smashingsmallies

Alright then. I'm on it. Got the next three days off. A new hook buy is in store and I will let you know how it goes in the next few days. I took vacation for three days...just to go fishin'. Gotta love it.

Would that MegaStrike be in a shad scent or just a general scent?

I'm going to try the circle hook for sure...however, the main problem I'm having is the inhale and immediate exhale of the fluke. What the heck do I do to stop that?

I'm using flouro and doggonit! The circle hook just might work!

It's a good thing to learn new things and the crank thing was a good learn this year. I still use a variety of lures, it's just alotta fun when the crank "bite" is on. Right now the flukes and twisters are doing better for me, with the fluke edging out the twister. I still throw the crank during this time and I catch some with it. I'm gonna fish into late, late season on the creeks and rivers I fish and I hope the crank bite picks up during this time. Fish on, John.

Hey guys, been awhile since I've been on here-busy fishin'. The fluke "bite" is on for me right now and the fish are coming in droves for it. HOWEVER!!!!!!!!!! I'm havin' one hell of a time hooking the fish. They smash it on the surface and ****** it below. I've had NUMBEROUS fish hit and literally have caugh 4 of them. ONLY 4!!!!!! Out of who know's how many!!! I'm freakin' here gentlemen. I noticed when they hit close to my boat, within 15 ft, as soon as they inhaled the fluke, they exhaled the fluke. They were fooled till it got in there mouth and that leaves me with an embarassing catch ratio and I just can't figure it out. I've put on two different kinds of spray. I haven't use shad scent yet and I will. I just can't figure out how to hook these things. ANY ADVICE WILL BE USED!!!!!! My God I LOVE this time of year.

Nice, nice and nice! We'll just call those...fisters! ;D

Think I'm gonna have to maybe try that 5-1 ratio. I originally screwed it up by paddling up stream and hoofin' it. However, that, combined with the constant casting, put the hurt on it for sure. I ice it every time now and I tried the bio freeze but I've settled on the "Active On" which works great for me. d**n casting! Gonna have to find a launching rod and reel combination--gotta be accurate 'cuz I can already catch trees myself. John.

And Clams!!! Draggin' plastics on the bottom has produced more than a few clams for me as well! When you get the bigger clams or a flat rock, and the line moves to the side...well, you know-set the hook!!! Good stuff guys.

Finally!!! Somebody who tells me how they're fishing the popper!! Thanks for the info on how you work your bait-it is greatly appreciated. Very nice fish man--makes the heart skip a little when they hit don't it! Fish on, John.

Went fishin' yesterday here in Ohio with a fellow member and we caught a decent amount of fish and had a blast. While fishing plastics, my partner pulled up a crawdad that latched onto his bait. We both laughed and thought it odd-I've never seen a crawdad caught before. Before the trip was through, I caught two more craws that latched onto my bait! (I also caught a river shiner, about 4" long, on a small craw crank that I was occasionally throwing--never done that before either) The creek we're fishing has so many craws in it that the fishing can be difficult, even though we catch fish every time we go. I've never seen so many craws in the water in my life--let alone catch 'em! Has anyone else out there had this happen?

I'm in that 20-30 minute mode as well--I mainly fish rivers and creeks and changing alot drives me crazy and gets me second guessing myself, but it seems to work so I guess I gotta get used to it. Makes ya long for a day for alot of fish on one color and one bait.

The last few times I've been out, and a couple of those with a fellow member on here, I've found that constantly changing baits will put more fish on the line. Two weeks ago, suspending cranks got fish. A week later, floating cranks like the bandit 100 worked. Last week, we caught fish on a variety of baits...in each hole. I started with cranks, nothing. Partner started with shaky worm/jig and caught 2 then no more. I went to the wacky worm and got 2 then nothing. He then went to a shallow crank and got one. I then went to a twister and got one. He then switched to a white road runner jig and got 2 and lost a monster cat or carp. We then moved down to the next hole and went through 3-4 baits a piece and picked them off one by one. I guess what I'm noticing is if I don't change baits from hole to hole and change within a hole, I'm short changing myself in my catch rates. I think of how many times I've fished a hole with one bait and If I didn't get anything I just chalked it up to "there not biting". Even changing the color of the same bait will produce. So, my rule of thumb is, catch fish, when it slows down, immediately change color or bait and I will catch more, even in the same hole. Yes, this can drive me crazy, trying to figure out what to use, but, knowing if I change baits/color, I WILL catch more fish, but it's worth it. I hope this helps out some of you on here 'cuz the information I've gotten from YOU has helped me alot. I wish all of you the best in fishing this summer. Anyone else change baits like this? Fish on, John.

But it sure does look like a pb--nice carolina rig bass buddy! Fish on, John.

How do you guys work your Pop R /poppers? Fast? Twitch, pause? etc... By this, I mean, most of the time, what is your retrieve like--fast or slow?