What are your favorite cold water (40-50 degrees) techniques. Lures and presentations...?

 

Let's hear them!

Working a 3/8 jig nice and slow across the bottom.

I am quickly becoming a fan of a suspending jerkbait thanks to Mr. Kent (RoadWarrior) but split shot rigs, dropshotting, shaky head, lipless cranks (ripped off the bottom and allowed to fall) and square bills are pretty high up on my list as well. I caught quite a few on a jig early on during the winter, but now they seem to be moving away from that bite for some reason.

My favorites?  Or the best.  I'd prefer to use a suspending jerkbait, but sometimes it takes hair jigs or spoons to get bit.

Jerkbait, bladebait, finnesse jig.

Suspending a jerkbait, crawling a jig, and drop shots. all of these are very slow like the bass.

My favorites? Or the best. I'd prefer to use a suspending jerkbait, but sometimes it takes hair jigs or spoons to get bit.

And I thought you were a C-Rig kind of guy...LOL

Yes I am.  I rank C-rigs just above sticking a fork into my eye.

Good one Francho!   My most reliable producer in cold water is a wacky rigged 4" Senko tossed out on 6# test Fireline with a fluoro leader of the same size. Has never let me down, from ice out through mid spring. I always carry along jerkbaits and the drop shot as well, but day in and day out, that little Senko is a killer. Rivers are different. Then I'd rely not only on the jerkbait, but also blade baits. But you just never know.

Senkos work, my issue with them is that they take too long if you aren't sure where the fish are.  Once you know this, you can pick off many of the fish in the area, and they WILL be stacked up just after ice out.

Yes I am. I rank C-rigs just above sticking a fork into my eye.

ROFLMAO!!!!

I like a blade bait as once the water temp gets that high around here, the fish are moving and a moving bait will produce.  Immediately after ice out, I find that a small hair or maribo jig like a Fuzz-E-Grub tipped with PowerBait or Gulp minnow works well on stationary fish.