FryDog62

I ended up buying a graphite Tatula cranking rod and absolutely love it! Daiwa Tatula Casting Rod 7'2" Medium, Regular, 8-17lb, 1/4-3/4oz

Clip-on ties went out years ago - so should swivel snaps for jerkbaits - -

There was a class action suit back 10-12 years or so ago where thousands of us experienced severe leg soreness and other muscle and joint problems from Zocor. For many of us, it never went away even when we stopped taking it. I know Mayo stopped prescribing it just ahead of the announcement of the lawsuit. https://www.classaction.org/zocor

Have been a fluke/soft jerk bait user for decades. Once I switched to a Caffeine Shad, never looked back. A Caffeine Shad on an EWG is a good soft jerk bait - but a 5 incher on a 4/0 Owner Twistlock Light hook is other worldly. Never seen such a natural action lure swim on its own at times so well.

Have been told its mostly hereditary/age. 2 things could help before going on a statin: weight loss, and Psyllium Fiber. I went the fiber route years ago and my bad cholesterol went down about 10%... enough to get me back in the "normal" zone again (for about 10 years). Then age and genetics kicked back in and now I'm on Crestor (after Zocor ruined my legs).

Anyone wondering if those imitation duck lures might work this time of year … friend of mine in the boat today caught a 17 inch largemouth and pulled this out of its throat ~

I buy the 1/8 oncers... break them in half for approx 10 feet or less (depending on wind/current). Occasionally the full 1/8 oz at deeper depths or sometimes in river current.

Yep, hook up percentage goes way up - and I almost always hook them in the roof of the mouth. I use the weedless version in either #1 or #2.

But then you can’t hear the fish swim by... ?

Be sure to use plastics that float. Especially if you're in silty, muddy areas or around sand grass, the sinker stirs things up and it helps if the bait rises up to be seen: Big Bite Baits Flying Squirrel Grandebass Airtail Rattler or Neko stick bait Netbait T-Mac worm (instead of Trick Worm which doesn't float as well) Biwaa Armored Craw Savage Gear 4D Craw

Length matters on buzzbaits trailers. Too short and you lose action, too long it interferes with hook up %. For most 3/8 oz buzzbaits a 3.5 inch plastic is about perfect. I use the Zoom Z Craw Junior 3.5 inch size.

I skipped jigs for years until I realized that I could catch more fish and klank less docks, boats, pontoons, etc. and spook less fish... with weightless plastics or plastics where the weight is buried inside the plastic like Nekos. I never skip jigs anymore, nothing wrong with it, but I’m now a 100% plastics guy...

For me, the number one reason to use fluoro is sink rate. IMO, it helps keep the jerkbait at the stated depth range of the lure and in the strike zone longer.

I think in general Chatterbaits float up upon retrieve... therefore unless I’m running a long shoreline in a shallow river, I almost always opt for 1/2 or 3/4 oz.

Sometimes the fish are tentative and all they want to do is to nip at your paddletail trailer and avoid getting hooked very well...

I have both the Levante Whipsnake and NRX 852... and agree they are much closer rods in performance, than 2/3 the price difference.

Like my Stone Cold bladed jig rod. Versatile for other applications too - swim jigs, 4-5 inch paddle tails, larger underspins, single hooks, etc?

I was there late April so probably not very current for you. Look up Del Colvin on YouTube - he posts a very detailed fishing report on Bull Shoals about every 2 weeks. You can look up the week you're going from prior years as well. I found his reports very helpful when I was there ?

Been trying to get to SoDak for 3 weeks now. Those guys either picked the right day, or caught the fish in 25 mph winds.

Mepps are still deadly, I like 4’s and 5’s in red/yellow/silver without hair, especially for smallmouth in rocky, sandy lakes. However, many of our lakes in the lower 2/3 of Minnesota are weed choked and the trebles are a problem there.

I too am on the intro to the Lake Commandos show playing net-man for Steve Pennaz. I’m a re-run (in many ways) on YouTube and a few TV commercials as someone who lands other people’s fish... gotta be known for doing something well..

Absolutely in the ball park. For smallmouth I use primarily 1/8 oz Tube jigs, sometimes 3/16. Neds almost exclusively 3/32 oz, but if over 15 feet and/or current then 1/8 oz.

At least for smallmouth it usually means they are angry or somewhere in the spawning realm...

No question, go with the iPilot with Spot-Lock. You'll be able to rattle off 4-5 casts from one stationary position, without it - 1-2 casts before needing to re-position. Over the course of a day, its a big difference.

I have both a Phenix Feather 7’1” Medium-Light and a Light and they are excellent rods. Another option that is a Medium, but fishes more like an ML is a MajorCraft Don Iovino 6’10” MXF. Also a great rod until it ended up overboard one day ?