How many lures catch 80% of your bass?

[rgasr63]

The Strike King Menace worm or the Zoom Z Craw were probably the most favored. I actually caught a bunch with a Berkley Choppo. When I couldn't get bit with one of those pot luck

[12poundbass]

It varies year by year. Last year it was deep diving crankbaits which is the first time that would’ve been on my list, bladed jig, and finally a lipless crank.

 

Absent the last few years is the frog which brings a tear to my eye. 

[Bazoo]

For me it's:

 

Zoom Finesse, weightless, 1/16oz bullet weighted, or splitshot

Square bill crankbait

spinnerbait including

walking baits

curly tail grubs, mostly with 1/16oz bullet weight and an offset shank hook

 

[Catt]

We talking 2024?

[GReb]

I kept it really simple last year. 7” ribbon tail, crankbaits, and frogs probably accounted for 80% of my fish. They kept biting them and I didn’t need to explore much. 

[Swamp Girl]

9 hours ago, Catt said:

We talking 2024?

 

Yes.

[Swamp Girl]

On 1/8/2025 at 4:16 PM, Swamp Girl said:

I added and divided all that I could and the average is four lures per BR angler catch 80% of our respective bass. A few of the posters wiggled like an oiled newt on crack, making their individual totals elusive and so I didn't add their "numbers" to the total because I couldn't seize them.

 

"Four lures per angler" isn't sweet music for the Bait Monkey's ears.

 

I wrote the above back on page one and the average of four lures per angler is holding steady. I have yet to acclimate to how different these four or so lures can be. Some of you are catching the majority of your bass on lures I rarely/never use. For example, I've never used a speed worm, buzzbait, dropshot, or hair jig for bass and have caught one bass in my life on a chatterbait. 

 

The good news: I'm not about to place an order for speed worms, hair jigs, and chatterbaits, so maybe Lure Anon is helping, which doesn't make the Bait Monkey happy. Take that, Bait Monkey!

 

 

 

[Lottabass]

I like @Tennessee Boy response....lures are tools.  A Swamp Lord is not used if the bass are in 12 fow, a Wiggle Wart is not used if the bass are under a weed mat.  One lake I fish now has lots of duckweed.  Where a squarebill used to be my most productive lure now a frog produces the most.  

Can I go find some crankbait fish?  Yes, I could, but I've fished there all day and the only lure that I got wet was a frog, because it's so much fun!!!!

[LrgmouthShad]

I fish a lot of different lakes and ponds in a year, on average, so usually takes a lot of lure categories to catch 80%. Probably 8 or so right now. When I lived in NY and fished ponds, a spinnerbait alone was catching 80%

[Swamp Girl]

1 minute ago, LrgmouthShad said:

When I lived in NY and fished ponds, a spinnerbait alone was catching 80%

 

Whoa! I've had days too when the bass are spinnerbait-giddy, but when it comes to trips where they clearly preferred one lure, that lure would be a popper. Looking back at my 2024 trip reports, there were many mornings and evenings when I caught 95% of my bass on poppers. I've had Whopper Plopper trips like that too. Maine bass look up a lot, it seems.

[LrgmouthShad]

15 minutes ago, Swamp Girl said:

 

Whoa! I've had days too when the bass are spinnerbait-giddy, but when it comes to trips where they clearly preferred one lure, that lure would be a popper. Looking back at my 2024 trip reports, there were many mornings and evenings when I caught 95% of my bass on poppers. I've had Whopper Plopper trips like that too. Maine bass look up a lot, it seems.

If you look back to some of my trip reports from 2021-2022, I used a spinnerbait almost all the time. The NY bass I fished for were aggressive. They loved a spinnerbait

[Swamp Girl]

33 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

If you look back to some of my trip reports from 2021-2022, I used a spinnerbait almost all the time. The NY bass I fished for were aggressive. They loved a spinnerbait

 

It's so cool when we've discovered what lure they prefer. However, I also enjoy those mornings when I catch bass on seven different lures. 

[papajoe222]

For the vast majority of bass I catch, a jig off some sort is the lure used. If I were to put casting, flipping swimming, hair, feather and swimbait all in the same category They'd easily account for 70% of the fish I catch. Add crankbaits and the two add up to 80% without even checking my fishing logs.

[thediscochef]

Red eye shad and walking bait have caught at least 80% by weight. I know those two lures account for at least 75% of my 5+ size fish

[padlin]

T rigged plastics are easily 75%

 

white double bladed spinnerbaits and jigs another 20%

 

bait monkey baits are the last 5%

 

[OHBuckets]

My best days in 2024 involved spooks early, then changing over to free-rigs/belly-weighted plastics (the Bellows Shad and the Zariganist Jr get special mention) - that'd be 80%. Then 10% on glides and hard swimbaits, 5% D-Shads, and 5% on Neds/cranks/random fun things. This is 1-4 lb LMB numbers.

 

First 2024 5+ LMB was on a ned, last 5+ LMB was a wacky houdini senko. 

 

(previous year was more jigs, cranks, and the bigger fish on chatterbaits)

 

[CDMTJager]

Last two years I fished four luers that caught 100% of my bass in order of the most bass caught to least

#1 Soft plastic fluke or boot foot swimbait

#2 Chatter or willow bladed jig

#3 Top water frog/Rebel POP-R 

#4 Tandem Colorado spinnerbait

[little giant]

Well, I'm not in the averages so that makes me abnormal!! South Florida is a year round escapade of fish, so depending on the time of year or where I'm at makes the determining factor. I easily use 2 dozen different baits for LMB, add in a half a dozen for peacocks. What fun!!

[WaskaCrank12]

In 2024 - 80% to 90% of my catches were on:

 

1- Netbait Paca Chunk Sr. on a Core Tackle Hover Rig (3/32oz)

2. Crankbaits (OSP MAX DR/OSP EX DR - MB Deep X100/200)

2a. Smaller cranks (Megabass Griffon MR/SR - Imakatsu WASP 55)

3. Keitech Fat Impact on an underspin (different sizes/colors)

4. Shakeyhead (worms/helgripedes/other)

 

Now that I have a rod to throw them on I am going to try jerk baits -- I had engine probs in 2024 so did not get out on the water until August 10th -- so hopefully in 2025 I can branch out and try a few more lures/methods (topwater/jerkbaits/chatterbaits/NED/Free Rig/ect...)

[Dwight Hottle]

Jerk baits both hard & soft

Swim baits

Crank baits

Blade baits including blade/jig

[Choporoz]

Rage Bugs

 

In fact, I think the only reason I throw anything else is to justify in my mind the thousands of dollars invested in 'other stuff'

[Swamp Girl]

27 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Rage Bugs

 

Those are good lures, for sure. They were my mainstay for my first few months of lmb fishing. 

 

@Dwight Hottle: Other than crankbaits, you and I are tossing pretty much the same lures. I do use some crankbaits and would love to throw more crankbaits, but I'd need fewer weeds to use them all summer. I should use them more this spring before the weeds rise. 

[Jar11591]

37 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Rage Bugs

When these came out they instantly became my number one T-rigging bait. Favorite soft plastic by a long shot. 

[Mike L]

Magnum UV Speed Worm

Rage Cut R

Rage Bug / Craw

Super Spook

Scum Frog

 

Most outings I don’t rig anything else. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[BassinCNY]

I think I can get around 80% with vibrating jigs, soft stick baits and finesse worms.