How To Simplify Which Lure To Use

[MIbassin]

I'm honestly lost with the hundreds of lure selections out there. its really becoming difficult for me to pick which lure to use and when, I'm young and still learning.

do you guys have any tips to help select which lure to use( not exact lures just like general lures like jig, crank bait, etc..)

[Tuckahoe Joe]

Im still learning too and kinda have the same problem you do. However, I will say that it seems like the topwater bite is usually pretty good in the early morning. Try frogs, poppers, or some other topwater bait around sunrise.

[MIbassin]

yeah i think we can all relate to the problem we are having!

[MarkH024]

I think it depends on what type of fisherman you are. For me, I like to powerfish. I like covering a lot of water, and getting reaction bites. I'll fish a good length of time that way until I decide I need to slow down and take a slower approach, or finesse if you will. I like to throw a lipless crankbait, squarebill, swimbait, or anything that's going to cover a lot of water fast. When I get hit, I try to relate to the structure or cover I just passed/hit that got the fish to commit. Then I'll start fishing spots identical to the one that just produced.

I'll slow down when I'm getting a weak hit, or a follow on my search baits but not an aggressive strike. Then I'll go to a jig, or t-rig worm. Something a little slower, work the spots you would typically find fish. A lot of times I'll have a search bait and a worm/jig by my feet because if they miss on the search bait and you toss a worm back to that spot, you will likely get a bite there.

I throw topwater in low light conditions when the water is 55+. I love topwater fishing so I always give it a chance. I fish frogs more than any other topwater, but spooks and buzzbaits are my other two favorites.

Finding confidence in lures will help you catch more fish too. I have more confidence in baits that create reaction strkes than slow finesse baits. That's just me.

Sometimes the bite is tougher than the day before. That's the great thing about fishing, it's a constant puzzle. You just got to get out there and find what works for you.

[Sam]

Mlbassin, what a question!

If we knew we would catch 'em every time we made a cast.

So what are the rules? Well, for starters everyone has their own favorites. And depending on your geographical location and the waters the guys fish the favorites are different.

In Virginia, you can get away with these colors of plastics: Junebug, Green Pumpkin and Watermealon. You can expand by adding blues and other colors that are off these three basic selections.

For moving baits: Sunny Days - Chart with Blue Back. Cloudy Days - Silver with Black Back. Anything shad. And once again, there are far too many colors to give you a favorite.

Spinnerbaits and Chatterbaits - White and White/Chartruese.

Please understand that you need to do the following when considering bait colors:

1. Water clarity.

2. Water temperature.

3. Cloudy or sunny skies.

4. Time of year.

5. Bait fish and forage in waters you are fishing.

6. Tidal rivers.

7. Natural lake or reservior.

8. Lots of wood and structure.

9. Lots of rocks and rocky points with tree stumps.

10. And whatever the guys tell you on this post.

I wish I could give you a secret color that will work all the time. But that's not the way it is.

As an example, yesterday on Smith Mountain Lake my buddy was throwing Junebug in clear water. I was throwing watermealon, green pumpkin and moccasin blue. He was catching dink after dink. What did I catch? Nothing! For some reason in clear water (we could see at least 6 to 8 feet down) they wanted a Junebug color that we use in stained water. Go figure. Dumb bass. The bass need to read the books and watch the TV shows to learn what they are supposed to eat depending on water clarity.

I also threw my Bandit 200 in blue with chart back. What did I catch with blue bird skies? Warmouths, stripers, dink bass and ring perch. And one 1.5 keeper bass. They would not hit any shad colors or silver Rat-L-Traps. They wanted that Bandit. And my buddy never threw a crankbait in two days. He lived off the Carolina rig and Texas rigged four-inch finesse worms.

You have to find the "pattern." Where they are; what depth; what color they want; on wood; suspending; in grass and pads; under docks and piers; and on and on and on.

So to answer your query in a direct manner: Can't help you. You need to go out and try different colors and techniques until you find what the bass want that day. The next day you have to start over.

This is why we love those little green fish!!!!

[TRYTOFISH]

Mlbassin, what a question!

If we knew we would catch 'em every time we made a cast.

So what are the rules? Well, for starters everyone has their own favorites. And depending on your geographical location and the waters the guys fish the favorites are different.

In Virginia, you can get away with these colors of plastics: Junebug, Green Pumpkin and Watermealon. You can expand by adding blues and other colors that are off these three basic selections.

For moving baits: Sunny Days - Chart with Blue Back. Cloudy Days - Silver with Black Back. Anything shad. And once again, there are far too many colors to give you a favorite.

Spinnerbaits and Chatterbaits - White and White/Chartruese.

Please understand that you need to do the following when considering bait colors:

1. Water clarity.

2. Water temperature.

3. Cloudy or sunny skies.

4. Time of year.

5. Bait fish and forage in waters you are fishing.

6. Tidal rivers.

7. Natural lake or reservior.

8. Lots of wood and structure.

9. Lots of rocks and rocky points with tree stumps.

10. And whatever the guys tell you on this post.

I wish I could give you a secret color that will work all the time. But that's not the way it is.

As an example, yesterday on Smith Mountain Lake my buddy was throwing Junebug in clear water. I was throwing watermealon, green pumpkin and moccasin blue. He was catching dink after dink. What did I catch? Nothing! For some reason in clear water (we could see at least 6 to 8 feet down) they wanted a Junebug color that we use in stained water. Go figure. Dumb bass. The bass need to read the books and watch the TV shows to learn what they are supposed to eat depending on water clarity.

I also threw my Bandit 200 in blue with chart back. What did I catch with blue bird skies? Warmouths, stripers, dink bass and ring perch. And one 1.5 keeper bass. They would not hit any shad colors or silver Rat-L-Traps. They wanted that Bandit. And my buddy never threw a crankbait in two days. He lived off the Carolina rig and Texas rigged four-inch finesse worms.

You have to find the "pattern." Where they are; what depth; what color they want; on wood; suspending; in grass and pads; under docks and piers; and on and on and on.

So to answer your query in a direct manner: Can't help you. You need to go out and try different colors and techniques until you find what the bass want that day. The next day you have to start over.

This is why we love those little green fish!!!!

x2

[Sam]

May I also suggest to you "new to bass fishing guys" that it is important to suscribe to bass fishing publications, emails, Facebook "likes" and start to create your own library on baits and techniques?

Please consider suscribing to these magazines:

Bassmaster Magazine by joining B.A.S.S.

FLW Magazine by joining FLW.

Bassin'

Bass Anglers Magazine

Bass Times

Cut out the articles and put them in a three ring binder or a manila file folder.

Also, go to Facebook and "like" this forum plus any pros you want to keep up with.

Suscribe to this email service: Texas Rig Fishing The Ultimate Bass Fishing Resource Guide® LLC.mht

Read the articles on this Forum. Print them out and file them away or start your own library on your computer.

Check out the latest in DVDs and consider starting to purchase those that you want to view.

Going out to the waters and throwing baits is easy. The challenge is to learn as much as you can to outsmart those little green things with brains the size of a marble.

Read - Read - Read - And Read Somemore!!!!

[Texfisherman]

One of the great questions. The only advice I can offer is the tried-and-true baits that usually work in most situations like spinnerbaits and plastic worms.

For the plastic worms, I usually go T-rigged, wacky-rigged, or cast a shaky head on a shaky head hook. Colors for plastic worms: I usually look for any color that contains the word watermelon or pumpkin.

For me personally, I tend to shy away from crankbaits. I'm all about finesse fishing and I have 20 pounds or so of just ribbontail worms, trick worms, shaky head worms, senkos and centipedes. I also keep one container of mostly 1/2 oz. spinnerbaits in white, chartreuse, black and red.

Find what YOU enjoy doing most and hone in on it.

[MIbassin]

thank you all for your very helpful info. mark, i think i need to try that reaction bite thing, and also when would you fish a trap over a swim bait?

[Sam]

Swim baits are for the larger bass.

Rat-L-Trap type baits (lipless crankbaits) are for all bass all year.

After you get your five fish limit in the well you throw swim baits.

You use Rats to get your five fish limit.

[MarkH024]

May I also suggest to you "new to bass fishing guys" that it is important to suscribe to bass fishing publications, emails, Facebook "likes" and start to create your own library on baits and techniques?

Please consider suscribing to these magazines:

Bassmaster Magazine by joining B.A.S.S.

FLW Magazine by joining FLW.

Bassin'

Bass Anglers Magazine

Bass Times

Cut out the articles and put them in a three ring binder or a manila file folder.

Also, go to Facebook and "like" this forum plus any pros you want to keep up with.

Suscribe to this email service: Texas Rig Fishing The Ultimate Bass Fishing Resource Guide® LLC.mht

Read the articles on this Forum. Print them out and file them away or start your own library on your computer.

Check out the latest in DVDs and consider starting to purchase those that you want to view.

Going out to the waters and throwing baits is easy. The challenge is to learn as much as you can to outsmart those little green things with brains the size of a marble.

Read - Read - Read - And Read Somemore!!!!

X2

This should be a mandatory pop up before reading/writing in the forums. Also the "search" function here will help you locate many questions you may have.

[MarkH024]

Swim baits are for the larger bass.

Can't say I agree completely with this. I catch plenty of fish from the 1lb range to 5+ on 3.5"-5" hollow body swim baits. Where I fish, a 5+ is a big bass. 7+ is a monster. If i were fishing really large hard body swim baits like Mann's, then yes I'd be fishing for the big boys.

Swim bait has become a very "loose" term it seems so I suppose better clarification would help.

MIbassin- I would throw a swimbait with a lot of vegetation or wood. Traps on the outside of weed edges, or through and above grass where you're not getting hung up.

[MIbassin]

thank you, i was just up north a few weeks ago and i didn't have enough depth between me and the weeds, so i couldn't throw the trap, i instead used a 3.5 inch hollow body swim bait, i caught 1 9 inch smallie. i also got a few follows, is this where i would slow down and throw a jig or something?

[Arv]

Like mentioned above, this is nearly impossible to answer. If you HAD to choose, go with the tried and true lures. Jigs, worms, crankbaits, spinners and proven top waters (spooks, buzzbaits, poppers, etc.). Also stick with basic colors: generally - green, brown, black, white, shad colors and mix some chartreuse in there. This is just my list that I've gathered from reading and my own fishing experience. As far as selecting from those, that IS impossible to answer IMO. So many times I've tried something that makes sense based on water clarity, structure, time of day, etc., and doesn't land anything. I'll work my way to trying something doesn't necessarily have a rhyme or reason to it, and WHAM, fish. Most of this will just come with experience, as I'm quickly discovering.

[MIbassin]

please answer- do jigs work in submerged grass with little to know structure and do traps work on inactive fish?

[Arv]

please answer- do jigs work in submerged grass with little to know structure and do traps work on inactive fish?

from my experience, jigs in that situation, yes, traps on inactive fish, no

[Nick86794]

Like mentioned above, this is nearly impossible to answer. If you HAD to choose, go with the tried and true lures. Jigs, worms, crankbaits, spinners and proven top waters (spooks, buzzbaits, poppers, etc.). Also stick with basic colors: generally - green, brown, black, white, shad colors and mix some chartreuse in there. This is just my list that I've gathered from reading and my own fishing experience. As far as selecting from those, that IS impossible to answer IMO. So many times I've tried something that makes sense based on water clarity, structure, time of day, etc., and doesn't land anything. I'll work my way to trying something doesn't necessarily have a rhyme or reason to it, and WHAM, fish. Most of this will just come with experience, as I'm quickly discovering.

I would definietly agree with this. it is really impossible to answer. Just experiment with baits that you usually catch fish one, and even try new baits. Find a bit you like, master it, and move onto another. I am a tournament/power angler and I love throwin tubes, jigs, worms, buzzers, poppers, frogs, spinnerbait etc. I'm confident in those areas, and I am just working my way to cranks. You will never stop learning!

As for your question is jigs in grass. It really depends. In the fall, both on the shore and on a boat, I found weeds at 10-15 feet and was catching bass off a 1/2ounce finesse football jig in green pumpkin with a netbait paca chunk. So yes they can work in weeds, again it just depends on the condition of the water as well as the weather. I've also had luck using a swim jig, swimmin it just like a spinnerbait over a weedline or next to a weedline.

any other question go ahead and ask or inbox me!

Goodluck!

[SirSnookalot]

I look at the water first, then decide exposed hooks or weedless, and the depth I want to fish. I think I catch most of my fish on the pause, I select lures that I work, topwater or jerkbaits for various depths are used a lot.

[Deleted account]

The guy is confused, and the advice is "read more" nope, fish more...And color, match the forage in clearish water, a bit of white or chart. in the murk, Its not that hard K.I.S.S. Fish a few baits and become familiar with them and gain confidence. Oh and just like chess, try to get on the water with better more experienced anglers, it will accelerate the learning curve.

[papajoe222]

No easy answer here except one. KNOW YOUR QUARY. If you have a good idea where the fish will likely be, what their activity level is, what forage is available, etc., your choice is narrowed down for you. First and foremost; what is the fish's primary concern now, when you're on the water? Is it spawning, feeding, hiding from other preditors? Is the current bringing the food source to the fish, do they have to chase it down, can they hide in cover and ambush their prey?

Lures are tools, just like your line, rod, reel, electronics,etc. If you have a good idea of what the job is that needs to be done, you will also have a good idea of what tools you'll need to do it.

As I said: No easy answer here. The key to catching fish on a consistant basis is in finding them and as one great teacher (Buck Perry) once said: "90% of the fish in any given body of water are in 10% of that water."

[flyfisher]

I jsut got back into bass fishing after abotu a 12 year hiatus while i was chasing trout in the mountains so i went through the same thing as you.

Nothing beats time on the water to learn but reading as much as you can will help you to identify certain things to look for and what baits to try. It gives you a little bit of confidence knowing that an "expert" did this or that technique and it worked. Then all it takes is to catch a fish and bam your confidence level shoots up and you are more willing to keep trying the same technique. Then you can move to another technique and another until you have a full arsenal of situations and techniques that you are confident in using.

A perfect example is this year i started throwing square bill crankbaits more often and i had one great day with them where i caught 4 bass over 18" in a span of about 4 hours. This gave me the confidence i needed to continue throwing them and also expand to some deeper running versions with some success.

It also helps to keep a fishing journal, there are plenty of apps out there for the iphone that will automatically generate weather information and you just need to input the water conditions, baits used etc...

Bottom line though is to fish and fish more. Nothing beats experience on the water.

[J Francho]

Cover and depth are my first two criteria for weeding out what WON'T work. From there, experience is the key. Pick something, even if it's wrong. If you're on fish, you'll probably get bit. No one ever caught anything sitting in their boat, scratching their head.

[roadwarrior]

Simple suggestions:

Target forage: Baitfish or "bugs"

Depth: Shallow = topwater, soft swimbait or square bill

Mid column = spinnerbait, jerkbait, lipless crank or swim jig

Bottom = jig or soft plastic

Cover or structure: Both "moving baits" and finesse.

If the fish seem active, I'm always going to chose a moving bait.

[MIbassin]

thanks road warrior!

and i assume that as the day progresses i would start shallow and work my way deeper?

[senko_77]

Hey Mlbassin, that's a pretty tough question to provide an answer to. A lot of real good replies on this thread so far. The main thing that keeps coming up is to go out there and fish and figure it out, and really, that is the best way to learn but I understand your frustration as we all were in your spot at one time or another. Let me try to break down some common weather/water conditions we frequently run into to help you get your feet wet....

First, you need to look at the 4 seasons...well 6, because there are 3 phases to the spawn : )

Late Winter (Jan. - Mar.)

- The fish are located on the sharpest drops on the lake and are very lethargic for most of the day.

Baits I throw - Jig/trailer, Suspending jerkbait, Spoon

Prespawn (Feb. - Apr.)

- The fish are moving from the sharp drops to the areas they will make their nests. Look for long points extending from shallow water to deeper water and also for flats with some sort of dropoff to deeper water nearby.

Baits I throw - Square billed crankbait, soft plastic jerkbait, suspending jerkbait

Spawn (Feb. - June)

- The fish are on flat areas of the lake with protection from the elements. The backs of coves provide this protection, so it's a great place to start your search. After you find a nice, protected cove, look for a section with a hard bottom or other types of cover the bass will spawn against....grass, stumps, rocks, dock pilings, etc.

Baits I throw - Soft plastic lizard or craw, paddle tail swimbait, floating frog

Post spawn (Mar. - July)

- There are 2 groups of bass you can target. The first are the males that will stay behind to guard the newly hatched bass fry. To locate these guys, fish the same areas you caught spawning fish from, and keep your eyes peeled for surface disturbance. The male bass chase off sunfish and other creatures.

Baits I throw to fry guarding bass - Wakebaits, soft plastic jerkbait, soft plastic lizards

- The other group of bass you can target are the post spawn females that have finished laying their eggs. Due to the stress the egg production puts on their system, they put on the FEED BAG, my friend. Target secondary points, dropoffs, and grass lines that are relatively close to the spawning areas you targeted during the spawn. The females in my experience don't travel too far after their spawn, and will be glued to any piece of cover or structure that they can recover on while feeding heavily.

Baits I throw - Frogs, wacky rigged senkos, spinnerbaits, square billed crankbaits, jigs

Summer (Apr. - Aug.)

- The fish are going to be in deeper water, cooler water. If your targeting shallow fish, then shade lines are your target. Whether the shade is created from a stump, dock, grass mat, etc., make multiple casts at it from multiple angles. When looking for deeper fish, look at the same sharp drops you caught your winter fish on. Also fish the ends of points, humps, and channel bends during this time.

Baits I throw - Soft plastic worms, Football jigs, Deeper diving crankbaits, spinnerbaits, topwater frogs and poppers

Fall (Aug. - Nov.)

- The fish are relating 100% to baitfish and will follow them wherever they go. Locate the bait, locate the bass. Keep a close eye out for schooling activity. Also look for shallow wood and whatever green grass is left in the lake. Fall bass tend to key in on the shallow cover in the fall time.

Baits I throw - Lipless crankbaits, poppers, floating jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, swimjigs, jigs

Early Winter (Oct. - Dec.)

- A lot of bass will still be shallow. Just like fall, target wood and grass. Even as the temperature drops, bass still will be agressive and will happily eat a moving bait. After your lake settles at it's coldest temperature, then it's time to transition to the late winter spots.

Baits I throw - square billed crankbait, suspending jerkbait, jig

I hope this helps you simplify things. Obviously this isn't exact, but I gave you a peek inside the process of lure selection during each season. The information I listed can change depending on weather conditions, water clarity, etc. but it's a good, basic list to work off of. Keep posting questions as you run across new conditions you aren't familiar with and we can get you up to speed on making those key adjustments.

Good luck Mlbasser!!!