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Hope you had a good weekend! Quick marital deal: The Irish Gal, being fair, gets spots on her skin from the sun. So the other day I had a great idea – to lovingly call her "spotted bass." Guess how that went over. 😬
I mean, I don't know how much of a knucklehead I truly am or whether I'll ever not be one, but after that I feel even more blessed that she never left me. 😁 I know she's thought about it! 😆 Alright let's bass!
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Gitcha Blaster video fix here:
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If your email program cuts off the bottom of the email click "View this email in your browser" up top to see the whole thing. Sorry bout that – email programs keep changing stuff.
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BB fishin' experience: Z-Man Baby Jack
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Since our young dude "Rye" Brett Jolley fishes at least 10x more than most people reading this, he's out chucking whatever he can get his hands on and sometimes wants to say something about it. Here's his 2c experience with the new-ish Z-Man Baby Jack JackHammer.
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The biggest thing I noticed about the Baby Jack was that it thumps just like a JackHammer, just in a smaller package. I even joked with my friend that it "felt like a Jackhammer...but like a smaller one." 🤣
I was fishing it in about 4' of water with scattered hydrilla, and it came through the grass incredibly well. I was burning it and feathering it through the vegetation and it still had plenty of thump like the OG Jack.
That smaller head and blade definitely helped it come through the grass really clean. I think you could throw this thing interchangeably with a regular ChatterBait and get a few more bites than the next guy down a stretch.
Another thing, even though it's a smaller bait, it still has heavier-duty hardware. You can bring the heat on hooksets with fish heavier gear – you don't have to change up your tackle just because you're throwing a smaller bait."
I was fishing it on my normal ChatterBait setup – a Dobyns 736 Champion XP Glass with 17-lb Seaguar InvizX Fluoro. I thought that 1/4-oz Baby Jack was going to have a hard time staying down with that gear, but with the right trailer (3.5" Z-Man Chattershad) it stayed right in the depth range I wanted really well.
Even when I burned it back, it didn't rise up to the surface – it stayed pretty level throughout the retrieve. I tried bulkier trailers but they dulled the action of the blade, so I kept the trailer small.
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The 9mm BaitFuel Nano Spike is available
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Announced at ICAST, don't see it on TW yet but you can get it on the BaitFuel site. Why is this (alleged) crappie bait a big deal?
1. Word is in testing, bass eat 'em.
2. The smaller size urchin should catch 'em (better?) when the water's colder, and I'm also theorizing that you could fish it like a minnow – meaning on a jighead for suspenders/roamers.
3. Good colors + BaitFuel.
4. $4.99 per pack of 6!
Remember that Trey McKinney said last week that the smaller size (not that small – 12mm) 6th Sense Abstract is a gimme bait for him. And that's only 3mm different.
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New stuff now available on Tackle Warehouse
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If you're wondering, the new Rapala CrushCity The CEO urchin will be available in Dec or Jan. Other than that, here we go – in no particular order:
4 new Z-Man JackHammer colors 👀
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Oh mama. Gonna run them down in clockwise order from top L – they looks so good, dang it Z-Man and B-Hite! Brett talking:
> Cold shad – "...been in the JDM lineup for a few years.... It has a frosted silver blade that's not super reflective, with a gray back, pink center line and white belly. That little pink line gives it a natural threadfin shad look. I'd fish Cold Shad in medium-clarity water to even a little bit of stain."
> Secret white – "...a really bright pattern with a matte white blade and even a little glow to it. It's your super-stained-water bait. Early in the spring when heavy rains create really dirty water, it stands out aggressively in the water column."
> Pumpkin gold – "...looks like gp with a little gold in your hand, but put it in the water and it really lights up when the sun hits it. The patina copper blade gives you the flash of gold without being as aggressive as a solid gold blade. We came up with this one for tannic water...."
> Morizo pink – "...with Morning Dawn going crazy last year, we wanted something even louder. In clear water, it can be a great smallmouth color when they get aggressive toward something super bright. But it also stands out better in stained water where the more subtle Morning Dawn starts to disappear."
I think I've said before that a while back I found that a copper blade really works great in tannic water. Anyhow, I'm all about 'cold shad' and 'pumpkin gold'!
Great Lakes Finesse Skirted Ned Head
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Ever seen baits like these??
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Sometimes new stuff in bass fishing is new, sometimes it's a spin on something old. Not sure which categories these fall into but they're new to me and maybe you too:
Blade Runner Craw Spin
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Gitcha US 250th on with that bad boy! And – when's the last time you used an eagle as bait?? 🤣
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Interesting deal. Cost you $12 to find out if it helps, and people are buying 'em at TW!
12. New limited edition Kistler Urchin Rod
7' 1" HMH:
> ...fast action needed to pop, twitch and work an urchin bait in place while keeping it in the strike zone longer.
13. TW is now selling Dardevle Spoons
Ever catch anything with one? Was it the red/white or the 5 diamonds?? I fished one of those a bit as a kid, only had northerns follow it. Hooked a big one with one in an inflatable dingy – scared me man!
14. TN: Lee Greenwood performing at the BLF vs B.A.S.S. deal
Riley Green headlining, but Lee, Randy Houser, Trace Adkins, Elektrohorse, Dee Jay Silver and Sixwire will also be there:
> The event will feature a fireworks show, a flyover, interactive games, fishing activities for all ages, and food and beverage vendors.
Man that is some 💰💰!
Quick story: At one of the first Classics I went to as a media dude, someone told me that Lee Greenwood was performing. My Yankee Van Halen-fan self had never heard of him so I was like, "Who's Lee Greenwood?" Everybody laughed, they couldn't believe it. I had a lot to learn man!
15. New Garmin LVS42HD service bulletin
Some of the new LVS42HD transducers were shipped without optimized default settings and need the user to restore it to default.
16. MLF competitions now in Brazil
Line of the Day
In the springtime in Faunsdale, AL, schools of bass drift from deeper waters to the edges of lakes, lured by the kisses of the Southern sun.
Wouldn't say that's what they're lured by and they don't drift there but okay! 😁
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Edwin Evers: Throw at wave breaks, docks, piers and pilings
Talking now, when the fish aren't mostly shallow or deep – from the MLF site:
> What I like about wave breaks, docks and piers, and bridge pilings is that they offer shade that the fish can hold in all day long, and they give me a target that I can throw at....
> The depth around these targets usually ranges from 18-30' deep or more. Since the fish are suspended, the bottom depth is not important as long as there's plenty of it – at least 18-20'.
> And because these fish are suspended, I believe they're mostly looking up for their food. I try to use that to my advantage. Even though the fish might be holding 15' deep over 30' of water, my favorite bait to start is usually a topwater like the Berkley J-Walker in 'bone.'
> "It might take more than one cast to pull the fish up from those depths, but the strikes can be explosive, and once you get a hit or two, the whole school can get active.
> If topwater doesn't work or the topwater bite dies down but I know there are still fish there...I'm usually throwing a 1/2-oz [jig] in a shad pattern.... I'll count it down until it's in or just above the school and pump it up and down. The strikes come on the fall.
> Another great subsurface lure for suspended bass is a big flutter spoon. I fish it a lot like the jig...the key is to keep the spoon just above the school, where they can see it and strike it on the fall.
> One important factor with this pattern is to present your baits from multiple angles. If there's current, you generally want your lure moving with it because the bass will be facing into the flow, but if there's no current you can only determine the best presentation angle by experimenting.
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"It's probably better for TV that these guys are catching monster bass and, you know, 100-lb bags, but I can see where it's probably getting a little overboard."
- Bassin' fan and NASCAR diver Denny "not Brauer" Hamlin talkin':
> "The technology is going to just keep getting more. Eventually it's going to become even easier."
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Take a good look at that bait – it's the Yo-Zuri 3DB Pencil in 'matte ghost pearl chart back' – a color I don't have but for sure want. The bait's lines + those wave-motion ribs on the bottom + amazing colors = a real good Japanese bait at a US price. And a different look than a Spook.
Those new Yo-Zuri matte colors are real good in my 2c:
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Jay Kumar's BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best (sometimes worst) and funniest stuff in bassin', hand-picked by me – Jay Kumar. I started BassFan.com, co-hosted Loudmouth Bass with Zona, was a B.A.S.S. senior writer and a bunch more in bassin'. The Blaster is the #2 daily read on any given day in the wide world o' bass so thanks for readin'!
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Sign up another bass-head!
If you're forwarding every Blaster to other bass crackheads, tx much – or you can email me the addys and we'll take care of it! We'll never send spam or whatever....
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Gitcha BB social at these links
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