AlabamaSpothunter

I've only seen stats from day 1, but FFS usage accounted for about 80% of fish caught. My takeaway after the first event is that if you allow even 10 minutes of FFS usage, it will be the dominate and deciding factor for who does well, and who doesn't. I now feel like NPFL is the only real product that will be different. Allowing folks to use FFS for a few hours each day is more than enough for it to still be the main factor in those events. The NPFL roster is also pretty dang incredible. Now if only they could get their coverage up to speed, and comparable to the MLF which is really fantastic.

Unlike the Texas Rig, the Free Rig falls squarely into the 'Freedom of Movement' bait category. All that means is that the rigging allows the actual lure significantly more play or freedom to move when rigged when compared to traditional bottom contact baits like a Texas Rig, or Football Jig. So, the Free Rig is to the Texas Rig as the Football Jig is to the Wobble Head. Besides the Free Rig, and Wobble head, the other main freedom of movement bait is the Carolina Rig. On a Free Rig It depends on the bait you use as to how much different it will be vs. a Texas Rig. On baits like a Zoom Lizard or Ol Monster, the action isn't near as dramatic as when you use large surface area or floating/elastomer type baits. For example, a Texas Rigged elastomer Bellow's Gill doesn't create much separation between the weight and bait when it hits the bottom, but on a Free Rig that same bait will create significantly more separation, which creates a slow spiraling fall after the weight reaches bottom. A Free Rig is often referred to as a mini C-Rig. Both rigs enable the bait to be unimpeded by the weight, hints the freedom of movement term. I fish Free Rigs mainly in heavy cover like laydowns, and brushpiles, not so much grass outside of weed lines so I can't really comment how it differs from a Texas Rig is submerged grasses. I can say that the Free Rig comes through heavy cover as good as the Texas Rig though. Lastly, if you look at water tank Free Rig videos, the differences to the naked eye many times are hardly noticeable depending on the bait, however in practice and when you're not just dropping a few feet of line straight down into an aquarium, the effects are greatly magnified. If you allow the Free Rig to hit bottom on slack line, the separation between weight and bait is significantly increased. Just keep that in mind when you watch those tank tests. Bottom line, you owe it to yourself to at least try a Free Rig out.

I was a diehard user of Gamakatsu standard EWGs, and then the nano coated models due to their price and sharpness. They're cheap enough that you can afford to just replace the hook vs. sharpening them. I also think the lighter gauge wire translated to better bait movement. I found those Haymakers a couple years ago and still haven't found a hook that is anywhere close to them. The gauge size, the sharpness, coating, and perhaps most importantly the hook point angle and bend is unbeatable I've found. Only problem is that the rest of the fishing world has found them as well, and they can be hard to get at times.

Makes sense, thanks guys. I've never had a problem with that though. That's one of many reasons why I prefer the Free Rig is that bullet weight mass isn't slamming back and forth on the knot. Now I wonder if the old school bead b/t bullet weight and hook was for sound like a C Rig, or for knot protection like this example with a Free Rig eta: @Texas Flood I've been meaning to use some bobber stops on my Free Rigs and create a little C Rig of sorts. You ever use them like that, or just for knot protection? I'm hijacking the heck out of this thread, sorry @FishTax....this is your sign to switch over to a Free Rig 😁

That's the first time I've ever seen a bead with a Free Rig. I can't really understand the thought process behind it.......the actual weight doesn't contact the bead to generate sound. At the risk of sounding stupid, what's the rational for the bead? When I was growing up, many of the older guys who were hammers used the glass bead in between the bullet weight and hook. In my early Bass fishing years I did as well. It's still a standard Texas Rig to me, just a rigging method that has gone out of style.

A Free Rig requires a different weight than the bullet one like the Texas Rig uses. The Free Rig weight is the only thing that differentiates it from a Texas Rig. It must have a swiveling open loop eyelet, that allows it too freely slide up and down your line. It also doesn't make usage of a glass or plastic bead.

Short of an actual shock study Katie, using your relative weight chart and the fish you catch is the best tool/gauge you have for determining that. If the fish in your lake are like the typical fish you post, I'd say the lake is perfectly okay and doesn't really need any culling. You rarely if ever catch a bunch of fat 3-4lb fish from overpopulated small lakes. If it's a problem, usually all the fish you catch are dinks and are skinny. Your right around the size where a body of water kind of self regulates itself. My home lake is about that size......the current biologist and manager of the lake doesn't believe we should cull any Bass, while biologists with the company who came out and did a shock study on it last March wanted us to remove a number of small Bass, and Crappie. My thought is that we should be culling the smaller Spotted Bass at minimum, but ultimately we must manage the fishery for all anglers, not just the trophy Bass anglers. Right now it's a pretty good balance, lots of fish to catch for lower skill anglers, and enough outlier trophy caliber fish to appease folks like myself. I have no doubts though that if we started culling the small Bass extensively, we'd have significantly more and larger top end fish.

1. Aging reservoirs with decaying cover. 2. Heavy tournament pressure which unproportionally negatively effects both aggressive fish, and larger female fish. We're essentially speed running evolution and culling out the most aggressive fish, along with many of the largest fish. 3. State fish and game agencies, power companies, and governments implementing incredibly destructive practices like spraying aquatic vegetation with chemicals, radically manipulating water pool levels, and stocking very harmful competitive fish species like Striped Bass. I'd rank those 3 reasons way above the practice of not culling enough small Bass when it comes to why our lakes and rivers are producing measurably less quality and large Bass. Now on small lakes and ponds, catch and release has ruined more of them than any other single factor. It's just not a factor in a lake the size of Toledo Bend. Oliver Ngy has some really great videos on his youtube channel discussing this issue. In one video he goes on a shock study with CA fish and game folks. As a sport, we must stop this incredibly shallow and stupid practice of boxing big fish just so we can take a stupid social media selfie! Seeing a guy ride around all day with 8-10lb fish in the box so he can get his 40lb end of the day glamour shot is perhaps my biggest pet peeve in the sport. It really does disgust me. It's the exact opposite of what Doug Hannon taught us to do with the big special rare specimens. It's a shameful practice.

Still one of the coolest reels ever made. These were the first high end reels I lusted over as a boy. I finally got one in high school. One of the few reels I have no idea what happened to 😢

To me there are two types of free rig weights.......shorter and fatter teardrops, and then longer and skinner teardrops. Personally, I really like the weight as compact as possible, so I always use the shorter/fatter teardrops. Lots of companies make essentially the same thing so I shop around for the best price. The majority of the time I buy the Flat Out tungsten ones below. Flat Out Tungsten Tear Drop Drop Shot Weights | Tackle Warehouse

Pretty sure it's 3 days, and 4 nights. So basically just 3 days of fishing. As A-Jay said, the flight expense isn't factored in, and the bottom of the barrel flight cost for me from BHM airport is about $1000. All told I suspect I could take the trip for about $3500. ETA: A huge consideration and one I'm not sure about is how much you tip the guides. Maybe A-Jay and others can comment on how much to expect to tip.

I hate to give an opinion other than the thing you're specifically asking about, but nothing has been more game changing for me in the bottom contact realm than a Free Rig. By the numbers, the Free Rig accounts easily for my most fish over 5lbs. Once I discovered the Free Rig, I'd say I almost never throw a T Rig anymore. 1/4th oz Free Rig weight. 4/0 Owner Haymaker EWG or Gamakatsu 4/0 Nano Coated EWG Missile Baits Destroyers and D Bombs in Super Bug and Brusier Flash, Bellows Gill Elastomer, and Zoom ol Monster in black grape or green pumpkin blue. Money back guarantee on that setup 😎

It's not just you A-Jay, I said yesterday or the first day how noticeable the angler's excitement level was when they caught a fish without it. Almost like you could sense their huge relief. This is why many people including myself believe we're handicapping a whole generation of Bass anglers with this technology. Imagine an 18-22yr old who has never known a Bass universe without FFS. Been away all day fishing, but I come home to see Jacob Wheeler back in 2nd place. Dude really is the greatest Bass angler alive.

Very cool Katie, thanks for sharing! I'm surprised how vivid the colors have held up, and the illustrations are beautiful.

Mark Daniels Jr., and Dustin Connell. They do a "rate the bait" show along with a couple other pros on youtube.

Thanks, and that's really wild! I assume you mean just the number 1 place guy skips a day. I agree with you; no way would I want to take a day off in the middle of leading an event. We've all seen how fast a school of fish, or a huge swath of bait can move in 24hrs.

So the weights reset after the first two days/knockout round? If that's the case I can totally understand, but then why is a guy like Lebrun burning through all his fish?

My buddy who just missed qualifying for the BPT by a spot or two roomed with Jake Lawerance last year on the invitationals. He said the dude is next level good, and genuinely a really nice guy. Obviously he's a savant on the scope but watching his second period you really get the sense that he's a well rounded angler. The BPT only takes 6 anglers from the Invitationals whereas the Elites take 9 from the Opens. I wonder if this is partly the reason we haven't seen the rookies outside of Drew Gill dominate the BPT like the rookie Open guys dominated the Elites last year. Surprising to see Wheeler fall down the leaderboard today after such a dominate day yesterday. Wonder what changed for him.

Yeah I seem to recall him losing one perhaps on a frog, and then casting back with the whacky worm. Not sure if it was the same fish, but he was clued in by missing or losing a fish before the monster. He came close to winning it, I think he lost another giant fish on the last day that would have given him the win.

OG Steez is my jerkbait reel TDX air metal is my free rig reel Calais 100a is a general purpose reel Reel tech doesn't move nearly as fast as line, hook, or lure tech in my experience. I wouldn't dream of using hooks and FC from the years those reels were made in.

Yeah that's the one, still one of my all time favorite catches. I love the Marshall's reaction 🤣

Pretty sure Justin Hamner's Lake Fork 11lb+ fish caught on a jerkbait was big fish of the year. 2023 Big Fish was Jason Christie with a Lay Lake 9.4lb fish caught ultra shallow on a whacky worm out of pads.

Bassblaster just included this fantastic test in his recent newsletter Loop knots are the ones in green.

That a boy Pat!!!! @FishTax Lol, I'm pretty sure I saw that exact same FB reel of a guy bow N arrow skipping a bait in between two dock floats.

If it was a 5 fish format, I'd say 4/5 fish would be FFS ones. So maybe 75-80%. Every fish counts format kind of muddies the water. There's just no way that traditional methods will hold a candle to the scope.