bassnleo

Your timing this year should be good for smallies, they are already being caught in the bay. Heck, I know guys who caught some last weekend. Regardless, by mid April they are in the bay every year. Have a good trip!

That's an awesome day Eric......and it's only March! This has been some early warm up. I boated 36 smallies in 2.5 hours Friday evening on the Allegheny. Lost count on largemouth at Pymatuning yesterday and took home 17 crappies in addition. Caught over 30 gills and crappies this morning from shore at Justus Lake. Just had fish dinner....YUM. My hands look like I ran steel wool on them from catching, holding, and cleaning fish (panfish), and the right side of my ribs are bruised from setting the hook. Crazy good!

ww2farmer, just out of curiousity, what lake are you speaking of? Your description sounds exactly like the situation at Pymatuning in NW PA. BTW, head to Presque Isle if you're itchin to bend the rod.

It was a good day...... Water temp was 38 when we started, warmed to 41 by days end. 8 largemouth came to the boat for me, 2 for my partner. All but 1 were caught on jerkbaits fished sloooowly. The only non-jerkbait fish came on a sliver buddy. Earliest time in the year I have ever caught open water bass and coldest water I have ever had success in. I can't complain one bit.

With temps predicted to be 60 today, I'm preparing to head to Erie for my first 2012 outing. Plan on trying my hand at the largies in water that's probably still in the low 40's, or at least may be by late this afternoon in the shallow marshy areas. May even target some perch or crappies should the opportunity arise. Hope to have a good report later tonight! My jerkbaits are ready and willing!!!

I concur. The fact that the event being in February totally eliminates much of the Country is what I dislike most. At least FLW still has their championship in the summer and allows for a variety of techniques to factor in the mix. The Classic in Pittsburgh was one of my all time favorites. I love those "grind it out" kind of events.

I look at it this way.........yes, the main season may be over but Spring turkey season here in PA is a month long and it's like a whole other hunting season in itself. If you hunt all the game indicated, you have got to try turkeys in the Spring. Frankly, it's my absolute favorite time to be in the woods.

I also own over 20 Quantum reels, combination of spinning and casting, various models. Some, but not all, have some sort of finish blemishes, boat rash etc...and frankly I don't care. I'm incredibly tough on my equipment and despite that, they continue to work. The fish can't see my reels......until they hit the boat that is. I strayed last year and bought an Abu casting reel that was on sale at Tackle Warehouse, didn't like it one bit and had fits with it working properly. I'll stay with Quantum!

The Fat Rap in size 5 is my all time leading producer. I still have about 15 of them in various colors, shad being #1 for me. I even took a dive into a local lake last summer to retrieve one that was hung in a stump 6 feet down. I'd already boated a 17lb limit on that bait by that time in the tournament and there was no way I wasn't going home with that old reliable bait. I started using the crankin rap line last year with very good success and will be buying more this year.

What more info would you possibly need? Like already stated, both species will be in all stages of the spawn. That info in itself says volumes about how to fish, where to look, what to use, etc..... Here's what I will add......The info posted is spot on. That's one thing that drives me crazy about the internet. Some anglers wanting others to lead them right to the fish without actually doing a little homework and learing how to do it yourself.

Thanks RW, but I really like the set-up I'm using now. I'm mostly flipping these baits in cover and using heavy braid and a heavy wire flippin hook. That doesn't lend well for keeping a bait whole for more than 1 or 2 fish, but if I get bit I usually land the fish. I just found some on Janns and Lureparts online, I can get 100 for about $30 or so, that's a price I can live with.

I'm searching for beaver style baits in bulk. A couple years ago I purchased a sizeable amount from a former board sponsor, I'm running low....... I just looked at nearly every major manufacturers beaver style bait and most run $4 (or over) per bag. Just looking for a way to get the price down and get a decent bait. I potentially can go through 20-50+ baits on good flippin days here, it's time to stock up again. My all time high was 70 baits in a day................

Brandon, I laud you for your interest and desire to acquire sponsors. Do not EVER put your name and any identify information (such as your date of birth) on a public website for the whole world to see. I strongly suggest that you edit your post to remove any information that could be used by a criminal looking to steal someone's identity. Best of luck to you!

I'm one of those LEO's that carry a PF-9 as a back-up. If you are looking for a gun to put thousands of rounds through, the PF-9 might not be the gun for you. Frankly, it's a little firecracker and may not be comfortable for you to shoot often at the range. It's a snappy little gun, especially with +P rounds. On the flip side, it's accurate at close ranges, light, thin, very concealable, and serves as a nice personal defense gun. I wear mine in an ankle rig on duty, and in a nylon Uncle Mikes off duty. I almost forget I have it. A few other officers in my dept. have other Kel Tec models and I have yet to hear bad about them. As far as customer service, mine was an early model that had spring issues, as did many others. I sent mine back to Kel Tec, they upgraded the gun, and I haven't had a probelm with it since. The upgrade was free of charge.

Nate, nice group of bucks! They'll be really good in a year or two.

Angry Birds! That silly game.....my wife and 5 yeard old daughter swipe my phone to play it all the time, then I tried it. Never should have.... It is addicting.

I just order the whole suit also. Just about $250 for the entire set plus a free tackle bag. That's an awesome deal for Gore Tex rainwear. This thread popped up at a perfect time for me, I've been needing a new set and waiting for a year end sale.

Its sad that the "Professional" angler placed you in that situation, just so he could potentially win a bass tournament. It casts doubt and suspicion on all of us who fish tournaments, that too is sad. You did the right thing, hold your head high.

To heck with seeing in the water! Yes, ok, that's important when fishing. In reality, I buy QUALITY polarized glass for the protection they offer. Just look at what the sun does to a colored object that sits in direct sunlight. How about a newly paved road, it's faded in no time. How about impact resistance? I guess to each his own but you'll never see a $15 pair of glasses protecting my eyes!

No no no! Once you mention Fall, Winter is just ahead. I'll stick with Summer thank you.

Between my 5 year old daughter, and my wife, I NEVER get cold pizza anymore. Guess I will have to start hiding it!

Just wanted to say thanks again to Bluebasser86 and let everyone here know what he did for me. A few weeks back I posted a WTB thread, I was looking to buy an Aqua Vu. He responded that he had a used one that quit working on him only after using it less than 10 times, and he'd send it to me for the cost of shipping, to see if I could get it working. I took him up on the offer. I get the Aqua Vu and it looks almost brand new. I did some tinkering with it and determined that all it needed was a new battery and charger. I only have about $70 in shipping, new battery, and charger. The thing works flawlessly now. Stand up guy for sure and another reason why this site is such a pleasure to be a member of.

Take a look at a Kel-Tec PF-9 (9MM). Early versions had spring issues but the company corrected it. I own one and it's my off duty carry gun plus I carry it in an ankle holster as a on duty back-up. It so small and light I never notice it's on my ankle. It will take +P rounds. It's an accurate little gun, only weighs a little over 1 pound fully loaded, small and thin. Off duty I carry it in an Uncle Mikes nylon pancake style holster and even in shorts and a t-shirt you can't tell I have it, unless you're looking of course. Most of the time my wife can't even tell I'm wearing it. Most people probably assume it's a cell phone case under my shirt. They can be had in the $200 range. edit-just realized this thread is about a year old for what it's worth.

Count me in.

Just gettin in the thread in case you hit the Powerball. I'd love a new Ranger, that's all I need, I'll pass on the tackle just to save you a little ching. Oh yea, sorry about your baits!