PersicoTrotaVA

Zoom Finesse Worms, any color that says magic at the end but my favorite are the green pumpkin magic. My favorite rig is a weighted wacky rig. I use a 1/8th oz owner weighted weedless wacky hook. I have been slaying them for years with this bait, caught my PB on it. I never leave home without 1/8oz owner weighted wacky hooks and a pack of zoom finesse worms in green pumpkin magic. Oh and 20 come in a bag so even if you lose one on each fish, you catch 20 fish with a bag, not a bad deal.

As much as you want to set the hook, don’t. Just pick up the rod tip and start reeling. Wacky rig uses and open face hook, you don’t have to set it. You want your drag set low so you can reel and barely pull on them. I adjust my drag while fighting the fish to increase pull without making it so strong it straightens the hook. You have to keep the line tight or else they will spit it. This technique can wear the drag out on a reel. After 6 years of consecutive use the drag on my lew’s speed spinning reel needs to be rebuilt.

I used to crank with braid but I switched to fluoro for the stretch and my bait does get deeper with fluoro. Plus in clearer water fluoro is harder to see. I have wanted to try a fluoro leader with braid to see if the bait still gets down but that’s too much work.

I consider it finesse fishing but you can power fish a wacky rig. It's a good search bait and you can cover a lot of water with it. Rod selection seems pretty on point. I use a Power Diesel 6'10” Medium Power Extra Fast action spinning rod. Unfortunately they don't make it anymore and I covet it because I have caught over 500 fish on this rod using only a wacky rig.

I like going through the bait. I have tried o rings and I did not like the action I was getting from it. I stopped using Senkos for wacky and use zoom finesse worms. There are 20 in a pack and they are cheaper than senkos so losing baits is no big deal for me. As far as hook up ratio, mine is great. Watch that line and if it’s subtle you will feel it when you lift again, they rarely let go and all you have to do it reel. Don’t set the hook and lower your drag. You want that line taught at all times to keep that hook pegged. Even if you are reeling drag, keep that line tight. If that line goes loose, the hook will too and will be much easier for the fish to spit it. Try and keep them down and not on the surface and don’t let them jump. If they jump, try and move with them and keep that line tight. I love to fish wacky rig. It produces the most fish for me and the biggest fish. I use owner weedless wacky hooks. Any hook will work really...as long as you keep the line tight.

You want something suspended IMO. Something that will sit there in that fish's face for a good minute or 5. Shakyhead or a Ned rig would be my choice if they are on the bottom because the bait sticks up and literally shaking in the cold will be enough movement. If they are suspended anything weightless and not salted should work, you want it to be as buoyant as possible. I would also go for the biggest profile you can go with, like a 7" worm or a larger swimbait. suspended jerkbaits and cranks work really well because you can twitch it in front of the fish's face. Bass will tend to go for a bigger meal during these times as it will give them more energy, as long as the meal is easy to get. Like I said you may have to dangle it in front of the fish for 5 minutes, maybe 10, maybe 15, maybe an hour. Patience is the key to this door....

Oh yea. Open water flats, points, creek mouths, just hop it along and be patient. I’ve caught 5-6 lb fish on the ned rig.

Your LFS is feeding you a line...I throw jigs from the shore all the time. Head depends on what cover and structure that I am fishing. It’s open I go with a football head. If there is lots of cover I put an Arky head jig that will pull through cover easier. I like throwing swim jigs(keitech with fats) from the shore a lot. They cover a lot of water and are more versatile.

Zoom trick and finesse worms in green pumpkin magic and June bug. 6” Red Shad Senkos, only because I bought a tournament bag a few years back and I am trying to go through them. I noticed around here the bigger the bait, the smaller the fish. So I throw small stuff.

Universal doesn’t exist. A simple hook size change can mean the difference between a winning limit or not catching fish... with that said both of them are too big to be universal. 3/0 is a more “universal” size as it can probably fit in smaller fish mouth easier. And being thinner, it can peg better than a thicker, larger hook.

12 lb mono or fluoro, I don’t like throwing spinnerbaits on braid, they don’t tent to be forgiving and repeated use can destroy a spinnerbait balance and even destroy the bend on the wire. I tend to destroy spinnerbaits so I don’t throw 3/8 oz and larger spinnerbaits. I prefer the smaller ones, pond magic, 1/16 oz to 1/4 oz at the biggest. I fish a lot of skinny water. Depths of 6 feet maybe 8 feet max.

You’re setting the hook. Just lift up and reel. The hook does all the work. And don’t let the tension go slack so that the hook stays pegged.

I don’t like the auto close on most spinning reels so I have always done it by hand.

Re tying takes a lot of line. Also I don’t like to re spool a lot so I’ll load my spool up, I keep my rods inside in the dark so I don’t worry about degradation. A spool will last me a whole fishing year.

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Tap, boom, line twitches funny, bait gets heavy, I ****** on anything that feels different. Hooksets are free...

100% I don’t try to miss fish. If you are missing fish, downsize the bait or change colors. They are exploratory bites if they aren’t hanging on. Remember a fish uses it’s mouth like we use our hands. Also switch to an open hook rig like the ned rig or a wacky rig, hook ups shouldn’t be an issue with an open hook type rig.

It really depends on what you need and what’s on sale. I personally own the st croix mojo bass rods. I like them a lot. The spinning rods are garbage but the casting rods are solid. I really like the glass cranking rods in that line up.

Baitcasting, I don’t throw big spinnerbaits on spinning gear.

It's all about confidence. I tell myself I need to fish a jig and crankbait more. So I tie them on and fish them. I catch 1 or 2 if I am lucky. My brother catches 4 or 5. Then I get my wacky rig and start slaying them...it's all about confidence.

I like the strike king series 1 and 4S for shallow water as well. They don’t deflect as good but they have a different wobble and sometimes that can get fish that wouldn’t hit a squarebilled crankbait.

I use 8.1:1 on my pitching and flipping jig rods and and Texas rigged plastics. 6.1:1 up to 7.1:1 spinnerbaits, frogs, buzzbaits, bladed jigs, Carolina rig, small to medium sized swim baits. Anything below 6:1:1 I use for crankbaits, some large Colorado blade spinnerbaits and large swim baits.

This. Especially green pumpkin magic.

In clear water yes it can make a difference. I personally haven’t noticed a difference but I fish mostly stained water with about a foot of visibility.

Pflueger supreme xt. One of the best spinning reels I’ve ever owned and/or used. I use it on my ned rig set up with 6lb mono(doubles as a small spinnerbait rig for crappie). I’ve hauled in 5+lb fish on it and it never quits. Drag is smooth as a baby bottom and it feels good in the hands. A little pricier than the president xt(I own 2 of these as well) but well worth it.