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Dropped on their heads as babies.

Me and Mark K went up to my favorite Adirondack lake, which I assume was our last trip up there for the year, given the weather conditions we have coming. The upper lake was turning over, and after fishing it for 2 hours with only one bite, we decided to go down into the big lake to see those conditions. The water was much cleaner and we started catching fish right away, although bass were hard to come by. I go over to a deeper bank section that I like, that goes into a shallow flat. The wind was going at this time, and this was the windy side of the lake. We get up to about 4-6' of water where there are scattered boulders/wood and weeds. Right away, Mark lands the biggest bass of the day on a Jerkbait. She was 5lbs 8oz's. Within 2 casts later, I hook into a fish on my tiny lucky craft 1.5 square bill.... At first I just thought it was a bass. I put my talons down so we didn't get blown around with the wind before I got this fish in....and then all of a sudden the fish starts burning off, with power. I knew right away it wasn't a bass. I had to put my talons up quickly because she was power housing through the weeds and I was worried my line was going to break (only 12lb flouro). After a minute or two of her burning drag, I finally got to see her....and she was gigantic. Mark goes and gets the net, but I am not prepared on my boat for a fish of this size...so we just had a bass net. I tell mark that we are going to haft get her head first, and then try to flip her into the boat before she falls out because half of her body will be hanging out of the net....she comes around and goes head first into the net, and my square bill comes out! So now this giant Pike is only halfway in the net, and is about to fall out of it at any second. Me and mark hurry up and flip her into the beat, and I literally jump onto of her and bear hug her to keep her from flipping back into the lake before she calms down. At this point, we can't believe how big this fish was, and its location of where we caught it. Sadly, I do not have a tape measure on my boat big enough. We had to estimate which we came out to 41-42" but she seemed bigger then that to me. This is my 3rd pike well over 40" this season. Maybe I will retire from bass fishing, and hunt these things! Estimated weight is well over 20lbs.I had mark record a quick video, because pictures don't show her actual size.https://youtu.be/rxVCx7Y1wlo I will post some pictures of the 45" northern I got during the summer, that was my biggest northern Prior to this one...

Had a half hour to fish today between work and sunset, so I raced over to a local pond. The bass were going nuts all over the place chasing little fish. I threw out a Menace grub and caught about ten 1-2 pounders in 15 minutes. I then tossed the grub to a wooden retaining wall and something big grabbed it, but I lost the fish on the hookset. I tossed to the same spot, and same result! Third time I had him, and after a spirited fight -- he was pulling out drag on 17 pound fluoro -- I landed, to my great surprise, this huge blue tilapia. Must have been at least 5 pounds. I should have weighed it but it didn't occur to me at the time. The gash in its flank may have been from one of my prior hooksets. It is unusual for tilapia to bite a lure, so my guess is that the fish was defending a bed and not trying to eat it.

My last scheduled tournament of the season was last weekend, the FOBA Classic on Lake Gaston. This lake has really changed over the past several years with the spotted bass population finally reaching 'tournament quality' size. The LM fishing was pretty tough, so the majority of fish weighed in overall were spots, I'd guess at least 75%. I was one of the few that got on a LM pattern and weighed 4 LM and 1 spot on the first day and then 2 LM and 3 spots on the second day. Weighed 9-0 on day 1 and 11-12 on day 2, which was good enough for second place...But only 3oz behind the winner . Only two patterns for me...Covering A LOT of shallow water with a spinnerbait for LM's and fishing a Vision 110 on points for spotted bass. On day 2 I had to give up on the LM pattern after getting only 2 fish by noon, spent the rest of the day targeting spots, worked out OK but I wish I would have pulled the plug sooner - might have had time for 1 more cull . Oh well, still fun and getting paid is never bad!

Pics from my 2 early bird tournaments the last week of October. Took first at both with my father taking a close 2nd in both. All largies that Saturday (20+lbs) and 26.5lbs of Lake Onatrio smallmouth that Sunday. I NY!

Went out Sunday to check on the migration of the Crappie in the Potomac. Currently, they are in the creek channels and canal channels. In the process of searching with 2 inch tubes on 1/16 oz jigheads we caught Bluegill, Catfish, Ring Perch Bass and of course a fair amount of Crappie. Key was to find them on electronics and drop the jig down to them. They should be pulling up under cover with the upcoming cold weather in the forecast.

Unfortunately you're out of luck here. The Xcalibur brand is no longer around - it was the old rotating trebles (Xcalibur) that came equipped on many of the now Pradco baits. The Pop-R, Spit'n Image, Poppin Image and the very popular (and hard to find) Xcalibur One Knocker lipless crankbait to name a few. Heddon was/is the company that made them. I don't own any of the new versions, though I do have a few of the 'Xcalibur versions' (equipped with those hooks which at the time were revolutionary). I believe I bought them in the early 90's - give or take. They're a cool bait, few different sizes back then, walk very well and get bit. Bill Dance had his name on the models I own. I still keep them in my box and use them occasionally. if you're looking to buy that specific version, ebay is the place to look. Pradco is the holding company for quite a few bait companies today. www.lurenet.com

There is a special feeling you get when you stick a major upgrade fish in the last remaining minutes of a tournament. I don't go Ike, but I have been known to throw a high five and a Rick Flair "WOOOOOO!"

The issue of leaving the old crankcase oil in the LU is if water somehow mixes with the oil. This can happen if the seal on the impeller leaks. If that freezes, you have a cracked LU housing. A best practice many up here do is drain and fill the LU after each trip. I don't know about you guys, but when it's 22° outside, it's the same in my garage, so I don't think that's always a safe bet, unless your garage is heated. And yes, I have cracked a lower unit on one of my boats. Embarrassing, but true.

Found a better deal and got a Gen 4 Revo Sx for $75.

Today, I just wanted to say, “Happy Birthday” to my family and friends. And I’d like to say on this Veterans Day to all the Bass Resource vets and those vets around the world, a heartfelt “Thank you for your service”. R.I.P. Pops and Semper Fidelis, I think you’d like where I have these displayed... And to my family, my brothers and sisters in blue, be safe.

Haven't been on the forum in a while, but this was discussed a while back. Someone here contacted a biologist, and between him and others here it was determined the indent is an anatomical condition that occurs when the fish opens it's mouth. It's not visible when the jaw is shut. It's perfectly normal and just a function of the mouth opening and closing.

I have the Ike finesse fishing dvd and he is a different person in it. His finesse dvd and the Kvd spinnerbait ones are the best learning videos I have ever watched. Most videos sold you are just watching someone fish. Allen

I'm not a drop shot expert So I'll let someone more knowledgeable answer that .however I will tell you that a Carolina rig does not suspend your bait off bottom unless you use a floating bait like z man or something.I used to be under that assumption too until I tested some Carolina rigged baits in my in ground pool.the pretty much stay on bottom except when hopped.

Just stop your whining and fish-

My two favorites are the Rage Craw and Menace.

With big baits more of a lob cast or sidearm cast is safer on the backlash front. Select an average weight bait & set the spool tension so the bait just drops on free spool. Then try all six weights on. Use a lob or sidearm cast. Then try five weights on & keep adjusting the number of weights down to none on. What ever works best is what you need to use. Once you have the brakes figured out you can just leave them alone. Then when you want more distance slightly adjust the tension knob to fall more freely until you encounter a problem. Always make slight adjustments until you get the hang of it.

https://www.bfads.net/stores/cabelas/ads/black-friday Cabela's black friday ad. $40 for the president LE size 30 seems like a good deal. Nice reel. $40 off st croix premiers isn't a bad deal either.

1/16 (1/15 if it is a shroomz head) 99% of the time. Usually don't ever go heavier than that. This summer,I had the opportunity to watch a couple of the veteran Kansas Midwest Finesse Fishermen fishing in heavy wind on my home lake. they were using 1/16 oz. Gopher heads and 1/2 of a Zinkerz. After casting they would point the rod at the water with the tip about a foot from the surface, reeling slowly, while shaking the rod occasionally. By doing this they could still use the light heads, without the wind affecting them. After watching them, I don't see many times where anything over 1/16 oz is necessary. The number of fish they caught that day was amazing.

1/16, and sometimes 1/32 or 1/20. 1/16 gets 95% of the use. Go any heavier than 3/32 and you lose one of the vital aspects of the ned rig (that separates it from a jig worm), the no-feel retrieve.

Texas Rigged Plastics & Jig-n-Craw ?

Caught this morning around 10:45. Hardly any bites rest of the day. 3.6lbs, short and stocky. T-rigged black/blue Yumdinger. Interesting dorsal, or lack thereof.

Tom, all he is asking is which rods will give him the best chance of detecting the strike. Can you answer the question, or not? Some ARE better than others. No need to get into some debate about semantics.

No giants to see here, but some solid chunks that I'm pretty proud of. Been bank fishing a few new ponds, and this one particular one has been very stingy. It's clear water, very shallow and dishpan like, coverless, with grass growing over the bank edges. Turns out, that's where the bass like to just hang out, nose to the bank (literally) in just 4"-6" of water. If you walk fast or heavy, or get close, you get a splash of water at your feet as they spook and shoot straight to the center of the pond. Throw a heavy bait along the shoreline and splash the entry, they're out of there. Land more than 2 feet off the bank, they won't come out and get it. Too close to the bank, your line ends up over the grassy edge, bait spending half the time out of the water. Needless to say, this was a tough nut to crack, and catches have been meager, but I finally put the pieces together last night and managed over a dozen bass. Something special and satisfying when you finally make a good catch from a place that seems to have your number most days

Took my bait caster out and headed out into the rain and over cast. Finally i have landed and caught a almost three pound bass on my white chatter bait and strike king rage swimmer swimbait as a trailer. I was also told by Extreme Philly Fishing people open chatter baits in the store and steal the trailer that come with it and most people don't even know they do come with it "I didn't know and i didn't have one in mine so i guess someone stole mine in walmart" Regardless it felt good to catch at least one on it.

Had a totally insane day today! My friends and I did a little exploring, and we found a spring creek with a network of beaver ponds, all of which is loaded with bass, who seemed to have never been fished for before! We caught well over 100 fish, triple hookups were common, the water was clear and the bass were gorgeous. The creek never gets wider than 20' across, and no deeper than 5'. All the damage was done with a ned rig but I'm sure they would have eaten anything. Biggest bass was the 4-13 that I am holding, and our best 5 were somewhere in the neighborhood of 17-18lbs.

It's almost always an adventure fishing in south Florida, even when the bite sucks, like this morning. My friend and I fished the canal on the Boca Raton/Delray Beach line. The first interesting sight was a great blue heron on a dock trying to swallow an large oscar and practically choking on it. He finally managed to spit it out onto the deck and just stood there looking at it not knowing what to do next. Fishing was a struggle, just three small bass and a miniature peacock. A boat near us, though, landed a clown knifefish, quite an interesting creature. And then I caught on a jig, for the first time, a jaguar guapote, seen in the photo. I thought it was a crappie for a few seconds, then I noticed the cichlid fin pattern and recognized it as a guapote from photos I had seen.

Hey Guys, From what I understand, Bass are more shallow and feasting for the winter. Conditions are different every time. But what's your go to bait to throw if you have one for the fall for first casts?

I hope you choke on one of the bean sprouts on your non GMO organic avocado salad, or get burned by one of the hot stones on spa day,...dude...

I picked up a drop shot for the first time this year and learned the hard way that it is possible to over work a drop shot. Most of the time I cast it out, let the weight hit bottom, let the worm sink as long as I can stand, then, without moving the weight, pick up the worm off the bottom, slightly shake it on slack line, and let the worm fall again. I do not like fishing this way at all, but I force myself to fish a drop shot a few times a year to knock the rust off in case I have to resort to it during a tournament.

I was about to say exactly what Dwight did. A lob cast with more of a sweeping motion rather than a whipping one works great.

I have bass fished in several states and have noticed that many of the techniques I use in South Florida work well, even in northern states with bitter cold conditions. Local information is good if you get the information that is honest from a highly skilled fisherman in the area, not so much from other sources. In the end what matters most is time on the water spent wisely, that's what gets you the most consistent good catches of big fish. That's another good lure to use in rivers in the fall.

for me, i stand most of the time and it’s alot more comfortable, stable. my cousin has one in his boat and i really like it. yes, and talk about cheap, a box of 12 cost me a dollar and change at wally world. i picked up several of those. i did use wood and clamps on the two large hatches.

Shad colored spinnerbait in order to guage their activity level. Allen

Then even better!

Looking good. We did the boards and large clamps all the way around the hatch. Did the metal paper clamps do ok?

Looks like there are CPS70MH2E spinning rods available. Tom

I have, use and love my 2-piece medium heavy 6'6" shimano compre. They can still be had as a quick internet search found it. Here are the specs and it can be had for $99.00. They sport alconite guides. Mine has caught, bass, trout, panfish, salmon, large and small. CPS66MH2E Length 6' 6" Pieces 2 Power Med. Heavy Action Fast Line Weight 10 - 12 lbs. Lure Weight 1/4 - 3/4 oz. # of Guides 7 + Tip Foregrip *** in. Rear Grip 10 in.

Swim jig

Might check out the Fenwick methods travel rod. It comes with five sections. You have a handle section, two middle sections and two top sections. I have one that is a medium and medium heavy and a moderate and fast tip sections.

I talked with Brian. Thank you for the recommendation. He was very helpful. I want thank everyone for their input. I decided to go with the NRX 854.

He's on record saying this, other companies have offered him more money than his current sponsors but he refuses to drop them because they have been with him from the start.

Yes, that's a male longear in full spawning colors. My son and I were catching them off spawning beds in a shallow creek. That one happened to be one of the most colorful and also a particularly large one.

Its getting that way in Richmond. On November 8th we have 45* and rain/mist which makes it cold outside.

It depends on my mood and the weather. If I am not baking in the sun/freezing in the wind I will stay longer and try to grind one out. If I am at the beginning on a long work break I will stay longer but if I am about to start work up again I will move more often to try and get on some fish. If I am by the pond by the great bbq place I stop fishing at 1pm irrespective of how much they are biting.

here is my rig. it is a 2017 ranger Z175. I have owned it for almost a year now. looked at several boats before ordering this one. it cost me $32,000.00 fully loaded. with a 115 mercury pro xs four stroke it will hit 50 mph. it is equipped with 2 hummingbird helix 7's and an Ultrex tolling motor. the only thing I did not add to the boat is power poles. with the Ultrex I have not yet felt the need for them. handles rough water amazingly well. very easy to control in the constant Kansas wind, compared to my previous mod v aluminum boat. surprisingly easy to load and unload with one person. fits nicely in my suburbia garage.

Here's my latest rig, 2014 Smokercraft Pro Mag 182 with Suzuki 140 fourstroke. Rigged with Humminbird Helix units, Minnkota Terrova and 12' Talon. Awesome rig, motor is whisper quiet and super good on gas but still will hit 50mph. We do everything in it from downrigging salmon and lakers in big swells on Georgian Bay to flipping for largies in 1' of water on smaller inland lakes.

Our Lund dealer called and said our boat is in!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. They are storing it for the winter for us and installing the electronics etc. so it will be ready for us to pick up in the spring. We just had to take a run over and have a sneak peek. love the new boat smell. here's a few pics