Crestliner2008

Here's my ranking: 1. White Perch 2. Yellow Perch 3. Bluegill 4. Rock Bass 5. Crappie

Excellent!

Gorgeous smallies indeed!

We fish a deep (over 120' in some places) hill-land reservoir for smallies. Right now, in the middle of summer heat, we're finding them around the 30' - 35' depths adjacent to steep drop offs. Rarely do I deliberately search out smallies deeper. Reason being is that I'd a devote CPR fisherman and releasing fish, taken from water deeper than 45', presents a serious survival problem for that fish. We get enough quality fish in the 30' range to keep us there. One from yesterday:

I don't remember the last time didn't use Megastrike on any plastics I fish for smallmouth. I'm so use to doing it now that I'm sure my confidence would be shattered without it!

I use two different styles, depending on what kind of water I'm fishing. Fishing tight to cover (weeds or wood) and/or fishing shallow water conditions, I favor a Gamakatsu Wacky Weedless hook with a black filament hook guard. If I'm fishing more open water, then for me, there is only one option. The Gamakatsu INLINE Oct. Circle hook in 1/0 size. I've used this circle hook for many years now and it has never failed me. Consistently hooks in the corner of the mouth. Strong enough so that even a 5+# jumping, crazy, hooked jawed salmon, can't bend or deform this hook.

First of all, make sure you are targeting good structures (points, humps, or channels) that you can see bait fish around (on your sonar). Then it would be hard to beat a drop shot, especially with a longer dropper (2' - 4') to keep the plastic more visible. Also, if you can fish two rods per person, you might want to rig one rod up with a Senko, suspended under a bobber (see "Sticky" above).

Which ever hollow bodied frog that you have the most confidence in being able to walk, should be great in that area. Looks like a buzzbait would get fouled up pretty fast, as well as a spinnerbait. A 10" - 12" worm Texas rigged might work as well, depending on the weight needed to get down to the bottom.

Drop shot for me. But as has been said, you need to read your electronics well and look not just for good looking structure, but those structures which have bait associating to it.

For many, many years, I've used nothing but Shimano spinning reels. Within the past 5 years though, I've had this binding problem with a couple of my Shimanos (a Symetre and a Sahara). Simple fix - just go online and search "Parts for Spinning Reels". Pick out any supplier and select the friction ring for the model you have, which costs only a couple of bucks. Replace it and you'll be good to go once again. These rings are very fragile for whatever reason(?). I think Shimano wanted the ultimate smooth action and therefore used softer friction rings - but I could be way wrong. In any case, replacing the ring on any reel, will solve your problem in the short term. Long term - switch to Pflueger.

What kind of presentations have you tried? Is the water clear or heavily stained? Do you have a hydrographic type map of the lake, or can you get one? You should also have a pretty good idea of where the weed edges are and the drop offs closest to deeper water. Look for points or structural changes that will attract fish most often times. Concentrate on a few of those. Can't tell you what to use as I do not know what you've tried. But with a bit more information, I think you'll get many good responses here.

All my spinning reels are now filled with braid, either PP or Fireline. They all perform much better than they ever did with fluorocarbon or monofilament lines. I use either a fluro or mono leader however, depending on the presentation I am using.

I do not have a lot of experience with the Pflueger Presidents - yet. I've been a Shimano fan for many, many years. However, as of late, they've increased in cost about $20.00 across the board for the Sahara & Symetres. I love both of those reels, but I picked up a President (6920) last year and used it for a full season on my 9' B n' M rod for panfish. Great little reel. I do not see any reason why I would pay more for a Shimano from this point on.

Thanks guys! Some great suggestions indeed. Never thought about bike shop tape!

I have a couple of beat up, old spinning rods with cork handles. Would like to just cover the cork and not replace it. I know BPS has tape specifically sold for this purpose, but I was hoping to get something local instead of trying to put together an order, with shipping cost. I've been thinking about tennis racquet handle tape? Seems to work well for those folks (I wouldn't have a clue!) and we have several shops here that specialize in this sport, not the least of which is Dick's. So do you think this kind of thing would work? Or maybe there is something in a hardware store that would suffice? Appreciate any input - Thanks Folks!

I agree with most of what has been said. Obviously, the pros use heavier line because of the $$$ factor involved. Heaven help them if they have a line failure, for whatever reason. It could cost them big time. They need to get that fish in the boat ASAP. For us more casual fishermen, lighter braids suffice nicely. I've pulled some pretty big bass out of snarly garbage with 10# test braid and a bit of patience.

What kind of braid are you using? I've had excellent results with the Alberto knot connection. And I do a lot of deep water jigging for lake trout with heavy jigs (up to 1 1/2 oz.). I am using 10# test Fireline Crystal for a main line with an 8# test fluorocarbon leader. Rarely do I experience a knot failure. I will say that you do need to tie the Alberto carefully, and slowly. I always close the knot by pulling both tag and main lines together, slowly closing it while wet with saliva. Then, when almost closed I finish by pulling the main lines only. Finally another pull on both tags and main line and then clip off the tags. I use 9 wraps up and 7 wraps down. Has worked for many seasons for me.

For many years I've used glass beads between the sinker and the hook. Mainly to protect the knot on the hook eye. But I do believe it adds a touch of sound as well as color. Anything that gives you confidence is like putting money in the bank.

Most braids will float unless they contain Dyneema fibers, such as 832. Those braids tend to sink. Something I don't particularly believe does anything to put the odds in your favor. I'd highly recommend that you do switch out your mono rig with some kind of braid. And put a 4' - 5' length of fluorocarbon leader material on the end. Your sensitivity and control will increase dramatically. You will also not have to worry about line twist ever again. Plenty of Hi-Vis braids out there to choose from. They all work/perform just fine. Just a matter of personal choice and your pocketbook. I actually prefer Fireline Crystal. I can see this white line quite well and it ties up knots perfectly. And if the water is relatively clear, the whiteness will maintain itself over time.

I believe you'd be better off with the lighter medium spinning rig. Heavier line is not needed, in my opinion. I've taken some pretty large bass in reeds and cattails with 10# test braid and a 4' section of 10# or 12# test fluorocarbon for a leader.

Congrats on a real dandy of a smallmouth.

You won't feel very silly when you pull in that 6 lb. smallie, or salmon, or rainbow, or lake trout, or white perch, or largemouth, or...... And neither will your partners. I've caught just about everything that swims on this rigging. And it usually is the larger of each species.

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the effectiveness of these baits for all species of fish. The biggest problem with properly presenting blades with an on/off bottom retrieve, is that they have a tendency to hang up quite a bit. This can get costly, so I've been playing around with various hook options. First I tried just one treble on the rear split ring. This worked as far as hook up ratio goes, but hooked on the bottom just as frequently as when using the two trebles. (BTW, I've tried lure retrievers and they bend the heck out of blade baits, so I gave up on them.) Next I tried a single Siwash hook that is used for salmon and other trout species in Canada quite a bit. This is a dramatic improvement over using treble hooks for this bait. You will still get hung on the bottom from time to time, but with much less frequency than any other option I've tried thus far. And they hook fish quite well - on par with however many lakers and/or salmon my fishing partner has taken. I also crimp down the barb on these hooks as lakers can be difficult to unhook, as you probably know. Have not tried this set-up on smallies yet, but I'm confident that if the lake trout and salmon have no problem taking them, neither will the bass. Thought some of you might be interested in trying this out.

For what you are intending to do, I'd highly recommend the B n' M SHSS rod in 7' length. I've caught thousands of panfish on this rod, as well as LM bass, northern pike and walleye. It'll handle them all. These particular rods - the Sam's Super Sensitive - go for a tad less than $50.00. You will not be disappointed in the quality or customer service from B n' M.

I've been using Fireline since it first came out in the early 90's. I've tried PP and many other braid brands over the years as well. I've found no advantage to any other braid over the Fireline. Strong, easy to tie, and dependable. And the Crystal version is easy for even these old eyes to see. JMO.