The spawn is on, found these beauties in shallow weeds.

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PS… we kept the whisky hidden! this post is rated PG.

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Adam, they are from the Midwest in the snow belt region, and quiet the sight to see coming up an eight inch hole in the winter time!! Happy 4th.

That is an eye catcher!! no pun intended. congrats on the new boat, and happy 4th to you guys and everyone here.

belletaine wrote:

Mr. Davis, How many times has Joel Nelson called you?

Those bulls must fight like crazy! If I was lucky enough to spend a day tussling with those beauties it would easily be a top fishing trip in my book.

Haha we did talk a bit on the phone about Gills n I think it’s safe to say we share the same passion for bluegill of all sizes!! Thanks

Thanks guys!! Measurement vary but are usually between the 10 1/2 to 12 inches! Weight varies depending on the stage of spawn they r in, n they sure do get some big bellies this time of year!! We try n release all gills so that they can keep those genes going in our heavenly lakes 😁😁😁😎😎😎

Love the 28 especially for gills late ice when they get into shallow weedy waters!! weed mode comes in very handy, thanks Tonka

some more pics we took

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Awesome fish Perch Hunter!! congrats man

awesome Joel!! congrats man!! loved the story

Perch in Poland or Europe and if they have bluegill that would be off the hook!! no pun intended.

we been having an awesome ice season for gills, just tired of drilling through 3 plus feet of what feels like concrete and sub zero temps haha. i day dream everyday of cutting grass hehe. thanks

thanks belletaine soft water is coming haha

yeah it is fairly easy, just a little time consuming to tare down and get at the springs. i had two augers with the same symptoms as yours, and both times it was a broken clutch spring. good luck hope you getter fixed.

Clutch spring came off or broke

It is very hard to stay focused at work, but luckily I have an understanding boss, and it helps he is a fisherman also haha. awesome perch show James, Andy and the rest of the crew!! you guys nailed it. Happy Superbowl day everyone.

Awesome Cal!!

never run in front of a car, you will get tired. never run behind a car you will get exhausted!!

youngfry wrote:

Those things are hilarious… liiiiittle tiny heads and deep thick bodies… they just look so deformed. Awesome fish Clayton.

Was there a lot of trial and error when finding the “zone”? Are you fishing a general contour or is there something about it that makes that the spot like a cut or point or something… besides the transition between sand and muck I mean?

Thank you fellers!! Youngfry, in the lake that I am fishing there was a lot of trial and error. we started out in shallow weed beds that we had caught gills in last summer. It was a good starting point, but only found perch, and lots of them! next step was to get my brothers out drilling holes deeper out from weed beds. we found some gills out away from the weeds in deeper water, but not the numbers or size. I then turned to the contour map and noticed some large flats where the depth stayed consistant 14 to 16 feet before sharply dropping off into the main lake. this is where we hit pay dirt in numbers and sizes!! I am not saying this is the magical depth for every lake but if you can find this magical depth in your lake it can be golden!! also we have been having good success in mouths of bays just before the shallow bay heads into the main lake!! good luck

Tonka wrote:

Still been using your Bullwhip? Still loving it? I still haven’t got mine, but think that I’ll have it by the end of the week. Looks like you have this big gill thing down to a T, nice work as always.

Yes still using the whip, and still loving it!! seems i love it more and more every time i go Tonka.

My wife stalks me every time i walk into a sporting goods store!! She thinks I become not responsible!! I think she is a spy and tells her dad everything that I buy haha!! thanks guys

Thanks Richard! i would say it takes a combination of things to create a lake that holds true giant Bluegill. First of all i believe a lake needs a predator fish to keep thinks in check, if no predator fish then you will see an overpopulation of same species and stunted growth. Second is what kinda of summers and winters do you have? We have hot humid summers that lend to awesome bug hatches for the gills to devour, and pack on the weight!! these same lakes grow thick weed vegetation that stay standing well into early ice, and also have reed beds that stand all winter long, and hold fish. If you add awesome genetics to these perfect conditions, then there is a chance for true giants!! unfortunately not all lakes hold giants but that is what makes the search fun, you will never know unless you try it!! hope this helps Richard, and good luck

Thanks guys!! i start out by looking at my gps or map and pick out some spots that i want to try. usually these spots have weeds and deep water near one another. once fishing i only fish a hole for 5 to 10 minutes, if i dont see gills i am moving on. lures of choice lately have been heavy tungsten horizontal packed with fresh lively maggots in 16 feet of water fishing anywhere from a foot to 4 feet up off bottom. Usually the bigger more aggressive gills will be more willing to come up and get it!! also keeps the dink perch of the hook. i been having a blast with the bull whip rod from Tuned up Customs, i paired it with a pflueger president and 3 pound mono. thanks again guys!

thank you redrnger!!

some more from today!! hope you enjoy!

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for chasing big gills i have a few favorite setups, for ultra light tackle and light biters i like to go to my Thorne Bros trip wire rod. i have found that on some days even the biggest of gills need to be finessed, and they will be very light biters. on the other hand, fishing in deeper waters 15 to 20 feet just out side the weed edges i found that trying to get back down to the gills fast was not working out so well with ultra light jigs, and putting a tungsten on a springbobber rod i was over loading it and tough to see the bite. That is where the bullwhip comes in very handy!! the other day i was fishing in 16 feet of water, the gills were stacked up and i needed to get down fast. I tied a tungsten jig on the bullwhip it was a perfect match up, i visually saw the bite and felt it as well!! the action of the rod is very nice and fun while fighting a hard fighting fish like the bluegill. I believe this will be an awesome rod on jumbos as well!! hope this helps, thanks for looking!!

Thanks fellers!! hope you get your rod soon Tonka.