Amarley

Has anyone used All Pro Rods? I went to Dale Hollow with a guide last fall and he swore by them. Just curious if anyone has any feedback on using them week after week, rather than my experience of just test casting one a few times. I was impressed by their sensitivity and light weight. The guide swears he prefers them to his GLX's, but he is also on their pro staff. http://allprorods.com/

St. Croix Mojo/Abu Veritas/iRod Genesis II (this one is a little pricier, but worth it) and a Lews Speed Spool. I'd also take a look at the Cabelas and Bass Pro brand rods. It's no secret that many brands of rods come from the same factories, if you know what I mean...

My mind is made then. Can't wait to go. Thanks for the insight.

Anyone had a good experience with this/is it worth the time and expense? Thinking about going with a guide this weekend.

Spinnerbaits are the ultimate go-to bait to learn they are versatile and can be fished throughout the water column and at many different speeds. You can pitch them close to cover, let them sink and bottom hop them, burn them along the top, many different techniques. If you can fish a spinnerbait, then you can move on to soft plastics, jigs, crankbaits, and swimbaits. It's all addicting! Good Luck!

I'm about a 3 hour drive from Guntersville and thought about heading down for the Bassmaster Classic this year. Has anyone been to a Classic before? Are they worth the trip?

The online research I've been doing says most of the charters shut down in October. I'll definitely call Sportsman's Direct. Thanks for the connection!

I have to go to Detroit for work next week. I finish up Thursday and thought about trying to fish St. Clair on Friday. Is it too late to have a good trip up there right now? What is prime season? I fish mainly in the south and am unfamiliar with how productive this time of year can be up there. Thanks for the help!

I don't beat my equipment to death and am fortunate enough to have several rods and reels, but I love my PQ's. Never an issue with any of them.

That's awesome. Thanks for sharing the link!

I mainly fish 5,000-10,000 acre lakes in Kentucky and smaller private lakes. I'd like to make trips to Dale Hollow, Guntersville, KY Lake, Douglas, Pickwick, Chickamauga, etc. I'm in Southern KY, so all of those are within a 4 hour drive. Perfect for weekend trips. Thanks for the advice. My motor is in good shape, I could probably get a little over $2k on the private market. Tough decision!

I have been getting into bass fishing over the past couple years. Last year, I bought my first bass boat. I went fairly inexpensive to make sure that my interest in bass fishing stuck. Needless to say, I'm hooked now and am looking to get more serious about traveling to different lakes and possibly fishing in clubs. My current rig is a 17.5 ft Procraft with a 40hp Mercury. That's right only 40 hp. The motor runs great and is plenty to get me around lakes by myself, but if I add a passenger it's pretty slow going. I'd like to take buddies/family fishing, and have a co-angler if I join a club. My boat is rated for up to a 125hp. So here are my options: 1. Upgrade to a 115 hp- new or a very good used motor. Keep my same boat for a long time. I'm happy with the size and layout. 2. Sell my current boat as-is in the spring and look for something else. 3. Upgrade the motor, sell my boat and upgrade to something bigger. Do a "flip job". I've spent a lot of energy on this boat to get it to be very dependable, but that will also help with resale. I'm having difficulty figuring out what my best option is. Any advice from people who have had a similar decision to make? Thanks.

I've got a Garmin Echo 200 on my front deck that I really like. Very clear images for the price point. Comes with temperature reading, too.

I label gallon zip loc bags into different types of plastics, senkos, finesse, mag woms, swim baits, creatures, beavers, craws, etc. They have enough room for a bunch of bags of plastics in each. Then I'll pick a few from each bag when I go out and put them in one of those bassmaster bags. Keeps me somewhat organized. I could also tow the whole gallon bag, but most of the time it's unnecessary.

For me, part of the fun in bass fishing is learning a new technique or catching fish on new and different gear. I like trying new tackle companies that may not be on the shelves at Bass Pro, Cabelas, TW, etc. Some of the "small batch" gear is usually the best quality and is oftentimes made in the USA. Does anyone have any local tackle companies or non-mainstream tackle companies they like to fish? Could be lures, rods, reels, line, anything. I just enjoy seeing what's out there. I saw a shirt the other day that said "Buy Local or Bye Local." I think that's true in fishing tackle and I like to support the smaller businesses with good products.

Sorry didn't read your last post! I don't know how they will fair on Erie!

Check out Sneed Products. They are a local company from Southern Kentucky and make great products. Their specialty is plastics for shaky heads, all of their plastics float. I lost a plastic when my hook got snagged on a tree. I got the hook out and about 10 seconds later the hog floated to the surface. I thought that was pretty cool. Their shaky heads are on-point, too. http://www.sneedproducts.com/

Mine was right at 18" and Bobby said that was one of the few real quality Smallies he's caught on Dale this year. I'd like to go back when the water temp drops a little more towards 60. It's a beautiful lake, I went for the smallies and I'm happy I got a good one. I hated to hear about the die-off last year and I hope Dale comes back strong. I definitely plan on going again. I'd like to pull my boat over and spend a few days learning the lake. It was a completely different type of fishing than I was used to looking for smallies. We fished over a lot of deep grass and ledges with jigs, swim baits, cranks and drop shots. I've always been schooled on fishing more visible cover, and structure fishing is a whole new ball game! But, I'm hooked on it now and am ready to get back out there!

Had a good day on the water with Bobby. Caught one 4 lb smallie that was worth the trip. Tough bite but learned a lot about the lake and saw a lot of water. I definitely recommend Bobby Gentry if you want a great a Dale Hollow guide.

I'm going with a guide named Bobby Gentry tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.

Gama makes a good one. Just make sure you buy the ones with a screw lock. One of my go to baits nearly all year is a EWG weighted hook with a Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper. Rarely get hung up and they catch hogs. The Gambler Big EZ is solid, too.

I taught myself on RH and wished I would've learned LH, just feels awkward when I try it. For flipping and pitching its good if you can do LH. That way you don't have to switch hands after the cast/pitch/flip. I notice a lot of pros do this. On fast strikes this is a big benefit and you can work an area faster.

Are you talking about Sneed products out of Scottsville, KY? www.sneedproducts.com I just bought some of their stuff last week. They started making some brush hog style baits that are meant to fish on shaky heads and have been tearing up local tournaments around here in Southern Kentucky.

YUM makes good ones. Also a local tackle company called Sneed Products makes a good jig and oversized worm that has been winning local tourneys for the past few years. http://www.sneedproducts.com/ Their big shaky heads are 20% off this month.