papajoe222

Hello again. This is a question you'll get a bunch of opinions on based on the responder's personal preference. 'Knot Wars' crowned the 'Fishin-Fool' knot as the strongest for these lines, but I am partial to the SanDiego Jam for Fluorocarbon and the Palomar for mono and braid.

Welcome to the site. The 'Jimmy Houston Knot' is a Pitzen Knot tied with the line doubled. You can find illustrated instructions at http://www.***.com/fishing_knots/pitzen-knot

Conditions, other than rain, will help you narrow down your starting bait selections. If it's spring and the water temp. is rising you can assume that the fish will be active as the rain will continue to warm up the surface temp. If it's fall and the water temp is dropping, the rain will have the opposite affect and the fish will likely be in a neutral or negative mood. Now consider the water itself. Is it rising, did it go from clear to stained? Either situation will position the fish tighter to cover. Now that you've narrowed down you choices, occasionally switch presentations until you find the most productive one.

Welocme If the hooks aren't rusted on your old baits, why not just add new skirts to them? You said you had some success with them. I'm a fan of Stanley's VibraShaft, although Hart and Hidlebrant are also found in my box.

I assume you are fishing from the bank, so my first response (working a crank parallel to the drop) is not really an option. I, also, would recommend a tube bait with an internal jig. Let it fall on slack line and count it down increasing longer on each cast. When you catch that first fish, you'll have the depth figured out.

My passion is getting folks hooked on fishing, especially little ones. Using a bobber is a great way of not only holding their attention, it give you a visual indication when something is going on down under. For now, you can set the hook for them, but it won't take much until they learn what to do when it goes under or takes off to the side. I'm a big fan of small jigs with a split tail grub, or a Beetle Spin suspended under a bobber. You can dip the plastic in JJ's or SpikeIt for added scent. If they get antsy because there isn't any action, having them slowly reel the rig back will often result in 'fish on' Either of these will catch a number of other species, too.The other bait I'd recommend is a 4in. straight tailed plastic worm. Hook it through the middle ad don't add weight. It will fall slowly beneath the bobber and often times the bobber will go under before the worm settles under it.

Try an internal weight to get that spiral drop. I use bell sinkers with a big eyelet. Insert eye first and T-rig allowing the hook point to go through the weight's eye before exiting the nose. You could also 'Stupid Rig' it with a tube jig. Either method will result in a weedless presentation that adds action to the tube when falling, or popping it on a steady retrieve.

I'm to the point where tubes are my #1 soft plastics. From top to bottom, as a finesse offering, or for punching. My Flukes, Trick Worms and Beaver Baits have sat in their bags for a number of seasons and my 17ft tackle box is quite a bit lighter because of it.

Thanks for everyone's replies. This guy is more than just a fishing buddy and I would never end a friendship over this. We only get together to fish twice a year. Next time I head up to his place, my boat will stay at home in my driveway. Oh yea, we will joke about this over a couple of drinks at next weeks fish fry here at my place.

You can tell I'm a Chicago boy, I thought this was a thread about how to keep your stuff from getting ripped off. I have and SUV and use a system that hangs from it's interior roof. I don't trailer with my gear in my boats rod locker for the above mentioned reason and with my tinted windows they can't be seen by passers by when I stop for nature calls or to grab a bite. There are a couple of options if you have a cap on your bed, but placing them inside a sleeping bag is a great way to both hide and protect them.

I still have some difficulty skipping a jig and will normally opt for a tube, but when I do skip one, I like a chunk trailer with flat 'claws' I've tried RageCraws, but I have a tendency to hit the water hard and those claws seem to catch the water and kill the skip.

I love their Smash Tubes on a C-Rig and still have a few Pit Boss'. I stopped using the Pit Boss in favor of a flipping tube, but I doubt if I'll abandon them completely.

He is a friend, but as such I accept him 'as is' I just wasn't aware of this side of him. I've had fishing partners pull some crazy dodo, but this really through me for a loop. I really don't know how to react and I'm what you'd call non-confrontational. I could care less about the quick release and lost photo op. I'll likely just rib him about it in front of his other friends, but not at his next get together up there.

I went up to Muskegon, MI for the walleye opener and stayed at a friends place. I took him out on the water at midnight and I hooked a beauty of a smallmouth, 4lb.12oz. He landed it and I took a photo with his smartphone. After weighing it and before I could get a pic of myself and the fish, he released it! What's worse, he posted the pic on social media saying HE caught it. He has up to his place a couple of times a year, but I'm thinking of declining next time. Thoughts?

The bait is doing exactly what it is intended to, but it sounds like you want to work it as a topwater. If so, just slow your retrieve down until you find a speed that will keep it on top. Give a CrazyCrawler a try if you're looking for a topwater similar to a Jitterbug

I'll admit it; I'm a tube junkie. I know it isn't a popular bait, but that isn't because it doesn't produce results. Just the opposite, sometimes it'll outproduce other, more conventional, soft plastics. One of those times is when it's rigged on a C-rig and allowed to float off the bottom. There is a way to get all but the smallest tubes to float, even if they don't do so on their own. Poster boards made from pressed styrofoam make for great, small inserts that will float almost any size tube. Just cut a strip about 1/8in. wide. Insert it halfway into the tube of your choice and cut, or break it where it exits the tube body. You can add a drop of super glue to hold it in place, or if you're T-rigging it the hook will hold it in place. This also works great for using a tube as a soft topwater presentation if you ever run out of hollow body frogs, or you want a smaller profile topwater.

Not knowing what type lake you fish i can only offer suggestions based on what I do. Look for areas that restrict the current flow from the wind, like neck down areas or humps. Like a river, there is slack water, or areas of slower surface current downstream that are not only easier to maintain boat position in, but will hold fish awaiting an easy meal. Take down your pedestal seats and sit on the deck or at your console to reduce the wind resistance they and you offer. A cast off rope tied to a plastic grocery bag is a great makeshift drift sock that will take some of the workload off of your trolling motor. If there is any kind of point, island, or peninsula available to break the wind for you, you can use it to your advantage in a similar way.

The difficulty in using any 'action tail/legged bait on a mojo rig is getting the action to work as they normally need to be worked fairly quick to do so. A heavier weight will allow you todo that and still keep your weight making contact with the bottom. A C-rig is a better option for most of that style bait. If you're looking for a big profile bait, try a tube. You get bulk and action in a slow presentation and it will stay off the bottom linger with a more enticing (IMO) fall back to the bottom.

I 'customize' a lot of my topwaters and my favs are Spooks. My all time favorite was a Jimmy Houston that I'd added a white and red feathered treble on the end and switched out the belly hook to a SureSet. A splash of red on the belly and 3D eyes and I could keep that beauty in a spot forever or until a fish exploded on it. I was in a hurry to get back to a school of nice fish and didn't check my line after my third catch. My baby flew 30ft. past the trees lining the shore and I haven't seen her in three years this June.

Quick tip for those of you learning this style presentation. Let the conditions dictate your choice of components and gear. A tungsten weight has no benefit when fishing a muck bottom and braid will get nicked and fail you at the wrong time if fished through shell beds, or rip rap. You can get away with a rod with an extra fast tip when using a long mono leader or using a moderate fast tip with a short fluoro leader. The same goes for the baits you choose. Floating baits excel under certain conditions while heavily salted plastics have their place. And don't forget hard baits. Yes you can C-rig them.

Welcome to the forums. When you lock down your drag, it becomes a useless feature. It's purpose is twofold. First, to allow line to be fed out under pressure in order to fatigue the fish that's fighting at the end of the line. Second, to eliminate or reduce the possibility of the line breaking under excessive pressure. Even when using 65.lb braid for catching 4lb. fish, some drag slippage is necessary to prevent damage to your gear, especially the rod and to reduce the possibility of straightening out hooks and thereby loosing fish.

If the arrow and direction your boat moves are in sync, you'll need to adjust the cable gear. If the arrow is pointing in a different direction, you can remove the head and position the arrow accordingly. If it's a new motor, take it back to where you purchased it and let them fix the problem.

Welcome to the site. You can do one of three things; Change tactics, change location, or give up and play video games that will give you instant gratification. I'm not attempting to be funny, sometimes catching takes more than just chucking and winding a lure past a piece of cover or a fish that you can see. Nothing works every time and there are days even the pros have difficulty figuring out the what and where. Don't give up, this is a very rewarding sport in more ways than just catching fish.

K.I.S.S. Pick an earth tone and adjust the color of trailer. One jig and a few bags of trailers will put you out maybe $10. Go with a light, med. and dark trailer and pick a jig that can be used in different types of cover for the most versatility.

Are you talking smallmouth or largemouth? If it's smallies, go with a colored blade like lime green, or chart. The other thing is, do something different on the retrieve, whether it's smallies or largemouth. Give the rod tip a pop, pause and let the bait sink, or just move your rod tip to the side and back. A straight retrieve works when fish are ambushing the bait, but in open water, or when they just want to follow, mixing up the retrieve will get them to commit. By changing lures, you have to get the fish interested, again, and that fish has already moved from the spot where it first saw your bait. No matter what bait you throw, unless there is a school holding in the area, you're better off getting that fish to commit and then going after the others. For those of you new to fishing, this works for most any species from crappie to muskie. Explore your options before changing baits or the areas you're fishing. You're doing something right if a fish follows your presentation. Why abandon it for something, or somewhere else?