skies, cloudy skies, early AM, late PM, boat traffic, fishing pressure, rain, drought, salt water encroachment, current, storms and time of the year, fast retrieves, slow retrieves and types of baits one just cannot put their finger on a simple answer. The bass are where you are fishing. Your test is to find what they want to eat, at what depth, what size, what color, what speed and under, over or adjacent to any underwater structure. Keep a log and after three months of fishing the same body of water under different conditions you will see a pattern for that one body of water. So "no," don't wait till noon. Hit the water as soon as possible and start your log and study of the bass' behavior in your body of water. Who knows? Maybe your personal best is the only bass out there that is interested in your presentation and technique. Keep us posted on what you find out.

If you can't think of "that guy", that means you ARE that guy LOL

I've owned a bunch of Mojos and the only one I ever broke was my own fault (swinging a 3lb fish on a medium spinning rod, dumb, dumb idea). I own a few dozen St. Croix rods, the only one that ever broke that wasn't my fault was a Rage, which have pretty well documented breakage issues and have since been discontinued. Even when it was my fault, St. Croix took care of me and replaced it for a minimal fee and they even have a discount shipping program for you to send it in with. Comparing the quality of a $200 rod to a $120 rod isn't a very level comparison.

If you are talking about a paddlin' canoe, you are correct. But I'll bet dollars to donuts that I can hold my position in the wind easier than you can with a kayak. I put the trolling motor in reverse with just enough power to keep it in position, backed into the wind. I can slide the canoe from side to side, and the wind does not spin it because, like AJ's canoe it has a keel about two inches in height that runs the length of the canoe. My paddlin' canoe is another matter entirely. It has no keel, and even when anchored it can and will spin like a top. You'd think it would be like a kite in the wind, but that is not the case. It can do some funky things in the wind. My canoe with the trolling motor does have one downside. It is a square stern. When the waves get high enough, and steep enough, they will slop over the stern when holding position. All boats are compromises. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. I enjoy my canoe as much as, maybe more than my Nitro Z-8 bass boat, on smaller waters that do not require as much travelling. With the various types of boats, discussing which is "best" or "better", is like discussing whether fly fishing is better than "regular" fishing. Every fisherman is different. One man's meat is another man's poison, and all that kind of rot.

I"m so sorry about July and August for you.

A-Jay

LOL, and the winner is..... Ned has stated all of these as possible items at some point, but the majority of the time, you'll find his answer as the following: "Most of our lure presentations are focused upon replicating invertebrates," (such as crayfish and immature aquatic insects). But I agree with Raul and IndianaFinesse, don't overthink it. There are 6 retrieves in Midwest Finesse that can easily replicate anything and everything. -T9

That concerns me also. Not a fan.

Ah, you two need a little alone time??

There are canoes, and then there are CANOES. There are yaks, and there are YAKS. You can't really compare them unless you decide how you want to rig them and how you want to use them. This question comes up often enough that I have some boilerplate text on file and will paste below. Welcome to BR. Really, only you can answer that question. Some types of small watercraft (canoes, kayaks, bass raiders, float tubes, pontoons, inflatables, etc.) are perfect for some people. No one type of small watercraft is perfect for all people. In selecting whether you want to get a canoe or a kayak, you need to make a list of your needs, and then determine which craft is the better fit for you. Some of the factors to consider: Stabililty and standing capability (moving around, landing fish, another person or kids or dogs in the boat, standing to fish, etc.) Cargo/gear storage (how much stuff do you want to take) Inboard storage & handling (canoe) versus handling things in your lap or over the water (yak) Seating position (usually, but not always more upright seating in a canoe vs. legs-out in yak - have back problems?) Vessel weight (how much can you lift/transport) Transportability - to the water and possible portaging (do you have a truck, trailer, going to car-top, need to portage, etc.) Ease of paddling Will you want the capability to motor it? Manueverability Type of water (lakes, streams, white water, etc.) Number of people in the craft Stay mostly dry or don't mind getting a bit wet Length of voyage (couple hours or a couple days) Etc. Once you answer those questions based on your own capabilities and needs, you'll come closer to chosing either a canoe, a yak, or a hybrid. All are great watercraft in their own ways, you just have to find the best fit for YOU. I faced the same decision as you are tying to make now but I was open to all types of small watercraft from float tubes up to bass boats. The best solution for ME, was a heavily accessorized canoe. I only fish my local, small (1.5 to 201 acres), no-wake lakes. Some of these lakes don't have boat ramps. I needed something car-topable without a special rack, modular, very light weight, with as much capability as possible. I wanted stability so I could stand and fish all day, lots of inboard storage, motorized, and little to no maintenance. I didn't want to have to buy a truck or other tow vehicle, I didn't want to consume a garage bay or driveway space with a boat and trailer, didn't want high expense and high maintenance, and didn't want to use gasoline power. Taking everything into account, I ended up with a canoe, trolling motor, and outriggers for stability.

I have used a jig & a minnow for walleye for ever up in Canada. Very good presentation in cold water. I have used hair jigs tipped with a minnow for smallmouth bass as well. It works great in the spring. I caught a 6-14 smallie on one a few years back.

I'm so sorry guys......... Jeff

try a standard texas rig. a small bullet weight and a 3/0 offset worm hook. a 6" worm is awful hard to beat with fish that size, and bigger.

I like hearing the word deep....lol

I'm catching them on both secondary stuff and main lake stuff. Just go out and fish the deep stuff you like, there will probably be fish there.

That's awesome guys. Again, Congrats. We caught a lot of fish but never got a big bite. Pretty sure I had a crappie that would have beat our big bass.

Here ya go.

Fished from 10-7 today. Caught a little over 50 fish. Had 22lbs. Two fish over 6 and broke off 7 fish over the course of the day. Never broke off that many fish in my life. Found tons and tons of fish, but just couldn't make them bite.