two good questions

[zeppy]

After i have fished a spot for about 30-40 minutes and i havent caught anything, should i move on, or do people really think that 5 more minutes will catch me a fish.  and if the extra five minutes does catch me a fish, then why didnt the fish bite in the first 40 minutes, why do they have to wait so long before they bite.

[senko_77]

Well my answer is coming from my perspective of if I were in a tournament.

If it were my primary spot, and I knew the fish were still there, I would try and hit some different parts of the water column.  You may have them on a hump and in practice they were suspended and feeding heavily, and now on tournament day, there nose down and skittish.  

If I had other water that I knew held qaulity fish, I would take off after 30 or 40 minutes and see if my other spots are holding the active bass, and if that wasn't the case, then I would come back and try and figure them out on the primary spot.

This is completely contradictory, but I caught my PB fishing a spot for over an hour before I caught her.  I guessed there were fish there, but I had plenty of other spots to fish.  But for some reason I just kept at it and I was blessed with a fish of a lifetime.  

Always go with what your gut tells you.  If you do that, and it works, great.  But if it doesn't, your still at peace with yourself knowing that you did what you thought was right.

[Jig Man]

After i have fished a spot for about 30-40 minutes and i havent caught anything

I'd say you have been there at least 20-25 minutes too long.  Unless it is a long bank I don't spend more than a few casts in any one spot without some action.   There are too many other places to fish.

[Marty]

and if the extra five minutes does catch me a fish, then why didnt the fish bite in the first 40 minutes, why do they have to wait so long before they bite.

I can think offhand of three possible explanations:

1) The fish wasn't there for 40 minutes, it just happened to move into that area.

2) The fish's mood may have changed. Their moods change between passive, neutral and aggressive, and one of those changes occurred during those five minutes.

3) The fish may just have reached a point of sufficient agitation after watching lures for 40 minutes.

I'm not a particularly patient guy and don't spend a whole lot of time in one spot with no action.

[Jeff C.]

I try not to throw a bait or 2 in the same spot more than 6-10 times,

if there was not any hits on it,

then I will move,, but I mite only move 2-4 boat lengths

and give it 6- 10 more tosses..

after I figure out what color & retrieve they want, I move

even sooner..

But, every one is different,,, It can depend also on who you have in

the boat with ya..Some of my buddies are patient & others want to move on..