Smokinal

Thank you for posting this, sir. I was out this morning in 33 deg air and 51 deg water, windy as all getup...all bundled up in layer after layer that, if wet, would be unswimable/unfloatable. You should not be embarrassed to tell your story. Rather, I am embarrassed to admit that I never wear a pfd. I, Smokinal, pledge that I will aquire and wear a pfd in cold water situations. I, too, have a family here at home and they need me to return. Thank you again for posting. It got me thinking...

I buy home grown jigs from a couple of different guys and both of them send them in a small, ziplock style plastic bag. So when I get them, I label the bag with a sharpie and then store them all in a 1 gallon ziplock bag. then I keep the whole mess of them in my deck compartment. I store all my worms in another gallon bag, my tubes in another etc...

Now that's enough of that! I was out this morning, air was 33 and reached a balmy 47. Water was 51. My brother and I got 30 between the 2 of us in about 4.5 hrs. Most on the jerkbait, a few on pbj jig and a few on a trap. All in all a good morning!

I'm not "in" just yet. I need to make some sort of ruler box first but thought i'd give my update form today. It was a cold, cold windy morning with wind straight out of the north blowing hard. Air started at 33, water was still 51 though. I got 18 and my little brother caught 12. Mostly on the jerkbait and a few on a pbj jig. Most came on a point with deep water close by. I had (4) 3 to 3.5's and the rest were 1-2 pounders. We fished from 6am to 10:30. Here's one with a full belly....

Obvious newbie question...what is the "who wants in" details? edit: sorry, just read through the "October" and figured it out.

Drawbacks to braid? I guess I can think of a few...you cut your hands testing your knot because it doesn't break, it lasts for years and years so you don't have that fun of replacing your line every 3 months, when you hook a bass in grass it cuts the grass instead of tangling in it so you may leave floating vegetation, it has zero memory so you will not have those cute coils draping down from your rod tip, because of this no memory thing it floats off the spool and through the guides increasing casting distance so you may hit trees every now and then, you will no longer have that heart pumping fear of a breakoff when fighting a bass...geeze, there has to be more, I'm just tired from a long day. OK, that's enough. Seriously though, there are only 2 drawback (real ones now) that I can think of and one is its visibility and the other is it has no abrasion resistance to rock or shell. And a fluoro leader takes care of both of those. You may have guessed I'm a huge fan of braid, have tried many and my favorite is Power Pro Super Slick. Stuff is amazing. And I use a blood knot to connect. found here: http://www.animatedknots.com/knotlist.php?Categ=home&LogoImage=LogoGrog.jpg&Website=www.animatedknots.com

I fished falcon with a guide 5 days last sept. Water was 39 ft low and the lake did not hold up to its reputation for sure. Sure, I got my pb on that trip but it was only (geeze I hate to put it that way) 7-9. Honestly I was expecting one over 8 and a DD would have been a dream come true. I like to think that my buddy and I are decent bass fisherman and we fished hard for 5 days straight but with the water down so far it really had them in a funk. Last I looked they are around 27 ft low. I will be back at some point (when I save enough $ again) but I'm going to be more spontaneous and watch the reports and water level and jump when I can. We planned this trip a year out when the place was hot, bought plane tickets, downpayment on the guide, lodging etc...then water dropped and the place went to hell in a handbasket. When that place is up, I strongly feel there isn't a better lake in the country for the possibility of a lot of big bass or even a DD.

You got it bro!

Yes. Then lay the point end of the hook on the bait's back. If you are in grass you may want to skin hook the tip. Do you know what that is?

I'm "Aaron Martins" anal about my rigging so, obviously, i don't use them. I take that back, I use a plain snap (not a ball bearing swivel, just a snap clip) on my crankbait rod. Everything else gets tied directly. One reason is, when I was younger, i did a lot of brook fishing and would always catch more trout than my 2 buds who used swivels. I always rode them hard about it too but they never changed. Now, as I got more into bass fishing, I would think a swivel would hang up a lot of weeds on a bottom bait. Just my opinion though. Trout are just so wary that I want every advantage to make my bait look as natural as possible.

I would use a 4/0 with the fluke and either 4/0 or 5/0 with the toad. Rigging is the same with either. And I prefer a Trokar 4/0 straight shank worm hook for worms. The reason I would recommend those size hooks is that both of those baits are relatively thick so you need some room for the bait to go on hookset...it will help your hookup ratio. Also I have found the larger 5/0 helps keep a toad upright correctly acting as a keel. But certainly try them for yourself and see what you prefer.

See my avi? That's a springtime jerkbait day right there. 7' Med spinning rod, 2500 series reel, 10# Power Pro Super Slick with a 6ft 10# fluoro leader...killin em! I find that jerkbaits are too light for me to use a baitcaster so I use spinning and with that setup, I can cast a mile with it and it's still pretty sensitive.

I just typed "how to texas rig" on youtube and lots of good videos. It does depend on what type of bait you are using and hook style as well. check out a few of those vids and ask more questions as they come up.

Thank you everyone. I sure does feel like home. This place has a good vibe about it. I think I'll take my coat off and stay a while.

Boy, it depends on a few things. If it's tourney day, and I'm confident on a point, ledge, ridge etc...then I may stay hours soaking a jig waiting for them to turn on. Usually, though, I'm a run-n-gun. Usually I have many spots on a given body of water so if I don't get bit in 10, I'm out. And that doesn't mean I won't come back to that same spot in 2 hrs and check it again. I guess I believe that if they're there and willing to bite, they will bite right off the bat.

I absolutely can't stand memory so I use braid on every rig I own. Fluoro leaders when fishing around rock or clear water. The other reason is, I don't have a hookset like David Ortiz so the no stretch helps my hookup ratio.

That's hard core WNY! And MaineBass, what time are we meeting at Kezar this Sunday?

I have a Pro Qualifier as well...love it. As far as the rod goes, I'll tell ya, for the $, I feel the Skeet Reese 7'2" Jig/Big Worm rod is the best bang for the buck. I'll be honest with you and say that I have owned mostly cheap rods ($30-$60) so this was the first rod of any quality I have owned. I own a Skeet S-Glass cranking rod and love that rod too. I'd be interested in hearing some other member's feedback too. edit: whatever you do, don't get an AllStar. I've had 3 break on me...

X2 on the feeling the fluff. It takes practice and a light touch but you will feel it. Def start out with an easy casting, heavier bait like a trap. I bucked baitcasters for 25 yrs and finally wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Now, I only throw a spinning rod about 3% of the time. If I could add a tip, that would be to not get a cheap rig and try to learn with it. A cheap reel will not cast well and will leave you more frustrated with the whole procedure. Be confident that you will learn it and get a quality setup. It will actually make the learning easier.

Are you kiddin! I, too, fish until the water gets too hard to launch the boat. Actually, we have had to break through ice around the edges to get out before. Last Sunday, water was 58-59, next time I can get out is Nov 3rd and I expect water to be 54-55. This will be prime red craw trap water and jerkbait water. In the 5-6 hrs I'll fish both mornings I should boat between 15-25. I may throw a Rage Space Monkey on a football head and that will get me a few as well. From there, as water temps fall, the monkey, jig and jerk will be the baits until ice in...and fish will still be caught up until then! Get out there! You just gotta fish slow and try a lot of different presentations until you find what works. And a jerkbait is quite possibly the best cold water bait you could throw.

So I recently got a 7'-2" Skeet Reese jig/worm rod with micro guides. I throw jigs year round as my confidence bait and like Super Slick with a fluoro leader. Well my knot used to go through my larger eyes much easier than they go through these mico guides. I have tried straight fluoro and can't handle the memory/birdsnests compared to the braid (which gives me none). So, does anyone use a leader with micro guides and what knot are you using to connect?

While I do agree that certain presentations may work better with a specific type and weight line, I have gone to all braid with a fluoro leader and catch the bejeesus out of em. I use 20lb Power Pro Super Slick on all baitcasters and 10lb Super Slick on my spinning setups. I vary my fluoro leader depending on bait. On my jig/worm rod I use 17lb, topwater I don't use a leader, or with a spinnerbait. On my spinning rods I use 10lb fluoro leaders. most others O use 12lb leader. And I typically use a blood knot to connect.

Hi Folks, new to the site. 44, been fishing since I was 10. Looking forward to giving and receiving tips and info with you.