fishballer06

That's a biggun'. Congrats!

Being that I also live in PA, I think it's important that you realize a few things about hunting in PA. 1. You want to stalk hunt on PA state game lands. That's fine and dandy and all, but the PA woods are FILLED with hunters during deer season. Most of which who use the state game lands aren't always the wisest/brightest/safest of hunters. So walking around in those woods is likely going to lead to you walking in front of/around other hunters who are in stands or blinds. So walk with extreme caution, and be extra careful on where you are shooting whenever you finally get a shot. You never know who else is around you that could be within range. 2. A 300 Mag is going to be total overkill hunting in the woods where your range in limited to under 70 yards usually. Unless you are hunting fields and shooting 2-600 yards, there's no need for that rifle. The 308 is going to be the best all around caliber you can get. It's cheap to shoot, readily available, and it's very trustworthy in the woods, and even out to 300-ish yards in the fields. 3. Semi auto rifles like an AR are not legal to hunt with in PA. So do not buy one. Bolt action is the way to go in PA. 4. Obtaining an FFL license in order to purchase 2 rifles? That sounds like a lot of headache whenever a trusty 308 can be purchased for roughly $500. 5. A 3-9x40mm scope is perfect for hunting around here. The adjustable zoom is good for short or long range and the 40mm bell is good for collecting light in the early morning or late evening. 6. There's really no sense in buying camo either, since PA requires 150 square inches of florescent orange to be worn and visible in 360* on your entire upper body and head. So invest in a good warm orange jacket that is also resistant to snagging when walking through the brush, as well as a good orange hat. An orange beanie is a good investment too for those super cold days. 7. Most of all, learn to shoot and be accurate so you can comfortably make a kill shot. No body wants to see a wounded animal running around the woods and not being recovered. Luckily, shooting is the most fun part, so shoot as much as you want and enjoy! Sorry if I'm being a Debbie Downer, but as another PA resident, I thought is would be wise to help bring you up to snuff on what is required in PA. When you buy your license, read the manual well and know all of the laws. I'm not sure about an 18 year old, but you may be required to take a Hunters Safety course. And if you aren't required to take one, I recommend you do take it since you have never hunted before.

3.5 days to get your picks in for the final event. Our current top 5 is: pexari32 Bigfishadventures78 bfric fish527 blckshirt98 Only 612 points separate our top ten guys. Anything is possible in this last event.

@billmac You live in northern NY and you've never heard the term hard water?! OP - This blows my mind. Get yourself a Baby 1- and crank that thing around any submerged grass you can find and you will get bit. I promise it.

Here's the skirts I've been making. The little bit of red and orange matches the belly/fins of the perch around here perfectly. http://i.imgur.com/lcZd5yp.jpg http://i.imgur.com/HxwcmUa.jpg

I had a terrible event on Tenkiller. Dropped a few spots in the standings. 5 more days until AOY Championship tournament. Get your picks in. This is the final event of the year!

1. Learn to wire tire jig skirts. 2. Reorganize my tackle/garage. 3. Hope that my less than 2 year old son learns to shovel the snow from the driveway.

Swim jigs/chatterbaits with a perch colored skirt. They're a little hard to find, so I've been building my own.

You can tell these guys didn't get to properly scout this lake. 10th place right now has 7 pounds even. The leader has around 11 pounds.

A Cavitron is the slowest buzzbait I have ever found. I fish them on a 5:1 Chronarch because of how slow they can be retrieved. I fish the 1/4oz version, and I'll cut a 1" piece of an old senko up and thread it on the shank of the hook. This gives my bait a little more weight to get me some more distance, and it gives the fish something soft and salty to feel whenever they bite the bait and make them hold on a little longer. There's no need for a big bulky trailer on a buzzbait unless the fish really want a larger profile. In which case, a Fluke or some sort of craw trailer is probably a better option than a paddle tail type swimbait.

What's with all these mid-January questions this week?

I thought they had been discontinued almost a year ago...

I went with a H powered rod for this one. Lots of modern H powered rods have a soft enough tip that I can still launch 1/4oz baits. Having the Heavy powered rod allows me to fish heavier baits and frogs, while still being able to throw a 1/4oz jig or crankbait. As for the hook question, lately I find myself preferring a jig over a texas rig if I'm pitching/flipping. So I went with the offset shank, because it kinda gives me the best of both worlds.

I own the 7'2" H Expride and I've been surprised at how light of stuff I've been able to throw with it. The tip is soft enough to throw 1/4oz baits a long way, but it's got that heavy backbone to drive the hook home on my heavier wire jigs.

Everyone - If you made your picks early for this event, please double check and make sure your picks are still in there. With them switching this event from Ft. Gibson to Lake Tenkiller, I don't want something wonky happening to anyone's picks. https://www.bassmaster.com/news/tenkiller-offers-species-trio-elite-regular-season-finale

Like others have mentioned, if I'm throwing a spinnerbait in clearer water, there's likely wind involved where I want that flash and thump to help the fish sense the bait better. The swim jig shines in a more subtle presentation, or whenever the grass is nearly topped out on the surface.

Less than a week until the next tournament. Get those picks in boys!

For me, it's more about balance and sensitivity rather than an inch, or two, or three.

Honey, is that you on here?

Canoes, kayaks, and shore fisherman? How are these guys keeping fish alive for hours until weigh in? We have a lake here in western PA that gets around 40 boats on a 300 acre lake for tournaments. There's only so many spots and there's almost always 3-6 boats at each "hole". Despite winning one of those tournaments, I've quit fishing tournaments on that lake because there's too much fishing on top of one another and in the long run, tournaments like that are detrimental to small bodies of water like that.

30 boats on 42 acres?! Woof...

Sounds good to me. Sign me up. If no on else is able to handle the shipping logistics, I might be able to help.

Can someone fill me in on this? I'd love to jump into this.

KVD Line and Lure is a Godsend for all flurocarbon lines.

Well, I missed all the good Labor Day sales being away on vacation...