chang127

No secrets here, man. I've just found what works for me and stuck with it. I used to fish the 250 religiously for years with little to show for it, mainly OG's but a couple of new styles here and there. Then, one windy day while messing around, it just clicked, and now those are the conditions I specifically look for when fishing the 250. I can fish it in dead calm waters and get followers for days, but my catch rate in those conditions are like less than 10%. Heavy winds blowing across the right structure is where it's at! More specifically, I look for prime areas where the wind is blowing perpendicular to a break or drop-off connected to shallow water. When in the kayak, I like to position myself far upwind from the deep water side and let myself drift towards the shallow water. I try to position my drift so that I don't blow over the spot but get within casting distance of where I think the fish are. I usually target right at the edge of the break where the shallow and deep water meet. I have found that this approach, combined with high winds and lower water visibility from the waves, tends to spook the fish less.

Good stuff, man! And your suggestion is spot on! That's exactly how I fish the 250. It's literally the only time I ever use it anymore, high winds blowing across shallow water with adjacent deep water nearby. How were you working the bait? I have a lot of confidence in working the 250 fast with aggressive reel chops in these conditions.

Ah, that makes sense now. You have it installed backwards, which turns it into what you described, a wake bait. If you flip it around, it will become a deep diver, but if fishing it as a wake bait works for you, then by all means, stick with it. The cool thing about Klash baits is the variety of ways you can fish them and still catch fish. I've never really fished it wake style much since I prefer to keep it lower in the water column, but I've heard others use it that way and have great success with it too.

Do you have a pic of your wide lip installed on your TK? I’m curious because my wide lip runs way deeper than the stock lip.

Maybe it's the profile or the squeaky joints that mimic a scared or injured rat, but the Baby Possum consistently gets me the bigger bites.

I think you would be okay with that 30lb braid for those size baits, but I personally don't go any lower than 50lb braid for any of my setups. When selecting braid, I prioritize the diameter and feel of the line over its strength or visibility. Two critical factors for me are how well the braid casts the baits I intend to use and how it sits on my spool. I've noticed that thinner braided lines tend to dig into the spool a lot more than thicker ones, which can cause backlashes and lead to snap offs. I've learned this from first hand experience, which is why I avoid using anything lighter than 50lb braid. I typically aim to match the diameter of the braid with that of an equivalent monofilament or fluorocarbon line I would use otherwise. For instance, the 80lb braid I use has a diameter of .018 inches, which is the same size as the 20lb PLine CXX leaders I tend to use. However, I haven't conducted extensive testing with different lines. I've simply found what works for me and have stuck with it. Obviously, there are many variables that could make your experience different from mine, such as your casting style, rod/reel setup, how you like to work your baits, etc. So, use what works best for you! Edit: Also, I'm not sure what the size of the stock hooks are on the TK but maybe someone can chime in on that.

Yes, I forgot to mention the line. It's Sufix 832 80lb braid, which is quite overkill for the TK, even the 300MD is pretty excessive for it. However, this is more of an all-around setup that I keep in the car for greater flexibility in fishing various baits & species on the go (bass, striper, & musky once in awhile). The straight braid was purely because I didn't have any other line with me at the time. I typically like to use a short mono or fluorocarbon leader, depending on the lure and presentation. For the TK, I prefer to use 15lb P Line CXX or 15lb Seaguar Abrazx leaders if I aim to fish a little deeper. I have also been known to fish with straight braid when I'm feeling lazy (and have caught fish like that in clear water too). Honestly, I don't really get too technical or scientific with my lines especially if I'm fishing more of a reaction type bait.

Congrats on the PB! What kind of retrieve were you using?

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Congrats on the PB! How'd you work the lure by the wall when you got bit? Were you casting your lure parallel with the wall?

Good stuff and great breakdown! Regarding the Citizen fish, you mentioned being surprised to catch one in shallow water at this time of year. Do you have any theories on why the fish might have been in that particular location, rather than its typical location this time of year?

If you often fish in areas without detailed maps, getting a unit that lets you create your own maps is invaluable. The Autochart Live feature is one of the most valuable features I utilize on my Helix 7 MSI. I even use it to remap areas I already have detailed map cards for. I found that I often discover hidden spots within a spot that aren't shown on my Lakemaster or Navionics maps. It also gives you the ability to adjust the transparency of the AutoChart map, allowing you to overlay it on top of another map card you're currently viewing. Another useful feature of AutoChart that I frequently use is the bottom hardness and vegetation detection. When creating maps, it also identifies and highlights areas with vegetation and differentiates between hard and soft bottoms, which is great for locating weed lines and hard bottom areas in your body of water. The specific depth highlight options are cool too. The downside to it is you can only record 8 hours of data before you need a zero lines card, which is an extra expense. I will say that the extra add-ons for Humminbird products are kind of cash grabs, but I guess you have to pay to play. I've spent an extra couple hundred dollars just on various add-ons, like map cards, external GPS, etc. I only have experience with Humminbird units, but I recommend getting the best and biggest unit within your budget, regardless of brand. In hindsight, I wish I had saved a bit more to purchase one with at least a 9" screen and with Mega 360/Mega Live support.

Nice fish! What kind of structure/cover were you fishing?

Congrats on making the DD club! How were you working the glide?

Congrats! What kind of structure/cover did you catch her on?

Good fish! What was the ROF on the Hudd? Also, were you bottom bouncing or did you let it sink down to a certain depth before you started the retrieve?

Among the lighter baits I own, I comfortably used this rod to cast a 5" CL8 Clacker, a 5" Triple Trout, and a Baby Bull Shad. I also caught a bunch of white bass on it using 4" Storm Wildeye Swim Shads before I sold it. Catching them with this setup was fun, but it was more of a shits and giggles type of thing. Honestly, for those lighter baits, I would have probably been better off with a conventional setup. The Dragoon, mentioned above, seems like a good option for what you're looking for, but I don't have firsthand experience with it.

Yes I was experimenting with some lead wire I picked up at my local bass pro. Just wrapping it around the hook shanks until I get the desired effect. I typically use golfers lead tape which I prefer but over time it always seems to start peeling around the edges for me. I’ll probably test out some of those grenade weights next.

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I'm usually pretty good about bringing a scale and a measuring board with me when I intend to fish. However, this was an instance where I had not planned on fishing at all. The initial plan was to take the toddler to the park, for him to run off his energy so he would be less hyper during the long ride back home. I always keep a travel rod setup in the car for "just in case" situations, and this happened to be one of those moments. All I had with me was the rod, reel, a Tiny Klash, and a pair of pliers!

Hey everyone, I really enjoy reading all about your catches in this sub, especially the posts that go into detail and explain how they caught the fish. These stories really provide me with more ideas on what to test and ways I can improve my own fishing moving forward. Anyway, a few days ago, I decided to hit up a small city park lake I haven't been to in a while to get in a quick bank fishing session. This spot isn't really known for big fish and is highly pressured, so I went in fully expecting to catch some dinks. To my surprise, I ended up catching a couple of good ones! Here’s the breakdown: Setup: Megabass VKC-711XH Shimano Scorpion MD 300XGLH DRT Tiny Klash Joy Thief Lo - Stock Lip, V-Tail, G-Guard, Weighted To Suspend Weather: 50 Degree Air Temps 10 mph North Winds With Up To 15 mph Gusts Mostly Sunny Time and water conditions: Around 6pm ?? Water Temps (based on feel, guessing above 50 but below 60) - probably way off on that Water visibility - About 5 ft The Catches: The wind was blowing from the north, so I decided to start on the south bank, where the wind was blowing against it. This end is typically deeper and has more interesting structure. Another thing I noticed was the loons swimming in that area, which I took for a sign that it might be where a lot of the bait fish are holding. I figured that’s where most of the bass would be concentrated in this scenario. I started out by cranking the TK until it gained some depth, and then I would deadwalk it back with various cadences. Think jerk, jerk, pause for a few seconds, and repeat, testing various lengths of the pause, ranging anywhere from 3 to 5 seconds. I mainly focused on fan casting and paralleling any visible drop-offs or structural irregularities. I got a few small followers but no commits. Then, I saw what appeared to be some baitfish being chased near a small point about 40-50ft away. This indicated to me that the fish were probably more active and preferred something faster. So I switched up the retrieve to a faster deadwalk. Basically, a quick and erratic deadwalk by making quick quarter turns of the reel handle, with less than half a second pauses in between each reel turn, all the way back to shore. I walk over to where I had seen the movement and make a cast towards deep water, paralleling the side of the small point. I start the retrieve, and just as the TK approaches the tip of the point, I get bit Hard. I wasn't expecting it, so I barely set the hooks into it. It was a total textbook situation, from the cast angle to the retrieve, and even where the bite happened. I get her close to shore and go in to lip her, but then I end up slipping on a rock! She thrashes her head, trying to make another run, and as I quickly get up to lip her, I noticed she had T-Boned the TK! At this point, there was no way I was going to lip her bare-handed with those treble hooks swinging everywhere. So, in a last-ditch effort, I grab the line and bank her on the shore. Not the most elegant way to do things, but at least I land her. This lake isn't really known for fish bigger than 1-2 lbs, so I didn’t bother bringing my scale or measuring board. Something I really regret now, but regardless, she was definitely a good one for this lake. Nobody was around, so I snapped some quick pics and sent her back on her way. For the next catch, I reach the other side of the point and make a cast across a section that funnels into another part of the lake. There is a shallow flat on the opposite side that drops off into deep water, with what is usually a shallow hump beside it. However, due to the low water levels, the hump is currently above water. I make a cast parallel to the edge of the flat where it drops off into deep water, start the retrieve, and right as I pass the hump, I get bit again in another textbook scenario! I land her and see she must have really wanted the TK because she nearly choked it! Holding her up, I realize she's even bigger than the last one, though I have no weights or measurements to be certain. Fortunately, this time, I manage to get a random passerby to take some pictures for me. Overall, it was a pretty good session! Also made a quick sketch on the lake breakdown below.

Probably out of your budget, but I use a RomanMade Centurion Mind Mother rod for all those baits. It does great with the 250 and Ghost, though I will say the Mother is definitely on the higher end of its weight limit.

I’ve used the Zappu foam boards and they work good, but the ones I got already had premade cutouts which I didn’t care for. I would have preferred to cut my own pieces to better fit the shape of each bait. They’re pretty much just thin strips of foam with a sticky adhesive backing. You could probably easily create your own.

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I owned both the VKC-78H and VKC-711XH, but I ended up selling the 78H and kept the 711XH. The 711XH is much more versatile which suits my needs better. The 78H was great for smaller treble hook baits like TKs, Negotiators, Jointed Claw 178s, and similar-sized baits. If that were all I threw or if I preferred lighter baits, I would have kept it. However, I also like to throw baits in the 4-5oz range like K9s, Phoneys, Mag Gills, etc. I found that the 711XH could handle these baits well while still being able to comfortably throw the smaller baits mentioned above. It may not have handled those lighter baits as well as the 78H, but it performed well enough that I often left the 78H at home. Also, I recently picked up a Cookai CK-710EXHC, and I think it's even more versatile than the VKC-711XH. I've thrown baits from the TK all the way up to the K9 on it comfortably, but with the faster tip I'm even using it for soft baits like Bacca Burritos and other similar-sized top hook soft baits. So, if you don't mind a longer rod when broken down since it's only a two-piece, it's another option to consider. It still fits in the trunk of my small hatchback when broken down.