Do Big Baits Always Catch Bigger Fish?

[TMDKENNELS]

Hello all. From your experiences, do bigger baits (10in worms, giant cranks, etc.) regularly catch bigger fish?

[deep]

It's my belief that the most realistic bait presented in the most realistic manner (and in the right location) will catch the largest fish (bass - don't know about other species). Big bass don't get big by being stupid.

A small jig or a small worm will also catch large fish if fished right.

The smaller fish are usually more aggressive than larger ones, and might hit the little jig/ worm earlier though. IMO, this too is a function of the location.

I've only been bass fishing for three years, and targeting bigger fish during the last two. So my experience obviously doesn't count for much. I have caught at least a dozen of 5# + on 1/4 and 1/2 oz jigs (yes, I weigh my fish).

But here's a breakdown of the 7# + bass I caught over the last 3 years.

swimbaits: 6

jigs: 2

topwater: 1

P.S. I have a saying that goes like this; "If a spinnerbait is all you fish, then that's what you're going to catch all your fish on, big or small."

[Nitrofreak]

Big bass are known for being LAZY, they will take the opportunity to get the most for the least effort, but big baits does not always equal big bass, a 10" worm is just as easily taken by a one pound bass as it would be by a 10lb bass.

If you want to catch big bass it's not just the size of the bait that matters, it's the point at which you place the bait and the technique you use to present the bait imo.

[aclark609]

From my own personal experience, big baits can catch fish of all sizes. I've caught bluegills on ten inch worms on more than one occasion. For the most part, however, bigger baits produce larger bass. Just don't get discouraged if you don't get any bites for long periods of time.

[NCbassmaster4Life]

Most of the time this is true...my personal op. is during pre-spawn and late summer.

[Big-O]

Bigger baits of the same style or type are easier to feel or see from a longer distance which is more noticable by more fish... If those fish are actively feeding, the larger bait often catches more fish as well. If the fish are not actively feeding, a little morsel may get a bite more often. Either way, many of the comments by others are correct IMO because Big Fish Eat Big meals and as often as they can... They're not much different than humans when it comes to eating habits, Bigger eat bigger and MORE!

www.ragetail.com

[Bankbeater]

IMHO, if the bass thinks that the bait can be swallowed the bass will probably try and eat it, no matter what the size the bait is.

[smalljaw67]

I always start big and then downsize and over the years I found on average that bigger baits catch bigger fish. That doesn't mean small lures don't catch big fish or big lures don't catch small fish because they do. My biggest smallmouth was caught on a Zara Spook, it was the original 3/4oz version and my biggest largmouth was taken on a Smithwick Super Rogue, the 5.5" version and the reason is just basically the law of averages. A smaller lure appeals to every size fish but when you start going bigger and bigger you begin to eliminate fish that will hit a large bait but there are times you will get the bluegill that hits a 3/4oz spinnerbait but you won't be catching them all day like that.

[JaxBasser]

I catch more big fish when I use bigger baits, but I still catch big ones on small baits and small ones on big baits. I caught a 6lber on a shakey head finesse worm a few days ago and then yesterday I caught a fish on a Horny Toad that could barely fit the thing in it's mouth.

[hatrix]

Swim baits cach big fish for me as of late. All 4 bass I caught this year over 5# came on hudds. I got one today that went 6.3# on a weedless shad.

[North Ga Hillbilly]

Im a firm believer in the calories per bite theory. Now there are athletic looking 10 ponders that will do an acrobatic show when you get hooks in them, but most big fish are the equivalent of a 300 # McDonalds addict. They weight the amount of effort it takes to get the meal in deciding if they are going to go after it. If a rattle trap goes by at high speed, its not going to be worth chasing down due to the fact it would be a small meal, as opposed to a 10" triple trout which would be a stomach full. Now if a 8" hudd goes by as slow as can be, well then thats an easy stomach full. If a jig goes by slow, its also worth the energy to suck it in.

On baits with hanging trebles youll catch alot of fish off of reaction strikes, from big to small.

But back to the original question... not always *see avatar pic

NGaHB

EDIT: I've also had days where a weedless 6" hudd was tearing up 1 pounders, on one of these days jigs fished exactly the same were catching fish, but the hudd had em beat 2:1

[hatrix]

I caught that good fish off a bed, i was going as slow as I could. I try to tick what ever I can on the bottom. I am a firm believer hudds catch big fish, that super subtle action works. You can buy grass minnows, and shads. They are cheap and they catch everything. Every time they completely choke it like nothing.

[eyedabassman]

I fish big worms in the summer,and big baits don't always catch bigger fish.

[iceintheveins]

Big baits help keep the little ones off and keep you focused on bigger fish. However I feel a big bass is more likely to expend energy to get a big meal than a small one, so big baits can and do result in bigger average bass. That being said though, I've caught 6 pounders on tiny plastics and 1 pounders on Old Monster worms.

[SirSnookalot]

Fish as a whole (I don't think this is strictly a bass issue) get big because they eat. They don't get big because they are smart, they aren't. A fish does not ponder a problem then work out a solution like a higher order animal. Fish react on the instincts mother nature has given them, sometimes they react better to big bait and other times to a small bait. IMO the reason a bigger fish is caught is that the bigger fish beat out the smaller one to the bait, or maybe the little one just ate something and wasn't aggressive.

How many times does this happen, probably almost daily with me. 2 people fishing the same lure, live or cut bait, same area and one person catches nothing or small one and the other fisherman gets a large fish, next day it's vice versa.

[airborne_angler]

Ive boated an 8 inch bass on a 10 inch worm...so the big bait,big fish theory may not ALWAYS be true.

[Rangerphil]

I do alot of musky fishing also and I have caught 10-12 inch bass on 9 inch musky lure trolling!

[BrianinMD]

There is nothing in catching fish that can be described as "always"

[SoFlaBassAddict]

In a word, no.

With that being said, I do believe that you'll have a better shot at a giant if you're using a bigger bait. But there is one factor that I think is far more important. Location, location, location.

Big fish get caught across the country, especially down here, flipping very small baits. The Gambler BB cricket has caught me plenty of big fish. It's one of the smallest plastics used for flipping.

[J Francho]

Maybe. I agree, location is key. So is timing. My biggest fish this year ate a 4" worm.

[Diggy]

for me no....but

[craww]

Again no absolutes. But generally, yes. Big O hit on the fact that larger lures will draw fish from farther away. One of the reasons I like throwing large topwater baits.

The "big fish are lazy and won't chase a fast bait or move very far for a meal" theory is bunk. I've seen big fish chase buzzbaits, rattlebaits. etc in very shallow water over 40'. And that's just the one's I've been able to see. We underestimate bass.

[Nice_Bass]

I believe it peaks the curiosity more, and has the ability to attract from a distance so if you did not make that perfect cast onto structure then you may still get its attention. That does not mean it will bite it however…

[K_Mac]

In a word, no.

With that being said, I do believe that you'll have a better shot at a giant if you're using a bigger bait. But there is one factor that I think is far more important. Location, location, location.

Big fish get caught across the country, especially down here, flipping very small baits. The Gambler BB cricket has caught me plenty of big fish. It's one of the smallest plastics used for flipping.

My fishing partner regularly catches big fish pitching small baits to impossible spots that most of us pass right by. He has caught a couple over 6lb and one 7lb 6oz pig, as well as a bunch of smaller, yet still nice fish this year on a 3" Zoom Critter Craw. That is a very small bite for a big fish, but drop it on her plate and she will eat it every time. I am still a believer in throwing bigger baits and generally do, but some times a small beaver will out produce a regular one for both size and numbers for me.

As SFBA says, location is always the key. We can throw whatever we want in the wrong spots and not catch a thing worth talking about, or the "wrong" bait in the right spot and catch a monster. Throw the right bait to the right spot and maybe catch the fish of a lifetime. That is the promise and challenge of fishing. If I give the impression that I love bass fishing, it is only because I do.

[MichBassMan]

No