Munkin

For me cranks boil down to 3 main colors: Shad, crayfish, and something with chartreuse in it. Diving depth depends on where you are fishing. Below are the top 5 cranks I would go with. Bandit= 100, 200, 300, sized based on depth you are fishing Rebel Wee and Deep Wee R= can be found at Wal-Mart and are a highly productive crank. Mann's Baby 1- runs about 12" deep if you really crank and hold your rod tip down. Strike King 1.5 Overall the best crankbait to start with. Rapala DT series= DT stands for Dive To so just pick the depth you are fishing. There are at least 50 others I could recommend based on the situation but the above but you have to crawl before you run. I can tell you about the Tsunekiki Kohama Crank later. Allen

Is that Dr Evil from the Austin Powers movies? Catt mentioned a blade color combination that is rare. Gold front, nickel trailing blade which I only see made by War Eagle. Day in and out this is not the most effective color but for the days it works it really works. Allen

Personally I use a trailer hook about 10% of the time and mostly at night. If the fish are short striking a spinnerbait during the day then they are interested but not totally commited. When this happens you need to make a slight change in speed, color, blade size? They like what they see but are hesitant for some reason? Last year I had bigger fish swallowing the bait blades and all so no need for a trailer hook. For longer than average spinnerbait hooks I recommend a Gamakatsu 550 or VMC 7250 hook. These hooks are a little longer and IMO 4/0 is the best overall size unless you live in FL or TX. Allen

Powder painting blades adds weight and they are hard to paint correctly. For painted blades I will start with white or black blades from Barlow's, JannsNetcraft, etc. then paint over them with my airbrush. For clear I have been using KBS clear in the rattle can. Whatever you use will chip in time after making contact with rocks. To paint and clear the blades I stick them on a tool magnet from Harbor Freight. You paint and clear one side at a time and the magnet will hold them in place well, Allen

You live in TX and fish BFS? Figured all you TX guys were go big or go home with baits. Allen

So I had someone ask me to make them some underspins and I honestly have never really used them. Looking at the Do-It site I am not impressed with their Hering mold. Trying to figure out what to use as far as the underspin wire so I figured I would ask what everyone on here likes as a starting point. Allen

Flick shake is what I have the most luck with. Weight depends on depth but 1/16 to 3/16oz is what I normally use. Jackal flick shake 4.8" worms in Cola seem to work best but others work. Allen

Flick shake is what I have the most luck with. Weight depends on depth but 1/16 to 3/16oz is what I normally use. Jackal flick shake 4.8" worms in Cola seem to work best but others work. Allen

Wondering what that topwater is? Looks like a winner to me. Allen

Forgot about the Zcraw Jrs on a football wobble head. Caught a bunch of fish this summer in 1-3 FOW using a 1/4oz head and GP Zcraw Jr baits. Found this pattern out completely by accident. Fishing with a buddy he saw the bait tied on a rod that had been on there for a month. Since the water was clear figured I would throw it beside the boat to show him how it works. Casted right beside the boat 3' behind the motor. Fish hit it right away and on the next 4 casts I caught one, This wobble head bait suprisingly doesn't get snagged much even though its heavy compared to the water depth. Allen

Since the bass season is winding down I thought I would post my ROY baits. This year was a little different in that I spent more time fishing creeks and rivers for SM than LM. With that said the 3 techniques that shined were; small bait finesse. spinnerbait. and topwater. To put this into perspective I have caught more fish in the past 3 months on topwaters than in the previous 5 years. Top 3: #1 Ned beavers I had made, these have caught fish anywhere and everywhere. Not a big fish bait but my biggest SM of the year at 3.9 was caught on one. #2 Evergreen JT 95 walking topwater bait. This is a compact, silent bait that just produced for me since May in clear water. Not sure what color I have but it looks like LC Chartruese shad? Going to pick up a couple more colors this winter for this bait. #3 Don Iovino popper. This was a recommendation from a friend that paid off. This bait is more of a spitter than a popper and it just flat out catches bass (and bats). I would say this is more of a finesse popper than other baits so with all the low clear water we had this year it shined. Allen

A lot of equipment can pull double duty, Allen

Metal dive lips for fishing lures.2 1/4"x 1 1/8" crankbait/trolling 5-pack BL3 | eBay

Unless you are hitting ice with your boat it doesn't count. Allen

So the 3 biggest bass I have caught on a spinnerbait were shadish colors, double nickel willows in the fall. Overall if you want to catch big fish on a spinnerbait I would say black bait, black single colorado at night during the summer. The 3rd one I recommend I am not sure where you can buy as I make my own spinnerbaits? In the spring on our local lakes a 1/2 or even 3/4oz white bait with a red throat and nickel #6 (1/2oz) or 7(3/4oz) blades catches the better fish. Now on this 3rd bait the biggest I have caught is 6-1 but the smallest was 3-12. Not a numbers bait but 90% of the time in spring I can put 5 for 20lbs in the boat most days. Allen

You are in Texas now so there is no such thing as winter fishing. Allen

Black silhouettes better than any color at night. I like a black blade and mostly black skirt at night myself. Allen

Hit the lure on the water, I have had them dive at lures but never hooked one. For everyone asking the bat was not released unharmed. It was dead when I unhooked it so no rabies shots. Allen

Having a great evening catching some nice fish on a popper then this. I thought it was just some maple leaves until I saw the leaves were flapping. Apparently a bat decided to attack my popper. Yes, you heard that correct somehow I caught a bat on a top water. This is a first for me and honestly the first I have ever heard of it happening? Allen

They have things you can't find at luremaking sites like copper and black beads. Allen

You can buy beads at places like Hobby Lobby. Allen

What specifically are you looking for? Someone on here probably has the stuff just sitting around. If you need some 1/8 hollow beads I have about 3lbs of them so I can spare a few. Allen

Gold plated and black nickel are expensive even in larger quantities. Allen

Rods I am not using I strap down with the tip forward facing. Ones with follow-up baits I leave about 6" of line and lay the rods tip to the rear with the bait hanging over the boat. If a fish missus a moving bait I can then just pick up a senko rod right away. Allen

Those hooks I use based on bait thickness. Allen