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I need therapy. Monkey got me for the second time today. Had to grab a few things from Walmart. Naturally I peaked in the clearance isle and i couldn’t resist ?. Should have enough tungsten for a while.

Little pick up from today. Few from Sierra online clearance and all the KVD from dicks were buy 5 get 5 free. The daiwa reel also from dicks, guess it was from a combo but rod broke, so they gave me reel for $25

Purchased a couple of KK Perigee spinning rods and KK Sharky IIIs for when guests wanna come along to go fishing. The Update the Electronics Monkey got me real good.... 80lb Terrova, Garmin 93sv UHD, and 73sv UHD..

Says it right there on the label man………. im joking of course, because this is the cheapest fishing line I’ve found. That’s over a mile for $3 (maybe $4, can’t recall). I’ve reeled in a lot of nice smallmouth, a couple 30 lb striper, and lots of 40” gar with it. I’m not going to be the forum guy that says “never had an issue” or “never had a break off” because I’ve been using the same line for over 30 years, I’m sure I’ve tangled it up at least once……… but it’s good line. Stong, affordable, catches fish. The rest is a placebo effect in my opinion

Mama says alligator gar are so mean cause they got all them teef and no toofbrush.

Rodman Reservoir went “ Off” yesterday. Weather sucked, wind was 12-15 mph all day and it was only 42 degrees. Bass didn’t care, apparently. Mac McCoppin from The Villages was out for a 4 hour guided trip with shiners. And what a trip he had. He muscled several Rodman giants to the boat yesterday, including an 11 lb 14 oz giant! that was after landing a 9-0, 8-6 and several in to upper 7 pounders. Top 5 bass weighted slightly under 44 lbs. Will be sure to see several Elite Pro's in Rodman for there opener on the St Johns River next month 'Feb 10"

Me waiting on that liquidation sale:

Couple of Magdrafts, few Huds, some Spark Shads, the Lobinos from the TW giveaway (they sent me the Rico and the Rio Rico both in Cosmic Shad, a color I already had in both)… VMC crossover rings, some 5” HP 3D Wacky worms, braid, some Dark Sleepers, some more Trokar hooks from the TW sale, and some Hyabusa spin muscle hooks (my favorite Neko and wacky hook ever). My wallet needs a break from the monkey.

Finally got my hands on this little thing. Can't wait to glue it to my 844 MBR's reel seat where it'll stay for the rest of its life

Is gonna be a bit before I get the bigger boat... So I did the next best thing... Upgraded the electronics on the current rig. 80# Terrova Garmin 93sv UHD and 73sv UHD

Got me again. $70+ off the EVX gave me an excuse for the HMG

I'm a bit confused. Rods are used in the water. Often time submerged when fighting a fish or unsticking a lure. Surely rain won't hurt it. On the flip side, any equipment left to the elements will have issues mostly from the sun and UV rays.

Got out for my first trip of the year on the powerplant lake. It was tough to say the least, and it didn't help that I didn't do well converting on the few bites I had. Only managed 3 bass, one was a nice one at least. This is the time of year I can sometimes get a flathead to eat a spoon in the hotwater when the shad are packed in there and spawning. I don't think I was there for 5 minutes before I felt a thump even in the current and 15' down. Didn't quite match last years monster, but it was a nice one, too much for my fish grippers on my scale. It just barely got my spoon ? Couldn't get my scale to lock in but it was bouncing around between a high 36 to low 38 pound range.

The visibility difference is way overblown. Flouro gives you better feel. Mono is superior every other way IMO.

Ok, I throw my two cents worth of experience in the ring and see how bad I get chewed up. I'm not bothering with braid. It's a different animal and has it's purposes. I used Berkely XL 14# for years and years. I started using Fluorocarbon lines about six years ago. The differences between Mono and Fluoro in my humble opinion are in stretch and sensitivity. Fluoro takes more to stretch. It still stretches but not like Mono. Mono starts stretching sooner, a lot sooner then Fluoro. Fluoro sinks much better and faster then Mono. I like fishing with Fluorocarbon. I have found through much experimentation on the water that there is a heck of a lot of difference between brands of Fluorocarbon lines. I have settled on three Fluorocarbon lines. Seaguar Invisx and Tatsu. I've been using Diawa Samurai fluorocarbon also for the last 8-12 months with good results. I feel it's quality is right there with Tatsu. I've started using some of the Sunline Armillo and Defier monofilament lines for top water baits. I like it's performance much better then the good ole Berkely XL. I've got nothing against Big game. It's a fat strong line that always breaks way above it's rated test. Con's on Fluoro vs Mono. Fluoro absolutely hates to be kinked (think picking out a backlash) and will break where it has been kinked very easily. Fluoro the has been highly stressed (breaking off a snag) weakens it. Mono not so much. Fluoro in anything larger then 8lb test IMHO doesn't belong on spinning reels unless it is as a leader to braided line. Knot strength depends on the quality of the knot tied more so with fluoro then mono. I used the improved clinch knot for both lines and properly cinched down it works great for me. I know what works for me and I use all three. Like as has been stated several times Cigar nailed with different tools in the tool box helps the job get done better. Flame away! Fishingmickey

Both times ? (sorry my friend) A-Jay

BASS RESOURCE Home of the Monofilament Fan Club For more information: www.ihatefluoro.com

Find a store that will sell you Big Game for 5 times the normal price, then you will feel like you discovered a great new floro with good knot strength, and tangles less. Since it will be expensive, you can get the Floro Monkey off your back, and go back to just catching bass.

Good post. I've helped eight people, so far, transition from spinning to BCs, plus my brother. All are right handed including my brother, but he's unusual. He writes righty, pitched righty, casts righty, but kicks a ball with his left foot. He's always casted a spinning reel with his right, but then switches hands and reels righty. Such a weirdo. The other eight guys who I've helped make the leap to BCs all had their choice of retrieve. All chose to cast right and reel left. One kid, Justin, had to wait until his birthday to get a reel, but the fam got him a RH. I told him to give it a chance. He did, but couldn't stand it after three trips. No problem because DSG takes back anything. He's happy now with his LH BC. All the guys I fish with except two are righties using LH reels and don't switch hands. My strange brother is one of the two, and the other guy learned on his father's hand me down RH reels. He's 25 years down that road, so he's conditioned to it. I'm not going to claim that this small sample size represents the entire population. However, if anyone else asks for my help I won't be surprised if this lopsided trend continues, especially if they came from winding spinning reels left handed. That said I'm not deaf to the reasoning of people who make the opposite choice for themselves. In reality the downsides, if they exist at all, are negligible. Also, many righties are total spazzes with their left hand, so I understand why they'd have trouble with a LH reel. One exiled BR member would often describe this syndrome far more elegantly as lacking fine motor skills in the non-dominant hand. Disclaimer: Once again, I don't care if someone picks their left earhole with their right hand, or scratches their right butt cheek with their left hand. Have at it. Be happy.

I caught thousands of bass and other sportfish, on floating, and count down Rapala's, both reeling them strait , and trolling, years before they started calling them jerk baits.

Yes they will. Probably not as effective as the intended use but then again I saw my 12 year old son consume an entire thanksgiving meal without the assistance of utensils so when they want to eat, they’ll eat..

I want the last word. O K ?

Pretty much any crank under 3/8oz gets tossed on my ML/MF spinning rig.

I'm impressed that some can quote how many fish they caught for the year, I can't even keep track of how many I catch in a day, and I've tried.

I appreciate all the help and advice on my thread, but this one takes it! Haha

Hey, I found one just like that last year in Michigan. That's cool!

Neoprene is waterproof, but unless it has sealed zippers it will still get wet inside. Neoprene reel cover? (they certainly don't seal) They do make good sealed zippers, and maybe I'm not familiar with the rod cover you're talking about. The 6th Sense sleeve is made to protect a rod from impact, not really from weather If what you're asking about encases the rod and reel and has sealed zipper, no worries. If they're not sealed zippers, could be made worse by slow drying and mildew. If you've ever opened a tube for multipiece rod and smelled sour milk - the sock and rod inside is on its way to biological rot. If you're talking about driving to fish and bring the rod inside at home, I wouldn't worry about it getting wet. @Big Rick - yes, long-term storage in the weather is UV, wet/dry - everything that cracks plastic. With long term moisture in a closed environment, once you get biological cheese going, it's no longer just water, it's ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, organic acids.... Think about the things your rod brings back with it when you take it out for a day on the water. You're bringing back algae and bacteria for a base, mold spores last for millennia. Here's the bow hatch on my kayak - I have tethered dry bags, a small light one for fly rod fanny pack containing the reels and fly boxes, and a 4'-long for multipiece rods - back-up rods and fly rods. These are to protect the gear from saltwater, but dry bags are just imperfect enough, they have to be aired out in the garage after after every trip. My back-up bait reel and spinning spool are in a pelican box in the lap hatch.

Ain't that the truth. I caught my Pb when I was 20...8lbs 12oz...that's a beast up here in Iowa where our record is 10lb 14oz. 18 years later I'm still trying to best it.

On the topic of grasses and pads. 1). I always look for areas with two or more grasses combined, rather then just one type. 2). The greener the grass the better especially during summer. 3). During cooler times I will look for edges. Sharp edges usually mean a significant bottom change, often with a ledge. Bass will often move deeper to the bottom of a ledge because water is constantly seeping through from the Aquafer at a constant 72*. They will still stay close to the veggies for hunting and ambush. 4). On flats an isolated clump of vegetation is better then a large mass of weeds. The isolated clump will draw bass from a surrounding area to it. The large mass will have bass scattered throughout and not concentrated in any one area. 5). Always look for any sudden movement in the emerged weeds or grasses that are not caused by normal conditions. Often a grass moving against the wind, or a sudden motion means something is alive there. In Florida beside fish, gators, turtles, and snakes will be easily detected when the grass moves. 6). Sudden changes in the type of cover often means a change in bottom type. This often happens on lakes like Okeechobee. that will go from rock bottom, to muck, to pure white sand bottom. Different bottoms, different grasses. Good luck and I hope this helps a little.

Absolutely hate Fluoro ? If I have to walk around with a bottle of spray on my pocket just to make Fluoro half way manageable that ain't the line for me.

3 packs maxscent tubes, lucky penny, white pearl, smoke silver 2 packs of maxscent generals, green pumpkin chartreuse tail, cinnamon purple 3 duo realis apex 66 squarebills, am dawn, am edge, am magic 2 megabass 110 +1 Jr, Spawn cherry, northern secret 5 sixth sense crankbaits 1 road runner Bucktail pro 1/4

A delicious wet sock!

They fight like a wet sock when you hook one though.

Walleye is one, tasty, toothy predator!

These are not to be stored in anything that is wet !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MOLD Loves wet cork in a sleeve of anything.

For those effective by the latest east coast snowstorm, be careful and pace yourself. We have about 7" with a layer of ice on top making it equivalent to shoveling gravel. Every year locally I hear of heart attacks while shoveling snow. Take your time. ?

That driveway plugging stuff the plow throws is the worst. I know those guys are just doing a job but every time it happens I still wanna rip the guy out of his truck and beat him to death.

Eye helpd teech the corse en 6/2th grade.

This guy was on a trail behind our neighborhood. He survived this encounter but one of us may die if he ever gets in my kayak #cardiacarrest

Been through a few models with various levels of success. Current favorite A-Rig is G Funk Baits Bama Rig with Strike King Rage Tail Swimmer, Keitech Swing Impact FAT and / or Strike King KVD Swim N Shiner Mounted on Dobyns Light Hook Swimbait Head or Dirty Jigs Tactical Bassin' Finesse Swimbait Jig Heads or VMC Boxer Jig Head – usually all 1/8 oz. Baits are usually less than 4.75 inches. A-Jay

There are 150+ lb toothy predator fish in Texas

I don’t know the rules for your state on the number of hooks allowed…in Texas it is 5. My most common setup is a 3.5-4” swimbait, 1/8th oz jig heads on the upper arms and 1/4th oz on the 2 bottom arms (the heavier weights on the lower arms help stabilize the rig). I sometimes use a slightly larger sized swimbait on the trailing arm and I will almost always add a little color to that trailing swimbait. You are representing a bait ball so I would stay in a similar size range as the forage you are representing. Edit: Check your state regs. first but even in states that allow fewer hooks, you can usually use dummies for the other arms.

Found first lure of the year yesterday. Stopped by the lakes to watch the ice skaters and fishermen, and when I stepped into the woods for a nature break, this was in the bush right in front of me. No idea how it got there, ~30' from the lake shore. Sometimes it seems like I'm living a charmed life. ?

I wouldn’t try to change your mind. I tried Floro once , and didn’t like it because it didn’t float, which meant I couldn’t see the twitch when they bit.. It seemed like I was dragging water setting the hook, and it was harder for me to tell exactly where the fish was. Talking about fishing soft plastics… That’s just me. I’m sure there are plenty of others that will try to convince you otherwise…

I'm not aware of any law that requires you to reel them in quickly

Got this little crappie nugget today.

I’ve been watching a lot of tactical bassin videos lately. Like a lot of tacticalbassin. Kinda forgot about spinner baits last year. So after watching some videos. I decided to pick up some finessier spinner baits and bolder white blades for the dirtier titabawassee river. Couple war eagles and screaming eagles ( on order not hear yet). Also, found this mega bass sv-3 in the color gill that looks kinda cool along with some Berkley general worms and a chatter bait. Basically last month worth of buying a little here and there