hatrix

I am sure at least a few of you know what I am talking about. It seems like some thing that a lot of people might have done back in the day. I did it yesterday at my pond and it was a lot of fun catching fish like that. When I was a kid maybe 14-15 I met a guy at Edge Water down on Erie fishing like this and I was amazed to say the least. I remember the first thing I said to him was about how far he cast with it. I looked like it was going to land in Canada he could cast so far. He had this sweet little spot on a busted up pier with 2 pieces of rebar sticking up in a V and he would put the can in front of it so when a fish grabbed it the rebar would stop the can. He hooked a good size sheep head while I was watching him and let me reel it in. Its no joke trying to reel in fish with a can but that's what makes it fun. Any ways I made one of these up yesterday and caught some fish and a few nice cats also that went 5+ easily. I think I might start doing this more and maybe take the kids out to do it also. It was a good time catching them like that and a great fight when your reeling them in 4" at a time compared to 28" per turn of a handle.

I would say 2" grubs on a 1/4 o/z head or something similar. I prefer white grubs Mr. Twister if you can find them. They will catch BG and LMB of all sizes. Once they get better they can even add some twitches or jerks to the retrieve. Now is a great time since fry are small from the spawn and they just catch tons of fish of all species and size.

I was actually thinking up a couple spools of yo zuri this weekend and was going to get 8# and 12# but have a couple questions. What kind is the best for casting/spinning? The original? How much stretch does it have? Is it as invisible as fluro? Does it float at all? Can it be used for top water?

Actually you should wear 2 layers. The first being fairly tight to your body for a wick layer to absorb the sweat and pull it away from your skin. Then a loose outer layer to create air flow and help evaporate the sweat. That's how they do it in the military and it keeps people from constantly sweating and falling out. It's hot over there and some times there is just no escaping the relentless sun. That's one fashion tip I have taken back with me. It is also very effective when doing physical labor in the winter.

Where is the Lew's?!?

I am still killing them on spinners. Trying to really target spots like with a jig or t-rig and just get it in the nastiest places i can find. I am getting maybe 25% of them on the fall making low casts with a very quiet entry. In the past couple days my knowledge and technique with them has sky rocketed. No more just throwing one for like maybe 1 hour if that and not getting much then picking up a different rod I know I can catch them on. Total dedication to just throwing it all day no matter what and really trying to hone my skills with it. After putting in some time and really giving it a fair chance I can totally see why KVD digs on them so much. The bites are usually massive even from smaller fish and I like getting the rod ripped out of my hand just as much as I like catching them.

I am sure there is bass in there. They might not always be in a feeding mood and you have to do something make make them react and want to eat your lure. If you only knew how many fish pay no attention to your lure as it goes past it would blow your mind.

Like RW said drop it all on the reel and get a rod later. The citica and speed spool can be had for around $100 and they are both excellent but... If you can scrounge up another $50 and get a E series curado or lews tournament speed spool or some would say a revo its all preference and it is well worth it. You can maybe find one on e-bay for about $120-150 maybe less who knows. The flea market section is also a great place to look or ask around. Maybe get some braid for your first line and spool half with backing so you can spool 2x from one thing of braid and use the tape trick. You shouldn't have to cut the braid since backlash really wont affect it except making it fade. If you have to then you have the other half left and you will of learned from that mistake hopefully.

@RW I have seen that video already but thanks for the link. I think the key is those low accurate roll casts right in the think of it. I figured some guys might use a cranking stick just so it can load up before you rip it out of there mouth. But that seems better suited for like fan casting and covering bigger areas of somewhat open water. It makes sense people use a jig rod or something with more power to rip the weeds and get those fish out of cover. That's why I used my crucial since it seemed a better idea to step up my rod for what I was doing. Although you can read/watch all you want about a subject there is no substitute for actually doing it your self and figuring out what works for you. I just figured I would ask so I could see how other people like to do it and maybe get a few ideas or tips along the way.

Sensitivity I guess is up for debate on what is better. Some rod I can actually hear the rattles in baits all the way through the line and rod.

I never really fish them and have had only decent success with them, and never really liked fishing them in general. Yesterday that all changed when I came at it with a different approach then I have before. It was good conditions to throw one so I figured why not give it a fair try, and just really stick with it all day. I cruised around making all these super accurate roll casts in the nastiest of stuff around the bank and under docks and over hangs. I could even get a little skip out of it for a couple extra feet to get back in there. It totally made me want to fish them way more after that and I had a lot of fun. Do you ever use a trailer? If so what do you use and why? What kind of rod do you use a cranking stick? I started off with a crank rod but didn't like it cause of all the weeds and junk I was fishing in. I switched to something heavier so I could rip the weeds and clear my bait mid cast when it got fouled. It might sound crazy but I used my Crucial 6'8" M/H XF and it worked awesome for ripping the grass and clearing my bait.

That's actually a good idea RW. I might have to try some other brands when I know a certain bait is killing them. @Raul If you want I can help you get those other 99% of baits wet. I can break them in for you if you want.

I have lost other lures in my time, we all have I'm sure. I have just never lost such a nice lure so quickly.

If you do a quick burn with it like on a stop and go retrieve, it should dart off to the side a good bit.

I usually use some kind of swimbait for a trailer. I have had good success with the Berkeley ones, not the hollow belly but the solid ribbed ones what ever they are called. I cut the head off and they work great for chatter baits and swim jigs.

Have you ever lost a brand new lure? When I say that I mean brand new, like first time ever using it new. I lost a 6" weedless hudd 2 days ago. I made maybe 10 casts with it. Then I decided to try and tuff guy it way out there, I got a tiny backlash and it was enough to stop my line and the shock snapped my knot. It was really such a huge disappointment to watch it happen. I never even got a bite on it and I lost it. It was a shame to loose such a nice lure like that and they are not really cheap either.

Fish can feel it for sure. Ever filet a fish and watch them like wince and start to curl up? There is no doubt in my mind they felt that filet knife.

How well do they hold up and are they worth the money? I was looking at the tournament talons and the unrigged ones so I can put a weedless head on them.

Yea I use a braid main line and mono leader. I use a short leader never more then say 3' and a lighter weight. The shorter the leader the easier to detect the bite. Some times when you start dragging is when you actually notice one grabbed it.

At what size body of water does it start to matter to someone? Do you not fish places that are small because its not challenging enough for you? what is small 1000 acres 100, 50, 10, 5, 1? Not every one has big water to fish that is close to them and big is a relative term to where you live and what you consider to be big. Where I am we have hundreds of places under 20 acres or so within 15 miles. Actually its probably thousands if you counted what I consider puddles in peoples front yard. Luckily the biggest NATURAL lake in the state 333 acres is 8 minutes away from me and I have access to fish it. It is basically private water until the parks finally open it to the public in future years to come. Other then that it is somewhat of a trip and a all day event to fish other big lakes except for Erie and that dwarfs everything except the other great lakes. That seems more like fishing a sea then a lake even though I never fished a sea I am just assuming since its water as far as the eye can see. You can even see the curve of the earth on a good day.

I like to use 30# Power Pro. It seems like any thing less wants to dig in more then I would like.

My first lews was a speed spool. I have since added 2 more tournament speed spools to my collection. If you have the extra cash for the tournament it is well worth it. Even if not speed spools are still a great choice.

There is a pond I fish I know has some giants in it. Usually you get nothing there, but some times you might catch maybe 3 or 4 at best but there usually always nice. Last time I went I caught 2 around 3.5-4 and one maybe a touch over 5 and that was about 4 hours of time. Some times it is either on fire or its not and that also applies to bigger public waters. My own private pond that is 10 acres probably has smarter or more hook shy fish then bigger public waters. There isn't a fish in there that has not seen 20 different types of lure or been caught at least once in there life. It is not easy fishing my house any more it has become a total challenge for people who come over. Every little move you make or twitch of the bait matters. They don't just bite any thing.

You probably have to take out some of the smaller bass. You can learn any thing about managing ponds here. http://www.pondboss.com/

I wish I had a professionally managed pond to fish. Who doesn't want to catch only big fish and lots of them? doubt there is 1 person here who wouldn't fish it even if they say they wouldn't.