Help a fella out...

[Eric J]

As I said in my intro I have been away from fishing for a good 13 years. I've gotten back into Lure Life recently and am stoked. In my previous life I was major into Trout, Crappie, Smallmouth and other lake fish but Bass, Bucketmouths were more incidental. I'm fairly confident with spinnerbaits, pulled a 5lb'er last week and am delving into soft plastics Texas rigged.

 

I fish mostly from shore right now. Should I be concentrating on any particular bait/lure types for now? Any I should stay away from? Is there any logical progression here or can I jump into lipless cranks etc...?

 

Any advice is appreciated...

[Darren.]

22 minutes ago, Eric J said:

As I said in my intro I have been away from fishing for a good 13 years. I've gotten back into Lure Life recently and am stoked. In my previous life I was major into Trout, Crappie, Smallmouth and other lake fish but Bass, Bucketmouths were more incidental. I'm fairly confident with spinnerbaits, pulled a 5lb'er last week and am delving into soft plastics Texas rigged.

 

I fish mostly from shore right now. Should I be concentrating on any particular bait/lure types for now? Any I should stay away from? Is there any logical progression here or can I jump into lipless cranks etc...?

 

Any advice is appreciated...

The only thing that's changed since you last were in the

sport is the aggressiveness of the Bait Monkey  

 

Fish what you remember and how, I doubt the bass have

memories that far back.

 

From shore I threw just about everything I had. Probably

most success came on soft plastics for me. If you can, focus

on docks, laydowns, and various structure that you can see.

Try jigs, Texas rigs, cranks, etc.

Good luck!

[BankBasser]

^^^^^^^^ That...

 

and...

 

I was out this afternoon getting skunked with t-rigs. I grabbed my ml spinning and threw a ned rig. The next 45 minutes was one bass after another until I had to leave. You might give that a shot.

[soflabasser]

The techniques you used 10-15 years ago are just as effective as they are today.Take your time to learn how to read the water and learn how to choose a particular technique based on the conditions you are fishing in. Don't rush yourself for nobody and make having fun your #1 priority when fishing. 

[lonnie g]

I would focus on soft plastics. Try different colors and techniques, from sinker to none and slow to fast. Cover of any kind helps the clearer the water the more distance usually helps. Best of luck, glad you are back

[Eric J]

Thanks much. I've been watching lots and taking notes!

[rtwvumtneer6]

@Eric J. This is my 2nd year of focusing just about all of my attention on bass.  You can try whatever technique you think works best for your region and the waters you are fishing, but don't get overwhelmed.  There are some great techniques new and old, and endless lure options the market, but you don't want to try and learn them all in a day. 

 

Whatever you choose (and this is only a suggestion) black/blue, green pumpkin, white/chartreuse, and orange/red are my 4 basic color choices anywhere I go.

 

One last thing that I try and force myself to do when I get a new lure or try a new technique is only take one rod and fish it exclusively. Otherwise, I'll throw it for an hour with no luck and go right back to my old habits.  

 

Best of luck!!

[Happybeerbuzz]

Buy a Whopper Plopper for around sun rise and sun down.  They are just fun.

[Eric J]

13 hours ago, Happybeerbuzz said:

Buy a Whopper Plopper for around sun rise and sun down.  They are just fun.

Just youtubed it. Wow... Saw Kayak Bass Fisher land an 11 pounder. That is a serious piece of hardware!

[Rahlow]

Whatever you use, slow down and when ya think ya are fishin' slow, slow down.

[Eric J]

Thanks all for all the advice and input. Truly appreciated!

 

Eric J

[Boomstick]

I'll make this simple -- I also fish mostly from shore and if I had to have only three kinds of baits, I would pick spinnerbaits, squarebills and senkos. Lipless cranks and topwater are also good during the right time of day and year and chatterbaits are also a good choice if you needmore, but you can do pretty well with just those three.

 

My reasoning is when I get them by shorelines, it's usually feeding times when they will chase moving baits. And for the times they need a little more enticing, that's when the senko comes into play.

[iiTzChunky]

If you're a fan of spinners I'd suggest a chatter bait as well. I personally like the black and blue ones. Seem to do mu h better any time of day or year on those than any other lure

[Shimano_1]

Jigs, jigs, and more jigs lol. With an occasional senko in the mix.  I fish it all but these are the 2 baits that are always tied on in virtually any fishing situation or location I find myself in! Good luck with your endeavors back into the sport!