Fishingintheweeds

Thanks everybody. I've always had a way easier time with braid on a baitcaster and like I said, after seeing some other threads where people said they thought mono was easy to use, I thought I would give it another go. And to be fair, I wasn't having a problem backlashing when I was casting or even really having it blow up on me. The big thing was that as I pulled line out I noticed that there was loose line on the reel that would get worse the more thumb pressure I used when I was pulling line out. Walking it out and reeling it back in "tighter" didn't do anything to help but I did see some improvement from messing with the brakes and tension. So, the answers suggesting that matched what I was seeing. In another reply someone mentioned memory or direction that the line came off of the spool as something that could be accounting for the loose line. Those seem to match what I was seeing. I know the first time I tried this, however many years ago, I abandoned it pretty quickly and went back to braid. I liked the options that the line gave me and it wasn't totally unmanageable, I just knew something wasn't quite right... but based on these replies, I think I'm going to give this a little more time.

There may be an existing thread that answers all of these questions but I haven't found it yet. Feel free to redirect if one already exists. I am giving mono a second chance on my baitcaster again. The biggest problem I'm having is not casting and not backlashes but that there seems to be loose line on that starts to blow up after I cast. I THOUGHT I put the line on tight and have pulled it all out, reeled it back in multiple times, still the same. If I hold my thumb over the spool and pull the line out, it makes it way worse. I've been able to finally get the brakes and tension dialed in to where it's not so bad. The problem was the same for bigger weights and for the lighter weights. I see a lot of posts about how much easier mono is than braid, on a bait caster, but so far, I'm just not seeing it. What am I missing?

It's not slipping away. You'll feel like it if you start counting summers but it's not. There are a lot of days in between. Don't give up on the idea that you'll get something huge down there. Seems a lot more likely than up here in Michigan, but I say that because I was sure If only ever get 2-3lbers here. Until I started catching them double that (and more). Now, I believe that there very well may be much bigger fish, more commonly, than I knew. I've caught them and seen pictures of fish bigger than mine, all caught in Michigan. Don't give up!

I bought a couple budget- friendly topwater baits to introduce my young sons to the wonderful world of topwater fishing. One of the baits I picked up was a Heddon torpedo. Simple concept, fun and easy for a kid to use. Took it out yesterday, only to find that the blade doesn't spin. Back in the day, it SEEMED like they always worked out of the package but I stopped buying them in the last 10-years after getting a couple that didn't (and because there's a lot of other cool looking stuff out there). How are you getting the prop moving correctly, anything specific, or just mess with it until it works?

Ignored FC, tied it on as a leader and saw no improvement, cut it off. Tried it later, felt the difference, liked it and then had the breakoffs. Cut it off. Well, it felt great and I ended up tying it back on a couple days ago. I had not been using InvisX or Tatsu though...there are a lot of opinions on all these threads but this is the kind of answer I was looking for. Thanks!

Ha, ha, ha, maybe because we wanted a smallmouth or a largemouth because even if we tell someone we caught a giant rock bass, people will still tell us it doesn't count. It's got the right word in the name but isn't the right fish!

These things happen?

Ha, ha, ha, I'm not mad at ya but yeah, you might get a little beat up over the humble brag of catching one every 7-8 minutes for three hours... Even IF half of your casts were "ruined"...ha, ha, ha, ha...if that's a problem for you, what are your good days like?! What did you THINK was gonna happen? Sorry man! ???

Most lakes up here in Michigan, an awful lot of them, have somewhat mucky bottoms and pretty thick vegetation. I used to kinda hate it before I knew any better. Some of them are so full, it can be a little challenging but a lot of your luck catching them has to do with how you think about the conditions.

And from the bank even. Nice. Me too. I know that means most video content and a lot of posts are somewhat less relevant (not in terms of information on fish or behavior) to what I'm doing and sometimes it seems like what I'm doing isn't exactly easy to just translate to fishing from a boat. Haven't pulled any really big ones in the hottest parts of the summer from the bank yet though on any good sized lakes.

Someone else may have already said these things but I have only read your post and no comments yet. Is it possible that you were fishing the same but it was more windy, for instance? That would make it harder for you to detect bites like that if the wind is blowing more also in your line. I would say that whatever rod you're using, try to feel the bite through the line, not the rod. As for the circle hooks, they're all I use on wacky rigs, just make sure the point is online with the shank. I also crush the barbs. For some reason, the Gama ones that are out there are the octopus circle hooks and the point is bent to the side, out of line with the shank. I actually use a size 4 most of the time, sometimes larger but have caught a lot of fish on a size 2 even. All you need to do to set the hook is start reeling. If you try to do your usual hookset or start doing a bunch of pulling, you're fairly likely to just pull the worm out of their mouth. Just start reeling and you should be good.

This reply is way after 2019 but still fun a fun topic. Yep, being farther north makes it tough to get really big fish. But I have caught two here that I never believed I would see in Michigan and surely didn't believe were in any of the lakes I was fishing. Until I saw them. But they are out there! I caught one in April of 2019 and one in May of 2021. Both were fat, one was a little over 22" long and the biggest was a little over 24". The first, I caught on a chatterbait in a spot that I liked fishing but only went to because someone decided to do laps in their boat all the way around the edges of the first lake I went to. Ha, after about 20 minutes, I realized they weren't going to stop or even slow down, so I went the lake where I caught the fish. I honestly thought it was a big carp until I saw it jump. The second, I had my my two little guys with me at the lake closest to our house, just messing around off a dock. So, they got to see that and be in the pictures. That one came on a wacky rig Senko on a size 4 circle hook (bend the point in line with the shaft). I caught a good number of other decent fish that were not nearly as big as the other two (and maybe a couple others around 5) but still big for up here, and they came on jigs, chatterbaits and a whole bunch more on wacky rig Senkos.

I've gradually started using all kinds of colors, mostly because my young sons are picking the colors "for us". So, I have branched out some and used colors ranting from don't wildly bright chartreuse combinations to different shades and combos of reds and purples. Usually I would do this when things would get slow with the greens, instead of switching spots or baits. Sure enough, all of these would eventually get bit too. Of course, conditions can dictate which colors would be more likely to produce. But I had another thought today that somehow I'd never considered. As the summer has gone on this year, it's seemed like the darker colors have gotten more action. Is this a thing that other people consider, different colors in different times of the year?

I did the same. I first thought about getting my prescription put into a pair of sunglasses but just couldn't help but think about all the other things I could do with the money they were charging for them. I just couldn't justify it. Then, I was at a CVS and jokingly told my wife I was going to get some of the huge ones and just wear them over my glasses to fish. Then, I realized they were actually made to fit over and surprisingly didn't look COMPLETELY terrible considering they were $20. So, I got them for fishing but knew there had to be better alternatives and found Cocoons. I gotta say, they're not bad. The fit isn't exactly perfect for my face because of the sizing needed to fit over my regular glasses. But they're passable and work pretty well so far. The Cocoons are around $65, and quality definitely better than the generic $20 CVS versions...aaaaand cheaper than the almost-$600 the eye place quotes. I'd say maybe give those a shot and see what you think.

Same here. Not even close. Now, I would have to say that my biggest average is probably a jig, then chatterbait. Texas rig (various worms) and frogs have done pretty well also but not ahead of the other three for average size (for me). All that said, I fish from the bank 99% of the time and have really narrowed down what I fish with. This is mostly due to productivity and partly be due to some things just being harder to fish effectively from the bank.

Ha, ha, I've got one of those too. After finally catching them much bigger than that and getting measurements on them, I realized that my 4-5 was probably really only a high 2 ?. Big difference in the ones we think are big and the legit (weighed or measured) big ones!

My 3 and 4 year olds both make sure to pick up the trash that we find at any bank spots we fish. We've been doing this since they could walk. Hard to believe other people never think twice.

For me, I've gotten them on black in more stained water, and on black and blue pit boss near dark, fishing them like a topwater. So, I kinda feel like it could've been almost any color that I pulled out of my bag. The darker colors have worked for me some...but like you said, when you find a better option that keeps the action going, there's no sense trying to force-feed them a certain lure or color. And about the flakes, ha, it MUST be true because the purple flakes work like that for me. I said this on another post about colors - I don't WANT to think that color is the deal breaker in fishing, and I don't even really believe that is...but it sure feels like it sometimes. Even between different shades of green/green pumpkin or different color flakes...maaaan, it sure seems like those purple flakes are why the fish are biting!

Ha, ha, ha...congrats! But to be fair, your bait DOES have a good-sized chartreuse tail! I've caught them on black and other dark colors but it's slow. I also said specifically said "most" places...because of course they're not all the same. What was the water like there? In all seriousness, I would be really interested to see how long it takes to get your next pics of catches with black and blue, blue, or junebug hanging out of their mouths. I'm just guessing that, minus the chartreuse, it's not your go-to in the typical clear waters up here. Don't get me wrong, that's great! And I'm more than happy to let you do the experimenting for us!

I've had the same experiences. As long as I just start reeling, I get the fish every time. Mono is much better for me with this style than braid. It works but something about it feels a little mismatched. The only times fish have hit and I've missed is when I've forgotten what I was doing and tried to pull to set the hook. Once they're on, they're on, corner of the mouth almost every time, and a handful of times in the top (my barbs are smashed but be sure that it's a circle hook, that the point is in line with the shaft. If it isn't, I bend the hook with a pair of plyers so that it is). I use hooks as small as a size 4 or 6 pretty regularly, actually that's all I use, and still catch big fish. I've also had decent luck with flukes like this. I think with a smaller hook, it reduces the chances to snag so, to me, there's the chance to also fish other baits, even if just nose hooked. Something I'm looking into for different actions and fall rates on weightless presentations.

Me too.

These people exist. I've gotten some big ones out of places that I know get fished a lot but most of the people fishing there I'm pretty sure aren't exactly skilled. Until I feel them out, I usually don't mention anything as every passing year sees more people fishing the lakes in the area. Don't get me wrong, that part's great. The part that isn't great (for fishing and continuing genetics) is a scenario like I saw the other day. I was kinda fishing, kinda just hanging around at a smaller lake near us, by the bank with my 4 yr old when a slightly older kid that we know came up. The kids were fishing and learning from each other catching bluegills to use as bait with the worms they dug up and, long story short, the kid hooks into a big one and loses it. I didn't think anything of it until he said how he wished he could've landed it to bring home a big meal for everybody. I know the dad keeps pike to eat and sometimes bluegill and I don't tell people what they should and shouldn't eat but let's just say I'm glad that one got off. If it's the one I caught, it would be exceptionally big for Michigan and so also pretty big in this lake. Needless to say, I don't tell everybody about every fish I get or exactly where I caught it if I do. I don't care if people keep fish to eat but I care about keeping big fish in our lakes and I've met too many people who have come in with legitimately big fish to keep. Ha, they can do it, I just don't want to help them.

Ha, ha, don't give up! I'm in Michigan too and I used to think that there was nothing big in the north and all we had was the state record bass, a couple of 5's, a handful of others that people said were 10 ( but were probably 4-5) and then a bunch of 1-2's. Well, then I started getting into some bigger ones and in the last few years have caught fish that were all bigger than anything I ever thought I'd see up here. And then I'd catch one just a little bit bigger the next year at a different lake. Ha, I stopped believing people when they tried to tell me there were no fish in a place or that there was nothing of any size in a particular lake. Keep fishing!

It seems like this is probably what helps reconcile the gap between color seeming to matter and research that shows that certain colors "look" the same to the fish.

Yeah, I bought some because you're supposed to and because I'd fished other places in the south, growing up, where it made sense...throwing black and blue up here seems like a waste if time and $$$. Sooooo...I still have some sitting in bags that I will probably never use all of and some of the bags I may never open. Ha, and I sure won't be buying anything new in black and blue (or anything similar) to fish up here. Variations on green pumpkin or watermelon and white/grey seem to be the way to go up here, with soft plastics.