BassBlaster

Couple pro jiggin’ tips, LiveScope wins dirty, Guido’s light jigs

Hope y’all are havin’ a good start to the week! If you’re feeling down sometimes, I do too man – just for a sec because then I remind myself Who my hope is in and BANG…it’s like Brett Hite visited my house and dropped a package off, if you know what I mean, but even better!

 

Anyhow, we’ve got this to look forward to: ALL THOSE FEESH really want to see ‘n then chomp all the new baits we’re a-stockin’ up! Woooohooooo let’s GO!

Today’s Top 5
Twice the skirt material on a jig?
I feel dumb now having never thought about it til I watched this very cool Gary Klein vid on making your own jigs.

 

He shows one of his fave “ties” which has 2x the regular skirt material and dang does that thing look good – it bounces big-time. Wish I could gif it for ya but can’t so click it to see the vid on the MLF site:

Why Matt Lee mixes up skirt ‘n trailer colors.
Saw this pic…
…so I called Matt about it:

 

> “I throw brown with gp trailers a lot…. If you look at a crawfish, sometimes you have a black crawfish with bright orange on it, or have a green crawfish with really dark pinchers. So I think contrasting colors [are realistic].

 

> “A lot of people are big believers in chartreuse dye…same kind of theory but you’re going from the jig skirt to trailer. You don’t have to have symmetrical color going all the way down your jig.

 

> “I think we get caught up in what looks good to anglers instead of what looks good to fish. Just because your colors match exactly doesn’t mean it will catch a bass’ eye.

 

> “A PB&J trailer on a PB&J skirt looks really good to the human eye but…. I’ve seen too many times fishing with Swindle – he has a cupholder filled with different jigs he’s tied on throughout the year…he’ll throw a gp chunk on a brown rubber jig and start snatching ’em up.”

 

He also said about the G-man:

 

> “When it comes to jigs, I trust the man. I’m a firm believer in that vertical line tie…old Swindle thing he told me a long time ago. I’ve become a believer because you don’t get hung up as much. Same thing with shakey head….”

 

Btw that pic is a 6th Sense Divine Hybrid Jig with a 6th Sense Stroker Craw, which is Matt’s go-to combo:

 

> “That’s my all-around jig…I use 3/8 and 1/2 the most.

 

> “The Stroker Craw has a lot of inherent action without having to move it. It can just be sitting on the bottom and it’ll still be moving…little tentacles. That’s 1 reason I really like that bait – you don’t have to be hopping or stroking the jig for that trailer to have action. It’s kind of like a beefed up twin tail.

 

> “If I want a smaller profile, like fishing for spotted bass…[trim it so there’s] half as much skirt, and I trim the Stroker Craw to make it a thinner profile, almost like a twin tail with normal-size pinchers on it.”

5 Qs with Micah “Hollywood” Frazier.
And away we go:

 

1. Your blue trophy came on a Ned Dinger. Are you going to fish that more this year, even for largemouths?

 

> “Yeah. I’ve really started to use the Ned rig a lot more lately. I’ve kinda been enlightened to how versatile it actually is. I’ve used it for several years but mainly for smallies…I’ve started to fish it for spotted bass a lot.

 

> “You can fish it vertical too – you can drop it on fish you see on the graph. It really has a lot of uses I wasn’t aware of a few years ago.”

 

2. What lake are you most excited about fishing this season?

 

> “We go to Fork in April, and last time I was there I finished 3rd on a Super Spook. We’ll be there close to the same time – it’s something I’m looking forward to for sure. That topwater bite out there is unreal.”

 

3. Is Live sonar a requirement now?

 

> “Yeah I’m going to say it is. It’s become kind of a thing where if you don’t have it, you’re kind of handicapped. I’m excited that Lowrance has a new transducer [Active Target] that’s going to be really helpful this year.”

 

4. Are you going to sandbag your brother or will you actually help him?

 

> “I’m gonna help him for sure every way I can. We’re definitely going to be a united front…work together and try to team up as best we can. Both of our wives and both our little boys will be able to come to all the events [and] stay at the same place together.”

 

5. Will there be a sequel to the Classic YUM Dinger video series and how many awards did you win for that one?

 

> “Chad [Warner, YUM marketing genius ] hasn’t sprung it on me if we’ll do another one, but I wouldn’t be surprised.

 

> “I definitely didn’t win any awards – you’re the only one that’s given me any accolades for that.”

 

HAHAHA what?? Can’t believe that! If you didn’t see the YUM Classic series, which was pretty dang funny, you need to check out Micah’s acting skillz. He makes that John Wick dude look like a total amateur man….

LiveScope for the win in DIRTY water.
Just in case you thought it was just a clear-water deal, check this from Harris Chain, FL BFL winnah Eric Panzironi:

 

> “I caught all my fish on a black-colored Zoom Magnum Trick Worm in 10-12′ of mostly dirty water.”

 

Pretty sure “dirty” there ain’t like dirty in OK or whatever but anyway:

 

> “The real key to the victory was the Garmin LiveScope. I caught every single one of my fish directly beneath my boat and I could see them all. I dropped down to them and they’d eat it – it was amazing.”

 

I believe that, but wonder if it was as amazing as this belly flop is about to be:

This is what we’re missing.
Well, snow somehow fell and stuck in TX. What Gary Klein did:

Makes sense to me tho I still can’t figger our how he got that jersey on over Frosty’s dome. Kevin VanDam was in TX too and was all, “Shoot it feels like May in MI right now”:

Not sure if they have brooms in Japan? Or I guess all that fell while he was a-fishin’. @yamada_yugo shot:

Last but not least, a bassin’ fan caught Gussy Gustafson headin’ south from Canada to Elite practice:

HAHAHA! That crazy or what?? Vid’s at @thequalifiedcaptain….
News
Ah dang it. If you didn’t know, Mark designed some great baits, founded Lake Fork Tackle and then M-Pack Lures, was a heck of a guide, and did pretty dang well in national tourneys for a while. Most importantly tho, in my experience he was a warm, positive, helpful guy.

 

Sounds like Covid got him…I’m so mad at this dang virus. Please pray for his wife and sons – some great quotes from his best bud Skeeter Fowler:

 

> I would complain to him how tough fishing was for me this day and Mark would say, “Gotta throw that rig.” That meant a Carolina rig….

 

> Mark had a positive attitude always and found the good in everything bad. When people would be unloading their boats at daylight, Mark and I would be visiting and eating breakfast and he would say, “They don’t bite til you get there.”

 

> Mark knew Jesus and he would remind me of that daily.

 

Miss you being down here with us and bless you bassin’ brother.

 

2. John Cox is fishing the Elites too!

 

B.A.S.S. released the Elite field ^ and John’s on there so I texted him – yep, he’s fishing the Elites AND the Bass Pro Tour! And the MLFLWs! Says he’ll only miss 2 FLWs – and I’m guessin’ about 2 weeks of sleep and at least 17 meals…. Halfway thru he’ll be like:

Also noticed from the list:

 

– 102 guys, so up a bit from 2020 I believe.

 

– Think I saw the same # of flat brims as I did guys from Japan. Are flat brims out on the Elites now??

 

– Chris Zaldain is always listed last and I think is getting pretty dang ticked about it. Maybe.

 

3. Seth Feider gets Z-Man.

 

No link 🙁 but he be sayin’:

 

> “I’ve been stealing ElaZtech baits and ChatterBaits out of Gussy’s stash for years. Heck I’ve won a lot of money on Z-Man stuff under the radar.”

 

Who’s going to tell Seth that NO win is under the radar. Bass fisherman radar is the most sensitive there is man….

 

4. Carl Jocumsen gets Rapala and is running a Falcon.

 

Rapala announcement hereFalcon announcement here, was Bass Cat. Not sure if you’re aware but right now Carl is the only “pro fisho” in the US. Doin’ dang good too!

 

5. Cliff Crochet gets Whitetail smokeless chew.

 

Asked what up with the deal but couldn’t tell what he was sayin’ between his Cajun accent and all that chew… – just messin’ Cliff!

 

6. Mark Menendez will speak at the Expo this weekend.

 

Mark will bet talking about canning peaches and his 3 fave pie recipes.

 

Okay nope it’ll be bassin’ at the Paducah-McCracken County Convention & Expo Center:

 

> …will make 1 appearance on Fri, Jan 15, 3 visits on Sat, Jan 16, and 1 visit on Sun, Jan 17.

 

If you go, ask if “green tomato” is his secret crankbait color but don’t say I told you man!

 

7. Ish Monroe says you can catch spinnerbait fish in 40s water.

 

Well guess that’s it then – you now know Ish is crazy. HAHAHA! Yes he is but he DOES catch ’em so:

 

> “My general rule is the colder it is, the slower and deeper I’ll go. I’ve won some tournaments doing this in freezing rain in 30-40′ of water.”

 

> …generally uses a 1/2-, 3/4-oz or even heavier…with a combination of willow and CO blades…”will give you both the flash and vibration you want. I’ll either use shad patterns or some with chartreuse. I keep it simple and use the shad patterns for clear water and chartreuse for dirtier water.”

 

> “I fish it in the same places you’d use a jig. Wood, rock, stumps and brushpiles are good…. I’ll count it down and reel it slowly just to keep the blades turning, and then pick it up slightly every time I feel it hit something along the bottom.”

 

River2Sea Bling Spinnerbait on 12-lb Daiwa J-Fluoro Samurai.

 

8. This looks like someone real familiar….

Pretty sure that’s Gerald Swindle (and pard) finishing 2nd at the AL Bass Trail?

 

9. Pics surfaced of Skeet Reese fishing with a non-yellow rod.

 

Bassin’ authorities were called to the scene but that’s all I know.

 

10. Elitist Caleb Sumrall ran 1,000+ miles last year.

 

Ran with his feet, not his boat. Word is his fellow pros have passed a bait bucket around to get him enough $$ to buy an electric scooter but those deals look kinda risky:

11. On Em Robertson gets Berkley and Abu.

 

Very smart get by Berkley/Abu. Matt has more personality in his little finger than most folks, and catches ’em too (duh).

 

12. New Elite Mark Frazier was a pitcher.

 

And now he’s gotta switch to being a flipper…lol. That’s Micah’s lil bro. We have several former dang good baseball players in the pro ranks.

 

13. MLFLWer Grae Buck gets Bill Lewis.

 

Bill Lewis folks are savvy in noticing talent coming up the ranks….

 

14. OK kills lake records program.

 

Will still do state records tho. DNR said OK bass fishermen just ain’t good enough to keep doing it…. Kiddin’ fellers!

 

Can’t link it, it’s at oklahoman.com.

 

15. Bomber 6A in limited run “blue craw.”

 

Check it:

16. Most peeps don’t know Ethanol15 is bad?

 

Pump warnings apparently don’t work.

 

17. New Yammy managers.

 

All internal. Jonathon Burns (former Skeeter sales) is GM of the Yamaha US Marine Development and Biz Planning Div, Ben Mallett is GM of Yammy-owned Bennett Marine, and Scott Higgins is Div mgr, Yamaha Marine Supply Chain Management.

 

 

Updatin’s

 

1. Sounds like Lonnie Stanley was the first to use colored weedguards.

 

Thanks to bass-head Brian W fer the info:

 

> Just a quick note that Stanley Jigs (Lonnie Stanley) was the originator of the colored brushguard back in the 1980s with his matching colored guards on his jigs – blue, red and chartreuse strands mixed with black.

 

> [Lonnie said] the idea started in 1979 and went into production in 1983. “Ethel,” Mark Stevenson’s record bass was also caught on one of their jigs featuring the multi-color strand (the individual red one in the pic).

Not sure if Stanley still does it – jigs they have on TW look like regular 1-color guards.

 

2. Good vid here with MLFLWer Jacob Wall on the new Gambler Komodo trailer. Still sounds innerestin’.

On BassBlaster.rocks right now… 

 

Note: The TackleWarehouse links in this email are affiliate links, meaning if you go through them to make a purchase I might earn a commission…at no cost to you. Click here if you want to learn a little more about links in the BB.

 

Tip of the Day

 

Guido was one of the originals and an AMAZING fisherman. Not sure how long ago this was but he was ahead of the curve…probly because he MADE the curve for a bunch of stuff. Excerpted from AdvancedAngler.com:

 

> Because he tends to throw his 1/8-oz [jig] tipped with a Baby Guido Bug model most frequently, Hibdon said that he has started to throw them on spinning gear. “My dad threw them on casting gear with 6 and 8-lb line. But I went to spinning gear and a braided main line with a fluorocarbon leader a few years ago.”

 

> …Team Lew’s 7′ M rod matched with a Team Lew’s 3000-size spinning reel…with 15-lb braid and a 6-15 lb fluorocarbon leader….

 

> …he uses his 1/8-oz model a lot, but will go up to his 1/4-oz model when the conditions warrant. “If there’s a lot of current, or the winds are pretty high, I go up in size. The reason I go so light is because there’s not a lot of anglers who will go so light, so I feel like I have an advantage.”

 

> He likes to match the jig and Guido Bug trailer to the crawdads that are prevalent in the lake. “I’ve caught fish on these things from Canada to FL and everywhere inbetween. What I’ve found is that matching the color of the lure to the color of the crawdads in a lake get me more bites.

 

> “If I am fishing brush, I try to slowly crawl that jig through and over all of the limbs…and I still don’t set the hook very hard, but try to put pressure on them and lead them out of the cover.”

 

> In rocks, he tries to slowly crawl the jig over each rock…allowing the lure to fall on the backside slowly…. “It’s not real hard to fish rocks. It’s all about the shade. In the morning they’ll be on the shade on one side of the rock, and on the other in the afternoon. I just slowly fish it through the shade.”

 

Looks like no one’s making the Guido Bugs ‘n jigs now? If so, that surprises me.

Quote of the Day
“I don’t think of fishing as requiring much patience….”

 

– Me neither, thank you Edwin Evers! Always thought that pretty much all bass-heads have some kinda ADD – or maybe you have to have to be a diehard bass-head? So far I think I’m right….

Shot of the Day
Not sure what’s going on here and not sure I wanna know? @fishfreakdjb shot:
Random

 

Stolen Bigfoot Museum statue captured by California police

 

Okay LE folks – how hard is it to pursue and capture a STATUE? I mean, statues don’t move, right? That’s why they’re called statues??

 

Sorry just the way my brain works….

Ya got me!
Jay Kumar’s BassBlaster is a daily-ish roundup of the best and funniest (sometimes worst) stuff in bassin’, 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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