Mobasser

From a retired carpenter, nice work Scott. Looking good

Zoom Critter Craw

BR is a great place. Merry Christmas to everyone here.

I think Lews still has an AR switch on most of they're spin reels.

Many nicer reels are being made with no AR switch these days. Eventually, well all be fishing non AR reels I think. I was a dedicated backreeler for many years. I've learned to set the drag on some of my newer stuff. And, I'll add, Shimano spinning reel drags are super smooth. I try to never reel any baits to the rod tip, just out of habit.

Roadwarriors got me beat by a few years I think.

Yesterday, Dec 18th, my wife and I celebrated 42 years of marriage. We didn't have a big wedding. We were married by a justice of the peace, in Kansas City Mo. We had a small gathering of friends over after the ceremony. We've been through many ups and downs, good times and some not so good.We we're fortunate that we learned how to work through these things. I've always tried to remember what my dad told me about marriage. " Marriage is a commitment, and you have to realize that people are only human. We all have good and bad days, and nobody is perfect all the time. Try to make more good days than bad ones, and you'll make it work". My mom and dad were married over 50 years. For the married men here, how many years have you been married?

I like Zoom finesse worm, and Zoom critter craw.

The older ones are good. The new ones, I didn't care for. Grindy feel and different. In the new reels I say Shimano, Diawa, or Lews have better options.

I agree. There's a lot of rods that look good in a catalog or online. I say try and go to a good tackle shop and handle some of you can.

I've also had good performance from my Shimano Sahara 2500. St Croix Premiere is a good rod for the dollars.

My hammers are old Estwings I used for years as a carpenter. I don't consider myself a hammer in regard to fishing...

My attainable goals? Remain healthy, be kind to people and dogs, and, fish as much as I can.

Jigs took me longer than anything to learn. I thought I'd never get it down, but eventually I caught my first base on one. And, I agree about " visualizing" your bait under water. Once your bait hits the surface, turn on that under water TV screen.

When I first started, I used to think you needed to carry a huge amount of lures each trip. I was impressed by guys that carried around a lot of stuff. I started doing this also. But, I kept using the same three or four baits each trip, and realized that most bass lures are more versatile than I thought. Some folks do better by carrying a ton of stuff. I do best by carrying less. When you get the bite dialed in, you really don't need too many lures.

The past couple of seasons I'm liking: a few bags of plastic worms. Zoom and Roboworm mostly. Hooks, jig heads, weights. Storm Chug Bug, shad color. Zara Spook bone or clear color. Buzzbait, 1/4 and 1/2 oz black or chartreuse. Rattletrap, 1/2 oz chrome. Mepps, Black Fury size 3 or 4 undressed. Yellow dot pattern. Jig #11 pork frog or plastic trailer- blk/ blue color. Johnson Beetle Spin 1/4 oz. Green or Black color. I rotate these things in and out as the season goes on. I carry more in the boat, far less from shore. I like to travel as light as I can.

Eric, I did a Google search of Gapen Tackle. They're in Minnesota. They sell several baits, Ugly Bugs and others. They also have a line of casting and spinning rods which look like nice rods for the money. It's still a family business, and I believe they've been in business for 60 years or longer.

This is an old one, created by Dan Gapen Sr. in 1969. It was first created as a walleye jig for river fishing, but quickly became popular as a bass lure also. A crawfish, helgramite imitation. These are still available in several colors and weights from 1/32 on up to saltwater sizes. The Ugly Bug has always looked like a good fish catcher. It's one of those baits I always wanted to try, but never did. If you've used the Gapen Ugly Bug, what were your best colors, weights, and retrieves?

I think some of the very best fisherman through the years had strong intuition. They just seemed to know where and how better than others.

I can catch some on most days, weather conditions etc. But, not always. Sometimes the bass have me stumped. For me the right stuff is the simple plastic worm. It works on most days. Rain or shine.

I fish three. Clear quarry lake, 7 acres, large lake( not too often) and, farm pond. Hoping to fish the farm pond more this next season.

Another factor is water clarity. I fish a very clear lake, so I have to stay back some distance so I don't spook the fish. If the fish can see you, there's a good chance you've already blown it. It's about finding a safe balance of distance and accuracy. It makes for tough fishing at times.

I store all my rods in a rack I made years ago. They're stored vertically in a spare room. Im not sure that " warp" is the best term here. Years ago, fiberglass rods could become warped if leaned in a corner in a hot room( attic, garage, etc). Can graphite rods do this also?

Sometimes a long cast is good. If you want to cover a large area with lipless, cranks etc. But I never do it with soft Plastics or jigs. I've missed fish doing this, and I think I lose some feel of whats happening with my bait. Mostly shorter accurate casting for me.

I can't really comment on very many of the newer high end rods. I also like a shorter length rod. My favourites are Fenwick HMG 5'9 med fast action. All Pro, 6'6 med fast action, Tennessee handle. I have two of the All Pro rods. Both have graphite TN handles. Very comfortable reel seat in all weather.