Crestliner2008

Congratulations! Awesome smallie indeed.

I thought the object of fishing period, was to catch fish? Are you saying that catching fish with a Senko makes you any less of fisherman? This kind of sanctimonious comment about anyone's method of accomplishing the goal reflects very poorly. You may have the bragging rights, but not the character, in my opinion.

#1 - Al Lindner: Greatest all around fisherman. #2 - Doug Hannon: Knows more about big bass than just about anyone. #3 - KVD: Powerfishing guru. A technique I suck at! My first choice would be Al; to learn everything I could in the short span of only one day on the water.

The Golden Rule is, if you can see them, then they can see you! And that more or less ends the bite. Try a different, more subtle and quieter approach; long casts, light line. Keep your profile low. If you are fishing from a boat, kill your engine long before you approach the area they are in. Drift in and shut off your sonar(s) as well. Sit down, have a cup of coffee. Let the area "settle in". Then make your cast/presentation. A small finesse style jig or 4" Senko should give up one or two big ladies.

I like to fish a R.I. Beaver on a 1/4 oz. football head jig (plain, no skirt). Had a great deal of success with this combo last season. But this season, I just wasn't getting bit. So, I downsized to the Smallie Beaver on the same kind of jig, but 1/8 oz.. That lit things up, big time! Also, I don't use the weedguard heads. I use the open hook model and rig the beavers as if I were fishing a shakey worm, Texas rigged, more or less. Give it a try.

A few years back I started mashing down the barbs on all my crankbaits. Got tired of fish eye injuries, especially when using hard jerkbaits. The only hooks in my box now that still keep their barbs are my drop shot hooks.

Just my opinion, but fishing IS a contact sport! Some casualties are inevitable. You just do the best you can, in any situation, to minimize injury to the fish. The rest is up to the good Lord. I've used the tube type hook removers for many years with a very high percentage of successful extractions; even when hooked deep. Bleeding usually stops as soon as the fish is back in the water, in most cases. I also crimp down the barbs on all my hooks - including crankbaits. The only exception I make is on my drop shot hooks, which catch the lip in 99.9% of the cases. Loss to jumping is way too high with a crimped down barb. But I've also never had to go deep to extract one with this technique.

Call them and ask.

Not sure about the particular spinnerbait you refer to, but like KVD says, ya gotta make your retrieve erratic as possible. That one tip has landed me a lot of quality bass.

Approach can be vitally important. Drift into the area you want to fish if possible. Do shut off all electronics (which bass become more familiar with than lures!). Also, don't forget to look AWAY from the bank. There could be a deeper break or off-shore hump, that's loaded with big bass that never see a bait!

First off, your approach has to VERY quiet and careful. Any heavy footing will turn them off right away. "Stay low, move slow", is how I like to think about it, when I'm fishing small streams as you describe. Next, make sure you're using 4# - 6# test fluorocarbon line (4# preferably), on a long (7' - 8') lite-action rod. I'd also opt for a #2 in-line circle hook. Nose hook your 4" Senko, instead of Texas rigging - and try the 3" instead. Your presentation has to look as natural as possible. Yep...you'll loose some. Comes with the territory I'm afraid. The longer rod will help you in controlling the powerful smallies you're finding. Good Luck!

Finesse, deep, smallies = Crestliner! Once you take a 4 lb. smallie in 30' of water, you'll be hooked.

Gotta tell ya folks, I've been killing the smallies in the river here (high water, dingy & cold) with 5" Shadalicious paddle tails, on Owner belly weighted swimbait hooks. Even small 1 - 2 lb. smallies are gobbling them up! It's almost funny to see these big baits in their mouths with just the head of the bait showing! Figured I'd let you all know in case you've never tried them for smallies before. Worth your time & effort.

Your confidence baits can only come from experience. Don't try to rush it. It will come in time. Just enjoy every outing as a learning experience and before you know it, you'll be catching bass and knowing what works for you. Above all, do NOT fall into the trap of being a "one method Pete". Try something new every time out, even if you know that you can catch something on your "confidence" baits. Sometimes it's best just to pick out a lure or presentation and only take that one to the pond or lake. That way you are forced to spend enough time with it, to prove if it will work for you or not. And always give a particular bait another chance or two. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Try a little MegaStrike on the soft plastics. That'll turn their key. You might also try a soft jerk bait (with MegaStrike), like the Strike King Coffee Shad.

Tried it out today on a small pond, just to get a feel for it and to see how it performs. Right off, it was relatively easy to rig on a weighted swimbait hook. Casts like a bullet, no question. The action on a slow retrieve is similar to a Hudd, but much smaller. Very natural swimming action. Didn't fish that long and didn't get a hit, but I think this one is a keeper! I like the fact that it gets to the bottom quickly and tends to stay there on a slow retrieve. Anyone have any experience with this soft swimbait? Live Magic Shad

No truer words have ever been spoken! As far as Chatterbaits go, I keep them in the upper six lure selection wherever I go. They are great swimjigs (basically that's what they are) and I always use a 5" Fluke for a trailer. Don't ever discount a Chatterbait.

Try a drop shot. Also, ask around at some neighbor's homes if they ever fish it and what they've caught. A local bait shop could be a good source of information for you. And no, it's not too cold for bass - never is, even during ice up periods. You just have to 1) know that there are bass in there and 2) keep trying different techniques. And if there are bass in there, a night trip with a Jitterbug might get you what you are looking for!

I would definitely try a more subtle, natural color like green pumpkin or blue/black. I love these worms and they are a great producer. You can Texas rig them and use an on/off bottom retrieve. Sometimes I snap it hard off the bottom, just enough to feel the vibes. Sort of like fishing a Silver Buddy Blade bait. Other times, a slow, steady retried - again, just so you feel the vibes - works wonders. Let the fish tell you what they want, but I'd definitely get some of the above colors. Works great on a swim jig too!

The Alberto (or double Albright) works well for me. Breakoffs always occur at the lure end and not the leader knot.

Well, I've been using Abu round reels for more years than a lot of folks have been alive. Bought my first one in the late '60's and still have one going strong from the mid-'70's. They are a lot more expensive now than they use to be, but you can still find them for around the $80.00 mark. Best part is, you will be able to pass them down a couple of generations.

Abu. I have several. They all work well and one is even still working my worm rod, which was purchased in 1974. I have the 5000, 5000C, 5500C and 6500C. No need to have any others. I can cast with the best of them. And so will my grandkids. This should have been a poll! Would have been interesting to see the final tally.

This is how I rig for all my crankbait & jerkbait fishing. I use the smallest for jerks and next size up for cranks. Use the smallest you can get away with.

I've tried quite a few "big" hunks of plastic. The king of producers for me is the 9" Sluggo. Not something they see every day. Produces the big bite.

Megastrike. It stays on your plastics better and will mask any unwanted scents your plastics may have come in contact with.