2 questions for you guys

[Dbn23]

Ok, it may be more than two and I'd like to start off by saying I've been lurking and reading for a while and have learned a lot, but I still have a few things that constantly have me questioning myself. I struggle with whether  I should be throwing a square bill, swim jig, bladed jig (chatterbait or whatever else you want to call it), or a spinner bait. I have the most confidence in the square bill and throw it the most out of the four, but I can't help but think I'm missing out on fish by doing that. That leads me to my first question which is how do you guys decide which of the 4 you should be throwing? My next question is the same question, but between a top water bait and wake bait. I guess I don't see a time when a wake bait would catch fish that say a buzz bait wouldn't.  What do y'all think?

And I have searched, but I haven't found anything that really compares them

[A-Jay]

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~

 An answer to your question regarding how one decides when one should be throwing a square bill, swim jig, bladed jig or a spinner bait is dependent on a fairly lengthy list of factors. 

Right off, these are all moving baits so depending on the cover, they could all be effective at once or not at all.  Same could be said for a topwater & a wake bait - unless your using a frog or a popper, a walking topwater & a wakebait are again moving baits.

Do some reading here in the articles section regarding a few optional / different techniques that are not presented on a horizontal plane.

A jig, Texas rigged soft plastic and even a drop shot immediately come to mind.  Then when your favorite moving baits are not producing you'll have an effective option to try. 

Good Luck

A-Jay

[Darren.]

I'll just welcome you to the forums! I don't normally
fish those lures you're asking about, so can't be of
much help there. Only one I'll throw on occasion is
a spinner bait....

[Crestliner2008]

First off, Welcome Aboard! Looking forward to hearing from you with your experiences. We all can benefit from everyone else. That's what makes this community so special.

Know this....your question is the same one each and every one of us asks ourselves every time we launch the boat. It has a lot to do with current weather/water conditions, time of the year, and pure gut feeling most of the time. So, just apply what you've read here and ask specific questions and I'm sure you'll get some insight as to what you maybe should do to improve your odds. But nothing is guaranteed! That's why they call it "Fishing"....and not "Catching".

[eyedabassman]

39 minutes ago, Dbn23 said:

Ok, it may be more than two and I'd like to start off by saying I've been lurking and reading for a while and have learned a lot, but I still have a few things that constantly have me questioning myself. I struggle with whether  I should be throwing a square bill, swim jig, bladed jig (chatterbait or whatever else you want to call it), or a spinner bait. I have the most confidence in the square bill and throw it the most out of the four, but I can't help but think I'm missing out on fish by doing that. That leads me to my first question which is how do you guys decide which of the 4 you should be throwing? My next question is the same question, but between a top water bait and wake bait. I guess I don't see a time when a wake bait would catch fish that say a buzz bait wouldn't.  What do y'all think?

And I have searched, but I haven't found anything that really compares them

Wecome this is a great site.

A wake bait also has a bit different action than a buzz bait. It has a more side to side action and can be fished at a slower pace.

[Cgolf]

 

Welcome to the boards  

For me it is a progression. When fishing a body of water I tend to work from an active presentation down to a more subtle presentation. Personally I haven't used a chatter bait much so I can't speak to that. 

On the first trip I would probably start by fishing a squarebill to try and pick up the most active fish in the area, and then follow it up with a spinnerbait, which to me is a more subtle bait. The third in the progression would be the swim jig, which I would both swim and hop along bottom. If any of those three didn't work I would go with soft plastics worked slowly to pick off less active fish.

Once you get the general mood of the fish, and dial into the bite, say you come out the next day, if they were biting on a swim jig the day before I would start with that. 

Now of course if there was a major cold front going on, well slow down and find some gnarly cover the fish are hunkering down in. What it comes down to is time on the water and just trying and learning. It is definately humbling at times and rewarding when you hit it right. 

I generally stay away form top waters, not efficient enough for me, they catch fish, I just am not good with them yet. 

[primetime]

If you have confidence with crankbaits and get results, I would experiment with a few different types but I would suggest that you stick with what you know best if you can get a crank through it...I used to love spinnerbaits for years as my go to moving bait at almost all times, but I now prefer a Bladed Swim Jig in the same spots as it is more versatile for me, and can be fished like a crankbait....

Jigs are always a good choice, I would suggest buying a few of each and seeing what fits your style. Swim Jig Fishing may not fit what you like to do, but jigs will work almost anywhere anytime if at the right depth, speed etc...

The articles on this site are really good as to how to "Junk Fish" or basically decide what to use when you have a ton of choices..Much of it is understanding the mood of the fish, water color, and structure and depth as mentioned above...If you catch fish on a crankbait in weeds where everyone else is using jigs, then why change? Some guys can do things with crankbaits that I can't come close to doing without getting frustrated, so confidence is the key to fishing imo....

[Dbn23]

Thanks for the replies. A jay, I grew up fishing inshore and ponds around my house. All of the ponds were nothing but stumps and lily pads so I got pretty good with a frog and Texas rig. I'm trying to figure out how to cover more water/fish faster. C Golf, this bass fishing is no doubt humbling compared to the saltwater fishing I used to do. I do enjoy trying all these moving baits compared to soft plastics, especially on water I'm not familiar with.

[Cgolf]

Primetime made an excellent point with switching Crankbaits. I spent a week on a lake slaying them with an xcalibur squarebill that pushes a lot of water, but the bite just died after the second cold front rolled through. I switched to a bandit 100 which has a more subtle action and started slaying them again. So yeh you could stick with what you have confidence in and still cover a lot of different conditions. 

[Bruce424]

Usually for me the conditions dictate what I throw. With Any depth and Windy conditions cover or no cover I usually throw a spinnerbait because it's easier to throw with wind. Calm conditions or little wind and shallow water is squarebill time. 

[Dbn23]

Bruce, I hear that a lot about throwing a spinner bait when it's windy and throwing something else when it's calm, but is that only because it's easier to throw in the wind or does it have other advantages?

[Mike L]

I'm not  Bruce but his point is exactly what I do also..When I pull up on an area with a light to a fairly heavy chop I start with a spinnerbait also. But I'll usually switch to a spinning setup as opposed to a BC especially if I have to throw into the wind to reach my target area. 

The chop on the water makes it harder for the fish to see..The turning blades will deflect light and and draw them in. 

Another suggestion is to throw a lipless crank on windy days also. If the spinnerbait fails after a while the lipless (I use the red eye shad exclusively) can be very effective useing a side arm roll cast when facing into it. 

 

Good Luck and Welcome 

 

Mike 

[RichF]

Welcome!

I grew up fishing the northeast where pike and pickerel are abundant so I tend to limit my use of moving baits as it tends to draw their attention more than the largemouth.  Most of the bodies of water I fish don't have shad in them either so that strongly dictates how I fish.  I know that down south there is basically a shad bite all year long so spinnerbaits and cranks can work all the time/most of the time. 

I've basically replaced the spinnerbait with a bladed jig and swim jig.  I think they provide a more natural presentation and match our baitfish a lot better.  I definitely throw the swim jig more on calmer days or when the fish don't seem super active since it provides a more subtle, non-aggressive action.  I don't often throw squarebills either but when I do it's usually early in the season or when I'm around specific cover like wood (only if the flipping bite is off and I want to give the fish a different look).  I use wakebaits/buzzbaits similar to the bladed jig/swim jig combination.  More subtle action of the wakebait on calm or sunny days vs. buzzbaits on cloudy/choppy ones. 

Like most folks here say, confidence in the bait you're using plays a huge part.  Bass will bite pretty much anything you throw at them if they're in the right mood.  A lot of the "typical" techniques/baits used under "certain" conditions discussed by everyday anglers and even the pros often hold true for the most part so you can certainly keep that info in the forefront of your mind when tackling the lake.  Just don't be afraid to go against the grain though.  I've had some of my best days doing things most bass anglers wouldn't dream of doing under the particular conditions I was given.  

 

[ww2farmer]

I use chatterbaits, swim jigs, and squarebills A LOT, sometimes almost interchangeably, but often one shines in certain condition. I don't use spinnerbaits much, if at all anymore.

Cover, water clarity, and weather conditions often dictate what bait is used. 

Chatterbaits get the nod when the water is dirty and the cover is grass, I avoid wood with chatterbaits, not because they don't work, but because they get hung up ..........at least for me...........very easy. They are the best dirty water choice for me, and are my first choice if I am fishing over a soft bottom.

Sqaurebills get the nod when the water is  clear to lightly stained, and even in dirty water, and the cover is wood, or grass not to thick to be able to rip and work through. They are the most versatile of the three and usually my first choice when trying to figure out whats going on that day.

Swim jigs get used in clear water, in both wood and grass, any time I "think" any thump or flash would be a detriment to getting the fish to bite. They are the most subtle of the three, and are what I reach for if conditions appear to be "iffy" for a good reaction bait bite.........like clear water, bright skies, little to no wind, etc...They also have the added bonus, especially around cover like weed holes, docks, laydowns, etc. to be be swam through or just pitched and dead sticked like a regular jig I often employ this combo retrieve to find out how they want it that day, and adjust my presentations accordingly. If the are hitting it while moving, I keep it moving...........if they are hitting it when I pitch of flip it into cover, I will fish it that way.

[WRB]

The cover where you fish makes the decision easy, can't use a treble hooked square bill shallow diving crankbait in heavy weed/grass cover. All the single hook lures are design to go through or over heavy cover. When to use what type of lure is a trail and error decision.

Tom

[Dbn23]

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Keep Em coming.

[smalljaw67]

WRB makes a great point and it is how I go about the decision. Look at the cover, that is first and foremost, then it is water clarity, and then water temp, season and wind, if any, all it will help determine what to throw. There are also times when they all come into play but I do have specific times for each one. To make it simple I would say, stained water with 1' to 2' visibility, square bill if the sun is out, spinnerbait if there is wind and if it overcast go with the chatterbait. Dirty water less than a foot visibility means I'm throwing the chatterbait first, square bill second but only if cover allows it. For clear water I'm throwing a swim jig and a square bill is second. I don't consider a wake bait to be a topwater deal, I use them over shallow flats a lot but if I'm using a topwater and I get a swirl or tail slap at my bait and then nothing, that is when I go wake bait, and you'd be surprised at how well it works.

[Ratherbfishing]

I think this is why many of us carry numerous rods with different baits tied on.  If a place looks "fishy" and we don't catch anything with one bait, we can put down that rod and pick up another.  Sometimes it works and sometimes nothing works.

[Dbn23]

4 hours ago, Ratherbfishing said:

I think this is why many of us carry numerous rods with different baits tied on.  If a place looks "fishy" and we don't catch anything with one bait, we can put down that rod and pick up another.  Sometimes it works and sometimes nothing works.

Yeah, I'm up to four now. Plus that bait monkey has jumped on my back