mnbassman23

boone and crockett morning dove.

6'6"-7' MH action rod, 50lb braid, and a reel with a strong drag. With those techniques and grass you need power. Brands of rod and reel will depend on your budget and be highly subjective.

Amen to that. Spring can't come fast enough. Can't beat smacking those big Largies on jigs. Good luck this season bud.

Hard, just ask my wife lol. Both of us were sleeping and my wife had her head on my right shoulder. I set the hook as if I was bringing the rod up towards the right side of my body. I hit her with a closed fist due to my right hand gripping my reel. She woke up cussing wondering why I just smacked her and I was upset because I didn't get to land that giant bass that just ate my jig.

You proposed to your wife on your bass boat. You punch your woman in the face at night due to setting the hook in your dream. You tell your buddy to hold your pole and its not awkward. walking the dog requires a fishing pole, not a leash.

Paycheck baits punching hook = RI BMF

Green PP or Green Sunline FX2 with no leader.

Holy batman Mark you got a good list going my friend. Will the bolded lure be fished with a leader or you risking it with those toothy critters? Hope you smack a giant with that thing.

I'm doing a lot better this year than last. Restocked plastics, jig making materials, and a bunch of swimbaits. Only thing left is fishing line and maybe another swimbait if I feel the need to splurge.

If they are anything like there EWG superline hook then they are strong heavy duty hook. Before I switched to straight shank hooks the superline EWG was my go to Flippin hook.

Mark has given you great feedback. That jackpot is probably 8.5" so the other 2 glide baits are only 6 or 7 inches. The bucktails are on the smaller end so you have nothing to big in the world of Muskie fishing. That rod will work for all those baits. I'd say put some 65lb braid on your Calcutta just so you get a sufficient amount of line on it. 80lb line is ideal on bigger baits and so you don't risk snapping them off on a hard backlash, but I think having enough line on that reel would be my biggest concern. Just my opinion though. If you have a well trained thumb than there is no reason 65lb braid won't work, I've caught a lot of ski's with 50 or 65lb braid with a leader. IF you decide you enjoy muskie fishing then start saving up for a larger sized reel and then a longer rod. O and all the expensive baits that go with it. I know a lot of guys who've dropped a couple grand on gear and absolutely hated it, because they had no idea what they were getting into. Get a few follows, bites, and maybe even land one of those mystical fish and then go all in. Good luck!

Catch a 7lb MN largemouth.

My wife is pretty good at fishing and has been doing it for about 12 years thanks to her father. She also looks good tanning on the back deck of my Ranger. I taught her to pitch 2 seasons ago and now she is a pitching machine. Some days she makes me look silly, but I'm OK with that.

Nice fish man great way to start the year. I hook into a couple drum/sheephead every year and each time I think I got a new PB bass. Nice catch on the Bull Shad as well. Is that a 6 incher?

PF = Pure Fishing

I've never fished the Ducketts, but in general I would go MH for Spinnerbaits/Swimjigs and have a Medium for Topwaters/Jerkbaits. The Medium Heavy will cast 1/4oz swimjigs + trailer with ease, but I wouldn't want a MH for topwater and jerkbaits. So unless the Ducketts have a very unique action compared to most other rod companies that would be my recommendation. Unless you are putting braid on this rod, then I have no problem throwing swim jigs on a medium action rod unless I'm around really thick cover.

Basshole- When you say heavier are you referring to overall weight when throwing it or do you mean it sinks faster than you'd like? I know it says slow sink but can you put it in perspective to a Hudd? Is it similar to say a ROF 5? Thanks buddy for any info.

Well said Mark. Bluegill patterned jigs work well year around, but both the bass spawn and then the sunfish spawn afterwards are better than average times to throw that jig. Swimming, working it on the bottom, and a combination of both will produce. My father-in-law throws a bluegill patterned jig 95% of the time, all year round, and does very well on it. Confidence is key.

Mark- I have been looking at mine everyday wishing I was out throwing it... does that count? Hopefully someone can give us an update soon. I also seen TW has the Savage line thru now, but they went out of stock pretty fast. Wish they would have been on there when I ordered the Glide a few weeks back I would have picked one up.

Over the years I have had a lot of friends that didn't fish and only a few that did. Now, every single one of them does. On the woman side, I started dating a girl 7 years ago. At the time I told myself i'd never get serious unless I met a girl that hunted/fished. Well it turns out she already loved to bass fish and after dating her for a short time I had her shooting deer with a bow. Over the years we have spent many of days in the boat or up in the deer stand. It makes for a great life when your significant other enjoys the same passions as yourself. I ended up proposing to her on the front deck of my Ranger boat and just married her just this past August. Priorities my friend

Mine came up as Minneapolis, which is the closes major city in Minnesota to me. Pretty impressive

I throw both but tend to catch a lot more fish, on my waters, on the Aruku's. Perch is the only color I fish and it's one of those baits that always produces. A lot of people around here throw red eyes hence why I think the Aruku produces better.

Looks like a great trip and beautiful fish! Pulling fish that size through the ice is always a rush and challenge on that size line.

I was a hardcore muskie guy before I got into bass fishing, now I muskie fish only a few times each season. I'd say i've caught around 60 total. I would hate to see how much money my father has spent on muskie tackle, luckily I was in my teens/ low 20's when I did most of my fishing so he let me choose from his 400, give or take a few, baits. Here is my biggest at 48.5. My dad has a 52 and my mom, mrs. lucky, has a 55 and 50 to her credit.

Ice fishing is a good time. I have grown up doing it and will continue to do so throughout life. Catching 8-10" Bluegill, 10-12" Perch, and 10-15" Crappies on 2lb line and a 20" ultralight can keep me entertained for hours, they all put up a good fight. We mostly fish walleye on bobbers and jigs using 6lb line and light to medium action rods, they fight extremely well and anything over 3lbs will peel drag and give you a run for your money. Just last night I ended up with 6 Walleye between 17"-22" and lost a solid 7lber at the hole that took me a few minutes to get in after ripping out drag. Most of those fish fought better than any 14-18" bass with 7' MH action rods and 50lb braid, which a lot of people find fun in the summer (including me). Anyways i'm done rambling, but just know that the fish do fight in the winter. Maybe it is for a different breed of people. Heck I enjoy late season deer hunting when the temperature is usually between 0 and -20 without the wind chill.