Drew03cmc

I like to throw a 3.3 on a bare, ball jighead. I have one I really like, 1/8oz, looks to be a 1/0 or 2/0 hook, but I can't find them locally anymore. I bought 2 packs of the Missile Nedballs today and, while they seem like they'll work, they're pricey. I'm curious what you all do. Would the 1/0 Flashy swimmer work well on the 3.3?

Which line spooler? Does it just hold the line so the spool rotates directly at the reel? If so, that spooler is great for casting reels, not so much for spinning and is contributing to the issue. With spinning gear, lay the filler spool flat on the floor, label up. That will come off the same direction the reel turns, preventing some twist.

I often throw a 1.0 or 1.5 size bait and fish it around the current breaks that are always there. 3/8oz finesse size double willow bait is my favorite in current. Saying all of this, give me a 4" or bigger walking bait and fish it slightly up and across, work it fast and it gets killed.

When fishing current, I prefer double willows. The WE Finesse has Colorado and Indiana, which will make it rise. The ZMan Finesse is close to the right size for me and comes in 1/4 and 3/8. One other I hadn't considered is the Megabass SV3.

Any models in particular? I will have to check that one out.

I only go 1/4 in super shallow water. My Eruptions and Shimanos are 1/2oz and very compact. I need some 3/8 definitely. I don't think the head on these would work for me. I like a 3.3-3.5" paddletail trailer.

I have tried these and wasn't too impressed. I actually have some Sling Blades I need to offload. My issue here is the Indiana blades. I need to try some of his stuff. Does anyone have a picture of those compared to a standard size frame?

As a guy who fishes pressured or shallow, clear water often, I find myself gravitating towards the more compact spinnerbaits. I just had a day wading a smallmouth river on a 1/4oz Gan Craft Killers Mini II in gechikar with a 3.3 Keitech trailer. I also use the Jackall Super Eruption Jr and the Shimano Bantam Swagy TW. Do you have any other compact baits you prefer for shallow, clear or highly pressured waters?

For a true crankbait, it's the Duo Kabuki 55SR. I've had great days on the Booyah XCS 100, Rapala JSR5 and a few others, but these are my go to baits.

Honestly, I throw 3.3 to 4.3 Keitechs on either a 2/0 to 3/0 Twistlock Light or an 1/8oz ball head and these are thrown on either of my 7' mxf spinning rods, 15 or 20 braid to 10 or 12 fluoro. They do the job very well.

Super clear, almost crystal clear.

Funny you ask this, my son and I went and waded 4+ miles of creek yesterday. When I say creek, I mean creek. The deepest water was almost waist deep with great clarity. Between us, we caught almost 100 fish, 90% smallies. I started with a Plopper 90 before sunrise, switching to a Giant Dog X and had some of the most vicious hits. On the way back down, I put on a Gan Craft Killers Bait Mini, 1/4oz spinnerbait, chartreuse and white with a Keitech 3.3 blue/chartreuse SI Fat trailer. They were crushing the spinnerbait and, like mentioned above, if I can't use the topwater, spinnerbait fishing is acceptable.

Honestly, what I use is braid from 10 to 20lb test, leaders from 6 to 12lb fluoro. Brands, I run a bunch of different brands, I'm running Kastking KastPro 20, SK Contra 15 and Sufix 832 10 for braids. Leaders are anything from 6 and 8lb Seaguar or Yozuri to 10 and 12 Seaguar, SK Contra and Kastking Kovert. If it suits my needs and doesn't hamper me, I will use it. One thing I like about the Kovert for a leader is the stiffness. When I am throwing a Fluke, wacky or shaky, I like the added sensitivity on slack line from the stiffer line.

You can have a hard time believing it, but I gave you half of a 4 hour discussion, 2 hours of it pertaining to hybridization and Alabama Bass specifically. If you choose to put your head in the sand and not listen to a tenured professor and biologist who is focused on river bass in the southeast, that's on you. He details how they impact other, native species and the dangers they are concerned about as they continue to be spread.

https://listen.stitcher.com/yvap/?af_dp=stitcher://episode/80690278&af_web_dp=https://www.stitcher.com/episode/80690278&deep_link_value=stitcher://episode/80690278 Listen to Steve Sammons, biologist at Auburn, talk about the Alabama Bass.

In your region, I have caught great fish by wading and picking spots apart.

For faster water, my three go to baits are a double willow 1/2oz compact spinnerbait, Zoom Super Fluke, 3.5" Paddle tail on an 1/8-1/4oz ball head. I will throw all of these on fluorocarbon or braid to fluorocarbon. The fluorocarbon will help get the baits down and avoid the surface disturbances. Also, focus on boat position as much or more than where to cast. @LrgmouthShad if I recall, you fish central Missouri, right? I fish those rivers as often as I can (I live in Overland Park, KS) and would be willing to come show you where, what and how if you aren't sure.

Alabama Bass are invasive as heck where they do not belong. They do not belong in NC. On the bright side, they can get big.

LMB was mid morning on a 3.5" Paddle tail and flashy swimmer in April 2020. SMB was 18", around eleven am this June from a low, clear creek on an Owner Zip 'n Ziggy.

I normally use the Crossover Rings in the center. Can someone explain why using the top 1/3 is better? I do that when Neko rigging, but for weightless wacky, I don't see it being different enough to make a difference, but maybe I'm wrong.

In that situation, I wouldn't target pike, but use 15lb braid to a 10lb leader of fluoro or mono, depending what I am doing.

I've got a set on order for my Oakley Holbrook XL. I might order a set for my Oakley Fuel Cells also.

Lake Norman as well. Might as well include the site of this year's Classic to the list. They don't hurt the LMB or SMB, rather the ALB outcompete them, which allows them to populate the lake within years to shift the balance. Lake Norman took ten years.

Thank you. I just want to have a discussion about this type of stuff. It's really fascinating to me.

The issue with the shorter kayaks is the weight capacity. Even the Hobie Mirage Sport had one as low as around 250lbs IIRC. Add a person, tackle bag and a couple of rods and you're there. I am using an Ascend FS10 for a creek/small water boat and it's rated for 325. It paddles and fishes great for the price. If I were looking for a ten foot boat, I would get a Perception Pescador 10. It's the same hull as the pre-2017 Wilderness Tarpon 100. It paddles very well, is light and has plenty of storage space.