aplumma

Since the gun was free why not go ahead and treat yourself to a good lookin over by a gunsmith. He can check the bore and see what choke is if any is in the gun. He can also check the trigger and other parts for wear and lub it up for a fraction of what a new one would have cost you. When you fire it you should shoot it from the hip in a safe area to keep any injury if it malfunctions but after the gunsmith I would not be worried about issues. Art

I have seen the dawgs truck and it is nice ...except for the loose nut behind the steering wheel. Art The Titan owner

Nice crop of eattin their good job. Art

I am not sure how this applies but when using chunks of shad (6") plus for catfishing the hook of choice is a 7/0 to 9/0 circle with anything from 8 lb to 56 lb being caught. I would be thinking the 2/0 or3/0 a good choice to begin. Don't be afraid of the bigger #'s the mouth on the bass is more than enough to inhale the larger hook. Art

Sorry to hear Joey, While I did not get a chance to sit down and talk with your dad the love and guidance that he put into raising you shines thru and puts him into a category of men I wish I had known. Art

lucG it looks like they are still in velvet? Nice picture all. Art

Here is a good site also on what you are looking at under the water depthfinder reading 101 You can also figure alot out just by running in clear water and watching the bottom as what it is made of and what type of reflection you get as a reading. Art

Actually the goats love the stuff and can keep it in check. Round up also works but you need round up pro concentrate and mix it to 6 oz per gallon will also kill the roots. Art

pump idea T.J. here you go....The reason that your pump will not work is the amp draw is to high. Look at this link it is for a low amp draw even a solar application. I would ask the service rep to make sure but I see no reason why it will not fit the bill. The Southern Contingency

What you were able to witness is a reaction bite that had a large window of acceptance as far as bait colors go. When you are using a slashing motion it is a short window for the fish to make the choice to eat or not when the lure pauses. The instinct is like when you see something coming towards your face out of the corner of your eye you raise your arm to stop the rock or the pillow both the same reaction because you did not have time to clarify the situation. If you had a helmet on and you knew it would stop the object you would be able to take the time identify it before it hit you and not waste the energy on the pillow. While this is a simple concept to a complicated reaction it makes the point from a different angle. The color of your lures would be more critical as the fish go towards a neutral or negative bite. The speed and type of retrieve will also factor into the fishes reaction to your presentation. I have found that two people can be in the same boat with the same lure and one will out fish the other just because he is doing something different..IE faster retrieve, pauses,slower,or smoking a cigarette. Have you ever cast out and let the lure sit while you got the sandwich or some other distraction to get a hit as you start winding in? It is because you appealed to that fish with that pause. One I have my contrast decided on for the conditions I then shift my presentation style or cadence till I get a bite then duplicate the pattern in other places in the lake that match the structure, wind driven shores, weed lines and depth. Art

While this is not a color answer it might help you decide some of your patterns and contrast. The light color of a fishes belly is to help it hide in the lighted back round of the sky and the upper surface of the water when viewed from below. The darker back does the opposite and helps it blend when viewed from above. The breaking of the solid patterns by the lines or color changes on the sides breaks up the edges of the fish to make it seem to not be a fish shape on the changing back round. At this point you need to decide if you have a deep diving lure or a shallow diving lure. Then factor in are you trying to mimic the forage or going for a reaction bite. The mimic is just as it sounds it is a close pattern using natural colors to match what the fish eat. Most of the time it is good for non aggressive or neutral feeding fish. The shallow version can be fish ( shad, walleye and perch) or frog which ever you like to paint. The deeper lures can be fish ( Perch,Walleye,chubs, carp and other bottom feeders) and crawfish which live more towards the bottom. The action of the bait should also be considered and the more life like it is the more of a natural fishing pattern is needed The second type of bite is the reaction bite and that keys on fast I. D. of the lure and something that says food. The choice of colors can be very bright and should contrast the mimic like dark belly's and light backs. The appearance of a focus point on the bait is required something like red gills. big eyes, tail spot or flashing metal or sparkles in the paint. These baits should have some resemblance of the forage in the patterns or the shape to start the process of the fish thinking it is food and not some kind of a hood ornament. These baits are fished fast or erratic to make the fish make a quick choice to either bite it or not. Most things in nature have 2 main colors that blend into each other and other colors are just accents. The colors that are naturally in the body of water you fish are the first colors to blend out if the bait is the same shade. A green lure in the weeds is only using the attractant of vibration if it is the same color. The Tanic stain of Nippissing makes browns a less than perfect color unless it is a few shades off and your bait has contrast again. Since Red is easily absorbed by water and blue hangs in the longest consider using a mixture of color that blends from red to blue for the basic pattern to maximize a lure that floats but has a big diving lip. Once your lure gets deep below the level that natural light is abundant you are dealing more with contrast than with the actually color. You can put a white lure down deep and it will not matter if it is white or yellow or any other light color because without light to reflect off of it it becomes just a matter of contrast between it and the environment around it. The final thought is that the first thing that any lure catches is the Fisherman. The lure that you believe in is usually the lure you will catch the most fish with. It usually gets the most swim time and you tend to give it the benefit of the doubt. Many times I have cut the lure off my line and given it to someone else who saw me catch a fish on it and they will also start to catch fish with the proven lure. Art

shhhhh looks like the fuzz showed up. hide the beers and the pot so we don't get busted..... I havent had to said that since the 80's art

T.J. is much easier to wrestle he has lots of hair to hold on too. Besides if Monique don't want to wrestle it would be like trying to shave a wildcat in a phone booth I think. Art

Most of the brands that you look at are comparative to the ones here in the USA but carry a Cuba origin. I think that it is more the thought than the actual label you get him that will make the difference. The Cuba cigar being better was a fact for awhile but after the seeds got out and the rollers were free to move about the quality of alot of the cigars made in Honduras and other top growing places are just as good if not better. The approach you might take is find out what ring size and style he likes and get a few rather than chose them for their brand name or place of origin. A good start if you want to suprise him is a 6 1/2" X 50 torpedo or a 5" X 42 macanudo give or take an inch or 5 on the ring size. They are not so big that they cant be clamped in your mouth while fishing so you don't have to set them down somewhere between puffs. The truth as I feel it is the best cigar I have ever had was one a friend went out of their way to get me. Art

Someone found that if you wrestle T.J. to the ground you can get a free shirt with $5.00 in the front pocket. Art

Joey...Joey....Joey... you poor misguided fisherwomen. You all need to come to the South and get a catfishin lesson. I am getting ready to go out Saturday and the first stop is to get about 1/2 dozen or so of 12" shad to cut in half and send down to the bottom for the real catfish. If my small mind doesn't forget the camera I will post a report. gheez cigarette butts for catfish......not even sheephead eat them things...... Art

Does this mean I get to test out the cuss filter's in the P.M. mode again? I want to break my old record of 14 words that you all up North havent heard yet. Art

I have built a few boats over the years and I used a marine grade carpet that was laid directly on the wood with an outdoor mastic glue on the wood. You first use the mastic to fill in between the boards and let it dry then you apply fresh mastic to the wood and lay the carpet.After you get it laid in place then staple the over run over the edges to hold it tight. Let dry and trim the back as needed for fit and looks. Art

I have found that every comment ever made has the potential to be misunderstood by a few. I admit that we all take the liberties to say something to someone on the board that between the two of us is understood but read by the others on the internet it looks different. I can say that I have called Roy a dwarf... T.J. a fuzzy bear and Glen a redneck or worse. All three of them know that Roy is the tallest man I know not in height but in life. T.J. if his heart got any bigger he would explode and Glen has the education and the back round to qualify as a scholar on more subjects than I can count. I have also found that as time goes on and you take the time to be here you will learn who in the back round knows what kind of information they specialize in. To take advise from people you don't know is down right dangerous. I would no sooner trust any information I give you no matter how good it sounds on painting but if you asked Roy or Pam you would find info you can bank on. With a knowledge base this broad full of specialist you will find that a P.M. to the right person is the correct way to get the answers on any subject. The key though is to put your time in on the board posting pictures or information so that people feel like expending the energy to answer your questions. I can honestly say that their are over a hundred people who with a phone call would jump at the chance to help me when the day comes that I need it because of the past seeds that I have sowed here on OFC. Art

I don't want to start anything but that person that bass is holding is OOS in that sector/providence/ zone 3. Or did you write your own rules for camp jiggity/jiggity o da dew da day. Art

NO WAY...an Alabananas redneck whinning????? Get off the bus dude.....I will send dawg a block of cheese to go with that fine alabananas wine he's drinking he'll be just fine by mornin. Art

Having pike is an issue ??? Does the forage base not support them? just curious I havent heard were pike were a bad thing in water up north. Art

u r fakin it its "speach" ya igidit. jus ask dawg.........he ns got ma bak on dis. Art

Thanks Bud but you can make Glen first if you want his feelings are alittle more tender than Daplummas and mine are. Art

happy b day Paul....... Leechman has the present I sent you so go on over and collect. Art