GAMEOVER

I sorta agree with what you saying but then again I dont.. there are some what you called "masters" of certain lures who have proven they can use them very effectively while even other pros cant. One example would be David Fritts with Crankbaits. Id also have to say im sort of like RoLo by what he said.. I fish and try to master what I like and what fits my style. Crankbaits, Jerkbaits mostly, and Jigs are not for me. So what do I do? I fish with Crankbaits and Jerkbaits trying to constantly reach that level of insanity with em.

Well we have the two most desired Large and Smallmouth Bass species (cant think of the scientific name) here in Michigan as do quite a few (actually most) other states. I find the smallies in Michigan will hit all my DT crankbaits where as the Largemouth will hit about 75% of them. Another problem I have, and im sure others do in Michigan, is crankbaits getting destroyed by Pike. I almost just lost a crankbait I had just replaced and put Sure Set hooks on because the Pike will just hammer them if they're in the area. On a side note: You guys dont use as many lures for smallmouths? Tubes? WTH, some of you who said that I know you have some nice stuff (Lucky Craft, etc) and I know Smallies will hit XR-10s which is a pretty good size jerkbait as they have for me. Im suprised to hear that from you guys, or maybe im understanding you wrong.

Perch, Salmon, Trout, and Walleye all our located abundantly in my area. Also, Bluegill is very good.. most people dont know that and overlook them but if you havent tasted it you are missing out big time. Fish I absolutely cant stand to eat are (in order) Cat Fish, Muskie, Pike, and Bass. Bass dont taste too bad but I admire them too much to eat them.

I semi-recently just learned about his life story.. hes from my home state (Michigan) and does a lot of good things here for younger Bass anglers. Great guy.

I read somewhere where someone said that LM Bass will take baits you use to catch SM Bass. I find that to be the opposite for me where SM Bass will take LM Bass baits I use but not vice versa. For example Spooks and Pop-Rs have caught a decent number of smallies for me compared to LM's. Also when it comes to color selection I find smallies to take a wider color spectrum of lures compared to Largemouths. Can anyone clear this up? Im really pretty curious as it would help if I want to buy one lure from a company just to have and not plan on buying anymore from that particular company, ofcourse id want the more versatile color.

If your new to crankbaits and are set on the Rapala DT as your weapon of choice and are only getting 1 color just get Baby Bass and buy some Sure Set trebles.

Crankbaits get.. Rapala DT-4s (dont forget the Sure Set hooks the DTs from Fritts will produce without em but add Sure Sets and their as good as gold) Manns Baby 1 Minus Lucky Craft LVR is LC's best cb series imo.. Jerkbaits get.. Rapala X-Raps Rapala Husky Jerks Lucky Craft Pointers

Trust him on the Fat Ika suggestion.. I never in my life had such a plastic that produced so much. Once you buy a bag or two you will probably get hooked.

Ofcourse it would.. unless your completely emptying out a body of water which isnt that hard to do in some places. As a matter of fact, thats exactly what I did when a group of guys cleared my honey hole out in my backyard.

I tell you what, that sounds like crankbait heaven to me. Its a proven fact that Bass expecially larger ones will eat the forage in its home body of water. Match the forage when getting a good crankbait like the Rapala DT w/ Sure Set hooks or your favorite (whichever you prefer) and do some hardcore pattern fishing. Some people dont believe crankbaits will catch big Bass but let me tell you, I know for a fact, that they do. Also if they are really that hard for everyone to catch I suggest you get something like a swimbait from http://www.mattlures.com. Id deffinatly take fishing a place like that where you dont get many bass for days but when you do they are big rather than a pond or lake taken over by smaller Bass. Trust me on this one to, get an all black jointed Jitterbug and fish it with a slower then faster retrieve. Dont give up on it, fish it every chance you get when the water is calm rather it be a week or a month. Show me pics of that hawg. BTW, ive also heard Florida is one of the hardest states to "pattern fish" in. I have no idea why even David Fritts mentioned something about it but that doesnt mean it wont work. If you have two rods try rigging a Fat Ika in watermellon seed on one and throwing it out there then continue on pattern fishing.

Matt, I truely admire your swimbaits and I do plan to purchase a couple just to have but in all honesty I cannot picture myself fishing with such a thing all the time. For one your lures are just so realistic that I dont feel it would present enough challenge for me to really get into them as I do other baits. Id like to encourage you to make some other baits aside from swim baits but include your level of quality at a reasonable price. Im talking about crankbaits and jerkbaits primarly. Take your time and do some R&D and come out with solid baits in the categorys I mentioned above that look just as amazing as your swimbaits. I for one would buy them off you if they met my needs like the Rapala DT series (crankbaits) does and the Lucky Craft lures (jerkbaits) do just for the fact their made in the USA and by the so called "little-man".

Be safe man.. see ya later.

To be honest guys, I really wouldnt join the party and fly down to Cali to go after that record catch when I know there are some excellent bodies of water in this country that are just as likely to hold something like that. Down south has proven its size, Texas has proven its lakes, etc etc.. if it were me.. and I just had to go somewhere.. id go down south. Smallie action is decent in Michigan but our Largemouths are more noteable. Down south with the better climate and mulitiple bodies of water would be heaven for me. Id go down south over Cali and Texas for sure.. numerous records have already hailed from there and just because a fish was found in Cali everyones going bonkers. Id bet the record is closer to some of you then you might think. If you guys know the odds of catching a record Bass then you know its very very slight and to catch it in the same body of water where it was pulled out is even riskyer to me because anyone could have just caught it and did whatever with it. Not worth dealing with 100s of anglers all pileing into one place throwing the same lures. My best advice for this topic: If you can afford a trip to another state to fish you can afford a qualified and expierenced guide. Ive talked to a few great people on here who have given me names and locations. I will deffinatly be calling them up if I can get to those areas just for the 1st time. Going down there with nobody after never being there is probably going to be like running around blindfolded. I've lived and fished in Lake St.Clair (MI) all my life. I know a lot of spots that lots dont know about on that lake and I been fishing it for a very long time for someone my age, I still am finding new spots on this place every single year. A guide is deffinatly the way to go when your on virgin waters for your first time. After that first time id go alone probably. BTW, if you do come to Lake St.Clair you must be aware of national laws. You can find yourself in serious trouble if you winde up in Canada without proper paperwork.

Kent, you amaze me with your knowledge.. most out of towners that come here go straight for Lake St.Clair or Lake Erie sometimes the Detroit river. I would love to fish where you live you must have some amazing smallie spots down there compared to here.

I find that sad, more people better start sticking up for our enviromental standards and fresh water control programs or this sport will just get worse. Expecially with all the new people getting into fishing with half of them being dips killing Bass, taking hawgs out and ruining waters. What a waste.. I know this is america, I know you have the right to keep your catches but if your doing something other then eating them (Bass isnt the best tasting fish) your gonna hear my mouth and hear it loud. Sorry for your loss if it is one to you.

Ive had great success going back to plastics during those days. Slap on a Fat Ika in watermellon seed and hang on tight.

You dont even need to have fished a lot of states to have heard amazing things about them from reputable sources. States right off the bat that I have heard tons about is Tennessee, Texas, California, and Florida. Florida seems to be one of those Bass fishing states that you either hate or love. You also have to take a look at Michigan more fresh water then any place in the world. Id say just about every state has a spot thats great just some are more known as others are not. The hot spot right now though I think is in California where everyones trying to catch the world record.

That guy hasnt a clue what he's talking about.. probably used the DT crankbaits a couple times if even that.

Rapala makes a crankbait series called the DT Sure Set series. Theres a series of 5 lures for their 4 depths of the same lures. What I and many others do though is buy the hooks that are on the Sure Set series DT crankbaits and put them on our regular DTs as its the same body. You can get info about the Sure Set series and the DTs at http://www.rapala.com if youd like to find out more info about the hooks themselves you can check out http://www.VMCHooks.com VMC are the same hooks that come on Lucky Craft lures.

Rapala DT (Sure Set hooks) series crankbaits Rapala X-Raps Rapala Husky Jerks Lucky Crafy Pointers Yo-Zuri Pins Minnows ZOOM Flukes more..

I agree with Kent, jerkbaits are excellent baits year round but in fall they really can come to life. I highly recommend Lucky Craft Poiners, Rapala X-raps, Rapala Husky Jerks, Flukes, etc. The Largemouth Bass you will have to give some time. They usually go on a feeding frenzy in packs and chase all the bait fish inturn forcing them to corners and creeks to feed massively on them. This is when you will nail all the Largemouths you want. Look at the body of water your fishing in, find the forage in it and when you do fish there because chances are there's a bunch of Bass right behind them.

I dont know how many of you have been following my progress about restoring my honey hole to its previous state that is right outside my back apartment door. To date, I have released 47 Bass with 32 of them in the 4+ lb range. I have also caught and released literally hundreds of Bluegill and Sunfish. I feel I have made a huge impact on this ponds enviroment and I feel really good about it. I know very few if any in my area will respect what I did since there's a few dip stick anglers around but I have made wood structures that I have released while in the darkness of night in spots where none of these same dipshits fish. I feel I can stop and call this project completed. Now off I go to go throw some crankbaits, thanks for reading.

If you dont have those types of live prey near you in your area, as a rule of thumb, you shouldnt use them. Like here in Michigan we have no lizards etc, but we have small rats and stuff they fish do and will eat.

Nice post, thanks.

That is absolutely hilarious..