Fishes in trees

I understand that I read and learn in different places and some of those places the desk top computer can't go. That is why I need magazines. Magazines that occupy space where learning occurs and my desk top can't go might include: In-fisherman Not as good as it once was but still has a couple of bass oriented articles each month and the Multi-species stuff applies to general fish behavior which often translates to understanding bass behavior. I receive several BPS catalogs throughout the year and on a rotation basis they get space. BAM (Bass Angler Magazine) is a decent read but it isn't readily available in my neighborhood but when I see one I'll probably buy it. I find BASSIN ( I'm pretty sure I'm spelling it wrong) to be a decent magazine. Same goes for Bassmaster & the FLW magazine. Round these magazines out with a Missouri Conservationist, Smithsonian, maybe Popular Mechanics & Popular Science, and my sit down learning area reading material is mostly covered. To address an earlier comment that these fishing magazines are kinda dedicated to selling you stuff - OF COURSE THEY ARE. How else are you going to find out about fishing stuff that is different from what you've got. May be better - may be worse - who knows but at least you've got options you weren't aware of previously. Mostly I like the Missouri Conservationist for the pictures. There are always 7 or 8 high quality, really interesting photos that take some time to look at and "get". I don't know if other states conservation agencies have a product like the Conservationist - if not, too bad. It is mostly a product of the 1/8 cent sales tax (dedicated to the conservation department and the legislature can't touch it) that Missourians passed sometime during the mid-70's as I recall. I looked at the original post, and I digressed some. In nearly all of the bass fishing mentioned and the multitudes of ones I didn't, once you get past the featured gear, there is generally some technique applicable stuff somewhere in the article. The pages that don't have that are called "advertisements", and for a magazine to be financially viable, roughly half the pages have to be ads. So it goes . ... . .

Can't have just one, that's for sure. Could you be more specific about what you want to store and where you want to store it? Me, I keep hard baits stored in various size Plano boxes, separated by style and sometimes brand. I use lots of boxes because I don't like to pile baits on top of each other. Take jerk baits for example - one box for Lucky Craft Pointers, another box for spare Lucky Craft Pointers, Staysees get a box, Pointer 78's get a box. Lucky Crafts with a longer lip get a box. Rogues get a box. (Actually Rogues get several boxes because, a- there are several styles of Rogues and - b- I have quite a few of them). You get the idea. Same deal goes for cranks, topwater, wake baits - everything that might fall under the category of hard baits. Then I have "kits", which contain everything needed to fish a particular style of lure. Soft plastic swim baits for example require different styles of jig heads & belly weighted hooks. Various brands & lengths of soft swimbaits are included. All this stuff is contained in a medium sized soft side tackle bag. For me, kits include soft swimsuits, jika rig stuff, drop shot stuff, bubba drop shot stuff, Eakins jigs. I also carry a couple of canvas tackle bags filled with plastics that don't match or won't find in the kits. On the subject of storage, don't forget fishing shed storage for extra/spare soft plastics & extra gear. I like to keep things labeled & dust proof so I have a couple of hundred plastic shoe boxes (the ones with the lids attached) to store all that stuff. Colored duct tape makes good labels and doesn't fall off over time like the sticky paper labels tend to do. At the end of the day there isn't a perfect gear storage solution, so just find something that works for you for now and them improve on it over time as your budget allows.

For 10" worms, like a 10" Berkley Powerbait worm, I like a regular gap as opposed to a wide gap or extra wide gap hook. Referring to page 296 of the BPS 2019 Master Catalog, I like hooks K, L & M. Offset round bend or O'Shaughnessy (otherwise known as a sproat) hooks. VMC & Trokar make a similar style hook. For 10" worms I use 5/0 hooks unless I'm out, which hasn't happened for a number of years now.

I'd seriously look into getting your current reels serviced/reconditioned. I'm a Shimano guy through and through - I've been burned a few times buying reels that the store clerk said were "just as good". My advice is if you've got to get a new reel, get a Curado K or a Curado 70 - spend somewhat more than $100. With modest care and regular maintenance Shimano reels will last a lifetime.

The few times that I've seriously went bluegill/assorted sunfish fishing, I bought a bunch of crickets. I used a small long shank sproat style hook, the pre-rigged ones you find in Walmart. I put a small drop of super glue on the shank of the hook and just stuck the live cricket on the hook. After 6 or 10 crickets the hook shank would get kind of gummed up and just tie on a new hook. The rest of the presentation consisted of a 6'6" ML spinning rod with 6 lb test, a foam weighted bobber and a 1/16 egg sinker on the line. (The loop on the pre-rigged hook kept it from sliding down too far). I could have used a split shot, but the egg sinker was what I had. You had to experiment with leader length from the bobber. 6' was about the maximum you could throw, I had my best luck (using the bobber) at 2 1/2 to 3 feet. Once you had the school stirred up you didn't need the bobber, just throw in the direction of the school and something would hit it on the drop. Me and a few buddies, fishing in a strip pit with limited bank access, caught several hundred fish. Anyway, no reason why you couldn't adapt that system to fish with kids. You do it, my tolerance for fishing with kids is VERY limited, I've learned my lesson and I just don't do it anymore.

I wouldn't have much confidence in stapled together baits, I'd much prefer that mine be molded. Actually, I've never used a stapled together bait, really never seen one, so I shouldn't be trying to answer this question, but I'm a natural born helper, so I tried.

I fish my home made jika rigs, which I consider far superior to the marketed Tokyo rig.

For me the short answer is no.

I've got a couple of the HUK shirts, a couple of the Magellan shirts, a Patagonia shirt and a Simms shirt. They all work. I find that I wear the hoodies more than the non-hoodies.

Just a few quarts of water could easily come in when you're running your engine and then slow down. Your wake catches up with you and very often splashes over the transom. If you're running with the wind, it can help push water over the transom into the boat.

Just give it a try. Seems pretty straightforward to me. In my experiences with senkos weighted hooks (1/16 oz in my case) out fish unweighted senkos - your experiences might yield different results. Now, if you want to overthink it, like many of us have been known to do from time to time you've got decisions to make. Do you want the weight crimped on to the hook or to the tag end of the Palomar knot? What lb test of line are you going to throw? If you're going with the weight crimped on to the hook (wacky jigs) do you want a brush guard or not? Wide gap hook or round gap hook or Sproat style hook or circle hook? You might need a dedicated senko rig. Lead or steel split shot? Need new pliers? I'm pretty certain that once you get started there are other variables as well. Lots of things to think about. You're lucky you live in Colorado - you've got access to beers & stuff that I only have occasional access to. Odells out of Fort Collins makes a great "thinking about stuff in the shop" beer - an APA called Drumroll. Now don't think too much - put a rig together and go fishing.

I like my Calcutta 250 GT and the Calcutta TEGT for throwing cranks, but they are a little more $. I recently pulled a couple of Calais out of storage and had them professionally cleaned & lubed. Using a medium action rod, I'm amazed at how far that reel will throw a smaller balsa bait on 10 lb line. I got those 2 reels relatively cheap on a cash close out deal - that deal will never happen again. I have a Curado 200E - filled with 17 lb mono that I use to throw poppers, Sammy's & spooks and that reel throws those baits very well. I think that reel is just a little more $. Basically, I'm a Shimano guy and I think that spending a little more for reaction bait reels is money well spent. As I get older, I am finding the Calcutta reels just a little heavy. Back before I became a Shimano bigot, I had a couple of Quantum IR4 CW - the wide spool version of the old Quantum IRON. Once I got those reels broke in, they were great reaction bait reels. They held so much line, you could break off a dozen times and still not really notice any loss in inches per turn - compared to using the Curado 200 where after a couple of break offs and trims to lose nicked up line, inches per turn loss is a little noticeable.

Interesting discussion on torx fasteners. I haven't noticed that torx heads are especially common- but I haven't noticed that they are that uncommon either. I think the it is a good idea to carry driver heads to cover any situation. I do. One set in the garage, another in the fishing shed, another one either in the fishing truck tool box or the boat tool box. And even then I've had issues finding the correct tool from time to time. I think that tool collections are kind of like Pokemon, in that "you've got to get them all". More often than not, the tool you don't have is the one that you need. This could be why they are always nice to me when I wander into Harbor Freight.

Short answer is yes, heavier mono will affect the fall rate. There is a long answer, but it is midnighthirty, & I'm liquored up and can' really offer the long answer right now. Perhaps someone else will .. ..

On the subject of Fenwick rods, I missed the boat on the Technia AV's the first couple of years they came out. Then Rogers Lures in Liberty, MO got a bunch on them in for a big sale, at the same time they had the Berkley Trailer show up. I think Fenwick is owned by Berkley or they are both owned by someone else, someone like that. Anyway a fishing buddy of mine (who is admittedly hard on gear) bought 6 of them and within a year he'd broken all of them. Makes me think that the Technica AV's were a little fragile. I've bought half a dozen in various sizes of the model that replaced the Technia AV - AETOS - and they've worked great for me for 5+ years now. I've only broken one and it was my fault (the electric window on the passenger side of my Explorer ate it), Fenwick still replaced it. As for reels, I used to have a Diawa, purchased in 1985 or 86, that had the mag force magnetic braking, but also had a deal when you engaged the freespool, the line guide would separate and go to either end of the frame, so your cast basically had no friction from the line guide. I can't remember the model #, but I remember I was bummed when it got stolen, shortly after I moved back to the KC Metro area and I've never seen another one - in a catalog or a store. I'd like to have that reel back. Also stolen in that event was the reel I learned on, a Shimano Custom X 2000.

If you're buying batteries for a 10" Pond Prowler - buy 2 and wire them parallel. Then it will be VERY unlikely that you'll run short of power - even if you do battery eating styles of fishing like holding on a windy point all morning throwing jerk baits. Get a charger that will handle charging both batteries at once.

I think that throwing top water baits is one place where you don't really need to go top end. I found my current favorite for for throwing spooks & poppers at Academy Sports for $25 on close out. It is a 6' All Star Top Water Special. Previously my favorite was a 6' Mitchell Fulcrum rod, purchased on close out 15 years or so ago at Walmart. I got a 5'9" version of this rod at the same time. Things I look for in a top water rod - (a) shorter is better for me, 6'6" max. I don't like slapping the water with the rod tip and I don't like slapping the side of the boat with the rod. (b) I like a kinda medium/ heavy action. I want it to have some back bone, but enough tip that I get good distance easily. I've found that many cheaper rods are labeled MH, but are really more Med and that's what works for me. (c). Handle has to be long enough that I can cast two handed easily, but not too long. The previously mentioned All Star Top Water Special is nearly perfect for me. Back in my collection of retired rods there is an All Star Top Water Special, from back in the days when they were made in Texas, and the action is nearly identical, the newer rod is 3" shorter, and it seems it was all taken from the handle. I have a fishing buddy who prefers 7' rods for top water, but when he is using a walking bait, he jerks to the side, me I tend to jerk more in a downward motion. There is lots of other gear minutia that we disagree on, but we can still fish together. Good luck finding a top water rod that works for you. I think that if you spend $100 for a top water rod you've overspent, but then I purchase most of my rods in the winter, when the close out bins are full. I guess if you have to upgrade in season, $100 probably ain't out of line.

I've never done any good dragging spinnerbaits along the bottom - and I've tried off and on over the years. For me, there is a "certain depth" that makes spinner baits work and it varies from day to day. Basically, if I can see the bait very well, I'm running the bait too shallow and if I can't see the bait at all during the retrieve, then I'm a little too deep. A perfect cast is where I just barely see the flash of the blade every so often. If after 20 or so minutes of this, then I'm done for the day and I'm pretty certain that there are other baits that will work better.

I think that it is important to patronize brick & mortar stores, if we don't, they go away, and then where would I be when I just want to walk up and down the aisles and look and not buy stuff today? I feel fortunate that in the KC Metro area we have Rogers, which is a very good fishing/hunting oriented store. I use on-line stores as a last resort, mainly because I'm not thrilled about putting fishing purchases on credit card - IMO fishing purchases should come out of immediately disposable income and not future income. But I make exceptions and I am frequently weak and undisciplined when it comes to tackle purchases.

I've run the gamut on spinner bait fishing. From thinking that they were stupid looking and couldn't catch fish, to trying them and having some success, experimenting more and having them be my primary lure for a couple of seasons. I own hundreds of them, with every blade style known to man. I've convinced myself a dozen times that I owned the "perfect" spinner bait rod, then something about it didn't suit me. Overall, I've found it to be a very frustrating bait. I have occasional success with it, enough to always have one rigged in my boat, but I've run into guys who are much better with the bait than I am and I find myself hard pressed to replicate their results. This past winter, I decided that I needed to refine my spinner bait skills and of course I needed new gear to do that. So I got a Curado DC and put it on my current favorite spinner bait rod, a 6'8" Fenwick AETOS MH, with a little bit of a tip to it. I haven't fished this rig a whole lot, but so far I like the distance I get with it.

The football shaped shaky head work better for me around rocks than the ball head ones do. However, I seldom worry about that because (a) I carry LOTS of shaky heads and (b) once the bait is stuck, the cast is ruined anyway, move the boat, get on top & slightly behind the bait and a little nudge and it almost always comes out. Tournament situation - different story - break of & retie ASAP.

I used to lose needle nose pliers in my boat, they were never where I wanted them to be when I wanted them. Solved. the problem by having half a dozen pairs. Most of them are the 6" to 8" size. Before I launch the boat, I get the pliers strewn around the boat - couple of pairs up front, pair on the console, pair on the back deck, pair on top of the junk bin so at least I know where to start looking when I need them. My favorite pair, an 11" stainless steel model, completely broke in, with a very narrow tip, is currently on vacation. It is lurking somewhere in my fishing shed, underneath something, waiting to be discovered again.

Where are you going to be fishing? As soon as you get a boat on a trailer, many small ponds, strip pits etc, are out of bounds because you WILL need a ramp to launch your boat. Trying to launch a boat into water without a ramp is challenging. Getting it back on the trailer without a ramp is MUCH more challenging. It can be done, but be prepared. I've assisted retrieving an 18' river boat on the Gasconade and it involved an electric winch, 50' of cable on the winch and several extensions, to drag the boat up the steep hill to get it to the trailer. It was a challenge, but really a piece of cake with the proper gear. How much gear do you like to take with you when you fish? How much space is in the boat? Fish by yourself much or normally with a partner? I would argue that the weight difference between the 3 boats pictured is negligible, wear and tear on your vehicle is going to happen at nearly the same rate no matter which boat is chosen. You do need to find out from some authority what is the max load that you can tow safely. Remember that the original weight of the boat generally isn't real close to the weight that you're pulling. Batteries, weight of gas, safety gear, cooler full of ice & beverages all add up. Buying used from a dealer or an individual? There are pros & cons to each strategy. Good luck in finding a boat that is right for you.

For Bluegills, it is hard to beat bobbers & crickets, maybe earth worms. When it comes to using artificial in ponds for bass, for numbers I'd recommend Charlie Brewer Sliders. Medium/Light spinning rig, 6 lb test, 1/8 or 3/16 or quarter ounce slider heads with the 4" slider worm. If you can't find any locally - go to their web site, they have lots of colors available, tell them where you're from and they will suggest colors and their turn around time, from order to your door is excellent. There are lots of other options and I'm sure others will chime in concerning those.

I buy them because they have some unique colors. They catch fish comparable to any other stickbait. I generally tx rig them with a small tungsten weight and throw them at objects. I save my senkos for wacky rigs.