Hez

If that's the first step - I've taken it. Am going to start actually practicing the technique this weekend on the water. Hope to be able to report good results.

I have been suffering from the summertime blues lately. Fishing has been tough...the fish are hard to find in this Florida heat. I want to learn to punch heavy cover and mats. I think I can improve my catch rate if I start to target these light protected areas more often. Any tips or advice from the resident "punching" experts. Especially our Florida guys. I am thinking about starting out with an ounce and a quarter and an ounce and a half tungsten - ideally set up on 2 rods for flexibility...and probably start off with a Gambler Why Not. I also need to work on my flipping and pitching efficiency...but that will come with time I feel.

Irregularities Look for something different. If it is a line of grass...look for the part that sticks out...or dips in...look for the different vegetation...where 2 types of vegetations come together. That is where the bass should be. Now, they don't always follow the rules...so they won't "always" be there....but that's where they "should" be

Wish I could like this more than once lol

The only problem I have with my glass lenses - is when I sweat...it fogs my glasses up....and I have to either take them off or stop fishing and give them a wipe down. It gets annoying.

Update: Casey at Daiwa just hooked me up with the courtesy clutch lever, shipping it my way now. Free of Charge. Hats off to Daiwa Customer Service in this very minor instance. It just so happened the gentleman that I have been communicating with via email was the person who picked up the phone in the parts department. He hooked it up and it was greatly appreciated.

Believe it or not...I actually feel the worm hit the bottom with my 893c

If I want it replaced under warranty...I would have to send it in....that is what I was saying...and was told. I was hoping to get the clutch lever replaced "on warranty" without sending it in...avoiding having to buy the clutch lever.

I am actually in communication with Daiwa. I contacted them at the same time I posted this (an hour ago) and they have already responded. They are getting me pricing for just the part and confirmed I would have to send it in for warranty work. I will evaluate and see whichever is cheapest lol. Any other sources will be used for comparison and if I find someone cheaper, all the better. I was just checking here to see if there were any popular alternatives that I was unaware of.

The clutch lever on my Daiwa Tatula 100XS is splitting and I am looking to replace it. Any recommendations on the best place to get Daiwa parts? It is only 4 months old but I don't really care to ship it in for warranty work on something so minor. http://www.daiwa.com/us/service/manuals/image/baitcasting/TACT100H_100HS_100P_100XS.pdf Part 28 Any advice is appreciated.

Yeah buddy - painfully slow. Couldn't even access it at home last night, and we have the fastest internet possible due to wife's work needs.

This is a good post. You're right....it's all about figuring out the details and identifying a productive pattern that enables someone to "run 'n gun" and be successful at it. I've found it's easy to "run n' gun" and not be successful, lol

Do you do a lot of punching? What's your go-to technique for runnin' n gunnin' for the big girls?

Yes sir, I have actually watched that on YouTube recently...and I did notice that, but I will watch it again and pay close attention to that detail.

Run and Gun....a few casts in each spot...then on to the next.... or... Pick an area and pick it apart? I know a lot of the decision making is based on your knowledge of the body of water and your confidence level... but I am curious as to what drives each style of fisherman...what they look for...for the "runners and gunners"...what makes a spot worth while to stop and not make you feel like you're wasting a lot of time running around? Me personally - I find myself picking spots based mainly on topo maps and bottom composition. I'm always looking for a few key ingredients to come together that makes the spot I'm fishing "worth while". Then I like to try to take my time and pick it apart...fish it in depth.

I struggle with this concept and sometimes wonder how well it holds true.... I am sure like every other "rule" in bass fishing...it is not a guaranteed rule all of the time... But I have a hard time picking up and moving just because I caught a little fish.

I think about this aspect often - especially when fishing around overhead cover. Fish probably eat forage that falls into the water all of the time. In my mind - I can see bass capitalizing on insects, small birds, maybe a small fish that a bird has dropped from above while trying to feast on it...something that was clinging on to a dock or a tree and loose it's grip...something that was blown into the water. To me, that is a big reason why "the fall" has such a high percentage of getting bit.

ME TOO!!! Was going to post a thread asking about it... Pages take a long time and even fail to load at times.

Be careful OP...knowledge is expensive!! Once you learn about all of the different techniques and equipment, you will want to own them all!!

Awesome fish Mike!!! A lot of my bites have been the same way...hardly feel a thing!!! but...none as big as yours hahahaha...congrats buddy, sounds like a great day of fishing.

Welcome to the south!

No electronics, just the 80 lb trolling motor.

I don't know how I missed that

Well...I haven't seen in this thread where anyone told him what BOAT really stands for...... Break Out Another Thousand More if you don't do regular maintenance.

About 6k all said and done.