How To Land That Monster Bass

[1234567]

The term monster is subjective. Six or seven pound bass ill just keep winching them in. 15 pound bass I don't know I have to hook one first!

[fstr385]

Grab em by the bottom jaw or use a net.

[Teal]

I really think that alot of guys are so used to catching fish under 3lbs and not really having technique down that they are surprised and unprepared when it comes to a 7+ lb fish. Growing up striper fishing on med gauge tackle i think has done me the most good as far as preparing your set ups, drag and and your patience for a fight.

Like tom and sam mentioned, i try to to position the boat so that the fish will escape to open water. And take the fight to me on my terms so i can just wear him out. On the same note tho, when the cover. Or matted weeds, or brush is really thick and every escape rout is a bad one, that when i decide to go for the home run. Cross his eyes and hoss his butt out of there... but when im doing that im usualy using a heavy frog rod or a heavy flipping rod that is capable of doing that..

I have lost more big fish by trying to play them when i should have used a power approach, but like i said early, theres a place for both approaches and that where mental prep prior to the cast or pitch comes in.

P.s. i really enjoyed reading everyones responses.. its a good refresher course!! Tom and Sam had especially awesome posts.

[CPBassFishing]

Hearing about all you grown men not knowing what to do with big fish makes me laugh. I didn't blink twice while fighting the 6 pounder in my profile picture, I calmly reeled it in, beached it, removed the hooks, and lipped it. Then I celebrated with a few pictures.

[WRB]

Control means you are in control of the big bass instead of the bass controlling the fight. You try to winch in a giant bass to the boat too fast and you lose it trying to land a hot big fish. I have watch a lot of bass anglers lose big bass at the boat because they fought the bass like it was any other bass, then it's pandemonium at the boat.

The first chance I get when fighting a big bass is check my drag and make sure it's working good and not too tight. Bait casting reel drags tend to take a set if you don' t adjust them with every use before you start to fish.

Making sure everything is working right, knots are tied perfectly, the line doesn't have any flaws and hook points are very sharp should be something you do every few casts, if you want any chance to land giant bass.

Big bass is a relative term, giant bass are the biggest bass in your state; northern LMB over 10#, FLMB over 15#, smallmouth or spots over 8# are in the giant bass category where I fish.

Tom

[merc1997]

most big bass are lost because of not being hooked properly and the hooks comes out.  some, because the line gets broke, and that can be just the way it goes, or because of knot failure.  if you are using heavy enough line, and your lure has hooked the bass properly, and by this i mean through the top of the head, not in soft tissue, you can put all the pressure you want to on a big bass.  when dealing with lots of trees and brush, a big bass is going to "tree" you most of the time during the battle.  many people lose that bass when this happens.  here is why.  they keep pulling the bas and snug it up to the limb, and when that happens, the bass can never free itself.  unless your line is strong enough to break the limb or tree that bass is gone.  the best way to deal with this situation is to not just keep pulling until you have the bass tight to the limb, but just maintain pressure.  if the bass pulls down two feet, pull it back two feet.  most of the time with this constant pressure the bass will eventually swim itself back out.  i have landed several dd's at lake falcon, and have not lost any of them due to coming unhooked.  i have had a few just fray the line into.  when fishing for big bass use suitable equipment for the situation.

 

bo

[SirSnookalot]

Teal's summation is right on the money.  You should never lose any kind of bass because of the fight, it just doesn't last that long.  True you're going to lose some due to a variety of reasons, mostly due to unbuttoning, the more experience the less it's going to happen.  Probably intimidation could be a factor.

[Leviathan]

are you using a spinning rod, adjusting the drag on my bait caster might be tough after a fish is hooked,

Baitcaster a are built for easier drag adjustment, that's one perk to learning how to use one

[Leviathan]

Just work with the bass, let him get tired and just bring him on home! Take nice pics and put him back. If you hoarse the bass, you'll wind up ripping his check or lip creating a big hole, therefore when he jumps to shake the hook, you better believe that hooks comin out! Gluck and keep your lines tight!

[WRB]

OK, I looked at the RageTail-Steve Parkps vedio's , exciting and entertaining. He is fishing somewhere in Mexico or Lake Facon during warm water period, possibly the spawn.

What I called pandemonium at the boat was well documented. I don't know what Parks PB is, very few of the big bass in the Vedio looked to be DD size bass, maybe 8-9 lbs and 1 he estimated to be 12-13 lbs....a scale would solve that?

Bed bass are notorious for having little stamina or energy to sustain a fight and the reason I mention bed fish in my first post. Shallow water bass can't go deeper, so they tend to fight near the surface and know one can prevent a big bass from jumping, it happens. You can however prevent all the head shaking near the boat by controlling the fight...it doesn't make for good Vedio. All those bass and only 1 big bass was landed on camera, which leads to how many we're landed? Not nit picking, just curious.

Very heavy tackle capable of landing 50 lb+ musky, but still made me nervous watching the head shakes near the boat,

If anyone reading this is fortunate enough to hook into a giant bass, ounce it clears cove, calm down., take a big breath and keep the bass under control, keep pressure on it but not to the point the bass is held up on the surface. When a big bas runs left move the bow left....keep the bass in front of you and under control. These big bass turn on a dime and make fast powerful runs, but they tire fast and less than a minute you should have your bass of a lifetime in the boat, instead of what t went wrong.

Tom

[roadwarrior]

Woo-Hoo!

 

The gauntlet has been thrown! I don't know whether Big O will reply or not, but if he does I'm sure

it will be pleasant, he is a gentleman. On the other hand...You might have picked the wrong fight.

He catches a big bass once-in-awhile, but only weighs potential lake records or a personal best.

I think he held the record at Lake Fork for several years or maybe still does.

[WRB]

What fight? Just an honest observation from my perspective. Fighting big bass in brushy or woody cover is shallow water (6' deep?) on heavy tackle with 65-80 lb braid and heavy wire hooks is very different than fighting bass in water that drops off into over a hundred feet with line no heavier than 14 lb FC. The last thing you want is a hot bass head shaking next to the boat.

Lets see what Big O has to say, should be interesting, there is more than 1 way to skin a cat. Do you know if a net was used? The 1landed was lipped.

The lake Fork record is the Texas state record 18.2 lbs I believe.

Never fished Fork or Falcon, have fish in Mexico's lake Guerrero, 10-12 lb class LMB with 25 lb mono in heavy brush, back in the mid '70's, those bass had teeth! So a net was used. Lots of flooded trees and wirery brush and would break off every other big bass, 65# super braid would have great, didn't exist then or 6 power flipping rods.

Tom

PS, my 5 top FLMB are;

19.3 lbs, '93 from Castaic, jig, 14# FC Sunline

18.6 lbs, '81 from Casitas, jig, 12# mono Trilene

17.6 lbs, '91 From Castaic, jig, "

17.4 lbs, '90 from Castaic, jig, "

17.4 lbs, '88 from Casitas, jig. "

[Shane J]

Well, until he does chime in... those were not bed fish. He doesn't bed fish ever. The fish in those videos were caught in 12' water, sometime in early summer. And no, he doesn't use a net. Like RW said, the scale only comes out for fish in the teens. Oh, and so there's no confusion, Big O has more fish in the teens than anybody on this board, and well over a thousand fish over 10lbs.

[senile1]

We have some awesome hawg hunters on this board.  WRB, Big-O, and Fish Chris come to mind but I am sure there are others.  I wouldn't venture a guess as to who has caught the most DDs nor is that really important.  They all have caught a great number of large bass and they all know how it is done.  This is a perfect opportunity to just listen and learn.  As WRB stated, "there is more than one way to skin a cat."  I look forward to Big-Os take as well. 

[1234567]

Butch brown has frequented the boards here in the past.

[Leviathan]

OK, I looked at the RageTail-Steve Parkps vedio's , exciting and entertaining. He is fishing somewhere in Mexico or Lake Facon during warm water period, possibly the spawn.

What I called pandemonium at the boat was well documented. I don't know what Parks PB is, very few of the big bass in the Vedio looked to be DD size bass, maybe 8-9 lbs and 1 he estimated to be 12-13 lbs....a scale would solve that?

Bed bass are notorious for having little stamina or energy to sustain a fight and the reason I mention bed fish in my first post. Shallow water bass can't go deeper, so they tend to fight near the surface and know one can prevent a big bass from jumping, it happens. You can however prevent all the head shaking near the boat by controlling the fight...it doesn't make for good Vedio. All those bass and only 1 big bass was landed on camera, which leads to how many we're landed? Not nit picking, just curious.

Very heavy tackle capable of landing 50 lb+ musky, but still made me nervous watching the head shakes near the boat,

If anyone reading this is fortunate enough to hook into a giant bass, ounce it clears cove, calm down., take a big breath and keep the bass under control, keep pressure on it but not to the point the bass is held up on the surface. When a big bas runs left move the bow left....keep the bass in front of you and under control. These big bass turn on a dime and make fast powerful runs, but they tire fast and less than a minute you should have your bass of a lifetime in the boat, instead of what t went wrong.

Tom

The thing about bass shaking heads out of water isn't a worry of snapping the line but shaking the hook, good post though!

[Leviathan]

8+ lb bass is a large bass still. I count them as nice fish, anyone should. My largest is 14lb but have caught countless bass over 10lbs which are picture worthy to me!

[SudburyBasser]

2.  NEVER POINT THE ROD TIP AT THE FISH.

 

This was my number one bad habit back in the days when I had a full head of hair and no paunch. I wanted to murder my brain for dipping that rod tip so many times. I have no idea why I did it, but I did.

 

And for some reason I even did it once this past summer when I was bonefishing in the Carribean. Lost a prize bonefish that way, though I did redeem myself later with an even bigger one.

[Texfisherman]

While I'm not highly experienced in landing monster bass (my biggest is 8.25 pounds), I am INCREDIBLY experienced in losing them, lol.

 

I always go fishing with my buddy and I can tell you the two main ways we lose big 7-8+ pounders:

 

1.) For me, I forget to loosen the drag on my spinning reel. You want to have your drag very tight at first to get a solid hook set. But once the fight is on and you know that you are fighting a big bass, loosen the drag a bit when they run, and the moment they stop running, tighten the drag and bring them towards the boat. Rinse and repeat.

 

2.) My buddy loses big bass because his line is brittle, sun damaged, or hasn't been changed out in a while. Also, he forgets sometimes to re-tie after catching a few bass. Your line will snap!!!

 

Also remember that the strength of your line has a lot to do with everything. If you plan on man-handling big bass, you better have some serious line on your reel. I use 10 pound mono and my buddy uses 8 pound flouro... So when we catch a big bass, our only option is to wear them out.

 

One final thing I've noticed is that big bass like to do what I call a Final Run. No matter how tired that bass is, when he gets close enough to see the boat, they like to do one final run. Be ready for it

 

P.S. --- I like to think of my bass tackle, rods and reels as an investment, since it is...

I keep all of my fishing poles and tackle inside my home when I'm not fishing. Sun damage goes a long ways.

[Texfisherman]

Look at your rods, also. As many of our friends here at Bass Resource taught me, you will want a medium-heavy to heavy rod if you plan on fighting monster bass. You will need the backbone in that rod to have better control of the situation.

[roadwarrior]

While I'm not highly experienced in landing monster bass (my biggest is 8.25 pounds), I am INCREDIBLY experienced in losing them, lol.

 

I always go fishing with my buddy and I can tell you the two main ways we lose big 7-8+ pounders:

 

1.) For me, I forget to loosen the drag on my spinning reel. You want to have your drag very tight at first to get a solid hook set. But once the fight is on and you know that you are fighting a big bass, loosen the drag a bit when they run, and the moment they stop running, tighten the drag and bring them towards the boat. Rinse and repeat.

 

2.) My buddy loses big bass because his line is brittle, sun damaged, or hasn't been changed out in a while. Also, he forgets sometimes to re-tie after catching a few bass. Your line will snap!!!

 

Also remember that the strength of your line has a lot to do with everything. If you plan on man-handling big bass, you better have some serious line on your reel. I use 10 pound mono and my buddy uses 8 pound flouro... So when we catch a big bass, our only option is to wear them out.

 

One final thing I've noticed is that big bass like to do what I call a Final Run. No matter how tired that bass is, when he gets close enough to see the boat, they like to do one final run. Be ready for it

 

P.S. --- I like to think of my bass tackle, rods and reels as an investment, since it is...

I keep all of my fishing poles and tackle inside my home when I'm not fishing. Sun damage goes a long ways.

 

Well, my thoughts and recommendations are a little different.

 

Set your drag properly at 25%-30% of the breaking strength of your line, but not more than 3-4 lbs.

There are several ways to measure the weight. I suggest putting 3 pounds of weight in a plastic

grocery bag and tying your line to the handles of the sack. GENTLY lift your rod tip until the drag

begins to release. Tighten the drag accordingly.

 

Now pull your line out with your hand. Over time you will get a pretty accurate feel for the setting.

Once set, I NEVER adjust anything when I have a fish on...NEVER. I fish #4 & #6 Yo-Zuri on my

spinning tackle. My two main spinning rods are 7' MF. The drag is always set at approximately

2 1/2 lbs. Both smallmouth in my avatar and the Big Bass on last year's RoadTrip were all caught

using #4 Hybrid.

 

On baitcasters I am fishing #12 Yo-Zuri Hybrid or 50 lb Sufix 832 for bass, 65 for striper. The drag

on my bass rods is 3 lbs regardless of which line I am using, 4 lbs on my striper rig. I'm not going

to use "never" because that came back to bite me a few years ago, so I "rarely" get broken off.

[Leviathan]

While I'm not highly experienced in landing monster bass (my biggest is 8.25 pounds), I am INCREDIBLY experienced in losing them, lol.

 

I always go fishing with my buddy and I can tell you the two main ways we lose big 7-8+ pounders:

 

1.) For me, I forget to loosen the drag on my spinning reel. You want to have your drag very tight at first to get a solid hook set. But once the fight is on and you know that you are fighting a big bass, loosen the drag a bit when they run, and the moment they stop running, tighten the drag and bring them towards the boat. Rinse and repeat.

 

2.) My buddy loses big bass because his line is brittle, sun damaged, or hasn't been changed out in a while. Also, he forgets sometimes to re-tie after catching a few bass. Your line will snap!!!

 

Also remember that the strength of your line has a lot to do with everything. If you plan on man-handling big bass, you better have some serious line on your reel. I use 10 pound mono and my buddy uses 8 pound flouro... So when we catch a big bass, our only option is to wear them out.

 

One final thing I've noticed is that big bass like to do what I call a Final Run. No matter how tired that bass is, when he gets close enough to see the boat, they like to do one final run. Be ready for it

 

P.S. --- I like to think of my bass tackle, rods and reels as an investment, since it is...

I keep all of my fishing poles and tackle inside my home when I'm not fishing. Sun damage goes a long ways.

If you want monster bass you should give a baitcaster a chance, I use medium action custom rod with my Daiwa AIRD, a baitcaster can hold a lot heavier line without despoiling like a spinning reel does, I have 17lb big game fluoro on mine, never snaps on me! And it's easier to afjust the drag on a baitcaster as well

[Big-O]

LOL.. This looks like a fun thread and I've just returned from out of town where I was trying to 'LEARN HOW TO LAND THAT BIG FISH' and maybe answer rangerboys original Question

Here's my take, its always great to be prepared and have the right tackle in your hands when she hits. Personally I use 1 style rod for everything, a 7'11 heavy action St Croix Rage Rod and 2 different lines, 65 lb suffix braid for flippin' brush and trash, and 25 pound vicious pro elite flouro for fishing deep, jagged rocks, and extreme clear conditions. Not to say that you can't do it with lesser tackle but this hvy stuff works well for me. Ck your drag prior to the first cast of the outing to make sure that it's not froze up. Set the drag according to the baits and style of presentation you choose because they will all be different accordingly. EXAMPLE: Crank baits, small dia lines, thin wire hooks, fish is in open water etc., a softer drag setting than flipping brush, heavy line, heavy wire hooks etc.

Where someone mentioned above... Both of the Winch 'em OUT videos I and II are the PERFECT EXAMPLE and are in fact instructional videos for those who want to know the VERY BEST technique for flippin' fish out of heavy cover. THERE IS NO BETTER WAY and I believe that they are the first videos of their type with a detailed explanation to assist those who want to know the ABSOLUTE BEST and MOST CORRECT technique to use. If a person views the videos and takes the time to pay attention to the technique (and not just the size of the fish caught) and also takes the time to read the copy at the end of Winch 'em OUT 1, it gives detailed instruction on how and what to do in this situation. Also, if you view the Winch 'em OUT 2 video without prejudice, you will see several slow motion visuals showing that the fish are not in shallow water... but in 14 to 20ft. After I clear any and all obstructions with the fish, you will notice the PERFECT technique necessary to land any fish BIG or SMALL in deep water conditions. I can't see anywhere in the video that I appear overly anxious, getting too excited or in a hurry. Hopefully I'm demonstrating complete control because I've been doing this same stuff for almost 50 yrs now and it's hard for me to get too excited about anything anymore, you be the judge

As for weights on the the fish on the WII video... YES 4 of them were over 10 and one was 13.90. I had to weigh the 13.90, because in 'Flippin a Fatty' (a different clip of the same fish), I'm overheard calling a weight during the battle on camera so weighing was called for! BTW, I am 6'4" 235 so if you're trying to size up a fish in reference to me GOOD LUCK.

For a fact the majority of my big fish come from 20 ft. depths or more and I pride myself in the ability to not only get the fish in the boat for a little chat, but also to get her back in the water EXACTLY where she was caught safe and sound with the minimal harm.

As in so many situations, it's easy to doubt others... especially when we're not in their game. And some will continue to doubt even when they see it for themselves, but that's OK too... Different Strokes for Different Folks

[Mrs. Matstone]

That's exactly the response that I would expect from you Big O clear, detailed to the point and the absolute truth. The Winch em out videos do illustrate the best technique and information necessary  in order to get big fish out of thick cover. In slow motion you make controlling those big fish look easy. Now get your butt back out there and do some more fishing and have some FUN!!!.

[HeavyDluxe]

So, my interpretive summary of this thread:

1. Use appropriate equipment for the type of fishing you're attempting
2. Properly adjust the drag on your reels before fishing
3. If hooking into a fish in heavy cover, assert control early to get them clear of the dangerous obstructions.  
4. In all other situations, use the rod, reel's drag, and patience to steer the fish away from trouble and keep pressure up until it tires (aka "Be Patient")