Did success create your favorite bait?

[Fishin Dad]

I was pondering my favorite or confidence lures (chatterbaits, Senko; jig took a little longer) and got to thinking.  Do I like these because I caught fish on them when I first tried them?  I know it seems obvious, but many of my favorites have come from fishing them while I have had success early on. What I mean by that is, had I picked a different bait to try for the first time and had good success,would that have become my favorite or confidence bait?  

Did you have success the first time you tried some of your confidence baits?

[Hook2Jaw]

A jig is one of my confidence baits, but my confidence was initially derived from the posters here.  I fished from the break of dawn until 1 PM one day before I truly gained full confidence in a jig.  That was the day I caught my personal best bass.

 

Another of my confidence baits is the paddletail swimbait -- this one is quite the opposite.  Similar to a stick worm, I can pull out a pack of YUM Pulse 3.5s and a ⅛ ounce 2/0 jig head and catch fish.  They're the right mix of loud and natural for me and I just know they're going to be eaten, and they are.

[Tlauz]

Many many years ago I remember seeing a wacky rig on TV for the first time.  A few weeks later I was fishing with my young son and I was getting tired of him getting snagged in the weeds. I tied on a hook, rigged it wacky and told him to just drop it a few feet from the boat.  He started catching fish.  Many more than me.  Since then a wacky rig has caught more fish for me then any other bait. If he had not caught anything, it may have been a long time before I tried it again. 

[Fishin Dad]

11 minutes ago, Hook2Jaw said:

A jig is one of my confidence baits, but my confidence was initially derived from the posters here.  I fished from the break of dawn until 1 PM one day before I truly gained full confidence in a jig.  That was the day I caught my personal best bass.

 

Another of my confidence baits is the paddletail swimbait -- this one is quite the opposite.  Similar to a stick worm, I can pull out a pack of YUM Pulse 3.5s and a ⅛ ounce 2/0 jig head and catch fish.  They're the right mix of loud and natural for me and I just know they're going to be eaten, and they are.

I had a similar experience with a jig.  Reading about it, seeing it on tv, and luckily my fishing partner encouraging got the jig going for me.  ALWAYS have 1 and often 2 tied on now. One finesse and and ***/8 or 1/2.  

9 minutes ago, Tlauz said:

Many many years ago I remember seeing a wacky rig on TV for the first time.  A few weeks later I was fishing with my young son and I was getting tired of him getting snagged in the weeds. I tied on a hook, rigged it wacky and told him to just drop it a few feet from the boat.  He started catching fish.  Many more than me.  Since then a wacky rig has caught more fish for me then any other bait. If he had not caught anything, it may have been a long time before I tried it again. 

That’s a great story.  I have ridiculous confidence in it as well.  

[OCdockskipper]

My #1 confidence bait is a ZMan TRD on a 1/15 oz head and I had crazy success with it the first time I used it.

 

About 5 years ago, I decided to try this Ned rig thingee and for some reason I can't explain, decided to follow some tips posted here by Team9nine & Bluebasser86.  So rather than doing what I thought would work, I did what they suggested.  First outing I caught over 40 bass with it.  Second outing I caught a 7lb, 8 oz fat female in addition to another boatload of fish.

 

It made quite an impression and in many ways, changed how I now fish.

[Fishin Dad]

46 minutes ago, OCdockskipper said:

My #1 confidence bait is a ZMan TRD on a 1/15 oz head and I had crazy success with it the first time I used it.

 

About 5 years ago, I decided to try this Ned rig thingee and for some reason I can't explain, decided to follow some tips posted here by Team9nine & Bluebasser86.  So rather than doing what I thought would work, I did what they suggested.  First outing I caught over 40 bass with it.  Second outing I caught a 7lb, 8 oz fat female in addition to another boatload of fish.

 

It made quite an impression and in many ways, changed how I now fish.

I had some crazy success on one of the first times using a Ned with a buddy.  We both caught a ton of fish.  I tried it again shortly after, didn’t catch much, and kind of gave up on it.  It is a goal to put it to work this year.  I read too much about its success to not try it again. I just have a hard time putting down my Senko. What made it work well for you?   What advice did Team9nine and Bluebasser86 give?   Thanks.  

[DitchPanda]

Spinnerbait has always been a confidence bait for me..had luck on them from day one and they still produce.

Like many of you jig is also a confidence bait but it also took me a while to get it. I remember throwing and losing jigs several times without really having luck on them and almost giving up on them totally. One cold November day I took just a jig rod and a couple jigs to a pond because that's what you throw that time of year from what I had read on here. I only caught 1 bass that day but it was a giant. I'm talking between 7 and 8 lbs. One of my biggest bass ever...and since that day I have understood the power of the jig.

So I guess some confidence comes easy and some is truly earned.

 

[txchaser]

I end up picking up confidence baits a few ways:

1) When I fish them when, where, and how they are 'supposed to work' and they do. (jig)

2) When I can't get a bite and then I put X on and they light up.  (ned rig, senko, fat ika)

3) I can cover a lot of water, be mostly weedless, and catch size and numbers (underspin with a keitech fat, chatterbait)

 

[OCdockskipper]

1 hour ago, Fishin Dad said:

 What made it work well for you?   What advice did Team9nine and Bluebasser86 give?   Thanks.  

Search 'Ned Rig Resource" and there are a few threads about it.

 

The overall basic theme is keep it finesse (lure, rod & reel) and don't try to fish it like a conventional jig or plastic worm.  Too often people try to make it into something it isn't, then when they don't get the results that others do, they say they tried the Ned Rig & it didn't work.

[Jaderose]

Absolutely not.  My favorite bait is a top water frog.  It took untold hours and missed fish to get proficient at it.  I'm not generally that patient but something about it made me want to get really good at it.  Even now after approximately a decade of hard frogging I would say I am "above average to good" at the technique,  But when the stars align and the big girls are hiding under those mats, there is nothing better.

[Fishin Dad]

I do have baits that I had to work at to start to enjoy fishing them (absolutely love to fish top water), and when they work, it’s awesome.    I just know that with certain baits I tried and didn’t have success, try again and nothing, then went on to something else.   I just wonder if I had initial success with those, would they have “proven themselves” and been in the rotation of confidence.   I also agree with the correct time and place and sometimes the stars just aligned at the time I happened to be fishing that certain bait.   

[Cgolf]

For some it is too long ago to remember, but guessing I had success pretty quickly with some lures. Others like Jerkbaits took a long time to learn, but now they are a goto bait.

 

I rarely give up on a bait. I won't overfish it the day I am drawing a blank, but will toss it out there on other trips to see if I finally get bites. Only bait I have given up on is a senko, mostly because if the fish in the area are that slow I will find other fish.

[JediAmoeba]

I will let everyone know when I start having success.

[scaleface]

Yep, I tend too use  lures that have  caught fish more than those that have not .

[Smelter96]

When i first started seriously fishing, I went with a guy who does a lot of tournaments locally here, and he swore by the jig. I never fished one beforehand. When I went with him the first time, he taught me the basics. That same day I caught my first over 4lb bass on that jig he gave me. Ever since that day, i always have a jig rod on deck, if it's not already in my hand. That "thunk" of a jig bite is magical!

[fin]

Early success puts a bait in rotation. Consistent success makes a bait a favorite.

 

Memory is a funny thing. When you catch fish on a new bait, it makes a big distorted impression in your memory because it’s such a great feeling to catch a fish on that new lure you just spent your money on. You might remember that you caught more fish, or that you caught fish more often with it than you really did.

[WVU-SCPA]

I got on a ripper of a spring jerkbait bite when I first started transitioning from fly fishing to bass fishing.  It took me a while to understand why every outing wasn't like that. 

 

This guy pinned one last night,  not a single hook embedded. 

 

[Bankbeater]

It took me months to figure out a jig. I wouldn’t get bites and when I did I would miss the bass. Then one day everything fell into place and now I always have one tied on. The chatter bait was just the opposite. I saw it in the tackle bag tied it on and started catching bass. I probably fish a chatter bait more than a spinner bait now. 

[Fishin Dad]

The chatter bait was magic for me.  The first day out I caught 34 bass and I thought I had the tiger by the tail.  I brought my very young daughters out, tied a chatter on two spinning rods, and they were hammering them. It is still a confidence and favorite bait.  I throw a chatter A LOT and will follow up often with a jig and/or Senko.  Every once in a while the chatter can get me in trouble with have too much confidence it.  Hard time not beating it to death just knowing it will work and wasting too much time with too few fish to show for it.  The other problem is it catches big fish for me.  Probably 7 out of my 10 biggest fish came on a chatter.  That helps the cause.

 I always wonder though, had I NOT had that great first day, would it have sat in the bottom of the bag and been benched!?!?!

[DanielG]

34 minutes ago, Fishin Dad said:

The chatter bait was magic for me.  The first day out I caught 34 bass and I thought I had the tiger by the tail.  I brought my very young daughters out, tied a chatter on two spinning rods, and they were hammering them. It is still a confidence and favorite bait.  I throw a chatter A LOT and will follow up often with a jig and/or Senko.  Every once in a while the chatter can get me in trouble with have too much confidence it.  Hard time not beating it to death just knowing it will work and wasting too much time with too few fish to show for it.  The other problem is it catches big fish for me.  Probably 7 out of my 10 biggest fish came on a chatter.  That helps the cause.

 I always wonder though, had I NOT had that great first day, would it have sat in the bottom of the bag and been benched!?!?!

And.... in another thread called "The favorite bait you never catch anything on". And for me it's a chatterbait. Love the idea and feel of it. I fish it once and awhile for that reason knowing it will not catch a fish.

[jimmyjoe]

23 hours ago, Fishin Dad said:

Did you have success the first time you tried some of your confidence baits?

 

   No, I didn't. I was blessed with being able to watch 2 excellent local fishermen from 40 years ago. They were kind enough to answer my questions. Because I saw their results with my own eyes, I kept trying what they told me until I "got it". It took awhile for certain things, not long for others. All in all, I was very lucky to have known them.    jj

[Fishin Dad]

10 minutes ago, DanielG said:

And.... in another thread called "The favorite bait you never catch anything on". And for me it's a chatterbait. Love the idea and feel of it. I fish it once and awhile for that reason knowing it will not catch a fish.

It’s so interesting when I read that my confidence baits don’t work at all for some people.  I am sure it is the same for them, when I can’t catch on theirs.   I actually do remember reading your post on that thread, and I think at least a couple more that mentioned the chatter bait.  The Senko was also mentioned.  My two absolute confidence baits.  I really wish I could bring people up to my waters here and let them have fun with those baits.  Conversely, I would love to head to others lakes with their confidence baits to build MY confidence in those.   

[Bird]

My confidence baits change with the seasons. 

Definitely Jerkbaits early. 

 

Spinnerbaits year around. 

 

Plastic worms, Neko , drop shot and Neds are also winners. 

 

Frogs in the thick.

[DanielG]

1 hour ago, Fishin Dad said:

It’s so interesting when I read that my confidence baits don’t work at all for some people.  I am sure it is the same for them, when I can’t catch on theirs.   I actually do remember reading your post on that thread, and I think at least a couple more that mentioned the chatter bait.  The Senko was also mentioned.  My two absolute confidence baits.  I really wish I could bring people up to my waters here and let them have fun with those baits.  Conversely, I would love to head to others lakes with their confidence baits to build MY confidence in those.   

Sometimes I think it might be the lake I'm on maybe. Don't know why it would be so though. I live on a 4.5 mile lake that is about 1/2 mile wide. It's a flooded river that was made for the textile mills now long defunct. It's part of a string of 22 lakes and ponds made by the series of dams. The lake is fairly deep in most places with little cover. The bottom fluctuates with ridges and such but on my garmin, no structure. Just smooth bottom. A few coves have some weeds. Otherwise not much. So, a lot of the fishing is open water, often 20-60 ft deep. Crankbaits, swimbaits and such fished 3-15 ft in depth. The fish are deep and also traveling in packs near the surface too. I do a lot of trolling as a result. I would think that chatterbaits might be good in this environment but not so much.

[Fishin Dad]

10 hours ago, DanielG said:

Sometimes I think it might be the lake I'm on maybe. Don't know why it would be so though. I live on a 4.5 mile lake that is about 1/2 mile wide. It's a flooded river that was made for the textile mills now long defunct. It's part of a string of 22 lakes and ponds made by the series of dams. The lake is fairly deep in most places with little cover. The bottom fluctuates with ridges and such but on my garmin, no structure. Just smooth bottom. A few coves have some weeds. Otherwise not much. So, a lot of the fishing is open water, often 20-60 ft deep. Crankbaits, swimbaits and such fished 3-15 ft in depth. The fish are deep and also traveling in packs near the surface too. I do a lot of trolling as a result. I would think that chatterbaits might be good in this environment but not so much.

I am just assuming living up in that beautiful area, the water has good visibility.   We fish chatters in stained water and weeds often.  We do fish a few tournaments in northern Minnesota every year with clear water and they do catch them well up there also, but they are fertile lakes with plenty of weed growth.  Your area sounds amazing!