Papa_Tom

Have several Cara's. Great rods. Lifetime warranty. You won't be disappointed with their performance.

Here is a site that may help http://www.proknot.com/Fishing_Knots/fishing_knots.html

The two people that shared the most with me about swimming jigs (both fishing the same water, cover, etc) had exact opposite approaches here. One is absolutely nothing but 15# Big Game green, and the other is 30/8 PowerPro. Monsoor says he uses 15 pound test Big Game also, with 12# Flouro depending on the water. Can't get the opinion of much higher authority than that. I use the braid myself with a very light drag on a 6'6" HMG MH Fenwick. I seem to do better with the vegetation with braid. Visit some of the maker's webs for some info. Especially http://www.brovarneybaits.com/ scroll down the left for tips. Think you'll find some help there.

Sort of a home made easyview system if you will. Should work fine. Congrats

Thanks for the feedback SWIFF. I have been planning to look deeper into this product on my upcoming trip to BPS. My ProPole is going to have to go and some changes made. Can no longer stand up long term because of spinal stenosis recurring. The seat is one of the approaches I had in mine. However, I did not want to have to move it from the front deck each time I fired up. I can't see everything with it in the front deck while underway. Not safe. Thought the kwikdrop might be a fix. Perhaps not based on your assessment. Thanks again.

Another thing to consider might be the type water you fish. If you are usually in open water going down an edge, not weaving in and out, then as has been stated, a hand-control properly adjusted and a BigFoot might be a good choice. If you are fishing timber and stump fields where you are zigging in and out then a foot control sounds better. I have foot control at present but recurring back issues are dictating that something must change. Even the recessed tray isn't a cure for me. I'll be looking at both handcontrol and/or some sort of remote.

A buddy and I had them the first time. Neither of us ever caught the first fish on them. However, if they bring the old Craw back out I will get in line for that one. Caught some monsters on that thing. Go figure.

I would second the Pros Soft bait glue for any type of soft bait fix-up. You can take your pricier soft baits home and repair them at the end of the day, or do so on the spot. My guess is that it will work on braid knots, but that is just that. I've never tried it for that purpose. Super glue gel obviously does work for that. The Pro's will bond a wide variety of items and will last a good year w/o drying up. Pricey at $10 maybe, but I have recycled so many baits that it is worth it to me. http://www.prosoftbaitglue.com/

I most often use the 3X SK finesse 7" worm on a Davis ballhead jig. Sometimes use the long shank one, sometimes not. When I use another worm (non 3X) I will often add a Tru-Turn HitchHiker. You can attach it to the eyelet or shank as you see fit. Seems to extend the life of the worm considerably. http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&partNumber=15839&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults I normally use a M to MH spinning rod with 8-10 lb test and just about any retrieve imaginable.

If you're fishing this rig with an open hook, then I believe Dan has given you the best direction. If you are wanting to T-rig with this type hook then you may be wanting to try the 'Stupid Tube' rigging: http://tackle.redshad.com/proddetail.php?prod=WNS&cat=24 click on 'rigging instructions'. I use these insider heads with Zoom Big Tubes and if done properly, I can get several fish from one tube. I'm sure there are other brands out there that will work, perhaps better. Post if you know of them

First I think you need to ask yourself a couple of questions. Is it flip only, or flip/pitch? What kind of cover most of the time? Most folks opt for higher retrieve (6+:1) for flipping, and certainly for pitching because of line retrieval. Lower geared reels have more power if that is important to you. I flip with a 3.8:1 Curado on a Falcon Cara heavy flip stick. I figure I don't have that much line out anyways and I am often in heavy grass so I want the power. I pitch with 6.2:1 on a 6'10 Falcon pitch stick. The 3.8 is very slow if you are used to higher speeds, and you may not be happy with one geared that low. Just something else to think about.

Don't know about a double-nail knot. I've used double uni, and a surgeon's knot works also. It is a little bulkier than the uni to uni tho. Try these sites http://www.proknot.com/Fishing_Knots/fishing_knots.html http://www.animatedknots.com/

Robert I bought another seat for my 518 a couple of years ago. I'm thinking it was around 200 +/- thru my dealer. Don't remember that it took too long to get it. Believe the anniversay emblem on it was a hold-up, tho'.

Rea you guys use a regular jig and just swimming it ? Or is there one made for swimming? Short answer is 'yes' to both questions. When you start refining your approach to the technique and the places to use it you may find you like the Booyah Mitch Looper style or the Monsoor/Brovarney/CustomLures style better. I prefer the latter. Here is a place to start http://www.brovarneybaits.com/ Good luck

I always use a single tail grub, 4 or 5 inch, curl down. Clear to slightly off-colored water seems best as it is a sight feeding technique mostly. Anywhere you would throw a crank, or a spinnerbait with any retrieve or depth you settle on. Burn 'em, slow roll 'em. Don't overlook throwing 1/8 or 1/4 oz jigs on top of vegetation like a frog. Might surprise you what they will come through or over. I usually use PowerPro for this because of the vegetation.

Shad_Master pretty much covered it as far as I am concerned. I tend to lean toward this bait as my primary. I am not suggesting that the swim jig is an end-all, do-all, but rather that I gravitate toward water that this works best in. Not much different than a flipper looks for his type water.

Been fishing these since @ '71 or '72. Used to read Charlie's articles in the Fishing Facts magazine and ordered his kit. Never been w/o them since. Everything suggested is good advice. I try to slowly swim them somewhere in the column---down to just off the bottom. Sometimes hopping and/or bottom bouncing. My wife usually wears me out with this technique. I, too, prefer the Spider head. And you can catch some big bass with this method.

I posted some time back on another thread that I had no luck on these things. That was last year. This pre-spawn I have lived on this bait. The Chatterbait is the only one I own (after last year I wasn't about to buy more) and I am approaching 300 bass on it this spring. Retired and haven't missed very many days in over a month. Same 1/4 oz bait, replaced the trailer a couple of times with split tail trailers. I throw it on PowerPro with a mono leader--use a surgeon's knot to join them btw. I haven't seen any failures or breakages to date.

Take a look at this. Similar to Reb's suggestion: http://www.probass.com/protips/Articles/bass-ackward.php

Is this it? http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&partNumber=44465&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

The tackletour tests that have been on the forum recently pretty much support the advice offered here. This is another comparison that says the same thing--stretch, more density (more feel transmitted)-- http://www.shallowwaterangler.com/features/line_stretch_test/

bassboatsaver is a VERY good product for your fiberglass boat. Makes it easy to keep it clean and free of scum, waterline. I would imagine it would do fine on an aluminum boat also since it does so on trailers, motors, trucks, etc. Good stuff.

Not knowing which style you are after, here is one that I have used: https://jewelbait.com/store/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=JBC&Category_Code=PSJ It is an Eakins Spider jig, single cable. My favorite color was Black Olive (black/green) since discontinued. I used it around wood, it may be better in a rocky world. I worked it slow. I think Terminator makes a finesse jig with a double cable guard. Sure there are others also.

Brovarney jigs out of Wisconsin would get my first nod http://www.brovarneybaits.com/ There are some others, Custom Lures is another one that is good. Tom Monsoor from BPS, not hand-tied should this matter to you. More I'm sure, these are the ones I'm most knowledgable of. I have some of the Booyah jigs, but have not really used them. I prefer those mentioned.

I would think that if they are in reasonable condition that any Falcon would be worth $35 per. If they are any thing above Original, just that much sweeter the deal. Good luck