Eagle Rock - 3/5, 3/6

[Ken Drish]

They're hungry! Had a great weekend with them really hammering the RK Crawler and a Red Eye Shad in a crawfish pattern - the best came on the Red Eye. Best 5 yesterday probably went close to 15#. All of them came in shallow water - no more than 7-8' and most came after the bait smacked/deflected off of rock or wood.

[abkeenan]

Nice report. How were you working that Red Eye? Steady retrieve? Yoyo? Hop it up off the bottom and let it settle?

[BassBlind]

Nice report!!

 

Rookie question - is that red eyed shad considered a lipless crank bait?  - can someone give me a few pointers on how to fish this bait. Is a bait caster required or can I throw on a spinning rod?

 

On that same note - how imperative is it that I buy and learn to throw a baitcaster? I

[dtrs5kprs]

Don't show everybody those orange crankbaits .

[Ken Drish]

Steady retrieve just like I'm throwing a Wart or a RK Crawler - the best action was when it was retrieved slow enough to deflect off of rocks/wood. . And yes, it's a lipless crankbait.

[merc1997 Bo]

nice bunch of bass!

bo

[abkeenan]

33 minutes ago, BassBlind said:

Nice report!!

 

Rookie question - is that red eyed shad considered a lipless crank bait?  - can someone give me a few pointers on how to fish this bait. Is a bait caster required or can I throw on a spinning rod?

 

On that same note - how imperative is it that I buy and learn to throw a baitcaster? I

Blind,

You could throw lipless cranks on spinning gear. Shouldn't be a big deal although I would recommend throwing them on 14'ish pound test line and that is usually more than what people here throw on spinning gear (6-10lb typically). 

As far as the baitcasters......absolutely, positively, 100% you must learn to throw them in order to be the best you can be on the water. Using spinning gear is fine for some applications and using Zebco 33's is fine when you are young. But, not using a baitcaster is limiting yourself big time. It's a must. There's a learning curve to throwing one but just like anything else practice makes perfect. Reel's now-a-days are so good that backlashes are few and far between compared to reels of the past. My grandfather when I was around 10 or so handed me a old Shimano Speedmaster baitcaster that probably had never been oiled, cleaned or lubed in 15 years with a 5'6" pistol grip Shimano Speedmaster Fightin' Stick and said go down to the bank and just start throwing. No tips, lessons, hints, nada. I sat there and threw that thing for an hour before he came down and showed me a thing or two. It was rough to start but that's how you learn. Go get yourself a moderately priced baitcaster to learn on that has both magnetic and centrifugal braking systems and you should pick up how to throw one rather quickly. The Bass Pro Pro Qualifiers would be a good choice to start on and will last you years. They aren't just for beginners either as I have a few I still use regularly as do a lot of anglers out there.

[BassBlind]

1 minute ago, abkeenan said:

Blind,

You could throw lipless cranks on spinning gear. Shouldn't be a big deal although I would recommend throwing them on 14'ish pound test line and that is usually more than what people here throw on spinning gear (6-10lb typically). 

As far as the baitcasters......absolutely, positively, 100% you must learn to throw them in order to be the best you can be on the water. Using spinning gear is fine for some applications and using Zebco 33's is fine when you are young. But, not using a baitcaster is limiting yourself big time. It's a must. There's a learning curve to throwing one but just like anything else practice makes perfect. Reel's now-a-days are so good that backlashes are few and far between compared to reels of the past. My grandfather when I was around 10 or so handed me a old Shimano Speedmaster baitcaster that probably had never been oiled, cleaned or lubed in 15 years with a 5'6" pistol grip Shimano Speedmaster Fightin' Stick and said go down to the bank and just start throwing. No tips, lessons, hints, nada. I sat there and threw that thing for an hour before he came down and showed me a thing or two. It was rough to start but that's how you learn. Go get yourself a moderately priced baitcaster to learn on that has both magnetic and centrifugal braking systems and you should pick up how to throw one rather quickly. The Bass Pro Pro Qualifiers would be a good choice to start on and will last you years. They aren't just for beginners either as I have a few I still use regularly as do a lot of anglers out there.

ABK- This is exactly what I needed, really appreciate it. I knew I needed to do it but was really looking for a solid recommendation and a few pointers. I'll pick up that model and put it to work this year! 

[abkeenan]

8 minutes ago, BassBlind said:

ABK- This is exactly what I needed, really appreciate it. I knew I needed to do it but was really looking for a solid recommendation and a few pointers. I'll pick up that model and put it to work this year! 

Before you go buy anything maybe let us know your price range or budget you have allotted for a reel and we could further help you out with recommendations. Reason I say that is there are reels like the Pro Qualifier (very nice starter reel IMO) that are around $80-100 depending and also used reels both here on the for sale boards and BBC (Bass Boat Central.com) reel sale boards that can be had for very nice prices. Sportsman Outfitters has just unreal pricing on some reels like Daiwa Tatula's and a BUNCH of different Lew's models. 

[Royal Blue]

I have a couple of the Lew's baitcasters that I picked up at Wal Mart for around $60.  They're really pretty smooth and have performed great for over a year now.  I thought why not try a cheaper model and so far so good.  I like the pro qualifier too and hve 2 of them as well fwiw.