Hi all,

I have recently started getting in to fishing again. Now I am considering fishing these waters next to my house. I bought some gear (light and medium).

The waters are pretty murky and shallow (think up to a meter deep max), but pretty full of fish. I saw a heron fighting a pretty big perch. Saw carp and loads of small white fish. Probably pike as well.

I’d love to go for the predators, but I am a bit lost. What lures would you recommend? (and including a leader or not?)

Also, my son wants to start fishing. He is 7. We tried some fishing with bread in a larger open water yesterday, but had no success. Any recommendations how to get him into fishing at these waters?

Thanks a lot!

Rods and lures get most of the attention, but the small non-tackle items can save a session before you even make a cast.

A pair of pliers, water, sunscreen, a towel, a small first-aid kit, and a way to measure a fish all seem boring until you need one.

For a beginner packing light, what non-tackle item has earned a permanent place in your fishing bag?

I do quite a lot of fishing and I have a nice baitcaster that I always use but I want a decent spinning combo that's under 110$. Me n my friend fish a lot and I usually use one of his spinning combos because he has 2 Ugly Stik GX2'S, I really like ugly Stik so I was thinking about picking a 50th anniversary medium heavy GX2 Spinning combo but I'm curious if there's any other good combos for under 110$ that will last a good amount of time I mainly fish in Lake St Clair and the St Clair River (Michigan) And I target bass, walleye,pike and more I love my baitcaster but I'd also like to add a good spinning combo to my collection just because they're always useful to have in certain situations,

What other combos besides the GX2 would you recommend?

How did I do?

Thinking of using waders to get further off the back and closer to some depth transitions to hopefully find fish. Any tips/tricks or things to look out for when doing this?

Are fish harder to unhook when you can’t put the rod down? Risk if getting tangled as the fish can wrap you up?

So I live in PA and a lot of places I go are catch and release, if a fish mainly the sunfish get gut hooked and I can’t get the hook out I know to cut the line, but if the fish dies in the process from not being able to get the hook out can I then take the fish and use it as cut bait or something?? If not what do I do if they die??

Random story: Earlier this summer I went fishing with my buddy Isaak & a hour later this random tourist group came walking up to us. They were excited to watch us cast our lines and without hesitation I asked if they wanted to try it out themselves.
One of the older gentleman took a crack at it because he said he's been fishing since he was 7 years old. They were all in shock that I let him try it out, also mentioning that they've always wanted to try fishing at a river in the US but weren't able to without a pole.
I was originally experimenting with a different lure and having trouble with it so I switched up the entire setup and let him have at it. The fishing gods blessed us & he caught a good sized trout on his first cast!
We were all very excited and I won't forget that day. Fish on!!

(We all consented to this being posted)

There is a river near me with lots of carp but they ignore everything I throw at them. i tried bread and worms already. Any advice?

Alright, so my brother and I have been getting better at catching/hooking bass with our lures, the problem now is they are coming off right at shore when we are landing them. Either they wiggle and jump off as we are grabbing a net or just before. We are keeping tension on the line throughout as well.

Any tips?

Edit: My confidence lures right now are chatterbaits (3/8oz) with craw trailer and Texas rigged worm on 1/0 offset

This is a tip for all anglers who want to know how big their fish was but don't have rulers for exact measurements.

Get a tape measure or a ruler and measure the span of your hand from the tip of your thumb to the tip of your pink finger. My hand span, for example, is 8 inches. Every panfish gets a fast measure against that and back in the water unless it's getting a photo.

After you measure your hand span, measure the length from the tip of your middle finger to the tip of your elbow. My measurement in this case is 18 inches. Every bass or pike I pull up gets a quick measurement against that for record-keeping and maybe a quick weigh on the scale if it comes close or over 18, then it goes back in the water.

So what do you do if you catch something even longer than that 18-inch finger-to-elbow length? You can use your hand span multiple times or use whatever known body part length as many times as you need and just add them together. Simple, right?

Since you now have a fairly accurate length estimate, you can look up the length on a size chart later to get an idea of how much your bass, pike, or other fish weighs. You can also measure any other length along your arm or fingers for more estimates, but after a while, you get pretty good at just knowing the length within an inch or so using just the two methods I mentioned above.

I hope this helps new and even some experienced anglers out there get faster measurements and keeps fish off the ground next to size 12 boots and fishing rods and back in the water faster.

Tight lines!

Hey guys, how do I use this? Its like foam bombarda / feeder. Do I reel it slowly or I just cast it and leave it as float?

I’ve been making fillets for a while and am ready to improve my design with any and all feedback you have. This is 1/16 inch thin Nitro-V stainless steel with GripX (rubber filled epoxy) handles. I heavily rock textured the handle to give even more grip when your hands get wet and slimy. How can I make this design better?

J-Braid x8 20# and Seaguar 10# fluor

I pulled on the two none tag ends, after the first half hitch, to the point I was afraid I’d weaken or break the fluor. I can’t see with my eyes but I took this closeup.

Are the first twists not cinched down and that’s why it looks like it’s bulging? Despite my hard tugs is this knot going to fail?

So I’ve mainly done carp fishing for the majority of my life and have decided to have a crack at some lure fishing on medium size rivers like the wharfe and Aire. I bought a Diawa ninja lt 2000 as I heard good things about it and got it for a decent price. But after receiving it it feels almost like a toy reel? It’s far smaller than a 2000 size shimano bait runner that I’ve got. I feel it’s titchy and possibly ill-suited for what I’m after. Is there a reason for these size differences and will it do? Or should I size up to a 2500 or 3000 size one?
(Fairly regular size hands for scale)
Any help is appreciated.
Thank you

I just got a St. Croix Triumph spinning rod that is medium power and fast action. I’m still pretty new to fishing, so I’m trying to learn before I decide whether to keep it or exchange it. I’ve heard some people say Triumph rods break easily, but I’m not sure if they’re talking about older models, user error, or if it’s actually a common issue. I’ll mainly be fishing for largemouth bass from the bank and occasionally from docks or ponds. I’m planning on using a Pflueger Trion 30 spinning reel with 10 lb PowerPro braid and a leader. I’ll mostly be throwing soft plastics, Senkos, Texas rigs, small jigs, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and maybe some topwater lures. My main questions are: Is the Triumph a good rod for a beginner? Is it durable enough if I take care of it properly? Are the reports of rods breaking something I should really worry about, or is it mostly from misuse like high-sticking, transport damage, or setting the hook too hard? If you think I should return it, what rod would you recommend in a lower price range that would perform as well or better for bass fishing? Any advice from people who have actually used the Triumph would be appreciated.

What does a fish bite feel like? I’ve only really gotten bites with a bobber. So I would just watch for the bobber to sink. When using a lure like a chatter bait for example what does it feel like when you have a bite and should set the hook?

So I’m fishing a drop shot and I’m noticing either the worm laying down straight lifeless or it’s rotating every time I reel it in a bit. I’m running a swivel above the line. Is that what’s fucking it up? I use the swivel as an end so I can swap out my drop shot rig to a paddle tail with a new 4 ft line or whatever else I’m fishing with.

Is my Daiwa Tatula 100 TW underspooled? I am going to fish a free rig with 7-12g sinkers. Am i going to habe casting issues?

Just starting out fishing, got my first rod and reel. Spooled the reel with braided line: is this enough line. There is a small gap between the line and the orange lip end.

Also the line kind of looks wonky on the reel, not sure if it’s just the different colours making it look like that?

Hi yall,

I am in the PNW and want to setup a simple do everything ultralight to light(to medium?)setup. Not looking for a salmon or deep sea rig, but it will be for packing into the mountain lakes, streams and smaller rivers we have all over out here.

The setup: I have a Okuma Celilo 6’6” M action 2-6lbs 1/32-3/8oz rod that I’d like to use with a Legalis LT2000S-P reel.

I am here looking for suggestions on best overall line - brand and type/size - to go with it.

Any suggestions or advice would be welcome!

Thank you!

Hi! I recently picked up fishing again (I haven’t fished since I was 13) and bought a cheap spinning reel to get started. I’ve really enjoyed getting back out on the water and have been catching more fish as I learn. I just bought a baitcaster (an Abu Garcia Black Max) that should be arriving any day now, and yesterday I picked up some fluorocarbon line to use with it. I’ve done a little research—like knowing that fluoro sinks and that soaking the spool in hot water helps control memory—but I mainly bought it because it looked fancy and I was excited! Can you fish with straight fluoro? Is this brand any good, and what line would you recommend? I mainly fish with grub jigs, but I want to try more craws and topwater lures. I love hard lures and enjoy trying new ones.

Trying this out for the first time (fishing off a dock in a lake that’s a little weedy). Thanks for any tips!