[thyer]

Agreed on the time of day. Some of the areas I fish in the Adirondacks have such a predictable catch rate from early, dropping through lunch and then up to sunset I can set my watch to it. As for weather, I work during the week so can't plan my trips around barometer changes or rain so I fish when I can fish and make the best of it. Sometimes I have had killer days getting rained on, sometimes not. Get the very same conditions a few weeks later in the year and it's a different story.

Lure size - Bigger lure bigger fish.
Now I get the whole energy expenditure vs reward and completely agree that is you use a bigger lure you will weed out the smaller fish but why limit yourself. I have caught big fish on some of my smallest lures. It was all placement. I prefer to use lures sized for the line weight and rod I am using so I get the best feel so I know how to control the action and know what type of structure I am bumping. My first rod out is my 6'6" ultra light with 4-6 lbs and small lures for feel. Fun rod in a kayak.