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Post by katfish on Mar 5, 2011 20:50:31 GMT -5
I don't use a leader so I just snell the hooks on my rigs. Guarantee it is stronger than any knot.
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Post by katfish on Mar 5, 2011 20:46:06 GMT -5
I don't think you can use to big a bait. I compromise. I use baits big enough to discourage channel cats but small enough to keep several alive in a baitwell at once. If I went bigger I would be forced to use larger weights to hold them in place and then worry the cat could use the weight to throw the hook. As you can see I am not afraid to put out different baits. Lots of bluegill in summer.
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Post by katfish on Mar 5, 2011 20:40:10 GMT -5
I'll get on that right away!! Just got the reg stickers renewal for the pontoon. I told the wife I hope I don't expire before they do
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Post by katfish on Mar 4, 2011 20:39:37 GMT -5
Last year I dropped a goldfish for flathead bait. It got eaten by a channel cat which got eaten by a flathead. Big flathead won't hesitate to eat any fish they can catch at times. Sometimes they don't want to eat at all.
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Post by katfish on Mar 3, 2011 0:41:18 GMT -5
I got tons of them Papaw Them turkeys are smart enough to stay out of bow range when I deer hunt ;D
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Post by katfish on Mar 3, 2011 0:38:26 GMT -5
Here are my boats at a flathead spot. The pontoon is for Kayla and Grandma to sleep in and the little boat I get to use for fishing.
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Post by katfish on Mar 3, 2011 0:27:59 GMT -5
I don't know where to fish so I follow Chuck around ;D He was breaking too many hearts around here and one gal in particular is on the lookout for him. I think he was strinigin her along and then ran.
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Post by katfish on Mar 3, 2011 0:17:29 GMT -5
I was working in Canada one year and could only fish maybe once a month or even less. But I have proof that catch and release works ;D When I caught this 55 pound male I noticed the rub marks from the spawn. He had a limb over his back and rubbed the skin through fanning the eggs. The picture on the right was the first time I caught him and the one on the left was taken 6 weeks later.
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Post by katfish on Mar 3, 2011 0:09:01 GMT -5
Kip I gave up smoking ;D Just thought I would add a note about that night. Here is a pic of the catches after I got on some dry clothes ;D The largest flathead was a female that I knew well. Me and my friends first caught her when she was 37 pounds. We caught and released her 6 or 7 times over about a 5 year period. In this picture she was 61 pounds.
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Post by katfish on Mar 2, 2011 16:00:12 GMT -5
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Post by katfish on Mar 2, 2011 15:54:56 GMT -5
I normally use larger live baits to help avoid channel cats. Last year I dropped a bait and it fell directly on submerged brush and tangled. The bait could not move to avoid the channel cat and was eaten by the forktail. The line was tangled enough that the channel cat could not pull the clicker. I guess I dropped it into a pretty good spot because the channel cat was later eaten by a flathead. I didn't realize anything till I reeles up in the morning and after pulling the line loose of the brush I felt the flathead. I snapped a pic to show my buddies what happened.
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Post by katfish on Mar 2, 2011 15:49:25 GMT -5
Hans Raidel and I were fishing a spot with plenty of stumps. We knew we would get hung up a bit but the spot had flathead written all over it. The real purpose of the trip was to get his son a flathead. The first bite we explained how to set the hook and coached him on fighting the fish. The next bite I let Hans get since he was also a guest. We got another bite and I reeled that flathead in. The spot was a good one. We got another bite and I told Hans to go ahead. He fought it a while and then it got into some roots and broke off. As Paul Harvey always said: Now for the rest of the story. A few nights later I decided to try the same spot again. I e-mailed Hans not to tell anyone the flathead he broke off was over 50 cause I caught it and it was 37 ;D Notice both hooks were almost in the same spot.
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Post by katfish on Mar 2, 2011 15:34:20 GMT -5
I was fishing 6 mile run at Piedmont one year. One fella from W.V. would come down and stay all week on his houseboat.
One of my rods took a run and I set the hook but something felt funny. When I got it reeled up to my hook I had a line. I almost tossed it back in the water but decided to pull on the line.
I felt a fish on it and pulled in a flathead hand over hand. When I pulled in the other end I finally got to a rod and reel. Suspecting it might be Jasco's I plotted the rest of the night.
In the morning I went to the marina and noticed a few guys there including Roy and Allan Hoops. I set the rod by the counter with a little for sale sign. Some of the boyz asked me how much for the rod and reel but I said just wait.
I ordered breakfast and watched the lake till Jasco's house boat pulled up. I must have been grinning a bit cause they all got quiet and was watching the door.
Jasco came in and looked at the rod and the for sale sign and hollered "Hey that's my rod!!"
I stood up and said. I caught a flathead last night and he said it was his rod! All the boyz busted out in laughter. I gave Jasco the rod back and told him I figured it was his and the flathead was just borrowing it.
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Post by katfish on Mar 1, 2011 21:09:44 GMT -5
Kip We can never be sure why the flathead settle where they do but we have some suspicions. We clear spots to fish from shore in areas showing submerged timber or old creek channels used for travelways. It takes months to evaluate the spots but over the years we find spots that produce big flathead. I often clear 3 or 4 spots before finding one that produces big fish. Some produce smaller flathead and others produce no flathead. After spawn, our most productive spots seem to be in 8-10 ft water in bays off the main lake. These places have submerged brush or structural ridges or channels that make hunting easier for the flathead. Most are found close to the spawning areas. In late Fall we have one spot that is in the transition area between summer and winter homes for the flathead. Although it is a large bay it holds flathead from a much larger home range bay and provides lots of flathead.
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Post by katfish on Mar 1, 2011 20:56:37 GMT -5
Some nice cats!
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