K_Mac

When it comes to KVD I am beginning to think there may be some magic involved. As far as color, I have a 3 or 4 magic colors. The problem is I can't always predict which one is "magic" on a given day...

Watching someone choke to death on his own blood to avoid possible collateral damage does not make sense. Without oxygen to the brain the condition of the spinal column becomes moot very quickly. You were right in your assessment of the situation, and would have been right opening his airway if professional help had not arrived. Could there be legal or civil consequences? Maybe, but watching someone die to avoid getting involved is not something I would be willing to do.

Zoom Trick and Finesse worms. 5-6" Senkos/knock-offs (I use mostly BPS Stick-os). An assortment of shakyhead jigs. This time of year a couple of bags of big worms(think Rage Anacondas) are a must in my opinion. A chatterbait or two ain't a bad idea...no wonder I have so much stuff.

During the summer months there is always one constant; deep water. You may catch fish in very shallow water, but they will always be near deep water. This may not be universally true, but I do not look for the exceptions. Deep is relative to the lake; on my home lake, transitional areas into at least 15-20' depths are what I'm looking for; on another 8-10' might be considered deep. Knowing this I can eliminate a lot of water before I get to the lake by studying a topo map. I recently fished a large strip pit for the first time. I could not find a map, and it was not on my Lowrance software. Strip pits are a challenge because looking at the contours of the ground above the water doesn't necessarily tell you what is below. It will take several trips to get to know the lake well, but I can give you several spots that combine grass, rock, or both, and water dropping to 20' that will likely produce some decent fish. Once I've decided on the spots, I will plan my strategy. First thing in the morning I may move around a bit using a top water, shallow crank, and spinnerbait/chatterbait. If these don't produce well a wacky rigged Senko knock-off weighted or unweighted may be next, followed by a jig or plastic pitched tight to cover. Then I will work my way to deeper water and structure using jigs and plastics T rigged or C rigged. A shakyhead mix and a drop shot will finish my rotation. While these are my preferred methods, if my fishing partner starts hammering fish on something else, I will quickly get one in the water. That would be my approach. There are many better fishermen who would do it differently. Finding what works for you is where you will ultimately get. Enjoy the journey.

I am currently using both of those lines. I like the green, esp the PLine moss green. I don't think you'll have any trouble in clear water. I don't.

What has me "shaking my head" about your post WhiteMike1018 is the negative, attacking tone. Saying you're not happy with the changes, the format, the ads, even the administration is obviously acceptable here. While your condescending attitude regarding those of us who don't possess your superior understanding of the interwebz, and your questioning of financial things you obviously know nothing about may not get you bounced, it will limit your credibility. I've been around a long time. I consider this site an enjoyable place to come and spend time with friends-old and new, discussing things that make me happy. If it doesn't work for you that's cool. Life is too short to swim up stream.

I completely agree that 2 hours is NOT enough time to determine if the fish are really biting. On a recent trip we caught a couple early in the trip (started mid-morning) and then fished 5 hours without a bite. We finally found good fish in deeper water with a light shakyhead, fished very slowly. We caught a bunch of fish over the next couple of hours, with several in the 3-4 lb range. Color was not too important, but size and speed were critical. My point is sometimes it takes a while to get it right. As I get older I find that much of the joy of fishing is in the fishing. The catching is important, but it is not absolutely needed for me to have a great time on the water. The irony of this is now that I don't care as much, I catch more and better fish than when I was a more driven younger man. My conclusion is, taking time to relax and the enjoy the experience makes us better. Just the musings of an old guy...

Amen. The small percentage of fish caught on other lines for me are only because I have larger spools that I am using up. By next year all of my gear will be spooled with CXX. I find with KVD L&L 6lb CXX even works well on spinning reels. It has a much higher breaking point than the line rating, at least in 6-15# rated diameters. I haven't used the 17 or 20#.

I can't say if it works well for all lines, but it makes a real difference with PLine CXX and YoZuri Hybrid. I love CXX with L&L; I just like it without.

On one of the local power plant lakes a 5" Chompers on a 3/8 or 1/2 non-skirted football jig bounced down the rip rap can be deadly. I fished a few days last week at my favorite lake and fishing was really slow. A 5" Chomper T-rigged with a pegged 3/16 oz weight worked slowly on the outside of the grass was the best answer. Any color as long as it was green or brown... I also like them on a shakyhead in clear water. Great baits and the Chompers are reasonably priced, and warewolves should not be a problem...

I think it is a great question, and one anyone who has been fishing a while has had to deal with. Everyone of the techniques you mentioned are proven to catch fish. As Lund Explorer talked about it is understanding the variables that make the difference. Having confidence in what you're doing is where the rubber meets the road. I am going fishing Thursday. I will start with a chatterbait or wacky rigged Senko knock-off. My fishing partner will throw something on top, a jig/creature pitched into the heaviest cover, or a shallow/medium diving crankbait of some sort. If those don't work we will move out to deeper water where I will throw a jig, Trig or Crig; he will throw a deep running crankbait. We may end up catching fish on wacky rigged senkos off a shallow point, or on shakyheads or dropshots in deep water off the dam, but I am confident we will catch fish. That confidence helps me to stay focused. We may not catch a thing, sometimes the fish don't act like they should, but I am confident in our abilities and plan. My confidence comes from knowing what our strengths are based on experience. It always tickles me how confident Catt is. It is not arrogance though, just the confidence that comes from having been there and done that. Because of this site I've had the opportunity to learn from some of the best. That is very cool.

I'm with J Franco on this; it sounds like a great place to work on whatever you want. A shakeyhead/Trickworm combo and that shelf sound like a match made in heaven to me. Good luck, and let us know how you do.

I usually fish them on a 1/4-1/2 oz jig head, but this past week had good success T-rigging them with a pegged bullet weight (1/8-1/4) in heavy cover. They are a very versatile bait. Swimming them can also be effective. Experiment and enjoy.

If after using a piece of equipment a time or two it doesn't meet expectations, then returning it is a reasonable thing to do IMO. It is not reasonable or honest to use something repeatedly and return it just to try something else. I'm told there are some who will buy clothes for a special occasion knowing they will return them after the event. Those of us who try to play by the rules are the ones who ultimately pay for this kind of behavior. Epigram (or platitude, you decide) for the day: Doing the right thing is always the right thing.

Welcome home. It's good to have you back. Thanks for your service. If you get anywhere close to the St.louis, Mo area in your travels let me know, and we'll hit one of my spots.

Deep cranks are still one of my low confidence baits, but I am starting to warm up to them. When chatterbaits first hit big, I could not buy a bite with them. I kept one at hand until I finally started catching an occassional fish. It is now one of my go-to baits in stained/choppy water. Don't give up on spinnerbaits. They are not my favorite way of catching fish, but one trip where you throw them up into cover and the bass try to rip the rod out of your hand, and you'll probably come around.

I completely agree that it makes sense to use your strong hand to control the rod. I am RH but learned to cast a LH baitcaster only because that is what I had. When I found that most used a RH it was too late for me to make the change. I would like to be able to use both, especially for longer fishing trips when fatigue becomes an issue, but I don't seem to possess the coordination needed. Use what works best for you: it's all good.

Senile 1, I had trouble with breaking mounts and pinching cables several times over the years. It does look like there are some good options out there. I never tried one. : When I bought my last TM I went with the built in transducer. That is money well spent IMO. As far as learning to drive, if you ain't getting into the thick of things, you're probably not doing it right...good luck.

This sums it up well for me. The more time I spend successfully using different baits in specific situations, the more confidence I have that when faced with similar conditions I will catch fish. Over time I have gained confidence that most of the time I will find fish. That isn't always the true, but I always expect to. That expectation allows me to stay focused for a longer period of time, which enables me to catch more fish, which gives me more experience... 8-) Like J Franco what works for you may not work for me. I have much confidence in a C-rig, but very little in deep cranks, based on my experience. Much of that comes from not liking the work involved using a big crank, and my general preference for slower presentations. Finding what works, and then refining those techniques to catch more and bigger fish is very cool. As VABassFisher said being confident you have done your part, while being prepared to adjust if necessary is what we all shoot far IMO.

The early HDS-7s were the units that had a problem with leakage. A friend had trouble with his and it was replaced under warranty. He has a 7 and an 8 that he has been using for over a year now, with no trouble. I have a 5 and 5X that have been water tight. My bet is Lowrance will correct the problem or replace the unit. I would call and talk to someone in service. Getting someone on the phone can be a pain, but anytime I have called with questions they have been good to deal with.

My wife fishes with me most of the time. There are times when I go with others and I make a couple of guys only primitive camping trips each year, but she is my main fishing partner. She does not like to operate the boat but will in a pinch. She throws a baitcaster well, and is self-sufficient when it comes to rigging, bait selection, and handling fish. Many guys use fishing as a way to get away from wives and other social commitments to spend time with the boys. I think that is legitimate. I also think some women do not get that two people can spend hours in a boat together without saying much, and still enjoy the companionship. My brother and I used to fish together all the time before he was killed in an accident. His wife resented the time he spent with me fishing. She did not want to fish, just spend time with my brother while he fished. She always wanted to know what we talked about. She could not understand that much of the time we did not TALK. It made no sense to her. My wife gets it. We can have a great time fishing without once talking about the other problems of life; just enjoying being on the water spending time fishing, enjoying God's creation. As to why women do not take advantage of the Women's section, I do not have a clue.

No switching. I learned on an old lefty reel. Setting the hook and controlling the fish with my dominant hand seems natural to me. By the time I realized most other folks cast and reel with the right hand it was too late change. My wife used to have a couple of RH reels, but when we upgraded reels I talked her into trying LH. Now we don't have any right hand reels in our boat. In a perfect world I would have some of each. It would be nice to be able to change up over the course of a long day or two of fishing. I just am one of those old dogs that doesn't learn anything new easily. I also palm my reel a big part of the time. As I engage the reel with my left hand I can adjust my right hand on the reel as needed. It ain't no big thing after a few thousand casts. 8-)

Unless you decide to throw heavy swimbaits, I would agree with the others that you have everything you need. If you're like most of us, you will add others over time. That is part of the fun IMO.

Goose my friend I was starting to think I was the only one willing to draw the wrath of the the Posse. ;D I'm glad you're back. 8-) The ones I have get regular use, but compared to your numbers my PQ reels will likely last longer than I will. Only time will tell how they hold up long term. I am looking forward to your 2014 report.

I have three that have worked perfectly. For $65 you cannot go wrong in my opinion. There are many threads on this reel, and even more opinions. Good luck.