Crestliner2008

Good one Catt! Direct and to the point!

I've been fishing since the '60's growing up and using tubular steel rods. In all those years...with all those fish....of all species....I've never had a fish break a rod. There's a good saying: "Guns don't kill people....people kill people." I believe the same is true of fishing rods. People break 'em....fish don't!

Mono...period. Has caught, can catch and will catch anything that swims. Trilene XL....all the way.

sdcoll - Nope! With everyone trying to sign up for the new season passes and folks camping over on the access roads starting Thursday - I'm staying away! ;D Being retired, I don't need all the aggravation. I'll hit it sometime during the following week or so. The bass will still be there!

It opens this Saturday, 4/18 @ 5 am - all gates.

Really awesome catch!

Not sure why my reply didn't post? Anyway....This was an outstanding suggestion, bilgerat! I think I'll be giving this a try real soon. THANKS!

You can't beat the Sahara. I have 2 and also 2 of their Symetre models as well. I really can't tell the difference between the two models! I've had the Saharas for 1/2 doz. years and the Symetres for 2 years. Both seem trouble free and have excellent drags. I love how they evenly load line on their spools too! This year both those models have had price hikes, but their still a top notch value - IMO!

Yamamoto has been making a large 10" version of their curly tail for a number of years now. This whopper is heavy! Most of the body is that of a Senko, but it has a curly tail section. It casts like a dream. Fished on a 5/0 round bend with the curl going in the same direction as the hook, this worm can be crawled along the surface of most pads very easily. I've gotten some dramatic strikes on this set-up in summer, early morning, over pads or any other vegetation. Black w/blue tail - DY-NO-Mite! ;D

On a Spook, I always tie directly to the eye of bait (old school) and snug it up real tight with a Trilene knot. Then I force it down to the bottom of the eye. Some modern Spooks have the eye bent down already, but I still make sure my knot is holding at the bottom of that eyelet as well. Old habits die hard I guess. On Sammys it doesn't seem to make as much a difference! Often times I'll be using a hard jerk, with a small snap; and when I switch to the Sammy, I don't remove the snap. It may not be best, but I still catch lots of smallies this way.

Try changing out your rear treble to a "SureSet" treble by VMC. Great hooks with tremendous holding power. I agree with the above as well - crush down those barbs! They're worthless. Good Luck!

I use a 7' MH action SPINNING rod! Loaded with 20# test Fireline and 20# test 2' fluoro leader. Have caught a LOT of bass on this inexpensive rig and it has sufficient muscle to bring them out of the junk - most of the time. I do have to go in for them occasionally, but that's rare. I like to use either the Spro Bronzeye or the Hannon Snake. Depending on the type of cover I'm looking at. Works for me!

With a shallow pond like this, I'd definitely make the hard jerkbait my No. 1 starting presentation. I may go to a soft jerk - Sluggo, etc. - if I get a follow or two (put some MegaStrike on it!). The shakey head would probably work as well, once you locate the bass, but you really need to cover more water during this time of the year. The bass are definitely moving. The hard jerks have the nod, in my opinion.

Thanks for some great input folks! The reason I'm looking for a more weedless (snagless actually) presentation with the tube is that I'm fishing a large, deep river (CT River) in northern MA. The bottom is filled with log jams and other snags which gobble up open hooks. The current is stiff as well. I usually slip the current to get my offering down, but I've yet to find something that will get me down there and keep me in the "zone". And the smallies in this section of the river are BIG and they love tubes! I will certainly give some of your suggestions a whirl this season. Will keep you posted. Thanks!

Anyone fish tubes for smallies in deep water? I'm talking 30 - 50+ feet. I'd like to try this, but the largest internal jig set up I can find is 1/4 oz.. I'd like to try something around the 1/2 oz. size (or more!), but I can't find a weedless set-up to help me out. I suppose I could just put it on a standard weedless bass jig? Yes...no?

When I fish SM I go with the 78 most of the time. LM fishing I go bigger. But I always test various sizes, depending on the fishes mood. If I get a lot of follows, but not takes, I know it's either a size thing or color change that I need to do.

Most crankbaits come with a split ring attached to their eye. I remove these and use a small snap instead. Some cranks run better with a metalic link like a small snap or the split ring supplied; as opposed to tying directly to the eye of the crank. If I'm using a snap (for quick change) then I remove the split ring always. Rarely have I ever tied to a split ring because knots are less reliable that way.

I carry only three: Black, white or silver and chartreuse or chartreuse and white. 75% of the time, the black will rule!

I'm not sure what phase your body of water is in right now. What's the water temperature like? A good general approach is to find quick moving current and fish the breaks in that current. Smallies act very similar to trout when it comes to current and current breaks. They like to stage up on the edge of the eddys. Best approach is to "slip" the river. This technique involves holding the bow of your boat upstream with just enough forward momentum to keep it that way. And allowing your boat to "slip" backwards with the current, but slightly less speed than the current itself. This way you can present your offering to those current breaks in a very effective manner.

With the flavors, scents and softness of most plastics today, the likelihood of a bass dropping the bait is not very high. Have you ever had a bass pick up your offering and keep on going with it! Sometimes I'll just hang on without setting the hook, just for fun. But I agree...reel down to them without throwing slack and then set.

I always carry a banana and a small cooler with a sandwich and a few bottles of Gatoraid. It's vital to stay hydrated! And I've read that the electrolytes in these sports drinks can be value added.

Caught my very first shakey head bass yesterday, as a matter of fact. Fishing from shore. Used a 1/8 oz. shakey head jig and an old Mann's Jelly Worm (7"). Water wasn't deep either - only about 6' - 8'. The bass was only about 2 1/2 lbs., but it gave me a world of confidence in this bait. The Jelly worm did sink and become a rather straight twitching object on the bottom. I do think the raised tail would have been a benefit. Going to try that today with a different worm. The water clarity is very cloudy to murky with vis only about 2'. So this presentation should work well with the cold air & water temps we've been experiencing here in the northeast. Going to try a brighter color (methiolate) worm today as well.

My No. 1 last season was the drop shot....hands down. Closely followed by the Senko.

You might also want to try a heavier line. Line diameter can create significant buoyancy to any presentation.