NorcalBassin

I throw the 4 inchers on a 1/8 oz jig head or drop shot rig when the bite slows or if I just want to put someone on fish. Smoke/blk flake is killer out here in the gin clear lakes. Never tried the 6.75's, but I imagine they'd work well with the techniques you're planning.

Bass Angler is my favorite, especially since they've cut down on the basic grammatical errors that used to be way too prevalent. That being said, I've found something enjoyable/useful out of pretty much every bass fishing magazine I've read over the past few years.

Every situation is different so I am just speaking generally here... my wife has been teaching kids between k-3rd grade for nearly 20 years now, and the vast majority of the kids that have had behavioral issues to the point they pop up in our nightly conversations come from split homes where they're exposed to things they're just not ready for (e.g., watching violent movies or even porn, parents fighting all of the time, unsupervised computer use/gaming, drug/alcohol addiction in the home, etc). What you described is on the light side of that scale and your son could be as close to perfect as a kid can be, but he could also be affected by the movies he watches and the words he hears since his mind just isn't ready to process those things. It's awesome you guys are so close, but I am willing to bet he'd be every bit as interested in watching or doing anything with you he knows you enjoy and is more "kid appropriate." As far as the gun knowledge goes I actually think that's great as long as he's not already taking his own AR-15 out into the backyard unsupervised to shoot birds with ss109 and a 30 round magazine. Being educated about guns and gun safety/handling at a young age is a good thing and it sounds like he's a bit of a prodigy, but being desensitized to what guns can do to people with high tech rated R graphics when his brain is not yet able to process that fiction from reality may not be the best way to further his development. I'll stop there in hopes of not coming off as too judgmental... I know everyone on this forum wishes you and your son nothing but the best.

Wow, sorry to hear about your brother and the tragic (and preventable) complications he experienced after surgery. That's just not the way things are supposed to happen, and I can only imagine the frustrations and heartbreak you must have experienced watching him go through all of that.

Cool story and even better that it was on a Siebert jig!

I'd like to see Clemson due to us West Coasters having some Bama and SEC fatigue. That being said, I'm guessing it will be something along the lines of Bama winning 24-17.

it was a 2/10 for me. The drought has had the low water ramp unusable at my closest and favorite lake for at least a year and a half, so the after work trips I used to get to take quite frequently were non-existent. Therefore didn't get on the water near as much as I wanted, so that's something I'll definitely be changing in 2016. A new PB wouldn't hurt either.

I held out all the way til Christmas to open my package from Catt that had been staring at me for a couple weeks... it was well worth the wait and I cannot wait to try out these swim jigs w/menace trailers, shell crackers, and SB's! This exchange is one of my favorite gift-related things every Christmas... thank you to Catt and to FD for setting this up each year!!

Buy an e-gift card and save another 10% (usually emailed to you within 24 hours)

My home lake shockingly went UP a foot this week... 286 more feet to go and she'll be back to full pool!

Yeah, that just became a combo present and cannot wait past Sunday!

I fly fish for trout up in the mountain streams and lakes through the summer/fall and try to get in at least one extended steelhead trip each year (combo nymphing and swinging with a spey rod), but strangely have never even attempted it with bass. The past couple years I've had good intentions of taking my float tube or kayak out in the spring when the bite heats up, but the boat and conventional gear always wins.

Also got mine... will be holding out til Christmas Eve. Hopefully.

That makes sense but if your hooks are getting rusty that quickly you may just want to throw some anti-rust strips or even desiccant packets in your crankbait box to keep them from rusting before they inevitably fall prey to a rock or tree. Just my .02... you're catching a lot of fish so you're already doing the most important thing right.

No doubt that's irritating, especially since they've already taken your money! Those 40% off deals were ridiculous when they still had decent stock of very desirable higher end tackle and if their shipping had stayed free >$50 I'd probably find plenty to order even this morning. Hopefully they don't go out of business because you can always count on 20-25% off for pretty much every big holiday.

Sorry to hear about your loss. Lots of good advice already and I'll throw out another potential option. As best I recall your loans will stay "deferred" as long as you're enrolled 1/2 time in the spring, so that may be a middle option that allows you to work enough to help out while still keeping you in school mode. Even though you're registering late you should be able to find a couple general ed night or even online classes to get your foot in the door, and then you can hit the ground running in the fall with a full load. Best of luck and keep your head up... heck of a future ahead for you.

Once they dropped to 40% for the whole site I got the bad feeling they may be going out of business unless they're just dumping stock for a planned move. I'm not on Facebook or Twitter, but after a quick scan it doesn't appear like they're moving and they've been inactive on both since 11/19. Even during the 20% sales of years past I'd just randomly receive a package a couple weeks after ordering without ever receiving any notification, so you're probably just going to be pleasantly surprised when your order arrives one day soon. Hopefully.

Agreed about the crankbait rod helping you land another nice one, but I'd be concerned about a chronically rusted hook breaking off on a nice fish even if the point is still sharp. Your avatar shows you catch some pigs... hate to lose one on a rusty hook.

Yeah, 15% off and free shipping can be brutal on the credit card. This time last year they had 20% off with free shipping that also included ammo... spent a lot more than I ever thought I would with that deal going on (plus no tax in CA).

What are your initial thoughts on the Fury?

Sweet... gotta like coming home to that!

Unfortunately we'll never know why most people decided that was what they felt they had to do in that moment. Some friends of ours had their popular seemingly trouble free 16 year old son take his life... starter on the football team, good grades, very popular, and no known drama in his life. One of my employees' husbands also took his life out of the blue following a small argument... just a couple rooms away from his wife and 3 children. Unfortunately it just never makes sense to the rest of us. The one thing I think we can all agree on is that it takes pain from the one suffering and passes it on to all of their loved ones for the rest of their lives. Definitely a tragedy and hopefully something that some day becomes much more rare.

A

I have a couple 893's and they're great with 1/4-3/8 oz jigs (I rarely if ever fish larger than 3/8 oz jigs anywhere)

When I'm out on someone else's boat I'm partial to the Plano 3700 bags. I can fit a ton of tackle in there yet keep it clean and organized out on the deck. I imagine a backpack system could be similar, but admittedly I've never had one.