smallmouth89

Where I live in Ontario Canada we can't fish bass until the last Saturday in June. Anyone care to guess why? God Bless, Don

Baitcasting or spinning? (Anyone flyfish for bass?) God Bless, Don

Been flyfishing for a lot of years. Deerhair on top and rabbit on the bottom works for me. Got into baitcasting last summer and a Sinking Salty Shad was dynamite all through the season. God Bless, Don

Thanks guys. Appreciate all the help. I used to go to two pound mono to toss some really light stuff for trout, With that it was always "win some/lose some". To get one, or two pound diameter from a strong braid is awesome. It does, however, make sense that a light braid could blow around some. God Bless, Don

Last year I got into Power Pro braid on my baitcasters and really liked it. Now I am thinking of spooling a couple of my ultra lights with a strong thin diameter braid. Power Pro has an 8/1 and a 10/2 and Fireline has 6/2, 8/3 and a 10 /4. Any recommendations? I would be tossing unweighted plastics, tiny Mepps or Panther Martins and a lot of small jigs. God Bless, Don

Thanks guys, All I have to do now is find the patience to wait 3 and a half more months for bass season to open in S. Ontario. God Bless, Don

NOBODY ELSE???

Flyfishing is my preferred method but being in Ontario, Canada all the water is still hard. We can't fish bass until the end of June but when I fish I find black leech patterns rather effective on my waters. God Bless, Don

My new St.Croix baitcasting rod is fast action but I don't know if it's extra fast. Flex is mostly in the first 8 to 10" of the tip so I think it's pretty fast. God Bless, Don

Parker, XF I assume translates to extra fast? God Bless, Don

I ended up purchasing a Shimano Curado 200E and a 6'6" Medium Power Fast Action St. Croix Avid. Got it spooled with 20/6 Power Pro. Backyard casting with an 1/8 oz. jig and a twin tail grub worked fine. I suspect that the weight of the grub brings it closer to a 1/4 oz. lure. Can't wait to try it on the water. God Bless, Don

JeepnFish, This is exactly why I started this thread. I use my spinning and flyrod gear for really light weight jig, in-line spinner and tiny spoon presentations but prefer baitcasting for pretty much everything else. God Bless, Don

PB Lake Smallmouth was a huge fish caught in a canoe and portage lake in Ontario while trolling a homemade black bomber style plug. It weighed over 10 pounds. PB River Smallie is the one in my avatar which was a 20 incher caught on a Case Sinking Salty Shad. PB Largemouth was a 10 pound 7 oz. fish I caught on a buoyant wooly bugger fished on a full sink fly line. It came from a private pond. God Bless, Don

Many years ago when my daughter was six (she's now 33) I had her with my wife on her first ever canoe trip. We portaged into a back lake where I caught the biggest smallie I have ever seen. I was trolling a homemade plug. I should have had that plug retired and mounted as there was no way I was going to drag that noble fish over two or three portages. It would have at least been an Ontario record. Many years later on my son's first kayak/camp fish with me, we got into a school of big smallies on Georgian Bay. He caught one that tipped our scales at well over 8 pounds. My back lake fish was very significantly bigger so I know it was a good one. Most of the big fish etched in my memory are smallies. Keep trying I think you have a good chance to land the next BIG one! Good Luck! God Bless, Don

No I'm sure it's coincidental but if you look up "Avid's" (ex member) thread on his finesse fishing system you will see postings by other ex members. Those are a couple of great smallies in your avatar. Are they Dale Hollow specimens? I'm old enough to have been inspired by the late Billy Westmoreland. I got into ultra-lite spinning with small jigs and 4 pound mono and seriously upped my catch rate. When I came across an article on Billy Westmoreland I knew I was on the right track. Along the way I got sidetracked with the flyrod and can now toss even smaller jigs. Do you do the float and fly? Up here in Southern Ontario our bass season closed on Nov.30 and doesn't open again until the last Saturday in June. God Bless, Don

Definitely good advice here. I haven't spent much time in my canoe since I got into kayak fishing, but I will be taking my canoe out a bit more to rediscover the joys of flycasting while standing in my canoe. I can actually stand on my sit on top fishing kayak but I figure it's only a matter of time until I fall in. I never had any qualms about standing in my canoe and used to do it all the time. God Bless. Don

Hi, I'm an unconventional bass fisherman who uses the flyrod and fishes from float tube, inflatable pontoon boat, or canoes or kayaks. Last season I forced myself to put the flyrod aside and try spinning and baitcasting once more. I caught fish well and really enjoyed both methods but especially fishing with the baitcaster. In the past I did a lot of ultra-lite spinning and used my old Fenwick Lunker Stik and Ambassadeur reel mostly for big pike and walleyes. Now I have a Bass Pro Finesse Combo rod and reel and have started to get into tossing weightless plastics and 1/8th oz. jigs. I know that finesse fishing is definitely a strength of the spinning system but I discovered I really enjoy baitcasting especially with my Bass Pro setup. On the smallmouth forum I have been seeking advice from other finesse baitcasters with a view to putting another light baircasting combo in my arsenal. I just noticed that a number of members who either practised finesse baitcasting or were curious about it have become ex members. I thought that was rather strange. God Bless, Don

Thanks Dwight, That's the kind of info I'm looking for. God Bless, Don P.S. You must be pretty close to all that great Lake Erie smallmouth action.

Abu Garcia Torno or Shimano Citica work for this application? How about The Abu Garcia Revos? C'mon guys help me out here. Avid must have some input on this. I'm not he only one who prefers baitcasters to spinning outfits. Geesh if I have to I might toss some of this stuff on the 8/9 flyrod. God bless, Don

Are the newer Curados less suitable? God Bless, Don

I had a fair bit of success last season tossing various Case Plastics weightless with my Bass Pro "Pro Lite Finesse" baitcasting combo. I would like to put together another outfit capable of fishing this way and have read that the Pfleuger President does a good job of tossing lighter lures. Does anyone here have any experience with this reel? God Bless, Don P.S. I know this is the realm of the spinning rod but I really enjoy baitcasting. --------------------

Actually that fly was sent to me by a friend of mine who wanted my opinion on its potential. Told him I would definitely be tying up some and I'll let him know you guys like it too. God Bless, Don

Just joined the forum. I love to fish for bass and especially for smallmouth. I am essentially a flyrod and ultra-lite spinning guy who is just about to get reacquainted with baitcasting tackle. my favourite lure is the jig. God Bless, Don