scaleface

I dont have a favorite , I buy whatever is available and sharpen them if need be . I do like my hooks to swing freely and keep them in place with a rubber disc poked out of a bicycle inner tube with a 1/4 inch hole punch . Those little disc are handy .

Summer and fall I catch bass deep with cranks and own quite a few that will get me there . 22 foot is the deepest I have caught them with a diving bait , that being a Berkely Dredger 25.5 . Deeper than that I have caught them with a Red Eye Shad . The answer to your question is zero . If I own a lot of baits its because they produce .

I got on a bite last year , out on a point that was new to me . I could see fish on the depth finder and suspected they were bass but could not entice a bite . I kept adjusting and coaxed a few bites with a paddletail grub and jig . Instead of lifting and letting it fall back down, I lifted then held my rod still allowing the lure to glide back toward me .

My cousin and I were fishing tournaments . The first of the year I caught every bass in our limit . The next tourney he caught them all .

Same

I rig them tail down because its more fore-giving and tracks truer .

Whenever you see experts talk about deep cranking , they always say to make a super long cast to get the most depth out of the lure . That is true but not always necessary . I often use a bait that dives way deeper than the bottom being targeted and make much shorter cast . It is quicker and more efficient . A Dredger 17.5 in 10 foot of water will not require a Hail Mary, just a normal toss . Deep cranking has been the hardest genre for me to get decent at .

I'm planning on fishing different waters a little more this year , There are small conservation dept lakes within 70 miles of me I have never fished . Those little lakes offer outstanding fishing .

For me , fishing from shore , everything is in play except for diving crankbaits . What is the type of cover that you encounter ? Weeds , rocks , trees...

I usually take 5 to 7 baitcasting combos and 1 spinning setup just in case I need it . That lone spinning setup has to covers all light-line techniques .and it still doesnt get used a whole lot .

I use a short arm spinnerbaits as drop baits in relatively snagless water . If there is wood I opt for a long arm . I also use heavy single spin with a small blade in deep water .

My dad had a Marlin lever action 30/30 when I was a boy . It was my favorite gun , reminded me of the "Rifleman" . Sadly it was stolen .

Being bass like to hang around stuff I'll look for visible cover and fish it .

When I was little I wanted a Mitchell 308 bad but never got one for some reason .

Its a video by Hellabass .

I would like to take a look at all of those plugs .

I have witnessed smallmouth turn down a plastic worm then jump all over a plastic craw .

I'll toss a squarebill depending on how fresh the tree is . A new tree with lots of spindly branches , I will most likely hang the crankbait first cast but on an old tree a squarebill will navigate through it fairly well . Texas rigs , jigs , spinnerbaits and buzzbaits are my usual choices . Another thing ,new wood with lots of small limbs also draw smaller bass , crappie and bluegill . They like to nip at any appendages or bright colored tails .On those places a Texas rigged stick worm is what I like to throw .

I recently watched a Youtube video 'dont remember who made it" but they use a flat beaver style bait for a trailer . It keeps the hook upright and not roll over when encountering hard cover like wood where as other trailers cause the bait to roll over .

You pick some long shots . I tried playing that game too and had the same success as you .

...and the Musky Jitterbug . I bought one a long time ago for night fishing and never caught a bass . I did hear some loud explosion's but I dont know if they were bass or spooked carp . Now it is on display with some of my other lures .

I use those Strike King Mini Spins below a dam in heavy current . To add weight I have put a bullet sinker on the line , a rubber core sinker on the shaft or a short piece of stick worm as a trailer .

I'm going to have to go lure specific here . Bagleys use to make a striped bass sized shad crankbait . It looked just like a shad . I have caught numerous bass with large shad in their gullets , so naturally thought this would be a good big bass bait . Nada . I threw that bait until the lip fell off and didnt catch a single fish .

tight

Crankbaits can be fished very slow . My top cold water lure is a crank fished on steep rocky sunny banks retrieved parallel and agonizingly slow .