Biggest Bass of 2023 ~ What Bait ?

[casts_by_fly]

My biggest fish the past two seasons have been on either a black buzzbait or a chatter bait. Biggest smallie was a lipless.  Given some of the plans I have, I’m going to go with a big sieberts tremor and it’s going to be an April fish. 

[flyfisher]

Biggest largemouth for me have come on dahlberg diver style flies and smallies finesse gamechangers. Conventional last year was a toss up between jigs and frogs for largemouth and smallies I didn't even conventional fish for them but one time and it was all crankbaits.  I imagine a similar result this coming season.

[The Baron]

Our LMB don’t get much over 6# up here in the Great White North, but there’s a very real chance I’ll crack 6# with a SMB in Lake Ontario.  That’s a goby bite, so odds are if I get a real tank in 2023 with will be on a tube or dropshot.  For LMB, I’ll break 5# this year on a spook, or a blue/black jig.

 

And although big buckets are nice, I’ll have a permanent smile on those days I’m flipping multiple 3-4# fish on a frog (LMB) or drop shot (SMB). ?

[king fisher]

The Bait Monkey told me if I bought a Bacca Burrito, I would catch a bass over 11 lbs with it.  After finally breaking down and spending more for a single lure, than I ever thought I would, I hope this will be the year I can say the Monkey was right.

[Swamp Girl]

This is a cool thread. My guess is that I'll catch a prespawn lmb around six pounds on a big jerkbait in late April or early May. Unlike you guys, I can't remember the names and colors of my lures, but I'm guessing it will be gold-colored since nearly all water in my area has gold shiners and I bought a couple shiny, gold ones. 

[Susky River Rat]

So it will more than likely be a ned rig. I am going to try like heck though to get it on a texas rigged worm. I have never texas rigged anything ever in my life. Should be interesting.

[Pat Brown]

Almost certainly gonna be a jig.

[Dogface]

1 hour ago, The Baron said:

 I’ll crack 6# with a SMB in Lake Ontario.  That’s a goby bite, so odds are if I get a real tank in 2023 with will be on a tube or dropshot.  For LMB, I’ll break 5# this year on a spook, or a blue/black jig. 

 

I feel the same way regarding SM. If I catch a big SM it will be from Lake Ontario or the St. Lawrence and some kind of Goby imitating bait will probably be the lure.  

 

LM, who knows? I do catch some of the bigger fish on frogs in small farm ponds and backwaters where no one else fishes so a topwater frog would be my best guess. 

[813basstard]

Something close to 9 flipping something black and blue into something thick. 

[GreenPig]

3 hours ago, Big Hands said:

 

Maybe this is TMI, but there was a period in my life where I had recurring dreams of catching bass is strange places within unknown catacombs inside of buildings that I worked in. 

________________________________

I don't even own either one of these baits (Bait Monkey, I curse in your general direction), nor have I seen any in person.

 

In 2021, literally every bass I caught succumbed to a soft plastic bait. That changed a little in 2022, but not too much. I have fantasies of giving reaction baits more effort this year and reaction baits have given me more big bass than any others. So, what the heck, I'll go on record and play with this offering:

 

Daiwa Prorex Bessie 170 (either floating or slow sink) - color: walleye

 

or it's baby brother:

 

Nishine Abino 110F in juvenile bass color

That Daiwa Bessie SS is one BIG spybait.

[ATA]

51 minutes ago, 813basstard said:

Something close to 9 flipping something black and blue into something thick. 

Thats a somehow some good catch sometimes.?

[Columbia Craw]

For largemouth I have a feeling a Keitech Fat on a flashy swimmer hook.

 

Smallmouth, Super Spook or a Z Boss 20.  When reality sets in, with my luck, a crappie jig.

[TnRiver46]

7 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

An aquarium 13+ is epic in my book.

 

Any wild Bass is the same to me in all honesty(my PB was caught in a small pond in Auburn), If they lived in the sewer, I'd be down there ?

Get your flashlight ready

 

5 hours ago, Darnold335 said:

 I have never texas rigged anything ever in my life. .

[Susky River Rat]

11 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Get your flashlight ready

 

You have to remember I only cared about musky fishing. Bass was something to do here or there a couple times a year. I never cared about it. Growing up fishing with my dad for bass it was minnows. 

[Kyle S]

Black Spro frog. 

[bloom]

Perch colored shadow rap

[Ski]

5" Yum Dinger, June Bug, 1/8 screw lock Tungsten weight, 4/0 Gammy worm hook,17 lb Trilene Fluro leader,  40 lb Power Pro Braid, 7' 2" M/H fast Abu Veritas and Shimano 201 Curado.

[Deleted account]

10 hours ago, Big Hands said:

 

Maybe this is TMI, but there was a period in my life where I had recurring dreams of catching bass is strange places within unknown catacombs inside of buildings that I worked in. 

 

LOL. I used to have a recurring dream where I would big game hunt in a building I used to work in (55 Water st, in NYC). I love it how all kinds of crazy things seem to make sense in dreams at the time. 

[Woody B]

Even though I fish other lures more I expect my biggest bass of 2023 to come on either a Devils Horse, or a Texas rig.   In 2022 I caught 10 over 5 pounds.  The biggest (7 lbs 13 ounces) came on a texas rigged motoroil worm that I threw where something had just rolled on my Devils Horse.  Mrs B's biggest of 2022 came the same way,  the same day.  

[Mike L]

This year I foresee mine on either a white Rage Bug or 6” lizard off a bed or punched through at Okeechobee within the next 2 months.

 

 

13 hours ago, crypt said:

I'll bite.........I'm going with a Culprit Fat Max, 7" Red Shad, Texas rigged 1/8 oz. tungsten weight. and I'll catch it at Headwaters lake in April. hows that?....... 

 

Other than the amount of weight you used, that’s exactly what I got my PB on next door at the Stick!
 

 

 

 

Mike

[Dwight Hottle]

Biggest smallmouth will be on a jerk bait in May. Biggest largemouth will be on a wild florida shiner as soon as she bites. 

[FishTank]

Last year's biggest was around 8lb. Sorry no pictures.  I was in my kayak and left my phone in my car. It was the same size as the front hatch on my PA14 so 8lb is on the low side. I caught it on a wacky rigged senko.

[whitwolf]

I want to say a jig or beaver bait in the nastiest stuff I can find. But until at least September I doubt I'll be on the water much.

 

In a normal year I would start fishing now. The biggest and what bait? Probably a jerkbait. I would prefer other baits but where I'm fishing now and the water clarity it's a jerkbait. 

 

Unless at night but that's for another thread.

[Swamp Girl]

@TnRiver46 I love that sewer fishing video. Thanks for posting it! If I ran The Wide World of Fishing, my first law would be that anyone who catches a fish out of a sewer gets to multiply its weight by five.

[TnRiver46]

24 minutes ago, ol'crickety said:

@TnRiver46 I love that sewer fishing video. Thanks for posting it! If I ran The Wide World of Fishing, my first law would be that anyone who catches a fish out of a sewer gets to multiply its weight by five.

There are dozens of similar videos out there! Some with nice bass