Set my alarm for 430 but forgot to set it for am:-( so I ended up getting up at 530 and was at Casitas at 630 after getting a cup of java and gas.
I wanted to fish the area near the Santa Ana ramp but as I drove up to the entrance I saw there were people already there so I went over to the Coyote ramp area. First stop was the pier and it was empty too.
I matched my 300DSV loaded with 20lb Izor XXX with a Crucial MH and the 7" Slammer . After a slather of Mega Strike I started throwing the Slammer to what I thought were boils from Bass. Can I use the term "boils" when freshwater fishing, I guess it's cause I fish the salt so much :)
I think I was getting about 30 to 40 yard casts with this outfit it really felt well balanced. I tried a variety of retrieves with the Slammer, dead sticked, pause and retrieve, semifast retrieve, slow retreive. I noticed on the semi fast retrieve that the bait would kind of roll to one side, not alot but noticeable, is this normal?

I then tied on a Mattlures Trout to my Gloomis HS932C, DC250 and 15lb Izor Platinum. Again this felt well matched also felt the same when I tied on a 6" Baitsmith and a 6" Wag Tail Soft Series. The Mattlures Trout swims so well it's mesmerizing . I watched them all swim very closely and they all swam really nice. The Wag Tails sink rate is really slow, it just kind of glides down slowly, it was easy to keep at a certain depth. The Baitsmith is a sinking bait and that it does but not all that fast. I also tied on a 5.5" Little Anthony with a 3/4oz head that bait sinks out fast. I was dragging the bottom with that bait, I guess there would be a need for that kind of action at some time, I don't know.

Anyway, there was quite a few boils so thats where I was casting too but no action for me . Thats okay as I got some experince in.

There was something about throwing that Slammer, it's just a fun bait to throw, why was that? was it cause the anticipated blow up?
I found myself throwing it alot!

The Mattlures Trout, ABT Wag Tail, and Baitsmith, I could not feel a tail thump with these baits, normal or should I be feeling some THUMP?

I felt the Slammer and 300DSV matched up well because the bait, like, takes some torque to reel in a semi fast retrieve and the HEG gearing in that reel feels solid and mean!...LOL I now feel like I want another one.

So it was a great morning of learning and getting a feel with some new baits, It was a little diffent, I'm happy. Can't wait to do it again.

A couple questions...
Do you think those big splashes(BOILS) were fish?
Do I need to add a swivel or a spit ring to the tie eyes?
Do you have any questions for me, like did I do something wrong or should I be doing something diffent?

Thanks Guys!

There are still a lot of bass chasing shad, that may be what you saw, I actually made bait last week in Deep cat and Dead horse. The lake is turning over and that stuff floats up from the bottom and can look misleading too but I have seen shad boils. I dont use a snap on any baits and only a split ring on the lures that come with them. I suggest when you get a new lure you throw it just far enough to watch the action when it comes back that way you find out the lures capabilities. You will know how fast and slow you can reel it and if you can get it to turn on a twitch with slack, once you know what the lure will do go target fish with it. It is important to get the lures cadence down so it looks natural. Casitas may be the toughest lake in the state, right now it is going to be tough from shore, the fish are suspending from 15 - 30 ft deep. I fished a 10" swimbait for 5 hours today and lost a good fish and never landed one.
Good Luck
Rich

Hey Rich, yeah thats what I was concentrating on, was I wanted to get a feel for the baits. Wanted to see how they swam. I did do alot of short casts just to watch them swim at different depths and speeds. I had a good view from the platform of the pier. I moved off the pier and walked over to the left of it to a cove and threw the slammer and dead sticked it, I wanted to see if I had the patience to let it sit for a minute or two, managed to do it, ussually I'm not one for patience :)
I was also checking out the wake V-pattern that the slammer puts out, now what does the bass see first the V pattern or the bait itself?

thanks

I dont know much about the Slammer I have 2 but dont fish them. Casitas is such a heavily pressured lake I focus on the most realistic looking baits that I can find, but the Triple trout gets bit there and It does not look real or have a very realistic action in my opinion, maybe it is the erratic action and the twitch slack ability it has. I know it is a fantastic lure and can draw big fish up if fished right. I am having some custom painted so I will fish them when I get them back a lot. Deadsticking works well on Casitas but it helps to know there are fish under the bait, kinda hard to know from shore. This time of year I usually slow roll deep where I know there are fish or just run and gun down the shoreline covering as much water as possible.
Good luck
Rich