papajoe222

Bananas for my fishing partner and an RC or two for myself.

I've done a few butt wraps (chevrons, diamond,etc.) and was checking out YouTube for some new ideas. In my search I ran across ones where a wide thread or ribbon was used rather than multiple thread wraps. Does anyone know what the material is, or where I cand purchase some?

For most soft plastics it's green pumpkin. Cranks-either shad or crawfish, topwaters-anything with a white or bone belly, jigs-depends on what I'm trying to imitate (I swim a lot of white and smoke colored jigs).

One suggestion that addresses clearing a jig, or most lures, of weeds; use braided line or heavy fluorocarbon. Other lines have too much stretch. There is more than one way to fish a jig and the style of jig you use will either make the task easier or more frustrating. It's a learning process, but well worth the time you spend doing so.

I'm in a different camp, I prefer offset worm hooks. Then again, I prefer straight shank hooks for fishing worms. 2/0 and 3/0 for the flukes and light wire when using 8lb. or less fluoro.

FatFreeShads and Fingerlings are the only Bomber cranks I use now and straight out of the box, I've never needed to tune them. Go with your experiences, but IMO there are worse cranks on the market.

I haven't stripped down my Tracker, but I do run two Group 29 deep cycle batteries for my TM and the same size battery for cranking. I'm not sure about the CCA on the cranking battery, but there wasn't enough room to mount all three in the rear compartment. I opted for removing the port side storage container and mounting it there. I accessed the cables ( the OEM were long enough) through the bottom of the compartment and used an automotive style battery tray to secure it. You can likely move the bilge and/or live well motors and mount all three batteries to the port side of the compartment and go with a shallower storage compartment when specking out your redo.

So a neighbor wants me to build him a rod and wants it as light as possible. I gave him a choice of components, but he insists on not only standard size guides, but double foot ones, despite my arguments for using micros or single footed guides. Are there any lightweight, double footed guides on the market? I haven't found any that mention weight reduction in their description other than titanium.. Also, how much weight is actually saved when it comes to one style vs. another? Between the difference in weight of the guides themselves and the extra thread and epoxy, I wouldn't think it would be over an ounce, would it?

You don't need to bounce a crankbait off the bottom or cover, or tick the weeds with it. The quick change in speed and/or direction is what triggers most strikes, which can be accomplished (though not as productively) through the use of the reel and rod tip. This is a technique I often use on suspended fish, but I don't see why using a bait that runs shallower than the depth of the muck bottom you describe in that fashion wouldn't produce. The advantage over a lipless crank is the fact that they float and will often times back out of a snag if given slack line and once the bait reaches it's running depth, you can experiment with different retrieve speeds while maintaining depth.

AWESOME, they look exactly like the old Riverside ones right down to the claws and flaps on the side. If they're anywhere near as bouyant, I'll be stocking up. Thanks

WalMart used to sell these in their bargin bins, but I haven't seen them Ina couple of seasons and I'm down to my last pack. They're basically a big, ringed tube with appendages and they've been a reliable big fish producer both fished by themselves and as a trailer when flipping/pitching jigs and I'm looking for a big profile with a slower fall rate. Does anyone know if this company is still in existence, or of a distributor? The closest bait I've found are BigBite Craw Tubes, but they're a little shorter and thinner

Lunkers Love Nightcrawlers is loaded with valuable information about bass migration movements and their use of structure. A great learning tool for anyone interested in fishing off shore structure. The information pertaining to use and care of Nightcrawlers is just a bonus. If you search 'recommended reading'' you'll find more suggestions in a similar thread. ( sorry, I don't know how to add a link to it)

For smallies, I rarely use a skirted jig. Not that I fish for them a lot as the lakes I frequent are void of them, but when I do it's a hair jig and minnow imitation plastic trailer, or a bare jig with some sort of minnow imitating plastic. I prefer a tube for imitating a crawfish, dragged ever so slowly along the bottom.