Mitch f

totally agree Here is a pic of the crawfish jigs before I trim the weed guard length, I try to trim them to length by bending them back to the hook and trimming them to length half way between the barb and the point. They are very basic looking as you can see! Very true!

You've got a good eye Ham, that's exactly what it is....a walleye head from Do-it molds. I just powder paint it white and add fingernail polish. This is why I don't tie many of these patterns! Ha

It happens, the fact that you were even able to hook a nice fish in these conditions is pretty outstanding. Zipstick went yesterday and had 35 degree water temps at the lower stretch. I asked him how he did, he replied "35 degree water temps...need I say more?"

I'm "mom sitting" my mother this weekend; My brother is taking his wife to Bentonville to Crystal Bridges Art gallery where they are presenting Georgia O'Keefe paintings.... My sister in laws favorite artist! So I have the time to type on this subject, so please indulge me! I got interested in hair jigs over 12 years ago or so and had a guy from Stockton, MO named Phil Schafer get me started with tying them. I always wanted to get the jigs to "match the hatch" and look as much like the prey as possible. This concept will get you more fish, to a point. The action is obviously another big factor because you need both pieces for the recipe. This is why I always try to get the proportion of the jig to be correct. Since jigs are basically tied in two pieces...the body and the tails , you need to make sure they are of realistic sizes. If you don't think this is important, then tell me why a Ned rig will out-produce a full Senko at certain times of the year? I tie two patterns for smallmouth, minnows and crayfish. The minnow jigs work well in moving water near a warm water influence of some kind. Since they don't have a weed guard, they have a high mortality rate. Just cast out and reel in slowly, be sure not to add any jerking/twitching motions (unless you're going for trout). The rabbit and fox add enough action just from the reeling in process. The smallmouth are usually totally infatuated with this jig and will either nail it at first sight (smallish fish), or swim up slowly behind it at a slightly faster speed and just open their mouth to overtake it (larger fish). This is why it's important to stay in close touch with the jig and not allow a loop of slack in your line. Here is a picture of one of the minnow patterns I used to tie. Right now I tie 5 to 1 more crawfish jigs than minnow jigs. I used to tie rabbit strip legs on the craw jigs but I don't do that anymore. Now I only tie about 1.5" of fox or raccoon hair and use my plastic craw for a trailer. Any small plastic trailer will work. Note: You need to really watch though to make sure they allow soft plastics in the area you're fishing. I usually don't use palmered crosscut rabbit anymore because once you wrap the strip on, you have no room left to run your soft plastic trailer up onto the keeper on the hook. You can do what Al does and "nose hook" the trailer in this case. I always use a weed guard on the craw lures. If you fish these jigs often enough with good quality equipment you will develop a feel where something seems a little out of the ordinary. This could be a fish! Like MOsmallies said, setting the hook is for free! so true... The other day I noticed I had a .5" diameter piece of leaf that had been impaled by my hair jig hook and it felt like I was reeling in a small stick! I personally wouldn't use anything below 6 lb test for winter fishing, actually I normally use 8 lb, but thru fancy marketing strategies some line manufacturers might have a 6 lb test that is the same line diameter as the 8 lb of another manufacturer. I always go by the diameter of the line and don't pay as much attention to the pound test. A smaller diameter will be less abrasion resistant than a larger one. Always check your line for nicks, which I'm guilty of not doing myself. Concerning fluorocarbon, the fluorocarbon's surface finish is not as smooth as nylons, so moistening the knot before you cinch is super critical, more so than with nylon. The friction created during the cinching process will produce heat which will weaken the knot. I prefer baitcasting equipment when throwing jig of any kind, even for jigs down to 1/8 oz. With a rod limber enough to load when casting a jig, its hard sometimes to pull a jig free from a rock, so a slightly stiffer rod will help but makes the casting of a lighter jig more difficult. It's a catch 22.

Were the wires weedguards not good? I stumbled across a solution at BPS and think I've got it figured out. Also, a new more snagless design on the way. Also I hate 100 percent fluoro for cold water knot strength, but that's just me

To save time I just took it Bullseye in Ofallon, MO

Found the culprit.....loose screw.

I know that area well!

Ditto on craigslist, lost a piece of high dollar one of a kind piece of equipment and showed up on Craigslist 2 months later. The cops posed as buyers and emailed him. He responded with his personal email address ... Example:."JohnSmith@yahoo.com" They all knew him and arranged a meeting time at his house and gave him the bad news. Sad thing was he had his 10 year old son with him. He says he bought it at a pawn shop. The cops said he was a decent guy and never caused any problems....so I didn't press charges. I was just so happy to get my equipment back! Don't know what happened from there.

They will get caught soon, it'll turn out to be a group of 18-20 yr old punks and you will get sent down to claim some property. They will get off with a slap on the wrist.

Bought a new Lews off of EBay for $79 I think. Was still in the honeymoon phase with the reel. Fantastic braking and drag system, ability to cast a small jig a country mile, and overall smooth casting reel. Last week, rIght in the middle of reeling back my jig, the reel just flat out locked up. Couldn't budge the crank handle one bit. It's toast! Anyone ever had this or is it just a fluke?

I was just thinking a good goal would be to take a newbie fishing and instill in him a sense of conservation. Teach him why it's important to catch and release and value the resource we have here in the Ozarks.

So this is why big rainbows are hard to catch!

FWIW, Cabelas has Lee production pots on sale, making them only $9 more than the Hot Pot II http://www.cabelas.com/product/Fishing/Tackle-Craft/Tools-Molds%7C/pc/104793480/c/104776380/sc/104635980/Lee-Production-Pot/741146.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Ftools-molds%2F_%2FN-1100419%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104635980%3FWTz_l%3DUnknown%253Bcat104793480%253Bcat104776380&WTz_l=Unknown%3Bcat104793480%3Bcat104776380%3Bcat104635980

Wow, great video, love to see the footage of him swimming near the boat! Good job landing that hog on 4lb. I'm also very impressed with the guides patience and timing with the net. I learned something!

It's just very tough to catch fish with temps 38-42 degrees, especially when its very low and clear.

IMO Bigger fish are usually taken by a slightly slower presentation. I know there are exceptions, but ripping a jerkbait will get you a bunch in the 16-20" size. But if you really want a monster, slow it down... and even a slow steady reeling in of a Rapala countdown has been a great method over the years, especially at night, which may or may not be in the plan for you. Also clear water is never good for a bigger fish!

LOL

Merry Christmas!

Interesting, keep me posted on the jika rig, been toying with that myself....also infatuated with the Neko rig.

Reminds me of the day we went out!!

I'd say a hair jig tied with rabbit fur, soaked in truffle sauce. And a size 8 treble stinger. 100% fluoro leader tied to braid!

Merry Christmas! I need some whites and hybrids for a Chinese Christmas party (my wife's numerous friends), any suggestions? give me a pm

My goal is to get out as often as I can and still maintain domestic tranquility at home.

Ness, I think you'd be a good candidate for "The Onion" our type of humor