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I love using Earth when scouting for new waters and even for getting a different perspective on known waters. They closed one of the lakes on our local wildlife refuge for maintenance about four years ago and it was reopened two years ago. Earth was very helpful when seeing what was done by the earth moving equipment. First picture shows the lake drained and under maintenance. The other picture shows what it looks like today. There are a lot of four pounders being caught these days from yaks.

On a side note, it is also cool to see your own boat on the dock...

I was having a slow morning, just 3 or 4 smaller fish, when all that got turned around by this 5lb 7oz fish. I am really hoping this is a sign of things to come as the fall bite heats up hear in Minnesota. Caught on 1/2oz white/charteuse spinnerbait with a 3.75 Rage Swimmer trailer. Also, I am trying to stop long-arming everything but it was seared into my brain by my dad when I was a kid and its a hard habit to kick haha

After a couple less than stellar days, the stars aligned and I had the best 2 hours of the year. Found fish in Spring spots and revisited an old friend ( chatterbait!) 3 fish for 12.6 lbs with a 5.1 SM topping the list. Missed a bigger LM at the boat. Note to self, close the cleat, it tangles the net?

Hmmm... could it be?

Was a good day - Got about 25 in 4-5 hours between 16-20 inches. Topwater early (before the wind kicked in), then all Chatterbaits (6-10 fow). Water temps in the 50’s helps, find the green coontail and stay there...

Honestly Its the one thing I can always count on. I used to swear by dead-sticking a Carolina rig on the dog days, but this year I had a Texas rig tied on instead. Pumpkin seed 8" power worm, pumpkin seed rib snake or watermelon red rib snake. They produced all year with very few exceptions.

I still don't believe Glenn even exists. I've never actually seen him in person, only grainy video. People have searched for him everywhere and only found footprints. He's just a hoax. Your pal, Bigfeets

Here's a set of S-Crank bluegills I did for someone. Mike

Texas rigged worm is where most of our bass fishing started but seems like it gets forgotten with all these new techniques and baits.Like most of you I got tackle bags filled with all different types of baits and lures but if I need fish in the boat I'll break out old reliable.

not with some of us ?

It just works,to me it's what bass fishing is really about,don't get me wrong it's fun catching them on other baits but just something special about a Texas rigged worm.

agreed... don't know why Academy sometimes gets a bad rap...the one I go to has spinning & baitcasters 200 dollars and up for the discriminating buyer down to 50 bucks for the H20 Xpress Mettle baitcaster for the man on a budget... and all the other fishing gear... good fishing...

I have 2 5 gallon buckets of used plastics that are both about half full, one is natural colors, the other is dark colors like black and blue and junebug. I melt them down and repour during the winter.

ACADEMY H20 XPRESS

Green Pumpkin is a staple for most guys, but any color can work. Green Pumpkin/ Red Flake is VERY popular on the Tennessee River lakes, but I have had good luck with Okeechobee and PB&J, too. Blue/ Black Flake and Watermelon are always in my bag.

The fact that Lucas has liked every MLF post on social media tells me he's probably gone. I'm sure he is trying to be respectful of his AOY win and put a little space between that and his announcement.

Went out fishing this morning and started with a red eye shad and exclusively fished it for the couple hours I was out. I ended up catching a bunch including a few that were 3+ lbs. However the person I was with, seeing I was nailing them on the lipless crank, was shuffling through all his lipless cranks of other brands and only managed to catch one fish. Sure there are other factors that had to do with this but I am just saying I am pretty happy with the R.E.S.

So many things... Passing by at an unsafe or illegal distance is wrong. Blowing through no wake zones is wrong. But that's about it from what I've read. If they really were prefishing for a tournament, they were probably doing exactly what they had planned on doing that day. You don't go hooking up with every fish you can inan area you want to fish on tournament day. Some baits, I'll throw without a hook. Get a few bites to locate fish and get a feel for how big they are in a particular area and move on. If the pattern calls for a bait that I can't throw without a hook,I pin one or two at most and get the heck outta there. Maybe spend 10 or 15 min per spot. When and if,at the end of the day, you overheard them complain about bad fishing, it probably wasn't from a lack of them landing fish,bitmore likely an inability to find a pattern or the pattern they expected to be present. I'd much rather a bass boat scream by me on plane than at half step. That wake is barely a bother compared to a 12ft aluminum boat with a 9hp motor and a 225lb man plowing water nose up thinking he is more courteous. I get you were trying to throw some humor on this situation. I just don't think you understand what these guys were trying to accomplish. The issue is everyone thinks they own the water. Rec boat guys are the worst, recreational fisherman think they have the right of way because they're just taking it easy and shouldn't be bothered by anyone else, tourney guys think they should be given the wide berth because they are "fishing for something" money, prize, trophy, bragging rights... The truth is, as long as laws aren't broken we can't control a single thing someone else chooses to do. And common courtesy, manners, respect... Well that's all relative. What may bother me might not affect your day in the slightest, what I perceive as the height of rudeness might just be your daily routine.

Update... I own a new to me boat. Lol I took the local boat mechanic with me. He agreed it was a good buy. I'll take some more pics and give details tomorrow

So I decided to start throwing some big or “bigger” swimbaits to get hat trophy fish. I know you can spend hours without a bite. I started off with a 68 perch hudd but I feel like I need to learn that some more. I switched over to a new 7 inch keitech and Boom! First ever swimbait fish.. and it’s funny how everyone says small fish eat them to but you can’t belive it until you see it .. little guy was barely 1.5 pounds

KVD just threw his hat in!

"And who, disguised as a mild mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper, (that should be changed to a great national bass fishing web site) fights a never ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way...………………"

Mister Twister did a lot of Jack's jig patterns in their Nature Series of baits. I thought maybe they had bought out Jack, but I've been told they were merely knock-offs/replicas.

Definitely agree with the M&P recommendation and another well-respected option would be a Springfield XDs. If you want to see a really nice breakdown for either one or the side by side comparison, hickok45 does an exceptional job (1.4 million views).

The hair jigs were "Crawford Jigs," tied by Jack Crawford out of Racine, WI. They were popularized by Bill Binkelman in the pages of his "Fishing News," which was the predecessor to Fishing Facts before George Pazik took complete control.

I use a Cumberland float tube. I love it. The Tube is inexpensive and it gets me off the bank and into areas most bank anglers can't get to. I wear Caddis waders. Also inexpensive. For fins I recommend dive fins and not float tube fins. With wader boots and tube fins my legs got tired after 2-3 hours. Wear large crocs that fit over the neoprene wader booty to the waters edge and take them off and put them in the back of the tube. Put on the dive fins and you are all set. I thought about a fishing kayak and went with the float tube as it fits in the back of my SUV inflated and I can be on the water in minutes. Great for hitting a pond after work for a couple of hours during the week.

They’re are not required but it’s your money and you can spend it however you’d like. I’ve noticed minimal performance gain but certain bearings do make it easier to achieve the same distance with less effort. The gain you get for the money isn’t exactly cost effective but I enjoy tinkering and therefore I install Zpi Sic or YT Fusion HD+ bearings in all of my reels.

Just the bare necessities

Got out a few days.ago got 7 on a chatterbait with this one checking in at 4-1

This is what it's all about, be nice to people and they'll probably be nice to you!

I try not to go through plastics, for a few reasons: -I'm stingy. -I am concerned about biphenols like pthalates in the water, due to some evidence that some can cause reproductive harm in fishes and other aquatic life. So... I maintain my soft plastic baits. I repair them with Mend-It, or cyanoacrylic glues. If one gets torn and looks like it'll only catch one more fish, I replace it, and mend it when I return home. I try to find more durable substitutes for certain baits. Bc of toxicity concerns, I never discard soft plastics around water and pick up all I find out there. I'm also using some Elaz-Tech type plastics that are more durable and, supposedly, without the reproductive toxicity potential.

You can have lures in your tackle box or bass in your in your livewell...ya can't have both! If I catch one bass per piece of plastic it's done it's job! Plastics that I know work I'll buy in bulk, the only used plastics I keep are for jig trailers.

Mail Call.

I have been a Master Pistol Instructor and Master Rifle Instructor as well as a certified Armorer for numerous firearms manufacturers for over 20 years. I also testify as an expert witness in both state and federal court regarding firearms evidence and I'm in my 27th year as a police officer in a major jurisdiction. Just to give you some info so you can decide if my advice is worth your time. Choosing a duty weapon is not a decision you can make by figuring out what is a "reliable" or "desirable" firearm or what someone else likes or prefers. Kudos to his department for allowing him to choose his sidearm!!! I feel that is extremely important! Please ask your son the following: 1. Why doesn't he like the Glock .40 (I assume it's a Model 22)? The specifics of his answer is how you will search for the new sidearm. 2. Has anyone ever helped him check his natural "grip angle"? Everyone has a natural tendency to "point in" . UNLOAD THE GLOCK. Then check to make sure it's unloaded. Then check AGAIN to make sure it's unloaded. Have him hold the pistol in front of him in a two-hand grip in the "hunt" position (depressed muzzle position). Tell him to pick a point on the wall at about eye level like a picture or wall light. Tell him to close his eyes and visualize the point on the wall. Have him quickly raise the pistol to a firing position WHILE KEEPING HIS EYES CLOSED. Freeze. Have him open his eyes and determine where his sight picture is in relation to the point on the wall. Is the front sight way below the rear sight so his shot would go really low? Is the front sight way above the rear sight so his shot would go really high? Are his front and rear sights nearly level? Different pistols have different grip angles. Some of us naturally point in at a grip angle that matches the Glock grip angle. Some of us naturally point in at an angle that matches a more upright grip angle such as a 1911. Can he learn to shoot a pistol that does not match his natural inclination for grip angle? Of course he can, but it may be easier (and more comfortable) for him to find a pistol that matches his natural "point in". 3. Is it the recoil/muzzle flip of the Glock that he doesn't care for? He should try a 9mm Glock pistol. Don't listen to the pop culture gun "experts" that bad mouth the 9mm. The 9mm round in its different variants has killed more people all over the world than any other pistol round by about a multiple of 50. I carry a Glock 17 (9mm). No one I work with wants me to shoot at them so it must be a decent round. All of our MFI's (Master Firearms Instructors) are trained to watch our shooters that have smaller hands or less grip/wrist/forearm strength for the tell-tale sign that the .40S&W round is not for them. You can see that shooters with smaller hands/weaker grips will absorb the recoil from the .40 and the gun will actually twist slightly in their hands. Glocks have a right-hand twist to their polygonal rifling and a .40 round is actually hot enough to translate to the recoil causing the gun to twist as the muzzle rises if the shooter isn't strong. In my experience it's actually more likely for a "less strong" shooter to be more comfortable with a .45ACP than a .40S&W. The problem with the .45 becomes the size (circumference) of the grip. If it is the recoil/muzzle flip that your son doesn't like, warn him that the polymer-framed pistols are much more forgiving than steel or aluminum-framed pistols. Super slow-motion video shows that polymer-framed pistols bend and flex with every shot which translates to less felt recoil. 4. Is it the trigger that he doesn't like? That's a no-brainer. He need to try some different pistols until he finds one that he likes. Most importantly, don't look for a "bargain". There are cheap guns, there are good guns that are excellent purchases for homeowners and people with concealed carry licenses, and then there are firearms that can take the abuse of a daily duty weapon. Keep your manufacturer shopping list short, perhaps focused only on those pistol manufacturers that have built guns to compete for military contracts, etc. I'm happy to help in any way that I can. Feel free to PM me also if you wish.

Long leaders, splitshot, and double fly rigs...lol! Spawn, skein, glow in the dark spoons, and deep diving jr. firesticks all work well, jokes aside. Wouldn't use anything less than 15 lb test if you're going for kings. All other salmon and steelhead you could probably get away with 10-12 lb.

If Lucas goes right after winning the AOY, I think that might even make Boyd Duckett and Gary Klein wince a little. ? Make sure you remember your Bassresource brothers when you're at the top! ?

I think now you and get hooked on big swimbait deeper than that bass lol. Get ready to spend a lot of money, there is no turning back.

gonna be in the 80’s all week here with upper 80’s by the end of the week. swt’s are still around 80. i am SO ready for fall, it aint even funny. maybe by the end of October, who knows?

@whitwolf started a nice thread a while back that covered a lot of vintage Rebel stuff... Vintage Rebel

Is there anywhere in the Kansas city area on the missouri side to catch smallmouth?? I have never caught any and would like to check it off the bucket list!! Thanks in advance. I have a boat, kayak, and legs so I should be able to hit any body of water.

I believe the whole concept of "Walmart Shopper" is a smear campaign started by the grocery unions since Walmart refuses to unionize. It also has a regional tilt, with those on the coasts turning up their nose at a company with roots in the south. Look at the posts on this thread and a majority of the time, the location of the author will dictate their opinion on Walmart. I came to these beliefs a few years after my son began to work for the Walmart corporation out here in California. As an employee, he has been treated much better than he was at a unionized Albertsons prior to that and reports the customers he sees at his store are really no different than he saw at Albertsons. While he has seen some odd folks late at night at Walmart, the most amazing thing he ever saw was at Albertsons at closing time. A man who looked like Howard Sterns doppelganger came in wearing a shear black dress & matching black heels.

We don't use the self checkout unless we absolutely have to. After finding what you want if you can find it they should give you a discount for using the self checkout. If they have something you really like you better stock up on it. They will probably get rid of it and have something else the next time you want it.

I go through a lot of plastics. It has made me really re-think the true value of a hardbait. I have caught dozens of fish on the same Whopper Plopper, it's worth it's weight in gold compare to a bag of plastics. I do try and repurpose my plastics as much as possible. Half a stickbait becomes a Ned rig, etc.

I'm approaching retirement so I'm at a point in my life where I have plenty of money and not enough fishing time. I'm trying to maximize my catch and I don't worry at all about the cost of plastics. If a bait is damaged in a way that affects it fishability, it gets replaced. After retirement, when my income will be much lower and my fishing time will be much higher, I'll probably pay more attention to fishing cost and will probably try to get the most out of a plastic bait.

I remember well my last trip to Walmart several years ago. I was walking out to my car after a terribly long wait to check out with terrible service. The tower clock at the side of the building donged 4 times. I thought to myself, it can't be four o'clock already. I looked up at the clock and it showed 2:30. I thought, this place is nuts, and I haven't been back since.

The moderate rod is likely designed to be a crankbait rod. Go with the medium heavy... or since it’s a Veritas, you may even want to go with a medium. Those rods are pretty stout for their rating.

When my parent's bought their cottage this crappy old Agway lawn tractor came with it that ran horribly. My Dad did some basic tune up stuff, still ran bad. He ended up running two cans of sea foam through it and it ran better and better with each treatment. Must be a crazy coincidence I guess if that stuff does nothing.

There are too many ways and techniques to target them, and in that respect, it is not unlike bass fishing. since you mentioned targeting them in the river, in-line spinners (eg, Mepps), spoons, stickbaits like rapala minnows, salmon eggs, float and jig, just a plain jig (feathered jig, not like a “bass” jig) some thing known as Corkies, are a just a few things. I wouldn’t bother with any rod less than 8’6”, where generally longer is better if you can get away with it. The longer rod with help to increase casting and give you more line control. Spinners and and spoons and floats will usually use the river’s current to drive them. Corkies are bounced on the bottom also by the current. Eggs could be bounced on the bottom or offered on a float. Jigs can be worked in the current with a pull, fall, reel up the slack and realest. Jigs can also be offered on a float. Not all parts of the river are suited for all of these lure types. Therefore, some will fare better than others depending on that section of the river. Like bass fishing, there is no one rod that does it all. Rods can be specialized for a specific role just like bass rods. You can go the Walmart special route or go loomis. Yes, loomis makes these kinds of rods, and he probably made them well before he made a bass rod. He originally is from my neck of the woods, lol. If you plan on using your bass reels, you might need to consider good with at least 200 sized casting reels (300 and up are better suited) and 3000-4000 spinning. You can get away with a 2500 if you don’t lose a lot of line from snags and break offs. Start looking for you tube videos for this type of fishing in your area and the lures I mentioned. Good luck. You’re going to have a blast.

I was out fishing a 200 acre pond today for LM & SM. I was pulling a ned rig up off a drop off when the line went heavy. Didn't feel like a very big fish but when I got him up it was quite a surprise. Turned out to be a land locked salmon! Every one says ned rigs catch a lot of fish but I didn't expect this. It was pretty thin but went 18" long. Not the best pic but I didn't intend to keep him so I handled him rather gently.