Redtail

I'm trying to fish more with jigs this year too. Why do they call it a SWIM Jig, do you fish it any differently than a regular jig? Do you reel it in slowly without stopping? Thanks in Advance!

JT - Outstanding Article!

Radiob - I'm confused! In this post you said you practice catch and release. In the post - What do you eat - you said you cook out a lot and grill your catch back at the campsite. That sounds more like catch and cook?

I was surprised to hear the difference in opinions. Most people say they only peg in heavy cover and several said they fish heavy cover most of the time and don't peg. I guess it's just a preference thing, but as always, you can count on getting great responses on this site! Thanks for the help!

Awesome fish regardless, but it really looks darn close to 6lbs. Is she still swimming?

With me it's - Catch - Smile for a Picture - Release - I can't always get them to smile, but I try! Some of my friends ask me if they can keep a couple fish when we go out - I tell them they can take as mant pictures as they want, but no hostages on my boat period!

I hardly ever use weights when fishing soft plastics, but I know a lot of people do. I was just curious, is there a rule of thumb when using a weight as to whether or not you peg it? I guess what I'm looking for is what type of situation you peg a weight and when do you just let it run up and down your line. Thanks in Advance!

I'm going to give spinnerbaits another shot this year as they seem to work so good. I fish mostly clear water and I want to get chartreuse and white double willow (that's seems to be the universal color) 3/8 or 1/2. Any suggestions on a brand name - there are sooooo many out there. Thanks in Advance!

I bought some skip gap hooks from Yamamoto to see how they work. They really seem to hold the worm on pretty good without it slipping down on the hook. They should also work well with frogs. They don't work on the Fat Ika which is my favorite bait. I suppose you could punch a hole in the side of the Ika, but they don't seem to be a good fit. Just my 2 cents!

Ronnie was right about what I was thinking. I was just thinking that when you set up your Carolina Rig, why not just tie on another hook a couple feet above the weight and maybe rig a small plastic bait (probably weedless) just to give the ol' bass another option. It's kinda like using a jig instead of a weight when you drop shot. Or when you drop shot with a weight, why not tie one bait 2 feet from the weight and another 4 feet from the weight. You know, the two heads are better than one theory. It's just a thought and probably not a good one, but I'll give it a try when the water softens up and let you know!

Just curious. I was just thinking, why not tie on a drop shot bait when Carolina Rigging? This way you would have a Carolina Rig and a Drop Shot Rig going at the same time. Is that a bad idea?

Craig You are posting some incredible days on the water with huge fish - Nice Job! I always look forward to your posts!

Your welcome Ronnie! Put them in the boiling water when you leave in the morning (even if they are frozen). They will be perfect when you want them - I haven't seem them over cook. I can't tell you how good they are when you've been fishing for 4 or 5 hours and it's a liitle cold out there on the water. You won't be dissappointed and it only takes a couple minutes if preparation.

WOW! I went home at lunch and checked the brakes, they were all off. I put on every other one as suggested and read the literature from Reel Mech. What a difference! You guys are Good! Thanks again.

I have a Chronarch and I'm trying to get it adjusted properly. There is a knob next to the handle to adjust the drop speed. I usually set it so the bait (whatever weight) drops very slowly. If I set it to tightly, I can't get any distance on the cast, if I set it too loose, it's backlash city. I know that where you open the reel there are 5 or 6 pins with little plastic pieces on them - I think it's the breaking system. All my pins appear to be pushed in all the way. Is there a way of setting these differently to adjust the breaking system? Thanks in Advance to any of you Chronarch users!

Shimano Stradic 2500 Reel with the BPS Extreme Rod - it comes as a package deal at BPS - I think it's $160. I have 3 of them. Excellent.

#1 3lbs 8 bizzles #2 2lbs 2 bizzles

While I'm getting ready to leave in the morning I boil some water. Pour the boiling water in a wide mouth thermos ($10 at walmart) and drop in a few hot dogs. Don't forget to bring the hot dog rolls and condiments. A hot lunch on the boat is soooooo good. I love to watch the reaction of my first time friends on the boat when I break out the hot dogs! Grey Poupon Anyone?

Having trouble finding smaller size jigs 1/8 and 1/16. Most places start with 1/4 oz. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in Advance.

I was in college once too my young friend and I know how hard it can be to come up with enough green backs to do much of anything! I have fished with LBH several times and he outfishes me using ***. For the money, they can't be beat! Great alternative to GYCB.

Like Avid said, try that method, it really is incredible how good it works! The hook usually pops right out. But when all else fails check out a pair of long neck diagonal cutters. Go on www.snapon.com and under search put 311CP They really do work great - just hope you don't have to use them.

That was a whole season worth of big fish for some guys! Wow! That was incredible. I caught that many big ones once too - unfortunately it was in a Dream! Great Job!

I read an interesting article on this site about modifying your baits. One example they gave was to take a single Colorado blade Spinnerbait and remove the skirt. Replace it with an Ika or Fat Ika and slow roll it for a longer vertical drop with the Ika. Do you guys do a stuff like that? I never change a bait around, but I'm also relatively new at this.

I like to fish mostly soft plastics, Senkos, Ikas, Flukes etc and I'm looking to get a new rod in a couple weeks at the Sportmens Show in Central MA. I have a Shimano Stradic I want to put with it. I'm using the BPS 6.6' med action Extreme with it right now. Is there anything out there for around a couple hundred that would make a huge difference in sensitivity, performance etc? Thanks in Advance!

Hey Russ Where did you get those Bass Earings in your Avatar? They're Great!