BrianMDTX

A Jelly Worm in Blackberry is one of my favorites in summer. Not only do they entice bites but they seem to last longer than most plastic worms do IMO.

I thought so, too. But TW lists it as a VMC half moon wacky weight, so there it is lol.

I don’t watch a lot of videos on YT anymore, but every once in a while I do. And a few days ago I saw something that really piqued my interest. It was a weighted wacky rigged craw. I used craws on Texas rigs and as trailers, but never as a WR. Didn’t seem to be the kind of bait that would work well fished as a WR. But this presentation uses a mushroom head (half-moon) weight in the tail with an o-ring and hook, and as you work it, the tail stays down and skitters backward, just as live craw does. Just ordered some weights and some new Rage Tail craws and X-Zone Adrenaline Craws to try this technique with. I’ve never seen anyone locally fish this presentation so hopefully it’s something new the bass haven’t seen.

Ok, so different strokes for different folks. But it appears that if popping slowly, the trick is sl-o-w, and pausing for some time. Which makes sense. Next time out, that’s the plan.

Balanced. Always. it can create excess vibration and wheel hop.

I do not fish poppers a lot. Most of my topwater fishing has been with Whopper Ploppers or walking baits like the Spook. I want to start using my Pop Max’s more. Do you (most often) pop once, pause, pop again…or lightly pop it on the surface multiple times in a row? I know the bass will let me know what they want at the time, but I’m interested in knowing which technique, or other retrieves, seem to work best the majority of the time.

Slow day at the pond. Wanted to fish before the rain and cold front came through this afternoon (and it sure did). I started with a chatterbait and a jig-and-craw, even though they are not the best producers here. That stayed true today as well. I switched to a weightless TR with a Rage Bug. Had a couple light bites and then had a good strike. Just under 3 lbs. The Bug got torn so I switched to a Rage Craw, but the bite in that spot died. Tried a WR for a while with no bites but was noticing some action on the surface. So I tied on a Pop Max. I casted 3-4 times and something was hitting it every time but no hook-ups. The next cast I got a good hookset. What a bluegill! I later went back to the Rage Craw. I made a cast under some overhanging limbs and was working it back slowly, when the line just started moving sideways. Never felt or saw a bite, but the bait was moving. I set the hook and caught a bass about 1.5 lbs. Like a male moving it off the nest. That was it for the morning. @ol'crickety I finally remembered to take pics of where I casted when I caught the bass. You mentioned that last year and I always forget to do that. Glad I remembered today. The center of the pond pics is where I caught the two bass. Right up tight against the cover.

@ChrisD46 I just watched a video last night about using this weight as a Neko rig with a craw. It looked read good.

I know the prevailing wisdom is that a soft plastic on a worm hook with no weight is not a true Texas rig. I call them a weightless Texas rig lol. And it’s a presentation that I fish a lot.

I have a Kistler Helium TCJ (the “T stands for Texas rig), so yeah, I always have Texas rig ready to go.

I don’t remember the year, but the winning boat in the Ocean City, MD Shark Tournament was disqualified, as the angler purchased his license after getting back to the dock. it was like a $500,000 prize.

That happened to me as a kid. My dad wanted to burn it off with a cigarette. I still have PTSD about that!

I am NOT guilty of abandoning a bait that’s catching bass. I’ll fish one lure all day long if it’s getting bit. I am guilty of sticking with a bait (or color) for too long because I’ve normally caught bass on it previously.

I think it’s one of the most versatile baits because you can fish it differently. Maybe they want to chase so reel it straight back. Maybe pause it. Maybe bounce it off the bottom. Get caught in weeds? Rip it! Or maybe let it hang up a bit and then rip it. At first, I was meh on a chatterbait. Now I have one rigged all the time.

Well, I certainly fished Senko WR’s, and have let them sink to the bottom. And the same with Robo Worms, etc. But keeping it up in the water column is not a tactic that I’ve tried. I’ve got the rig, the tackle and the baits. I’ll be giving this a try soon.

Like @WRB says, that’s the way. Try a Neko rig with a Neko Macho. It’s a fatter, bigger bait. Also works well rigged as a TR.

Welcome back to fishing and to BR. Take care and enjoy life!

@pdxfisher @ol'crickety At one point, I laughed to myself and said “Oh well, may get skunked but you’re going to learn how to work a jig. At least you’re having fun!” It was a learning experience. I’ve never worked a jig so much. I casted and pitched countless times (no way to flip that close to the water). Over wood, into weeds, right on the bank. I was enjoying that even without catching anything. But hooking that bass made it better!

I only use braid to leader on spinning reels. All my baitcasters (except my frog rod with 50 lb. Sufix 832 braid) are spooled with 15 lb. Sunline Shooter Defier, except for two older Black Max’s that still have 12 lb. Big Game. I love that Sunline mono.

What a good topic! All I have is a small inflatable (Sea Eagle Packfish 7). I was going to get a kayak but do not have room in the garage with two cars (a boat was out of the question due to storage as well). I mostly fish ponds where I am the only angler on the water. I fished a small reservoir today and was sharing the water with many kayaks and several bass boats. I struggled a bit getting back to the boat ramp when the wind picked up, but other than that, I caught fish. Granted, I couldn’t see anyone else that was out of my sight, but I only saw two anglers on two different boats catch one fish each. One was a crappie and the other a small bass. I’d love a nice fishing yak or a boat, but it’s not going to happen at this stage of my life. C’est la vie. The important thing is…I’m out on the water and not stuck on the bank. And this reservoir is nigh on impossible to fish from the bank.

I was going to fish Lake Raven in Texas (Huntsville) yesterday, but woke up and just didn’t have the energy. So I went to the local pond. Very dead. Only caught one small bass and lost one. So I made my mind up to go to Lake Raven this morning. It’s not a huge impoundment (203 acres) but it’s a lot bigger than a 2-3 acre pond. I’ve fished there twice before so it’s still a learning experience. I had read a report on conditions (stained/muddy due to recent rains) and there are no lily pads out as of yet, so I left my frog rod home. I took a MHF baitcaster for Texas rigs and another for chatterbaits/spinnerbaits, and another for jigs. Also brought MHMF for topwaters and crankbaits and a MXF spinning rig for finesse. I started with a Whopper Plopper and it garnered zero interest. I switched to a chatterbait and then a Texas rig and they also struck out. No algae like I’m used to in ponds but tons of hydrilla. I could rip the chatterbait through it better than the Texas rig. I crossed to the south side and tried the chatterbait again, just off a point. After a few casts I thought I hooked a bass, but the fight didn’t seem right. It wasn’t a bass, it was a crappie. The first one I’ve caught in decades! Then I switched to a blue/black jig with a green pumpkin Rage Bug trailer. I caught my best jig bass today. Almost 3 lbs. I don’t fish jigs a lot as they are horrendous in algae, but fishing them in hydrilla is an eye-opener. I know I missed two strikes setting the hook late as a jig bite just feels different. But it was the best bait today. I ended up rigging a Rage Menace on an unweighted Texas rig on the spinning rig as bass seemed to be right on the bank and it’s not easy flipping when seated so low to the water. All my earlier TR were rigged with black, watermelon red, or watermelon with red/copper flake worms or Senkos. This was green pumpkin. Looks like green pumpkin rules the day. I also tried a spinnerbait, lipless crank and a squarebill without success. But I learned a bit about jigs today!

Does your pond have weeds? Or algae on the bottom? The ponds I fish in S. Texas have a lot of algae. A LOT. And that limits me in a lot of baits I can use. Standard Texas rigs and jigs become completely matted in algae, so I mostly fish weightless Texas rigs with 5” Senkos or Zoom Tricks. 4” or 5” wacky rigs works well, also. Topwaters like a Whopper Plopper work well if the surface is clear. If you have algae, leaves or pine needles floating on the surface, you’re better off with a frog. Chatterbaits and spinnerbaits can be good, as long as you don’t get close to the bottom. Jerkbaits and squarebills work as they don’t get too deep quickly. Ned rigs got matted fast. So do shaky heads.

They have a nice shop. I picked my Helium TCJ rod up in person there. Great company and such a nice rod for that price.

Interesting. I like my 705CB for crankbaits (especially squarebills), but I do not like it that much for spinnerbaits. Too whippy.