Evan K

I usually can't detect strikes. If I go to hop it again and feel a strong resistance I set the hook, which means a handful of ghost hooksets but also some pretty sweet fish.

Wacky rigged senko. If they won't bite a big one get a small one. If nothing bites the small one there are no fish in that pond.

Too late for @reason to chime in I guess...

And some of us don't even have a local shop that carries a half-decent selection. I've kind of adopted a shop in SC that also sells over the web as my "local" shop. They offer a yearly free shipping, "Prime" like deal as well, so that sweetens it too. I've had great service, emailed back and forth with the owners, and will give it my patronage whenever possible.

Lost my favorite Lucky Craft Pointer 110 in a local pond. Few weeks later the owner handed it to me asking if it was mine. That story had a happy ending. Went on to catch several more 3+ lb. fish on it.

I super hope this doesn't go through. They really serve two different demographics; Cabela's focusing on camping/backpacking/hunting and stuff like walleye/musky/pike/even saltwater fishing. Bass pro is all Nascar and bass fishing.

Not all their prices are outrageous. You just have to be smart and know what you're willing to pay.

I am looking to buy a 12' jon as well. I already purchased my main motor for it, a Minn-Kota Traxxis 55 lb thrust. I've tried it out on a friend's 1436 jon and it moved that boat along very well, even in a stiff wind. Positioning from the stern was a bit more tricky. I'm kind of hoping to get a smaller (probably 36 lb or so) motor for the front too.

I bought a Zillion this year too, a 7' MH worm and jig rod. I paired it with a Daiwa T3 MX and 17 lb. Invizx. I've been fishing jigs with it pretty much exclusively so far. I have mixed feelings. Something about the combo is just off to me. At first I thought the rod was too heavy. Then I wondered if it wasn't balanced correctly (it seems to be balanced fine), or the handle was too narrow and causing fatigue, or the reel flexed too much for large jig fishing. Not sure yet, but it just doesn't have the same solid, lightweight feel that my 0mn Black/Lews Tournament MB combos have. I wondered if it was indeed the reel so I got a Tatula Type R and am going to try that out on the rod for the first time today. Hope it turns out to be the key.

Just curious what's your favorite rod for sensitivity (that you've used)?

All those tiny sunfish seem suspect to me. Egg/fry eaters. My brother in law has a pond that the previous owner stocked like crazy, but you can't buy a bass out of it, and there are thousands of those tiny sunfish in it.

My budget is way tighter, but I'm looking at a 12' riveted jon boat from BPS, $600, and have a new 55 lb thrust Minn-Kota Traxxis TM. Going to put a good sonar on it and hopefully a bow mount motor and keep the whole package under $1500. Maybe something like that?

War Eagle, Terminator, and I have been so impressed with Siebert jigs that I will probably be getting some spinnerbaits from them when I lose or break a couple existing ones.

Hey I see from your post you're in Vineland NJ. I'll be in that exact area for a few days in June. What are some decent public bass places around there? Not asking for honey holes of course just a general idea of where I can go where I stand a chance at catching. Thanks!

Thanks for the links. I've been researching a good bit the last while. I'm pretty impressed with side imaging. I would really love to be able to get an idea what's on both sides of the boat as opposed to just what's under it. What's the best buy on a relatively basic unit that includes side imaging?

I'm in the process of acquiring my first boat. Just a little 12' jon with a trolling motor but it's my first ever real boat and I'm super excited about it. I'll be customizing it some and want to outfit it to be a great bass catching machine for one and sometimes two anglers. I want to buy a fish/depth finder for it. I'd like to get a really nice one, but I know very little about them. I usually just fish small ponds and lakes, so a GPS is not an essential. My budget is about $350, I could maybe go $400 but absolutely no more than that. What's the most bang for my buck I can get for that price? All advice is sincerely appreciated. I'm quite out of my depth with fishing related electronics and boats in general but am really looking forward to jumping in. Thanks!

When I was a youngster in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey I fished a local creek very regularly. It was about a mile walk from our place and had been stocked with trout. I was 10 and didn't know a thing about fishing but was very dedicated. I fished that creek probably at least once a week for a full year before I caught my first fish, a small bluegill. We started catching them more regularly after that.

Yeah, earning a living might not be sustainable. You could easily ask $20 or more a piece for these though. Best wishes, it's great to see these kinds of posts.

@Taylor Haberle That's a classic scam. I've seen it many, many times when I inquire about a "too good to be true" ad on CL- always the same nonsense about having to move out of state (getting deployed by the military is another common one) and invoking the name of eBay or something similar to make it sound legit. Don't fall for that one. You may even get a call from the "ebay motors representative" but it'll be the scammer or a colleague.

These baits are absolutely breathtaking. I think you could make a fortune if you took orders. Please keep posting pics!!

Yep, Tim S. sold it to me. Great transaction and he shipped it super fast. I plan to use it for jigs primariily so I'm thinking fluorocarbon and a MH F rod.

I don't want to get into it here because I don't want my post to be deleted or what have you. I just wanted to show my collection and see what people think.

Same here except I would use a ML/F spinning setup instead of M/F. I might use some different line too, I like braid a lot.

I use a Tournament MB for jerkbaits and I really, really like it. The dual brake system is a great feature and it is smooth as silk.

Thought I'd post pictures of the collection. I've been fishing for bass and a number of other fish all my life, but only took up bass fishing seriously last year. Photo quality is kind of lacking as I have terrible lighting in my office, but here it is! First up is a 1st generation 7'-1" medium heavy power fast action 13.Fishing O.men Black. It's paired with a 6.8:1 Lews LFS Speed Spool reel, spooled with 50 lb. P-Line TCB braid. I use this rod for almost anything in the MH range. Covers pretty much everything 1/2 oz. and larger for me other than crankbaits. Next up is a 6'-10" medium power fast action 13.Fishing O.men Black. I have a 6.8:1 Lews Tournament MB reel on it, spooled with 30 lb. P-Line TCB braid. This is my all-around go-to rod for pretty much anything 1/4 to 5/8 oz. I'll use a leader with it occasionally if I feel the situation warrants. I'm a little mixed on the rod, it's a great one for sensitivity and weight but is a bit softer than I usually like in a fast action. It's still a great rod though. Next is my crankbait/jerkbait setup. It's a 7' medium power moderate action 13.Fishing O.men Black. It's paired with a 5.6:1 Lews Tournament MB reel, spooled with 10 lb. Saguaro Tatsu Fluorocarbon. I got the Tatsu during Tackle Warehouse's 25 day sale, otherwise I probably would not be able to splurge on that kind of line. The Tatsu replaced 12 lb. P-Line CXX which was just overkill for this setup, and had atrocious memory which made casting small, light cranks and jerkbaits very difficult. I like this setup and it'll handle all the crankbaits I throw, Rapala DT16s to small squarebills. Those are my baitcasting rigs. I also have 3 spinning rigs, only one of which that I use very often. First is a 7' medium power fast action St. Croix Premier rod. On it is a Bass Pro Shops Pro Qualifier reel, 3000 size. It's spooled with 15 lb. P-Line TCB braid. This was the first decent rig I owned, purchased early last year, and I used it a lot. Since I got a ML spinning rig and a couple more baitcasters I don't use it much any more. I'm thinking about either selling it or keeping it as a backup, since it's a two piece rod and therefore easily transportable. It's a great setup. The next rig is my newest one and my most expensive to date (gulp), but it is incredibly nice and I am super happy with it. It's a real joy to fish with. It's a 7'-1" medium light power extra fast action Powell Max 3D rod. Paired with it is a Shimano ci4+ 2500, spooled with 6 lb. P-Line Fluoroclear copolymer line. The reel is my first high end Shimano (I owned a couple $15 Wal Mart ones when I was younger) and boy is it sweet. It's so solidly and attractively built, works so smoothly that it is pure joy to use. This setup is a lot of fun to throw finesse stuff with, especially small 1/4 oz and smaller jigs. I plan to use it for dropshot, small jerkbaits, finesse jigs, ned rigs, weightless wacky rigs, and pretty much any small finesse lures. Last is a setup that I don't use too often for bass, but I do some so I decided to include it. It's a 6' ultra light power fast action St. Croix Premier, paired with a Pfleuger President 2500 size and spooled with 4 lb. P-Line Fluoroclear copolymer. This is my panfish rod, but it's also tons of fun to fight a small largemouth on too! I used this a lot more before I had my ML setup as well. The rod sure took me by surprise though. It's labeled a fast action but feels like a wet noodle. It is super whippy and takes some getting used to after using my bass rods, but it will lob a lightweight lure pretty far. I've always liked fishing with light tackle and will probably always have a UL setup around. Now I just have a rod and reel that aren't paired up yet. Need to find mates for both. Rod is a 7'-6" heavy power extra fast action Lucky Craft Carolina Rig rod, purchased during Tackle Warehouse's 25 days sale. This is a fantastic rod. The workmanship is just superb and it is extremely attractive. Can't say how well made it is because I haven't fished it yet, but I am really looking forward to it. At $50 each I wish I'd bought half a dozen Lucky Craft rods. This one will probably be my frogging/punching/big carolina rig rod. I got it hoping I could throw some swimbaits with it, but the monofilament line recommended for swimbaits doesn't work so well with the other applications I have in mind, so I may just wait and get a swimbait rod later. I'm thinking about pairing it with a Lews BB2 or Shimano Cardiff, not sure yet. I'd also like to use this for some saltwater applications as well. Last is my new reel, purchased from a fellow forum member used in great shape. It's a Daiwa T3 MX 7.1:1. I plan to spool it up with 15 lb. Fluorocarbon and use it for jigs. I'm shopping around for a rod for it- thinking about a Daiwa Zillion or a Daiwa Tatula, to go with the Daiwa aesthetic. It's my first JDM reel which is exciting for me. / I'm looking to round out my arsenal and finally have a total of 8-9 combos eventually, but I feel I'm off to a decent start. I really liked my O.men Black rods and still do but am starting to branch out a bit. Thinking about trying Dobyns sometimes soon, probably a Fury or Savvy. As far as reels I am starting to like higher end Daiwas and Shimanos, but I still love my Lews reels to death and will likely be getting more of them. Thanks for reading!