Sword of the Lord

Yep, and great example of how LMB are so much prettier.

I suggest never settling for what you don't really want.

I would much rather have a giftcard. Reels are personal and individual to the person.

Did you know? If you complain about the price of food, food isn't for you. If you complain about the price of rent or a mortgage, a home isn't for you. If you complain about the price of your vehicle and insurance policy, driving isn't for you. If you complain about the price of medicine, medication isn't for you. Less dramatic... If you complain about the prices of televisions, TV isn't for you. If you complain about the price of a lawn mower, mowing your lawn isn't for you. If you complain about the price of pants, pants aren't for you. Round and round we go with the logic of a turkey.

That's exactly like telling somebody they're too poor to Bass fish. Sorry pal, I've got 4 kids and a wife on my income alone. I've got 3 setups and 1 or 2 of each of the lures I use besides plastics of course, and I fish from shore. So yeah, losing 1 setup and one of my more expensive lures is a big deal to me. So, so sorry for not having a ton of extra cash. Maybe frisbee golf or something. That should keep us poor people occupied.

6 dinks cost me a $50 rod and a $17 whopper plopper today. Woohoo! 70 bucks for 6 dinks in 5 hours. And a sunburn. Noice m8! Rod tip broke and I was being super ballsy throwing the WP right to the edge of weeds from the shore. This dude ain't simmin'.

I'm definitely in this boat, OP. When I go to my favorite ponds, I take 2 bags of different colored 5 inch Senkos. Along with them comes a few 3/0 Gammy EWG hooks for Texas Rigging, and a few 1/0 Gammy Octopus hooks for Wacky Rigging, as well as some zip ties; I take a Whopper Plopper 90 and 130 (I don't have a 110 yet); and I take 2 spinnerbaits, one lighter and one darker in color. I'm thinking of taking 1 spinnerbait and 1 chatterbait from now on, though, color depending on which pond and the conditions. I take these not because I'm not good at other techniques and baits, but because they have proven to be the best producers time and time again, and I like to go light. I can't even count on one hand how many times I've been skunked this year. When I go fishing, it's usually in 2 hour intervals and 5+ days a week. One of those days per week I'll catch more than 10 fish, one of those days I'll only catch 3 fish, but it seems I'm usually sitting at 5-10 fish; which, in 2 hour intervals from the shore, I'll take it! I'm even good for a few 3-5 pounders a week. Fishing really doesn't have to be complicated at all. It gets harder for me when I'm suiting up for the river to catch smallies. Then it looks like I'm going to war and I might not catch a single one no matter what I do, but then I go to my trusty old green friends in smaller waters and have a blast, which salvages everything. Some days I might say "let's change it up" and go with Trick Worms instead of Senkos, Poppers instead of Ploppers, swimbaits instead of spinnerbaits. But I always go back to my small, proven, aforementioned arsenal. That small arsenal with 2 setups: M/F (casting) Lightning Rod with a Zebco Bullet spooled with 10lb mono with a 5' fluoro leader, and a MH/F (casting) Lightning Rod with an Abu Garcia Silver Max spooled with 12lb mono. Small arsenal of baits, modest gear, no boat, rarely skunked. Simple stuff.

I generally do fish elsewhere, Tom. It's in the original post, so I'm not going to repeat myself. This thread is a week and a half old now, and I've since had some success at this river, at least this part of it. I'm a largemouth fisherman for the most part. I really don't fish rivers often. Mostly ponds and lakes for the green ones. I'm really good at plucking out the green ones, so now I'm doing more of a 50/50 so I can get accustomed to smallies and get good at catching them too. OK, so, even with all of the ducks around, I've found that they're smashing topwaters. I've been killing them on the whopper plopper in still water to the side of a dam, and then fish downstream in the middle of the current. They're also hitting inline spinners fished downstream in the current. I caught my PB smallie the other day. I'm bound to do that a lot for awhile, I think, seeing as I've only targeted them for a month. That's what I've figured out though. Topwaters. No matter the time of day or the conditions. As a plus the ducks get far away from an approaching whopper plopper.

This is only my 4th year bass fishing and the first year since I stopped a few years ago when I got sick. Picked it up again now that I'm healthy. This is something I learned on my own very quickly this year. It's like my brain and my hands and arms are perfectly in sync. I'm setting the hook before I'm even comprehending that I felt or saw the bite and that I'm setting the hook. Remarkable stuff.

True. He's not much different though. Will hit the same places usually. Identifies spots. It's just a cast and retrieve bait.

I vote for a gift card to TW or BPS and a paid day off fishing. A fishing enthusiast couldn't ask for more.

Correct. Hate to be that guy, but different colors for different conditions equals money. Gotta wonder. But then one must also wonder, if they see better than thought, shouldn't unusual, unnatural colors and colors not matching the hatch and what they know, not work? Interesting thoughts for interesting creatures.

True in many ways, but shouldn't Loon work better because of contrast and noise? But it doesn't. It actually doesn't. It's not like I'm saying both work, I'm saying Bone works better even when Loon should.

I have 2 90 Whopper Ploppers in Blue Blood and Bone, and 1 130 in Munky Butt. My buddy has 2 90's in Bone and Loon. He rarely uses the Loon even in conditions and times when the silhouette theory says it is preferable. Yet at night, with overcast, in late evening or early morning, the light colors still work and work well. He doesn't use the Loon much because even in the best conditions, Bone works better. So how much of this theory is relevant, viable and true? I always use black and blue plastics when the theory of the better conditions for it says to, like at night. Never deviate because of what I've been told. It works fine, but now I wonder if almost any color will work fine because of what these WP's are teaching us.

I should definitely clarify that I refuse to share in a pond or a small lake because bass can easily become pressure, spots can be ruined, illegally harvested, and it can, just become a nightmare. Now a river, whatever. I'll tell ya, and I don't even care what you take. My spots on small waters are sacred. That's my enjoyment. And again for certain people, me saying "my spot" is like saying "we won" when it comes to my sports teams. I know I don't own the spot and I'm not part of the team, but I'm invested.

One of the things I love about us serious anglers is we can and do target species, and get the results of that specific target. Whereas other people just go fish to fish for whatever, and the idea of being able to catch what you want is foreign.

That and lately it's also been "I know this whopper plopper is gonna stick me..." yuup, I done been stuck, hope that duck poo ain't toxic

Big dam in Pontiac. Vermilion river.

Never for me. No interest. If bass didn't exist, sure, but they do.

This probably isn't much to the Smallmouth fisherman here, but for me, it's awesome. I am a Largemouth fisherman; ponds and lakes usually. I've been figuring this river out recently and catching a bunch of little Smallies. Then this girl comes along. Side Note: Yes, that is the Zebco Bullet down there. Yes, it continues to work. She nailed that WP right after it snagged a leaf too. Kinda think she maybe liked the added bulk.

If Dory and a Toy Story green alien made a baby, this is it.

Is that thing robotic and does it really bite? If so I need one. Errr, for my son.

My new favorite: I was fishing a swim jig and it wasn't working so I put it up. She says, "I guess you could say the jig is up *laugh, snort, laugh, snort*." Externally I rolled my eyes and shook my head. Internally I'm laughing and wouldn't have it any other way.

I think the fact that my bass thumb hasn't fully healed in months says a lot.

I combine them for them for the ultimate unwind time. Rod and Reel: Check Tackle and Tools: Check 6 Pack: Check Lezzzgooo