Equipment vs. Experience

[Masaccio]

My fishing buddy has been bass fishing for a long time.  Me, not so much.  I'm like any other newbie, absorbed to the point of overflow with rods, reels, fishing techniques, knots, lures, etc.

He catches very respectable bass with a bobber and worm, a simple Mepps, or what looks to me like a first issue floating rapala.  Neither his spinning rod nor reel is anything special, he complains that he has to replace his line after 3 years.  He uses one (uselessly complicated) knot that his father taught him and clearly knows what he's doing.  

My fishing is getting better because I am insisting on finding my own way and trying new things that occur to me (which often fail while he is announcing having hooked another fish).  I do watch him but he doesn't share much, and I'm a maverick by nature anyway.  So I'm split between the "Keep it Simple, Stupid" approach that works so well for him, or engaging my own brain and letting myself enjoy this early phase of my fishing with all of its foolishness and foibles.  Ultimately, I want to be a better fisherman.  And learning everything on your own seems very daunting.  At the moment he is traveling so I don't have access to his lake.  I want to strike out on my own in local narrow rivers and streams and can only imagine a sequence of nightmares of fishing lines tangled in trees and scrub, hours of frustrating effort and nothing to show for it at the end of the day.  Wow.  Not meant to be a complaining message.  Maybe just a little support requested?  Thanks for reading.   

[Mobasser]

I'll say do what fits you best. Fishing is really an individual sport. 

[roadwarrior]

I would forget your friend's methods and read through our articles, view the videos

and take notes. Our guys are not using a cane pole or a bobber.

[Hammer 4]

As time goes on, you will find what works best for you and the waters that you fish.

[A-Jay]

21 minutes ago, Masaccio said:

My fishing buddy has been bass fishing for a long time.  Me, not so much.  I'm like any other newbie, absorbed to the point of overflow with rods, reels, fishing techniques, knots, lures, etc.

He catches very respectable bass with a bobber and worm, a simple Mepps, or what looks to me like a first issue floating rapala.  Neither his spinning rod nor reel is anything special, he complains that he has to replace his line after 3 years.  He uses one (uselessly complicated) knot that his father taught him and clearly knows what he's doing.  

My fishing is getting better because I am insisting on finding my own way and trying new things that occur to me (which often fail while he is announcing having hooked another fish).  I do watch him but he doesn't share much, and I'm a maverick by nature anyway.  So I'm split between the "Keep it Simple, Stupid" approach that works so well for him, or engaging my own brain and letting myself enjoy this early phase of my fishing with all of its foolishness and foibles.  Ultimately, I want to be a better fisherman.  And learning everything on your own seems very daunting.  At the moment he is traveling so I don't have access to his lake.  I want to strike out on my own in local narrow rivers and streams and can only imagine a sequence of nightmares of fishing lines tangled in trees and scrub, hours of frustrating effort and nothing to show for it at the end of the day.  Wow.  Not meant to be a complaining message.  Maybe just a little support requested?  Thanks for reading.   

Hello and congrats on your first post here on Bass Resource ~

IMO, the bold texts above go hand in hand and it's pretty much how we all started at some point. 

Perhaps a change in perspective could help.

Understanding that you have much to learn and being willing to endure the process can help. 

Believe me when I say, it will pay off in spades (or bass) in the end. 

It's a rare occurrence to go out and hammer giant bass, especially without much knowledge or experience.  I'd recommend planning on getting as much of the above as you can, and you don't actually need company to get it. 

No such thing as a bad day on the water if we learn something.

Good Luck

A-Jay

 

 

[NavyToad]

If you’ve already been catching a few fish, did a particular lure/technique produce better than the others? If so I’d concentrate on using that technique for a while and when you either you get tired of it or it stops producing, switch to something else. Or if you have a technique that you enjoy more than others just stick with that for awhile. I love throwing a spinnerbait and could do it all day even if my results weren’t the greatest. You’ll figure it out, just keep at it. If it was that hard, alot of us would have given up long ago. YouTube is your friend.

[WRB]

Welcome aboard.

Bass Fishing can be as easy or as complex as you make.

You mentioned you have tackle, if you don’t mind could you list the rods and reels by make/model or description?

It also helps to know your basic regional location to make helpful suggestions.

Tom

[soflabasser]

Most times experience wins over what equipment someone is fishing with. For example there are bank fishermen with double digit PB's and there are people with expensive equipment that have not caught a single bass over 8 pounds. ''It's the Indian, not the arrow'' applies to bass fishing, and many other hobbies. With that said I recommend doing your best to not complicate bass fishing, it is not rocket science. Do your best to learn from each fishing trip, and with time you should do well in bass fishing.

[Tennessee Boy]

People enjoy fishing in many different ways.   Some enjoy catching as many fish as possible.  Others enjoy catching big fish.  Some use fishing as a way to enjoy using their tackle or boat.  It sounds to me that your friend has a solid approach to catching fish.  Fishing worms on a bobber is frowned on by bass fishing purest but it works.  The lures you mentioned are classics and the classics usually work better than the latest fad lures, especially if you've spent a lifetime learning how to fish them.

 

I encourage you to figure out what you enjoy about the sport.  Buy what you need to maximize that enjoyment.  That might require a $100K bass boat or just a cane pole.

[Bird]

9 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

People enjoy fishing in many different ways.   Some enjoy catching as many fish as possible.  Others enjoy catching big fish.  Some use fishing as a way to enjoy using their tackle or boat.  It sounds to me that your friend has a solid approach to catching fish.  Fishing worms on a bobber is frowned on by bass fishing purest but it does work.  The lures you mentioned are classics and the classics usually work better than the latest fad lure especially if you've spent a lifetime learning how to fish them.

 

I encourage you to figure out what you enjoy about the sport.  Buy what you need to maximize that enjoyment.  That might require a $100K bass boat or just a cane pole.

Very well said which makes me stumble to respond. Lol

Enjoyment trump's all and simply progress from there.

Oh, my wife does quite well with bobber and worm.

[Deleted account]

23:59

[scaleface]

If all he uses is a Mepps and a Rapala ,you will be outfishing him badly in no time . 

[Deeare]

Give up a little info and I’m sure folks will provide some great tips.  What lures are you throwing?   Describe the bodies of water you’re fishing?   What part of the country are you located in?   
 

figuring out where to cast/where the fish are is the most important thing.  

[Fishlegs]

Don’t get frustrated. Keep fishing the way that you prefer. Once you learn a few techniques your friend may be asking you for help.

[king fisher]

     I know a kid that can out fish me many days, and all he has for gear is a soda bottle for a rod, reel and a home made lure made from a toothbrush.  It's not the gear it is the fisherman.  He also has time to fish every day and has endless patience.  Two things I don't have. 

        I am not going to give up my bait caster, or stop being friends with the Bait Monkey.  I haven't tried to make my own lures from a tooth brush or start saving empty soda bottles.  I have spent time watching his retrieve, and where he fishes.  I pay attention to where in the water column he is fishing, how fast, his retrieve is and what time of day he takes a break. 

        My point is you may not want to limit yourself to outdated tackle, but you should try and learn all you can from your friend.  A good fisherman can catch fish on practically anything, but having good gear can make catching fish more enjoyable.  A good fisherman's knowledge is worth more than all the tackle you can buy.  Your own experience is even more priceless.  Learn what you can from your friend, and experiment on your own.  Observe everything you can on the water and read everything you can while you are at home.  Also having a Rapala, and Mepps spinner in your box can keep the skunk away on almost any body of water any time of year.

        

        

[Sphynx]

I'm completely convinced that putting the wrong lure, tied with the wrong knot using wrong line spooled on a wrong reel mounted to the wrong rod in the right place will catch infinitely more fish than the right lure, etc thrown in the wrong spot. I enjoy having a billion lures not because they are the only thing that will work in a given spot, but because I enjoy the variety the provide.

[PhishLI]

3 hours ago, Masaccio said:

My fishing buddy has been bass fishing for a long time. 

There's more than one way to skin a cat. If you make different fishing buddies over time you'll see it more and more. You can choose to emulate someone, if that suits you, or you can do your own thing. Sharpening your instincts over time is what's going to make you better over time. It takes time, through failure and success, to download and collate the data you accumulate.

 

Once you figure out how to crack the code of a body of water, things will change and change fast. Just understand that you'll continue to get your azz kicked, because that's how it goes, but bass fishing is a long-game. Doesn't matter who you are either. Jason Christie won the Bassmaster Classic this year. He came in just about dead last in the next tournament. A short memory is a good thing to have. Just dust yourself off and grind. In the meantime concentrate on what happens when everything goes right as well as when everything goes wrong, and use your noggin. Read up here at BR, be willing to put in the work, and you'll get your wins.

[papajoe222]

First off, Welcome to BR

The person that got me interested in fishing was a live bait only angler, but that didn't deter me from my curiosity in lures. He (my dad) would sit in one spot for hours watching a bobber or letting a crawler sit on the bottom while I walked the shoreline casting a knock off Rapala that I'd spent a months allowance on.  We both caught fish and we both enjoyed the way we went about it. 

As others have said, do what appeals to you. You'll have good days and bad and I can tell you from years on the water that you learn more from those bad days (if you're so inclined). 

                                                                                   Tight Lines

[soflabasser]

1 hour ago, king fisher said:

     I know a kid that can out fish me many days, and all he has for gear is a soda bottle for a rod, reel and a home made lure made from a toothbrush.  It's not the gear it is the fisherman.  He also has time to fish every day and has endless patience.  Two things I don't have. 

        I am not going to give up my bait caster, or stop being friends with the Bait Monkey.  I haven't tried to make my own lures from a tooth brush or start saving empty soda bottles.  I have spent time watching his retrieve, and where he fishes.  I pay attention to where in the water column he is fishing, how fast, his retrieve is and what time of day he takes a break. 

        My point is you may not want to limit yourself to outdated tackle, but you should try and learn all you can from your friend.  A good fisherman can catch fish on practically anything, but having good gear can make catching fish more enjoyable.  A good fisherman's knowledge is worth more than all the tackle you can buy.  Your own experience is even more priceless.  Learn what you can from your friend, and experiment on your own.  Observe everything you can on the water and read everything you can while you are at home.  Also having a Rapala, and Mepps spinner in your box can keep the skunk away on almost any body of water any time of year.

        

        

Well said @king fisher. My grandfather reminds me of the kid you talked about. Both could catch fish anywhere with the simplest of tackle. I learned a great deal about fishing from him, among other lessons. With that said, I have expensive fishing tackle that I enjoy fishing with, but it is something I do not truly need. It is enjoyable to fish with expensive gear, but it will not make you a better fisherman if you do not have a firm understanding of bass fishing. For beginners I suggest keeping it simple by learning how to fish a handful of lures well, and learning from each fishing trip. With time anyone can be good at bass fishing if they work hard at it, just like any other hobby.

[scaleface]

I have an uncle who bass fishes almost everyday with a Zebco 33 and a few lures . He fishes a pond from bank and he says he catches a lot of fish . I think his version of good fishing is different than mine . The times I took him in a boat he caught squat . I mean even on great days where I was killing them , he caught nothing. He fishes his own way ,never changing ,  which is alwasys s-l-o-w with little lures .My point being ,  just because a person fishes a lot does not mean they are good at it . Like Road Warrior said , hang around here and you will learn how to catch bass .

[LrgmouthShad]

12 hours ago, Deleted account said:

23:59

My brain just broke trying to figure out what this comment means

[Sphynx]

53 minutes ago, scaleface said:

I have an uncle who bass fishes almost everyday with a Zebco 33 and a few lures . He fishes a pond from bank and he says he catches a lot of fish . I think his version of good fishing is different than mine . The times I took him in a boat he caught squat . I mean even on great days where I was killing them , he caught nothing. He fishes his own way ,never changing ,  which is alwasys s-l-o-w with little lures .My point being ,  just because a person fishes a lot does not mean they are good at it . Like Road Warrior said , hang around here and you will learn how to catch bass .

I've had a few guys take me out on boats to favorite spots, and they outproduce me every time. An enormous part of why is because they already know where the specific pieces of cover and patterns those fish are on, and given enough time at the spot sure I could work it out, but typically we are moving on about the time I put the puzzle together, that's just the way it goes in the back of the boat though.

[Fishingmickey]

Welcome aboard!

     I think one of the best things to do when your learning is how to divide techniques. IMHO the first thing to learn to fish a  a Texas rigged worm.  Just keep fishing it until you can detect a bite. You'll learn what it feels like when a fish hits the bait. It will feel alive, not like you dragged it into something underwater.  It will teach you how to keep in contact with your bait through out the entire cast. Watch your line, how does it move as your lure is sinking, if you see it moving to the side or stopping before it hit bottom. It is likely a fish has sucked it in. 

     What does it feels like when you hit weeds, wood or pick up bottom slime. The thing is when a fish hits or picks up your bait you can tell. Also if you aren't sure if it if a fish or weeds, set that hook. Swings are free!

     Once you've learned how to fish a T-rig, fishing a jig is the same technique. Now you've learned how to fish bottom contact baits! 

Good luck!

Fishingmickey

[Catt]

Experience trumps equipment ever single time!

 

Knowing what structure is, knowing how to truly identify it, knowing how read it, and then fishing it effectively, is the quickest, surest means of consistently putting bass in the boat

[TOXIC]

The all encompassing book on bass fishing is at least 1 million pages and being added to every day.  Some people stop reading after the first chapter.  My advise to someone just starting out is to learn the basic techniques that work in different areas of the water column.  Plastics, topwater, crankbaits, bladed baits like chatterbaits and spinnerbaits are where I would start.  Then expand to studying what works in structure, cover, etc.