jr231

Am I the only one who has no free time ? Lol. And when I do finally get it, it's mostly spent with family !! So many responsibilities and such little time !! Welcome to fatherhood young man ! Work this week has been a haul to get to . Good thing is though I pass a small park and I noticed trail signs and a small bridge over running 2 small ponds. I had a hope there was a bass inside.. I brought my travel rod and a small pack to work today . A 2 piece Berkley with a cheap ardent spinning reel. 15lb braid and a small 1/4oz swim jig. When I creeped up to the bank and made my first cast, I spooked a small school of baitfish (which I seen later were bluegill) and this heightened my suspicion of bass in the pond. I worked my bait modestly and was confident I was going to catch something. But unfortunately, No takers on the jig so I decided to try a small paddle tail, and a hellgrammite bug that I j-rigged off the bottom. I kept bringing back a bunch of green slime , every cast no matter what. I was feeling a little desperate because of time. I couldn't stay long and I had already been here a half hour. I knew I had to get off the bottom.. so I decided to ditch the weight and use a 4" senko. This is an extreme confidence bait of mine ( both the 4&5"), no matter how I fish them. I love using braid and letting the senko fall on slack line. When I let the braid rest on top of the water strike detection is usually very obvious. I have a plethora of senkos, More than a few years supply when I use o-rings and mend-it. But I am always forcing myself to use other things... Because other baits catch fish too and it's a cool feeling catching them different ways ! I went for the 4" because at this point I just wanted a bite... I didn't have all day and I was tired , hungry and cold... I used a trusted color of mine that has produced in rivers, lakes and ponds in more than a few States. Red with bright red flake. I wacky rigged it and stuck two bass right by the bridge just as it was getting dark. They were nice for the pond and I was impressed.

Apparently there are better options because they didn't last ! Lol.

I think they offer a good selection... profile, rigging , and retrieval methods all Trump color by a country mile... But I have my favorites too.. I don't see them in stores. Anything I could find online I'm sure you could too. By digging through a search engine. GL

These were my grandfathers. I think they are from the early 90's . Which is when I was born. He's not around anymore to talk to me about them.. all I can ever remember him fishing was culprit ribbon tails, scum frogs, sluggos and the occasional jitterbug. Just lookin for some insight . Or maybe memories with them ? . I probably won't use them as I've accumulated my own hoard but I just thought it was cool. Edit* apparently not from early 90's seen as how it features a 1999 classic champ. Haha So. Just a gambler gimmick ? Or ?

Spawn time=yawn time ? You're doing it wrong bud . I haven't got to get out much this season. But the spawn should be happening in my area within the next week or so.

I didn't mean him in specific. I meant anyone who HAS TO have a flat headed worm or they think it won't work on a shaky head.

I don't necessarily think that bigger means smarter.. but without a doubt some bass are smarter than others. I've had black labs my whole life... And although they were all intelligent and loved the water, I wouldn't say they were all perfectly equal when it came to brain power. (Even though they were the same breed ) It's borderline ignorant to think that all bass are exactly alike in intelligence... Sure we've dissected them and know their brains are not very big... This does not conclude that they are all exactly the same " IQ" . But I don't think bigger means smarter... Bigger means better fed and older (in the north) Could being a smarter than average bass lead to getting bigger ? Without a doubt!!! But the sharelunker programs have shown the same hogs getting caught several times in one season... So. What does that mean ?

Even if it did you can just tear/cut it to sit flat if that's what your "ocd" heart desired

Yea I'm never keeping a hog.. unless it was bleeding and belly up. Which I haven't had happen to a big one yet. The only time I keep bass is when someone has a stunted population in their pond... We go wear em out and fry em up. It's a win-win that way.

Let's go ice fishing bro

I'd venture out and put the c-rig down... Get yourself some senkos and flukes, and try some weightless plastics and the Texas rig. . Jerkbaits, small jigs, and any blade bait (spinner , chatter etc) will all help you catch more fish than that c-rig will. The reason youre hooking them in the gut or deep in the throat is because the bite was not detected . And Im going to make an educated guess and say that the Carolina rig is the main culprit in this equation. I have never once had a Palomar knot give on my braided line. I think you may be missing a step or something isn't quite right. Drop C-RIG and the leader and use one of the many, many techniques that are utilized today... there are experienced fisherman who struggle with braid to leader knots ! You are not alone ! The Carolina rig is basically a good tool for discovering cover and structure in deeper water. It can be used effectively at any depth or season but I wouldn't consider this the easiest way to catch fish. Get a pack of 5" senkos and rig them Texas weightless on a 3/0 wide gap hook. Cast parallel to the bank and let the worm fall on slack line.. give it a nice snap off the bottom and let it hover back down... Changing speeds until you find the preferred cadence . Its like using live bait sometimes and you will not regret trying this out... Check out the senko threads that are pinned in the fishing tackle forums. This will save me some time and give you much more success stories and rigging options to read about the almighty stick worm.

Tackle warehouse offers free ground shipping (I think on orders over 50). Make an order of things you'll need this season. It'll easily be over 50 bucks lol. They have competitive prices, good selection , good customer service , and tracking on their packages. I highly recommend.

GY kut tail

I feel the same about the "ned rig" lol . Regardless, can't you play ball and tell us what your favorite "nail weight rig" is ?

Kut tail is what I started using... I quickly noticed you can "neko" just about anything. From rage craw to a super fluke. Grandebass air tail rattler was shown to me and is a winner on this rig big time .

How it suspends will depend on water temperature , hooks and line type. But I like what you're sayin!

I'm from Muskegon. I actually just made a trip up there recently. I seen quite a few old friends. Whom do alot of fishing. Usually various species. Dirty water id be using a lipless crank, blade bait, spinner bait, chatterbait.. and probably a dark jig before the day was through. Just because it's gonna finally reach 70° ... Doesn't mean the water is warm! Keep it slow. Good luck

You better knock on wood , you're in for a rough season if not lol

What kind do you have ??? Some are not as good as others... I just started using one last season. And Everytime I've used it I caught at least one. Some people like to use paddle tails on their chatter baits... What works best for me is a kalins single tail grub. Same for my swim jigs.

I think the OP wants to know what is your favorite TYPE of craw for those rigs. (Brand , model)

He "settled" lol

Two totally different actions ???!!? Wacky has both ends kicking then quivers on the fall.. tx weightless (depending on how you retrieve it) will make the senko dart around sort of like a fluke.. and will also have that nice quiver if you don't use too big of hook. Standard Texas rig and shaky head will make the senko land tail up and is very effective this way as well ! I've been experimenting with the "neko" and "chicken" variations and have already had good results. But I prefer the kut tail for these rigs so far. Which brings me to the conclusion... Bass like worms. Regardless of how they're rigged.

I like the rage craw, and GY fat baby craw Also. Not someone I know personally but @Logan S turned me onto reins ring craw a few months back in another thread. And I'm glad he did cuz the bait is a winner. Pricey. But I forget about it when I'm catching fish. A little "mend-it" goes along way with my soft plastics. I suggest you get some of this as well for any expensive soft plastics.

Ask yourself. Which one will I use more and get more enjoyment of ? Whichever one is the answer.. even if just slightly, is the one you should pick.

Ouch... Well ok then. Lol. I hope you get on some fish bro ! You obviously aren't lacking effort. Good things come to those who wait. So they say.