scaleface

Back when pork chunks were available I almost always had black jig brown chunk or vice versa . When I started using plastic trailers more frequently a black and blue salt craw on a black jig for stained to clear water and a black and chartreuse salt craw on black jig for stained to muddy did the trick.I didnt know black and blue was a popular option for muddy water until joining this form .

I'm in a big bass funk . The lake I frequent is in one of those cycles where the big ones are rare . Add in a little bad luck where I missed a couple and I'm stuck at four lbs tops for the year . This lake is going to rebound in a big way . Theres a lot of two lbers that are growing steadily . So enjoy catching those big ones , they seem to come in streaks for me .

This past trip I caught several fish with a follow up cast . I was fishing a Stanley Ribbet and would fire it right back out there . Instead of retrieving it on top , I jerked it under the water, walk the dog style .

I lost one of my Rapala CRR14 last week . Just picked up three on ebay for 20 dollars in green craw . Not the color I wanted but it should do okay . Its been a really hot lure this late spring / early summer on points , brush and ledges .

I like black and blue in clear water , in dirty black and chartreuse .

Bass

How deep do they dive ?

I have a Ripplinn Redfin ,probably 25 years old . Another lure I havent used . Bomber Long A's I have used under the surface with a slow steady retrieve and a high rod tip . I primarily used it post spawn , right before the bass headed deep . They tend to recover in cover and shallow on points leading from spawning coves to deep on points . Another bait I have waked, surprisingly , is an old Rebel popper . Its twice the size of a Pop R . I'd reel it in steady just under the surface . It would push a big wake in front of the lure and shimmy at the right retrieve speed . The biggest Kentucky bass I ever caught was while doing that in standing timber .

I still like a Dalton Special .

Never heard of it .

They work well on largemouth . One day I forgot my soft plastics and dug trough my gear and found a bag of black Fats Gizits . I Texas rigged them and had a good day catching largemouth deep on points and in shallow brush .

I do the same thing .

? I agree .

Buzzbait

Do you peg your sinkers ? That helps a lot in heavy brush . Also I dont texpose , or skin hook when fishing that sort of brush , I bury the point inside the worm .

After yesterday I have to say the Frog bite can turn on any time . I was on them them at dawn then the bite shut off . After fishing points , ledges and brush piles with just a dozen little ones caught I went back to toads . It was a bright sunny day and around 1 o'clock the switch was turned back on . It was a whoom whoom here and a whoom whoom there , here a whoom there a whoom...

Other than using large lures , I dont know how to target large bass . They could be anywhere .Looking back at where I have caught them the covers and structures run the gamut . Fishing in waters that harbor a good population of lunkers is the best way to catch them . Put lures in likely spots and one will catch both , numbers and size .

With numbers comes size .Went today and caught 40 with 10 over 15 inches . Nothing over two and a half lbs but had one in the 6 to 7 lb range .

Look at the top baits thrown at The Elite tourney on Eufaula . Everybody throwing a worm and there were a lot of them , were throwing some variation of purple .

How many of you remember the Uncle Josh Spring Lizard ? If I was having a tough day I would tell the person I was with " If Im not catching any bass I might as well not be catching big bass " then put a spring Lizard on a jig . I caught some dandies after doing that .

I noticed that the anglers who had high ownership at Chickamauga had high ownership on Eufala . A lot of people didnt change their picks . I had Buddy on Chickamauga , changed it to Hartman who had a good event .If I had stuck with my Chickamagua lineup I would have had a 1st instead of 9th 12th both events 36th instead of 29th 21st instead of 68th 10th both events

All lures work . Pick the right lures for the conditions . One is not going to catch many large basses with a Pop R when the bass are 20 foot deep in a brush pile . One is not going to catch many large bass with a 6xd when the bass are 1 foot deep in lily pads .

I have the fish grip , the rapala looks very similar . I use them all the time with treble hook lures . No reason to take a chance . A little bass got me two years ago, two hooks dug in and it was still flopping .

I like to use a regular offset hook and I run it all the way through the worm to create a channel , then back it inside . I have a decent hook up ratio with Texas rigs .

I fish them from one foot to the depths up tp 40 foot . Could go deeper if need be . Use them just about everywhere, They excel in heavy cover .I pitch and cast with the same rod . An eight inch worm pairs up well with a 1/4 ounce tungsten or lead weight . I mainly employ a lift and drop retrieve .