Changing Lures?

[helms83]

I fished my first tournament this weekend, afterwards analyzing everything that happened. In the Bass Masters magazine, the section 'Day on the Lake' the pro changes lures almost every cast. I stuck to mainly 5-7 lures/techniques throughout an entire day, rarely switching once in an area. My thought is maybe that last cast was in a bad spot, or maybe I didn't present it right, etc. so why give up so quickly on the technique. (Of course it was different if we beat the bank up and down with nothing, then I was switch my lures.

How often should you change lures? When is it time to give up on a certain technique and change it in an area?

[Jig Man]

When I am fishing alone I rig 6-10 setups.  I normally make 5 casts with one then change if I haven't had a strike..  When I have gone through the 6 on the deck, I go to the back and swap out for the others.

Once I get on some fish, I usually stick with that "type" of bait and try different colors.

[Grey Wolf]

When I am fishing alone I rig 6-10 setups. I normally make 5 casts with one then change if I haven't had a strike.. When I have gone through the 6 on the deck, I go to the back and swap out for the others.

Once I get on some fish, I usually stick with that "type" of bait and try different colors.

Great advice !!!!!!!!!!!

[Gangley]

I go much longer than 5 casts simply because I may be casting in an area with no fish and so I can't really eliminate that lure. 

I will generally have 3 setups: top water, middle, bottom.  I will fish them thoroughly, at least 20-30 min a piece, and then switch those out with different lures that fall in the same water columns.

For instance, in the morning I will start out with a frog, then go to a spinner bait, then go to a tex-rigged worm.  If those don't do it, I will start over but with a popper, then a crankbait, then a jig.  However, what i use for the middle water column is also used for the upper and lower columns as well.  As an example, I would start with a frog on top, then use a spinnerbait to create a bulge on the water's surface, then drop it down a bit and run it through the middle, then slow roll it on the bottom, then go to the worm.

Basically, I spend roughly 1 hour going through the 3 basic layers of the water column, then repeat with 3 different lures.  Once i catch a fish, i focus a lot of my attention on that depth and presentation style, and try to mimic it with other lures if necessary. 

[fishfordollars]

I pick up another rod several times before leaving a spot. Try to cover the entire water column before writing off a spot. i also will come back to certain areas at different times of day and again will try several lures to determine if there is any activity.

[senile1]

If I'm fishing new water (or from a tournament angler's perspective, if I haven't pre-fished and developed some patterns) I will usually start with a lure that can be fished quickly like a spinnerbait, crankbait, lipless crank, small swimbait, etc.  I can make a lot of casts with these baits in just 10 or 15 minutes so I can search a large area.  I usually spray the area with search lures and I'll probably throw at least 10 casts with each of those lures before I switch to something slower.  I will make sure I cover the water column and I usually won't leave a spot until I've thrown a jig or plastics.  I generally carry 6 rods that are setup to cover the water column.  As I fish an area and encounter no bites, my presentations become slower as the time spent in that area increases. 

The time also varies based on the cover and structure in an area.  If I believe an area has a large amount of fish-holding structure and fish should be there, I'll stay there a lot longer. 

[Bassn Blvd]

I fished my first tournament this weekend, afterwards analyzing everything that happened. In the Bass Masters magazine, the section 'Day on the Lake' the pro changes lures almost every cast. I stuck to mainly 5-7 lures/techniques throughout an entire day, rarely switching once in an area. My thought is maybe that last cast was in a bad spot, or maybe I didn't present it right, etc. so why give up so quickly on the technique. (Of course it was different if we beat the bank up and down with nothing, then I was switch my lures.

How often should you change lures? When is it time to give up on a certain technique and change it in an area?

Ridiculous!  If that was said, then don't believe everything you read.

[evrgladesbasser]

I pick up another rod several times before leaving a spot. Try to cover the entire water column before writing off a spot. i also will come back to certain areas at different times of day and again will try several lures to determine if there is any activity.

x2

[helms83]

Ok, so try the lure for several casts, then try different water columns.

I'm guessing if nothing happens, start again at the top with a different lure, and then repeat the process until a pattern starts to form?

[senile1]

Try different lures that cover all depths in the water column until you find the bass. I think that's what you're trying to say, right?

Seeking bass is an imperfect logical progression. If your electronics show fish or bait at a certain depth, start there. Make sure you are highly aware of your surroundings such as the current or wind direction on the water, turbidity of the water, water level (rising or falling), birds diving or fish busting the surface for shad, etc and use this to fine tune what you use. For example, if the water is really muddy with little visibility you can expect the fish to be very tight to cover on structure, so you would need to fish lures that you can cast to an exact spot where you think the fish would be located or lures that make a lot of noise and move a lot of water.