sully420

Mix in a 3/4 and 1 ounce, sometimes you need to penetrate cover and sometimes the faster fall rate will get you reaction strikes that less weight won't generate.

I would go with a mh 7'6" rod with a parabolic action. I have one and use it for bass cranking but also catch tons of big pike and muskie on it no problem

Punch rig, jig, or t rig you got some good baits there just use them as you see fis cant really go wrong.

I worry that might be hard on your reel. Fighting fish that powerful on such a high speed reel could give you problems. Throwing baits all day on a stiff rod might not be all that fun either.

Nice catch, looks like we will have a good fall muskie bite for a while conditions are looking great and many of my friends are already catching nice fish consistently.

Wow i think this is a great topic and i really appreciate Tom's insight on fc vs mono. I was super into fc for a while and still like it for certain applications like deep cranking and trolling for walleye but its expensive and lack of versatility as led me to only use it on one set up and as leader material. When i have more rod and reel combos i may use it more maby a flipping set up. I will also give big game a try when i get a top water combo for trebble hook baits and for shallow cranks and spinners. I definitely dont think beginners should be out there buying fc for everything because it is not forgiving and quality fc is expensive and needs extra attention to get positive results. At the end of the day we all just need to understand what are fishing needs are and what equipment we like to use and pick the line that best serves our needs and helps us get the most out of our equipment.

Good point and question, in minnesota fishing was great in the 40s and 50s but fell off from then to about the late 70s due to poor management and outdated harvesting habits. The Minnesota dnr started aggressively managing many lakes and fish species and teaching about selective harvest and fishing has really been great. In Minnesota we cant even fish bass from ice out untill the seconed week of may. That rule helped bring bass populations back but it is probably not needed any more. As far as managing fishing and hunting game I think it's overall a good thing through stocking selective harvest and other means hopefully we can enjoy the resource for years to come

Yes there definitely was good old days. That's why when you go to Canada you still have 150 fish days of Pike and walleye. And if you go to the some of the less pressured lakes in northern Minnesota and fish for bass it's like they've never seen a lure before and you can catch four Pounders pretty consistently. I look at pictures my grandparents have and you can see eight 10 inch bluegill giant crappies like it was no big deal.

Yeah when you get an Abu Garcia combo they have their own rods at come with them and you can't buy them separately so the Vengeance they sent you was a good deal.

Did you get that as part of a combo But the Vengeance should be very comprable to that rod anyway

All I can say is you really get what you pay for in reel I learned my lesson this season when I bought a kastking reel and it broke after 3 weeks sent it in for the warranty and they never sent me a new one back. In my opinion if you're going to buy a cheaper real by one of the models from a well-known real maker like Abu Garcia quantum Shimano. From now on I'm just going to bite the bullet save the money in purchase reels in the $100 to $250 range

Silver max is a reel not a rod. I believe they're Rod models are vengeance, veritas, and Vendetta

I would suggest you pick up a three quarter ounce jig and a 1 oz jig but my favorite for fishing that situation is a 3/4 or a one ounce Strike King Slither Rig you can find these at Cabela's looks like this. You're going to want to have enough weight to penetrate that grass and make those fish react

Usually when anybody starts fishing a jig hook sets are tough because feeling a bite on a jig is different and you tend to get surprised when you get bit and don't get a great hook set. Once you have more experience and the right rod it will become your best hookup bait. I usually trim the skirt even with the bend of the hook. I don't trim the weed guard at all. And you can trim the top of your trailer to give you the profile of bait you think the fish want, you just have to experiment

I agree i like the walleye style jig heads for the smaller swimbaits

Is that lake in mexico

Pretty much all sizes and jig heads and belly weighted work well you will want a variety of both. Use the jig heads as much as possible and use the belly weighted hooks when the cover is too much for the jig head.

Rain gear + rain+summer= big bass I start off covering water with a spinner bait or spook or buzz bait if that dosent work i fish targets or weed hard bottom transition areas with a jig.

Just go back to youtube and watch everything you can on soft plastic fishing

Same here buzz or walking bait have been good very early in the am. Flipping heavy grass has worked well later in the day.

I rammed my ulterra into my trailer at full speed and had no problems

Just went out today fished a lake thats 12'deep all emergent vegetation, heres 2 of the 7 bass caught biggest is over 6lbs in Minnesota

I would get a real with a ratio 6:4.1 or lower in a little bit bigger spool diameter. Even though you're not getting as much inches of line per turn you're getting a lot more power. I like the Abu Revo orra

Yea I agree with J Francho, I fish lakes like that 99% of the time its hard work and everybody who has responded has given you solid advice. The baits that you have said you've been using in your responses are not the best for the situation you are fishing they're actually pretty bad. You can either learn the new techniques and put in the hard work to find fish on the lake or take up a different Hobby

Looks like sand or hard clay co some combination of the 2. Pretty sure its not mud