Crestliner2008

I *** you folks who are able to wet a line at least! We've still got frozen water and had 2" of fresh snow this morning. Ugh! Anyway, I LOVE the pre-spawn. And I think you should be thinking about two very productive presentations: 1) Blade Baits and 2) Hard Jerkbaits. Of course, you still have to be fishing where they are, but with these two baits, I catch about 70% or more of my early season LM & SM bass.

Not sure if it was because of the gardening last year, general yard work or fishing (can't be fishing!), but several of my finger tips developed cracks and bleeding. Saw a TV add for a product called "Working Hands". Bought a jar and it does work. Not sure if it would work better than any other medicinal hand cream, but after about 3 weeks of use, the wounds healed and fingers got a lot better. Scars from the splits are still there, but at least I'm not bleeding, fingers are not super sensitive as they were and the pain is gone. You might want to give it a shot. Got mine at Walmarts, in the "Lotions" department. Cost around $7.00, but it goes a long way, you don't use much.

Will Wetline said above: "I'll be experimenting this year to see if I can figure a hook setup that will hang less frequently." I've already got a 1/2 dozen blades set up with single #1 Siwash salmon hooks. A new experiment! Only one on the back side, nothing on the front. Last season I had much better results with removing the front treble. Reduced my bottom hook-ups considerably, yet I lost no more fish as a result. So, I figured, why not go one step further and see what happens!

Sampo ball bearing swivels are very costly, mainly due to their being made here in the USA. I can't afford them myself. I would, however, not go with the cheap ball bearing brands, made in China, that you can readily find at many big box stores. Very unreliable, in my opinion. A decent compromise you should look at is the Spro PowerSwivels. This is a crane type swivel, but is really top quality. I've been using them for the past 4 seasons now, which is why I'm recommending them. Spro offers a snap swivel with this swivel too. I never use snap swivels (snap & swivel as one unit) myself; preferring to tie a swivel about 2' up the line, from whatever I'm fishing with. This keeps the extra hardware away from my bait and from interfering with the action of a lot of artificials, yet still affords twist protection. Some say this requires "too many knots". To which I answer, "hogwash"! If you do not know how to tie a knot, then yes, even one knot is too many knots. Learn to tie knots correctly and you will not have any problems.

Depends.....what is your budget?

What? Never had a problem using braid on any of my Ambassadeurs. And I've clocked a LOT of hours on them. The oldest one that I don't use much anymore even had dacron on it. But the newer ones (3) all have 30# test PP with fluorocarbon leaders. One has 25# test Triple Fish Perlon Mono, which is my pike rod. None of them gather much dust either.

Hootie nailed it. I own 4 active Ambassadeurs now and have never changed a darn thing.

I rarely fish anything else than blades from ice out through the spawn. Great cold water lures, shallow or deep. And they'll take some dandy lake trout as well. I also like bucktail jigs as well, but the blades are consistent producers. Year round too.

You will not need to go with a "heavy" rod. Any quality Medium-Heavy baitcasting rod that's 6'6" - 7'6" will do just fine. I've taken pike to 20# on such a rig. I'd suggest you think about using a quality 20# - 25# test monofilament (instead of braid) for your main line though. When a pike crashes into your lure, you'll need the stretch as a shock absorber. In this pound test range you won't have to worry about having too much stretch. The strike is so vicious that the hooks will be set just fine.

I use .38 Spec. Hydro-Shoks in my .357 Mag. SP-101, when I'm out in public, or for home defense. Less likelyhood of a a through-shot bullet damaging other folks or property. And they perform quite well at <10 yards. Very accurate at the range too. Wish they weren't so expensive, but that's the name of the game these days.

Great reel. However, instead of an Ugly Stick, consider looking at a Berkley Lightning Shock Rod. This rod would definitely be lighter and more sensitive. And the price is not bad - somewhere around $40.00 if you shop around (Try Walmarts online!). Stick with the 7' or 7' 6" models.

Great reels! I have 4 of them that I use regularly and one from the early 70's that I keep for nostalgic purposes. They are bullet proof baitcasters that can do just about anything a $300.+ reel can do today. I've pitched, cast'd, trolled, and beat up on these bad boys for many years. Regardless of what a fishing partner may be using, they can't do anything I can't do. Best part is, you can pass it down from one generation to another. I've never had a "need" to go with anything else.

I concur with Dwight. There is no need to use 20# test anything with jerkbaits for LM's - unless you're fishing heavy cover. I bring up 6 - 9 lb. lakers, out of 90 of water regularly, on 10# test PP with a 8# test fluoro leader, so there really is no need to go so heavy - unless you want to.

Another reason why not to tie direct could be economical. If the average spool of braid contains about 125 yards, that's at least two or three re-fills if you use 50% backing on any reel (spinning included). Better to toss 60 or 70 yards of braid than 125. And when is the last time you could cast a foot ball field?

Another vote for the Alberto. After a season of practice, I can whip one out in no time. Just takes getting use to is all. Much better than a uni-uni. Slimmer and stronger. It is really "not a knot" per say. It's more of a braided weave.

I agree with DarrenM on hook size. My preference is the Gammy 1/0 INLINE circle octopus. You need to keep the point of the hook free enough to make a purchase in the bass's mouth. Smaller hooks just don't cut it, in my opinion. They tend to get all balled up with the bait. As far as weight goes, with this size hook and a hefty Senko, I've never had to resort to a weighted hook. And I do a lot of off-shore, deep water structure fishing. But if it gives you confidence to use a weighted hook, then go for it.

Another vote for the Boomerang.

A Gamakatsu Split Shot/Drop Shot hook in size #2 has been my mainstay for many, many years. Never fails.

Many good ones have been written over the past 40 years. A true explosion of fishing knowledge. One of the most influential books I've ever read was "Spoonplugging" by Elwood "Buck" Perry. And when Bill Binkleman started the "Fishing Facts" magazine (back in the early 70's) I couldn't get to the newstand (what's a newstand? LOL!) fast enough to get the latest copy.

Ya gotta love it! Here we're still dealing with almost 2' of ice on the lakes. And with temps going down to almost zero tonight, it's doubtful that there will be any kind of improvement anytime soon.

This is a fact! I've had Amazon do that to me every time I do a search on an item with them. Every day or so, the price goes up. My browser is set up to delete cooking on closing and they still find me!

I think I'll pick up a pair of the Kobalts first and try cutting some of my big trebles, with my weak arm. If they work doing that, it'll save me a few bucks. If not, I'll certain step up to the Knipex. I won't be out much $$ by doing so. I believe in trying things out for myself, before relying on them in real life situations. Knowing what you are carrying works is the real insurance. Thanks again guys!

You might look at it like this. Most lure patterns have some red in them. And more patterns with red have been sold over the years than any other. So does it matter that the hook is red or not? No one can say definitively, but I also know for a fact that it can't hurt!

Welcome to the board! There are many articles at the top of the main page, which will help you with your question. And most folks here will certainly try to help as well. However, this a pretty broad question. The answers will vary with the kind of water (pond, lake, reservoir, river) and the species (LM, SM or spots) you are targeting. Of importance also is the clarity of the water, the type of vegetation (if any) and the forage base. Are there a lot of docks around the lake? Are you fishing out of a boat or shore bound? Do you have a sonar and are you familiar with how to use it to identify structure.? Many questions needing to be addressed before anyone can give you a logical response. You've started off just fine with joining us here and we'll look forward to hearing more from you. Also, something which might help getting responses is going to the "Introduction" forum and tell us a bit about yourself. Again....Welcome to the best bass forum there is.

I'm also a believer, when it comes to mono or fluorocarbon, but I haven't really noticed any significant improvement when using braid. Have you JF?