Do You Prefer Light Tackle Or Heavy Duty Gear For Bass Fishing?

[retiredbosn]

I like the thrill of the fight, what I hate is a fish swimming off with a lure in it's mouth. Or a fish so exhausted it dies. It is unavoidable no matter the tackle. Here are my observations from switching from ul or panfish equipment to bass equipment. Less line breaks, fewer lost lures, less mortality rate, larger fish are boated, throwing anything over 1/8 oz can not be properly presented with ul rigs, nor can u present anything under 1/8 with bass equipment. I don't think either camp is more or less ethical than the other, equipment has its limits. You're not going to do any punching with ul's nor will u throw 1/16oz crappie jigs on a mh casting rod.

[Deleted account]

Bass don't really fight much, in open water 6 or even 4 lb mono will have even a big fish to the boat after 2 or 3 runs, the issue is the cover or structure cutting your line, or a fish burying in some thick grass, or loosing lures due to hangups. I find myself using a med spinning reel with 8 lb mono, and  a baitcaster with 12lb mono most of the time. Conditions will dictate heavier mono or braid for heavy cover or slop of course. I equate it to golf, your sand wedge may be your favorite club, but you wouldn't Tee off or putt with it, same here. Oh, and 20 lb braid isn't light or finesse just because its on a 1000 reel and a med rod.

[PondLvr]

I prefer to use lighter mainly because you can feel the fish better and makes it more fun. But if using bigger or heavier lures heavier tackle is needed but if it isnt i prefer to use lighter tackle

[A-Jay]

John, I don't play out a bass, all I've said is that I enjoy the fight that there is. Since I fish mostly open water, and typically use lighter baits, I use lighter tackle and enyoy the fight. Even with ML rods and 6lb test, you've still usually got the bass back to the boat/bank in about 30 seconds, minute tops.  I'm still trying to get the bass in before I lose it, and it's not like I'm trying to land 9 pound bass on 2lb test.

 

I understand about enjoying the strategy, tactics, bait selection, presentation, etc. But for many of us, bass ARE about the only species available and the fight is a big part of the equation.  

 

 

There is no doubt that we you stick a good fish while drop shotting or any of the finesse rigs - there is almost always some period of time during the fight where the actual out come is a bit in question.

 

I like that.

 

A-Jay

[Goose52]

........ I don't want to lose fish needlessly either...but I sure do like to feel the tug on the line. AND, I don't mind the risk of loosing a fish from time to time......

 

An hour after typing this...I had to "walk the talk."   Was fishing a lipless crank in 42deg. water and hooked up with a BIG bass - big as probably 6 pounds or larger, perhaps much larger big.  Pulled drag twice, got it back within a few feet of the bank, and suddenly, it was gone.  Maybe 30 seconds.  I'm looking down at the lipless crank laying on the bottom of the crystal clear water column, my shoulders droop, head goes down, exhale. It coulda been the biggest bass I'm going to catch for a while.  7'mf rod, 10lb YZ line.  Was tackle a factor? Maybe. Moving bait in cold water, sometimes the bass doesn't quite catch the bait and only gets one hook of the rear treble in the hard part of the jaw.  With a stouter rod and heavier line, maybe I could have got that hook more solid in the jaw. Maybe, maybe not.   Or maybe, the hook pulled out and stouter tackle would have just pulled it out that much faster. Who knows.

 

BUT, I had the excitement of the initial strike, the 30 seconds of the (said to be non-existent) fight, and then the emotion dump.  Thrill of victory, agony of defeat.  Karma.

 

Air temp was 32, light wind, perhaps 25 wind chill, light icing on the rod guides, a little snow on the ground.  Much better to go out and fish, and then lose the fish, than sit at home thinking about fishing.

 

Sometimes fishing is about more than just catching...at least right now I'm trying to convince myself of that...

[mnbassman23]

I'll take my 50-65# braid with a 7'3-8' rod any day of the week before I even look at a spinning rod.. Just my style of fishing. 

[Darren.]

An hour after typing this...I had to "walk the talk."   Was fishing a lipless crank in 42deg. water and hooked up with a BIG bass - big as probably 6 pounds or larger, perhaps much larger big.  Pulled drag twice, got it back within a few feet of the bank, and suddenly, it was gone.  Maybe 30 seconds.  I'm looking down at the lipless crank laying on the bottom of the crystal clear water column, my shoulders droop, head goes down, exhale. It coulda been the biggest bass I'm going to catch for a while.  7'mf rod, 10lb YZ line.  Was tackle a factor? Maybe. Moving bait in cold water, sometimes the bass doesn't quite catch the bait and only gets one hook of the rear treble in the hard part of the jaw.  With a stouter rod and heavier line, maybe I could have got that hook more solid in the jaw. Maybe, maybe not.   Or maybe, the hook pulled out and stouter tackle would have just pulled it out that much faster. Who knows.

 

BUT, I had the excitement of the initial strike, the 30 seconds of the (said to be non-existent) fight, and then the emotion dump.  Thrill of victory, agony of defeat.  Karma.

 

Air temp was 32, light wind, perhaps 25 wind chill, light icing on the rod guides, a little snow on the ground.  Much better to go out and fish, and then lose the fish, than sit at home thinking about fishing.

 

Sometimes fishing is about more than just catching...at least right now I'm trying to convince myself of that...

I feel your pain. Last year, in cool weather, I heard a big splash behind me. Turned to see a school of shad being targeted so I threw a Senko. It hit the water, barely sank when it was hit hard.

I fought it for a good 30-40 seconds and almost got it to my yak when it surged downward and headed for the dock. Suddenly a POP and she was gone. My brand new YoZuri Hybrid 10 lb leader just snapped right in the middle. I was utterly defeated, didn't use YZ for a while after that, LOL.

Yes, I always check my line for kinks, rubs and whatnot. It was clean.

Later that year I caught my PB of 7.5 in thick grass with 10lb braid, and 10 lb YZ Hybrid leader....

I still think the other fish was bigger though.

[Bankbeater]

I have 15 lb on all of my bc reels, and 10 lb on my spinning reel.  I have 6 lb on the ultralight and probably won't use it more than a dozen times this year.

[thehooligan]

The only time i use heavier tackle is frog fishing in the pads. And its still just a medium action baitcaster with braid. Up here in jersey theres not really a need for heavy equipment. 6-7lb bass are trophy fish, theres not alot of heavy vegetation and cover around here. Really just alot of shallow lakes in the area.

 

Im perfectly content with spinning gear and 10lb braid, or baitcasting with 8-12lb line. Last month i brought in a 10lb+ muskie with my 6'3 medium fenwick smallmouth rod, a stradic 1000fj, 10lb braid with a 10lb flouroclear leader. 

 

I think the only way id go up to heavier gear is if i was fishing huge swimbaits or i moved to texas/florida...

[J Francho]

Come to western ny. I'll show you some slop.

[ww2farmer]

I'll have a spinning rod in my hand with light line almost as much , if not more often than a flipping stick with 50lb braid. It's all about the tools for the job. To each his own. You want to exclusively fish for bass with light tackle, even in situations were you will lose........got for it.  Ask yourself this though, would you hunt deer with a .22LR.........sure it will kill one, but..................OR would you take the engine out of a car with nothing more than a pair of vise grips, a crescent wrench and a screw driver..........yeah it will work but............

[BassmanDan]

Every time I fish I'm trying for a PB which would be over ten...and around here those fish seem to be down in the biggest stumps, laydowns and rocks. I may only get one shot if I'm lucky, and I'm not taking any chances with light tackle. Like others have said, it's all about where and how you enjoy fishing.

[tomustang]

I'd rather use light, but the circumstances don't allow that. Never know what the flood waters brought downstream that you'd hook into or throwing into that thick vegetation at some places that reminds you of bouncing a ball in the yard.

[Jay Ell Gee]

It is - and I do agree but I can also smell what ww2farmer is cooking.

Enough fish manage to escape the final lip or net job that I don't want to help them out any.

So, and I know you've heard this, I play with them once they're in the net.

A-Jay

As usual, I find myself agreeing with AJ.

As a medical field student with a job, I don't fish nearly as much as I would like. I would like to land the fish I catch before returning them to the water and I will do what I must to put the odds in my favor..

Now, are all of my setups overpowered? No. I have a 7'2 MH/XF with a Lews MG 7:1 with 65 lb braid and superline hooks for frogging and flipping.

I have multiple medium spinning rods as well.

Heck, I even have a 3wt TFO fly rod that I use in local streams and creeks for river dwelling spotted bass. A 14 inch spotted bass darting into current on a 3wt is a whole different type of fishing. Keep in mind, that type of fishing is for the experience. Losing small spots is no big deal.

My PB would have certainly been lost in weeds had I not been using a serious rod and line combo. I would have never even known how big it was, as I had not seen him before getting him beside the boat. I just don't like risking losing bass like that if I don't have to.

[SGT Rico]

It really depends what type of fishing you persue. If you are content catching smaller fish, then I guess finese is your thing, but if your like me and is trying to catch the biggest fish in the lake, then you have to go heavy. I use to fish with light line till the biggest bass of my life broke off. After that I adjusted my gear, and havent had a big fish break me off ever since. Catching fish in the 3-5lbs range is fun, but nothing is more challenging than boating an 8+ fish, and the heavier line let's you be a tad more confident.