Conference wahoo::fishing

    
    	no# 1 drop the swival.
    
    					Ronni

    As .-1 said, loose the swivel...  The only time I'll use a swivel is 
    for trolling some types of lures for trout, and then its just a swivel,
    not a (yech) snap swivel.  
    
    Tie direct, check your line often, and re-tie often, removing a short 
    length of line each time you re-tie.  
    
    A properly rigged texas worm should work.  For the real heavy stuff, you 
    may want to try a texas rig w/o the weight - just slide it across the 
    top, this and the rat are two of my favorites.  Personally, I haven't 
    fished the spoons much, but I know I should.....
    
    donmac - back from a week of vaca fishing with his new boat

    I know that Roland Martin claims to be fond of using the Johnson Silver
    Minnow weedless spoon in the weeds, but who knows how much of that is
    genuine and how much is paid endorsement. But in this case I will avoid
    cynicism and assume he means it. I've used the same lure in the weeds
    and it seems to do a good job of not getting fouled with green matter.
    
    Ed
    

    If the weeds are real heavy go with a weightless  texas rigged worm,
    or if you feel you need the weight make it samll 1/8 max.  Also my
    favorite lure in thick weeds is a buzz bait, lots of noise and lots of
    strikes early in the morning and at dusk.  If the weeds are not all the
    way to the surface use any surface lure, rappala, spook, twitch baits,
    these can usually bring ole bucket mouth out of the weeds for a meal.
    
    Good luck and remember on most top water baits wait a second before you
    set the hook.
    
    Les

    	One of my favorites is dragging a worm with a weedless hook over
    the top of pads, stopping on top of them occasional, then drag it over
    the edge and let it sink.
    
    	I've had them follow it to the edge and slam it while it was
    dropping or had them nail it by coming up through the pads.
    
    	As was already said, leave off the swivel AND the weight. You may
    have to go down some weight on the line to cast. A friend of mine uses
    8 lb. test trilene XL and usually pulls them right out with no problems
    and has no problem casting an 8" worm. I like to be even more sporting
    and use 6 lb. test and I don't lose that many due to snapped lines. I
    do have to go in and get them once in a while.
    
    	Other than this, I can't think of anything I know that is going to
    let you drag something THROUGH the weeds and not pull up a salad more
    often than not. Even a weightless worm will pull up weeds.
    
    	RAYJ

    Drop the swivel? won't the worm spin and cause the line to kink?  I know
    my texas rig is right but, I am afraid the worm will spin in the water
    anyway.  
    
    Brian

    Re:6
    
    	I've gone away from the Texas rigged worms in favor of the weed
    guard type hooks. It appears (to me anyway) that they are just about 
    as weedless and that I get more hook-ups than Texas rigged worms.
    Keep in mind that I prefer my tackle on the light side. This means I 
    don't get the same hook set power as if I was using a broom-stick
    type rod and 17 lb. test. The wire weed guard type hook seems like the 
    next best thing to an exposed hook which is my preferance whenever
    possible.
    
    	The other thing that I've found is that if the section of worm that
    has the hook through it is reasonably straight, you don't get anywhere 
    near as much line twist. The same probably applies to a Texas rigged worm 
    as well.
    
    	RAYJ
    
    P.S. It seems that not all weed guard type hooks are created equal.
    I've bought a brand name called J.T. at Zyla's and think it's worth the
    extra change to go with the Eagle Claws (personal opinion).

    the only time a swivel might be appropriate on a worm would be if you
    were 'swimming' it - retrieving it real fast.   if your fishing it
    traditionally, bumping it along the bottom, then yes, loose the swivel.
    
    when you rig the worm, hold it up by the line and the worm should fall
    straight... if it's twisted or curved then it will twist on you...
    
    donmac

re: .7

	A little word of warning on the Eagle Claw hooks with the wire
	weed guard. In the last few weeks, I've had 2 of them break at
	the shank. Luckily, in both cases it happened while removing the
	hook from a bass - I haven't lost any fish because of it. (Both
	hooks were size 1/0). This kind of surprises me as I've been using
	the same brand/size hooks for years without a problem.

				Robert

As far as I'm concerned the only sinker to use in heavy weeds is the
Water Gremlin Needle nose.  I usually use the 3/16 oz.  The super narrow
nose on these things will come through a lot of crap that the standard
bullet sinker will hang on.  As you get into lighter ones, you lose the
advantage due to a fat base, but the 1/4 oz and 3/16 oz seem to really
do the trick...

Bill Norman's "weed walker" can be worked as a buzz bait until you get to
and hole and then let the bait flutter down.  You'll pick up heavy weeds
once you start the bait back up, but the 'flutter' can be productive as
is the 'buzz' presentation.

Heavy weeds can be productive, but if it was easy, then everyone would do
it and it would probably be less productive (afterall them big suckers in
the weeds aren't used to see'n lures).

Good luck & keep after 'em

Al

    
    rep:6
    
    you didn't say whether you are using spinning gear or baitcasting gear.
    if you are using spinning gear i can see your problem all ready. I use 
    baitcasting and very rarely have this problem. if I feel like i have
    picked up weeds i quickly set the hook and this usually releases most
    of them. i rig texas style. one thing i have noticed was that if the 
    worm continually seems to slide up the hook, replace it.
    
    mark

    Regarding IHIW 1445.65 by DELNI::OTA
    
       If you have a favorite pond (or a new one to try) that is totally
    weed choked without a hole to put your lure in all it takes is one
    piece of equipment that I'll bet you already have at home.  You'll
    never see it in a tournament bass rig and most new bass anglers have
    never even seen it put to this use.  But it takes a little work to do
    it right.  Back in the old days (I've been bass fishing for so long
    that THE bait was 9" pork eels, there were no rubber worms!) standard
    equipment included a garden rake!  Just go to your favorite weed bed
    and make the size and shape holes that you want!  Bait fishing?  Make
    big round holes.  Lure fishing?  Make LONG narrow ones to work your
    lure through.  If your casting is accurate enough you can then use
    any lure you want instead of just weedless stuff.  You'll be surprised
    how soon you can go back and fish the holes too.  You stir up stuff
    that the baitfish come in to eat and the bass are never far behind.
    It takes some effort to do and maybe that's why you never see people
    doing it any more, but it's paid off BIG for me in the past.
    
    						B.C.

    That was great advice.  In fact I read a write up in some pro article
    that he said drive your boat through weeds and come back and fish the
    new channels in less than an hour.  
    
    I will feel a little silly doing this, but it sounds like great advise.
    
    Brian

    I have been fishing this pond near my house for about 6 years,  Last
    year a weed bed of about 1-2 acres appeared.  The weeds have a very
    thin stem with small needles coming off them kind of like a fern plant
    people have in there home.   The only thing about these weeds is they
    were matted right up to the surface in island like groups, the edges of
    the weed go straight down about 9-12 feet.  Last year the Gitzit and I
    had a blast in these weed using a buzz bait caught all sorts of 2-4
    lbers.  These weeds are no longer there.  I have been looking for them
    all year but no luck.  Sunday I decided to go straight accross this
    lake (300 acres or so) instead of working the shorline like I normally
    do,  well my motor on my John boat all but stopped.  The weeds, same
    kind seemed to have moved about 200 yrds down.  now they are about 2-3
    acres worth.  The water was real calm and I could see tons of bait fish
    on the edges of these weed islands.   It was pretty easy moving around
    in them and avoiding getting a prop ful of weeds.  I took a rubber
    worm with a pegged 1/16 oz weight and through it to the edge of one
    clump of weeds it dropped down the edge and my line went tight.  First
    cast a nice 2 lber bass.  On the second cast I got my second fish.    
    Then the storm appeared and forced me off the lake,  My jon boat dont
    like 30 MPH winds.  I will be heading out ther tonight or friday night
    to see if the big guys moved along with them.  I have fished alot of
    lake and ponds in central mass but have never seen these weeds any
    where else, at least not in these 10' islands clumps sitting in 10 ft
    of water.  the cover they produce is amazing and the quantity of bait
    fish and bass they hold is great.  Has anyone out there seen these kind
    of weeds.  BTW.  this lake is crystal clear with alot of rocks and a
    weed bed like this seems so out of place.
    
    Les  

Les,

Certainly sounds to me like Hydrilla, but a "pro" such as yourself would know
that already.  Working the hydrilla islands can be very productive, but then
just before a storm blows in most anywhere the fish are holding produces well. 

Another bait that's produced for me in the hydrilla in the "weed walker" and
plastic spoon type bait with a paddle-wheel in the middle and weighted so the
hook rides on the top of the lure.  Drag that sucker across the top of the 
weed islands, hitting as many of the pockets as you can & you'll get the bass
to bite.  I haven't caught any lunkers that way, but the 1 - 1.5 lbers are
there...

Good luck,

Al

    Dats coontail moss and de onlyist wey to stop it is to stop de sun frum
    shinin on de bottom.
    
    It duz mak gud fishin jes right after spawnin, but chew gotta use wurms
    or sodomanders rigged op weedless.
    
    Coonass

    I have been using the new strike king grass frogs the last couple of
    times out.  Man when those bass hit that, your heart just about breaks. 
    The only problem in using the frog or the Rats is a 50% hook ratio.  
    
    I don't know any way you can improve that because half the hits I get
    just pop the frog up out of the weeds.  I actually recast several times
    to that missed spot and usually get a couple more hits.
    
    In fact last nights Bassmasters show was just on using the rat.
    
    I at first thought the Grass Frogs was a ripoff, but now am going to be
    using this a lot this fall.
    
    Brian

    Hey Coonass,
        I know what coontail moss is us yankee types call it fox tails
    bbut that is not what this is.  BTW went out there twice since my last 
    note.  yesterday it was kinda slow we put 6 in the boat, 4 from the
    weeds, on Weds. night the Gitzit and I put a couple in the boat from
    the weeds including a nice 3 Lb 5 ozer.  Gitzit caught it. 
    
    
    Les
    

      Bet your boots them 'ol grass frogs rats and such work.  I shove a
    few pieces of broken off plastic worm up inside the hole on their
    plastic body.  Helps 'em cast farther and sound even more lifelike when
    they hit the water(weeds).  I also sharpen the double hook to razor
    sharpness so that if a fish touches the lure at all, he's stuck. 
    Course you are supposed to wait until you actually feel the weight of
    the bass in the first place before you get into the hook set mode
    anyway.  Most guys miss fish 'cause they are striking at all the
    commotion instead of waitin' till that 'ol bass has the bait in his\her
    mouth.  
    	
    	Larry Bass
    

    Just saw a great tip on Houston's show for making the Strike King Grass
    frog  have a better hit ratio.  You add a trailer hook, barb up.  It seems
    that the action of the rubber feet keep the trailer weed free.  I won't
    be able to try that till this spring unless someone of our compadres
    down south or out west can try it for us.
    
    Brian