mjk86

Dont know what happened.....ive been dying to play with my new sonar!! Might try for a few crappies while im there though.

Nice work! A fine dinner indeed!! Im gonna put in this weekend either at valley park, or george winter. I just got new electronics and have been DYING

Heck of a catch!! Some very nice slabs!

Envious and in awe!! Hats off to you mr billet!!! Youll be eatin well tonight!

I dont lie....I just only catch trophy sized fish...

FYI balsa bee that thing looks darn awesome!! Id like to try and cast it just to do it.

Hahaha This could get out of hand very quickly.....you should string 4 or 5 of those dogs together....could probably set a record of some sort. Then on the very back tie on a 9in swimbait or something. I guess it doesnt matter as long as only 3 hooks right?

Managed lake or not....those fish are freakin awesome!! Way to go on some giant bass, id sure love to get one that big!

Wrench....thats because the ethanol destroys them so quickly that there is a shortage!!

Go with the specs on the reel for line size, and match that up with a rod with the same specs. Like most said, 7ft med power, fast or mod/fast action will work for almost any situation. Dont even bother asking about brands, everyone has different opinions. All of the major manufactures make good rods within a given price point. I use presidents with a 100-200$ spinning rod. I have, fenwick, abu, croix, bps, and cabelas, they are all different but all good, just gotta see what you like best. When you go to buy a rod, bring the reel with you, and google how to match up spinning rods and reels (balance and alignment). Most probably say that a 1 piece rod will out perform a 2 piece rod. I wouldnt know because all of my 1 piece rods have broken tips....so i buy 2 piece now. I use braid line, with a fluoro leader, but for most applications mono will do just as well.

Told ya buzz, just gotta switch forums...like A-Rigs 101, or more like A-rigs 501! Never thrown one personally...but I know where to look if I ever decided too.

I have 8ft 6in, med power, moderate action Okuma rods. Only like 30$ a piece. Reels....I use an old ambassador and an old pro qualifier. The reel doesnt matter much in my opinion as long as it has good drag. My line is power pro depth hunter with a 6ft fluorocarbon leader. It is metered so you dont need a line counter. Lots of guys use leadcore, but I can get down to 30ft with depth hunter, I dont need to go any deeper than that. Never used downriggers or anything like that...seems like a huge mess to deal with cuz stockton has lots of structure. Also get dive curves or precision trolling (or just use flicker shads...). Trolling with braid is advantageous to me because it doesnt stretch, however if using braid you need a rod with a softer tip....Ive trolled with fast tip rods before and i think i pulled bites free because there was no give. On stockton lake flicker shads will catch them all. Sizes 5,6,7, and 9. Bandits are popular for crappie, although ive never trolled them. Ive narrowed my trolling baits to flicker shads, shad raps, and reef runners. Good luck!! Stockton is my personal fav lake in missouri, and trolling will absolutely kill em in the summer and early fall.

4-5inch finesse style or senko style bait on a 1/0 EWG gammy rigged wacky......if its april or later. Its important to fish the bait weightless. Pitch it out next to visible structure. Let it sink slowly, dont move the rod at all. After a 10 count give it a twitch. Watch your line...it will just swim away. If nothing after a few twitches reel in and recast. 95% of fish hit on the first fall, no sense in working the bait back to you. Use whatever gear you want, lighter stuff is way more fun.

What MO smallies said....post this same question on the table rock forum....There will be pages of guys telling you exactly what they do. It seems like the go to for coldwater table rock fish.

IDK for sure but I think most new motors are designed to run ethanol blends. I have a 40hp mariner two stroke, its a 98, and ive never had any issues using the blends. Dont all cars run ethanol blends? Ive heard that before about ethanol not burning completely, or dissolving gaskets, or hoses and seals. I just dont buy it though....ethanol is no better a solvent then the additives already in gasoline, which there are many. Also....if you run any sort of Sea-Foam or injector cleaner stuff those are much much much more aggressive solvents. Im certainly no mechanic though, so I could absolutely be wrong. I just dont see it....

Nothing better than "mechanically separated meat by-product"!

I use live diamondback rattlesnakes rigged wacky style on a 6/0 EWG. Copperheads work well too. Just wear gloves, they are toothy critters

Makes sense, walleyes sure eat crawdads too. I just never consider crawdad patterns for my wally fishin.....guess ive been missing out!

Prolly thought he was bringing up grass or muck from the bottom and then saw a fish. Thanks for the info Quill, I never really consider crawfish baits when I target walleye....guess I should.

walleyes on a football Jig huh? That is something I would never have thought of!

Nice Wally!! On a tube...go figure. Question....When you fish a tube this time of year, do you just drag it really slow through the rocks? Like painfully slow? Do they just pick it up off the bottom really light?

Great fish!!

Thanks for posting this!! Being from st louis I could not attend, but this was incredibly informative, thanks to phil for posting, and thanks to bob for speaking!! Knowledgeable, friendly, and funny! Class act!

UGH I hate to see that. I always feel bad when one gets wounded and doesnt die. Poor critter should be put out of its misery, too bad the seasons over.

Im betting casting two times took all 20 minutes!