The One Dimensional Blues

[Redtail]

I had one of my best days ever Saturday.  We got 28 LMB, two over 5, two over 3 and alot of smaller keepers.  Every fish was caught on some kind of soft plastic bait, senkos, fat ikas, flukes, and Kreature type baits.  I'm not complaining because it was a great day, but I couldn't catch a fish on a crank bait or spinner bait if my life depended on it.  I've taken countless casts with them and have almost zip to show for it.  Oh well, my tackle bag will get a lot lighter only carrying soft plastics and an occasional top water.

One has to know his limitations!

[.ghoti.]

If you gotta be one-dimensional, that's a good dimension to be in. I know what you're saying. I don't know why I carry around all the stuff I do, when I end up with six rods loaded with plastics most of the time.

Sounds like a great day on the water. My Saturday outing got my three bites and two fish.

Cheers,

GK

[roadwarrior]

You know I fish soft plastics most of the time, too. However there are days and "times of day" when you just can't buy a bite on any finesse presentation. Some days in the spring and a lot of days in the fall, everything in the water is focused on schooling baitfish...period.

I usually fish some kind of reaction bait in low light, early and late. It seems to me, soft plastics really shine in bright daylight.

So, you might want to keep a couple of favorite lures with you, just in case!  

[Guest avid]

Weedy florida lakes are made for soft plastics.

It can be hard some days to fish much else.

but I love hard baits.  I think it's alot of fun to work a sammy, or popper on top.  Jerk baits, and crank baits are all high priority baits for me, because I really enjoy fishing them.

I never totally give up on hard baits.

I look at whats working with the soft bait and try to figure what hard bait might appeal in a similar way.

for example, if a fluke is catching them, a suspending jerk bait should work

IF a senko is killing em. a balsa crankbait is something I try.

I'm not saying it works all the time, or even most of the time.  but, I've got alot of hard baits that I love to throw and I have some kind of system that gives me an element of confidence.

[DrumintheSuds]

I carry very little in the way of crankbaits. In fact the only crankbait I carry is a Rapala original floater which isn't really a crankbait IMO.  I do major damage where I fish with plastic worms, topwater, a spinnerbait and my Rapala and that is ALL I need to catch fish. When my dad was teaching me to fish years ago he gave me what I could carry in my pocket and told me to learn how to fish what was in my pocket to perfection which is what  I did with the above mentioned lures. He told me that learning those handful of lures would save me a wad of cash one day and it has indeed. The only money  I spend on lures today is restocking what I know works in certain water on certain days at certain times of the year. I always have the smallest tacklebox in the boat and you can bet your last penny that if there is anything expensive in there it will be a top notch hook sharpener.

[Guest avid]

  Quote

that is ALL I need to catch fish

Stick around.

We'll introduce you to Mr. Bait Monkey.  You will never be the same.

Welcome to the dark side  

[Catt]

Last Thursday I throw Rat-L-Traps for 3 hours and caught 12 tight-eyes; made 2 casts with a worm and caught a 10.37# hawg.

Care to guess what I'll be throwing tomorrow?