annexation

I fished the Pompadour through the summer and, while it won't be replacing my spooks, it does drum up some angry strikes. My only gripe is that, compared to the spook, I've had too many instances where the fish come unbuttoned halfway to the boat, for no obvious reason. That's likely not the lure's fault, but something in my setup perhaps, or just bad luck. The ones I lost did feel like big fish, and the ones I boated weren't too bad either. I'll be throwing it a lot this season for sure. It's a fun lure and the amused looks I get from other anglers while it does its obnoxious little dance across the water is fun, too.

Don't give up on the Boss! At the very least, put the bag up and pull it back out during the next pre-spawn if you need to build confidence in them. Texas rig it like you would any other plastic and proceed to annihilate them.

I've been fishing 4 inch tubes in a, uh, let's call it "experimental" fashion lately. I've been putting a 1/8 egg sinker all the way in there, then sealing it it up with a chunk of senko (lube up a discarded 4" senko with megastrike, then push it all the way in. Cut the senko flush to the opening in the tube). Then I rig it backwards like you would a fat ika, but with a 1/0 EWG. It has a different action than an ika or a tube - it's pretty neat and the fish love it. It will sink slower than expected and it wiggles back and forth on a steady retrieve. It's also pretty darn weedless if you skin hook it. It's not without it's problems, though. You pretty much need some kind of fish attractant to lube the senko chunk, otherwise it's just too d**n hard to squeeze in there. Also, it's annoying to get the hook rigged up properly. Even worse, it's tougher to get a hook up on this rig than most others - they'll bite it all day long but the hook doesn't always want to set. A different kind of hook may help there... I just use the 1/0 EWG because it's short enough to not intrude on the egg sinker and it's weedless. Anyway, it's goofy and a lot of guys might find it more hassle than it's worth, but it's a fun way for me to fish something that generally collects dust otherwise.

[whistles] Sucker looks sharp. Let's call it the Ocelot! Or maybe the Osprey. Hey, I'm a sucker for predators that start with 'O'.

Same stuff I usually throw the spook on - heavy action rod with 50 lb. power pro. It's crossed my mind that the hook could be ripping out of them, but I'm not so sure.

I've had some terrific blow-ups and hookups on the Pomp this summer, but the good fish keep coming unbuttoned halfway to the boat - it's a big problem that I generally don't have with the spook. Might be bad luck on my part, but it's resulted in a lot of heartbreak for me so far.

It was always easy for me to work a fat ika that way, but I never had much luck enticing a bite in that fashion. The ol' rapala F7, though, gets inhaled when worked like a spook subsurface. It doesn't get as much love from me these days because I hate trebles and it's a little too light for long casts, but man did I get fish in the boat that way, especially when there was a decent chop up top.

The Ned helped me and my dad take 2nd place at a local tourney this past weekend. It's a deadly efficient tool in the arsenal; big or small, Ned catches whatever is there.

I forgot to mention I hooked into a pretty large Northern Pike right after this one and had a wild fight going until it decided to turn its head. *CUT* So even the lake monsters can't resist Ned!

Guys - I am *loving* the Ned Rig. It scoops them all up, and feels like cheating, but they're generally smallish. I finally netted a big one on it last night and now I feel my confidence in the rig's capabilities is complete. It's nice to see for sure that it can draw bigger strikes. And the open hook isn't nearly as limiting as I thought it'd be initially. It comes through grass surprisingly well, and it's pretty easy to shake the green stuff off when you feel it. Ned Rig 4 Life! Or, the rest of this summer, at least.

Yamamoto plastics have that one-two punch - high price and low durability - that make them tough for me to justify most of the time. I love how dense the senko is compared to some of the cheaper stick baits, but d**n if it isn't frustrating when they're falling off the hook before landing even one fish. That said, the senko holds a special place in my heart as it's pretty much what got me addicted to bass fishing. The grubs aren't so bad in that you get, like, twice as many per bag for about the same price. But they still get torn up like butter.

Tried mine out last night and wasn't doing too well the first hour. Cue 8:00PM, then it was like a dinner bell going off. It's a large-ish bait but I was pulling agressive 10" dinks off it left and right. I did catch a couple keepers, too. I fished mine as slow as I could while still maintaining that "Michael Phelps" swimming action it has, with occasional pauses. That's what worked best for me. Granted, it was only a one evening test, but the results were good! Really interesting action.

I've had to resort to a senko for most of my catching lately - which is bittersweet because I'd much rather catch them other things. Like this fancy Pompadour I just picked up. Ned has been good to me, too, for hitting them in deeper water.

Any time, any place, any way. But I usually have one texas rigged with a light bullet, 1/8 or 3/16, and I work it slow wherever I think fish are at. When the nose gets torn up, I save them for later use as a jig trailer. They are sized perfecty for most 4/0 EWG hooks. Bury the hook point back into the plastic after rigging to make it super weedless. Best of luck!

Vanish was my introduction to fluorcarbon - and I had some mixed results with it. Spooled up with straight 12 lb. I had zero issues with it. It was fine and acted exactly as I imagined fluorocarbon should. Using 8 lb. Vanish as leader material, though, I would break off all the time when the line should have held. Given that it was my first foray into fluorocarbon, I think it's more likely my inexperience in tying leaders and not wetting my knots that led to this happening. That said, I'm in no hurry to go back to Vanish - Seaguar has been doing me just fine, both on the spool and as a leader.