abkeenan

Doesn't really matter but I rig them to where the C-Tail is on the opposite side of the hook because from time to time the tail will foul in the hookpoint if they are on the same side.

Awesome report Bill. Pics always make it that much better. Can't wait to get down there and get on the water Friday morning.

Single tail 5" Kalin's grub. Don't really use anything else except the occasional 4" Zoom Fat Albert in watermelon. Kalin's Clear Salt and Pepper has been a standby in my family for about 15-20 years now.

X 2. Thanks, great resource.

Must be on the Indiana/Kentucky border and root for UK? I will be down a week from this Friday for the weekend running around the dam area as well.

I think you might have a tough time finding carp to shoot during April, especially in the dam/long creek area as the water there is the last to warm compared to the Kings/White/James arms and even more so this year being the water temps are 5-10 degree cooler than normal around this time. In my experience I really don't see carp cruising the shallows until May and the water temps are in the mid 60's to 70+. I am no carp authority but this is just my observation.

Glenn, All I do is get the fillets, trim them well with blood lines/darker meat cut out and check my best for bones, lightly salt and pepper them, coat in Andy's Fish Seasoning (We use Cajun as it is spicier than the Original but both good) and then just fry them in the deep fryer @ 350 (I think) for about 4 minutes per batch depending on size/thickness of fillets. Cook to golden brown and eat with Ore-Ida crinkle cut french fries. Doesn't get any better IMO.

Awesome report. Hope this big fish bite continues up until I get down there in about a week and a half. Hope this foot of snow that got dumped on me melts in time! Jeesh. Again awesome report and congrats on the success.

I agree. If you filet them right and get the blood lines/dark meat out of the filets they are just fine. Coat in Andy's Cajun Fish Seasoning, a lil' salt and pepper and throw them in the deep fryer....they are fantastic.

MixerMarx, Those are AWESOME colors you got there on the repaints. The "Table Rock Craw" is sweet. Net Bait has that EXACT color and that is what they call it too and I throw it probably 50% or more of the time as my jig trailer. Love purple accents on anything I ever throw on the rock. Kinda looks brownish when you put it in the water. DuckyDoty, Mag warts aren't as popular as the regular wiggle warts but I like them myself and you definitely have value there in those beat up baits. For Gods sake do not throw them away!

Got them done at Baitwerks last year. Pics don't do them justice. Here is a better pic of the color I posted above and another.

Nice report and pic of the crawdad. Here is one of my custom paints I had done.....can you say match the hatch?

Would like to have made it down for this but the weather is looking a little iffy and would rather use my days off on some weather that isn't going to be in the 30's and low 40's. Will be down in about 2 1/2 weeks for sure though. Would still like to go to another outing of OAF members like a golf outing or another picnic/fish fry type of event maybe this summer or fall or something. I hope to see a lot of pics from this event since I won't be there. Kudos to Phil for putting this together and trying to make this online community even better than it already is.

Crappie5, Where did you get that cleaning table/station? Is there a model/name of it? Looking to get something like that.

Nice fish and fantastic report. The weather this weekend looks to be pretty lousy so I may wait 2 weeks to come down. Congrats on the Table Rock Toad. Fish of a lifetime on the Rock for sure. Don't get all that much bigger than that here in MO.

My go to is just a plain smoke swimmin' minnow. Throw it 90% of the time.

If you really want to use a size 5 treble I would suggest getting the Owner ST-36's. They have size 5 which is an odd size treble and they are also a fantastic hook, just not the 2X strong like the ST-41. It annoys me they don't make the ST-41 in size 5.

The older pre rapala warts from the 70's or 80's have really crappy silver hooks that are TINY, probably like a size 8. Then they switched probably in the early to mid 90's to a larger bronze hook size 4 or 5 treble. I put size 4 Owner ST-41s on mine and size 4 KVD elites also. Some guys even put a size 4 on the front hook and 6 on the back but I don't do that.

Did you trying tuning it? Bend the eyelet on the bait in the opposite direction of the way it is running sideways. I just use needle nose pliers and keep adjusting until it comes back the way you want. Keep in mind it might take 10+ casts and adjustments to get it just right.

Dave, Funny you say that as I told my brother prices and warts are so high right now I was thinking of thinning the heard...but he said keep them as he thinks the prices with continue to rise. Not sure about that but it also made it easier for me to NOT part ways with my stash. lol. I am like a hoarder with these things. If you've ever watched "Hoarders" on TLC and they say "It was a great deal" on something they didn't need, that is pretty much me. If I see a wart that is a decent price even though I certainly don't need it I will buy it. Its a problem but now prices soaring on Ebay that is keeping me from doing it so much. Its also funny how each year whatever won the Bass Master Classic sells like hot cakes all over the country. Brandon Palaniuk (Finished 2nd) had good success throwing a phantom green craw Mag Wart in the Classic and that has contributed to the higher prices and if you go look at Tackle Warehouse they are now out of Mag Warts in both Green and Brown Phantom...so funny. Sorry for the high jack there, But if I were getting some done I would get them done in colors you can't find. Why get something painted in an exact old pattern that you can still purchase in that color? I personally like all the craw color patterns, V37, 62 and 63 and especially the V209. I am not as big as fan of the V210 and V38 like a lot of the guys here, just never have really done well on them. My uncle is strictly a V40 guy and that is all he throws and always does well on it. Lots of guys like the rare Missouri Craw SP-90 so that might be a color you would want to get painted and replicated as they are not only hard to come by but also cost upwards of $100 a piece now.

Hey guys, Just wanted to get some opinions on what you guys are using to clean fish. Currently using an electric Rapala model but saw the "Bubba Blade" on TV and saw some online advertising on it as well and the guy makes cleaning crappie look like a 3 year old could do it with that knife. Granted the guy is trying to sell knives and as he claims in his video that he cleans like 10,000 fish a year so he is bound to be a master of doing by now but still he gets nice fillets in like 10 seconds per fish. Just wondering what you guys think or if any of you have used the Bubba Blade. PS- I DO NOT want this to turn into World War III about killing fish. I only take crappie, bluegill, whites and cats for meat but that is a personal decision of mine. If you clean blacks and brownies is not against the law and I do not pass judgement on you. I would prefer more guys practice catch and release but you are more than entitled to take your daily limit as the Missouri game laws regulate. So please lets not get into that topic as it has gotten kind of nasty in the past. Thanks, -Brett

It was all the new Ranger....nothing to do with Champs skills. Must be the boat. But seriously great job Champ. That is quite the feat to place 6th with that many boats. Congrats.

WOW and WOW. This right here is why this is the best forum on the web. That is just top notch info you won't get anywhere else from guys speaking from experience. Truly awesome and stored into the memory bank. Bill and Dave, you guys (Table) ROCK!.

trytofish, Just keep your eyes on this board up until the moment you leave for your trip with your grandson and maybe post again with questions on a particular area of the lake you are wanting to fish. Guys here are always giving good advice, info and what currently is going on on Table Rock. I don't want to dissuade you from trying to go after Walleye but they are not easy to come by on Table Rock and trolling around for 4 hours and be lucky to catch 2 or 3 might not be the best way to keep the 10 year old interested. The gentlemen above with the first post is just about the foremost authority on walleyes on Table Rock (and this forum) and he works his tail off just to catch a handful. If you want walleye he is the man to ask questions and he leaves no stone un-turned when divulging invaluable info right down to specific areas, baits, presentation and even trolling speed to the 1/10th of a MPH. RPS is just an awesome member here. Don't know when you are coming but the crappie should be going pretty good and the whites should be running the rivers soon. Like I said keep an eye on these boards and good luck with your grandson, they are lasting memories as my grandfather is the one who taught me just about everything I know about fishing and got me addicted to this amazing outdoor sport.

If you are chasing smallies you are in the right area. Places all over the dam area and you would be hard pressed to not hook into a few. Find flats and gravel points and you will find them. As far as cover its not mandatory but it doesn't hurt. I have caught some nice smallies in just about every pocket, cut and cove from Combs Ferry all the way to the 86 Bridge. Good luck, you are coming at a usually great time (end of March to early April) when they start to put the feed bag on in the dam area/long creek. As far as the crappie I am not an expert but I have always had good luck in Brushy Creek during the time you are coming and they always relate to the wood in my experience. If you find one....you will find more right there with them. Just have to find the depth they are at and you can get into them back in the back of Brushy. Word to the wise....bring a ton of crappie jigs/jigheads/swimming minnows. If I make more than 20 casts with the same jig head and haven't lost it its a miracle.