Primus

I like the 316 wake junior or a large popper that spits a lot of water.

This comment is right on the money, especially when targeting largemouths. I used to catch a lot more fish a few years back when I was fishing 4" finnesse worms on Mojo rigs, throwing small grubs etc and on occasion catch a bigger fish with most being 12" to 16" bass. That said by throwing bigger plastics, bulky jigs etc and I'm usually trading fewer bites for a better average on the size of my fish. Most important part of your comment is that big fish tend to be located in key areas which will change based on season, weather patterns, forage preference etc and often but not always will be somewhat isolated spots like that clump of weeds found on a sandy bank near deep water or when fishing heavy grass it could be an inside cut where there is a mix of weeds etc. I also agree with your comment about studying and putting in time on the water, the majority of us can't read & breakdown water like a pro but if you give a good angler enough time he will usually figure something out.

I live in the SW part of the state and that might be the case on certain inland lakes where there are stunted fish. That said 25 lb plus bags are not uncommon on Great lakes smallmouth tournaments and I have caught 20 lb plus stringers largemouth on certain inland public lakes that I refuse to name. That said on most of our lakes the majority of bass will run 1-3 lbs. That said 4 & 5 lbers are out there, 4's are pretty common and myself and other fisherman are sticking a few 5 plus every year. Sniffles is correct when he said where you throw it is the most important criteria ( I usually go thick or deep in the summer), that said 10" ribbontail worms produce a larger average fish and in my view are more likely to appeal to larger fish. Surprisingly in the warm months it catches almost as many bass as the more common 6" & 7" sizes. Other baits that tend to produce a better grade of fish are deep diving cranks during the summer, jigs ( year round) , larger jerkbaits in the spring ( I like the 128 pointer ) , frogs in the slop, T rigged plastics in heavy grass and especially 6 inch plus swimbaits. One thing I try to do do is fish larger baits when possible, if fishing a square bill use a 2.5 or 3.5 size instead of a 1.5, larger size poppers and walking baits instead of their smaller counterparts especially from the period of late June through mid September. Keep plugging away, we have 1000's of lakes so don't be afraid to mix it up as your next favorite lake could be the one you haven't fished.

Way past a 100.

Can't believe that people are comparing Yum Dingers to Senko's. The Senko has a faster fall than the Yum product and in most situations that would be my preference. If a slower fall is needed then I might throw the Yum Dinger. That said I generally prefer more aggressive presentations such as swimbaits, cranks etc and I don't finesse as much as others do so I don't use as many stickbaits over the course of the season. Even though Senko's are a little pricey I have not seen it's equal so this is what I usually use.

I have not fished this bait but have used the R.I. Skinny Dipper & Berkely Grass Pig. I had the same issues with missing fish as I used Floro for these baits. What helped me was leaving the hook slightly exposed if using Floro in more open water or when fishing weedy cover I go to braid and rarely miss a fish when fishing it that way. Of course not everyone has the option of using multiple rod/ reel / line combos, if that's the case I would fish it on straight braid or add a Floro leader if you are concerned about the visiblity of braid in open water situations.

Get the Xcite over the Yum. No doubt the Yum will catch fish especially on the fall, what makes the Xcite better is that it will stand up off the bottom if you are using the right jighead . This secondary action I believe will catch more fish. Yum's Mightee worm is an inferior rip off the Xcite, if you don't believe me buy a bag of each and stick them on a jighead and observe them in a swimming pool and you will see the difference. I've had some very good outings with the Xcite worm, they may not have the marketing resources of Pradco /Yum but they have the better more original product.

Sshhh ! It's been working good for me during some tough bites. Go to Dichoso baits and have him make his Senko profile baits in a no salt shaky formula, by the way he will make it in any color that you want. Also works good on a 1/4 oz football style shaky head.I just started using this and I am having good results.

Just recently recieved an order of custom plastics from Dichoso baits and he was nice enough to throw in a few samples which included an 18" straight tail worm.I've also seen Upton's worms offered in 13",17" & 19" sizes. I'm curious if any of have thrown worms 13" or bigger and if you have had good results. Also, rigging details would be important if you can share. I was thinking of trying this as an oversized neko rig with about a 1/4 oz weight. Thanks

I forgot another fun little bait that is affordable and will get you bit which is the River to Sea 95 size V joint wake minnow, despite it's name its really a shallow running swimbait. I used to catch a lot of fish on it but took out of the rotation as I wanted to focus on larger baits, runs about 8$.

Also, when I started using braid for skinny dippers my hooking percentage went way up. I generally prefer a light keel weighted hook.

The young gun if you can get a rod/ reel combo that can handle baits in the 2 oz range spooled with app 20 lb line try the 6" Spro BBZ, gets a lot of bites and is very affordable for a hard swimbait. As you get older and if your financial resources permit look into hardbaits from 316 lure company , Matt lures, Bull Shad etc. One of the real affordable gems is the 6" River to Sea Bottom Walker, works great slow rolling in deep water. Another good soft swimbait is the Matt lures tournament series, he duplicates just about any forage that you care to imitate.

They are not real expensive I'd get a few of both.The baby attracts all types of bass while the full size usually gets me bites from 3 lb plus bass and is one of the best soft plastics for big bass. I especially like the full size under low light conditions or when fishing stained water.

I don't use the dropshot very often but have I been impressed with the Power Team lures JP Hammer Shad.

That has been my expierience as well.

Thanks for the tips & videos.

I appreciate you bringing up this topic, I bought a few flutter spoons a few years back from Lake Fork & Strike King but never got around to fishing them. I plan on changing that on the next few outings as I want to give the local fish a different look. I would appreciate any tips on retrieve, size , brand color etc.

Xcite bait Maximus on an Xlock jighook or a Titleshot mag jighead if it's weedy. Yum came out with their copy this year that they call the Mightee Worm. I like the Maximus batter because it floats, fish it like a big shaky head worm.

I used to live in the Ypsilanti- Milan area not too far from Canton, I think the fishing is a little tougher over there than it is in the SW side of the state where I currently reside. I'm guessing you are probably hitting Ford Lake & Belleville Lake. I remember catching decent ones in Ford but most of what I caught back then were on the small side. I was more of a casual angler in those days as I didn't have a boat at the time and other then shore fishing I couldn't fish on lakes unless some one took me. Anyways, that bigger fish is going to come. With the 1000's of lakes we have try a few different lakes to up your odds of catching some bigger fish. Good luck.

I live in Michigan, I have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than catching a 10 lber. I personally have set 7 lbs as the benchmark for a giant. I meet people who will call a bass a 5lber because " my fist fit in it's mouth "or other scientific methods of weighing fish That said I'm trying to break 6 lbs 6 oz which I've done twice, Lots of 5's with a personal best stringer of 24 lbs 10 oz. Last couple of seasons spending some of my on the water time throwing big swimbaits hoping to up my chance of catching a Michigan version of a giant.

If you have the right rod it's an easy bait to throw and retrieve. Though I agree that spring is when it's at its best it's done well for me at times through the summer and fall especially when it's overcast and windy. I use to hesitate at spending 50$ for one of these baits, now I own several.

I fish in Michigan so our fishing should be similiar to what you expierience in Indiana. I personally do not like the regular 6" Hudd but if you can get them and want that size try a Hudd 68 which is a 6" Hudd with the tail of an 8". Fishing deeper water from a boat I would go with a ROF 12. If you have the rod that can handle it go straight to a regular 8" Hudd which has caught a lot more fish for me than the regular 6" Hudd and is probably the best soft swimbait out there. I know your question was about Hudds but if your looking for a swimbait for slow rolling in deep water get a few of the 6" River to Sea Live Eye Bottom Walker. It's a boot style bait which seems to do well when the water is warmer in the summer and it's inexpensive, easy to get and cast like a rocket and is a good alternative if they are not biting the Hudd.

One pet peeve of mine is what I call " boat taxi ". I met a guy about 4-5 years ago that I offered to take fishing as I one time thing, well he keeps calling me to find out when I'm going and somehow has ended up being a sort of reluctant on my part fishing partner. I find him to be reasonably pleasant company however he does a lot of things that annoy me. What I call boat taxi is his annoying habit of wanting to quit after a couple of hours if things aren't going well for him and having me drop him off at the boat launch taking which is a time consuming pain particularly when I'm fishing my favorite lake which happens to be no wake. This usually cuts into my fishing time by at least 10 minutes or more depending on what part of the lake I'm in. He also takes too many phone calls while I'm fishing. I can understand the occasional call if a family issue comes up but other than that I don't want to hear your small talk. Since I'm venting, I can also say I'm real tired of his offering unsolicited advice on the spots I should be fishing etc. I'm certainly not claiming to be a pro level fisherman, that said I've caught way more 5 lb plus bass than he has so I feel since it's my boat anyway that if he doesn't like the spots I choose to fish go buy his own boat and he can decide where to go. Last but not least he has never offered to chip in for gas etc. and often leaves his water bottles etc on my boat so I can clean up after him. Admittedly I am extremely passionate about fishing and am probably not a good fit for someone who is more casual about it. So far I've been too nice to say anything but I guess we may need to have a little talk. Anyhow if you don't own a boat and someone invites you to fish along with him keep in mind whose making the payments, buying the insurance etc. and try to be a good partner instead of being an annoyance.

Pretty much everything, my biggest weakness are crankbaits & swimbaits.

My choice as well.