Go To Lures for Weeds?

[33oldtimer]

What are your Go To Lures for weeds? Seems weeds are taking over some of my favorite fishing spots, two nearby lakes and one pond. I'm more comfortable using search baits and Texas Rigs than top water baits. I did catch a 12" bass today swimming a Stick Bait over the weeds and into holes. But generally not a fan of fishing weedy water.

[MN Fisher]

Rip spinnerbaits through them

Wacky rig - let the worm flutter down into them

Jig worm brushed across the top of the weeds.

 

Just a few ideas.

[LrgmouthShad]

The type of ‘weed’ matters a lot

And there are a lot of great grass lures. I mean a bunch. 
This is like asking people what their favorite color is. You’re going to hear 10 different colors. 

[Catt]

Texas Rig & Jig-n-Craw on the bottom 

[T-Billy]

10 minutes ago, Catt said:

Texas Rig & Jig-n-Craw on the bottom 

^This^ I'll add, you want to fish fairly vertical. No bomb casts, you want to keep your line angle between 45 degrees and vertical. Your bait will come through much cleaner than if you make longer casts. 

[Deephaven]

Frog

[FishTax]

Agree with @LrgmouthShad. Type of weeds and density matters a lot. Texas rig and frog always shine though. Jig is also good. 

Give more info and we'll give you 20 other things to try 🤣

[Bird]

Keitech easy shiner 1/16 head.

[33oldtimer]

2 hours ago, LrgmouthShad said:

The type of ‘weed’ matters a lot

And there are a lot of great grass lures. I mean a bunch. 
This is like asking people what their favorite color is. You’re going to hear 10 different colors. 

I think it is mostly milfoil, with some snot grass as well. Thick stuff getting thicker every day.

[Justin Collier]

Swim jig 

[WRB]

The most common lures are hollow body frog, solid body toad and weedless spoons that work the surface.

If they work then go with weedless soft plastics.

Tom

[webertime]

Imakatsu Popper Mouse would be great over the top

 

Jig

 

Big weedless swimbait like magdraft freestyle just busting through

[MediumMouthBass]

For ripping through or swimming through the weeds

Swim Jig

Chatterbait

Lipless crankbait

Swimming worm/Speed worm (senko with a paddle on the tail) fish it like a texas rig but cover water faster, like the name says just swim it throw the holes in the weeds

Ribbon/curly tail worm

For fishing above the weeds on the surface

Buzzbait

Toad

Floating finesse worm

Frog

Other types of lures

Texas rig

Football jig

Wacky worms (unless a weedless hook) get stuck in weeds alot, find the open holes in the weeds and pitch one in, by doing this i caught alot of bass one day last summer on a pond where it was 95% covered and had to drag the kayak over weeds for quite awhile.

 

Oh and a Johnson silver minnow too.

Edited May 3, 2024 by MediumMouthBass

[Boomstick]

- Hollow body are great for lily pads

- topwaters like poppers, buzzbaits and prop baits are good to fish over weeds that don’t hit the top of the water

- Jigs are killer in solid weeds like milfoil or hydrilla. The larger profile tends to stand out more. When working with grass you have to finesse it and it’s difficult to make longer casts so consider this if you’re on the shore.

- T-Rigged senkos are great in grass as they come through it and don’t take it back with your lure.

- Spinnerbaits, swim jigs and chatterbaits can be worked through lighter grass

[Brian11719]

If it's not to the point where the only thing I can throw is a frog or a punch rig then a texas rigged ultravibe, a 3.8" keitech weedless on an ewg, bubba shot w/ a trick worm, and a fluke are what I usually go with. I usually prefer a medium heavy fast action rod and a reel w/ a good drag on it in case they decide to bury themselves in the grass. A trick worm on a bubba shot seems to pull through really well a lot of the time and what's nice about that setup is it's still a bit off the bottom so you avoid some of the gunk that you might pick up with a bottom bouncing lure like a weedless ned rig.

[Catt]

@T-Billy

Most anglers try forcing a jig through grass which is all wrong, you gotta finesse the jig through grass!

 

When you feel the jig starting to load up in the grass...stop. Release pressure, pull up until you feel heaviness again but apply slightly more pressure, then release, continue until the jig breaks free. You want the motion to be similar to & as fast as working a shaky head, you're just applying more pressure.

[Mike L]

All good options 

To find the right one totally depends on the type and thickness of what you’re try to get through. 
 

It can be something as obvious as a frog worked through and stopping on top of certain pads.
A jig, stick worm or a creature bait worked vertically in open holes or a swim bait of some sort..swim jig, SB, swim worm depending on how tight the cover is worked over, under and though it all. 
 

Point is, your options are endless for all 3 levels. 
Read the water and weather conditions to make your first choice and cycle through the baits you have the most confidence in and go from there. 
 

Don’t be afraid of the heaviest and nastiest of spots. 
Invest in a heavy outfit with a 3/4 to 1oz tungsten weight and punch right through. 
In the summer big mama could be laying around waiting for you. 
 

Fishing weeds is the best and frankly the most obvious way to stick a bass no matter where you live.
You’ll become a fan soon enough 
 

 

Mike

[Pat Brown]

Topwaters and weightless plastics seem to do me really well when it's lots of grass under the water.

[DinkDonkey30]

9 hours ago, Catt said:

@T-Billy

Most anglers try forcing a jig through grass which is all wrong, you gotta finesse the jig through grass!

 

When you feel the jig starting to load up in the grass...stop. Release pressure, pull up until you feel heaviness again but apply slightly more pressure, then release, continue until the jig breaks free. You want the motion to be similar to & as fast as working a shaky head, you're just applying more pressure.

Man that’s good info 

[Bankc]

The type of weed will change my answer.  Hydrilla is different than lily pads or water willows.  But if I had to pick a general, catch-all, it would be a T-rigged worm.  That'll get through just about anything, and be a highly effective bait.

[scaleface]

Around my area the most common green stuff is chara. I fish the edges with spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, spooks or whatever top water floats my boat. Fishing on top of the slop I use frogs and toads.

[LrgmouthShad]

3 hours ago, DinkDonkey30 said:

Man that’s good info 

Short pitches, then work the jig like this for a short distance. Pitch again. You are just punching it down into the grass and then picking another hole. 
 

A jig can be a phenomenal grass bait. 

[GetFishorDieTryin]

Swimjig and T/free rig

[bp_fowler]

I deal with weeds a lot in the places I fish.  A lot of time as a bank angler weeds are the primary type of cover that fish are relating to that I’m able to reach from shore.  
 

If the weeds have topped out I’m thinking swimjig all day.  If they are submerged then reaction baits ticking the tops would be my first choice.  Chatterbait, Spinnerbait, lipless, underspin, square bill would all be in play.  

 

If the fish wont bite these fast moving, more aggressive baits then I would go with weightless soft plastics like floating worm, zoom fluke, texposed senko.

 

Of course make sure to target holes, ends, and irregularities in the weed bed.

[padlin]

If I were to try punching through heavy hydrilla mats, what test braid would I use? The highest I have on hand is 30lb PP, and the heaviest rod is a MH SC Premier 6’6”.