alzun664

One important thing I'd like to add is if you're gonna grab some Terminator spinnerbaits/quick skirts make sure they are the PowerPulse kind. From my experience the non PowerPulse Terminator skirts tear very easily whenever you try to change them.

It depends on the kind of water clarity you normally fish in. Clear water I'd go with a white spinnerbait with silver blades (willow/willow) and chartreuse or any other bright colored spinnerbait with gold blades (colorado/willow) for stained water. If you fish muddier water or at night then you want to prioritize vibration over flash and I would go for a black spinnerbait with a black or gold colorado blade. One thing I like to do is focus mainly on the color of the color of the body and the first blade closest to the line tie because you can always swap out the skirt and blade attached to the swivel for more combination options without having to own a ton of spinnerbaits.

As said above you'll want to tie a uni knot or some kind of line to line knot to connect your mainline to your leader instead of a swivel. Be sure to practice it a few times before you get on the water. All that extra hardware is visible to the fish and also weighs down your presentation, you can also get away with a longer leader when you don't have to worry about casting with a swivel attached. Having a longer leader also means you don't have to constantly retie a new one whenever it gets nicked. Being a bank angler I use a snap for all of my hardbaits, cranks, and topwaters and have even caught fish using them on jigs. I like the versatility of changing lures quickly without having to retie. The only things I wouldn't use a snap for are spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, texas rigs, swimjigs and hollowbody frogs to keep them as weedless as possible.

I have fished similar ponds and turn to swim jigs or topwater hollow body frogs in those conditions.

I think something natural like a shad type color and something bright like firetiger/chartreuse are really the only two 'necessary' colors. That said, if you are looking to expand on colors of the same bait, I would recommend picking out something flashy and something translucent for ultra clear waters if applicable. I have made the mistake of buying hardbaits in "different" colors that ended up being too similar when I should have gone for more variety.

I only upgrade hooks if they have lower quality than VMCs (ex. zara spook). If the lure already comes with VMCs (rapala) or Mustads (rat l trap/flicker shad) I'll leave those on. The only other time I would change the hooks is if I want a different style than what they come equipped with.

I leave my weed guards stock on all my jigs, can't say if its an advantage or a disadvantage but I haven't had any issues with them.

Plano for me. As for favorite models, I've been meaning to upgrade to their 3600 guide series tackle bag. I'm still lugging around an old 3 tray Plano box stuffed with way more tackle than it's probably supposed to carry.

I tend to lean towards brown jigs more often than not (PBJ to be exact). I do better on those so its more of a confidence thing for me. That said, If I see the craws on the body of water I'm fishing have a green hue, then I'll switch to a jig color that matches them. If we're talking just jig heads then I don't think it matters on its own as much as the overall presentation.

If its affecting the action of the bait, then I'd boil them and dry them out straight. If not then I wouldn't bother with it.

I'd go with a 1/2 oz dirty jigs bluegill swim jig with a zoom fat albert grub trailer in green pumpkin. You can throw it pretty much anywhere and work it from top to bottom.

I don't have any experience with squarebill crankbaits in particular so I'm looking to stock up on them. 5-7$ is my target price range but it consider slightly more expensive options. I'd also appreciate responses to these questions: When should I throw this type of lure instead of other options? (ex. swim jig, non squarebill crank) Plastic or Balsa? What makes this lure effective compared to non-squarebill cranks? I fish from the bank in mostly stained to clear waters no deeper than 15ft.

I try to match whenever possible, but have also caught fish mixing it up (PBJ jig with summer craw trailer). If I could only choose one way to go, i'd match. It gives me a little more confidence knowing the matching colors will help the jig to look bulkier overall.

The Pit Boss is my go-to trailer. Might not be as innovative or realistic as other soft plastics, but they flat out work and are a total steal at that price.

Favorite lipless cranks for me would be the Rattlin' Rap, and the Rat L Trap. Color wise, its hard to beat the chrome/blue. I haven't had any durability issues with either lure, which is great considering they're both only around $4-5 and they catch fish. I've had good success on them so I don't see any reason to switch to brands that cost over twice as much.

Rapala Husky Jerk

As far as colors for lipless cranks go, I would suggest getting a chrome/blue, red/craw color, and a chartreuse or fire tiger for stained water. Those 3 should cover you just about anywhere. Lipless cranks are a reaction style bait so don't get too carried away on colors, especially if you're just starting out. Size wise, I throw a 1/2oz 90% of the time. I haven't tried the Warpigs, but I do like a Red Eye shad. As well as the Rattlin' Rap and the Rat L Trap.

Hello everyone. I have been fishing for as long as I can remember, but it's only in the past 3-4 years that I have been getting out on the water as much as possible. I'm from Chicago (Midway area) and I fish as far north as Busse Lake, and as far south as LaSalle Lake. I'm always looking for new places to fish and new things to learn.