jr231

I've used them. In the all white color... and can say I caught a couple bass with them... Not one of my favorites tho...

Yea I think you're thinking about this too much... It's not complicated really... Just try and put it where the fish are and make it look alive. Regardless of how you rig it !!! Personally I've become fond of the jika rig... With a high action trailer like any of the rage products or keitech crazy flapper. Good luck from an Ohio resident. (But really a michigander ? )

How can I say this without being suspended.... Hmm... Yal need some lady attention. ?

Id lose the snap and tie direct. If you're committed to running that bait in front of them then you don't need it anyway. It doesn't take that long and I've always felt my lure ran better tied direct. Might help you get more bites.

Every year this is asked. Even the threads since the beginning. It's cool to see what everyone is using throughout all the years. Some of the people have been posting for a long time and it's interesting to see them answer it year after year. Most often its different ?

@reason no doubt proper equipment , approach, and technique will increase your lures (in this case a spoon) effectiveness... I used to use tiny daredevel spoons like 13 years ago when I was a child and catch crappie, perch, bluegill and bass off the back of a paddle boat with an old junk spinning rod I didn't even know how to spool properly. It was a nice " private " lake tho...

X3 on the mend it ! I don't really use it on my senkos, and small paddletails / grubs. Mainly for bigger soft body swimbaits.. but mend-it is top of the line stuff and will definitely help you get a few more fish per bait

Spoons are almost as effective as inline spinners... come in all sizes and colors.. I think they're frowned upon or not talked about by bass anglers because they are easy to use.. in other words. "Beginner lures".. never understood that. But oh well. Ask a person who runs charters for salmon. They've got love for spoons (;

I take the same 3/0 ewg hook I use for weightless Texas rigging. Works great. No need for changing hooks. Been doing this for awhile now and have been successful. Ive caught lots of bass from 1-4 lbs this way and one that was just shy of 24". So the extra bit of exposed hook doesnt deter the fish. Anyone serious about bass fishing should know how to remove a gut hooked bass anyway. Whether through the Gill plate or by exposing the Barb and cutting it off with a pair of side cutting pliers.

Well a couple years ago I kind of went ape spit on crank baits .. so I have a whole tackle box full of them... It has 4 Plano boxes inside, all the ones that have been used are sorted inside them by style (depth and action). The top of it is full with ones that haven't seen the water yet lol. Probably 30+ on top of the 50 or so that are in the boxes. They're all hardbaits in this tackle box, hard top waters , and jerkbaits included. Whenever I plan to go fishing I go through and pick a few out and rotate them into a smaller soft pack that has some smaller Planos. Works for me.

If youre fishing IN the grass, a true Texas rig (not Tex- pose ) is the most ideal technique. Above the grass the others you mentioned such as the dropshot will be just fine... The only time I switch to Neko is a sparse vegetation bottom when I've already been fishing a weightless senko.. just throw a nail in it to get her to the bottom instead of switching to a shaky head.. I will say the GY kut tail is my favorite for this type of presentation .

Perfect jig for tough bites is a finesse jig . Either 1/8oz or 3/16... Throw a rage chunk on there...hop it, swim it , pitch it, burn it , drag it... Catches fish for sure, and usually some nicer ones come after the jigs.

They're on to you ! I think you're going too often to the same spots, and using the same stuff as well... Ocdockskip has it right,throw something different. That's the cool part about bass. 101 ways to catch one .change it up!!!

She swam off right !?

What type of water are you fishing in ? Go a little early, and catch come 3-4" bluegill. Slice them with ur knife and use those for bait. I've caught some really nice channels with fresh cut bluegill. The best bait you can use for game fish is the prey they usually feed on ! You can also use chicken livers , hot dogs etc... But they will eat those fresh dead sunfish for sure. It doesn't even have to be dead.. might even end up catching a nice bass or a toothy critter depending where you're fishing. I prefer baitholder style hooks vs the circle hooks for this application..

I'm with blue And Hyrule, tiny Jighead, with a small plastic trailer. I recommend the crappie magnets. They are little split tail grubs. I've caught some brutes on the chartreuse ones while microlight fishing a pond similar to what you're describing . You'll get em eventually. Typically persistence pays off when talking about fishing.

Agreed on the braid. No stretch = more hook ups My casting distance is always better with braid too.

Yea before you know it you'll have 3 tackle boxes and two totes.. 10 rods and 3 water crafts.. then the question will be ... How did I get all this stuff .. and what do I need ? All of it. You need all of it.

Try a jerkbait . I catch on them year round. My time on the water is scarce and precious to me. I think about fishing 7 days a week and get to fish twice if I'm lucky. So when I'm out there I'm getting/using the best gear I can comfortably afford.!

Haha. That was something I didn't consider. I'm like 5'9",175.. I imagine being 250 would be a problem with one of those cheap kayaks.

Alot of those fish you're catching are active fish and can be taken on many other lures! Try a quality jerkbait or something like a shad rap. Even a spinner bait or a trap. Losing soft plastics is what happens when you're catching fish. I'd rather have a torn up thumb than a 7 dollar bag of plastic at the end of the day ! Ya know..

I don't know.. my best memories of bass are the ones Ive held. Losing a big bass is humbling.. yet very bitter. Anytime I hook into a bass over 5... I'm praying she doesn't break the surface til I'm lipping her.

@the reel ess agreed. Same goes for senkos

I have a few (cheap) crafts. One of them being a sun dolphin kayak.. . I can't stand on it and fish.. wouldn't even try with my gear,.. but it only cost me like 175 bucks. And it came with rod holders and a paddle... It's light , it gets pushed around kind of easy.. everyone hates on it... But you can just throw it in the bed of a truck (you could throw two in there really ) and be off the shore very easily. I catch bass off mine. I use a stadium/bleacher cushion and I'm good for hours... I pack light , and can go to any hole that I'd normally fantasize about when bank fishing. You can anchor with a tiny 15lb dumbell. You could put a quilt down and strap it to your Jeep no problem. I highly recommend it. Now is the wrong time to buy a life jacket lol but you can find some decent ones for a modest price if you search. Only other thing I'd really recommend is a rod leash . Since you're clearly into the sport... 300-400 dollars total can be found by penny pinching whatever you're able to do so. Just a suggestion, that I think would benefit you greatly.

I hate when big ones jump.. anything under 3lbs I would be fine if they all jumped... But anything over 5 , I'm praying the whole time they don't jump... I'd say at least 75 percent of the fish that have gotten away from me did so with a jump... Not much is worse than grinding all day, hooking up with a nice one, watching her jump and spit that lure right back at you..knowing good and well she isn't gonna bite again that day. Makes me sick thinking about the big ones I've missed lol. At least they stayed hooked for ya. Sounds like good fun for you and your son. My daughter is almost of age where it's time to take her out. Pretty pumped about it.