Blade-Runner

15# Big Game for spinnerbaits. 15# Big Game or 50# PP for buzzbaits.

1/2 Oz. Strike King Denny Brauer Rattlin' Pro Jig (Black) w/ Black Zoom Chunk Trailer.

This is good advice ^ WAIT WAIT WAIT until he really takes it before you set it. He will sometimes dick around with that doughball, etc. until what seems like an eternity. Make sure he takes it before you rip into him. I recommend either Wheaties-balls (crushed up Wheaties mixed w/ water and hand-rolled) or soft craws (particularly good on rivers). I use a 7' composite rod w/ 15 lb. Big Game "Blue Flouroscent" line.

I cannot remember a spring in the last few years where we were this up and down on the weather... I was reading temps up to about 58 degrees last week on some shallower ponds - now they are back down in the low-50's. By the end of this week, we could very well be back down in the upper-40's on some areas. These cold nights have been really hurting the water and keeping activity very unstable. I'm finding fish, then finding them completely gone the next day. It's making for a challenge, which I typically enjoy - but has nonetheless complicated things up here in Hoosierland. I'm guessing that when it hits - it's really gonna hit up here. I've been listening around and haven't really heard much of anything going on - not even with some of the hot early-season crappie lakes, the walleye impoundments, or the white bass runs that usually start early. I will say one thing - it has definitely kept the fishing pressure down. I haven't seen near the amount of folks on the water that I am normally used to seeing. We'll see how this plays out, but we are no doubt several weeks behind normal, to say the least...

They're a decent braid rod. Maybe. I have a good friend who uses a 5'9" ML Ugly Stick Lite w/ PowerPro for river smallmouths and loves it. It's also nice when we anchor up on hole and put the bottom rigs on with a fresh fish fillet, soft craw, or crawler for whatever will bite... That being said, I don't own one. Except a long surf model I used to use for catfishing. They're really not bad for bait-fishing.

Fluoro or braid w/ fluoro leader. I'm usually fishing pretty clear water and the fluorocarbon helps get it down deeper and assists in bite detection with less stretch (particularly when you're trying to convince yourself to let it hang...)

Used a 7' BPS Crankin Stik w/ Curado 200 5:1 until today... Just got home from Angler's World with a brand new 7'2" E21 Parabolic Carrot Stix. So, as of now my crankin' setup is a Shimano Curado 200 5:1 w/ 12 lb. Trilene 100% Fluoro and a 7'2" Parabolic Carrot...

The older Smithwick Rogues (floaters) and the "Big Jim" crankbait.

- Zoom Superfluke or Case SSS in Pearl White - Usually use braid and spinning tackle (especially great for skipping) - I don't use a swivel, split shot, or weighted hook - I use this for the upper 1/3 of the water column, if I need something to go deeper I'll either wait longer for it to sink unweighted or I'll use another presentation. - Will fish it anywhere from frantic & fast right on top to twitched or deadsticked like a Senko - Like frogging for me : got to really let them take it before you set the steel to them, alas braid helps greatly...

- SPRO Bronzeye Frog - Rapala Skitter Pop - Original Floating Rapala - Lunker Lure Buzzbait - LC Sammy

Definitely will be a good topwater lake at some point in the season.

The Browning Medallion GT 6'6" M/F is a good alternative if you're wanting to spend under $100. It works outstanding for floating stickbaits, Skitter-Pops, and Spooks.

I vote for Tennessee. Lots of great variety and the TVA and TWRA are great management-minded agencies. Green bass, brown bass, striped bass, white bass, spotted bass, shoal bass, it's all good.

Welcome to Bass Resource from Madison County!

Those are both great crankbaits. For what I term "shallow cranks" - I tend to like the Bandit Footloose and the Mann's Baby One-Minus myself.

20/6 PP on spinning tackle is great for soft jerkbaits...

Use a balloon as a float.

I'm itching for the 7'2" parabolic as the primary component in my new ultimate all-purpose cranking machine.

Jimmy Houston, Kevin Van Dam, Paul Elias, Dean Rojas, Derek Remitz

1/2 oz. spinnerbait. With limited access from shore, you can have less fear of getting snagged and can make long casts. You can also vary your retrieves significantly to match the strike zone or activity level of your quarry.

I think it's been briefly mentioned at one point or another, but I feel it incumbent upon me to spread the word on some decent line deals going around. If anyone has a Meijer in their general area, you might check them out for some clearance specials. I believe Meijer mainly retails in the Midwest/Mideast area. I purchased 4 spools of Berkley 100% Fluorocarbon for 50% off, plus an additional 25% off coupon. This made each spool around $6.50-8.50 depend on lb-test. In addition, Berkley has the $10-off coupon available on their website when you buy 2 two-hundred yard filler spools. I mainly used BPS XPS fluorocarbon in the past, but have enjoyed good success with this new Berkley product. I want to encourage fellow Resource members to get the best deals possible on this product.

For some reason, that intro just made me laugh out loud for a second. Your setup looks awful good to me. I have a nigh-similar variety but not quite as high-quality (though I'm getting there)... A 6'6-7' MH lower-modulus graphite rod w/ an all-purpose high-speed utility baitcaster for blades or shallow crankbaits could be good, but you've got multiple rods that could double for that. I just didn't see a dedicated spinnerbait rod on your description so I thought I'd mention it. I use an older IM7 Shimano Clarus (6'6" MH) w/ 15 lb. Big Game as an all-purpose spinnerbait rod or for throwing big shallow "irritator" plugs (Balsa-B's, square-bills, etc) or for large jerkbaits. You might also include a setup you wouldn't punch out a car-window over losing! For instance, a cheaper river-rod/reel or something to fish out of a johnboat/canoe with... Nice assortment!

5:1 for cranking, 6-7:1 for everything else.

I like a 20-series reel for most bass spinning applications. Something that holds 100-125 yds. of 8-lb. test serves me well. My favorites are the higher-end Quantum reels. I have an Energy PTi-20 and it works great for a variety of techniques. The magnetic bail trip and overall build quality on the Icon, Kinetic, and Catalysts are good in my opinion. Of course, Shimano's mid to higher end spinning reels have also been great. We've used them in saltwater fishing for years and they've functioned very well.

It depends on exactly what I'm doing. For general cranking use or early season, I will usually use either a 6'6" MH rod w/ 15 lb. mono or a 6'6" M rod w/ 10 lb. fluorocarbon. A lot depends on cover and depth. If I'm fancasting around cover, submerged rocks/wood, etc - I like the heavier power and heavier line. For deeper, clearer water with less cover (fancasting flats w/ emerging vegetation,etc) I like the lighter rod/line. I also vary the size of the Trap based on these characteristics. Later in the spring and into summer, when I'm fishing grass, I like stepping up to a 7' MH rod rigged with 50-lb. braid and a high-speed reel. You hear often about the "ripping" concepts and this equipment does seem to work better when fishing in/around heavier cover. A 7:1 reel w/ braid and a heavier, sensitive rod is great for ripping through weeds and covering water. Often times I will use this as a search bait instead of a spinnerbait (particularly if I know a lot of guys are using blades). Lipless cranks (for me) are one of the exceptions to using a softer rod. Although I like a soft rod at times for not ripping out hooks, the added sensitivity of either braid, a quality rod, or both can and does boost my performance with rattletraps.