king fisher

I use 3/4 ounce spinnerbaits with small blades to get down to suspended bass in tree tops all the time. I only use lighter spinnerbaits if I want to fish slowly near the surface. If the bass want a smaller spinnerbait, but I need the weight, I either use a hidden weight style, or put a bullet sinker on the line in front of the spinnerbait. I have seen pictures of guys using rubber core sinkers attached to the hook, and I am going to give that a try sometime.

I'm not sure if I believe the time honored belief that bass some how determine what it eats by how much energy it is going to use up catching it's food. Small bass chase around everywhere trying to steel food from each other, when there is plenty of food to catch, and still manage to get bigger. Bass can waste lots of energy being territorial, and not loose weight. A released bass doesn't have to go out and eat something right away after a hard fight. I believe big bass simply are not hungry as often as small bass. Large bass are skilled hunters. They have more experience hunting and can eat much larger and varied prey. A good hunter does not take very long to kill it's prey so therefore does not spend much time hunting. A full hunter is lazy, weather it is a bass a lion, or person. When I am hungry, I will do whatever is necessary to get something to eat. That may mean drive miles to the store, or thaw, cut, and cook a piece of meat no matter how much work it is. If I am stuffed with turkey dinner, and sitting on the couch, the only food I may want is a piece of candy, that is easily within reach. Big bass are the same. When they are hungry, they will chase down their food and get it regardless of how much energy it takes. When full all they want to do is laze around, maybe eating a snack if it swims to close to resist. I not sure if they consider how much energy it will take. The problem for fishermen is it is less likely to be in the right place at the right time with a big fish, because they are full more than they are hungry. A small fish is constantly looking for food, because they are not as skilled at catching their food as their bigger parents. I have witnessed big bass chase ridiculously small bait, working way to hard to catch a small meal. Why? because they were hungry. I have seen big bass go on a feeding spree, and stuff themselves, more than I ever have at Thanksgiving, and I assume experience a similar food coma. I have also watched big bass let prey swim right by, because they were full. They didn't have to consider how many calories the prey would produce or how many calories it would take to catch, they simply weren't hungry. In order to catch a big bass you have to be fishing where big bass live. You have to present your lure in a way it appears to be a piece of candy to a couch potato, be lucky enough to throw your lure when they are hungry and really looking for a meal, or trigger territorial instincts. All three will work at times, and a good fisherman can determine which one to use. Because big bass are sitting on the couch more often than cooking dinner, more big bass are caught by presenting slow baits right in front of their nose Of course if a big bass could read this she would probably say I'm in completely full of BS. and should spend more time fishing and less time in front of a computer.

I try them every time I fish, but always catch my best fish on something else, but I will keep trying.

As usual on this lake, I couldn't find a pattern. I caught the 8 pounder on a black and blue spinnerbait, in 25 feet of water suspended in tree tops. One of the six pounders on a flat in 5 feet of water on a 6th. Sense mini mag square bill. The other on a 15 foot deep rock pile with a deep diving crankbait. 7 inch Senko was best for small bass, but small ones were also caught on everything in box.

I fished Tepic yesterday. Fishing was good, but the afternoon winds were worse than normal, with peak gusts around 30 Knots. I did manage to land 3 big fish, as well as a few smaller ones. Biggest was 25 inches and weighed in at 8 lbs. The other two were 6.2 lbs., 6.7 lbs. and measured 23 and 23.5 inches I finally have a system down for landing, measuring, and taking a picture in my kayak while being able to release the bass quickly and un harmed. I have a lip gripper attached to a piece of rope. As soon as I land the bass I attach the gripper, remove the hook and put the bass back in the water while I get my camera, and scale ready. When I have everything ready, I pull the fish back out of the water, measure the length of the bass with marks on the top of my kayak, weigh the fish, then take a quick selfie with my phone. Bass is back in the water quickly and in good condition. Works great as long as I don't drop my phone in the water. If I lost my phone it would be a long time before the Bait Monkey would make it back to my house. The day did have its difficulties. I lost way more lures, than normal, and broke a rod tip. The wind made getting lures off snags, a nightmare. The bait Monkey is already knocking at my door.

Edie Pope Hot Shot ( now made by Luhr Jensen.) Second bass was caught two years later on a Heddon Sonic. May 1974 and June 1976. Most of my fish at that time were trout caught on worms.

One time I would change color before lure type is when I have been killing them on a certain lure, and the bite slows or stops. Before moving or switching lures, I will try a different color. I already know the fish are there, I was presenting the lure correctly, and they were liking my lure. Maybe all it will take to turn the bite back on is a different color.

Depends on what the bass are eating. If the bait is very large or very small and no obvious outstanding color characteristics, then size would be my main concern. If what they are eating swims very fast, on the surface as opposed to slowly crawling on the bottom, and is varied in size and color, than presentation would be my biggest concern. Color would only be the number one factor if the baits color is the first thing I notice while looking at it. If I see a crawdad and the first thing I notice is bright red claws, or a bright blue back, there is a good chance that is the first thing a bass notices too and will use that color to locate and catch his food. Maybe a bait fish has a certain bright flash that catches the eye more than the way it swims, then color could be the dominant factor. Most of the time the order of importance for me with all species of fish, are. 1 Location 2 depth 3 presentation,- speed and cadence of retrieve, presenting bait at in the correct positing in water column 4 size, 5 sound 6 color 7 scent. Can be higher on the list depending on species of fish. I have seen fish come from far away, change depth, hit the bait no matter how fast or slow, and not care if it is big or small, as long as it was the right color. Those times are rare, but can happen. I would recommend making changes in type of lure, and presentation first, then start trying different sizes and colors, once you find out where the bass, are, and what mood they are in.

Next time the wind blows, try a spinnerbait. Sometimes it is better to take advantage of the wind, rather than fight it. If that doesn't work, then use the good advice given by other members, on how to fish soft plastics in the wind. Also, a gut hooked bass and a frying pan make a good combination.

I went home to WA to visit family for a couple of weeks. I managed to get a little bass fishing in while there. The bass weren't big like Mexico, but were plentiful and full of fight. I caught this one fishing from shore casting by the same rock, with the same lure, ( Rebel Deep Wee R) in the same creek, I first started bass fishing in over 40 years ago. This bass may be small, but the memories are big.

I bought a scale and tape measure the next day.

I say it is over 10 pounds. My friend says it is around 9 pounds. I caught the bass a year ago. I didn't have a scale or tape, but used a piece of string to measure the length. The string measured 25 3/4 inches. Unfortunately the man that helped take the pictures insisted on keeping the fish and taking it home with him. He is the manager for commercial fishing on the lake, and didn't want to offend him by letting it go to eat more tilapia.

Rebel Deep Wee R

Crank D Diamond Dust

wind = spinnerbaits.

I don't understand why bass tell their friends and relatives to stay away from my lure, but it is ok to smash my friends all day.

I travelled to the states to visit family, and the Bait Monkey was waiting for me at the border.

I agree five fish in one day would not be proof. I'm not talking about a few fish. I have personally seen it happen many days in a row, for hundreds of fish. Some lures were manufactured to be identical, and look identical to fisherman, but the fish don't see them as being the same.

The best example of identical lures not performing the same is easily proven while trolling. I can troll two identical crankbaits, at the same time, at the same speed, even switch what side the side of the boat, each is trolled on, and one will out perform the other by a wide margin. Why, only the fish can tell. I know king salmon guides that will even give a name (Big All, Hog Hunter, Crazy Sally etc.) to individual lures that for some reason out perform all others.

Bass I don't know. Some other species of fish, definite yes.

I do the same here in Mexico except I look for the commercial tilapia nets. The commercial fisherman know where the tilapia live, the bass eat tilapia, so I look for nets and catch bass. Only problem is the Bait Monkey loves Tilapia nets.

Yes with crankbaits. Especially crankbaits made of wood, or Wiggle Warts.

A friend is looking at a Garmin Unit that comes without the transducer, and is trying to decide which transducer to buy. The GT 56 is almost double the cost of a GT 54. Does anyone know the difference between the GT 54 and the GT 56 transducers? Has anyone used both? Any opinion if the 56 is worth the extra money? Thanks in advance.

Anything I have to fish slowly. I'm trying to learn to slow down, but I'm having a difficult time with it. Is there a fish to fast support group I can join?