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Went out to a local lake today and stuck a 7.1 pounder on a Burrito Baits like thru bluegill. Lost a even bigger one on the klash but I'll gladly take a 7 pounder as that breaks my old pb by 2 pounds.

I go into deep detail about some big fish catches on the CA Delta. Info also applys to opther bodies of water. Click link above to link to video

I did it! 10lb8oz Northey... First DD and hopefully not the last. Crushed the Hudd 8 right in front of the boat. Thanks SU for all of the info over the years. Learned a lot here. Release video and pics on my Instagram - francis_h

Shimano Cardiff 400A - 13 Muse Black XH 8' Shimano TranX400 - TFO G.Loomis XH 7' 11" Daiwa Ryoga Shrapnel - LDC Production H 8'

Spro rats have an amazing swim and thump, plus they crank down. I use it more then my other rats, therefore I sold almost all my other rats off. I don't regret it. If I lose it, its not hard to replace or find.

Here's a smallie on a Tiny Klash down in Oakland County from today. They def will hit the big baits out here, but I dont know many other guys throwing them.

Hey uh... you wanna go fishing sometime dude?? Hahahah

Most swimbaits I own

I have found in the past that (almost subconciously) I would watch the line. As I see it come up, knowing the bass was about to jump/surface, I found myself watching. Basically stopping. At this moment, the bass is in control. I would watch praying she would not shake my lure. Then go back to "fighting" her after the splash. After losing some fish to this, and reading/hearing successful fisherman tips I now be sure to be the one in control. Never stop reeling and pulling. If she comes to surface, either go down with rod tip or pull her over. YOU need to make her go the way you need her to go. If you keep tension on the line and the hook is in, she cannot shake it. But if she turns her head and you give just a fraction of line slack, que the fat lady. It's fun to play fish and watch them jump (one of the things that hooked me on bass) and see the big red gills open of a big bass. But if you want to land the big ones you need to pull grind and get a hold of her as fast as possible.

Does anyone else have a body of water where you just can’t get a swimbait bite no matter how hard you grind? If so, how do you combat this? YES! I Fish in SoCal and these lakes are super pressured, sometimes I question myself what the hell am I doing, but it makes me fish better, fish harder, put my baits in the right spots When you get a bite take a step back and think how did I get that bite might be structure related, retrieve etc. try to replicate it on different parts on the lake in similar situations. Tougher the bite the more it drives me to figure them out! -Do you have a favorite swimbait for when times get tough (any time during the year) that you pick up and know you will catch fish? Its a matter of figuring out what the fish are doing, are they eating bluegill, Shad, trout, baby bass fry etc. look for clues around the lake. if I’m not getting any follows on a bait I change it, 6”,7”,8”,9”,10” baits all make a difference if all else fails then I’m throwing 11” glides tougher the bite the bigger bait I throw honestly. If I had to pick a go-to bait to put a fish in the boat Swimbait it’s def. a rising son. 5” weedless or 6.5” -I have a reel that doesn’t properly fit into my rod, should I just add tape to fill it in? Probably not the best idea because If you hook a giant your in trouble. If that’s seriously your only option then some strong zip ties and figure 8 electrical tape should do it LOL - i wouldn’t mess around get a legit setup -How often do you catch swimbait fish? For me it is fairly rare. all depends on how much time your putting on the water and if your doing the right things on the lake, if your dialed in it can happen everyday, all day, or skunk out for a month STRIAGHT. I had a 25+ Swimbait fish day once 7-9lbers all day and then next day it just shutdown so it’s hard to say. Time on the water is KEY - You need to have big bass mentality and don’t panic if you skunk out 10 trips in a row, I just like going to the lake and freaking myself out on “Swimming Swimbaits” and the bites are a bonus -If you pond fish, do you also throw swimbait in those ponds? Any success or advice on doing so? Pond fishing is a great place to gain confidence and learn the characteristics of certain baits your trying to learn to apply to the big show; 3:16 rising sons, minnows & little boogers are fun pond killers -What is a really good, not breaking the bank, gizzard shad swimbait? Savage gear glides are as cheap as they get and get bit. But you can buy 10 decent-ish baits or buy one legit bait like a Pizz shadley, 3:16 freestyle shad, phoney shad Glide, 8” to 10” triple trout, hinkle shad etc -Can upsizing baits get you more bites? Yes and No - If the fishing is super dead you should just swing for the fences are throw the biggest bait you got expecting not to catch anything. I’ve had some double digit days in the toughest of conditions - but it also depends if you had followers, if you did stick with that size maybe change a color, no followers change size. But Sometimes you have to put the Swimbait down and get in tune with the lake and fish some plastic worms, jigs, spinnerbaits etc take notes of how they got bit and use those same techniques and spots to Swimbaits

What a sweet rig man! Congrat bro

Dobyns x Shimano

Banjo Minnow.