the reel ess

I actually had a hook go through the strands of braid. I had to cut it and retie. That would be quite the hassle of I was in kayak with no scissors. I carry them for that reason now.

A T rigged craw is deadly. You can also rig one on a bare jighead. It will get a few more bites and cull fewer small fish than the whole jig with skirt. When I do I like to use a lighter jighead because it will sink faster. I caught the bass in my profile pic on that rig.

I do limit the ones I carry. They're almost all black/blue, 3/8-1/2 oz. Arky head, or, lately I'm trying the CatchCo Trashmaster. It works just as well but is more weedless.

I have picked up that combo at the beach many times and thought the same thing. I'd go down one power. If you want a MH freshwater, I'd buy a M saltwater, unless you intend to use it in salt as well. I have a 40 size Pflueger Trion on a MH freshwater rod and it's a pretty heavy combo. I'd prefer a 30 size on it, but it won't wear out and it has whooped a bunch of good bass. I'd go with something like this before that Penn combo. Looking at the Penn it's a graphite composite rod that will be less sensitive. This combo will be better suited for bass. https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/lews-mach-2-spinning-combo?repChildCatid=7769504 Or this https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/kastking-crixus-spinning-5-ft-6-in-6-ft-6-in-freshwater-saltwater-fishing-combo?repChildCatid=10169202 I have one of these Crixus rods and it's very light and sensitive.

Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to go today.

I just looked it up. They call it a mod-fast. but it's more moderate than fast. At least mine is. And I was wrong about the reel size I have on it. It's a 30 size.

$80 is cheap now? I must be El Cheapo mas grande. I have a Lightning rod 7' M-Mod for lighter treble lures. $40 and It'll do everything you want. It's a great balanced rod. I have a Pflueger Trion 2500 on it. $80 combo reg. price. But I found the reel unopened in a pawn shop for $20.

I always tell my wife that, God forbid I die while fishing, please don't sue the landowner. I would have died doing what I like. There was an old man who crappie fished on the same reservoir I bass fish. He died in his jonboat out fishing. My buddy told me he found that guy's minnow bucket floating a couple days later. He said it had a crappie in it. So he caught something on his final day. Not too shabby. To your point I always tell the wife where I'm going and about how long I'll be. Then I usually stay longer. When I tell her 4 hours, she knows it's 5.

Yeah, I'm talking about largemouth in still waters.

I got the Whopper Plopper in a post about a minute before yours.

High end bass boats cost about $20K more than a decade ago. Kayak fishing has grown exponentially in that time. I think there has been some good innovation in topwater lures. I'm thinking specifically about lures like the Whopper Plopper and hollow body frog. Braided line has become more popular for more techniques with many more varieties available. The standard BC reel gear ratio has pretty much become 7 to 7.5:1. I rarely use a reel under 7:1 anymore. When I do it's just because I want to catch a bass on my dad's old stuff. I remember when I was a kid there was a local who won or placed well in most tournaments on our lake. He anchored almost everywhere he fished. He would anchor shallow and fish deeper. Mostly, he used T rigged worms and crankbaits. And he had a 16' aluminum V bottom Bass Tracker. He also made his own fish attractors. He was rumored to have thrown out old, gutted appliances. Artificial reefs, in a sense. Indeed, you could see something on the bottom with your graph most places he fished. Actually, most of the good fishing spots I knew, I knew because I saw him on them.

Like a jig, a huge majority of the bites come on the first drop. Lift it a couple times to make it wiggle. If there's no takers yank it out and repeat. I prefer a T rigged one, weightless. For one, it's more weedless. You can skip it into heavy cover with less fear of hangups. And you can work it back and get some bites on the retrieve. And if you let it sink on a slack line, it'll enter almost the same way a wacky rig will. I'm sure there are times either one works better. But they're very similar.

I have a 90 and 130. They both work. The 90 culls fewer smaller fish, but I've caught one over 6 lbs. on it. But I usually go for the 130 because it doesn't tend to spin after a really long cast. Since I kayak fish my line angle is lower than it would be from a boat deck. The 90 spins upon retrieve until I get it closer. Line twist is undesirable. And one of the best things about these lures is you can bomb them a mile and cover lots of water.

I got a notification that someone replied to one of my comments on the thread about kayak fishing YouTube channels. When I clicked on the notification it was from March 2nd. Then I went to reply and it said my post was hidden and it was a different color. What do you suppose happened here? Has the thread been deleted? I somehow can still read it.

He recently bought a kayak and is making more kayak videos.

One reason I stopped using straight mono is I noticed the line memory would cause the bait to move a little closer to me after it hit the water. This might seem like a small thing, but sometimes they'll bite it if you leave it still for a while. Also, the diameter of 30# braid is close to 8# mono so it can cast better. I just loosened up my drag to compensate for the lack of stretch.

Figure of speech. But I didn't realize until I Googled it just now it's actually in the Old Testament. They didn't say "ain't" though.

Ain't nothing new under the sun.

I always used mono with topwaters until I fished with a guide. He had every combo rigged with braid. So I gave it a try and haven't looked back. But I do use a short mono leader to keep the line away from the hooks. I tie direct to the Pop R because it's hard to get a clip in the concaved face.

Baits I can skip with a baitcaster: A jig and craw, preferably a "bug" style like Rage Bug. You need a little weight to keep that spool moving. I find 3/8 oz with a Rage Bug to be about the best combination. I do still regularly get overruns. This is usually when the bass will bite. LOL A T-rigged weightless Senko type bait. I will say that, to me, the Senko is better fished on spinning if you intend to skip it under docks. It takes a little weight to keep the BC spool moving. Just make it a stout spinning outfit. What I mean to say is don't use your lighter spinning finesse combo for skipping under docks and into heavy cover. I use a stout 7' MH with 20# braid and a 15" mono leader if the water is somewhat clear.

My mom used to say when I was a kid that I would go to school in rags, but my fishing gear was always on point. Some things never change. I have to say I have some nice stuff and I'm always looking for more lures. But I could easily spend more. I fish from an $800 kayak. I finally sold my boat a couple years ago after not using it for three. That in itself is a big savings. One of these days I'm going to feel too old for the kayak and I'll buy a jon boat with trolling motor and a trailer.

Since I kayak fish, I guess I'm really a slow fisherman. It's not that I use a lot of slow presentations as much as I just can't paddle that fast and fish at the same time. I think I cover the area a little more effectively than I would if I stayed on the motor all day.

Topwaters in rain. One of my best days ever in terms of numbers was a day with light rain, using a Baby Torpedo. If topwaters don't work, and I mean you tried all types to no avail, I'd move on to a spinnerbait.

Big'uns will lay in the weeds and conserve their energy when the water gets hot, grabbing a meal when it swims by, rather than chasing.

No