how often do you...

[jomatty]

...fish in a way that you know is not the most productive way for a particular situation.  i find myself often times going out of my way to fish in a way that is more fun for me like topwaters, frogs, or some other "fun"technique even if i know i can catch more and better fish on a senko, ika or some other soft plastic.  i also do the same thing with jigs, just because i enjoy fishing them.  i guess you tourny guys dont have this luxury when you are pre fishing or in a tournament but aside from that do you guys usually do this as well.

just curious,

matt

[slappy]

you aint alone on that one I always find myself going to a frog when I really know that there is a small chance something around here is going to hit it..........not to mention the hook set but thats why fishing is so much fun for me cause you can mess around when you want!

[x-trued]

I fish what I think will catch bass.  I think catching bass is more fun that fishing a lure.  That in no way discounts your practice, it is just my preference.

[JiggaMan512]

If the conditions are tellin me theres ANY chaqnce of a topwater situation, i will listen.

[Marty]

I also fish lures that I enjoy using even though they might not be the best at the time. We recreational anglers can afford to do that.

[Siebert Outdoors]

I switch alot between my lures.  I usually have about 5 rods rigged which I switch between alot.  I normaly dont fish one thing long unless it producing fish.

[Craw]

Good topic! I am guilty of fishing the pig and jig even when I know that another tecnique will produce more bites. Sometimes I feel kind of bad about it so it's nice to see others with the same problem. Sometimes the mood strikes me to catch as many bass as I feel is possible but more often than not I keep pitching that jig. On the days when I get those real quality fish on the jig then I sure am glad that I stayed with it.

[senile1]

I usually try to not do this, but at dawn and dusk on a smooth surface I have to fight the urge to always walk a Zara spook.  I don't think there's a technique more fun than watching a big largemouth crush a spook.  

[ThaSadDaddy]

I usually try to fish a lure that I belive will be productive, but I always love to pull out something topwater right before dark just to see what happens.  I have caught a few big ones doing this  

[Greg Harris]

I usually try to not do this, but at dawn and dusk on a smooth surface I have to fight the urge to always walk a Zara spook. I don't think there's a technique more fun than watching a big largemouth crush a spook.

I do the smae thing except with a Rebel Pop-R!!

[jomatty]

yeah for the majority of my fishing trips if i think there might be a topwater bite im throwing a sammy even if i think i can get a better bite going on something else.  also when in some slop or heavy weeds ill often throw a frog much more often than a big tube or something like that with a 1 oz weight as i find that to be productive at times but not as much "fun".  if im on a trip i deam "special" because of long drive, or a new lake im excited about then i usually go with what i think will work best.  sometimes i think that if all i was worried about was catching fish id never put down the senko rod...well maybe to pick up the ika stick lol.  anyways interesting others do this as well and interesting that it seems to be topwaters and jigs that we think are somuch fun.

matt

[Koikus]

Well Craw and I have a lot in common there. I guess some people would call it not being versatile and others might say I'm just "stuck in a rut", ha ha. At times I suppose that's true. Once I was fishing with a buddy and he was catching the heck out of 1-2# bass on a weedless spinner. I started throwing a brown jig-n-pig, and he scoffed saying "that just looks like a big clump of weeds". Well, 30 minutes later I had a 5 1/2 pounder in the boat. But honestly, if they're just not interested in the jig or whatever I'm throwing, I'm not afraid to switch baits.....usually.

[Rattlinrogue]

If there's even a chance that a bass may bite a topwater lure,I'll give it a chance.It's just a fun way to catch 'em.Also love pitching laydowns and docks.I usually give in and fish a bait more suited for conditions after a while.

[mudcatwilly]

I look for topwater conditions first.  Even if the conditions are wrong, I'll make a few casts anyway just in case I catch a bass daydreaming.  After that, I go with what I think the conditions dictate.  If that doesn't work, I go to my confidence baits, worms and slow rolling spinners.  I believe a bass will bite a worm anytime.

[Dane]

First and foremost fishing should be fun.  

This is a great topic because the way you fish is a small insight onto a personality.  

Which leads to a question that was onced posed to me.

Would you rather spend all day catching little guys, or wait all day, and land a lunker?

Obviously everybody would want somewhere in the middle, but given the two options, i would take the lunker.

Your thoughts?

[jomatty]

id take the lunker every time.  i catch a ton of bass but relatively very few that i consider to be lunkers (5lbs + where i live).

i do try to go with the lures i like but if i cant get anything going i definetly will switch.  a big part of the fun of fishing to me is figuring out what pattern the bass are in and trying to guess what and why they are doing.  

its the days that i can catch some fish on a topwater or jig  but could catch  more on something else that i go against the grain.

matt

[Sam]

When the bite gets slow I go to a crankbait, spinnerbait or a buzzbait just for a change of pace and to do something different before going back to the slower type of fishing.

Although I know that the odds of making a hookset can be much lower using these presentations it reviatilizes me so I am able to go back to fishing slow.

This happens when you are a "Type A" behavior person and it is difficult to fish s-l-o-w.

[FlyRod]

Great question, in that it should cause many of us to examine our fishing habits.

I suggest we consider the question as follows: A-Are we fishing for food? B-Are we fishing in a competetive scenario? C-Are we fishing for fun? D-Are we fishing to learn?

If the answer is A or B, then it's reasonable to assume that a fisherman will "Dance with who brung him". In other words, if he/she is fortunate enough to have found a productive bite on a certain combination of lure and presentation it would be foolish to change either unless one is a competitor who has a limit in the well and is seeking some means of attracting larger fish for culling purposes. If fishing for food, and having enough to meet that need, one might try different lures and presentation in order to catch and release fish purely for entertainment OR cull in order to bring home more "bacon" within legal limits.

If the answer is C or D, then one should, fairly often, switch from a productive lure or technique in order to conduct "R and D" (Research and Development).

Why? Well, here is the perfect no-pressure situation wherein to learn and develop lure selections and techniques one might have shied away from before, perhaps due to ignorance of their potential or methods of employment.

One of my partners, a fine gentleman with whom I've fished for several years, has often said "WHY are you changing (lure and/or technique) when you're knockin' 'em dead with what you're using now?"  The answer is always..."R and D, pal, R and D"! Now, he'll admit that we've both benefitted from my wanderings.

"Senile" touched upon another valid reason for a switch away from a lure/technique that is producing to one that is purely speculative. He's right; Nothing gratifies our hunter-killer gene like a fish's felonious-with-malice-aforethought assault on a topwater lure. Hmmmm...what a coincidence!

Last Sunday,  while fishing with Rebbasser in the darkness of the early AM, I switched from a T-Rigged 5" soft Senko knockoff to a Super Spook Jr. I had caught 4 bass on the stick, one which turned out to be the "FOD" (Fish Of The Day), but that old primal need for a topwater strike became irresistible...again.

I caught a dink on that SS Jr, another on a smaller TW (Luhr-Jensen Johnny Rattler) then went back to softies, stick and worm in varying sizes, colors, and shapes. Please note, however, that even the soft stick represented some "R and D" in that I'd carefully inserted a small rattle therein, right behind the bend of the hook. I'm convinced it helped...and I LEARNED something!

This wasn't a day during which I wandered very far afield from the comfort zone, to be honest. There wasn't time. Had we been willing to suffer the increasing heat and humidity any longer, however, I hope I'd have dragged out some weapon that has thus far been ignored under similar conditions. Instead, we had the good sense to say "We've caught 14 basses *****, so we leave as winners."

What can I honestly say I should have tried? Well, I really need to do more C-rig fishing. I need to refine my techniques with cranks and lipless cranks. I need, REALLY need, to get with the Chatterbait craze. I need to fish frogs, both the traditional types and the buzzing type, until I'm confident in them.

I also confess to an almost pathological aversion to jigs :-[...but I'll work on it, I promise.

Be safe,

FR

[RODBENDER]

Always for me .....Every time i hit the water i throw my spinnerbait ,,,anytime of the year .....that's just the way i fish ....extremely clear water and really deep water is the only things that change me ..

No telling what i may end the day using but i always start with my favorite ..

Yall have a nice day !

[jomatty]

yeah i spend a lot of time on R&D.  im just ending a self imposed ban on senkos because they were so productive for me that i found myself not throwing other lures and not growing as an angler.  while a senko is not one of the more fun styles it is by far my most productive (and catching fish is fun no matter what your using).  

when i want to conduct specific R&D i will walk to the river or pond with one rod (which i very rarely do) and force myself to fish one technique and learn about it.  this is how i learned jigs and now they are one of my favorite lures.

matt

[Fish Chris]

I almost always fish lures (swimbaits) which I know will not catch the most fish. But then, I'm not after "the most fish" anyway.

Will I fish a lure that does not increase my odds at the biggest fish ? Almost never. To me "fun" is the C/P/R of a giant. If I do anything that lessens my chances of that, I feel like I'm spinning my wheels, and wasting valuable time on the water.

Peace,

Fish

[roadwarrior]

I usually hit my ponds a couple of times a week and before I go "real" fishing on the weekends. At least once a week and sometimes more, I fish something different. If I were interested in always having the best chance of catching the biggest bass on a given day, I would only fish soft plastics. I've spent a lot of hours fishing jigs this year because I want them to become my "go to" lures. I'm still working on that program.

[Bassassasin12]

first off, flyrod, thats one of the longest posts I have ever seen on here. Secondly to respond to the post I find myself fishing topwater baits all the time when the worm bite or soft plastic bite is on just because it is more "fun" to me as well.

[gettinbreezy]

My first post ladies and gents...I have the fever of ALWAYS fishing topwater. If Its not a Spro frog, its a popper. If its not a Buzzbait its a torpedo. After about an hour of not catching anything I will switch to the texas rig. Topwater is just to enjoyable to pass up. I'ld rather have the excitement of getting a monster hit on the frog than having the luxury of cathing ten bass on a crankbait or what not.