Smokinal

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The knowledge and information on this site is scary...just scary

Yup yup. Power Pro Super Slick is the way to go. Plus, any little noise it sings is the sound of security....

Ask the bass in Falcon what they think.

^^^Did you catch those on accident? I hate to have to be the one to tell you this but....those are green not brown.

I always start out a new spot with a faster moving bait to cover water but mostly to see if there are actively feeding fish. If so, I'll catch as many of the active ones as I can, then when the bite slows or stops I'll switch to a worm or jig and pick off a few more. I get confused when I hear people say that when they catch a fish on a crank, searching, that they go to a worm or jig???? Why wouldn't you continue using that bait that caught the fish in the first place until it no longer works in that area; then go a more finesse tactic.

Answer to topic question: everyone on this forum has at least once

this

Dang! Nice fish Maine!

I use 2500's on all of mine.

I'm wicked paranoid about scents and smells on my baits when using soft plastics. I'm very fussy about how they are rigged as well (straight on hook etc..) but thats another talkshow. I'll give you all one of my very best tips about smells on your hands. I keep a ziplock sammich bag with baking soda in it on the boat at all times. Every trip, after launching and after getting my rods from the locker, but before touching any baits, I dip my hands in the lake, dip them in the baking soda, then scrub them out over the water then rinse in the lake. Call it a superstition, whatever.. it makes me confident that I'm as scent free as possible. I also repeat this after applying sunscreen too. Then the Megastrike comes out...

^^^Those are some nice looking swim jigs. Do you use a trailer on them? If so, what type and color?

You guys are makin me sick...

Congratulations Montanaro! The first step is admitting there is a problem.

X2

Smiles have been had!

Aawww *yawn*yawn*...Sorry, I just woke up....what was that again?

Never done that but I punch myself when I start a t-rig, slide a $2 tungsteon weight on the line, go to thread the hook, have the weight run up the line and out over the water, line slips out of my hand and weight goes plop in the lake.

^^^Very true. Braid is a beautiful thing but I, too, would recommend a leader for another reason=braid has no abrasion resistance to rock. It cuts like butter on a sharp edge of a rock. Fluoro has great abrasion resistance so that's what most use, myself included. Go here: http://www.animatedknots.com/knotlist.php learn the Albright or the Blood knot and start whackin em.

I've used braid/leader setup for about the last 15 yrs and literally cannot remember having or even if I have ever had a knot fail. If it's tied right and lubed before cinching, it will not fail. I use it in all water conditions and colors because I fish a ton of rock and like my cranks bouncing off the rock. Braid has zero abrasion resistance to rock but fluoro does...so it's a great combination!

All above is good info. Are you using a spinning setup or baitcaster? If you use baitcasters, try holding the rod so the line can run over your index finger. I use braid and even on semi-slack line, you can still feel the tick when the bait is inhaled. And speaking of semi-slack, this typically works better than a full slack line. And the line-over-the-finger trick is quite difficult with a spinning rod.

I agree with you Catt and Brian, both. One thing we need to remember is that "shallow" or "deep" is all relative to each body of water. Some lakes I fish are 25' max so I would bet that most of the bass move into 2-8 ft to spawn. Whereas, like WRB mentioned, he has seen beds in 25' on deeper, clear lakes. In a lake with max depth of 100-150' or more, 25' could be considered shallow. In some of my water where max is 25', shallow will be pretty darn skinny. And one certainly can't say "well bass are programmed to go shallow to spawn" because I know of lakes that are only 10 minutes apart; one has max of 30' and the other has 160'. The bass in one lake don't know what the bass in the other are doing, it's all relative to their own environment.

No doubt about it, this website will make you a better fisherman.

Oh, no kidding! I'll get in touch with him. Thanks You'll be my first customer!

A few years ago I wrote a series of 3 children's books about bass fishing titled "Bass in the Grass". They are fun, easy to read books targeting ages 3-11 area. I sent manuscripts to around 20 different publishers without much luck (typical from what I hear from other writers). Well it's always been in the back of my mind how much I'd like to see them on paper. So, I thought I'd throw it out here. Anyone with some connections?