On 1/10/2016 at 3:04 PM, WillBass24 said:

Topwater is my favorite busy far. I love watching. Them explode on a little tiny torpedo 

all day until one hits it

Torpedos are the most fun to fish. 

They hit a craw color lipless like a train regardless of size. 

The most successful is a Gitzit during the spring. 

All my smallmouth fishing is done in a river and anything that resembles a crawdad hopped off the bottom does the trick . The old Renegade craws from Wal Mart worked real well but any craw will do plus jigs , tubes and hula grubs .

2 hours ago, scaleface said:

All my smallmouth fishing is done in a river and anything that resembles a crawdad hopped off the bottom does the trick . The old Renegade craws from Wal Mart worked real well but any craw will do plus jigs , tubes and hula grubs .

Same. If im not using a 2.5"-3.5" tube im using a craw. I love Yum craw daddys, and cabin creek express craws.

Although I love tubes, I have to say that my favorite is a home tied hair jig.  Just started tying my own because they work so well in cold water and moving water. There's just something about catching fish on something I made that makes it more enjoyable.

For me its buzz baits. Last year it was my top producer for big smallmouth. 

10 minutes ago, Redskin94 said:

For me its buzz baits. Last year it was my top producer for big smallmouth. 

Never caught one on a buzz bait but I bet it's a blast!

4 hours ago, WI_Angler1989 said:

Never caught one on a buzz bait but I bet it's a blast!

I love it. Really good luck around swift water . Last float of the year I caught around 40 with the biggest being right at 19in. 

5 hours ago, WI_Angler1989 said:

Never caught one on a buzz bait but I bet it's a blast!

A few tips for the buzzbait:

If throwing towards the bank, hit the bank or right at it. I've seen folks throw towards the bank and are 2-3' short, no hits. It makes a difference!

Throwing to logs, etc- throw well beyond and bring it to the log. Once at the log, kill it for a second or do a quick half spin of the reel to make the blade lift/kick water. Will usually cause the reaction strike with the change in cadence.

Cadence- don't just throw and reel the same speed, Change it up, fast, slow, stop and let it sink a few inches. The change in retrieve drives them crazy. I try to think of a buzzbait as a creature that fell in the water, can't swim well, and is trying to get away from a predator.

I'm new to targeting bronzebacks but caught my pr on a 5.5 inch smelt swimbait targeting Atlantic Salmon.

Small one-inch white grub on a 1/62nd jig head on 6-pound  or less) test thrown into the rocks and letting the current bring it back.

Vicious strikes.

Second best is a black and blue Bitsy Jig thrown all over the place on 8-pound (6 if you can get away with it) fluorocarbon line.

I catch most of mine on a t-rigged finesse worm or 4" senko with a 1/16 or 1/8oz bullet weight, but my favorite way is to catch them on an s-waver or a small flipping jig. The big smallies in the river I fish act like largemouth, they don't mess with crayfish, gizzard Shad in the 5-8" range are their preferred food. 

Biospawn vile craws, t-rigged

JERKBAITS!!!

Cranking is fun but drop shotting on a medium light rod and thine line is the absolute best for hard fought battles. Plus I rarely lose fish with a nosehooked smallie from a dropshot hook compared to a mouth full of trebles.

3 1/2" senkos for shallower water and a 1/8 Oz bitsy bug with a yum grub for deeper water but I mostly fish in rivers.

On 1/10/2016 at 2:34 PM, A-Jay said:

Right here ~ Morning, Noon & All Night.

A-Jay

I was just about to say this lure to. Especially over there beds in the shallow.  Omg crazy fun

On 1/10/2016 at 2:56 PM, bowhunter63 said:

Yea same here in Missouri,That old rebel crawdad crankbait probably caught as many as anything else.

I did not know rebels actually worked, I thought they were just a cheap brand

Give one try,They really work good in the rivers.Bang em around rocks and Smallies tear em up.

Any form of topwater has to be my favorite for any species. 

2nd would be deep drop shotting on my 7'6" ML Aetos w/6lb test.

I too like topwater fishing for them but they're not always in an aggressive mood to strike.  A tube is a pretty good all-purpose smallmouth lure and it can be fished shallow, deep, slow, fast, weedless, etc.

The Ned rig has been my most productive for river smallies by far. My favorite is what works. I've also caught a bunch on rooster tails and small jerkbaits. I got some Pop-Rs to try this upcoming season.

My two favourite ways to catch sallies.  Cranks and a split shot rig with a 6 or 7" worm.

I have the most fun with a huddlebug and trying to make it look as real as possible.

AC Shiners all the way to the bank