NebraskaBasser

They're called "R-BEND" spinnerbaits. I used to - as you wondered about - squeeze the "R" shut with a pair of needlenose pliars. I didn't ever notice the difference in action or longevity of the bait. BUT, every once in a while the snap would still ride up on the arm... as you never will get that opening completely shut. My next solution was to cut thin strips of shrink-wrap tubing and slide the strip over the "R". Once in place a quick pass with a lighter or a match cinched it tight. No, it doesn't actually CLOSE the "R", but just secures the band at the narrowest point. I cut a bunch of pieces/strips and did all of my R-BEND spinnerbaits in less than 10-minutes. THEY WORK GREAT!!!

Problem is... there are so FEW waters (of any kind) around Omaha/Lincoln, they/we get soooo much pressure, it's hard to classify any of them as being "GREAT BASS LAKES"! Are you fishing from a boat, the shore, float-tube, what? If you're looking for a LAKE, Wildwood isn't too bad. Summit Lake (west of Tekamah) is in the Bassmaster's Top 100 best (bass) lakes in the country... but I've never fished it. Elwood reservoir (south of Lexington) is a great multi-species lake. Burchard Lake is (was) supposed to be VERY good for bass. But I think I read where there was problems with the dam leaking and they had to drain/lower the water for repair. I fish primarily from a bellyboat/float-tube... so can't tell you much about the "GOOD" bass LAKES. If you don't already, you might want to visit the Nebraska Fish & Game fishing forum. Lotsa good info there too... Later, Bob

My opinion... it's like everything else... the right tool at the right time. I fish mostly from a float-tube. I fish heavily-weeded farm ponds. I use mostly baitcasting gear, heavy braid, etc. BUT, there are occasions that I like to cast LIGHT lures (i.e. weightless tubes, etc.). And being here in Nebraska, it's ALWAYS windy! I've tried the less expensive spincast reels and most are junk... unreliable, noisy, etc. But, on a whim, I bought a Zebco Omega Pro. Oh my! Smooth... and I can cast that tube just as hard as I need to, INTO the wind, and NEVER have to deal with a backlash or line-loops (like with a spinning reel). Oh, I still use baitcasting AND spinning reels too, but feel that there IS a place for a high-quality spincast reel in bass fishing. BTW, I use mostly mono... either XL or XT for them. When sitting low in the water (in a tube), I also find them a little easier to cast that a spinning reel... but, that's just me. I grew up in the 50's/60's and there weren't a lot of quality, easy-to-cast baitcasting reels back then. I learned on the old Abu 160's and 170's. They came spooled with 17lb. test line. I never had any problem with line pick-up's nor with casting accuracy. By touching the line as it came out of the hole in the cover, I became VERY accurate. I stil use them today... two baitcasters with braid/heavy stuff, and two Zebco Omega Pro's from my tube. Love 'em...

Maybe provide a little more detail on the general location? I'm from Nebraska, but have spent a LOT of time in the Park Rapids, MN area... is that "north enough" for your needs?

Would the bands dentists/kids use for braces work??

Sure! (But which one? <g>) Send me a PM and we can exchange emails. I'll gladly send you pictures and fill in any details for questions you may have! bob DOT cody AT cox DOT net

Float tubes are (just about) all I do! I don't know your budget or what tube you got... but here are a few suggestions: ALWAYS WHERE A PFD!! (as someone else noted). I have two sets of waders - both are stockingfoot style. A neoprene with jeans and/or longjohns will allow you to go when the water is 40* or warmer. Once the water gets warm enough, I switch to the breathable type wader. Fins. Be careful! The float-tube specific fins - the kind you step into - seem to catch a lot of weeds (I fish VERY weedy ponds). I've had the best luck with the open-heel type scuba fins. You can get used ones on eBay for $20-$30. I always use a "fin-keeper". You can buy them, but I just make my own from scraps laying around the shop. USED fins aren't terribly expensive... but most don't float; AND if you're a long ways "out" and lose one... "one fin" doesn't work very well! There are tube-specific forums on the net. I've used them to create my own rod-holders out of PVC. I have six holders but found out that 4-5 outfits is about all that I can manager at one time. I also use cords or floats to everything that might go "overboard"... scales, pliars, mearsure-boards, etc. I have a Bluetooth to my cell-phone and the phone is in a ziplock bag. I can play music and/or news through it from my phone. When I go, I usually am by myself... so I also carry a LOUD whistle so that if the worst would happen... No, tubes are not the best for larger bodies of water... for that, a kayak or other small boat might be better. But, a lot of the ponds I fish are NOT accessible by a vehicle... I don't have a truck or 4x4 (have a Honda Accord), so I can put the deflated tube in the trunk and walk sometimes 1/4-mile through weeds and fields to get to the water... something I couldn't do with a kayak (especially by myself). Any more questions or details needed? Just drop me a PM....

I went to a metal shop and had them bend a piece of 1/4" aluminum plate into an "L". The cost was about $20. I think I started off with a piece that was about 12-14" long and about 4"-6" wide - but take your own measurements. This will place the motor/shaft directly in the center of the nose... BUT, when I got home I realized that the "nose-plate" on my boat wasn't flat! I could have drilled holes in both and then shimmed the plate on each side so it wouldn't wobble. But, decided to go a different route rather than messing with it... I took two pieces of plywood/board and cut them a little larger than the mounting bracket of my motor. Then I "connected" them with straps so that they hang below the gunnel. I did that for three reasons... 1) it made for a better/flush fit to the hull, 2) it protected BOTH sides of the hull, and 3) it the motor came loose or for some reason I wanted to lift up the WHOLE motor, the pieces wouldn't be falling into the lake. Although the latter version isn't right in the CENTER of the nose, it's close enough that you shouldn't have any problems. Hope my descriptions made sense? Good luck!

Sorry, a little late to the party! I didn't see anybody mention soft or hollow-bodied frogs. I fish a LOT (almost exclusively) farm ponds that are heavily weeded... I use frogs A LOT!! Another favorite of mine are tubes. I usually "modify" them so they float. If the bass/fish are looking for something "smaller", the floating tubes work GREAT! Like others have said, don't feel like you have to spend a fortune on equipment! MOST of my outfits are about $70 TOTAL (each). I didn't read where you've indicated the TYPE or PREFERENCE of the equipment you use... I've had good luck with Pinnacle baitcasting reels (7-13 bearings), and even use some of the "better" spincast reels for the lighter-weight presentations. $35-$40 per reel and $30-$40 for a good (i.e. Berkley Lightning or Cherrywood) rod, and you're good to go!

I use floating tubes (in lieu of frogs) in the heavily weeded farm ponds that I fish. LMB love 'em!

I have a small aluminum boat, so I don't have to worry about anything "blowing out"! <lol> But I hate to put wet lures, spinnerbaits, jigs back into their boxes/bags! I've found that an old dishwasher silverware basket works great to hang my lures in to dry or to have to use later in the day! In addition the handle allows for easy transport into the house at the end of the day, to put everything back into its respective compartment. They come in many shapes and sizes, but this should give you an idea of what I'm talking about:

Wow... those look GREAT!!!!

x2 ! ! ! I start out with the 7.5"... trimmed back to about 6" for my 3/8oz and larger spinner baits. Once those get torn some, I pull 'em off and trim back the torn part - maybe another inch or so, and then use THOSE on my smaller-than 3/8oz spinnerbaits. I LOVE the tail action they give!

I fish almost entirely from a float tube... and have fished many styles/brands over the years, from the original "donut" style to the Outcast Super Fat Cat that I have now. Same with fins... I have my opinions about them all (and you know what they say about "opinions"! <lol>) Too much to post here, but if you're REALLY interested, send me an email at bobDOTcodyATcoxDOTnet, and I'll be GLAD to help another "tuber"!

I've used the Luck E Strike floating worms. You can get a bunch of them in a pack for CHEAP at your local Wal-Mart. The only issue (maybe) is that you can't select the colors that way. The pack comes with equal numbers of brown, orange, yellow/chartruese, and pink. I think they're 6' lengths. They are cheap enough for experimentation... I've "glued" two of them together to make a nearly 12" floating "snake"... but you could keep one full length and cut another one up and glue pieces to make the length you want. (You could also mix colors that way! <g>) Another floating option is BOG BAITS (go to bogbaitsDOTcom). They make floating products in their mix of frogs, lizards, snakes, worms, etc. But, you ALSO pay for the realistic finish! Like another poster mentioned, I too will insert foam/ear plugs/etc into tubes for a similar presentation. Another thought... try using a BETTS FLOATER. They're a bullet-weight shaped foam that are designed for Carolina rigs, but work OK to also float your plastic. You can rig them point-first or cupped-end first if you want to make a subtel popper of your plastic. I use a cheap rubber bobber-stop to "peg" the foam tight to the plastic. Hoe that helps... just some different options to try! Bob

Hmmm... I use the Strike King 1/8 oz. "Mini-King" spinnerbaits and have now issues with them at all? Maybe I'm not catching big enough fish??

Here's one of my favorite "down-sized" lures: the Strike-King "Mini-King" 1/8oz spinnerbaits!

<lol> Yeah, I've been a fan of the Ratio-Rite "cup" for a L-O-N-G time! I even gave one to each of my kids when they started out on their own. Although there may be other options "designed" for outboards, etc. it seems like I'm always adding something... like Sea Foam, Marvel Mystery Oil, "lead" additive (for my '50's outboards), etc. to my fuel where the Ratio-Rite cup is invaluable! I don't know how readily available they are... but besides online, they should be available at most ATV/motorcycle shops. Once you own one, you'll wonder how you ever got along without one!!

Well, I'm the "same"... I float-tube and use rod covers for car-travel too!! If you rig-up the night before (or before transport), how do you secure the line? Hook? Snap? Loose line? I ask because I like the mesh kind the best... but they WILL snag/catch on hooks/lures and snaps. Since I'm not concerned with "space" (like in a boat's rod locker) I've even tried the foam pipe insulation you can get at the local "box" home/hardware stores. It's CHEAP - like ~ $1.00/stick. It works on some rods, but not every one/kind - especially if your rods have bigger eyes or is a spinning rod. I've found a good compromise in using the "cloth" or ripstop nylon type covers that you can find on eBay. I try to not have any hooks on my pre-rigged rods for transport, but do have "snaps" tied on most. The snaps won't catch on the cloth covers. If I DO leave on the hook (i.e. plastics), then I try to hook the hook on the reel seat or on one of the "cross-bars" (baitcasting reel). Then it won't snag/catch on the cloth style covers (of course, doing that won't cause the mesh-type covers to snag either). One advantage of the cloth covers - price. I just bought SIX covers for $18 or only $3 each! Hope you find what works best for you...

Here's another mixing "tool": http://www.amazon.com/Unknown-RATIO-RITE-Ratio-Rite-Measuring/dp/B0045L9FJM (not recommending Amazon - link is only for reference). I've had one ever since riding two-stroke dirt bikes, but works GREAT to measure exact ratios for however much gas you're mixing, for whatever your mixing it for - motorcycles, lawn-mowers, chain-saws, etc. - anything that's two-stroke including outboards!

Actually, I've tried those too! But I cut it "shorter' and think I should have cut it length-wise instead. The key is to get something skinny enough that it will float the tube AND STILL NOT be so "bulky" to lose all the tube's hollow-body and softness benefits. (Kind of the reason that I liked the Z-Man tubes and the others that already float on their own. )

Actual styrofoam? I've tried cuttin slivers of SF from coffee cups. I don't recall now.. but I don't remember it working very well. I've also tried slivers of sponge, but the "fibers" seem to unravel as I try to insert them. I've also tried slivers of foam cut from closed-cell foam - like the insulation you put around water pipes. I've even tried those "floaty beads" (on the INSIDE of the tube) that you use to float your bait while Carolina rigging. About the only thing I haven't tried (but intend to) is to peg one of those "floaty-beads" or those foam bullet-weights IN FRONT OF a tube. If the bead, maybe it will look like the tube is "chasin' something". With the foam bullet wieight, i could reverse is and make a "popping-tube" out of it!

Tubes? I fish FROM a (float) tube.and my favorite is...OH, not THAT KIND of tube! <lol> Seriously, I do fish from a float-tube, and mostly heavily weeded farm ponds. As such I fish "frogs" a lot, but also tubes. Because of the cover (AND I love a top-water strike), I like to fish my tubes weightless and prefer tubes that float. I've tried all manner of methods to make "regular" tubes float: pieces of sponge, pieces of foam, those foam ear plugs, etc. But they all add some "stiffness" to the tube's body... and I prefer the softness of an "unaltered" tube. My solution? Zman! Their tubes float a 4/0 hook without having to resort to alterations. They're tough too, so last all day. If they DO tear a little bit, I can rotate the tube half way around and make new holes. And because it's the PLASTIC that floatts the tube (and not "air" in the body cavity), it will still float. And being the tight-**** that I am, I'll even use Mend-It to seal the holes for re-use the next time. This all results in a tube that floats, a tube that works, and a tube with remarkable longevity! Still, if any of you know of any other "floating" tubes, or have w GOOD way to float a "normal" tube, I'm all ears!! (I have a TON of the "regular" tubes I'd like to use!)