fishinwrench

All of this immediate hook and split ring upgrading on every bait y'all buy is crazy. If it just gives you something to do and you enjoy doing it then that's cool, but making up gay excuses for doing it, and encouraging others (especially new POOR anglers) to do it religiously is kinda lame. I like bronze hooks, so if a bait comes with shiny nickle plated hooks I swap them out, but otherwise I think the stock hooks on today's quality baits are perfectly fine. (With recent exception to WAR EAGLE....but you can't swap those). ?

Poor Harry ! I told you to leave those dang doctors alone.

Hard to tell in the vid whether it's lacking fuel or loosing spark. Does pumping up the primer bulb bring it back to life ? Or try engaging the choke/prime when it starts to fall on its face. If either 'snap it out of it" momentarily then yes it is a fuel system issue. If not then it's likely an ignition system prob.

I have several that have wobbly heads and I actually kinda like that. I'm assuming that the wire is attached to the hook so there should be no separation there. The fish made a charge under the boat and when I leaned on him he came unbuttoned, but then I noticed my trailer was gone. Went to replace the trailer and had nothing to put it on. It broke the hook shank right at the lead head. Bummed me out because I really do like those 3/8 tandem willows they make. Gonna have to find an alternative I guess because I can't be worried about breaking a hook when fishing a Spinnerbait.

For some guys only the finest will do, but in my opinion (and flippin'/pitchin' is what I do more than anything) a high modulus, expensive rod is both unnecessary and unwanted for short line, heavy cover stuff. As long as the rod is not overly tip heavy, has plenty of backbone, and is built tough, it will do perfectly. The last thing I want when fishing in tight heavy cover is a rod that I can't be mean to.

Love War Eagle Spinnerbaits....but a 4 pounder was lost at the boat today because the freakin HOOK BROKE! I can understand the wire breaking on a heavily used bait, but the HOOK on a fairly fresh Spinnerbait ? Dangit! I have 75.00 worth of Spinnerbaits that I don't trust anymore. Luckily this one made it to the boat though Is this a "thing" with War Eagle's ? Maybe some better hooks would be a reasonable improvement to an otherwise perfect Spinnerbait. I'll pay the extra 20 cents.

Not bad! Speaking of Buck cr. does anyone ever catch any good ones from that textbook ledge in North Buck ? I've worked it over probably 20 times over the years and can't ever recall taking a keeper off of it. Hit it a couple weeks ago and could only catch one short. Does it get pounded, or do the bass just not like it?

She must be a lousy cook.

A jig or a worm ELSEWHERE. You are wasting your time trying to target those specific fish IMO, but I'd love to be wrong and taught differently. So if you figure them out, and there's any size to the ones you catch, please let me know. If I had nowhere else to fish I'd probably start by trying an A-rig.

I'm offended that Largemouth don't count. This is not very 2016 of you.

Boats will crash, cars will crash, a few might get hit by lightning, and plenty will blow their hand off with fireworks. It's a given. All we can do is hope it's nobody we know because we all hate hospitals and funeral homes.

Some Mercury V6 outboards have issues overheating at idle during the hottest part of summer (shiny black cowling in direct sunlight, low water pressure, ect). Other than that....Not really. That extra 15-20 degrees is no big deal. Operating temps should still be within an acceptable range if the cooling system is operating right. It may even run better. Your motor should have an overheat warning system that will let you know of an overheat situation way in advance of any damage.

Oneshot, I knew the old school teacher. I used to deliver ice to her little store. She had a lot of stories and I always looked forward to having lunch there. There was a certain Amish family that she had a serious beef with. She kept a rusty old scattergun under the counter and must have reminded me 20 times why it was there. From the looks of that gun I wouldn't have bet on it firing, but it made her feel "prepared".

So do you think that fish was there the whole time, or do you think it moved in between casts? I have had several similar experiences where for whatever reason I kept casting repeatedly to an object and on the 7th or 11th cast a fish bit. Oddly enough it's always been on Spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, crankbaits. Never on a jig or worm. Not sure what to make of that, because I have tried repeatedly pitching jigs/worms/lizards to a piece of cover or a dock corner that I felt should have a fish on it, but it has never paid off, with the exception of visual bedding fish. This isn't to say that I won't work around a piece of cover shooting from different angles, but making the exact same cast/pitch over and over only seems to work with faster moving baits.

I don't see all the "intoxicated drivers" that everyone else cries about, and I'm on the lake alot. Either I'm blind or there is a serious propaganda issue going on. I'm not bothered by the boaters, just their wakes. I get away from it simply by avoiding main lake spots. There is plenty of fish holding water in the back 1/2 of creeks and coves, and I almost always have it all to myself. The ride from one creek to the next is sometimes a challenge, but it's really no big deal as long as you take your time and pay attention.

Knowing why they ate your bait is irrelevant. Doesn't matter. But knowing why some days they all want to eat it, and other days it seems none of them do....Now that's the perplexing part. And how interesting that the discussion has now turned to women and hookers. Why are we men so fascinated by things that we'll never EVER understand ? We are obviously programmed for ultimate failure.

Yeah well, therein lies the difference between pre-spawn and post-spawn. You are definitely post spawn now. So a pretty little thing walking across a parking lot might get your attention but you probably won't go chasing after her. Drop a hooker in your lap though....and there's likely to be trouble.

Just imagine that you are a big ol'bass sitting in a brushpile. You sense something tickling it's way closer to you, so you lazily turn to see..... Awwwe it's a pretty little worm, look at it with it's glossy tungsten head and pretty little sparkles. I just love those, they are so cuuute. Don't hurt it ! Now, same bass..... A big nasty looking brown and black snake suddenly comes crashing down almost hitting you in the head. SONUVABITCH! Gulp! It's like sitting in a lawn chair on a gravel bar when a butterfly comes flittering by, vs. when a horsefly comes ripping by your head. Which scenario makes you jump up ready to kick some @ss ?

See what happens when you can't cuss ?? If I could have just said bull$#!t, like I wanted to, then everyone would have understood.

I catch more big shallow largemouth by using a heavy jig, worm, or lizard and dropping it right in his face. A lighter bait that kinda sashays it's way to the bottom doesn't get eaten near as often as one that sinks fast and then just sits there and quivers for a few seconds. Not sure why but I assume it is a reaction thing. Something suddenly crashing in on his turf gives him an adrenaline rush, and if it's small enough to fit in his mouth he just eats it. But then there are Senko's and flukes.... Sometimes that slow quivering/gliding fall gets the nod. I find that most times it works opposite of how you'd expect though. Active fish do better with slow retrieves, and inactive fish are easier coaxed into biting by surprising them with something that's all of a sudden in his face. Trying to slowly "finnese" inactive fish to bite just doesn't work for me. During the slow times here on the lake in Summer most guys cast a worm way past the brushpiles and work the worm over and through them. Not me. I'll try to land my worm/jig so that it sinks right on top of the brush, and be prepared to set the hook as soon as the line goes slack, or shortly after. If the fish see or hear that worm coming from 8-10 feet away I think they just look at it and let it go. But if it suddenly falls right within a few feet of him he'll eat it. Bill Dance says "use the lightest weight possible that still allows you to feel it, and come through the cover"...... That's Malarky ! Put on a HEAVY weight and crash that fishes party. You can't change an inactive fish's mood by slowly creeping a little wiggly thing along near him, but you CAN change his mood by startling him.

Why couldn't I maintain my bachelor status ? WTF was wrong with my brain? I was happy, could fish all the time, and had more money than I knew what to do with. I need my head examined!

Says the HAPPY bachelor guy.

So in other words........ You're ol'lady has already arranged the place where you'll be staying, and you have to make the best of it. Poor fella 10" worms or 3/4oz. Jigs for bass. They'll be around brushpiles and other cover/structure in 15-20'. Bandit 200 & 300 crankbaits for crappie. They'll be suspended about 40-50' off the steeper banks. Troll them 1 1/2 cast behind the toon as slow as you can go (2mph or less). Sonny's Super sticky catfish dip bait. Channel cat will cruise long tapering points and back end flats in 8-10' during the mornings and evenings, and at night. The bluegill here are stunted. Not even big enough to excite a small child. If you want to get them interested in fishing that's a sure way to make them start whining for their video games.

Summertime around the Osage Beach area is a bit crazy, your pontoon and it's occupants might take a beating. There are resorts on the Niangua arm that are nice, and the water there is usually less rough. If it were me I'd home base there and make the short drive (30 minutes) into Osage Beach/Lake Ozark for shopping and dinner, or whatever. Who wants to spend their entire vacation (with kids in tow) in the middle of an overly crowded party metropolis?

This is for guys that use their trolling motor to "troll": If your wiring is necked down anywhere (plug, 12/24/charge switch, ect.) then you really need to keep an eye on the heat being generated there during extended use. Anytime you narrow down a circuit and put it under a load, those reduced contact spots will begin to heat up and WILL NOT throw the breaker until a hot(+)wire melts into a ground(-)wire. A fire initially confined under the bow deck of a fiberglass boat is hard to put out. The best way to eliminate excess heat in a TM circuit it to hard wire it. No plugs, No switches at the bow. Just TM power leads spliced securely (and sealed) to the TM wires going forward, and a breaker at the battery.