Crestliner2008

You didn't say what kind of fish or fishing you are doing? I'll assume you are looking for LM or SM bass and that you have a few spinning rods onboard. And that the water you are fishing is clear to stained (vis. >3'). Forget about trolling - period! Have you tried tubes? Jigs? Drop shotting? Blade baits? Senkos? If not, that's probably why you are not connecting. Your approach seems fine. Find bait on humps or off shore structures, anchor (or drift using your TM to keep yourself positioned - I prefer anchoring) and cast. If there are bass down there (and you're not marking bull heads!), then using the above techniques will produce fish for you. Guaranteed!

smallfry - 3 1/2 years ago I learned "down shot" fishing from a Japanese bass fisherman from Japan. That is where the technique started and where it was perfected. Actually, if you go back in history, Bill Binkleman originated it, using a similar rigging with live bait back in the 60's. But like electronics and J.I.T. Mfg. Techniques, America was too involved with the fast tract, to appreciate detailed "finesse" fishing. Our vast water resources in this country didn't require finesse. You just moved to another location! In Japan, you may have a 100 acre lake with 150 bass boats on it at any given time. And that's the only water for miles. So, thru necessity, drop shotting was propelled to the foreground. Anyway, trust me, down shotting or drop shotting (as we call it in this country) was, and is, a verticle presentation. I'm not saying you can't cast with it. I'm just saying that if you want to cast, there are lots of other techniques better suited.

Get 2 spinning rigs and one bait caster for starters. You need nothing else - to start! My 40 years of fishing experience would recommend the following (select your price range from the BPS catalog): 1) Light action spinning rod - 6' rod, 4-10# line and 1/16-3/8 oz. lure ratings. Combine this with a reel weighing approx. 7-9 oz. and your golden for drop shotting, small spinner/spoons, or finesse fishing. Load with 6# test mono. Can even be used for panfishing, should the opportunity present itself! 2) Medium action spinning rod - 7', 6-14# line and 1/8-1/2 oz. lure ratings. Medium size spinning reel weighing approx. 10-14 oz. will balance this rig for casting Senkos, small cranks & jerkbaits and tubes. Load with 8# test fluorocarbon. 3) Med-Hvy. action bait casting rod - 6'6", straight handle - 10-17# line and 1/4 - 3/4 oz. lure ratings. Combine this with an Ambassadeur 5500C and 14# test Fireline or PowerPro (learn to tie a double uni knot and afix a 3' fluorocarbon leader to the end). This will take care of your main crankbait, Tx rigged worms, buzzbaits, spinnerbaits and jigs. This will also suffice to get you started experiencing a Carolina rig as well. With these 3 basics rigs, you can cover just about every/any situation. As you find your "style" of fishing settling in, you can now become more specialized. The field out there is limitless.

6'6" - 7', Med-Light, fast tip, rated for 4#-10# test line and 1/8 - 3/8 oz. lure weights. You'll do fine.

Throw it? Hmmm....I've tried casting a few times, when I first started fishing the drop shot, several years ago. Problem with casting is that you are constantly changing the angle between your worm and the sinker as you retrieve it, which, in turn, changes the depth your worm is at. If the fish are feeding 3' off the bottom, (following a school of smelt for instance) why would you want to cast to them and put your bait only 1' off the bottom (assuming you have a 2' leader between the worm and the sinker)? I prefer fishing the DS the way it was intended, stright up & down. This gives you precise depth presentation (a main advantage of the DS), based on the length of line between your worm and the sinker. Cruise around until you find a ball of bait or structure of sorts, in the proper depths and locations for your particular lake, at the particular time of the year you are fishing; and put her down! As long as the reel you use has a smooth drag you're all set. I use a Shim. Symetre with 6# test fluoro main line and 4# test DS leader - connected by a small #14 CRANE type swivel. Just my opinion.

GREAT video! Thank you

Great advice WRB! I've successfully spoon fed suspended smallies like you say. However, I've tried and tried to adjust my X-135 to see the thermocline, but have never been successful in accomplishing the viewing.

Most of the fun in fishing is trying out new baits and techniques. There is no one lure or technique you can use to insure your catch. You just have to play around with everything and try to learn something everytime you venture out on the water. Suggestions above are great. Besides those, if you want to do yourself the biggest favor you can in fishing, when you start catching fish, change to something else you've been affraid to try. See if it doesn't even work better? At the very least it will build your confidence. And please -- do not become a "One Method Pete"! All some guys do is throw a Senko, or spinnerbait. Some won't go fishing unless they can flip or pitch. They will all fail at some point. And not even know why! The only truly successful fisherman is the one who is versatile and listens to the environment he/she is in at that given moment. The fisherman who is receptive to change will triumph.

This may be before your time, but back in the early 70's, Bill Binkleman published several bass & walleye books. One article sticks out in my mind about this situation here in particular. Entitled, "Undertaker Bass", Bill went on to explain that big bass will cruise under schools of bait....just waiting for that "one" that quivers just a bit odd and starts to descend from the school for whatever reason. Then they target that one wounded fish and attack. His approach was to use a rigged dead shiner, cast to the school and let it fall through. I've done this with Tx rigged worms and most recently with Senkos very successfully. The key is to sit still and wait for the school to get within casting range. You cannot chase them.

It should be no surprise to anyone that small hooks take big bass. I've never taken a bass as big as what they are talking about here, but I've often times caught big northerns while crappie fishing with 1/16 oz. jigs. My biggest on the tiny jig is 12.5 lbs.. No sweat, even on 4 lb. test line, if you know what you're doing. The only time I've ever lost a northern on an UL is if they turn suddenly and cut you off with their teeth.

I have a Canon A640 which I like, but it is difficult to do self-pics. It does have a delay timer, but you'd have to leave it on all the time or set-up the timer each time you are ready for a picture And the shutter trip doesn't have a screw in adapter hole for a flex-trip cord Things I never considered when I bought it. So, I purchased an inexpensive tri-pod and practiced setting up the timer, again and again. Now I'm getting fairly proficient in accomplishing the picture, but I sure do wish I'd have known about the timer thingy and shutter trip before I bought it! I'd have elected to go to another camera for sure!

Here in MA more & more lakes & reservoirs are banning the use of lead sinkers due to the toxicity to wildfowl. Loons, eagles and shorebirds are most suseptible to lead poisoning. That said, it'll be a cold in hell before I'll spend a buck a sinker for any kind of metal! (I'm too cheap.) Wal-Mart carries a variety of steel sinkers which work just fine. And you get 7 or 8 in a pack for under $2.00!

I've used them and like them. They're easy on your presentation and have a lot less metal ahead of your lure than the speed clips. I would recommend dual locks when fishing in weeds however, as the tip of the small snap clips can accumulate some debris.

Red "Stand-Out" #2 only. Nothing else comes close.

I've known about the FnF technique for some time now, but have yet to try it. Only because it really doesn't make much sense to me. Let me explain my position: The concept of putting a fly (actually a light weight jig) deep is very valid. It works marvels on crappie using a 1/32 oz. marabou jig. However, why on God's earth would you use it the way it's proposed? Long (10' - 14') specialized rod and fixed bobber? Why not just use a 7' or 8' UL or fly rod and use a slip bobber? You'd have less casting problems and can vary your presentation depth a heck of alot easier. Am I missing something here? Please tell me why I need to spend another $100. on a rod I can only use a few times a year!

With my older eyes I've switched to Vanish Transition in gold. I've tried the red variety (this season) and it's not as easy to see as the gold, which I started to use early 2006. I also use a clear Vanish leader of about 4' tied to the Transition with back to back uni knots. Has worked out very well for me this season and last. All the opinions to the contrary, I've used Vanish on 4 of my rigs now for over 3 seasons with no problems whatsoever.

FSAngler - ever think about coming north? The open water here is bursting with cold, but very active smallies. Both in rivers and lakes. Best time of the year to fish actually

Thanks WRB - makes sense! Just spoke with two guys from MaAnglers.com and they confirm this on two counts: 1) Aquaview temp reading thru the ice show bass active and ALIVE in 30 - 36 degree water in January - and being able to be caught! And 2) a scuba diver has shown the same, so I'm convinced the statement of <40 deg. means the end of a bass's life is a mistake. I like the concept of DO much better than temperature. Just makes more sense.

Great explanations in this thread indeed. I may have learn a thing or two. Just not so sure about this magical 40 degree survival thingy. Please understand that I'm no biologist by any stretch of the imagination. But I do know what I know. That being said, when I see open water in a 15' (max)deep pond that a themometer tells me is 36 degrees (open water), then I gotta think that maybe that's not too terribly bad for the bass afterall? I've always thought that, after the turnover, the water homogenizes top to bottom and wind action mixes the temperature to a fairly equal value. I'd be surprised if that is a mis-conception, but I could be wrong. In any case, if springs are a bass's only salvation, in these frozen temperatures, then I hope there's a lot of 'em!

As far as sonar goes, I'm a die hard Lowrance fan. However, I know a lot of very good fisherman in our group here that use nothing but Garmin for their GPS. So...last Xmas, my kids got together and bought me a package deal with the eTrex Legend Cx handheld. What a GPS! Not a lot of bells & whistles, but enough to make using it very "user friendly" and accurate. And if you don't think you need 1000 waypoints ;D just wait! One lake alone I have almost 50. Times 10 lakes and couple of rivers....you go through waypoints like popcorn, believe me. Best part is, when I turn it on, I can go to any point I've marked by following the "breadcrumbs". This means that not only can I navigate in a total fog, but I also have the option of going the "direct" route - as long as I can see where I'm going. Any GPS is worth it's weight in gold, but this Garmin is a fine instrument, believe me.

Just got thru, this very morning, with the folks who came by the house to winterize and shrink wrap my boat. When asked about this same question they emphatically said, "BOUNCE" fabric softener sheets - and ONLY the Bounce brand! Previously I've used plastic containers (drilled with holes) in which I put moth balls. But come spring, the boat "stinks"! The guy doing this job for me said they've been using Bounce for almost 6 years now, without a problem. And they do hundreds of boats inland and on the shore every winter. Hope this is of some help

Since I was 12 yrs. old (when dinosaurs ruled the earth!) I always maintained my own reels. Including those of several neighbors and my friends as well. I use to enjoy the task; always looking forward to a new make of reel to take apart. Then I got to middle age and my wife hated it when I took out the cleaning board. She knew, sooner or later, I'd yell, "JAN!!!! Quick!" She'd bring the flashlight and we'd spend a few tense moments searching for that spring that went "PING" into the air ! Now in my later years, my eyes can't do what they use to and my fingers certainly can't do what my brain tells them to - all the time ;D. And of course, the reels today are so much more sophistocated than in my youth; now you definitely need a set of specialized tools and spare clips & springs. I now let a pro do it for me, through necessity more than desire. Which ever way you choose to do go however, believe this sincerely - it HAS to be done!

I'm doing the same thing as rw next season. The big 3700 series soft tote allows me to take far too much stuff with me; 70% of which I never use on any one outing. I'm asking the kids for a BPS XPS 360 system for the boat. By the way, here's another question: do you use a tote which stores your boxes horizontally or vertically?

Lures are just tools of the trade. There should be no "favorite". It all depends on time of the year and water temperature as to what to use. Keep in mind depth and speed control and your "tool" selection will be a lot easier. Right now, here in N.E., the water temps are falling from the 50's to the mid 40's with winter rapidly approaching. So I have to slow way down & target deeper fish. Jigs are in. Silver Buddies are in. Ikas are in. And I don't discount the drop shot either. Lots of tools for this time of the year, depending on where you find the fish and the type of structure you encounter.

Stay out from the shore or that 10' drop. You know what time the smallies are there....no need to go get another look-see, right? Make longer casts to your target area and sit as opposed to standing in your boat. Less chance they'll see you. I agree with rw - Ikas will do the trick! When they move deep, follow them & go with a drop shot. Use your sonar to find out why they are moving. It's NOT because of the time of day; more likely the movement of their food source.