senile1

What does the beam measure on this boat? It's rather narrow. I hope you're not as clumsy as me, because if I was standing on a deck in this boat, a 15 - 20 mph gust of wind would throw me in the water. I wouldn't recommend a deck since it is so narrow.

You hit the nail on the head, Bassbum. This site is the best place for bassin' information. I still like Bassmaster and Bassin'. I also read Missouri Game and Fish Magazine. If you go to www.gameandfishmagazine.com you can click on a state and get a magazine that focuses on your state. It doesn't always have great how to articles and much of the magazine concerns hunting, but I occasionally find a new place to fish in my home state by reading it on a monthly basis.

Wheel bearings are EXTREMELY important to take care of. I bought a used boat a few years back. When I would jack the trailer up and spin the wheels you could hear grinding. I replaced the bearings and races, but it took a machine shop to pop two of the races out of the hubs and they had to break them to get them out. It was almost like they were welded in. Monthly greasing through the bearing buddies will save you alot of headaches down the road. Even using bearing buddies, I still repack my bearings every two years.

Consider if the rain was associated with a cold front coming through. After a cold front has passed and the barometric pressure has bottomed out, it will begin to rise, and with the cooler temperatures, it can shut the fish down. If this is the case, you'll probably want to use a slow presentation and cast with precision to your cover. If you have any stumps inside or on the edge of the weed beds, these could be prime locations. As nb stated, try to mimic your forage, but I wouldn't ignore trying something different like a worm or tube around the cover either.

I chose spinnerbaits but there are others I use almost as often. Ratltraps have been good to me and when the fish are shallow in grass I have had alot of luck with floating rapalas. In answer to not getting bites on your spinnerbait, how are you fishing it? There are so many ways to fish this bait that it is difficult to go wrong unless you just use one method. The problem could be your confidence in the lure. Often when you're not confident with a lure you may change to something else just when you were ready to break the ice. You can fish it with a steady retrieve at any depth you choose. You can fish it at the surface and create a wake. You can yo yo it or slow roll it near the bottom. You can fish it like a jig by letting it helicopter to the bottom, picking it up and letting it drop again. You can vary your rate of retrieve and bounce the bait off of structure. If you think you get a tug and you set the hook but nothing is there, add a trailer hook to your spinnerbait. You can also add a trailer such as a worm, pork frog, etc. I would suggest that you go out one day and choose to fish only that lure. Experiment with it and you will eventually catch fish with it. This is what I had to do to break the ice with a spinnerbait many years ago. Also, make sure you have spinnerbaits with different blades. In muddy water or highly-stained water the bigger rounder blades (colorado blades) create the most vibration so that a bass can find the lure. In clearer or lightly stained water, use a spinnerbait with a couple of willow leaf blades or at least a willow leaf and an Indiana blade. Lastly, look through the articles on this website. There are some good articles on fishing spinnerbaits on this site.

This weekend I ran into a similar problem. I tried a couple of lures and finally went with a spinnerbait but I slow-rolled it and in some places I was yo-yoing it. I discovered a number of bass on wood in the nearest drop-off where the water was 9 - 12 feet. Most of these were only dinks and up to 2 lbs. I switched to a c-rigged lizard and fished the same areas and caught some bigger fish with the biggest being a 6 lb 3 oz.

Oh, I guess I should have said "Welcome to posting." I've been reading this site for almost a year but I didn't start posting until recently so I assume I'm new to the forum even though I've read it alot.

Jim, You know how to make a guy jealous. A half-dozen 6 - 7 pounders!!! Geez. I see you're from Arkansas. Is this lake in Arkansas and where? I'm somewhat familiar with some of the larger reservoirs on the White River in Northern Arkansas but nothing else.

These sites have good pictures. This is very helpful.

Excellent advice from Cart7. If this trailer is rusty I'd be checking the wheel bearings too. I bought a "bargain" bass boat a few years back and the bearings were grinding when I would spin the wheels. When I pulled the hubs to replace the bearings, it was as if the races had been welded in. I don't think the previous owner ever greased the bearings. I had to take the hubs to a machine shop to remove two of the races and they had to break them to get them out.

This is a good question. I've been watching this thread since it started because I know one of the smart cookies in this forum will have an answer. KU_B, I noticed you live in Overland Park, KS. I'm in Kansas City North on the Missouri side and I was noticing similar behavior on the beds.

I would absolutely avoid this bargain unless you are wanting to learn alot about boats and you enjoy projects. I bought a bargain 15 1/2 foot bassboat with a 70 horse Johnson a few years back. After spending approximately $4000 extra on the boat, engine, and trailer plus numerous hours of my own time working on it I have a pretty good fishing rig. But I never want to go through what I went through again. For the money I spent, I could have bought a good used rig without wasting all of my free time. The only positive out of this situation is that I know exactly what to look for the next time I'm shopping for a used boat.

It all depends on what technique you're trying to use. If you're flippin' or pitchin' you're going to be fairly close to the bank. If you're trying to fish your lure parallel to the bank you're going to be closer. If the wind is blowing parallel to the bank and you want to fish your lure with the current you're going to be closer. If you have calmer or clearer water and you don't want to spook fish, you'll place yourself much further from the bank.

Welcome to the forum, Fatman. I haven't been posting too long either. I'd love to get hooked up on some farm ponds. Are these owned by people you know or did you just drive around and ask farmers for permission?

Hey, BassinAndrew. I live in the Park Hill area about 8 miles south of KCI airport. I fish mostly at Smithville and Truman. Do you know anything about the fishing at Jacomo and Blue Springs Lake? Ed

I rarely eat bass. I'll only keep them when it is needed for the reservoir I'm fishing. I'll eat crappie, bluegill, and catfish any time.

I'm in the Kansas City, MO area. I chose wood but I've been finding the bigger bass on rock banks with wood and laydowns in less than 6 feet of water at Smithville Lake, Truman Lake, and Belcher Branch. I haven't been catching many keepers in the coontail moss, although I have seen some beds in these areas. The water level on these lakes is really low now so some of the weedy areas I would have fished last year are high and dry.

Yes, thanks, Jim. I am in the market for a new depth finder myself. Currently I am using a very old Humminbird 200 DX. I can find concentrations of fish with it but the accuracy leaves much to be desired.

Hmm . . . I don't know Shawnee Mission Lake. I fish the Missouri side, but I know the last two weeks most of the bass I've caught of any size have been on the edges of spawning flats in a little deeper water. They hadn't moved up yet. Since you're fishing from the bank maybe that's part of the problem.

Smithville Lake was 62 degrees earlier this week and Truman was 68 degrees on the Tebo arm last weekend. So 65 sounds pretty close for Gardner. I agree with avid. Try a slower presentation.

I fish alone about 80% of the time. I like the time away from noise and the hustle and bustle. I have a couple of fishing partners, and the main one is my wife. Our trouble is that she is almost strictly a crappie fisherman and I love to fish for bass. This does lead to an occasional disagreement on the water. :-/