JK Jake

I don't have much experience throwing it. I do know that it is a very popular bait on Sam Rayburn right now.

Great video! Thanks for putting that all together.

I think the people above are thinking more about the clear water lakes in the panhandle. (What most people outside of Texas think whenever we say north Texas). There are some big bass in all of the lakes around here but there is also a lot of fishing pressure. On lakes with timber don’t worry about casting to every random tree in the water. Instead focus on breaking down specific areas (points, ledges... flats in the spawn). I would try to give you some special baits but it really just depends on the lake. A lot of people throw jigs. Also, don’t be afraid to throw some finesse stuff in the dirty water. Ray Roberts has some nice grass once the weather warms up. Lake Fork has some too. Maybe some of your Florida techniques could work with that.

Eagle Mountain and Lavon are on the “West Fork” Trinity River Lake Lewisville and Ray Roberts are on the “Elm Fork” Trinity River. I’m assuming from the names that they are both just different branches of the Trinity River itself, which is some 400 miles long.

I like to use Zoom Lizards. colors- Junebug for dirty water Green Pumpkin is a good all around Watermelon Red for clear water I just simply drag the rig with my rod tip and reel in the slack line then repeat. Vary your speed until you get a bite. You can fish these pretty much anywhere as long as you aren’t getting stuck a lot.

@WRBThis was a good read. I understood your reference!

I understand what you're saying. I'm not exactly the same way but I do like some of the Ike rods, Rapala DTs, and Missile jigs. I don't know how much the man is actually involved in designing the baits but I also like a lot of the KVD plastics. I guess if you have the same fishing style or grew up in the same area as a certain professional angler you might enjoy fishing the same baits/lures.

Normally I don't say anything but if i'm dragging a big jig or a Carolina rig and my buddy is fishing with me on the front deck I'll quickly tell him to watch out or duck his head before I give a big hookset.

Thanks for all of the helpful replies. I appreciate the feedback.

I have never used a bobber stop myself for a Carolina rig but I have multiple times read/heard of people doing so.

Has anyone ever fished with these? Does anyone know much about them? Im looking at trying some out.

I’m a young guy, but I have seen multiple people mention these pork frog trailers in online forums and articles, and they speak highly of them. So, thanks to a recent thread started here on BassResource, I have now ordered some of these in the crawdad brown color. I have some questions- Are you supposed to slide it all the way up the hook shank, or do you just poke the middle through? Do you let your jig sit, or are you supposed to shake it? Does it work well in dirty or clear water, or in both? I know that there are always many different ways to use a bait, but for these I just want to know what typically works the best. Any advice is much appreciated.

Good question. Probably Jacob Wheeler. He is (arguably) currently the best all around angler in the world right now. He also always seems like he’s having fun. Some others that I would want to fish with- Scott Martin Mike Iaconelli KVD

Rage Bug for flipping. Rage Craw as a jig trailer.

Football jig I’ve caught a few off of a flipping/casting jig, but never off of a football. I will definitely be working on that this winter. Hard Plastic jerkbait Most of the lakes I fish are dirty and full of submerged timber I can’t see so I haven’t thrown one of these much at all.

I am currently looking at buying the 6’4” medium Delay Series bait casting rod for fishing jerkbaits and top water and the 7’2” medium spinning rod for fishing shakey heads and maybe senkos. Does anyone have any experience with these specific rods? Also, don’t judge, but does anyone know if these rods are made in China? I just prefer to buy gear that is made by those who are better partners with the U.S.

It’s good to see some more north Texas people joining the site! I’ve only fished on Ray Hubbard several times for a February tournament last year, but I didn’t have too much action(as it was in the winter), and the fish that I did catch were all on the rocks or next to concrete sea walls(as it was winter and the bass like the heat from the rock). So I can’t give you too much advice but I’ve heard that chatterbaits/bladed jigs work well on Ray Hubbard. Also, are there any boat ramps open on Ray Hubbard right now? I might try going there myself as I haven’t been in a while. Hope you catch some big ones!

It may seem daunting, but try to not overthink lake fishing. I say this as I have only been into lake fishing for about a year and a half, so I know how you probably feel. I’ve mostly fished from a boat but I have been kayak fishing a few times with a buddy of mine. Just look at google maps and pick a creek that looks like it has good cover and fish down it. That should work for this time of year. Also keep the wind in mind. If the shallow stuff isn’t working then try looking for “points” or ledges on a contour map (navionics.com is a good free resource). Also, since I live relatively close to Fort Worth, I’m guessing you’re maybe fishing Eagle Mountain Lake? I went there a few times in the fall and I had mixed results, caught a few nice ones, and I saw a lot of shad. I bet the Shad spawn will be great there soon, see if you can find them spawning in the early morning on the rocks. Watch out though because I did see an alligator for the first time while fishing in that lake, I was far in some creek about midway up the lake, he kept his distance though. Hope you catch some fish.

You could throw a lot of stuff on that, but since it’s shorter it would probably be good with twitching baits, like flukes or poppers or “walk the dog” topwaters.

So, as is the case with spring and crazy north Texas weather, we have had weeks that have had rain nearly every day and some of the temperature lows are in the 30s, and we have had some weeks where it doesn’t rain at all and the highs are in the 80s. Right now for most of my local lakes the water temperature ranges from 59-67 degrees. Most of the water is a little dirty(which is normal for most of these lakes) with about 1-1.5 feet of visibility, though there are some slightly more clean areas. On lakes with water levels constantly rising and dropping, how do the bass respond to the constant fluctuation? Will the bass still spawn shallow when the water level is 4+ feet above normal level?

Wow, this is a hot thread! Except for a few unnecessary negative remarks, thank you to everyone who has posted! I am also a younger guy, and though I am not in Quarry Man’s situation, all of this advice is very helpful and it definitely puts things in to perspective.

Yep, we have a lot of dirty/stained water down here so the chartreuse works good. Most of those baits are strike king. The popper is a Strike King HC KVD Splash in the chartreuse shad color I think.

For all of you who have extra time due to the current pandemic, here’s an idea. Find some old Hardbaits(my garage was messy, I found them everywhere) that are dirty and rusted. If the hooks/snaps are badly rusted, then remove them. Grab a plastic plate, and put the Hardbaits in the plate and spray them with WD-40. Let them sit for a few minutes, but not too long or else they will smell like WD-40 for a while. Next grab an old toothbrush, some dish soap, and get to a sink. Rinse the baits, then scrub them with some dish soap and a toothbrush. Rinse the baits once you’re done and dry them off with a towel and let them air dry. If a bait had rust on it before washing, double check to make sure it was all cleaned off. This isn’t an absolutely perfect rust remover process. Even though you may have to order some new hooks this still can save a lot of money. This process has worked well for me, but if anyone else has any recommendations for cleaning rusted/dirty Hardbaits feel free to share! The restored Hardbaits ->

I like a good ole Rebel Pop-R. Not expensive and it walks good enough for me. They don’t have any good bluegill colors but otherwise I like it.

I’ve only been into Bass fishing for about 3 years, and I just started fishing lakes, not ponds, about a year and a half ago. At that time I also got a boat and started going out at least a few times a month. Just after scrolling through my calendar(I went out on the lake maybe about 25-30times) I estimate that I have probably caught a little over 100 fish in the past year. I hope that number increases by a lot this year. Good question though!