NOVA Angler

No kidding. Nitroman, you disappeared a year or so ago. Where have you been?

Generally 45-60 boats. One flight. I don't want to discourage you or anything, but I woud suggest learning the river for a year or two before throwing down $160/tournament to fish LAPR. Many of the best anglers on the Potomac fish this series so if you're not consistently on fish, you're just donating. If money is no object, come on up!

I think people are forgetting that there is a Magic Shad (fluke style bait) and Live Magic Shad (soft jointed swimbait). Just wanted to make sure everyone is on the same page. Which was Boyd using as a trailer?

...or if you don't want to spend more money on quality jigs right now, get some small zip ties from HD or Lowes and attach them to your jigs around the collar. I wire tie mine above the plastic collar.

Better buy them up because my understanding is that they're being discontinued. Overstock had a bunch on their site a few months ago.

If someone goes up there make sure you take him some good beer. But seriously, where are your orange slices? ;D J/K

The 115 has much better action than the 95 IMO.

I really wanted to get Costas but couldn't find a frame that fit my big head. I ended up buying a pair of Natives for $99. While I would never argue that they're as good as Costas, I've been very happy with the purchase. When Costa starts making a frame that fits my noggin, I'll probably pull the trigger to see what all the fuss is about, until then I'll stick with the Natives. On another note, the Natives also have a no questions asked replacement warranty. (I believe it's $30)

I was wrapping some jigs last night as a matter of fact. I bought 26 gauge floral wire from Michaels. I slide the rubber band back a little and just wrap it 2 or 3 times and twist the two ends together a few times. Seems to work well, you just have to make sure you get the wire tight enough but not so tight that you cut the skirt.

Aurora Black

Congrats on the fish. I'm jealous of your weather. What size scrounger and what kind of trailer do you use.

What kind of trailer is that?

Which is why I figured braid would be better. If the hook has trouble penetrating the platic, I figured a no stretch line would help. I'll give the blade runner a try. It will probably work fine on a high tide when I'm mostly working the bait over the grass, but I'm skeptical about a lower tide. David, which paddle tail do you like most? Which Dobyns rod do you throw them on?

I've experimented with a number of different hooks including the Owner Beast. I've found that when using a keel weighted hook with the weight towards the middle, the action on the fall isn't nearly as good with the baits I mentioned. I prefer a hook with the weight closer to the front of the bait. Yes the bait falls head first but the action (tail kick) is much better. I use the Mustad Power Lock Plus hook with the adjustable weight (can be moved forward) and the Falcon front weighted hook. I hadn't thought about braid being the issue. I'm not sure I understand the disadvantage of braid with this technique. Couldn't you make the same statement about braid with any technique?

I started throwing paddletail swimbaits this past season and caught several quality fish. The problem however is that I also lost several good fish. I'm wondering what I can do to improve my hookups with these baits. I fish in and around heavy grass so a treble stinger is not practical. My setup is an MBR844c/Curdado 200DHSV with 50lb Power Pro. I mainly fish the Strike King Shadalicious and Berkley Hollow Belly. Let me know your thoughts and recommendations.