jb_adams

The old saying goes like "always a brides-maid and never the bride". Well after this last weekend, I'm proud to say, I'm now in the "BOAT OWNER" category! Finally after years of waiting! I was within months of signing papers on a new Skeeter with a 150Vmax and then I found out my wife and I are expecting our second child. So....................there goes the boat. Then I heard my cousin was selling his so I'm now proud to at least own a boat that I can fish from easily. She'll be my first restoration project. Lots planned including the new 24V 56lb Minnkota that is getting mounted on the front.

FINALLY!!! I'm now in the "boat owner" category with the boat fully paid for. I got it from my cousin and for $500 less than asking price. For what they were asking, that was a big chunk off the price. Below are pics. Sorry, some of these were taken with my phone on the way to my boat mechanic to get a new trolling motor. The original trolling motor is an Evinrude 24V 30lb thrust. it works but the cable is busted. Why spend $100 replacing the cable when you can upgrade to a much better trolling motor. The old one will be cleaned and make a nice ornament on my garage wall. I think I will do more than just fish and use the boat, I think I'm going to make this my first restoration project. First things first. This is what I have done so far since this last weekend when I bought it: - new trolling motor (picked up a 24V - 56lb Minnkota for under $300 used) - new bildge pump - new Sonar unit (Lowrance X96) - new winch strap (replaced 3/8" rope my cousin was using!) :laugh: - new transom saver straps - new plug - swap current prop out with extra 19" 3-blade for top end speed (48-50mph) not bad for a 30yr old 85hp Rude! Next on the list is: - wet sand and buff the bottom hull on the oxidized areas to match the top hull - polish any metal trim and remove rust from chrome steerring wheel - patch the only two holes in the original vinyl seats Additional add-ons within the next year will be: - additional sonar unit on trolling motor (4,000 watt min.) - new winch - new trailer jack - repaint trailer with new pinstriping - new running boards and marine carpet - rewire trailer lights with new fixtures and new wiring (fully concealed) - new chrome wheel/tire package

Anyone have any experience with older Cane Cutter boats? I have a cousin that is selling their 1979 Cane Cutter 15.2' tri-hull bass/ski boat and it has an 85hp Evinrude. The boat runs strong and it's in terrific shape for it's age. The perfice "first boat" for me. I can't seem to find much of anything on the internet about these boats. All I know is this one runs strong and its in great shape. Anyone else have any experience with these? Thanks! By the way, the boat has been clocked at 48mph with only an 85horse. Not bad for an old heavy tri-hull boat. I'll post a few pics if I get it this weekend.

Thanks everyone! If it were a hat, a lure, a picture, etc., it would be a no brainer for me to not use it. But this seems like a really nice quality rod and I've got 3 St. Croix Avid series rods, a good Falcon rod, a few cheap Berkly and Abu rods so this rod combo would make a good addition to my arsenal and replace a few cheaper rods. I will probably spool it up with line and see how sensitive it is. If it's as good as I think it will be (I'm thinking it will match my Avids), then it will get used occassionaly but not a lot. I wouldn't sell it for anything amount of money so that's out. I tend to agree, I think Jimmy would want me to use it. He's a true fisherman and has been all of his life. If he hadn't signed it, I would MOST definately get used at the first chance I had. It's getting his signature on it that made it personal and extra special too me. Besides, I've still got an autographed book of his. I also have a signed t-shirt with his signature and several other pros. Forgot to mention that. I also agree.......I think he put the Jimmy Houston "giggle mojo" on it and now I feel like kissing a fish! I think I'll stow it in the rod locker on rare occassions and break it out for hard times or emergency situations. With that kind of luck, it's bound to be a winner. If you are lucky enough to win a $200 rod/reel combo (I never win anything), that's lucky. If you are even luckier and you are able to get Jimmy to sign it, that's too much luck packed into one rod to let it just sit around......that's like making bad mojo. Maybe I'll get him to sign a hat next time he's in town. He should be back around during the Walmart Open this year. He's here every year.

I was lucky enough to meet Jimmy Houston this week. He's a really great guy and very approachable. He really cares about people and he's extremely easy to talk to. More than willing you give you tips and talk fishing or hunting. I also won a 6'6" Jimmy Houston Signature Series Shimano fishing rod with a Shimano Cruxis baitcasting reel as a door prize. Pretty cool right! So I got Jimmy to sign the rod on the cork right above the reel seat. He told me I could use a clear fingernail polish and that would seal it on the rod. So should I enjoy the rod and use it? Or should I keep it safe and have it framed and mount it on the wall as a collectors item? If I use it, do you think the clear fingernail polish would work? Surely someone here has run across something like this before. Thanks all! ;D

Hula Poppers are an entertaining bait. There is nothing like that distinctive *BLOoP* sound early in the morning or late in the summer afternoon. I usually fish mine very slow. If you fish it too hard and too fast, it will make the fish leary to bite unless they are biting anything you throw that day. I have had luck letting it sit and "bloop" it once or twice and let the rings in the water settle before I pop it again. I've caught both white bass and spotted bass when they're feeding on top. it's a good bait. there are other baits that work better though. Experiment and if you are having no success, try a different one because confidance is the best bait in the world.

It's a local supplier that makes the jig. I forget the name but they are much like an Eakins jig except this one has red-dotted eyes and two cable-wire guards spread like a V instead of a single guard. It's a nice jig and costs about the same. I admit, I rely on feel too much vs. watching the line. That's probably my hangup. It's rather difficult to watch your line with 10lb braid compared to mono or fluorocarbon. It's harder to see on the water in some cases. I will be watching my line more I was told that big fish feel like a dead weight or all the sudden you just lose your bait like it's not there. My bud follows the Free-Swing rule too.

A local pro swears by those........I would imagine it would be great on a buzzbait.

I love the way the Rage Tail craw trailer looks. (I'm not trying to sell Big O's products here nor am I sponsored or on staff) I typically use hula grubs or twin tail grubs but lately I've been using either Rage Tail (more colors selection needed I think) and T-rigged Lake Fork craws. I like how the Rage tail has a different action than the grub. It almost seems more aggressive. It's just different, I'll say that. Guys, I know how to feel a bite. I have just never been lucky enough to get a solid bite until now and one that I reacted to fast enough. I usually get a tug and then it's all over. Someone told me this rule, First tug I'm here, second tug, I'm about to spit the bait, third tug means you missed me sucker! If you don't react fast enough, you'll miss the strike. I admit, I don't watch my line often enough but I do try to pay attention to it. I usually fish with very little slack anyway. Most of the ones I've hooked up, the line broke or something. I've learned to tie better knots too. No joke, with 10lb Suffix braid, I can't tell you if it's a Miller Lite or Bud Lite can on the bottom but I can tell you it's a can and not a rock. It's crazy how much more sensitive it is between fluorocarbon and braid. Even a bite from a perch feels like a decent bass! ;D

Thought you might want to know that's a RAGE TAIL CRAW TRAILER in that picture!

Well, after almost two years of trying, I finally caught my first fish on a jig. Yeah, I said almost 2 years. My buddy catches fish all the time on jigs when we fish. We'll use the same color etc. I have just always missed the bite or the line broke. So the curse of "no jig fish" is over. Alas.....it was a small fish. (how small was it?) I was using 10lb Suffix braid and when added to a 6ft medium action Falcon rod and a 5/16oz finesse jig, I can feel a fish fart it's so sensitive. So when I felt the bite, it felt pretty solid. I reacted quickly and set the hook. Got the fish to the boat and then I was disappointed. Look what was on the other end of the line........ Well, at least the curse is over and things should really pick up now. I hope..... ;D Hey, this perch was about 1-1/2lbs! She was a pretty fat little gal for her size and I could lip land it. (yes, saying that makes me feel better)

I follow the belief of "No Bait Left Behind"..... I bought a "hound dog" several years ago. It's a bait recover tool. A big lead weight with a wire that follows your line into the water and retrieves baits. Recovered several crankbaits for it. Both in the water, and in big tall trees! ;D Just a few weeks ago, I overcast further than I thought I could reach and the wind pushed it up into the treetop before I could put the brakes on. I flung the ole' hound dog up there and after a few trys, got it out. I use 250lb test mason string and wind it up on an old Abu Ambassador with a sawed-off short grip Ugly Stick fishing rod. It's a wicked tool and a must for every boat.

There's a bid debate about anise oil and how it can be harmful to fish or something like that. Garlic scented sprays use anise oil I believe. There are those that swear anise oil is the attractant. Is that about right or am I way off? I remember there being a big discussion (thread) about this a while back.

They are made by Luck E Strike. The company is in South Missouri and you can request a catalog and then order direct from them. It's a pretty extensive catalog selection. It's printed on a few sheets of paper but there are tons of colors and all kinds of jig heads, tube jigs, lizards, worms, etc. Here is the website http://www.luckestrike.com/ Here is where you can request a catalog or place an order http://www.buehlersales.com/

I haven't seen that color option. Funny thing about Renegades, the colors seem to vary depending on what part of the country you are in. In North Arkansas I can get up to 6 colors. If I go to South Arkansas I can get 8 or more and totally different colors. I'll be sure to look for those to add to the selection. Right now, I'm loving Junebug because it works in all water clarity (stained, mud, clear, etc.)

I LOVE THE SMELL OF RENEGADES IN THE MORNING! ;D ;D

Anything by Chompers wreaks of garlic. I left a jig trailer on my rod and when I put my rods in my truck, the ride home was terrible. I had to air out my truck.

I love fishing Lucky Strike (Renegade) worms. You know, the ones on the bottom shelf at Wal-Mart for $1.50? They have a very sweet smell to them. Almost like a candy scent. Could that candy-like scent be the reason they work so well for me? If so, I could theoretically make my own scent from things like Kool-Aide (don't laugh) and other things to give plastic worms an attractive scent. Wonder if that would work..sure would beat the smell of garlic. Maybe I could learn to eat garlic bread again! (hahahaha) My favorite!

You should try a large grub with a ribbon tail. I use a grub as a spinnerbait trailer and that ribbon tail gives "life" to a noisy bait and it's dynamite. I agree with the super fluke suggestion. If you ever want to add a skirt again, just use a quick skirt. They are sold separately for spinnerbaits. I did the same thing to one of my favorite buzzbaits.

I do this with jigs. I either don't get bites, don't react fast enough on bites, get a bite and then lose the bait (broke line), or I'm not fishing it right to get good consistant bites. Yet I have one tied on almost every outing. Jigs resemble the primary forage for bass, the crawfish. They work all year long in the right application. It's favorite forage for bass. I fish the same colors, size and places my buddy does and he catches bass on jigs often. Some people have luck, some people don't I guess. It's a strange unexplained phenomina. If you are not catching anything with the senko, try using it differently than you have ever used it before. Try tying on a small 3-4" senko behind a popper with a 2-3ft leader. You'll catch something that way. Or wacky rig one with a bobber about 5' up the line on a windy day. The wave action will pulsate the worm and you'll catch something if the bass are there. See what I mean? I'm doing the same thing with jigs right now. Trying to be different. So far, I'm getting more bites.

I've got tons of senko style worms. They work great sometimes here but most of the time, we can fish them all day and maybe catch a few. I used to have a lot of luck with them on a shakey head rig. For one reason or another, they're not that hot of a bait for me anymore. I prefer smaller worms when I'm worm fishing because I get more numbers and I prefer numbers usually. Like finesse worms or 4" senko's vs. the larger 5&6" stick baits. Tiki Stick (Wave Worms) work well too for much less. I prefer *** just because Brent's such a good guy and has great customer service and baits. Sad though, I've only ordered once but I plan on ordering again. I'm just now getting back into worm fishing again. Crankbaits and spinnerbaits will ruin a man. Once you get to casting and cranking and fishing fast, it's hard to slow down and twitch a worm.

Thanks again to everyone for the advice, etc. Junebug is my new favorite color! It's VERY versatile and works in stained, muddy, clear or whatever water clarity you have. The Zoom Centipede is the worm I used for a couple of hours today. I had no idea where the fish would be. I knew it would be a slow bite due to solunar predictions and rising water. On the first cast with a Junebug Centipede....I picked up a nice keeper bass about 15-16 inches. Strange thing was, the bite was so soft, I thought I had hooked a stick. It never really even struck. I just barely got the bass hooked and he didn't fight much. I missed a lot of bites too because they were so subtle. By the time you figured out you were getting a bite, it was too late. I did get a really big one bite the worm but missed the hook. He just about pulled the worm completely off the hook. He was a good one for sure. SO...... Junebug has produced for me again even when the bite is really tough. I flipped a simple t-rig around flooded brush and felt a lot of tiny bites like perch but the bass just were not in the mood to bite aggressively. You had to set the hook for every little tick.

I knew RW was a nice guy but MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNN!!! That's one heck of an offer. I guess if I show up with Arkansas tags.......it would look bad huh..(hahaha) There is something about Memphis and BBQ. You Texans could learn a thing about "Rich & Sassy Memphis" style sauce vs. "Texas BBQ" Way to go RW!

Can anyone scan the lunar table for August and attach it here? I haven't recived my issue yet (Bassmaster has something screwed up with my renewal) I'm trying to plan a trip towards the end of the month I need the lunar data. Thanks in advance!

How about all of them? I know Rootbeer has produced well for me in the past in clear water. I was told chartreuse blue was once called "Beaver Lake Special" by locals because it produced so well in stained water. I also know they don't call "sexy shad" sexy for nothing. It works on smallmouth and largemouth. Each bait has a better advantage over the next one given certain conditions so all of those are good colors. I stay away from the really bright flashy ones in clear to stained water though. If it's really stained or muddy, I'll throw the chrome or chart. blue, and other bright flashy colors.