Crankinstein

I just now saw you have Randleman lake listed as your favorite lake, I have had great luck there using fire tiger cranks so try those as well. I used to load the boat there going back and forth between a rapala dt6 and dt4 in fire tiger. That's probably the best lake in the area, if I didn't live right next to Oak Hollow lake I would go there much more often. Good luck!

I have most of my stuff organized however I do keep a large box in my boat that I use for tossing either that days specific tackle or lures that I change out during the day into. I don't like to throw a lure back in the original storage box when I take it off I usually keep it in this day box incase I want to quickly switch back to it or just to let it dry out. Looking at the box after I'm off the water can be a learning experience as well because I can see all the lures I tried that either worked or didn't work and make a mental note of what to try next time out. As far as organization this box usually ends up a mess of senko bags and loose hard baits. I think its organized chaos though because I'm going to grab from my organized tackle and put into this box what I think my gameplan is for the day and based off how empty or full it gets represents if I was successful or not in my planning. If I wasn't successful in planning it may represent my efforts to adapt on the water, both of which are valuable at becoming a better angler and being organized at least from a mental standpoint.

I throw chrome cranks a lot when other people are throwing spinnerbaits and can go right behind them and clean house. Conditions are typically stained/murky water with either sunny or partly cloudy skies. The chrome can have that same flash a spinnerbait has but the crankbait action can often trigger a few strikes that the spinnerbait misses. Another color I've found to work with these conditions is chartreuse black back so give that one a try too.

I think Tom has an interesting point on bass in schools and if bass do communicate it would seem much more likely to witness this in schooling bass than independent bass. Whether the result is positive or negative it seems two bass sitting in stumps that happen to be close to each other may not react much at all to one being caught but that a school of 20 bass in open water may have some sort of reaction. As stated before though it could be positive just as much as negative. Maybe these schoolers think a feeding frenzy is about to start when they notice the commotion in the water. This also brings up the question of we're these schooling bass once independent? and if so what made them school up while others do not? Seasonal patterns, feeding opportunities, or traits passed down from the parent bass could all be possibilities but the idea of communication certainly looms there as well. This is a good topic we have here, I'd like to hear some more on this.

That is awesome man!!! and I agree with the above post, show off that boat when you get it. I want to see some pics of that bad boy.

Another vote for Spro here and in addition to the little john MD you have to check out the Rock Crawler 55 its been my number 1 bait this year. I caught every bass over 4lb this year on the Rock Crawler with the biggest being 6.5. I've got a video on youtube of it in action with several quality fish being caught including the 6.5lber. Search my name "Kevin Weber" on youtube and you'll see it on my channel. The rock crawler can dive to 12 but I really like using it in the 6-8ft range and let it really nail the bottom, it has a nice hunting action as well.

I typically have a couple rods rigged with seasonal baits or baits that i'm wanting to get better at and then have a few "back up" combos rigged with my old stand by baits. For me when nothing is working I throw senko, crankbait, and a topwater popper. Those three baits work year round on my water and I can usually salvage a day if nothing else is working. The brand, style, and color of those three can vary on conditions but that three pronged attack has proven its worth to me many times over.

For me to claim a record it would have to be the LMB record and I would have to break it by a substantial amount. If I barely broke it then I would lean heavy on releasing the fish. I actually ended up in that situation when I caught the fish in my profile pic which would have broken the NC hybrid bass record but because it didn't shatter the old record and the fact that the record is broken quite frequently led me to release the fish. I completely understand that guy in MI breaking the 100 year old smallmouth record claiming it as well as the CA spotted bass record where Matt and Tim camped out on their boat in order to claim the record and release the fish. Those are all scenarios where I would claim the record.

My guess is probably in November. They seem to have them near holidays and I'm sure they'll do a black Friday sale.

When you catch one please make a post about it here, I'm very interested in that lure and I'd like to hear some feedback about it. Something about unique wake baits/topwaters that always brings out the inner bait monkey in me. My local lake has a lot of active water snakes in the spring so I'd be curious how it would work.

My strategy when asked about spots is to reveal a few of known spots that are likely to produce some fish and allow the person a good foothold on the lake but not reveal any true secret spots. My local lake is a small 800 acre public lake that's very shallow so there's not any untouched gems as far as spots go but I do have a few that I won't reveal. I also never give out spot and technique at the same time if someone chats me up at the ramp I'll just give them one. I might say something like their hitting topwater good and leave it at that or something like try the backs of coves. I'm not sure if anything really reaches my local crew or not anyway because everyone I see only ever fishes t-rigs and spinnerbaits along the shore. I literally went months this year before I saw anyone fish anything other than that, 40 degree water to 90 degree water these guys throw the same two baits at the same spots. In your specific case I'm not sure there's much you can do but keep fishing like you have and just hope these new visitors respect the spot and if not maybe search out a new part of the creek just for you.

I would also add that you make sure to enjoy your videos and not over scrutinize yourself. There's always going to be things you can improve on with every video and that's half the fun of it, every video is better than the previous one. On another note I would address the conflict of head mount vs tripod by some experimentation. I've found that for my fishing that the head mount works best with one camera situations because I'm all over the boat plus it gives a nice first person perspective but I think if I added another cam I could put both on tripods, again its just something to think about and everyone's situation is different when it comes to shooting videos.

Add the Jackall Aska to the list. Its a great squarebill and probably my favorite JDM crank. You did good on the popx, that's one of the best topwater poppers period. Maybe add a pop max as well, its a great 1-2 punch when used with the popx as it offers a bigger profile with the same great popping action. I've heard the Evergreen combat cranks are supposed to be the deal but I've never fished them. Now that tw has them in stock I may try a few but the problem is I cant seem to put down the spro rock crawler when it comes to cranks, I just keep landing tons of big fish with it.

And to add to my post the poppers I'm speaking of are the megebass popx/pop max and the Duo popper 64

One thing high dollar poppers can offer is the ability to not only pop the bait but to also walk the bait. Fine details as far as better spitting and chugging and better neutral action as well. You'll have to decide for yourself if these things are worth it to you. For me I agree with the post above that they are absolutely worth it if for no other reason than the fact that topwater lures typically last a lot longer because their rarely lost.

I think the gopro hero is definitely a camera to consider. They redesigned the original hero and it's only $100 and is very easy to use. The gopro studio software can be downloaded for free from their site and its easy to use. You can find some great bundles floating around the web on fleabay and other sites that offer the camera along with head mounts, chest mounts, clamps, chargers, and all the extras for a reasonable price. I just did the same thing last year and have found making fishing videos to be a really fun experience. If you share your experience and some helpful tips or reviews that find their way to even one viewer that enjoys them is a success in my book.

Looks like a cool lure, you talked me into one! I'm always down to try new topwaters

Duo Pencil is the easiest in my opinion. Great bait too!!

I fish a variety of baits however the local fishermen in my area only fish two baits year round 40 degree water to 90, white spinner bait and a t rig worm of some kind. It's so bad that my dad constantly jokes about it when pass another boat and the sad part is he's right. Today I saw a guy fish a buzz bait which marks two months since I've seen another angler on my local water not throwing a spinner bait or a worm. When I'm at the ramp guys ask me "was it the worm or the spinner today?" They look at me strange when I reply caught 6 on a crankbait and 4 on a popper. The thing that gets me is the spinner bait is very hit or miss on my water and while a t rig worm can be effective it is very slow going at times when other baits are red hot. I don't mind it though because it means most fish rarely see my lures and are more apt to bite them.

Senko Topwater Popper Squarebill Crankbait

Oh yea I'm gonna have me some of those. Looks awesome!!!

Alright you talked me into it!! Note: This message was approved by the bait monkey

If your not a fan of the Tatula frame check out the 2015 Alphas that has the SV spool. Same frame as before just with the new spool from what I can tell and they go for around $200. I'd pick one up myself but I got an Alphas finesse custom last year and I can't put it down.