S. Sass

All good suggestions above. One thing I will mention is most Walmart have a clearance section. Tackle warehouse always has a sale as well as numerous other places. Look for promo codes etc to eliminate or cut shipping charges on orders that dont make the free shipping minimum $. Also one very good place to shop is the Flea Market section of these forums. You can use a calculator and see how cheap some sell baits in package deals for. So far everyone I have dealt with would negotiate and were honest and friendly. Shop smart I have bought nice baits and terminal tackle on the cheap just being patient and methodical.

Yeah if I was drinking I had a cigarette guaranteed. It was just the way it worked for me. I quit smoking and the drinking went with it. Had to reevaluate my friends list as to who was going to help or hurt my choices/chances. Can't run with alcoholics and expect to quit drinking successfully mentality. There is no doubt it is extremely hard to quit addictions. But it can be done. When the person decides they want free they will quit with the excuses. That is the early tale tale sign they really get it and are serious about getting better. All the chit chat to justify an addiction is just a way to try and hide the problem. Once free from the addiction you see the excuses stand out like Trump on a good hair day.

ROFL

Spro Aruku Shad is one of my favorites along with I believe they are H2O brand. But the old Rattletrap etc favorites work great to. I prefer the chrome black or chrome blue or the redish crawdad colors.

If that is true I couldn't do that to my daughter and I only had one child. College is not cheap! I couldn't fathom satisfying my personal desire/dream at the expense of four kids college education. I would classify that as selfish (if indeed that is a accurate description). Or putting that much stress on my wife to be the one to carry that burden of financial responsibility. Of course if granddaddy is footing the bill or inheritance I guess that is a different story. But I never did want or use my parents as a financial crutch. I wouldn't have felt like I was doing my job taking care of my family. Of course that is my opinion and I do not know the details of his situation. Not trying to bash as people are different. In today's world many apparently don't see a problem with mommy and daddy raising a 40 yr old mans kids. Or dumping the responsibility on their partner. Or taking money from the government to get a free ride. Really sad from a old school mentality. iabass8 I see what your saying. I just feel that a "professional" YouTube is about as likely to happen as a high school kid making the NFL a career. Everyone has dreams and aspirations but reality is in there somewhere. I wonder how many actually make a living at YouTube vs how many people are actually making YouTube videos.

Welcome to Bass Resource

Heavy cover = reaction strike No need to worry about the line when they are reacting to the bait dropping in on them. Heck I quit using leaders period it was a waste of my time and I have yet to see a day I couldn't catch fish and 100% blamed it on the line. I haven't had one bass come to the boat and say I didn't bite because I saw your line use fluorocarbon leader and ill bite.

That is great. I live in N.E Texas but have family in that area. As a matter a fact I am going to see them this coming Sunday. And I see they are open Sunday also! I will be making a pass through there. I do use our local tackle shops mainly for live bait, something i am out of, and anything I see I cant live without. Very friendly help more than the average shop for tackle I think but the prices are probably a tad higher. I personally don't mind a small % higher price unless it is a big amount where the % becomes a # I cant stand. But anything under $50 it is probably a wash since most online don't do free shipping till $50 anyway.

It is up to you really. I use braid on every setup, and I never tie on a leader. I will say I haven't fish deep diving crankbaits hardly at all. Lipless and some up to 5 to 6' deep is about it and I don't fish them much. Just looking to get started doing more of that. So my opinion is sort of biased.

That what we were discussing Glenn made that comment here at the top of this page.

I have taken statistical analogy course and there is one thing that all studies that use statics have in common. That is the statistics are only as good as the people getting the data. There are so many variables that can influence statics that it is very easy to make the result look favorable for what ever position or stance you want it to support. And in almost every case no one ever asks for detailed information on how and what data was collected and processed. Everyone just believes the regurgitated response as if it is accurate. And the most common way of passing these so called stats without questioning them is by attaching a college name to the report. Think about it have you ever read, The Study Conducted at Yale University Concludes ... and then questioned where there actual data was from and who exactly collected the data and then how it was processed. Hell no and I just used Yale as a example no offence meant to Yale.

We actually have a pond that the bluegill are big slabs as well and the bass are for the most part under 2lbs as well. Thanks for the info Hog Basser.

Didnt he mention his wife works as well in one of his videos? I don't know any of them but if he is supporting a wife and 4 kids off of YouTube this world is way more messed up than I thought. Maybe it is paying that good but I sure hate that one kid will watch this and will inevitably quit their school/career on some whim they can make a living making YouTube videos. I am not saying he isn't doing the supporting but I have seen many a situation where the other party in the marriage is working their ass off while the other one plays. I hope this isn't the case as 4 kids college $ is not going to be easy or cheap to come by.

I love spinner-baits. Since I started fishing the Jelly Worm and a single Colorado spinner-bait have been my 2 baits I have always had success with. I fished the spinner-bait year round and never even owned a willow bladed one until a few years ago. I still prefer a single Colorado blade. I fish them just about any way you can. Open water slow, med, or fast retrieve. Edges of brush piles, stumps, docks, just about any cover I can find. Solid White or White / Chartreuse skirts most of the time. A Black / Yellow skirt has worked well for me as well. All with a Nickle colored blade. Its pretty hard to fish a spinner-bait wrong.

Its will power vs the addiction. I literally made it a war in my mind. I smoked for 30+ years and once I made my mind up I was quitting I was not going to let the cigarettes win. Being a very competitive person I made it personal in every way I could in my mind. This way when the urge hit I had deep rooted reasons for denying the desire my body thought it had to have. As was said already 2 and a 1/2 weeks out you are doing excellent! the first weeks are the worst in breaking any addiction. I know its tough but it will get easier with time. I have been off cigarettes since 9:00pm Aug 13, 2014 and I rarely have a moment I even think about smoking. I can so clearly remember being a slave to those things. I cant imagine what a crutch the vaping thing would be like since there are so many parts to it. All I needed was a pack and a lighter to smoke. And I feel so much better. River Dave is 100% right you can do it and you'll be amazed at how much better life is on the other side. Heck the $ I was spending on smokes now pays for my truck I bought last November. And that is not exaggerating one bit. You can do this just have to set your mind that you wont except defeat. Your loved ones are worth it alone but all the other benefits are great as well.

First welcome to the forums. There is all sorts of good info in the Fishing Rods, Reels, Line, and Knots section of the forum that could really help you with your choice. If you read through other posts asking similar questions you will see what the guys generally want to know to give you a decent recommendation. Also there are sticky threads that have good info on picking a rod etc. I dont have that particular combo but I know some here have spoke about it. I don't remember anything said negative about it though. At least you have a decent budget for getting your first baitcaster. You should be able to score a decent setup in that ballpark. I know there are some killer deals that come through the Fishing Flea Market that might get you much more for your $.

^^^^^

One I like the fishing part of but don't want to watch because of the long intro and breaks is ExtremeAnglerTV. I think Karl is a good guy just way to much fluff on some of his videos turns me away. Also this guy is funny Uncle Steve adamitshelanu but he does like fishing.

6K a week? I don't want to ruin the hype that someone may be getting that but that is not what I know some are getting. But they arent doing fishing stuff either.

Yup many I know that haven't made it to achieving sponsorship, dream of the day they have sponsors. But like you guys have mentioned it is no longer do as you want say what you really feel. Once you accept that sponsor you just sold your soul. You no longer can be honest and sincere. It can be a very rude awakening if you have never been there. I had a uncle back in the 80s that had excellent income and he had a car built for racing. It was a Pro Stock car and had a huge amount of $ invested in it on top name and quality parts that my Uncle liked. This car was 100% his $ and his hobby. My uncle always bought his work trucks and family vehicles from the same dealership since he started buying cars. One day the Dealership found out about his car and how competitive it was and so the dealership came to him and wanted to sponsor his car and let my uncle race full time. My uncle turned it down almost before they finished telling him they would pay for everything including his salary. My uncles reasoning was they told him the car would be turned over to a complete crew to have all the parts updated to the best and they would be giving him his schedule. Well the car was the best to him, as he built it the way he wanted it, he had no money issues it was his hobby. And he already had a job and made his own hours when he felt like working he would otherwise he did as he liked. My point is many people beg and plead to get sponsors but if you look deep enough its not really all its cracked up to be. Of course every persons situation is different but unless you are serious hard up for the income or are using a sponsor as a stepping stone its just a job.

You are correct. But I did say, "mass produced baits" and my point still stands. What materials exactly are the swimbaits made of that make any of them become so valuable? Gold? Silver? How much does a 8",10", or 12" piece of wood or plastic cost?

Maybe amusing was the wrong term. Try interesting? I didn't really think of the "addiction" angle so much I was thinking of it from the perspective of the guy who always had to out do everyone. You know the kid that when you got something new he would show up a day later with a bigger better one of the same thing. As if it somehow made him better because of it. Sort of like fishing from a expensive bass boat vs just a good solid bass boat. The fish have no clue the year model of the boat so whats the purpose other than status. $15 to $20 for a single bait is just ludicrous and I don't care how someone tries to justify it it just makes them look more like "that guy". And dont even start with me on the crazy bait prices above that. If that is what someone is willing to pay that is their choice but the only reason they are screwing you into paying that price is because you are paying it. There is no way the mass produced baits are costing that much to make.

I fished with what ever we had Zebco rods and the Ugly Stick etc back in the day. I don't know anything about a Ugly Stick GX2 rod but for possibly a little better rod I have seen more than a few suggest the Fenwick rods

I find it amusing reading all the stuff guys buy and do being that guy. I in a way I am that guy or was but like the rest of us I had to try some stuff to see what worked for me. So yeah I have a few rods that will never leave the house and some baits the same way. But do I go buy $18.00 crankbaits hell no. Doesn't mean they don't work but I know from maturity experience and what ever else you want to throw in there, that there are crankbaits that I can fish with just as well for 1/4 that price and land all the fish I need. If you actually think some of things through (I didn't when I was younger) like these ads you wouldn't be so quick to jump on board I would hope. They get this stuff in your head using every tactic in the book to get you to buy their stuff. It is their fishing game to get your $ They are laughing every time when they catch you "that guy" convincing you that you need to purchase a $18.00 bait, a 7'2" $250.00 rod, or a $40,000.00 boat. When in reality you own a $6 bait that has made your buddy's cry with *** as you out fish them with it, on a 7' rod that has nothing wrong with it, in $5000,00 used boat. Every trip I take here lately I come home and the next day I go through tackle looking at what I can do to cull excess and make life easier. Its a struggle as I like everyone likes to have their tackle but if you haven't tied it on in 3 months you probably aren't going to in 3 more months (seasonal lures exempt). I like gulfcaptain have found 3 or 4 colors cover all my bases. I also have no need to get a 8:1 reel no matter how much they talk them up. My stuff works for me and I too am a believer in the K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) system.

I agree but its no different than a guy not putting a small catch back in the immediate water for fear its going to alert the others he was caught.