Harold Scoggins

I like!

Jungle Expert! Good job!

Come down here and turn our switch on! Water temps this morning (3 am) were 83-84 and the bite was slow. The hunter (Orion) popped above the horizon last night and I heard my first bull elk bugle as I was leaving the lake, so I know cooler temps are coming. Raining coming Friday, maybe that will turn our switch on.

Don't look at me, I don't know the first thing about plumbing.

JDM box arrived. Gan Craft S-Song 115.

X2

Not a fan of Skeet, but I like these. LC 120 Mag DR 4.75" 3.25 oz (might need your swimbait rod for this one) 25'

Putting the meme I posted earlier aside, I'll tell you why I try to stock up on some baits. I was recently caught off guard when I discovered that my favorite, go-to, and IMO, the best worm of all time, the 9" Blackberry Jelly Worm had been discontinued. (All 9" worms are discontinued.) That worm has landed me hundreds of bass, including my PB, over the past 40+ years. I've got just under 200 left and although it pains me to do so, I can no longer give them away freely around the lake to kids as I've done in the past. Then adding insult to injury, yesterday I saw where TW has their remaining stock of Jelly Worms listed under "closeout." A quick check of other retailers gave no indication of the brand being discontinued across the board, but it still left me with a strange feeling in the gut. I'll have a rather large order of the 8" worms (50 packs) coming next week, so those kids and myself will settle for those. I'm sure they will do just as well as the 9" worms. All that being said, don't ever think your favorite bait will always be around...stock up!

Because I can.

They bought Gene Larew today.

Anymore I throw LC Sammy, Gunfish, MB Giant Dog X, and Diamante. Does anyone use or has used Heddon/Excalibur Spit'n Image? I use to throw that a lot in the 90s and it landed me many nice bass. I have a few stored away somewhere and I should put one back in the box.

Finally received the package yesterday and it had been opened and inspected by Customs. I bet that lure was x-rayed, sniffed, scanned, and everything in between. Other than that, the box was still sealed and had no damage. The Rapala Husky 13 in Clown/Trout (CLNT), 13cm (5.25"), 3/8oz, Balsa. The Husky 13 was introduced in 1978 and discontinued in 1995 in the states. It was reintroduced in 2000-2001 as the Husky Classic Collection for one year in the states but continued until 2007 in Europe.

Frame that picture and hang it up in your "Man Cave!"

Taking point.

Sold my bass boat 3 years after starting kayak fishing...I'll never go back.

@P4B Start carrying long, small-jawed needle nose pliers with you. Next time this happens, gently lift the gill plate and insert the needle nose in through the bottom of the gills. (Be careful around those gills.) Grab the hook shank and slowly turn the hook 180 degrees, the hook should come right out without hurting the fish. I wish I could personally show you how this is done, maybe you can find a video of this somewhere online. I've done this many times over the years and every one was released to be caught another day. OK @P4B, I found one video that shows what I was trying to explain. There are a few videos on YT that show this method. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCjmBq5tFuE

I don't fish on holiday weekends, I just drive around the lakes and see who is fishing my spots.

A Wilderness Systems Atak for $600...that might be worth the road trip, @Johnpenguin.

Well, we're both right, kind of. The Rapala family members running operations sold their interest in the company during the 2000 merger. Yes, I was under the impression that quality would suffer and as I mentioned above, there was a lot of talk among "Rapala Nation" collectors that quality would suffer after the corporation was formed and European factories were closed and reopened in Asia. These rumors are what moved a lot of collectors, myself included, to stock up on pre VMC lures. (I know I have a few large totes stashed away full of NIB pre VMC lures.) However, I can tell my thinking towards Rapala VMC lures has changed since I put this Shad Rap "Under the Knife," yesterday.

I’ve used and collected Rapala lures for many years and like other collectors of Rapala lures, I always admired the workmanship that went in to their balsa lures. One feature that Rapala balsa lures were known for was the “through wire” construction. When word of the VMC acquisition got out, many of us collectors/users raced out and stocked up on as many of our favorite lures as we could get our hands on. Shad Raps were a primary target as rumors spread that the quality of these lures would suffer under a corporation as large as VMC. It was only few years after the acquisition when a rumor started going around among collectors that the newer VMC Shad Raps lacked the “through wire” form that earlier Rapala balsa lures were known for. Having fallen into the rumor mill myself, I developed somewhat of a grudge towards VMC for supposedly ruining the Rapala family’s creation. Well, I have dispelled that myth by cutting open a brand new, VMC Rapala Shad Rap that I ordered a few months back for this purpose. (Rained all day anyway.) What did I find? Look at the pictures. The “through wire” form is there and it also runs down and up inside a metal plug, forming the front hook hanger. I’m not sure what the plug is made of, maybe zinc or zinc alloy. There is also a separate wire form molded into the dive lip that forms the line tie. (Note how deep into the lure body the dive lip goes.) I am impressed with the quality and workmanship of this new Shad Rap. From the inside out, this is the same Shad Rap that was thrown by your father and grandfather. I’ll not only be adding these lures to my collection, I’ll be fishing them too.

What brand of hook are you using?

I bought a discontinued lure from another collector whom I've bought from before back at the end of July. He always send packages to me via registered mailed so I can track them. It arrived in New York on the 8th of August and sat in customs until today, the 28th of August, and it was finally picked up by USPS and is now in their system. I've never understood how I can get a package from Japan in 8-10 days, but a package from Europe always seem to take close to a month. For awhile I was beginning to think that a customs employee was enjoying my lure. The custom facility on the east coast must really be understaffed.

They usually do, 15%.

Executed a good save on one of my old Rick Clunn LC DD this morning when it got hung up. I bought a 3 pack of these lure retrievers on sale for around $3-$4 about 2-3 years ago and this was the first time I used one. You could make your own using snaps and sinkers, but for what I paid for these, I think it paid for itself today. Although I have several of these cranks, they're not made anymore and I'm glad I was able to save this one.

Advice to live by when securing kayaks. Use cam lock.