Technique Overload

[king fisher]

My wife looked at my gear and couldn't believe I was ordering more.  She told me if I couldn't catch a fish with what I already had, than either their were no fish, or I was a poor fisherman.  I had to agree, but then ordered a chaterbait, and umbrella rig, both of which I never tried before.  After all these are relatively new techniques that are guaranteed to turn a skunk day into a once in a lifetime personal best bass catching frenzy day.  A friend of mine only throws a single Colorado black spinnerbait.  He fishes it 10 different ways top to bottom.  If he doesn't catch any fish, which is rare than he declares the bass aren't hungry and goes crappie fishing for dinner.  Needless to say the bait monkey is not a friend of his.  We both love to fish, and enjoy our time on the water, that is what is most important.  It would be nice if just once, one of my new lures would catch more than his old spinnerbait.  I'm confident the A rig will be the one.

[Junk Fisherman]

It's very easy to get overwhelmed when you are first getting into the sport.  I remember walking into large tackle shops when I was a kid and looking at everything and feeling so uninformed.  But after fishing for years and knowing what works for me at the places I fish, I never feel that way anymore.  I know my style of fishing and the cover and structure I will be fishing so I know pretty much all the techniques that apply or would apply to my fishing.  I used to read Bassmasters in its entirety.  Nowadays, I just read the articles that apply to how and where I fish.  

 

Overall, the number of techniques I use has shrunk over the years but I am much more proficient at them and much more specialized in them.  I used to be all the over the place with what I would use.  Nowadays, I have a good half dozen or so techniques that I feel very confident in that I usually have tied on depending on the season and the conditions.  However, I am continually adding to the techniques I use as I improve in them and gain in my confidence in my ability to fish them.   But I do it slowly.  I am always using my confidence baits but then working on something on the side.

 

Great topic.  

[Bankc]

I like that there are so many techniques to learn.  I am of the opinion that you don't need to learn them all, but they do give me things to study and learn about when I can't be on the water.  Maybe I'll use it one day.  Maybe I never will.  But I have it the back of my mind if I need it.
 

I view fishing like everything else in life.  You won't live long enough to learn everything there is to know.  I mainly stick to the techniques I'm familiar with, and every once in a while, give a new one a try if it catches my interest and seems like it might be useful. If it works, I might use it more.  If it doesn't, I might not.  
 

Too much information is only a bad thing if you lack discipline.

[Sphynx]

I personally advocate a pretty limited bag of tricks for most new anglers, I may let them try many different baits in a day, but sooner or later they always get a certain look in the eye that tells me they are enjoying the way this presentation works, or they display a natural affinity for properly fishing it, I like them to start there, they are having fun, and learning when fish bite whenever it is they are drawn to, from there it's a pretty straight line to "Hey man, I never manage to get any bites in December on this frog I like throwing so much, is there another thing that works better?" And suddenly we are moving through because the new guy identified a situation he wasn't prepared for, that's a big deal that they worked out WHY, rather than just following my instructions blindly, and once the light bulb goes off, the inevitable acquisition of all the toys we all enjoy so much looks after itself basically, and from there they can go as far down the rabbit hole as they feel is appropriate. 

[LrgmouthShad]

Being a newish angler of maybe 5 years, I’d like to offer my opinion on this. I do wish that I had honed in on a few techniques/lures early. I bought a bunch of different styles of lures trying to match every situation with the lure I was using. Generally, I was confused. The nice thing about exploring was that I got to figure out which techniques I liked and didn’t like, though. My advice for any newer anglers on here is to not get caught up in the latest lure or technique craze. If you are learning, focus on techniques and lures that have worked for a very long time. Build confidence off of those. Exploring can help, but understand why you think that technique and lure is good for your area before purchasing anything. 

[Columbia Craw]

This forum is extremely unique.  It has thousands of members that cover the entire country and abroad.  I can’t even imagine all the types of fisheries yet we try to offer ideas or advice in lures, color patterns, and techniques to effective fish those environments.

 

I think newer anglers can be confused because they want it feel the need to be ultra versatile when they may be pond hopping from shore and that’s it.  As we move forward it would everyone to try and establish some kind of context when addressing techniques.  Where I fish may not be close to your situation and yours like mine. Generalized information may be even more helpful.

 

A poor question will more often or not result in a poor answer. I would like to help anglers, especially new, learn to ask the right questions.

[MGF]

On 3/3/2021 at 10:05 AM, TOXIC said:

Easy answer.....bait companies need to sell baits.  New technique means more sales.  Somebody has to feed the bait monkey.?

That's an easy answer but I think there's more to it. How many ways are there to fish a plastic worm...or a piece of it? Being able to take advantage of all those different methods doesn't necessarily make the bait company much money. In fact it may mean that you can get by with a lot less.

 

That's just one example but there are other baits that can be used in multiple ways (techniques) and serve to reduce what we carry in our tackle box...by maximizing what we carry in our brain. LOL

 

 

[Cdn Angler]

No right answer on this one. Same as golf, some people think newbies shouldn't start with a driver as one more bit of complexity. But some new people love ripping big drives. Can't argue with that. Is one answer the "most efficient"? Probably, but is my goal to be the most efficient angler of all time? Nope. 

 

I started off with a couple inline spinners and one crankbait bank fishing and was pretty thrilled to catch a fish per outing.  

 

I still haven't fished a drop shot or a carolina rig as I don't have any electronics on my kayak and I think those techniques go better when you know there are fish/exact depth. Still have fun and have caught loads of fish. If I get bored with that I'll get a fish finder.  Everything is personal preference unless you are a derby competitor. 

 

 

[MGF]

1 hour ago, Cdn Angler said:

 

 

I started off with a couple inline spinners and one crankbait bank fishing and was pretty thrilled to catch a fish per outing.  

 

I still haven't fished a drop shot or a carolina rig as I don't have any electronics on my kayak and I think those techniques go better when you know there are fish/exact depth. Still have fun and have caught loads of fish. If I get bored with that I'll get a fish finder.  Everything is personal preference unless you are a derby competitor. 

 

 

A Carolina rig is a good way to cover water and find out what's on the bottom. Start dragging a heavy weight around and you feel what's there. I think it's a good option without electronics or even from the bank.

 

Last season I caught a bunch of smallmouth in a small river (sort of a creek) fishing from the bank using a dropshot. It was just a different way to present the same soft plastics. For umpteen years now it's been a favorite panfish presentation for me in shallow mostly weedy ponds. Again, that has often been from the bank.

 

A lot of this stuff is less about buying more tackle and more about understanding different ways you can use the tackle you already have.

[Log Catcher]

I agree that new fisherman should avoid information overload and work on getting good with a few techniques. There are many techniques and presentations I will never try. With so many needing a specialty rod for this or a certain type of line for that I can't afford to try every new trick that comes along. I will keep going with what I have and hope they keep working for me.

[padon]

On 3/3/2021 at 9:22 AM, Catt said:

 

We can make this sport as simple as possible or as complex as possible.

 

Choice is yours ?

and isnt that the beauty of it! if a guy just wants to throw a few plugs and plastic worms he can and be happy with that,on the other hand we can go full blown expensive boats dozens of rods and reels,boxes and boxes full of tackle . and theres many levels in between and thats theh great part of it.

[Big Hands]

On 3/2/2021 at 3:33 PM, Deephaven said:

Even before the internet, it was easy to go down a strange path.  I read books, magazines, attended Bass U events, hung out at tackle shops and did all I could pre-internet.  I still ended up with a bunch of crap and wasted time.  Last time I did a major sort on my tackle I off loaded more than half of it.  

That's what I call recovering well.

[Deleted account]

17 hours ago, MGF said:

That's an easy answer but I think there's more to it. How many ways are there to fish a plastic worm...or a piece of it? Being able to take advantage of all those different methods doesn't necessarily make the bait company much money. In fact it may mean that you can get by with a lot less.

 

That's just one example but there are other baits that can be used in multiple ways (techniques) and serve to reduce what we carry in our tackle box...by maximizing what we carry in our brain. LOL

 

 

I think this is where bass guys get it wrong. To me, hooking a bait differently, adding or not adding weight to it somewhere, using a different size or shape lure, a different hook, burying the point or not, are  just methods of getting a bait to the fish in a particular situation. Which approach works best or better depends on the present variables. Naming the presentation or rigging gives the illusion that these are each discrete and set, when in reality they are for the most part mofifications or tweeks on each other. 

[galyonj]

2 minutes ago, BassWhole! said:

I think this is where bass guys get it wrong. To me, hooking a bait differently, adding or not adding weight to it somewhere, using a different size or shape lure, a different hook, burying the point or not, are  just methods of getting a bait to the fish in a particular situation. Which approach works best or better depends on the present variables. Naming the presentation or rigging gives the illusion that these are each discrete and set, when in reality they are for the most part mofifications or tweeks on each other. 

 

Honestly, I think that's a great way to look at it.

 

To hearken back to something @Catt posted way upthread somewhere, you've got three "zones" in fishing: top, middle, bottom. More specific than that, and you're really dealing with variations on a theme.

[wis bang]

Growing up Pappy took us fishing in Ontario [I was maybe 11] to a lake he had been fishing since the mid 40's. We would go days with three in the boat drifting along the shoreline throwing the same jitterbug. Two weeks. same lure, all catching fish...lots of casts and some days better than others.

 

40 years later that lure still works. Naturally I have opted to explore a few other techniques but limit my choices to one or two...

[MGF]

5 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

I think this is where bass guys get it wrong. To me, hooking a bait differently, adding or not adding weight to it somewhere, using a different size or shape lure, a different hook, burying the point or not, are  just methods of getting a bait to the fish in a particular situation. Which approach works best or better depends on the present variables. Naming the presentation or rigging gives the illusion that these are each discrete and set, when in reality they are for the most part mofifications or tweeks on each other. 

 Get what wrong?

[MGF]

6 hours ago, galyonj said:

 

Honestly, I think that's a great way to look at it.

 

To hearken back to something @Catt posted way upthread somewhere, you've got three "zones" in fishing: top, middle, bottom. More specific than that, and you're really dealing with variations on a theme.

Actually what you have is the potential for a large variety of cover types, structure types, forage types and depths. The bass exhibit a wide range of behaviors across those variables. Of course add in time of day and the change in season.

 

Would you consider a floating worm on a spawning flat to be a variation on the same theme as  punching dense vegetation? The depth range might be exactly the same. I see those as two very different techniques that may utilize the same plastic worm.

[Deleted account]

1 hour ago, MGF said:

 Get what wrong?

Fishing.

[fishwizzard]

8 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

I think this is where bass guys get it wrong. To me, hooking a bait differently, adding or not adding weight to it somewhere, using a different size or shape lure, a different hook, burying the point or not, are  just methods of getting a bait to the fish in a particular situation. Which approach works best or better depends on the present variables. Naming the presentation or rigging gives the illusion that these are each discrete and set, when in reality they are for the most part mofifications or tweeks on each other. 

I don't entirely disagree, but having more specific terms makes the topic as a whole easier to talk about.   Like if this was a sandwich-enthusiasts forum, it would be helpful to just be able to say "club sandwich" and not have to explain the entire thing every time. 

[Deleted account]

44 minutes ago, fishwizzard said:

I don't entirely disagree, but having more specific terms makes the topic as a whole easier to talk about.   Like if this was a sandwich-enthusiasts forum, it would be helpful to just be able to say "club sandwich" and not have to explain the entire thing every time. 

Do you put pickles in a Cubano?

[fishwizzard]

1 minute ago, BassWhole! said:

Do you put pickles in a Cubano?

 

It's a cop-out, but I have no strong preference about pickles in that situation.  IMHO the bread is the biggest risk in ordering a Cubano from a new spot, so once that fear has been assuaged, I am not going to quibble over a pickle.

 

 

[Choporoz]

If a Texas rigged Senko was always THE best presentation, most of us would probably be crappie or catfish fishermen.  Sure we all make it more complex than it needs to be at times....but whether we admit it or not, the complexity and variability are a big part of what draws us to bass fishing.

[MGF]

5 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

Fishing.

Bass guys get fishing wrong? Wow.

[MGF]

3 hours ago, fishwizzard said:

 

It's a cop-out, but I have no strong preference about pickles in that situation.  IMHO the bread is the biggest risk in ordering a Cubano from a new spot, so once that fear has been assuaged, I am not going to quibble over a pickle.

 

 

Whether or not to put a pickle on it depends on the conditions and what you're trying to catch.  It's not a common forage around here. I had to Google it to see what it was but I think pickle would be just fine.

8 hours ago, wis bang said:

Growing up Pappy took us fishing in Ontario [I was maybe 11] to a lake he had been fishing since the mid 40's. We would go days with three in the boat drifting along the shoreline throwing the same jitterbug. Two weeks. same lure, all catching fish...lots of casts and some days better than others.

 

40 years later that lure still works. Naturally I have opted to explore a few other techniques but limit my choices to one or two...

My last outing before we were covered in snow and ice was on a lowland reservoir (in Indiana) on a sunny December day with a water temp of 38 F. As much as I love top-water and the jitterbug it never even occurred to me to throw one.

 

 

[Jaderose]

95% of of my fish is caught on a weightless T-rigged Stik-o, a skirted Shaky Head or a jig with a creature or craw bait of some sort, or a frog.  I do throw a lipless crank occasionally and spinner baits when conditions call for it.  I'll throw tubes occasionally, too, but to me these are just variations of the same techniques.  I have gear to cover most "techniques" but rarely use it.  I see new "techniques" (usually from Japan) and they look interesting but forget about them 10 minutes after I see them.

 

On 3/2/2021 at 9:47 PM, MN Fisher said:

One example off the top of my head

Technique: T-Rig

Presentation: Anything from a 4.75" Zoom Finesse Worm tossed weightless to a 12" Zoom Magnum Ol' Monster punched with a 1oz weight.

 

This is exactly how I think about this.....a T-rig is a T-rig.  Topwater is topwater.  It's just that conditions call for using different types of the same tool.  These are all screw drivers....