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We were on a pretty good school of perch in 30 FOW through the ice... The bite suddenly slacked off and about 2 minutes later I popped this big girl, who ate a 1/12oz spoon tipped with a waxworm! Was quite the battle on a little ice rod and 6lb test. Measured 23", decided we didn't need to bring a scale while ice fishing (WRONG)! Certainly didn't expect a fish like this! I probably should just start targeting panfish because that's how I catch big ones.

Largemouth bass are not my normal pursuit. I'm a smallmouth guy first and foremost so that, I'm sure that influences my decisions. Color and shape are the LAST two things I think about when deciding on what to throw. Location and which presentation will work in that location determines what I throw. Where I fish, once I find them, it doesn't seem to matter which shape or color plastic I use. The way I see it, there are dozens of different colors for me to choose from. If the fish were keying on a certain color, the odds on me choosing the exact right color on the first try or even the second, are very slim. Same thing on the shape. I catch too many fish to think that I have some sixth sense that helps me choose the right color. I don't even use the color picking reasoning that seems to be common with many of the experienced anglers here. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I believe that in most cases, for what I'm doing, color just isn't an important factor. Another thing that reinforces my beliefs is that I am in contact with several other good fishermen who also chase smallmouth. Lure color discussions are almost non-existant. Everybody uses different lures and get similar results. Guys who are catching are getting them because they are good at locating them, not because they are good at picking colors.

For an all purpose rod, I wouldn't spend the money on an NRX. I'd drop down to the IMX Pro or the GLX. The NRX shines in terms of sensitivity and weight. They also have an extra fast action to them, making it great for bottom contact type presentations. If you want an "all purpose" type action in a premium rod, I'd go with an MBR 843 or 844 in the IMX or GLX line.

The only one I care about: biguns.

California doesn’t stock trout for bass to grow fat,California stocks trout for fishermen to catch them, bass feeding and growing big on trout was a happy consequence.

You were nice enough to make me up some swimjigs to match the "KVD Magic" color paddle tails, I was very pleased how they came out.

Hard Water Carp ~ A-Jay

Take a look at KeepinItReelFishing's YouTube channel. The guy (Carl) is from New Jersey and primarily fishes smaller lakes like you see a lot of up in the northeast. He dedicated an entire season to only fishing swimbaits (stuff like Hudds, mattlures etc.) and made some awesome videos documenting his whole process and his results (spoiler alert, he did pretty well). He was one of the reasons I started fishing swimbaits up here in MA. They flat out work but you have to put your time in, and have a solid understanding of bass behavior to be able to target those high percentage areas (something I personally need to get better at for sure). Also while something like a 6 or 8" hudd or deps 175 or swaver 200 might seem big, you will catch plenty of 2-3 lbers on them, do not let the size scare you away. Pick some proven baits (in your case maybe a mattlures soft gill, a 6" or huddgill, and maybe a mini slammer) and dedicate to it. If it's going to just be something to throw for an hour each trip and then go back to fishing senkos then it may not be for you. There's nothing wrong with that but you probably won't see very good results if your goal is to catch bigger fidsh using swimbaits. Whether it's a waste of money is up to you and you alone. What are you looking to do? IMO the biggest mental hurdle is being okay with not catching anything, it's going to happen, you are selectively eliminating the smaller fish population. If a trip out is only worth it if you catch something, even if it means catching an 8" dink on a ned rig, then it might not be for you. But if the reward of maybe your new PB is worth grinding out the bad days in anticipation of the good ones, then go for it. Also, it's not some magic bullet, you aren't going to make fish appear just by throwing a hudd, the fish are still in the same areas they always are, if you know where in your lakes to target, that's the first step.

I haven’t heard, or seen, any discussion about them in quite a while. Truth be told, they’ve taken a back seat to another (hard) bait. Before I bought into the ‘Whopper Plopper Craze,’ it was my go to for a subtle top water presentation although I still occasionally use it in and around emergent weeds. The main reason I bring it up now is to enlighten some of those that are rather new to the sport of its attributes. Aside from its seedless abilities, it can be paused after a surface blow-up and allowed to sink mimicking a stunned whatever the bass thought it was when it was on the surface. Looking for a worm with a lot of tight wiggling action for pre-spawn? Split shot, or C-Rig one. Versatility is a mark of a good angler.l Like so many soft plastics, this one affords you the opportunity.

I doubt that our LMB record will ever be broken but there's that chance (hence my screen name). There's a lake north of Big Pine which as you've mentioned is where the current record came from. In this lake about 12 years years ago my wife's uncle said the DNR shocked the lake and there was a new state record in there. Fast forward about 8 years and I was at the county park of this lake doing a job and I spoke to the Ranger and he said that he had heard the same story except that it came out of the lakes little brother just north but the two were connected. The DNR officer in my area has said he's heard the same thing. My son and his daughter are in the same class so I'm going to make it a point to cross paths with him and "interrogate" him. Lol Obviously genetics play a huge role in size, but so does what we eat and our environment also play a role. Anybody ever sat in a classic car from the 30's 40' s 50's? People were smaller then. Over time we've grown A ton, genetics play A role, but our ever changing environment play A role too. A wise man on here told me his PB LMB from Michigan was 7 lbs and came from a lake that was stocked with trout. 7 pounds in Michigan is a giant. That's about the same as an 11-12lb down south. Coincidence?

I already took the stuff out, but just went on a quick buying run.

What Catt is saying is true regarding LMB growing to be giant bass, Florida strain can grow to over 50% heavier then Northern strain LMB. Examples; California record LMB before Florida LMB were introduced in 1959 was 14 lbs 7 oz. After the FLMB became established that record started falling in 1965 and today the official record is 21 lbs 15 oz, unaffical is 25 lbs 1 oz. Lake Hodges produced a 20 lb 4 oz FLMB , lake record, without any trout as prey! Upper Otay lake where the FLMB were raised before releasing into San Diego city lakes didn't have any trout for prey. The clearest example is lake Casitas that had a rainbow trout planting program since 1958 long before Florida strain LMB were introduced in 1971 as young adult size bass. I caught my northern strain LMB at Casitas in Feb 1971 @ 12 lbs 4 oz, 10 years later after the FLMB were introduced I caught a 18 lb 11 oz (18.6) FLMB, same lake with the same prey sources, the same year lake Casitas produced a 21lb 3 oz FLMB. The only difference is Florida LMB genetics, not the trout prey source. Planted trout become a preferred prey source for FLMB after the big females have already grown big enough to hunt and catch them for food and trout occupy a different part of any lakes eccosystem, they are pelagic fish and bass tend to be dermasel fish that adapt to feeding off shore, mostly because of Threadfin Shad that move off shore, the bass follow the prey source. 45 degrees seems to be the lower limit water temp for pure Florida strain LMB and fact limits their distribution. Tom

SKOL

The G.Loomis GLX MBR844C is the best "all-around" rod I have ever owned, but I consider it my dedicated jig and weighted soft plastics rod.

All species of black bass were transplanted in California came from somewhere else east of the Mississippi River. Gaint LMB are a result of genes and only a small percent of female LMB grow to giant size. Do you think a 1/2 pound bass is feeding on 1 pound trout? Of course not, the bass must be an adult bass over 4 lbs to successfully eat a 1 pound trout. The giant bass starts it's faster growth out competing all it's year class and continues this faster growth it's entire life spawn. The eccosystem must be well balanced with a wide verity of pray available year around and warm water over 45 degrees year around. If anyone believes feeding trout to bass will grow giant bass they are wrong, it's been tried several times and failed. The Flotida strain LMB has the genetic base to grow larger faster then Northern strain LMB everything being equal. I believe FLMB eat planted trout because the trout look like a prey the FLMB is wired to hunt...golden shiners, a large narrow body baitfish. NLMB aren't wired to larger bair fish, the hunt and eat baitfish under 6" long. Like any bass a NLMB will strike big lures and larger bait fish, but that isn't the norm. Tom

"just spray the reel spool every so often as you fill it up"

Congratulations Don! You and your son are exactly the type of people that I hoped this boat would attract. It's a great buy and just the ticket to get a father and his son and /or daughter on the water. It may be the only boat you ever buy or may be one of many in your future. One thing is for sure, it's the beginning of memories being made and shared for you and your son.

I'm a hair jig enthusiast, I've been tying and using for more than 20 years. I got into them for cold water smallmouth fishing and that is what I make them for and fish them primarily. The "preacher" type jigs you are talking about are mainly ledge baits but you can use them in different situations. The one thing you need to be aware of is that they don't work well in heavily stained water, they are a visual bait and guys that I've made them for over the years have all told me the same thing. If they are fishing water with less than 3' visibility they don't even get them out of the box, they opt for other baits when they have off colored water. That said, I know a few anglers that like using them on mid lake humps and rock piles in 12' to 15' and for working the outside edge of deep weed beds. So the 2 main things with these type hair jigs is that you need clear water and you need to be on fish, they aren't a good tool to use as a search bait but other than those two things I'm sure you can find areas that they will work for you.

The biggest factors comparing MI to CA have nothing to do with trout. They are (1) California has FL strain bass while MI doesn't, and (2) California has a much longer growing season compared to MI, due to a warmer year-round climate. The Michigan largemouth record --11.94# -- was taken from 200-acre Big Pine Island Lake in 1934, which is 40 min from my house. It is now a well-developed recreation-heavy lake, that gets a lot of traffic. I fish it sometimes; some decent bass in there now, but no chance there is another record largemouth there, or anywhere else in the area (and no trout in there either). The record was tied again in 1959 elsewhere, but not since. If you follow the master angler entries in MI each year, you will see nobody is coming anywhere near that weight. With modern-day population and fishing pressure, the largemouth record may not ever be broken. On the other hand, the Michigan Smallmouth record has fallen twice all of a sudden in the couple years, after standing for over 100 years. If I were chasing records in MI, I'd be targeting smallies.

California has had Florida strain Bass transplanted there.

I have absolutely 0 problems down here

Went 3-1. Not sure what I just watched exactly but I suppose it happened. Going vikes and jags in the super bowl. Can't pick the eagles cuz I'm a cowboys fan and just wanna see something besides the pats.

One from the porch during my stay in Tennessee, I miss that place

If you're having loose hooks and keepers, it may not be from the sprue removal, but you're not getting good coverage in the mold. This can be from mold too cold to lead too hot. Technically, there's surface tension and lead doesn't "wet" the metal, much like soldering copper, if it's not clean it doesn't "tin" and the solder rolls off. This can gets worse if you reuse hooks from previous bad pours. Oxide or combustion products builds up on surface. Regular, non gold, hooks are coated with lacquer. Make sure your mold is clean inside. I'd heat the mold first, if you don't have an small craft oven(don't use anything for food), what I do is run a couple fills without hooks and then cut back the heat on the pot to just keep it molten (from wide open during melting). Make sure you dross off the pot occasionally, I stir it first to dislodge oxides. Should be shiny on top, if it gets bluish it's too hot. Always heat wear gloves when pouring.

1-13-17 Water Level & Fishing Report I was able to get out to the Alley yesterday morning with my girlfriend. It turned out to be a good morning. The water level is still up and I could hear fish deep in the reeds, but there was plenty of action in the canal. We fished from 7:15 until about 1 and she was able to pull 43 bass (all on flukes) and I managed to get 41 (between flukes, shakey head, and wacky rig). Average bass was just under 2lbs with big bass weighing 4lbs 3oz. The bass were feeding heavily on bait fish and were even spitting them up when being caught. Bycatch for the day wasn't too horrible, together we caught 15 sunfish, oscar, and cichlids. Overall it was a fun day with beautiful weather.

Get you a pair of gate shears and cut the spru off instead of trying to break if off.

Somewhere in the mountains of WV.....(and it's not Mt. Storm )

The bass were going nuts chasing this swim jig I was tossing from the bank last evening, as a storm moved in from the west, pelting the water surface and my rain jacket. Just before sunset, the clouds cleared and the red sun lit up the sky, and the bite shut down. I sloshed across the wet grass back to my car, quite satisfied with myself.

In my estimation, it takes longer than 47 years.

Loxahatchee Saturday 1/13/18 7:00-11:00 Partly Cloudy Pre-front conditions Partly Cloudy Water stained 67* Wind NW 5-15 Picked up Rick and went to the South Ramps along Lox Road. Ran west several miles and fished the flats along the spoil bank. Went through the second cut fishing a Horny Toad. Caught a nice bass on the third cast. Rick was fishing a swimbait and had a follower but could not hook up. We thought the top water bite might be the trick up it stopped quickly. We switched to plastics and slowed way down. The bite was slow but steady. They did not want to chase a bait, but rather a slow steady move along the bottom that got the bites. You could barely feel the bite, just a small thud, and a slow movement was all you got. Around 9:00 I felt a small tick, and thought it could be grass. I took up slack and set the hook, I had a 22.2 inch fat bass, about 6 pounds. I got her head up, and kept it above the heavy grass. Around the same time, and in the same area, Rick caught a nice fatty in the same small 30 yards. We ended the day at 11:00, as the wind really started to blow hard. We boated 18 fish, one big Hawg, a number of fatties, and one double with synchronized hook sets. It was a nice relaxing day, with good company.

Congrats on a pretty awesome January day!

Yup, on my 6th Silverado and never one single issue. Also have an SS Camaro, a Cruze, S10 work truck and Tahoe for the wife ?.

is the top purple? looks like it may be the chub color

Good going guys!

My swimbait PB was from a puddle I could cast across with my 7" Slammer. Most of the lakes I fish are less than 200 acres and I fish swimbaits up to 9" in them. A 6lb fish is a big bass anywhere in the state. I catch lots of fish from a pound up on them.

Daiwa: Red Tune Steez SV TW Alphas Air Stream custom SV-Light LTD-TN

Ford.

This is another photo I took many years ago. I just makes it feel warmer when I'm stuck in the middle of a big cold. Alpine tundra at about 12,000 feet up in the Colorado Rockies

Junior Pad crasher and their popping pad crasher. Wish booyah made a junior popping pad crasher, that would be a killer.

Geo, here are your pics! Thanks for the invite to go fishing! Great time as usual!

Although I haven't fished them yet - Megabass came out with a squarebill version of the 110 that is billed as a shallow runner that suspends. http://www.worldfishingnetwork.com/gear/video/megabass-vision-110-squarebill http://www.tackletour.com/reviewvision110blueprintpg2.html https://www.thehookuptackle.com/fishing-Jerkbaits/Megabass/Ito+Vision+110+Square+Bill A-Jay

They're a bit pricey, but the Lucky Craft Flash Minnows are pretty shallow suspenders

Pad crashers. But I just got in my order of jackall kaera frogs and they look awesome for downsizing profile but not weight.

Species: CATFISH, FLATHEAD (Pylodictis olivaris) Species seperation 1994.) Rank Weight Angler Where Caught Date Caught *1. 95.0 Roland Lasseigne Wax Lake July 2007 *2. 66.0 Harley Rakes Red River July 1998 *3. 52.04 Michael L. Guimbellot Red River February 2000 *4. 50.44 Ricky Gauthier Cane River April 1998 *5. 41.0 Mrs. Joyce Engolia Irish Bayou April 1995 *6. 38.0 Bill Dickinson Cane River Lake June 1994 *7. 33.50 Lucien A. Robert Lake Cataouatche June 1975 *8. 33.13 Justin Burbank False River May 2005 *9. 31.94 Michael Wiley Bayou Decade July 1997 *10. 26.13 Cody Normand Bayou Terrebonne April 1994 They're a blast to catch. I used to guide for them and have spent a lot of hours targeting them. Not many meaner fish out there in fresh water in the US.

Finally caught my first fish of 2018. Too bad it wasn't a bass. It was a decent catfish though. Weighed about a pound and a half or better. Didn't put it on the scale but it was kinda fat. First catfish I've ever caught with an artificial bait. Caught it with a crappie jig head with a small piece of Ol' Monster on it. Not what I was hoping to catch, but it was nice to catch something for a change. Caught it in a little bayou up the road a little ways from the house. I feel like there's got to be some bass in it somewhere just haven't found them yet. May have better luck the closer it gets to the spawn if there's any in there.

Hahahaha I saw that this is someone the Browns are interested in. We've got 5 picks in the first 2 rounds so I wouldn't be surprised if they traded for him. Knowing the browns we'll trade those picks for a couple used tissues and a dirty rag

Only 2 fish Monday, but they were both nice ones. First one just barely missed 6 pounds at 5.92lbs, on a Savage Gear Shine Glide 185, love that bait. Tuesday I took a member of the Kansas State University fishing team with me. We had a steady day, catching fish or two every half hour for most of the day. Most every fish we caught was in the 3lb range but Zach's first fish of the day was 5.08lbs. It's been a good year already.