K_Mac

Deaknh03 I used petty for a reason. I care little what most people think, but there are some whose opinion matters. Relying entirely on my own counsel is a dangerous thing...

WTG Jigfishn10! Coaching kids is an opportunity to make a real difference. There is little more important (and increasingly rare) than men and women who lead and teach by example. There is no way of avoiding politics in Little League or life in general, but life is too short to worry about what petty people think.

Being on the water before first light is one of life's simple pleasures. That first couple of hours in the morning is a good as it gets in my opinion. With that said, it's all good. Fishing during the day when it is hot wears on me and I also prefer night fishing when it's really hot. My experience has been like most others though; when it comes to lunkers the middle of the day or at night has always been best.

I've already given my endorsement of the President spinning reel, but I will add my $.02 on closing the bail manually. Manually closing the bail while lifting the rod tip slightly to remove any loose line and feathering the line with my index finger to stop it as the bait touched down before reeling changed fishing for me. I had always used the crank to engage the reel and hated spinning reels because of line management issues. While line twist can still be an issue with some baits, most of the time I am now problem free.

The issue is not about catch and release, or keeping legal fish. Fishing with game fish as bait makes it nearly impossible to monitor and enforce creel and possession limits, and is one reason it is illegal in most jurisdictions. I don't care if it is the best live bait known to man, its use is wrong in my opinion.

I have a couple that I have been using for years with minimal maintenance. I had them both cleaned and serviced over the winter and other than cosmetic issues it would be hard to tell them from new. Great reels for the money IMO. EDIT: These are spinning reels. I have had no experience with their baitcast reels.

My question is why? Why use game fish for bait? Of the "billions of little basses" spawned every year only a small percentage grow up to be decent fish. Natural predation takes a serious toll. I am a big fan of selective harvest and slot limits, but there is no good reason for using live bass as bait IMO.

The major advantage of a longer rod is casting distance. A longer cast will keep the bait in the zone longer, and get it a little deeper. And yes, 7' will work.

Yep. All the talk about what the bass feed on in a given lake makes for interesting discussion, but makes little difference when it comes to bass eating a plastic worm, creature bait, or Senko. The only certainty is these baits will catch bass when fished anywhere close to right in more or less the right spot. There are many videos available to show the correct way use them and to find the right spot. Even better would be having a skilled bass fisherman to show you. Good luck.

RW is right. I use a lot of knock-offs-primarily BPS Stick-Os. They work well most of the time, but they are not the same quality as the original. The TW bulk price is as good as I've seen lately.

I agree SirSnook. We can all agree that location is priority 1. With that as a given, then what is the answer to the OP's question? I believe technique trumps bait in almost all cases. Yes, there will be times when just getting something in the right spot will work, and other times when bait size or color is critical. Give me the right technique every time though, and I'll take my chances with the baits I have in my bag, even if they are not the "right" ones.

The Pro Qualifier has proven to be a very good value (esp at $80 on sale) for me and several others on this site. I have 4, three of which have many miles on them, all without a hiccup. The Tatula is a very nice reel, and if it can be had for $100 or near it would also be an excellent choice.

I think it is a good question. I think there has been, and will continue to be innovative baits that change the way we fish. The Senko is certainly one of those. As Raul said not everyone uses them, but every serious bass fisherman probably has some. There has been many others already mentioned. I believe the chatterbait and A-Rig are in the same class in recent usage. Free-swinging jig heads, shakeyheads, squarebills, and paddle tail soft plastics also make MY list. They may not be "revolutionary" but give another option that will sometimes out-produce anything else.

I always have both baits rigged, and more often than not on deck. Most of the time the Senko/knock-off is rigged wacky, and the Trickworm is on a stand-up or shakeyhead. Either one t-rigged weightless has its place. Like Ginger or Mary Ann, the only right answer is both.

BMI is a bad way of measuring fitness in any except maybe marathon runners. I wouldn't sweat it too much Raider; being normal is not something you're ever going to achieve. I think it is overrated anyway.

I have been on both sides. Many years ago I was fishing down a bank at a local power plant lake, not catching anything. Working the bank from the other direction were a couple of guys catching fish on almost every cast. When we passed I asked them what they were using that was working so well. They gave me a bag of 3" grubs and a bag 1/8 oz darter jig heads, along with detailed instruction while showing me how to use them. It changed the day and opened the world of finesse to me. I will never forget it. Another time on the same same lake we were killing hybrid stripers on roadrunner jigs. We had just lost the last of them when an old guy (probably about my age now) stopped to tell is how good we were doing. When we told him we had used the last of the roadrunners he dug in his box and found us a couple that he would not take a penny for. That is good stuff and I have tried to pay that forward over the years. The look on someones face when you cut off a bait that they just saw you catch fish on and hand it to them is worth much more than the cost IMO. Helping others is part of the outdoor tradition. I am grateful that I can occasionally be part of that.

What the Safety Officer had to do was make sure everyone was aware that a serious accident had occurred, and document that a safety meeting addressing the issue took place. If he had been smart he would have acknowledged what Slone said above. You cannot protect everyone from everything, but there are procedures and practices designed to minimize the risks. Those rules have to be followed for everyone's protection. It sounds like he took the intelligent boilermaker's ( an oxymoron I think-I spent a few years in a former life as a dues paying member) remarks personally. He may need some more training as well.

Amen! Those that think spending anything above the minimum is stupid, or those that think nothing but the best will do are two sides of the same coin. They both have a very narrow field of vision that fails to see the big picture, and the thing that most restricts their ability to see is ego in my completely humble opinion.

i have caught some really nice bass at night when others have told me it was too cold to fish-including my PB on an 11" or 12" black worm fished on a 1/4 oz non-skirted jig with no rattles. A big black single Colorado bladed spinnerbait also killed that night in very similar conditions to the ones you describe. Dress warm, wear your PFD, and go fish!

The original post was only looking for information concerning the catching of DD bass.Like a hole-in-one for an avid golfer or a three hundred game for an avid bowler, a DD bass represents a significant accomplishment recognized by everyone in the sport. The difference is I may get a hole-in-one on my local 9 hole course or bowl 300 at the local lanes, while very, very few public lakes around here offer the possibility of a 10 pound fish. If you want to hunt "gators" you have to go where they live. You want to hunt Grizzly you have to go the other direction. You want a realistic shot at DD you have to go where they live. Fair really isn't relevant in my opinion. Eight pounds in my part of the country is a trophy; bigger than that on a public lake around here is a real monster. So for me, that is my yardstick. I can happily live the rest of my life fishing for, and catching nice bass without ever breaking ten pounds. If one does come along y'all will certainly hear about it!

Happy (belated) Birthday John!

I've been fishing a very long time without a DD bass. Here in the Midwest a legitimate DD is fairly rare. I fished a private strip pit a few times over a couple of years that had the very real possibility of producing one, but I no longer have access. I do fish a couple of public lakes here in Southern Illinois that could produce a DD. I have caught a couple that given another year or two might make it, especially if caught full of eggs and not released into someone's deep frier. I am not as driven as I once was. Enjoying the experience is more important than size or numbers for me. My experience, skills and patience are much greater though, so I won't be surprised if I do catch one. There is always the possibility of a road trip to an exotic southern locale-like Louisiana!

I don't believe fishing with spinning gear is funner. I am of the opinion that a well balanced baitcaster in the proper power and action is more funner.

Congratulations and good luck.

This adds credence to DVT's post about secret fishing holes. There may be virgin spots, but as soon as they are known by one all bets are probably off.