J Francho

I've only ever caught cats while fishing for bass once in NY, and it was a brown bullhead that must have been spawning or harassing spawning bass. Otherwise, I would catch them occasionally, but that was VA and south. Seems like you have to be in flathead territory.

Green

Sorry, I don't think I have any left. There might be a bunch a Daiwa stuff in there. Everything is packed up for a move anyhow.

One of the reasons I fish the bait I fish is consistency. This often (but not always) means expensive. Lucky Craft Pointers were a huge upgrade in this department with regards to jerkbaits. I love the X-Raps in my collection now, but it usually takes anywhere between 3-6 to get one that works the way I expect it to - like the rest in my collection. For cranks it isn't as bad, but I can attest to buying a ton of "bad" Wiggle Warts in the used market. "Bad" actually means they run true as designed. You actually want one that runs weird, or sort of hunts. Those hardly ever go up for sale. Bottom line, if I lose a bait, I want to be able to tear one out of the package, and fish it. No mods, no new hardware, no new hooks. That's probably an impossibility, but some companies are better than others. Oh, in regards to the Chug Bug: You can continue to toil with finding a good one. Good ones are like diamonds. Or just go buy a Popmax. You only need one.

A jar of baby food weighs more.

You can use Shimano Star Grease or Cal's original. You can get either at https://www.smoothdrag.com/. I'll just say, any reel I buy gets a Carbontex drag upgrade as SOP. They're less than $10 and it's probably the single best upgrade to the function of the reel. In other words, if you're already in there, replace it. CU-200 reels highly benefit from this upgrade. I used to keep like 30 of the washer sets in stock when I was running my reel cleaning biz.

Yep, air. No grease for well over a decade with Carbontex and nothing to report but smooth drags.

I was just gonna say trim and tilt should be on different relays.

When it isn't totally freezing out, I wear sandals. Keen Newport H2O work okay. This is mostly in spring when I kayak and wade fish. Just be aware you have almost no traction or ankle support.

Up front in the bow straps for the Hobie. In the Commander, basically anywhere since there's way more room than I'd ever need.

Whenever you see trucks in crazy jungles or rocky deserts in 3rd world countries, it's always an old Toyota.

Odd to whom? Never heard as bass complain about their shape, just the hooks.

Not really, but I've caught hundreds on a jerkbait every spring. I've seen guys doing the chuck and whip thing. Looks exhausting. See the pink X-Rap flying through the air? Those don't work

There's a 22 bag of Generals limit.

If you can walk a spook, you can work a jerkbait. It's the same.

You forgot lipstick.

Look at the "Customers that bought this also bought these.." list in the link to the waders you bought. It's full of wading boots. I prefer felt with stainless studs for most water here. In freezing temps, felt is terrible, and I switch to rubber with studs. It looks like those waders have built in gravel guards, basically a sleeve the fits over the boot. They also come with a wading belt. Use it and cinch it tight. It will save your life.

No twitch using a jerkbait should be so dramatic you're slapping the boat with your rod. It's just a little twitch. Less drama = more fish. Keep trying, but slow it way down.

I'd totally drive a pink Pinto.

Carolina Rigs

I bet that Pinto was pimp.

The stumps on Santee-Cooper are something else.

25 years ago, there was one sitting in the lot next to the place I worked, a '67. It didn't run, but had numbers matching drivetrain and minimal rust, which is amazing for a car up here. WHen I asked how much, it was what I thought was WAY too much at $14k. I kind of kick myself a little these days with what these are going for. I'm not a mopar guy, but that car turned my screws. This was a weird deal to make production numbers for F2 racing. They stuck a Ferrari motor made by Fiat in a Fiat from a Ferrari that wasn't badged as a Ferrari.

Same as any other rig, depends on the cover and weight involved. If there is no cover or very little, I prefer a ML/XF. I've also rigged one up on my flipping stick, and tossed the rig into pads. If I'm fishing vertically, I might go way down in power, since I'm not casting. So, a ML power rod is ok even if you are using a 3/4 oz. sinker because you're just opening the bail and dropping the bait over the side.

Ugh. It's such a good rod.