What was your first confidence bait?

[chattooga_ basser]

For me it's just a regular curly tail worm. As a kid growing up in Central FL tequila sunrise was the hot color, now that I live in Upstate SC it's green pumpkin. 

[Joshua Beaver]

Don't quite have a confidence lure or bait as I think that is just to close to "having luck". I'm not one to think luck has a part in my fishing methods since you can be lucky as all heck and still not get a bite if the fish aren't feeding. I've spent days using just about every thing in my box and not getting a strike, then days where I only tied on one lure and got strikes constantly. So far this year it's been fairly uneventful as I've only landed one bass but got several strikes, hook ups, and jump offs. The landed bass was 14" on a 6" red curly tail worm Texas rigged with a 2/0 (I think) red ewg hook. But going to keep trying different things in different waters. Getting new things as I go.

[Angealy]

If there's one bait i'm confident with, It would have to be the Berkley PowerBait 3 in. Floating Trout Worms.

In all my years of fishing I was firm on fishing with nothing but an earth worm.

A few months ago when I got back into fishing my nephew recommend power bait so I started to use both worms and power bait after using power bait for a while I only caught one fish on it a nice 13 inch rainbow trout.

One day I was using power bait at my local river fishing from the bank with a man fishing inside the river almost right beside me.

I caught nothing while the other guy was catching them left and right in the same spot I was.

He was very nice and give me some pointers and even gave me some of his pink worms and rigged it for me and sure enough I got a rainbow trout.

On top of that he said Mike's pink salmon eggs and power bait worms is all he uses.

From that point on i try to use just about every thing now.

I catch everything with these not just trout, I love em.

 

[bowhunter63]

1/4 ounce colorado blade chartreuse Strike King spinner bait.Caught alot of Bass on that one.

[tholmes]

First confidence bait was the lure I caught my first good bass with. 

 

Lazy Ike. 

 

Next was the old Snagless Sally. I caught a LOT of bass on these. I was convinced that I could catch a bass anywhere, anytime with these.

 

 

These days, it's a 7.5" ribbon-tail worm in tequila sunrise or red shad and a black/blue jig with a chunk trailer.

 

Tom

[Deleted account]

First confidence bait was a #9 blue back floating Rapala minnow. Found it in a tree as a kid, and it was my one and only lure for 2 years or so. Caught many LMB, smallies, pickerel, yellow perch and sunnies in the Catskills with it. My current confidence lure is everything in my box. I don't throw things I don't have confidence in.

[Darren.]

First confidence bait for me was the jitterbug...

 

Unless live nightcrawlers count!  

[hoosierbass07]

 

 First confidence bait is still my go to baits for bass - one bag of Yum-Dingers, one bag of PowerWorms (7.5 inch), and one bag of five inch lizards.  Sad thing is, no matter how many times I throw a spinnerbait/jig/crankbait, my three confidence baits outproduces those three lures by a giant factor, probably 99.9%/0.0001%.  

[XpressJeff]

Definitely makes me feel old!

 

Lazy Ike in green/yellow and a Mepps spinner on a fiberglass noodle with a Mitchell 300.

 

Good times!

[Jar11591]

My first confidence bait was a wacky rigged 5" Yamamoto Senko-Watermelon/black fleck. As a kid, this is basically all I would throw. I still keep a rod with a 5" senko tied on in the boat, but it has become my sight-fishing or dock skipping bait. If I see a bass cruising near the boat, I will always flip a senko at it. If I drift by a dock, you can bet I'm skipping a senko under it.

[N Florida Mike]

Mann's jelly worm  70s-80s

Culprit worms and producto tournament worms 80s-90s

Flukes 2000s-2012-13

Senkos -2013- present

 

Going back to culprits and tournament worms to rotate baits in the home lake.

 

[Columbia Craw]

My first confidence lure was a Mann's Jelly Worm in blackberry.  Then I added a white 1/4 ounce Fleck Weed Wader spinnerbait.  Simpler times.

 

Now it's a Roman Made Mother Triple swimbait. I'm extremely confident i'll never buy one.

[woody osborne]

perch pattern flatfish x-4 size I think. starting out as a young'un it was usually a spinner-rooster tail or shyster.

[the reel ess]

On 6/24/2017 at 9:08 PM, RoLo said:

 

Back in the 60s, the 'in-line spinner' was probably the most commonly seen lure in New Jersey.

One of the first spinner/fly combinations (if not the first) was the now extinct "cockatoush",

but there was a horde of in-line spinners to follow. To name a few:

> Hawaiian Wiggler

> ABU Reflex

> Mepps Anglia

> CP Swing

> Shyster

> Panther Martin

> Blue Fox Vibrax

> Road Runner

> Rooster Tail
> ~ ~ ~ ~

 

Roger

 

They still sell the Shyster around here in mom and pop stores. The blade is not concaved, but wavy like corrugated tin. If it didn't start spinning your cast was wasted. But it was deadly on schooling white and largemouth bass with the occasional crappie and bream.

[the reel ess]

15 hours ago, hoosierbass07 said:

 

 First confidence bait is still my go to baits for bass - one bag of Yum-Dingers, one bag of PowerWorms (7.5 inch), and one bag of five inch lizards.  Sad thing is, no matter how many times I throw a spinnerbait/jig/crankbait, my three confidence baits outproduces those three lures by a giant factor, probably 99.9%/0.0001%.  

This is true. Confidence comes through success. There are a lot of baits I thought were gimmicky or designed to catch fishermen until I used them successfully. We don't crave failure, so if a bait doesn't work three times...to the bottom of the box it goes, making room for the productive stuff. I know a tourney guy who has zero confidence in spinnerbaits.

[Yakalong]

A lazy Ike in orange with black on it. I remember when a bass broke my line and I lost that lure. Had to safe my money to get another one. 

[mllrtm79]

a purple ribbon tail worm. I don't remember the brand from 30 years ago, but I used to tell my mom "come to the pond, and watch me catch fish". Never a doubt back then lol 

[J Francho]

Crankbaits.  And whatever one in my tackle box would hit bottom where I was fishing.  I learned early on, that was when the most bites happened.  I was just a kid, and on limited funds, so one $3 to $5 crank could catch 100's of fish, but you might need three or four bags of plastics for just one day.

[Crestliner2008]

On 6/24/2017 at 9:46 AM, Catt said:

 

Try throwing them on this

 

Is that a Heddon "Pal" casting rod? I've got one that looks just like it. Tubular steel.

I guess my first "high confidence" lure was a Helin Flatfish. I use to just love feeing it throb as I retrieved it. And I just knew it was going to get slammed! Sometimes it did too!

[NYWayfarer]

Rooster Tail for Trout.

 

Senko for Bass.

[Mumbly]

Heddon Tiny Torpedo for me. Might explain why topwater is my favorite way to fish.

[fullcoupe]

First bait I caught a bass with was a gold/black Rapala floating minnow, used my trusty Ugly Stick. I remember after I caught it, I didn't try anything else for a LONG time...

 

[Brian Miller]

A 6 to 9 inch curly tailed worm in Red Shad.  Was a big fan of Culprit 7.5" worms, now I've been using Zoom U-tails or Mag IIs.  It's just a go-to bait for me, always catches fish.

[charliepff]

I have to say, I have two confidence baits. I did not start fishing for bass and small mouth until 11 years ago when my wife and I moved to Virginia. Up until then I fished for trout and that was about it. I started using inline spinners in various colors. This seemed to work for the most part. I had a guy on a boat one night yank out a 3lb fish out of where I just fished. He told me to try grubs. I bought a huge selection and for a long time that is all I used unless the river got high. Now for the last few years I would have to say it is a 3" or 4" gulp minnow texas rigged. This seems to be a killer. 

 

I feel I got to reliant on these staples so I ordered the mystery tackle boxes and I have been trying new baits. I have had pretty decent success with the new stuff. I just need to get the wife to start catching and just not using different baits. 

[ETX92]

My first confidence bait was a 6" black firetail worm. Now I'd say it's either a senko or a trick worm. Green Pumpkin Magic.