Dypsis

Yes, I'm a talker and a little worried I'll talk the guys ears off and he'll just want to fish. Which is fine but I just have to shut up.

Boater vs Boater & Co vs Co - so my hope is I can only really screw over myself.

Our home water is the Potomac and after this week it should be good to go. Although now you have all the junk, trees, etc that will be floating around for a little. I've never fished the Potomac before, but I am doing some pre-fishing with my partner the weekend before. I know the first couple might be a little rough but again looking forward to it. I've never even looked at electronics before or even been on a bass boat for that matter. So surely lots to learn.

While I have no false pretenses of winning, I certainly want to catch fish. I am going into this with basically 2 goals - learn as much as i can and have fun! Just want to try and be prepared so I don't screw up my partner at the least.

I was on TW this weekend stocking up on some cranks and came to this question - when a company, whether it is the retailer or the company itself, give a dive to depth is there any sort of standard for what size line they are using to come up with this? I was wondering after I saw some small differences on dive to depths. For example - Norman Deep N Little on TW they list it as 9-12' but Normans site says 12-14'. I know I can always change line to help adjust the depth, but I was wondering what size line companies are using to get these results. Or maybe it varies completely from company to company. Thanks, Matt

So I will be fishing my first tournament in a few weeks - just a local club one but still. Just looking to others for suggestions on things to do before hand as well as bring along. What items outside of fishing tackle should I bring? I have a list of - TP, rain gear, sunglasses, sunscreen, band-aids, life vest - what are some other things? Also, I will be a co-angler. Thanks, Matt

http://www.bassresource.com/bassfish/bass_fishing_clubs.html Good place to start.

Anyone ever used these - the videos look like they have a great hunting type action? What are your thoughts? Matt

Since I'm so bright and couldn't figure out the security code yesterday unknowingly my weight guess defaulted back to 1.0 when it redirected me to re-enter the code. So I'm hoping it weighs 1.0 and I would surely win by default.

These look interesting, never heard of them before. I wonder how well the part that clips on the eye holds up while fighting the fish.

Thanks for all the responses. Looks like unless I'll be pulling up a pound of salad I want to be bumping the bottom.

He can take the whole thing If that's the case.

I am looking to really work on my treble hook baits this year - cranks, jerks, topwater. My question is about crankbaits. Hypothetical situation: You are fishing in water 10' deep. The fish are hanging out on bottom or very close to it. Would I want to fish something that runs 10-12' so that it bumps of the bottom or one that runs 7-9' deep. Maybe both and see what the fish want? What determines why you would pick one over the other? Thanks.

The wider/fatter leg that (from what I saw online) is ment to kind of act as a weed guard on the hook - how long or how many fish will it last. For Example - the bottom picture - http://cf.mp-cdn.net/11/b1/ef9abd96bc3d64a5c0746122f3b2.jpg It seems as though after one or two fish it would be completely ripped. Now I don't expect it to last all day or anything just curious as to how well that part making it semi weedless would last. Sorry for the confusion. Hope this clears it up.

I recently bought a pack of their jig heads and some packs of spider parts. My question is how long does the tentacle that goes on the hook last. It would appear that after almost the first fish it would tear right apart. In open water I can certainly fish it with an open hook, but interested in how they would last around light cover. How have they held up for you?

Makes perfect sense - thanks!

Catt - what does this mean and why does it matter? Matt

NIce fish! What seemed to be the bait of choice?

This is what I use and works well for me also. Matt

They have 2 sizes the 1.2 and the 1.5. The 1.2 runs 3-4' deep and the 1.5 runs 4-5' deep. I have a MB Sexy Shad 1.2 and a Secret Gill 1.5 on order - can't wait to try them out. Hope they hunt as good as the videos!

I purchased one last summer and it's been a good little scale for the price. I've weighted known amounts and its pretty darn accurate. I keep it in a plano box to keep it dry - I've heard they hate getting wet. Matt

I purchased the 3707 (both spinner and buzz) about a month ago and was also initially worried about that. But so far in the short time I have had it (I've checked on them a few times) I really see no issues. It did take me a couple times to figure out how to get them in correctly but now that I figured it out - it seems like a great box.

I am of no on the water help as I purchased the following last week - Blue Black G-Fix Lipless Crank, Prism Shad 120SP and Phantom Shad 100DR. But I too am very impressed with the quality so far - the real test will be coming shortly or whenever this ice decides to go away.

I understand that many people swap out the stock treble hooks with Owner, KVD's, Gamakatsu, etc on cranks and jerkbaits. Since I am really going to focus on improving my cranking game this year and I currently don't want to spend X number of dollars buying new trebles - can I simply use a file and sharpen the stock hooks to make them better. Is another reason for swapping out hooks as they are a higher quality all around - won't bend out or similar? Anything else I should consider? Matt

I joined a club this year and while I was told I wouldn't need my own jacket (as everyone usually has an extra) I went and purchased a vest so I would be sure to always have one.