New Member with Beginner Questions!

[Rich0775]

Hey everybody,

 

I'm from the Cook County, Illinois area. I've enjoyed fishing for a long time (I'm in my early 20s) and for the majority of that time I was ignorant to the science and tactics innate to fishing. It wasn't until I saw friends of mine posting pictures of giant bass or Northerns and listening them go back and forth about which lure was best, etc. that I finally buckled and decided to take fishing more seriously.

 

So, my first question is what is the best gear to buy to get started in fishing. I'm not looking to spend $1000s of dollars but are there any lures, rods, reels, etc. that I should look in to? Any books or videos you'd recommend to understand the art of fishing better? Things of that nature!

 

Thanks for your time,

 

-Richard

[Scott F]

You could spend that $1,000 on a thousand different ways to catch bass. It would be easy to buy a lot of stuff that you might never use. Getting started, I'd only buy gear that will work best for the style of fishing you intend to do. If I were you, instead of asking guys who fish all over the country for what to use, I'd ask the friends who are doing so well what they are using for the waters you are likely to fish. They will also be a shortcut on how and where to use the gear you buy. If your friends aren't available to help, there are several fishing clubs in the Chicago metro area with plenty of guys who would be willing to take you fishing with them.

[Troy85]

Welcome.  

 

As far as good books, I'd recommend In-Fishermen Critical Concepts 1: Largemouth Bass Fundamentals.  It covers a lot of topics from fish behavior, vegetation, impoundment types.  It has some really good information.

[soflabasser]

Welcome to the forum

[Darren.]

Welcome aboard!

[Sam]

Join a local bass club if they are taking nonboaters. If you can't find one, then do the following:

 

1. Find a local guide and go out with him for a day and ask him questions about baits and techniques, etc. Well worth the money if you can find a good one.

 

2. Join BASS and get their monthly Bassmaster Magazine and make sure you subscribe to Bass News, too.

 

3.  Subscribe to some good bass magazines, like Bass Angler Magazine or the FLW magazine. Go to your local Barnes and Noble and look to see what bass magazines they have and select two or three to subscribe.

 

4.  Don't get caught up with brand names in the magazine articles. The pros are hawking their sponsors products so you do not need a G. Loomis 7 foot medium heavy fast tip rod. You need a lower priced 7 foot medium heavy fat tip rod. Just as long as it is the same style and power as what the pros use but not at their expensive prices.

 

5.  Go to your Bass Pro Shop or a local tackle shop and speak with the guys who are bass fishermen. They can be helpful. And consider the BPS line of products that are very good and not expensive.

 

6.  Try to find any DVDs or books by Kevin VanDam or Ike or other pros. Read what they suggest.

 

7.  Check the Outdoor Channel on TV and watch the bass fishing shows.

 

8.  Read, read, read and read some more. "Like" the Forum on Facebook and get their posts. They are excellent and Glenn shares some great information to help us all be better fishermen and fisherwomen. Check out specific topics on YouTube.

9.  Go to the pros' web pages and read their tips, if any, with the understanding that you do not need to purchase their sponsor's products. If you check out Woo Daves' web page it is has some great tips that are still valid today but the companies he promotes are no longer around.

 

10.  Go to any fishing expo in the greater Chicago area and meet the movers and shakers in the local Illinois fishing industry. They will love to speak with you; give you tips; and help you in any way they can.

 

What is great about bass fishing is that you never stop learning. And don't invest too much in your rods and reels as you grow in the sport you will change to other brands and techniques that you have confidence.

 

Good luck and all the best on your journey through the waters of bass fishing where that little green monster can humble the biggest, strongest and meanest guy you know.

[EGbassing]

I'll try to answer those questions. First of all, for a good rod I would go with the Dobyns Fury: http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Dobyns_Fury_Casting_Rods/descpage-DFC.html It's one of the best rods you can get for the money. If you order it within the next couple days you can get 15% off. As for lures, stick with spinnerbaits and texas rigs for a while. Trust me, don't buy ever kind of lure there is and try to learn how to fish all of them at once like I did when I started. If it's cloudy, fish a spinnerbait in open water. If it's sunny, fish a texas rig in cover. They will be in cover when it's hot and sunny. Watch as many videos and read as many articles about bass fishing as you can. (BassResource on Youtube makes some great tutorial videos) Another tip: use braid. It's very sensitive, you don't have to worry about breaking off if you tie a good knot, and it lasts longer on the reel. Hope that helps.

[Log Catcher]

Hello and welcome to the forum. There are some very good videos and articles here on Bass Resource to help you with a lot of different baits and how to fish them.

[Mike L]

Hello and Welcome! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike 

[whitwolf]

Welcome!

[JWall14]

I’m from cook co too!!

[A-Jay]

Hello Richard and Welcome to Bass Resource ~ 

Enjoy your learning process - It's at least half the fun.

And it never stops.

A-Jay

[SDoolittle]

Welcome to BR!

[MrFrost]

Welcome!  I'm a former Crook County resident, no typo, but now reside a few miles West in Kane County, in Elgin.  Only been fishing for almost two months, but have found this website to be a great resource, as well as the BassResource YouTube channel, Miliken Fishing, and Jon B. and APBassing, who are both local to us.

 

Where do you currently fish?

[The Bassman]

Welcome!  Any mention of Cook county reminds me of the movie "The Blues Brothers" and Jake and Elwood's "mission from God" to reach the Cook county assessor's office with the five grand. As was mentioned a good starting point would be the articles and forums on this site. I've been fishing my whole life but have learned many new things and met many good people here over the past couple of years.

[Rich0775]

Thanks for the warm welcomes everybody!

 

I currently don't fish much, actually. My entire life I've heard "You need a boat to REALLY fish" so I didn't pay it much attention or devote much time to it but I think that mentality is foolish. Anyway, I'm working full-time now I can add to my tacklebox slowly.

 

Apparently there's lots of places around me to do some fishing which is why I've refreshed my interest but the fishing market is SOOO huge and there's so much stuff between lures, jigs, plastic worms, etc. that you can get into some analysis paralysis.

 

Really what stops me is knowing when, how, and why to use one strategy over another. When do you use topwaters over plastic worms, etc. Currently I've got an Ugly Stik rod and Pflueger reel. Since the majority of fishing I've done has been in Wisconsin with my mom on vacations she's got most of my stuff but I know I've got some;

 

-Spinnerbaits

-Watermelon and Black Worms

-Poppers

-Jitterbugs

-Buzzbaits

and some topwater frogs

[Black Hawk Basser]

YouTube is an invaluable tool for learning the when, where, and how of gear and lures.

 

If you want to learn more about the "why", I believe there's no better publication than In Fisherman.  They cover a wide range of species, and always have a bass article or two every issue.  They really dig deep into the science of how fish behave and then apply it for improved angling success.

[Bluebasser86]

Welcome!

[MichaelCopeland]

Howdy Richard and welcome to our fishing family! I learned alot from reading the fishing articles on this site as well as videos on YouTube. If I still had questions about things, I asked the awesome folks in this forum. You can get a good Lew's baitcasting or spinning combo for less than $100. ?

[RSmall]

Welcome aboard.  If you subscribe to Bassresouce on Youtube, there are tons of great videos there.

[Glenn]

Welcome home! We're glad you're here.

[Rich0775]

Quick update!

 

Have yet to buy a new rod and reel but I plan to buy a Lew's combo. For now, have just been slowly accumulating lures slowly as the weeks have gone by.

 

I've been trying out a lot of stuff and playing around but I'm finding topwater baits at sunrise to be amazing for producing bites. Went out tonight around 7pm and threw a topwater frog through some brush/weeds/lily pads and hooked my first few fish since picking up fishing again.

 

Have gone to a couple spots over these last few weeks but the frog (which is the newest lure I've bought) turned out a lot of fish! Also threw a Hula Popper and hooked a pretty nice pickerel ?

 

-Richard

[MrFrost]

Careful...top water is addictive!  At least it was for me, and now it's my favorite method.  More specifically, frogging.  Glad to hear you've found some good patterns!  

[Steveo-1969]

Welcome to Bass Resource.  BEAR DOWN!!!!!!