hawgenvy

In my area bass fisherman practice catch and release. On the other hand, most of those who fish for food are catching panfish or tilapia. And lots of folks who fish for food are poor people who may, if they are lucky, have the good fortune to bring home to their families some fresh lean protein. There are many impoverished people in the US for whom it is very hard to feed their families, and I am glad they can occasionally bring home some fresh fish. And when those poor folks manage on a lucky day to score a good sized bass, they can put it to best use by consuming it. To people who are chronically hungry, catch and release is at the very least ridiculous, and maybe close to sinful. It's okay to care about those of us who fish for sport, but more important to have compassion for our brothers who are needy.

In low light conditions or stained water, many bass anglers recommend dark colored lures because they will be more visible to the bass, presumably because they will stand out better against the background. But then those same anglers may recommend a darker line or they will darken the line so it will be less visible in the shadows when flipping/pitching/punching. I have to admit I have been guilty of darkening the last foot or two of my line. The reason is because when my braid is in the water I can much more easily see the lighter section than the darkened section. Even though I am not a submerged bass. And then I tend to conform to the hype and use dark lures when pitching the shadows or in stained or muddy water. Go figure! Actually, I like the concept of a camo pattern. In fact, SpiderWire has a "Stealth Camo Braid," and it's cheap. I have not tried it.

In Florida when water temps approach 90o the larger bass migrate to Canada. Or at least to deeper water where they wont suffocate. Most residential ponds, especially in Florida, are artificial and shallow and are connected to each other and to a network of canals by a system of conduits that serve to equalize water levels. They also allow migration of species that live in the water. Bass will seek cooler water in the summer, and that water may not be in your pond. It may be in some deeper canal some distance away. I'd bet there is a big pipe or two you can find somewhere along the shore. Anyway, if you can't find deeper water to fish, you can try throwing a weightless T- or wacky rigged senko, or a weightless zoom fluke, to the deepest part of your pond. If that doesn't work, wait till the weather starts to cool in October or November. That's when the larger bass will return to shallower areas to seek food and begin to prepare to spawn.

Great story. Thanks! And congratulations!

Very delicate, white flesh, not unlike sole. It is very common in Vietnam where it is grilled on a wood fire, opened up dorsally, the bones removed, seasoning applied, and served on a platter showing off the toothy grin of the head. Don't feel obliged to show the head to your dinner guests in New Jersey!

Apparently, bowfin (aka choupique) roe is very valuable. It's sort of imitation caviar. And if you catch a snakehead in clean water, eat it. Very delicious.

I think line sensitivity means two basic things: the ability to detect fish bites, and the ability to resolve bottom contour. In both cases braided line is theoretically better because it's lack of stretch means more information is transmitted up the line. For example, if a fish pulls a hook an inch directly away, a zero stretch line will also move a full inch at the rod tip. Not so for stretchy polymer lines. Thinness would also matter because thin line is deflected less by laterally acting water movement against the line, because thin line has less surface area. A bowed line bows when the hooked fish moves laterally, or if there is a current. A bowed line cannot as directly transmit information to the rod. Here again braid wins because it has less diameter per breaking strength so it bows less. Really, of course, this is all theoretical. You'd have to do scientific testing and data analysis to know if these are valid hypotheses. Or go out yourself and see what works for you -- just don't write articles about it unless you have a statistician on board.

You guys are all being unscientific about this. To answer the question you'd have to first agree what exactly you mean by sensitivity, that is, figure out how you would meaningfully define sensitivity. Then devise a way to measure line sensitivity objectively. Then test enough line diameters to get meaningful data, and, voila, you'd have an answer to the question. Or, you could also sink an old pick up truck 30 feet down in a muddy lake, get a bunch of rednecks in bass boats to "fish"over it using hookless jig heads, and the first guy to figure out the year, make, and model has the most sensitive line.

I sometimes bank fish with a certain friend of mine who always uses a snap swivel. I'll typically catch 3-4 bass for every one he does. Of course, there are other variables, but I suspect his extra hardware is a factor. Anyway, lures are designed to have a certain action, and that design is based on the lure tied clean to the line.

One of the easiest (if there are no surface weeds) is the Heddon Baby Torpedo. And it is very effective. You just toss it out and reel it in. When it gets bit, you just keep reeling. No fancy hookset or special timing needed. BTW, I'd bet those guys popping bugs on the surface are bream of some sort. There may be hungry bass below them awaiting an opportunity to nab an innocent little bluegill. Maybe toss a senko where the bug suckers are feeding and let it sink to the bottom on semi-slack line.

As long as it's a thin, sharp hook I'll start with a reel set, which is just reeling fast till there's a good bend in the rod, and then, while keeping the pressure on, I'll reinforce that with a lateral sweep to make sure the hook penetrates past the barb. Lately I've been liking the Gama G-Finesse jig-headed hook, 1/16 oz size.

All braids bleed because the polyethylene strand the braid is made from is colorless and has very low surface friction. It is a filament of plastic, like monofilament or fluorocarbon, but stronger and slicker. Unlike monofilament line, it is not possible to add color to the polymer mixture before it is extruded. For braided fishing line, colorless strands of polyethylene are woven together, and the resultant braided line then appears white. Then the coloring is added. The dye is essentially added to the surface of slick plastic filaments. It is the little spaces in the braid that are relied upon to hold the dye. Unless you want a white braid, the coloring is simply going to bleed. To try to make the braid darker the manufacturers add extra dye, so it ends up bleeding more. That's the best the current technology can offer. But braided line is thin and low friction and strong as hell, so regardless, we're lucky to have braided line available to us for fishing.

You may want to put up some barriers to keep out the swarms of hungry bass, pike, catfish, snakeheads, etc., that are bound to soon show up at the garage door, attracted by the attractive attractant. If they do get in, have some nets, ice bags, filleting knives, a frying pan, and the freezer ready!

I had trouble at first, too. Gets easier after a while with practice, if you have a good tool (not fingers). And at least trebles are less likely to be gut hooked.

Confidence is fishing hard all day long in the heat of the summer or after a nasty cold front. Confidence is when you haven't had a bite in four hours, and you're not only still fishing, but concentrating 100% on your rod tip and line to detect the tiniest tick. Confidence is when you've got credit card debt but still ordering stuff from TW, even though you haven't caught but 12 pounds all year. Confidence is going fishing after you've been skunked three times in a row. Confidence is when there is a lure or lure category that you've never caught anything on, and you fish with it exclusively until you figure out how to catch fish with it. Confidence is skipping docks with a bait caster. Confidence is a virtue that a reasonable man would find that we bass anglers have beyond reason.

Hey, Mike, Did you see the BR Savage Gear vid of these crazy California bass baits? Some of them look pretty amazing, and the fish-shaped ones look awfully good just swimming slowly and twitched: http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/savage-gear-duck-rat.html Good luck, man. You're gonna have fun with them -- at least till you lose one!

Di Mshuge Fisher

Are you getting bit and missing the fish, or not getting bit?

I have spinning and baitcasters but I use the BCs a lot more because they can handle heavier line for fishing weedy areas and for hauling in large fish out of cover. And I find them to be more accurate as far as distance. You should get one! It's best if you get a high quality baitcaster that has a good cast control system. That means MSRP will likely be over $150. At first it will probably be frustrating, till you get the hang of it and get the reel dialed in right. There are tons of vids on how to do that. After some practice you'll find it easy and will probably love it.

For frogs and buzzaits I go braid. And for the treble hook topwater lures, I use braid anyway! Sure, the braid gets caught in the hooks sometimes. But that's no more hassle than tying on a stupid leader. Playing with an uni knot for ten minutes does little to raise my spirits. Besides, the knot to the leader sometimes breaks. Oh yeah, I'll toss small floating topwaters, like baby Heddon torpedos, with FC using my crankbait rod. Got a biggun that way quite recently. So don't always believe all the hype, man. Try whats at hand to see if it works for you.

Summer in south Florida is horribly hot and humid. The water is 90+ and low in oxygen. The fish are stressed, and finesse methods work best for me. My most effective lure this month has been the Strike King 3X ElazTech Zero senko-type bait in PB&J color, rigged wacky (without a ring) on a Gamakatsu G-Finesse Series 1/16 oz Wacky Jig Head. I use a medium/fast rod with #10 FC, and work it slow.

I usually throw flukes weightless, but sometimes if I want or need to get it deeper I use a 1/8 oz screw in weight in the nose. It results in a faster erratic action when you twitch it on slack line, and it can be very effective, especially if the fish are deeper or more aggressive. Casts farther, too.

One thing that has not been talked about in this thread is the importance of managing the jump, which is where too many fish are lost. As we know, when a bass jumps it shakes its head violently, and the inertia of the lure can pull the hook out. I have lost less fish in recent years by more actively managing the jump. When a bass heads towards the surface to jump -- and I think we all know what that looks and feels like -- I lower the rod tip to the water surface, and reel faster so I can point the rod tip partly towards the fish without letting slack in the line. When the fish breaks the surface, I pull the rod sideways with the rod tip still at the surface, like a low sweep set, to keep the line extra taught during the jump. This keeps the hook pinned. Also, I can often pull the bass's head back down below the surface this way, aborting the jump. It helps to have a fast reel to do this effectively, which is why I like a fast reel even with crankbaits. Of course, you have to be extra careful doing this with light line and big bass, but if your drag is set right there should be no danger in it.

Hey, Glenn. I haven't seen it, but I'd like to. Can you somehow post it?

If the bass just slaps at your frog without inhaling it, he's either being ornery or he's trying to stun it before eating it -- let it sit there a good minute to see if he'll sneak back for it. Or, if there is not much cover you could try a treble hook topwater -- even with just an angry slap a bass might stick to it. If there is light to medium cover, you might follow up with a weedless worm or fluke or jig; if it's matted weeds you're frogging, throw a punch.