motoman

- Hahaha......that made me chuckle out loud champ!:-P - You forgot to mention Dave; fish it slow..........which I have to tell myself, even when i think I'm fishing it slow enough.......I'm not!

Fishin22, you can save a lot of time and money if you hire a guide(if tournament rules allow) even for just a half a day. - LOTS of great guides in the area, and you'll gain a TON of knowledge that years of trips down won't get you. - I've fished table rock for years; and see the same guys at our resort every spring. They spend a ton of money on gas, lodging, etc. and complain about not catching fish.........every year. And I've heard the same guys complain about how expensive a guide is. But, if they would add up the expenses everytime they come down; plus the hours they spend frothing the water for minimal results; a guide is a steal at the price! - When I first starting coming down to table rock, years ago. It took me fishing table rock for YEARS, and researching the heck out of it online. It took a LONG time for me to catch fish with any sort of regularity. In hindsight, Hiring a guide woulda saved me TONS of time and money in the longrun, and made those early trips MUCH more enjoyable. - Or you can just watch fishing reports here closely. - And read the BASS elite series results and articles from this week. Both places will be a wealth of info.

- I believe you just have to sign up and pay the money well in advance; then wait for the word if you got in or not? But, someone more 'in the know' will clarify. - Also, to all you Marshall's; (Alex:-) please give us all the good, and not-so-good details of your experience when the tourney is over. I was going to sign up this year, but couldn't make scheduling at home work out.:-( and I'm dying to hear about the details of your experience!:-) I'm excited as all heck for you Marshall's that got in this year!:-)

- I was watching that too quill, and thought the same thing. Yikes!

A bit off topic; but a great free weather app for when you're on the water.(like the elites now) - Weatherbug is the name, and they have an option called 'Spark' which has realtime lightning indicators on the map. - Granted, if you hear thunder, that's one thing. But this 'Spark' option is one more tool to keep everyone safe. (Looks like lightning is VERY close for some of the guys down there!:-(

I fish table rock for the deep water. And seeing how power poles and talons are shallow water anchors; they're useless for me on the rock. - I suppose if a guy hugs the shallows, there may be some use to them on the rock. But that would kinda defeat the purpose of fishing table rock........in my opinion. - I've only seen a handful of them ever on boats down there. Never seen one of them ever being used. But I mostly fish the mid-lake myself.

I believe just the dmv like you're registering any other vehicle. At least that's what I've always done with my boats and trailers for stickers and plates. But I don't actually keep my boat docked on the lake; so maybe there's something differently that needs to be done to watercraft left in a slip?

Nice report there sholder; sounds like you guys were definitely on fish. That's certainly nice catching them in a tourney vs. Struggling without a bite all day. But, when you fish against one of the Fanns down there; be prepared to be humbled. I've learned that the hard way.:-( - On a side note.......when you say, "fished there for a few hours, without another bite"........when do you guys decide to leave a spot on tournament day? I'm just curious how others approach this scenario.

Great report as always quill!

Agree with all of the above........you will spend FAR less money and time by just hiring a great guide! It's amazing how the little nuances they teach you can make ALL the difference between zero and hero on the water!

Not a problem........don't be shy if you have any other questions, lots a great guys here to help you out!:-)

This should be the days you're looking for; but I'm doing this from my phone; which can be a bit iffy. But, You can search other months and bodies of water too. - http://www.mshp.dps.mo.gov/WP04Web/app/searchRegattaWeb?action=Search+Again

I've done well on the damiki hydra at the rock in the spring. They look very similar; but I believe the skirt is actually poured from a buoyant soft plastic, and the body, not-so-buoyant. Slow drag on the bottom.

Nice, thanks!......I'll have to be on the lookout for that.:-)

Sounds interesting........is this it Dave? - https://store.intermediaoutdoors.com/products.php?product=2014-In%252dFisherman-Bass-Guide

I used fireline for years and loved it; then I found nanofil; and love it more. I believe fireline and nanofil are a thermally fused line; a different animal from traditional braid. Very different from any braids I've tried over the years..........Coupled with a Seguar Fluoro leader, it's fantastic. - I splurged and bought some Seguar Tatsu on sale and it is unreal! NONE of the negative issues of Fluoro; but all the benefits. It's expensive, but I only use a leader anyway; so the cost doesn't really come into play.

Good article, and cool pix quill! But why the heck would he not catch this action on video?!???!(wishful thinking I guess)

Hey, happy birthday bill............this means even more wisdom to share!:-)

- Interesting observation Dave; have you gotten a chance to examine the baits of different countries of origin up close?........like any physical appearance differences. - I'd be curious if there are any internal differences, like if the rattles are similar?; wall thickness differences? etc.

- Gambler has/had their Giggy Stick........I've caught a few fish on them; not enough to throw them with any regularity though.:-( - http://www.basstackledepot.com/gambler-giggy-stick.aspx - I've long forgotten about the alka seltzer trick!

Over the years, I've read the sears PM-1 is the way to go for larger cca's. Not cheap; but it seems to get great reviews.

Thanks for posting that Dave; that's a great looking bait; be sure and keep us posted on any results!:-)

- You are correct ab.........sorry about that, I don't think I worded that correctly. I meant to say there were times when the water was low/high, and my graph would show the contour lines at a certain depth; yet because of high/low water; my sounder was showing actual depth; which was contradicting what the contour lines were labeled.

- Someone correct me if I'm wrong; but unless you adjust the lake level in your mapping program; you won't get truly accurate contour readings of your exact position on the topo. Unless the lake is at normal pool? (Or do the new graphs compensate for that somehow?)

You can fish them; but I believe there may be a stipulation about fishing too close to docks that sell fuel? (Or something like that) - But, I've noticed a lot of docks put up signs that warn about no fishing, and try to use some fancy language to scare anglers off........which is total garbage. I wish I could find the exact language online about the regulation. But, haven't been able to find it yet. - I had a boat owner give me some 'lip' about not being able to fish around their dock. I was polite, and told him I believed he may be mistaken; and that the regulation only applies to the actual dock selling fuel. Which I was nowhere near. (And for the record, I wasn't even fishing dock slips; jus the outside of the community dock) And I told him I would certainy admit I was wrong if he had the necessary documentation to correct me. He used some foul language and left. - I hate that we even had an exchange like that. Because I think there is already a poor perception of anglers being disrespectful. And I do understand boat owners getting upset finding lures snagged in their boat seats and things; on a lift. So I try to be as cordial as possible in those circumstances. - I hope I didn't veer too far off topic?........and Merry Christmas too!:-)