Three Decent Fish Via Crankin' & Windin' 2025
Dead River reply :
The bite in middle Ga is still very slow. The water is cold enough to keep drinks. Had a couple of warm days, I fished both, tried two locations the second day and found myself back at the slow but sure. It took off fast with two nice fish in about 20 mins and then ebbed to nothing, the day prior I had one bite one fish, probably should've been throwing a jerkbait and working it slow, but I was resigned to crank and wind. We have more cold weather forthcoming so I imagine the proper pre-spawn feed has to be delayed. these fish are not as skinny as they look, they're well built just no bellies to speak of, you can tell they haven't been eating much over the winter. If we get a warming trend toward the end of the month all three of these fish will be 5 lbs, the biggest may be 6#. footballs galore. My pb from this lake is 7# and it was 21"x17" (total length/tail pinched.
had three strikes and three nice fish. 4lb 3oz, 5 lb 2 oz, and 4 lb 14 oz.
Rangerphil reply :
Nice!
Rivers Edge reply :
Good job.
Mainebass1984 reply :
On 2/10/2014 at 3:05 PM, Dead River said:If we get a warming trend toward the end of the month all three of these fish will be 5 lbs, the biggest may be 6#. footballs galore. My pb from this lake is 7# and it was 21"x17" (total length/tail pinched.
had three strikes and three nice fish. 4lb 3oz, 5 lb 2 oz, and 4 lb 14 oz.
In less then a month you think all those fish will gain a pound ? That is crazy. It would take very long time up here where I am for a fish to gain a pound. Like a year or more maybe 2 especially with an older fish going from 5 to 6 lbs. Must be some crazy growth rate for that lake your fishing. Even during the spawn a female will only gain 10 % of her body weight in eggs.
Bankbeater reply :
WTG! At least your water is liquid down there.
basshole8190 reply :
On 2/10/2014 at 10:23 PM, Mainebass1984 said:In less then a month you think all those fish will gain a pound ? That is crazy. It would take very long time up here where I am for a fish to gain a pound. Like a year or more maybe 2 especially with an older fish going from 5 to 6 lbs. Must be some crazy growth rate for that lake your fishing. Even during the spawn a female will only gain 10 % of her body weight in eggs.
I'm going to guess not many lakes in maine have shad? If not you wouldn't know that lm bass will eat 4 lbs of shad in a day or two and swell themselves inpreparation for spawn. i caught a fish last year in february on a spinnerbait that threw up over 40 shad on its way to the boat and still had a potbelly. the fish was approx. 17" and was almost 5 lbs! add in the 10% of egg weight and you could have a fish that could gain over 2lbs in a month.
Siebert Outdoors reply :
3 Dandy fish there. Congrats.
Dead River reply :
Yeah these fish in this lake are generally fatter than this. I could see them gaining a lb
buzzed bait reply :
nice fish man, it has been tough for me here in middle, ga as well. i've been more on scouting trips than fishing trips with the water temps in the 30s. glad to see some nice fish! can't wait for the steady warm weather!
Mainebass1984 reply :
On 2/11/2014 at 2:14 AM, basshole8190 said:I'm going to guess not many lakes in maine have shad? If not you wouldn't know that lm bass will eat 4 lbs of shad in a day or two and swell themselves inpreparation for spawn. i caught a fish last year in february on a spinnerbait that threw up over 40 shad on its way to the boat and still had a potbelly. the fish was approx. 17" and was almost 5 lbs! add in the 10% of egg weight and you could have a fish that could gain over 2lbs in a month.
4 lbs of shad in a day ? 2 lbs in a month ? I just don't think that it is biologically possible. Any science behind these claims ?
AK-Jax86 reply :
Nice fish!! Mainebass you got to remember that you are fishing up north and this is the south everything is BIGGER IN THE SOUTH!
I don't think these claims are too far fetched. More abundance of food down here and the fish act differently I'm sure than they do up north... Just like the people do lol (I'm from NJ moved to FL so I can speak on that with first hand experience both fish wise and people wise lol)
Mainebass1984 reply :
AK ... Whether it is south or north I still do not believe a bass can eat 4 lbs of shad a day or grow two pounds in less then a month. I like facts and scientific evidence. Biologically southern bass or northern bass, it doesn't matter, have to still go through the biological process to grow, to put on weight. A bass stomach is only so large and for them to make room they must break down the food they have already ingested and pass it through there system. Even under ideal conditions for grow, optimum water temperature, and food I find it very difficult to believe.
Dead River reply :
Well fed post winter and pre spawn with roe on top of a full belly that 5-3 I caught is a 6 lber all day long
Dead River reply :
mainebass, you have to think out of the box, man.
Dead River reply :
that fish is not from the same lake, but you take my meaning.
bass put on weight in different places, here are some healthier fish from the same lake I caught the three this past weekend. these fish were caught a couple of years ago
Dead River reply :
Dead River reply :
here is a 5 lb 2 oz fish from the prespawn last year. I cropped the fish's belly accidentally but yes it was extremely fat. look at the bass closely. that is not a 5 lb frame and head, it's morbidly engorged with forage and roe, it was weighed on a reliable handheld digital and fought like the dickens, below it is another fish that weighed 4 lb 6 oz, see what I mean?
Dead River reply :
6 pounder from the prespawn last year
shimmy reply :
no one is doubting fish fatten up for prespawn and put some weight. The claim of bass eating 4 pounds of shad a day was silly. Unless the person was referring to 18-20 pound bass that he catches frequently.
Dead River reply :
biggest fish I've landed out of the lake, right at 7 lbs 21" (tail pinched total length) x 17" N.B. this fish was caught in mid October of 2013, so no eggs in site, how about that heavy algal stain, lot of fertilizer run off huh?
Dead River reply :
On 2/11/2014 at 10:30 AM, shimmy said:no one is doubting fish fatten up for prespawn and put some weight. The claim of bass eating 4 pounds of shad a day was silly. Unless the person was referring to 18-20 pound bass that he catches frequently.
I'm not saying 4 lbs, I'm just saying they can inflate. I've posted pictures of what my girls should be looking like going forward
Darren. reply :
Hey, those bare things, sticking out from the sleeves of your shirt...what are they, exactly? We don't usually see those until a few months from now. Then we'll show you all OUR fish 
Congrats, really. Nice catches.
Mainebass1984 reply :
On 2/11/2014 at 10:03 AM, Dead River said:mainebass, you have to think out of the box, man.
I do try and think out of the box.
I realize some fish can be very fat and put on weight differently.
A well portioned northern largemouth, post spawn.
I do like facts and scientific evidence. Fish in the 4-5 lb class putting on an entire pound in less then a month is unheard of. The food conversion rates would have to be incredible, well above anything achieved in a controlled environment under ideal conditions.
Dead River reply :
On 2/11/2014 at 8:41 PM, Mainebass1984 said:
I do try and think out of the box.
I realize some fish can be very fat and put on weight differently.
A well portioned northern largemouth, post spawn.
I do like facts and scientific evidence. Fish in the 4-5 lb class putting on an entire pound in less then a month is unheard of. The food conversion rates would have to be incredible, well above anything achieved in a controlled environment under ideal conditions.
if fish put on 10% of their body weight in roe prior to the spawn then for a 5 lber, 10% of 16 oz is 1.6 oz, 1.6oz x 5= 8 oz, that's half a pound of roe a 5 lber will put on, and just so you know, I don't buy that 10% figure across the board
are you trying to tell me that a fish is not going to consume 8 oz of forage during the prespawn, I'm gonna have to side with the other guy from Georgia here.
I posted these pictures to illustrate how portly these fish are during the prespawn. the three fish I caught last weekend are nowhere nearly as filled out as the fish I shared in photographs from the previous years. we had historically much milder winters both of those years and it's evident that the fish began feeding up earlier, you can look at them and tell that they are well nourished, those photos of me and the buddy were taken in late January of 2012. the proof is in the pudding, look at the bass I caught this winter in the OP, then look at the fish from years past, they are much, much heavier. the bass I caught this winter have similar lengths just not the girth and stockiness.
maybe it's your location, but our bass have a longer growing season here and eat more, they have a higher metabolism as well
Dead River reply :
n.b. in close to a month, combination of the prespawn feed up and the roe development.
AK-Jax86 reply :
Have to admit I am enjoying this back and forth and between you two and the pictures are an added bonus! Always like to see pics of nice quality fish... And I am learning a few things that I have always wondered from this mini debate
Dead River reply :
that is a very nice northern strain bass that he posted. I have never caught one, I've only caught our native fx intergrades and the f1 hybrids. I'm down to catch a pure florida strain at some point
Mainebass1984 reply :
During the feed up before the spawn most of all the energy is converted in to the development of the eggs, very little is converted in to growth. Besides needing energy for egg development, energy is still needed to maintain homeostasis, swim, feed, etc. I have no doubt that fish could ingest 8 ounces of feed in the month prior to spawn but not all the feed is directly converted into weight gain of the fish. Metabolism is determined by external environmental conditions not the strain.
Everyone has opinions. Look into the cold hard facts. There have been many studies done on bass growth rates, metabolism, weight gain prior to and directly following the spawn.
Dead River reply :
On 2/12/2014 at 6:31 AM, Mainebass1984 said:During the feed up before the spawn most of all the energy is converted in to the development of the eggs, very little is converted in to growth. Besides needing energy for egg development, energy is still needed to maintain homeostasis, swim, feed, etc. I have no doubt that fish could ingest 8 ounces of feed in the month prior to spawn but not all the feed is directly converted into weight gain of the fish. Metabolism is determined by external environmental conditions not the strain.
Everyone has opinions. Look into the cold hard facts. There have been many studies done on bass growth rates, metabolism, weight gain prior to and directly following the spawn.
who said strain had anything to do with metabolism, I was talking purely about geography and your fish having a shorter growing season.
speaking of external factors, when bass have more readily available easy meals they tend to be fatter than bass that have to work harder for food. a bass is an energy conservant predator that will maximize what it eats and minimize the effort it takes to get it.
fyi, that lake that produced all the fish on this thread except one is inundated with stunted crappie. how can you not tell that many of those bass are fat and not all of them are gravid. a bass can carry weight in a lot of diff locations besides its belly, in the shoulders, around the tail and anal fin area, and of course in the belly. you can have a bass with a horse head, a 10 pound head and it can weigh 7 pounds, or you can have a 21" total length fish like mine that weighed 7 lbs, we're talking almost square fish here, it's about productivity. I once saw a photo of a 22.5" bass that weighed 11 lbs.
I think your views are biased because you live/fish in a geographically limited area. that's just my opinion.
if you can't see the distinction in the photos of the fish I have posted, I don't know what else I can do for you.
Dead River reply :
and we're not even talking about growth immediately, we're talking about being full of forage, what about the February 10 lb 10 oz bass I posted that had what looked to be a 3/4 lb channel cat in its throat. and she hit my deep diver after that.
a bass could gain a pound in a month easily, a bass could be a pound heavier at the end of a good day or gorging itself on shad or sunfish
big bass could eat goldfish over 2 lbs and beyond with no problem.
I digress
Dead River reply :
here are a couple of fat bass that are not gravid, one was caught in October, one was caught after the spawn
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnQb2qKomPg
notice the belly on this fish
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MedP9P1L4pw
Dead River reply :
here's another 5 lb + class fish caught from a small public lake choked with threadfin shad, notice how portly
more shad lake bass, outgrowing their heads
Mainebass1984 reply :
LOL.
This is too much. No doubt you have some nice pics and must be a good fisherman. I would suggest doing some research into simple bass biology. Look at the science, the data the evidence. Just because I live in New England now doesn't mean I have no clue about southern largemouth. I worked for Florida Fish and Wildlife for awhile and handled an incredible amount of bass and their data. Your entitled to your opinion though. You know what they say about opinions... Look at the research and scientific evidence. Ask your regional fisheries biologist for his opinion.
Keep on posting pics man. I could do the same.
AK-Jax86 reply :
Don't know who posted about lengths and weight of fish I have lost track lol. But here in Jacksonville last year from June to December I have caught 9 fish 21", 7 fish 22" (one was 22.5), 1 fish 23", and 1 fish that was 24".
By the pure length factor I should have 18 double digit bass? But speaking to dead Rivers point it depends on how much food is available in that particular spot. The 24" bass weighed 7lbs and was long and thin that was in July. In December I caught one that was 6lb 11oz that had the body of a 10lb and was 22". Then the next day I caught a 7lb 7oz that went 23" and was not nearly as fat as the 6, belly wise.
Also had another fish that was 22", I didn't weigh it cuz took a long time to get the hook out and she was bleeding heavily, that fish had the head and mouth of a 10lb but lived in a small apartment complex pond oppose to the others that were caught in bigger lakes.
So my scientific explanation would suggest that all fish are different depending on the body of water they live, the abundance of food, and other predators or lack there of.
Just my input to this little debate
Dead River reply :
On 2/12/2014 at 7:58 AM, AK-Jax86 said:Don't know who posted about lengths and weight of fish I have lost track lol. But here in Jacksonville last year from June to December I have caught 9 fish 21", 7 fish 22" (one was 22.5), 1 fish 23", and 1 fish that was 24".
By the pure length factor I should have 18 double digit bass? But speaking to dead Rivers point it depends on how much food is available in that particular spot. The 24" bass weighed 7lbs and was long and thin that was in July. In December I caught one that was 6lb 11oz that had the body of a 10lb and was 22". Then the next day I caught a 7lb 7oz that went 23" and was not nearly as fat as the 6, belly wise.
Also had another fish that was 22", I didn't weigh it cuz took a long time to get the hook out and she was bleeding heavily, that fish had the head and mouth of a 10lb but lived in a small apartment complex pond oppose to the others that were caught in bigger lakes.
So my scientific explanation would suggest that all fish are different depending on the body of water they live, the abundance of food, and other predators or lack there of.
Just my input to this little debate
unless productivity is really off the chain I think a bass has to get to the 25" mark to be a double digit, my first double digits were 26" long, this is not a total length or fork length measurement just the longest part of the tail open naturally. in cased where productivity is good you'll have fish like my 10-8 f1 which was a short fish with a total length of 24", meaning it's under 24" in comparison to how I measured my first double digits. You generally need 25x19 to make a double digit in my opinion unless of course you have great conditions and productivity.
Dead River reply :
On 2/12/2014 at 7:58 AM, AK-Jax86 said:So my scientific explanation would suggest that all fish are different depending on the body of water they live, the abundance of food, and other predators or lack there of.
yes, this is what this thread is all about! compare the dimensions of the two reigning world record bass and you take my meaning entirely.
AK-Jax86 reply :
On 2/12/2014 at 8:24 AM, Dead River said:yes, this is what this thread is all about! compare the dimensions of the two reigning world record bass and you take my meaning entirely.
Yea man I agree with your theories as well.
I mean science is "factual" and all but how would someone explain someone like Lebron James? Or how do you explain other athletes in the NBA or NFL... Adrian Peterson I bet science can't explain what he did! Got a surgery that regular people can not even do their normal daily activities at their work place like walk and sit a a desk. This guy comes back less than a year later and missed the NFL single season rushing record by 9yds or whatever it was. But I'm sure there is a scientific explanation for that now that it happened eventhough when he got the injury all science pointed to his career was over.
Dwight Hottle reply :
Dead River for your info mainebass 1984 is a biologist. Give him a little credit.
AssassinAngling reply :
On 2/11/2014 at 3:45 AM, Mainebass1984 said:4 lbs of shad in a day ? 2 lbs in a month ? I just don't think that it is biologically possible. Any science behind these claims ?
Let's just say if a bass ate 1 pound of shad a day it would consume about 900 calories a day 6300 calories a week and 25200 calories in a month. Even if the bass burned half of those calories it ate it would gain about 4 pounds in a month. (3000 calories in a pound) If this were biologically possible their would tons of fish in the 8-10# range in most lakes.
Dead River reply :
On 2/25/2014 at 10:40 AM, Dwight Hottle said:Dead River for your info mainebass 1984 is a biologist. Give him a little credit.
I know quite a few of those biologists guys.
as for weight calculators, they're useful when you leave the scale at home but they were extremely inaccurate for the fish we were catching out of the female only trophy lake. I used regular lengths as opposed to the total length measurements and the formulas always undershot the actual weights of the fish we landed, sometimes quite handsomely. In my opinion the F1 fish are heavier for their size than the Fxs, and that's not my mantra originally. a big a-rig proponent on a local lake touted that about the fish at Bear Creek, call it hybrid vigor but there's something to it in my opinion. I do however believe they are inferior because they don't get as long, don't get as big, live as long, and produce inferior offspring. last I heard the record for an f1 was 16 lbs which ain't too shabby
Dead River reply :
On 2/25/2014 at 12:11 PM, AssassinAngling said:Let's just say if a bass ate 1 pound of shad a day it would consume about 900 calories a day 6300 calories a week and 25200 calories in a month. Even if the bass burned half of those calories it ate it would gain about 4 pounds in a month. (3000 calories in a pound) If this were biologically possible their would tons of fish in the 8-10# range in most lakes.
my original point was that a bass could gain a pound of weight by virtue of putting on roe for the spawn and feeding up during the pre spawn. I don't think seeing inflated fish in February, march, april, and may is a very farfetched concept. someone here said a bass can put on 10% of its body weight in roe, do the arithmetic on a 5 lber and see how much else it would need to eat to go with that roe to be that heavy. it's not farfetched at all.
AssassinAngling reply :
On 2/25/2014 at 12:25 PM, Dead River said:my original point was that a bass could gain a pound of weight by virtue of putting on roe for the spawn and feeding up during the pre spawn. I don't think seeing inflated fish in February, march, april, and may is a very farfetched concept. someone here said a bass can put on 10% of its body weight in roe, do the arithmetic on a 5 lber and see how much else it would need to eat to go with that roe to be that heavy. it's not farfetched at all.
It would need to eat 1500 more calories then it burned to gain 1 pound with the %10 body weight of row. So it doesn't seem to farfetched when you look at it this way.
Dead River reply :
On 2/25/2014 at 12:51 PM, AssassinAngling said:It would need to eat 1500 more calories then it burned to gain 1 pound with the %10 body weight of row. So it doesn't seem to farfetched when you look at it this way.
I think a 5 lb bass could gain 8 oz in a month from eating and also gain 8 oz in roe. I think a 5 lb bass could eat an 8 oz meal or larger with relative ease and instantaneously be heavier.
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