Nitroman

Just had 3 couples @ our resort that come each spring & fall & fish for nothing but BLUEGILL. All 3 couples fish the exact same way all the time. Split shot about 18 in. up from the hook, they vary the weight to control the depth, small hook for their bait which is " ALWAYS & ONLY " live crickets. They either cast or drag the bait keeping the split shot on the bottom. This trip I would say they caught close to 400, of that they kept & cleaned about 250. Many of those were very nice, in the 8 to 9 inch range. About 300 came from an area north of the HWY 86 BRIDGE on the west shoreline, just around the point ( headed south toward the HWY 86 BRIDGE ) where they all go & jump off. The balance were caught in 2 coves in the POINT #6 area, just before & just after the point marker sign. All fish came in the 18 ft. to 22 ft. depth range. Good luck & hope this helps.

" SORRY ABOUT THAT " !!!!!!! The new model BERKLY LIGHTNING ROD is a: LIGHTNING ROD SHOCK, " NOT as I originally posted LIGHTNING ROD STRIKE " !!!!!!!

I would suggest you go with either the BERKLY LIGHTNING ROD & or LIGHTNING ROD STRIKE. The LIGHTNING ROD has been around for years & improved & up-dated to incorporate the latest technology. I still have some of the originals ( that have been around for years ) that I will loan out to folks to use. For the price you will not find a rod that can compete with it's quality & performance. An all around good choice would be a 6ft. 6in. medium action & or a 6ft. 6in. medium heavy action for heavier baits. I have not had one of these rods break in all the years I have owned them. Make sure to take a look @ both the LIGHTNING ROD & the new LIGHTNING ROD STRIKE, it's a little more expensive but you may like it more. I think you will like what you see & when you get it out on the water be very happy with it's performance. Rember you don't have to spend " BIG BUCKS " to get a quality product.

They have been around for years & I have used them across the country with good results. They will catch any species of Bass as long as crayfish are natural to the body of water you are fishing. The " WIGGLE WART " has & continues to be the crankbait that everyone throws on TABLE ROCK & with good reason. But, I have found that @ times throwing something different ( something they are not use to seeing ) can be very productive. I have used the REBEL CRAYFISH with good results & ARBOGAST MUD-BUG with fantastic results ( " GOOD LUCK FINDING THE MUD-BUG " ) on TABLE ROCK, LAKE OF THE OZARKS, & STOCKTON for more years than I can remember. Give them a shot, you will like them, & don't tell anyone.

I of course meant HWY 65 NORTH.

I have to go right past you ( HWY 165 to traffic light ) to get to HWY 65 SOUTH, if you would like to give me a call this evening @ 1-417-334-4678 or tomorrow A.M. whichever is better for you & we can try to hook up for the ride.

The 5.0 should do the job for you just fine. I think you will find the most common ratios used for crankbaits to be 4.7:1, 4.8:1, 5.0:1, 5.1:1. A ratio of 3.8:1 is extremely slow, kind of the oposite of a 7.1:1 which is extremely fast. Most times with crankbaits you don't want to be to fast or to slow, you kind of want to shoot for a happy medium which is what a 5.0:1 will give you.

Go South under the HWY. 86 Bridge & continue past LONG CREEK MARINA, as a landmark watch for overhead power lines. After you have gone under the overhead power lines the 1st. cut on your right hand side will be Mills Branch, the 1st. cut on your left hand side will be Cole Spring Hollow. Be aware that if you go far enough back in Mills Branch you will cross into Ark. waters ( IT IS CLEARLY MARKED WITH A MO/AR SIGN ) & need an Ark License. At this time with the ice melting & running large amounts of cold water into the lake I would strongly suggest live bait, a JIG / MINNOW combo, or GREY ROANRUNNER / MINNOW combo. If you want a 3rd. spot, if you have an Ark. License continue south you will come to an island, go around the island " DO NOT GO THRU THE OPENING @ THE EAST END OF THE ISLAND " you will see a good size cut almost straight in front of you on the East shoreline, this is Blair Branch, give it a try also. GOOD LUCK !!!!!!! If you get to Cricket Creek Marina you miissed Blair Branch, turn around & go back.

The only Lucky Craft bait I use is their Pointer ( JERK BAIT ) so I am not a good source of information on their standard type crankbait. What crankbaits I do use & recommend to our guests on a regular basis are: BOMBER Fat Free Shad, models BD5F, BD6F, BD7F. STRIKE KING Pro Model, models Series 5, & Series 6 also STRIKE KING Tour Grade, model Series 5. NORMAN LURES, models Deep Little N, Deep Diver 14, Deep Diver 22. BANDIT, 300 Series, 400 Series, 700 Series. RAPALA Shad Rap, model SR07, SR08, SR09. REBEL Crawfish, size 3/8oz. & 7/16 oz. STORM Wiggle Wart, model V ( 2in. 3/8 oz. ) REBEL & STORM: " NATURAL CRAWDAD COLORS ONLY " All others: Shad, Bluegill, Sunfish patterns. If you are on a limited budget none of the above are going to " BREAK THE BANK " !!!!!!! You should be able to purchase at least 2 & sometimes 3 of the above brands & models for the price of 1 Lucky Craft. This should give you a starting point & I hope it's in some way helpfull. Of course time of year, water temperature & current weather conditions all factor into which ones to tie on & throw at them.

Don't know how you can go wrong with that choice. I would suggest ( if you are going to use the reel just for crankbaits ) that you take a look @ the BPS David Fritts Signature Series also. This would also be a good one as it is designed for crankbaits &, it will leave you with a few dollars for a couple of those " BIG CRANKBAITS " !!!!!!! Very good thinking on the 5.2:1 gear ratio, stay with the lower gear ratios so you don't overpower the crankbait.

Contact Bob Juneman @ 1-417-338-2316 ( his Motel & house # ) or 1-417-294-7248 his cell#. Bob enjoys crappie fishing & can tell you where it's happening at if it's happening. Tell Bob you got his name & number from me on this forum.

Hey there kcangler, good to hear from you & we look forward to you coming down. The bass are here & waiting for you, each & every one that has found it's way into my boat have been put right back.

After many years of fishing crankbaits I have found that either a 6ft.6in. medium action or medium heavy action rod works best, this will vary with the crankbait & it's indivudal action & resistance to moving through the water. I feel that a reel with a 5 to 1 retrieve ratio will serve you best. The high speed retrieve reels ( 6 to 1 etc. ) are capable of over-powering a crankbait & not allowing it to reach it's maxium depth. After much testing I don't think you can go wrong with fluorocarbon line, 10lb. test is probably your overall best bet on Table Rock unless you get into some dirty water areas then you could move up to 12lb. or 14lb. but almost always the lighter the better, if you can drop down to 8lb. & get away with it do so. My personal preference is Berklley Vanish. I do change out hooks, 1st. I suggest you stay with the same size hook that came on the crankbait, changing the hook size can ( especially going larger ) change the crankbaits action. Going to a round bend / wide gap hook of the same size will give you better grab & hold, most factory split-rings are fine & only need to be replaced if damaged in some way. I do replace the line tie split-ring with Bass Pro Shops XPS Rick Clunn Signature Series Performance Split-Rings, these will elimante you tieing your knot in the wrong spot which can easily be done on a standard round split-ring. Finally in the area of hooks, get yourself some VMC BARBARIAN RED treble hooks & give them a try. I don't put them on all my crankbaits but on shad - bluegill - sunfish color patterns they can make a difference. Nothing wrong with using a Fast Lock Bass Snap to attach your crankbait to your line. Storm puts them on many of their crankbaits @ the factory, personally I like a split-ring attached to the crankbait. I have used snaps for years & never had one break & or open up. Do not use swivels in any type of combination with the snap, just the snap. Vary your speed & type of retrieve, bump into as much stuff as you can, keep your rod tip down & good things will happen. One final secret & please don't tell anyone, if you can find them, get yourself some Arbogast MUD-BUGS in crawdad color pattern & when the Storm Wiggle Wart bite gets hot throw one of these & " HOLD ON " !!!!!!!

Winter time, cold water, & it seems like they are not interested in any of those previously mentioned, try a bucktail jig with a 4in. or 6in. Uncle Josh PORK EEL or SPRING LIZARD.

There are a multitude of " QUALITY RODS " out there waiting for you. The length of the rod is what you are comfortable with but my guess is the #1 seller & most popular is a 6ft. 6in. in either MED. or MED./ HVY. action. I would suggest a MED./HVY. action for 1/2 oz. & heavier football jigs. If you drop down to 1/4 or 3/8 oz. jigs go with a MED. action rod. What you spend is up to you but there are " QUALITY RODS " available for less than $100.00 that will do the job for you & leave nothing to be desired. Take a look at the Berkley Lightning Rod @ around $40.00 @ BASS PRO SHOPS, if you want to step up one level take a look @ the Berkley Series 1 Rod @ around $60.00 to $80.00 @ Cabela's. Both are "QUALITY RODS " that have been around for years, time tested, improved, @ backed by their manufavturer. I am not knocking any other brand of rod or saying to limit your search to only Berkley Rods but I can tell you from 1st. hand experience & years of using their products that BERKLEY & BASS PRO SHOPS rods will do the job for you. Also, not that statistics mean alot @ times, BERKLEY RODS & BASS PRO SHOP RODS together out-sell ( percentage wise ) all other brands of rods put together ( PER FISHING TACKLE RETAILER ) in the fresh water fising tackle industry. And a final plus, the money you save will let you buy some more FOOTBALL JIGS in those new colors & weights that you just can't live without.

Here are the facts: If you have to go across private property to get to the launch ramp it " IS NOT OPEN TO The PUBLIC " . As resort owners pay an annual rental fee to the USACOE for boat docks, launch ramps, etc. anything on USACOE property paid a rental fee on is deemed private property that becomes the resort owners responsiblity. Therefore the resort owner has the right to determine who can & cannot use anything on that property. Some believe that if they enter onto the property ( BOAT DOCK ETC. ) from the lake ( OFF A BOAT ) they are legal, in fact they are trespassing & either the State of MO. Water Patrol or the Sheriffs Dept. can arrest & take into custody people doing such & charge them with criminal trespass.

Yeah, nice guy & nice story. But, have the " GOOD OLD BOYS " down in Texs ever heard about the " CATCH & RELEASE " concept ??????? Sorry but if you catch & then clean & eat an 8lb. bass anywhere you should be taken out behind the barn, shot in the head & then disciplined. At least that's my opinion.

I can tell you from experience that the BERKLEY LIGHTNING ROD 6ft.6in. Medium Action has the action you have described. I cannot tell you that the BPS CRANKIN STICK does but, as it is a composite rod ( graphite/fiberglass ) it probably has more more flex in it's action.

Check out BERKLEY LIGHTNING ROD'S. These rods has been apound for years, are proven performers, not expensive & overall very good quality. You should be able to find one for around $50.00 I would suggest you take a look @ their 6ft.6in. medium action rod. I think you will be impressed. I know BASS PRO carries them & have for years.

STORM WIGGLE WARTS in Brown & Green Crawdad patterns & NORMANS DD14 in assorted Shad patterns. Look for shad, if they are at a reasonable depth ( 12 ft. or less ) & you have good weather conditions one of these crankbaits should produce for you.

What time does this tournament end, anyone know ? " THANKS IN ADVANCE " !!!!!!!