galyonj

Dump some JJ's Magic or Megastrike in the bag and let them marinate in that.

Honestly, I hate throwing a football jig where I'm at because I'm either dealing with a soft bottom and the jig just acts like a ditch witch and digs itself in, or I'm dealing with riprap that a football head will just get hung up on anyway.

Totally. Like I said, I do that when I can, I guess I feel like it's the polite thing to do or whatever. If I'm not right at the water, though, I'll just chuck it back in.

That…actually makes a lot of sense.

Interesting. My usual practice is, if I can, keep them lipped and kind of gently move them forward, then at the end of my arm's extension, I let them go.

Roger has no concept of personal space. He might not look it, but he's always ready to party. The other day he got into a brand new bag of Gulp minnows I foolishly left out and drank all the juice. I can't stay mad at him though.

My firs baitcaster back in the late 90s was a 6 or so foot pistol grip combo. It's long gone now, but I learned a whole lot about how not to use a baitcaster with it. lol

Per 6thsense they're 1/2 oz. The website does note they'll come in the same box as the regular sinking Quake 80 – the only difference is the sticker that says it's a suspending model. https://6thsensefishing.com/collections/quake-80-suspending

I've never used the Houdini Shad, but I've got a bag of the Breaking Shad that I guess is being phased out or something, because it's not on their website anymore. I like them about as much as I like a Super Fluke (which is a lot). When I get a bag of flukes I take them out and then I restack them in the bag alternating head/tail orientation. Seems to help straighten the tails out okay. I'll have to ask the fish next time. I'm too lazy to do the water trick when I know they'll just kink back up if I dump them in the bag when I'm done.

Totally. Sometimes there's just nothing you can do. And even if there is something you can do, there are a lot of people with the goal of catching a keeper limit and introducing them to a pat of butter and a skillet (or whatever). That's cool, too. I think what chaps a lot of us is ignorance leading to dead fish that nobody has any intention of eating that, like as not, could have been returned safely to the water to fight another day.

Everything loves peanut butter.

I'm curious: Do you always use the same color bead? Does bead color even matter, do you think?

Roger thinks if he lays on me and pretends to sleep, I won't leave for work. He's really too big to be a lap dog. He's more like a knee-to-chest dog.

A thousand times this. I love catching fish, but what I love about it is figuring out what I need to do given the environmental variables in play. What're they eating now? What's that thing look like anyway? What's the weather and temp and bariatric pressure and all that like? Do I have 2 inches of visibility today or 2 feet? Further, I like pushing myself. I hate finesse fishing because it's all I can do to sit still and do all the nothing that something like a ned rig requires to be successful. But I want to be successful and solve the puzzle, and I don't want to short myself that way.

Cats are terrible helpers. She'll never make journeyman acting like that.

Now that is interesting.

Amazon rod packaging is usually a horror show, based on what I've read. I think you're probably lucky it got there in one piece. I've got one rod with Winn grips on it (a Lew's TP1 black), and I've had it out in mud, rain, sleet, all that. Never had to do more than wipe them down with a wet rag, then follow that up with a dry rag, and it's like nothing ever happened. Hopefully that'll help assuage some of your concern.

She and Jules are holding their cards real close to the vest. The cats are absolutely beside themselves, though. They've been around dogs before, but cats just hate change. Roger's relatively cool around the cats, but he's fascinated by them. Lots of learning for everybody to do.

I need that shirt.

Roger's having a nap at his first full day at his forever home whilst I work.

The popular thinking is to go smaller and slower, and that works (but I need somebody to come shake me awake every so often). Another option I haven't seen mentioned here is a reaction bite. Try burning a crankbait through whatever level the fish are at in the water column. Also, especially if shad are a major forage where you're at, a jerkbait might be a good choice. If they're not in a feeding mood, it's hard to get them to switch gears. However, it's much harder for a fish to ignore something that's making noise and beating up their lateral lines. So you try to make them mad enough to hit your lure instead of looking like food.

That'n was ready to eat, y'all. lol

Look good in the water. Haven't caught anything on them yet, but I think that's more to do with me than them.

Beautiful lake. I've never had the chance to fish it, though. Always too busy playing with the dragon. I'm in Knoxville, as you can see. Usually fish Ft Loudon or little waters fed by it.

So…couple things. Earlier this week I went to a new spot that usually gets a lot of play, thanks to a suggestion from @TnRiver46. After no action for a while, I tied on a 6th Sense Provoke and went real slow with it, and two things happened: 1. I got my first ever jerkbait hit. 2. I actually got to fish water that was clear enough to see the investigation/charge/strike. It was rad, and I was so excited that my sinus brain misfired and I couldn't find my phone for a picture WHEN IT WAS SITTING RIGHT BESIDE MY LEG. Then I cast out again and the lure was acting funny, and I realized that the bill broke. So that kinda sucks. Nice bass, though. 3ish pounds and feisty.