Neo

I agree with what has already been said. It would be one more thing in the way in an already crowded space. It takes a while to get comfortable standing in a kayak because you are on a "live" surface but once you get your sea legs under you it becomes very natural. I stand in my Trident 13 all the time and it's not designed to be stood in. Practice, practice, practice.....

I'm also in the profile and action or presentation group. Swimbaits displace so much water that color selection is last on my list of things I think about. With that being said I lean towards natural colors and patterns that includes when I'm fishing traditional tackle. The thing that has the most negative effect on my fishing is water clarity. The places I fish the most are normally pretty clear so if it gets muddy at all the bite dies.

The 115x is a cool kayak and if you can get it for say $800 or so in like new condition do it. I like a lot of Wilderness Systems stuff and had an old Tarpon 120 which was an awesome boat. The Ride line is solid.

Would you post some more pics of your Crawdad please?

In

Welcome to SU.

I use braid on everything. 50# SuperSlick for small baits (up to 6") 65# for everything up to 8". Learn how to tie your knot and make sure they are seated correctly. Also remember you're not flipping a 3/8 oz jig so work on your casting technique, let the rod do the work, don't whip or snap the rod tip.

Nice rigging. The Commander 120 is probably my favorite kayak WS makes. The paddle as a mounting pole is a brilliant idea, nice work!

That's Awesome! Congrats!

Like what has already been said, you just have to get used to it. I've fished from both a pontoon and kayaks (both sit-in and s.o.t.) I have seen the subject of rod and rod handle length come up on other forums and a lot of people lean towards shorter handles and I personally don't understand why. I have found that while in a kayak a longer rod is overall more comfortable and easier to fight a fish when to have the length to swing the rod tip around the bow of the kayak. Plus when tossing big bait it's nice to tuck the handle under your arm while retrieving the bait. Time on the water dude, it fixes lots o' stuff.

I've caught fish on them. Good bait for the $$$.

Yep H2O. I have one in Bluegill pattern. I think they only carry the smaller version of that bait now. Actually a really nice bait for $10. They swim pretty well and have a decent action.

The Big Game II Super stable and nice seat. Turns out it's a great river boat which I don't think it was the original intent of the design. I think the original BG and this one was more of an open water boat. Trident 13 Stable enough to stand in, fast and plenty of storage options. The one thing that I thought I wouldn't like about it is the little "hatch" for a depth finder but I use it to hold a dry box for my wallet, keys and phone. Pretty slick option. I got this boat to cover more water and not be blown around as much. The BGII rides really high in the water and is effected by the wind a lot more. Honestly there really isn't one unless you just fall into a deal. Any kayak at that price is probably going to be a total p.o.s. and not worth the money. Probably the three best bang for the buck used kayaks on the market are the Wilderness Systems Ride 135, Tarpon 120 and the Ocean Kayak Trident 13 if you shop right you can find any of the three on craigslist rigged and ready to fish for around $500-$600 and that may include a paddle and PFD. Here is a good thread to start your search. http://www.swimbaitunderground.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9371

NO

Weedless 68, trout, 12 RoF. Everyone is going to have their own personal preference, that is mine. Throwing the smaller bait might help build some confidence.

Great Fish! Congrats!

Great Fish! Congrats!

Thanks some more! I didn't mention that it was prefrontal weather conditions and there was only about a foot or so of visiblity. Which is funny because I had just read earlier that day that swimbaits are a "sight bait" for bass and work best when the fish can see them. So somebody explain to me how I can go out after several days of stable weather and nice clear water conditions and get flat skunked. Buuuutttt go out on a night that for all intents and purposes I should have gotten skunked and stick a decent fish??? Personally I think fish eat when they are hungry and they hit lures out of a defensive response regardless of the water/weather conditions.

Grilled potatoes.

My goal is to do a series of videos like the one in the link below. Each vid will have a topic like say large mouth on swimbaits, just LM fishing, a smallie vid etc... I also plan on working on my jig fishing; I know I'm leaving fish out there because I don't fish jigs enough.

Thanks fellas!

I got myself an Okuma Citrix 364 and a couple baits during the TW 20% sale and I wanted to take them for a test drive. I tossed a Mini-Slammer I got for about an hr or so with no luck so I switched it up to a Weedless 68 I had with me. Only bite of the night. She thumped it too, there was no mistaking it as anything other than a hit. She came in @ 5.25#.

Sweet!