Prespawn Lure Selection

[BrianMRetter]

From reading articles & posts here I think I've narrowed down my prespawn lure selection, but I'm not entirely sure how to determine which part of the season to use each one. Do any of you make this decision based on temperature? If so what water temps do you fish each of these at? Thanks guys!

 

Jig/Chunk

Suspending Jerkbait

Lipless Crankbait

Squarebill Crankbait

Jig (Pitching)

Swimbait

[RoLo]

1 hour ago, BrianMRetter said:

From reading articles & posts here I think I've narrowed down my prespawn lure selection, but I'm not entirely sure how to determine which part of the season to use each one. Do any of you make this decision based on temperature? If so what water temps do you fish each of these at? Thanks guys!

 

Jig/Chunk

Suspending Jerkbait

Lipless Crankbait

Squarebill Crankbait

Jig (Pitching)

Swimbait

 

 

For buck bass, a lipless crank is tough to beat, but for cow bass I prefer a jig & craw

or suspending jerkbait. The swimbait is okay, but really shines during the 'post-spawn'.

 

Roger

[Catt]

I don't pay attention to water temperatures but rather weather patterns during the months of January-March.

 

Texas Rig; plastics to be determined

Jig-n-Craw

Rat-L-Trap

Spinnerbait

 

Those 4 are on my deck through pre-spawn & spawn!

[JustJames]

How about pre-sprawn on muddy water?

My home lake is so muddy right now from heavy rain we got a few weeks back. As of now I only have a dark blue jig and shaky head with 10" worm also blue. So far no bite yet.

[eyedabassman]

10 minutes ago, Catt said:

I don't pay attention to water temperatures but rather weather patterns during the months of January-March.

 

Texas Rig; plastics to be determined

Jig-n-Craw

Rat-L-Trap

Spinnerbait

 

Those 4 are on my deck through pre-spawn & spawn!

I agree but i would like to add for me a Wiggle Wart,Jerkbait,Swimming a grub/Fluke.

[RoLo]

1 minute ago, JustJames said:

How about pre-sprawn on muddy water?

My home lake is so muddy right now from heavy rain we got a few weeks back. As of now I only have a dark blue jig and shaky head with 10" worm also blue. So far no bite yet.

 

Break out the bladed jig or overhead spinner 

 

Roger

[Catt]

1 minute ago, JustJames said:

How about pre-sprawn on muddy water?

My home lake is so muddy right now from heavy rain we got a few weeks back. As of now I only have a dark blue jig and shaky head with 10" worm also blue. So far no bite yet.

 

Now ya changed everything!

 

Same 4 but the plastics will be something that moves a lot of water & a jig with rattles.

 

To catch bass in off colored water ya gotta appeal to their lateral line.

[eyedabassman]

8 minutes ago, RoLo said:

 

Break out the bladed jig or overhead spinner 

 

Roger

Crankbait time also!!!!!!

[Guest]

Hit a bass on the head with a 1/4 jig and rage craw wile on a bed and your sure to tick him off enuf to eat your bait!

[WRB]

I do pay attention to water temps at the depth the big bass are in during the transition period from winter cold water period to pre spawn; 55 to 58 dergrees where I fish.

Lure selection depends on how deep the bass are and what preferred prey source the bass are targeting. It's difficult not to go to my favorite lures but it's important to be versitile.

If the state is planting hatchery rainbow trout I try to determine what size are being planted, then select a swimbaits and glide baits in that size and color range. Crawdads are also very important during this time period, they are a high protein prey source emerging from their winter burrows, the depth and soil type is important. 

Favorite lures are hair jigs with pork rind trailers, swimbaits and glide baits, both hard and soft, trout, crappie and bluegill, big soft plastic worms and deep diving crankbaits.

Tom

[IndianaFinesse]

First off, I would throw a silver buddy (and a small bucktail jig and the Ned rig) into the mix also, the blade for late winter/early spring after ice out in water less than 50 degrees.  Use it over clean bottom areas when the water has at least two feet of visibility.  Lift it up off the bottom just enough to feel it vibrate, then let it deadstick for 1-6 seconds on the bottom.  

Jigs are good prespawn baits, especially when its muddy or the bass are in wood or young weeds.  They're better in the 50 degree plus range, but can be used in colder water also.

 

Suspending jerkbaits are best in clear water with at least two feet of visibility, and I usually use them up until the water hits the low fifty's.  They do work in warmer water also, but I typically prefer to use other baits such as crankbaits instead. Two (or three) slack line twitches followed by a 1-8 second pause, but sometimes they want a small, slow pull instead of a jerk if they're really inactive.

 

Lipless crankbaits are good from 50 degrees on up, but I usually swap a silver buddy out off them in water less than 50 degrees.

 

Crankbaits (don't limit yourself just to squarebills, shad raps are killer in cold water) are good whenever the bass are active and willing to chase.  Usually the best retrieve is as slow as possible, but occasionally they like a faster retrieve.  I use them in water 45-50 degrees and up, but the squarebills don't get used until 50-55 degrees and up.

 

Haven't done much swimbait fishing in the pre spawn period, I typically use them more in the post spawn.

The Ned rig (usually half of a zinkerz on a 1/16 ounce mushroom head) is tied on every time I go out year round, regardless of the water temperature.  It gets a lot of use in the pre spawn and spawn, I start using it as soon as the ice comes off in the spring and don't put it away until ice up the following winter.  Best in less than 10 feet of water that has a slight stain to it.  Retrieve is usually either the swim glide and shake, or the drag and deadstick.

Bucktail jigs (usually 1/8 ounce) are great from ice out till around 45-50 degrees.  Work them slow on the bottom, sometimes hopping it or slowly swimming it.  Anything that makes it look alive could possibly work, as long as its slow.

 

[ww2farmer]

Just about the whole tackle box is in play during the prespawn................you wouldn't believe the number of big bass I have caught in 50 degree water on frogs............I'm not kidding.

[BrianMRetter]

Thanks for all the replies guy. Lots of good information

[BrianMRetter]

Another question came to mind. After you run a crankbait through shallow cover (< 10ft), do you guys pick it over with a jig/craw?

[RoLo]

Frankly, I don't always follow the same coverage pattern, but usually begin

with a surface or subsurface lure to promptly skim any highly active fish.

This is particularly important during a period of stable weather. I'll then work the mid-depth zone

then finally and most importantly the 'bottom'. As to specific lures, that's hard to know in advance.

I should add, that it's very possible and even likely to be dealing with pre-spawn, spawning

and post-spawn bass simultaneously (the biggest cows spawn first).

Roger

 

 

[IndianaFinesse]

40 minutes ago, BrianMRetter said:

Another question came to mind. After you run a crankbait through shallow cover (< 10ft), do you guys pick it over with a jig/craw?

I do occasionally, but I won't give the jig much time unless I know there is still fish there.  Half of the time the bass initially caught will spook the rest of them, but sometimes you can work over the same group of fish with a different presentation and catch the bass that were not vulnerable to the first one.

[Guest]

6 hours ago, Pilot. said:

Hit a bass on the head with a 1/4 jig and rage craw wile on a bed and your sure to tick him off enuf to eat your bait!

Oops I thought the thread  was for spawning baits eeeeee

i need to start reading what Im replying to. 

[IndianaFinesse]

6 hours ago, Pilot. said:

Hit a bass on the head with a 1/4 jig and rage craw wile on a bed and your sure to tick him off enuf to eat your bait!

I will literally hit them on the head with a jig or something as a last-ditch attempt for a spawning bass.  I figure it only gives them two options, run away or attack the offending lure. But I won't do that until I'm about to give up on her anyways, cause half the time they panick and leave.

[Guest]

Yeah me to I was serious it works.

[MikeWright]

My first prespawn smallie on a booyah jig with a rage craw as a trailer, Bama craw, complimented with 2 rattles! Read that the big girls like to feed on craws when they're getting ready to spawn...guess whoever wrote it was on the right track...well it's a big girl to me at least!! 4.26lbs, my new PB!!!

 

 

[eyedabassman]

13 hours ago, BrianMRetter said:

Another question came to mind. After you run a crankbait through shallow cover (< 10ft), do you guys pick it over with a jig/craw?

For me then I would pick a jerkbait then the jig! Cover water and find them then pick them with a jig but that is just me!

[WRB]

Pre spawn bass location is more predictable, the big females are not scattered Until after post spawn through summer. Using fast moving lures to search for pre spawners isn't your highest percentage method, using your sonar and map study to located spawning areas and the deeper close by breaks that pre spawn bass stage on is more productive. Lure selection is then selected to catch bass in the areas that hold them. You will catch some bass on jerk baits, generally bigger bass on jigs, swimbaits and lures that can be effective where the prey source is located.

Spring up, fall down. The bass are moving up during pre spawn from deeper water, your lures should be moving towards the bass or down hill until you locate the depth they prefer to be at.

Tom

[Catt]

I don't have pre-spawn lures

I don't have post spawn lures

I don't have summer lures

I don't have winter lures 

I don't have daytime lures

I don't have nighttime lures

 

I have bass fishing lures!

I don't give them names so they don't get confused!

 

My selection is based on current conditions & where the bass are located!