My Most Productive Baits ~ 2020 Edition

[TnRiver46]

I have some of those football swingheads    and homemade skirted jigs that @Bluebasser86makes, haven’t tried the jigs yet but the swing heads catch fish very well! His bladed jigs have been a staple of mine for two years now I think, they are the only ones I throw 

[GoneFishingLTN]

A-Jay, Do you change the hooks on your higher end baits also like your Duo lipless, Reaction Innovations Vixen and Megabass baits?

[roadwarrior]

Yeah, but he's half crazy. Some of the hooks he removes are my favorites!

 

[A-Jay]

1 hour ago, GoneFishingLTN said:

A-Jay, Do you change the hooks on your higher end baits also like your Duo lipless, Reaction Innovations Vixen and Megabass baits?

Yes.

A-Jay 

1 hour ago, roadwarrior said:

Yeah, but he's half crazy. Some of the hooks he removes are my favorites!

 

I have another supply of those God Awful out barb trebles if you want them.

Let me know

A-Jay ( aka Crazy)

?

[king fisher]

#1 spinnerbaits.- Many different colors and blade combos.  2 over 10 pounds and many over 7.

 

#2 Cavitron Buzz bait.  Chart. or black.  2 over 8 pounds a few over 5

 

#3 Rebel Jumping minnow.  One over 10 and many inshore and offshore saltwater fish.

 

#4 Owner under spin with Skinny Dipper.  Nothing over 6 pounds but lots of smaller bass.

 

#5  Many crankbaits.  DD 10, Bomber, Norman, H20, Bagley and Rattle Traps.  Best for numbers,  Biggest crankbait fish was 7.2 pounds.  Lost dozens of old crankbaits.  I started replacing them with mostly 6th sense and am happy with the results.  Splurged and bought a Spro  Rock Crawler.  Caught a 5 pound bass on first cast, lost to a net on the second cast.  Will buy more if I can find a good price.  Have tried a large Spro Rat early in the morning every trip.  Most expensive lure in my box.  Landed many bass, none have even been as big as the lure.  Big disappointment so far.

 

 

#6  #3  Blue Fox Vibrax inline spinner.  Saved the day more than once.  Biggest 7 pounds.

 

#7  7 inch Senko.  No big fish but great on slow days.

 

#8  A few fish on jigs, and creature baits, but haven't had a chance to fish the lake where I flip and punch one time.  I tried jigs on structure every trip, but only a few small bass.

 

#9 Live Tilapia.  I have been spending most of my time lately  experimenting with live Tilapia.  So far no luck, but hopefully am going to get to the top of the learning curve soon.  I have mastered catching the bait, next step is discovering correct presentation.

[Crankin4Bass]

@A-Jay Thanks!!!

 

Happy New Year!

[SproDD79]

On 12/23/2020 at 7:54 PM, Columbia Craw said:

 The 6th Sense Curve 55 was a producer in crayfish patterns.  

I had a lot of success with the the Curve 55 this year , at first I thought it was on the small side for bass, but smallmouth and largemouth reacted positively to it. I also had quite a bit of success with title shot jigs.

[Steve S]

Can’t believe no one put a Ned rig. By far my favorite type of bait to fish. Probably Slim swimz and Ticklerz are my 2 faves. I broke my PB this year on a 1/32 mule jig (mushroom jig head) and a 2in zman grubz all on a light action rod brought in a 6.2lb bass:)

[Bigassbass]

So many lures mentioned seems it doesn't really matter what you throw, you choose what you like.

[roadwarrior]

46 minutes ago, Bigassbass said:

So many lures mentioned seems it doesn't really matter what you throw, you choose what you like.

Ain't that the truth!

 

[Primus]

I live in SW Michigan but I tend to target largemouth more as I  fish a lot of weedy lakes near my house and they tend to be more receptive to the bigger baits I like to throw along with their toothy friends. 

 

By far my best bait for 4 - 6lbers  last year were Glidebaits. My two favorites were the Storm Arashi and the Gancraft 230 though there were a few others like the ES Flat & Sneaky Pete that also contributed some good ones. 

 

Also caught some nice ones on soft swimbaits, the Little Creeper trash fish & bluegill were my favorites for 2020. 

 

Spinnerbaits were killer at times , I did well using the Strike King models with the Bluegill colors being the most productive.

 

Another stand out bait for me in 2020 were 1/2 oz Mop Jig using a R.I. Doublewide Beaver as a trailer. 

 

One final one to add when fishing heavy grass last summer was a VMC Tokyo rig using a diamond shape Red One Systems punching weight, this combo went through heavy grass like a knife through butter. 

 

https://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Red_One_Systems_Miller_Tungsten_Punchin_Weights_1pk/descpage-MTPW.html

[Rpratt]

It definaltey was a slow year. No spring fishing except for the few times I was able to travel a few hours away to fish. The lakes in my area once they opened were HEAVILY pressured. 

 

The baits that produced were mainly frogs and the ever trusty DT-6. 

 

Hopefully this year will be much better, but my first time out this year was shall we say.... Not so good.... Chocolate Milk water and no wind. I did catch a 3 inch bluegill on a little John. Have no idea how he got that hook in his mouth....

[Walleyehawger]

@A-Jay

 

Great post, and thanks for sharing. Don't forget about old faithful.....the tube. it continues to put many of my biggest fish of the year in the boat for me. That doesn't mean I don't have all the other goodies....I am a degenerate tackle hoarder lol

[A-Jay]

3 minutes ago, Walleyehawger said:

@A-Jay

 

Great post, and thanks for sharing. Don't forget about old faithful.....the tube. it continues to put many of my biggest fish of the year in the boat for me. That doesn't mean I don't have all the other goodies....I am a degenerate tackle hoarder lol

Thanks - 

Point well taken . . .

A-Jay

[Spankey]

On 3/16/2021 at 12:41 PM, Bigassbass said:

So many lures mentioned seems it doesn't really matter what you throw, you choose what you like.

Your 100% correct. You have to feel good about the lure before you ever throw it. You have to sort of free your mind about any doubts. Stick with it. Don’t rush to put it down after a few casts if you don’t get a look or hit. You can tie on your brand new Shad Rap in Tenn. Shad and catch a fish on your first or second cast. Than throw it for another half hour and not get a look or a hit. Sure set it down but continue to believe in it. Pick it up again an hour later. Start fishing it from the beginning on your next time out.  There is a lot of talk on this site about crankbaits and particular crankbaits. This is a great site. A lot of good info shared about particular baits. A lot of info to be absorbed. But I find when fishing a crankbait I have to go with my true gut feeling when it comes to color patterns. The Rapala DT Series is one heck of a bait. Between the Standard patterns and the Ike patterns there must be 35 color patterns. I feel strongly about the bait but only a handful of the patterns. But there is a color for everybody’s confidence level. 

[FrogFreak]

Nice write up A-Jay!

I fish northern MN, I had a great summer!

 

1. Stanley Top Toad in black usually, it probably works cuz I can't put it down.

2. A Boss Gary Klein jig hand painted and custom skirts from fishingskirts.com cuz what else is there to do in the winter up here? And a homemade craw trailer (from a purchased mold). Usually GP or black and blue.

3. Double buzz bait in black or GP.

 

These last two were new to me this year:

 

4. Ned Rig with the TRD in GP or Black and Blue

5. A small Storm 360 1/8 oz I believe was killer this year as well, GP or white.

 

I tend to keep my colors pretty simple, GP or black and blue.

[A-Jay]

18 minutes ago, FrogFreak said:

Nice write up A-Jay!

I fish northern MN, I had a great summer!

 

1. Stanley Top Toad in black usually, it probably works cuz I can't put it down.

2. A Boss Gary Klein jig hand painted and custom skirts from fishingskirts.com cuz what else is there to do in the winter up here? And a homemade craw trailer (from a purchased mold). Usually GP or black and blue.

3. Double buzz bait in black or GP.

 

These last two were new to me this year:

 

4. Ned Rig with the TRD in GP or Black and Blue

5. A small Storm 360 1/8 oz I believe was killer this year as well, GP or white.

 

I tend to keep my colors pretty simple, GP or black and blue.

Thanks ~ 

and Congrats on a Great Summer.

Here's to an Even Better one this time around !

A-Jay

 

[A-Jay]

On 12/23/2020 at 12:27 PM, A-Jay said:

 

I’ve been dragging my feet on this, but

with 2020 about to come to an end, I finally decided to do it.

My choice to mainly target Brown Bass hasn’t changed, nor will it in the immediate future. However, I have to admit that by my own standards, this wasn’t a particularly good season.  Definitely the worst for numbers & size since I’ve been running the Pro-V bass boat.  I had some decent trips early & mid Spring in 2020, but the summer and fall bite was mostly non-existent in my rig.

  Beyond the far too many days of truly unfishable wind & weather, that I battled anyway, I really can't explain it.  In fact, I’m not even going to try.  Instead, I’m putting the whole mess behind me and moving on.

 

   So back to the matter at hand – productive baits.

 As I’ve mentioned before in the previous versions posted (links below) I might not always use the ‘best’ presentation for the conditions I fish.  So there’s a decent chance that some of the ‘most productive’ baits listed are simply my favorite baits that I caught fish on.  I imagine that a thread entitled & containing “Baits I fished and zeroed with” would be entirely too long and seriously depressing.  So let’s not even go there.

 

  As always, please feel free to add your own selections to this thread should the mood strike you. We like pictures too.

 

Right away, it might be obvious to even the most casual observer that the overall list length might be smaller than in previous years; I think you can figure out why. Additionally many of the same players keep showing up year after year.

There’s a reason for that as well.   

Either way, here it is:

 

Jerkbaits 

 My Jerkbait addiction continues to be as strong as ever.

The Megabass ITO Vision 110 and the 110 plus 1 both accounted for some good ones.  A new & highly effective player in my personal Vision 110 stash is the SILENT bait.  Had a couple of memorable trips where I picked this one up and never put it down, all day.  GP Pro Perch, Yup.  The SK KVD 300 and especially the 300 Deep continue to shine.  The 300 Deep (AYU) took my largest brown bass of the season at 5.88 lbs.

And don’t bother putting a red treble on the front – I mean who does that ?  Finally, despite re-homing a fair portion of my jerkbait arsenal, it did make more room for some new Megabass additions; hello Vision 110 +1 Jr.

 

Vibrating jigs & trailers ~  Z-Man Evergreen Jack Hammer both the standard & Tungsten head.   The Z-Man New Freedom model became a staple (after an A-Jay modification/hook replacement)  All these baits were either 3/8 oz or ½ oz.  My trailer selection has really been narrowed down the past two season.  The GYBC Zako and more recently this sweet little Goby swimbait deal was accounting for a few Plus size fish for me.  This one’s hand poured by Paul Krews (he’s a FB seller)

 

Crankbaits

 The Spro Mike McClelland Rock Crawler 55 Crankbait in Red Crawfish & Phantom Brown is my crank of choice in that 6-10 ft zone.

The 6th Sense Crush Flat X75 in Baby Bluegill is almost always tied on because it’s a solid producer in areas of less than 7-8 feet for me.  But this past season saw it share almost equal time with the Megabass Sonicside Crankbait.  Not because it has out produced the 6th Sense bait, but because it just looks so good. I love this one – that GP Pro Perch bait is sick !  OK, I might have a problem.

 

Lipless ~  ½ oz RES and the RES 2-Tap both see action.  And when I’m short hopping a Rattle bait off the bottom like a blade bait – the Duo Realis G-Fix Vibration Tungsten Lipless Crankbait is almost like a secret weapon.  It has a small thin profile but is ¾ oz.  Casts like a bullet and sinks just as fast.  Don’t buy any.   

 

Swingheads ~ I am still throwing the same two version of this bait listed in previous years and I have this one rigged & ready every trip it seems.  ½ & ¾ oz covers it all for me.  There’s a ton of them out there but I’ve narrowed my preference down to two basic deals.  A tungsten football style that I use for deeper area and a Lead head model for just about everything else.    I like to be able to choose & change my hook as needed and both of these accommodate that ability.

 The deeper bait starts with the RPE Tackle Tungsten Swinging Football Jig which is sold in bulk and comes without a hook. This one features a rather unique rigging deal that takes a little getting used to but offers everything I need.  Note: I do add a #2 Owner Oval Split Ring to the front (line tie) of this rig to prevent the tungsten head from moving forward and wearing away at the knot (a simple & effective fix).

     The other head I really like starts with the Freedom Tackle Stealth Swim Jig – I am just using the head here.  With the line tie on the front this one slides nicely along the bottom and fairly easily through whatever medium to light cover may be there.

 I will fish three trailers: a SK Rage Bug (Green Pumpkin), a 4.75” SK Rage Swimmer (Ayu) and the Rage Tail Eeliminator (also Green Pumpkin).  These are Texas rigged onto one of two 4/0 hooks.  The regular wire Gamakatsu EWG or the Owner Wide Gap Plus Black Chrome. 

 

Topwater ~ The surface bite never really materialized for me like it had in past seasons. History showed that my top performers were the larger sizes here, the 4.5” 7/8 oz SK Sexy Dawg, the 5” ¾ oz River2Sea Rover and the 4.75” ¾ oz Reaction Innovations Vixen; in mostly shad & bait fish type colors & patterns. I did manage at least one picture worthy smallie on a walking bait – and it smashed the newest SK HC KVD Sexy Dawg Hard Knock.  That was a fun bite.  The other topwater that’s always on my deck in the Megabass Pop Max.  Still love the bait – but I don’t think I got a single bass on it this year – sort of pathetic actually.

 I also invested in a modest Spro Rat selection, hoping to get in on some of that Rat Mania I’d read about.  While I have no doubt regarding the baits effectiveness, I just never got any bass on it; well none that we bigger than the bait anyway.  Maybe next year.

 

Spinnerbaits  ~ The ½ oz SK Burner and the ½ oz & ¾ oz Biovex Stangun single & Double Willow bladed baits are a still two of my favorites.  As is the Megastrike Strike Back spinnerbait also in ½ oz & ¾ oz.  Another new to me bait here is the Megabass V9 Double Willow Spinnerbait.  I made the mistake of picking one of these mostly over-priced baits on sale.  And wouldn’t you know, they were all over it first trip out. Mostly green bass interestingly enough. My initial attraction to this bait revolved mostly around the blade shape; reminiscent of the long drop blades found on the Luck E Strike Rick Clunn Trickster Spinnerbait.  Either way the V-9 catches.  And I have been able to secure a small assortment of the Rick Clunn bait since as well.  So we’ll see how that goes.  When using a trailer on a spinnerbait I like the SK Blade minnow as well as the Hog Farmer Spunk shad.

Rarely use a trailer hook any more.

 

Hair jig ~ Still have total faith in the just one bait –

the Outkast Tackle Feider Fly Marabou Jig in 1/8 oz ~ black or brown.  For YEARS, I fished these with no trailer.  Mostly because the super subtle do nothing action didn’t seem to need it and every little bait I hung on one just messed it up more than anything else. But along came Berkley MaxScent, and the world changed. And so did my no trailer on hair jig ways – about an inch and a half of the tail section from a Berkley Powerbait Maxscent Flatnose Jerk Shad rigged vertically is freaking dynamite ! Can’t be too big, rig it so that little tail section of the shad is just visible & clear of the hair on the jig.  When you get it right, you’ll see the magic and you’ll know.  Don’t tell anyone.

 

Ned Rig

Past few seasons this one has been coming on strong and almost replaced my hair jig fishing – almost. (see above) There’s no denying it effectiveness and past this season I fished the 4” Z-Man Big TRD almost exclusively.   Never was able to recreate the magic I had with it first time out in 2019, but that didn’t keep me from trying. I like the darker colors and usually hang it on an 1/8 oz Owner Block Head Jig Head or the Outkast Tackle Perfect Ned Head; both have a solid 1/0 hook.

 

Drop shot baits ~ I have a Gazillion ! Literally.  And they have all been almost completely replaced by – Say it with me . . .

The Berkley Powerbait Maxscent Flat Worm – Wow !  Been a while since I’ve seen a bait take off like this thing has and then to actually catch fish to match or even exceed the hype is impressive.

I’ve got nothing else to say except if you are not drop shotting this bait – IMO, you are missing fish.

 

Swimbaits ~ A 3.8”, 4.3” and 4.8" Keitech Swing Impact Fat Swimbait in Ayu and Perch as well as the 3.75” and the 4.75” SK Rage Swimmer also in AYU and KVD Magic.  As sort of a mid-line finesse deal, I presented these on or near the bottom with medium spinning gear 10lb braid and an 8lb or 10lb FC leader.  My jighead of choice here is the Keitech Tungsten Super Round Jighead ¼ oz that sports a quality 3/0 hook. Also the Dirty Jigs Tactical Bassin' Finesse Swimbait Jig Head is pretty sweet (I’ve started using this on my A-Rigs as well).

A new to me bait in this category was the Dark Sleeper.  Mid-summer I was gifted with a few ½ oz baits.  Sort fell in love with them right away and eventually picked up more; although the colors I like are often “out of stock’ most everywhere.  Looking forward to fishing these again in the spring. 

 

A-Rig ~ Past few seasons this one has been a very good bigger brown bass bait for me.  But if anyone remembers for last year, besides becoming mostly addicted to throwing this thing, I’ve developed a bit of a love / hate relationship with it. Long story short, the Strike King Short Arm Titanium rig I had so much success with, was breaking apart while fighting picture worthy brown bass. Total Bummer. So this year I have been sort of back to the drawing board looking for a rig that would get bites and stay together to actually land the fish. At the time of this posting, I am still looking.   I fished a couple of different Hog Farmer rigs south of the border this past fall.  They are Very Stout and handled green bass up to 8 lbs.  However I have some concerns that they may be over kill for my local needs.  More to follow.

 

 BTW –  Past  few seasons my A-Rigs baits were rigged with VMC Boxer heads – 1/8 & ¼ oz. However, since they came out, I have switched to the Dirty Jigs Tactical Bassin' Finesse Swimbait Jig Head (same weights). Swimmers are still the same - 3.8 or 4.3 Impact Fat swimbaits and similar sized SK Rage swimmers work as well – AYU.

 

I am still and will always continue to replace stock trebles and well as suspect quality split rings and line ties.

Mustad KVD 1x Strong 2x Short Triple Grip Treble Hook, Gamakatsu EWG Treble Short Shank Magic Eye

and Owner Short Shank Treble Hook ST-35 are my choice and I plus size when & where I can.

Owner Hyper wires split rings are solid and I’ll always use the oval & or pear shaped versions at the line tie; which prevents the line from slipping into the ring itself.  I hate that.  

 

Line(s) used: On my casting gear most everything is FC – Seaguar Tatsu or InvisX; Only use braid on revolving spool tackle to throw baits into or over the jungle.  Then it’s 50lb Sufix 832.  

Main lines on all my spinning gear is braid and a leader.  Mainline is either 10, 15, or 20lb Sufix 832 or Seaguar Smackdown.  Leaders are usually Big Game green mono or in a few instances, FC; then it’s still Tatsu, InvisX or when needed, AbrasX

The few times I may use bigger mono for topwater I’ll reach for the Sunline Shooter Defier Armilo Nylon Line in 22 lb.

 

Attractant – Megastrike – goes on just about everything I fish.

  Original & Crawfish- both work well for me.

 

And so there it is – as sad as that was.  Already making ‘plans’ to fish some of the presentations I didn’t fish much last season, a little more this next time around. Tubes, Jigs, and dare I say it, maybe even some Uncle Josh Pork trailers.

 

Anyway, thanks for playing along and I sincerely hope everyone has a Safe & Happy Holiday.

A-Jay

(Previous versions of this same theme linked below)

https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/183215-most-productive-baits-~-a-seasonal-review/

https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/209845-2018-~-my-most-productive-baits-by-season/

https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/221344-my-2019-list-of-productive-baits-~/

 

A-Jay