Bill Babler

Ulrich does sell boats, but not many. Their main business is repair. I believe they have at least 4 techs and they are totally covered up. Every time I’m there they look like ducks feeding off the bottom with their head in a bilge and their butts in the air. Really busy place. If it’s something that takes 15 minutes and they don’t have to roll it into a bay they will look at it, but they just can’t roll one out and roll you in and tear it down. Good folks over there.

Pan fish series are way weak. Not quite Eagle Claw weak but close. Saw this post and called about a replacement for an Avid series we broke earlier this year and they told me they still did not have a replacement. I'll continue to wait. They told me earlier they would not replace it but this time they said as soon as enough were available they would.

Neal finishes with 168 pounds and 56 bass. That dude can fish. He is good everywhere seems like a fantastic young man. Really happy for him.

Just after Phil came by this morning my client had a Super rainbow on, that jumped at least 4 times. There was a 15 lb. Brown trying to catch and eat it. The bow was a solid 18 inches. The brown slammed it at least 3 times. It was amazing. The flow was simply perfect this morning. Just the perfect fish catching day.

Totally different rods for me. On my Ned/Small Swim bait rod I'm looking for as long a cast as possible. I want an extremely fast tip and a sturdy backbone up to the 3rd. Guide above the handle. I want a rod that will throw a 1/4 oz. bait close to all the line on a 2500 series spinning rid and have the tip and bone to hook the fish at that distance, using 4 to 6 lb. Line. On the drop shot rod I want a 6'8" to 7' with a sensitive but much flatter tip. I'm still fishing fairly light line, but I'm only 15' to 30' from the bait. On the lift I don't need that fast tip, I want a lot softer, but still the bone in the back end of the handle. I use totally different rods for shotting and swim bait or nedding.

I'm sorry, I do not at this time. As far as spinning all I have is Ned Rig and small swim bait rods' up to 3/8th.

5 new Amistad came yesterday. Price on these rods is $229.00 no tax picked up. If shipped add $20. Price structure is totally strange and hard for me as each shipment of the same rods is varying up and down. Crazy. Thanks. Bill

Bobby that sounded like my trip. I just got lucky and found those top water bites early. Dutch 23 is a great day right now. Nice going

Beautiful overcast morning. Fishing for really over 2 hours without a bite during prime time makes your last sentence kind of mute. I was looking really for some fish in the KC area for a trip I have on Wednesday. Didn't do my job and find any. Got extremely lucky in the dawn topwater deal. Seriously doubt I could replicate it with clients and for that matter a fishing trip is 4 hrs. Not 45 minutes. Hope others did better than me. 7 bites in 4 hours is pretty slim pickins, especially when 5 of them were luck. Be safe this weekend

One of the local guides told me yesterday that last week on an AFTERNOON group trip out of Big Cedar, that he and 2 other guides sat on one gravel point 26' and caught and released 21 walleye with lots of keepers. Crawlers. More walleye in here than bass. I would think you would just hammer them on a traditional bottom bouncer rig in that 24' to 30' depth range on gravel if you put your mind to it. RPS moved to soon.

Day began out of Kimberling City, at 0600. It was really dark Started on a bluff end way out but saw lots of shad right on the bank so I moved in super quick. By 0700 I had a really nice bag swimming a Berkley Surge Shad and a Spro Poppin Frog right on the bank. I mean under 5'. Had 5 that would weigh 14 plus, all LM and not skinny. Caught everyone that bit. Hammered it, no doubt. Sad to say, but I was pretty much washed up at 0700. Had 2 dinks on a jig but other than that all I did was watch a guy trolling up some really nice walleye. Surface temps around KC at 80/81 degree way cooler than Shell Knob Big M was on Sunday. Put her on the trailer at 0900. Only 3 rigs in the Mill Creek lot when I put in and took out.

Saw a guy trolling today in the KC area and watched him catch a 5 pounder. He trolled by and caught another one about 3 pounds right in front of me. Said he had 11 this morning with with 9 keepers up to 7 pounds. Said he threw them all back. I don't doubt him as I watched him catch a third about 15 minutes later. Looked like 25 to 35 feet trolling DD Cranks.

TD, those are bigger than the Lobsters they serve at Whipper Snappers. Most likely better too.

That looks really good. With the water color and what they are spitting up we are giving them a solid dose of orange or copper.

Dutch we couldn’t find them deep Sunday, but they hammered that big jig shallow. Son Steven lost a jig and said he wanted to drop down to a 1/2 oz. since we were shallow Big jig was the deal for us even shallow. He switched back pretty quick.