Munkin

Numbers bait for me but I sometimes catch a 3-4lb fish. When you say highly pressured lake in Merryland do you mean Black Hills Lake Seneca? If so that is the capitol of DS dink fishing for bass in the summer. My record is 92 with only 4 being over 12" but it does catch them. Allen

Have you considered using star flash skirts? They are a lot bulkier than regular silicone skirts. Allen

What I am finding is there are a lot that are close but not the same. Indiana blades are too wide, these are not rounded off enough in the back, those French blades you are using are too thick. Tried grinding the end off a willow blade and lets just say that goes down in my failure column. Allen

Find out what the dominant baitfish are in the area. The maybe feeding on some sort of shad or maybe goby's. I could tell you what works around here but it will be different than your area. Allen

https://www.jannsnetcraft.com/minnow-swing-blades/305101.aspx I bought some of these recently to see how they compare to the Trickster blades. Allen

I just picked up some of these to try. Allen

So I have a boat but am not familiar with Conowingo or the Upper Bay. Ae there non-boaters that I could be paired up with that know these areas? Allen

That is a Yamamoto IKA and just about anywhere. Allen

This is how I started making spinnerbaits, tear apart baits and rebuild them to what I want. Allen

It is 1/16 Courics according to the European Fecal Standards and Measurements Instititute. Allen

3.5" in whatever color works for you in other soft plastics. Allen

Please stop by my home because I have a project for you! Allen

You and everybody else fishing the UP. The SM see so many tubes they can now identify the brand. Allen

After reading everyone's struggles on learning I figured I would post my experience to hopefully help other members. To start I have been bass fishing since 1986 and until 2004 I caught less than 10 fish on a jig. My revelation came in 2004 when I was in Missouri for MP training for the Army with nothing else to do. I got back into bass fishing seriously in 2003 and when I was sent to MO for 18 weeks there is nothing to do at Ft. Leonard Wood except fish and drink. Since I did not bring anything with me I hit BPS in Springfield on a shopping spree. While buying I ran into an old timer and we got to talking, he wasd walking with me and when we came to the jig isle I was going to skip it. He ask why I wasn't buying any jigs and he said follow him which I did. When ask why I wasn't buying any jigs I replied that they did not work? He said I must be reading Bassmaster so he ask what colors worked for me in soft plastics. I told him GP but the jigs I have used in the past were Black/Blue. His answer was to try some Eakins jigs in the same color as the soft plastics I use and let him know how it worked. The next day I tried the Eakins jigs in GP with a Zoom super chunk jr trailer and I caught 14 fishing them just like a T-Rigged lure. Overall the fish were bigger than average and I gained confidence in using a jig. Now 15 years later a jig is a confidence bait for me and I hope this helps others on this forum.

Look up Lake Fork Tackle Repair as they sell a DVD on how to do it yourself. DVD is like $25 and will save you hundreds of dollars over the years. If you have just the basic mechanical skills you can follow the directions and clean your own reels. Allen

Going to try it this year because my daughter wants to try it out. Allen

Jump on in, what else are you going to do in MI during the winter. Allen I love the color on the bait in the lower left hand corner. Allen

If you are fishing with kids and plan on keeping them power bait nuggets work great. Otherwise look into a lure called a Super Dooper? it is a spoon type lure and I have never had a lure that worked better on stocked trout. Silver with a red head worked best but honestly they all worked. Allen

Not sure off hand but if you look the mold up at Do-It they should be listed. Allen

Personal preference but I do not want the skirt so long that it interferes with the jig trailer. Allen

I made this with the grass jig mold. Allen

Made this one to match one of the trailers I have been working on. Accidently put too much powder in and came up with this silver dark grey color. While not what I was looking for it is a good looking baitfish imitator. Allen

Someone else who has mastered the airbrush besides me. Allen

Since we seem to get a lot of the what's your favorite color, if you were shot down behind enemy lines, highlander "There can only be one!" type of questions I thought I would lay out what I use. Now keep in mind that I am fishing in Merryland in shallow rivers, reservoirs, and the tidal Potomac for both LM and SM for reference. Below are my top 5 colors per bait category overall. Creature baits: 1. Green Pumkin 2. Solid Black 3. California 420 4. Watermelon Magic 5. Black/blue swirl (I think RI calls it Hematoma or something like that?) Curl Tail Worms: 1. Green Pumkin 2. Solid Black 3. Tequila Sunrise 4. Black Shad 5. Motor Oil Senkos: 1. Green Pumkin 2. Natural Shad 3. Watermelon 4. Whitish 5. Junebug Fukes: 1. Albino 2. Pearl White 3. Custom poured smokish 4. Solid Black 5. Watermelon Finesse worms: 1. Green Pumkin 2. Watermelon 3. Natural Shad 4. Solid Black 5. Mispours that look like Zooms Castic Choice DS worms 1. Smoke 2. Watermelon 3. Japanese GP 4. Natural Shad 5. Solid Black These are what I use 90% of the time and you should be able to see a pattern. Allen

Same here. Allen