Are we on a walleye forum?  This is a hot debate in that world, but I'm surprised that it was raised on a bass forum. 

 

Artificials are obviously much more efficient for numbers of bass.

 

The only time that I feel like I am dependant on live bait is on the ice.  It can make a huge difference there, some days.

I catch way more on live bait that I do artificial.  In fact I have started fishing live bait almost 70% of the time now with my son.  I get the same rush when that red/white bobber darts under water as I do when I feel something smack my fluke.  

2 hours ago, Columbia Craw said:

Can you catch an alligator with a rubber chicken?

Maybe not but at least he'll look like he sees the humor in it.

I think fishing with lures relies on setting the hook before the fish realizes it's not something edible.  Not always of course, but generally.  Whereas live bait is actually food, so they are going to hold on and swallow if you give them time.  If I was fishing to eat, or teaching someone to fish, I would choose live bait.  Otherwise I would use lures.

4 hours ago, Columbia Craw said:

Can you catch an alligator with a rubber chicken?

We know you can catch them on a rubber frog.

If I spent equal time doing both I would give the edge to... artificials. They are more efficient and take less time to rig. With live bait I catch mine also which takes more time away from catching bass.

I tend to catch a bigger average size bass though using live fish for bait like bream or shiners.

In times when fish aren’t biting very good, live bait is better.

I can catch a lot of little bass though using live worms but I don’t count that.

And by the way, if you don’t want to gut hook fish using live bait,use circle hooks.Hook the baitfish through both lips. The bass will nearly always be hooked in the corner of the mouth. Just don’t try setting the hook with a circle hook or you’ll not hook the fish very often. You just reel up the slack and slightly lift the rod as it comes tight. It’s hard to do this if you’re used to setting the hook, but it works.

 

Bingo ^

 

 

As asked the question poses no contradiction. Many "seasoned" bass anglers seldom if ever use live bait, so their experience and preference is toward artificials. On the other hand, someone who fishes for different fish with both artificials and bait, will know that live bait when abled to be presented will out fish artificials. Sure bass live in places where sometimes only a frog, a t-rig or a punching rig will have a chance to get at it, but in all other cases artificials will come in second, and as to rigging live bait being slower or more difficult, it's just a hook with a fish attached to it. It takes maybe 5-10 seconds to do. A struggling fish on a hook is the ultimate bait action. The only artificial presentation that sometimes can compete with bait is trolling.

Well, my friend Speedy Madewell was my partner on the Tennessee River for nearly twenty years. 

Back in the day he was an accomplished tournament bass fisherman using artificials exclusively.

When I met him he was a dedicated striper fisherman using native yellowtail, skipjack and gizzard

shad. He said he loved to fish, but he liked catching better.

 

In the fall we switched to smallmouth.  His bait of choice was native yellowtail (threadfin). However

as me moved into cooler weather the bait went deep and the fishing was over, or so he thought. I

said "Let's try store bought minnows" and a new era began. 

 

Being stubborn, I wanted to fish artificial, so that is how I usually started out each morning. We

often had another guest or two and they all fished minnows. I stuck with my lures until the rest

of the group landed 10 bass between them. For two decades the score was often 10-zip, but I

occasionally scored. Still, overall, live bait beat artificials on average 10 to one or better.

 

On the other hand, I have had some special days using the BPS Tender Tube (#71) and on a couple 

of outing the Rage Tail Menace has out fished live bait.  So, I mix it up and start with artificials, but 

still carry minnows "just in case".

 

 

On 9/18/2019 at 9:28 PM, Ohioguy25 said:

I have spent countless hours trying to make artificial work

Then, for you, there's your answer.

2 minutes ago, Ratherbfishing said:

Then, for you, there's your answer.

But if everyone else can learn to use it why can’t I?

There’s a reason the huge amateur tournaments don’t allow live bait...

19 hours ago, reelfast said:

There’s a reason the huge amateur tournaments don’t allow live bait...

I fish quite a few lakes that have warning signs prohibiting the use of live bait due to the introduction of unwanted guests. 

 

As kids, we'd dump our bucket of mad toms in the lake and now you have a lake full of mud cats. 

On 9/18/2019 at 2:57 PM, Ratherbfishing said:

If you fish mostly with live bait, that's what you're going to report as working for you.  Likewise with artificials.

That's it. I always say I hate buzzbaits. I never catch bass on them. But, I had several times years ago where I wasnt getting bits on a buzz bait, switched to a different topwater and got hit. From then on I always chose the other lure first. Next thing you know, I haven't used a buzzbait in several years. Well I'll tell ya, if you never throw a buzzbait, you'll never catch fish on it. 

   Same thing happens with all types of lures and baits. I'm sure we all have stuff we say doesnt work well, but we never use. 

     If a guy throws live bait 80% of the time, hes going to have better luck with it.

      Walleye fishing is having a bit of a change of guard right now. A lot of guys are getting away from live bait there too. Some guys say live bait is better, some disagree. 

       All I know is that I have caught too many bass on minnows or worm harnesses while walleye fishing or on shiners through the the ice to believe that live bait isn't just as good as artificial. But when I go bass fishing, I never use live bait. I just think of bass fishing as being a lure deal, not live bait.

On 9/21/2019 at 1:05 PM, Ohioguy25 said:

But if everyone else can learn to use it why can’t I?

You can, but have you been out with anyone who has "mastered" artificials?  You might find you're using them wrong or in the wrong places.  Artificials (even soft plastics) would almost all be considered "search baits" compared to most live bait practices.  But without knowing what you're doing that is or isn't working, it's difficult to even speculate.

 

Are your lakes/streams/rivers heavily pressured?

I think covering water with a bobber and a minnow would be a challenge . I even cover water fast deep, how would one do that with a minnow ? 

On 9/20/2019 at 11:25 AM, Titan said:

My vote is live bait.  I've caught bass on live bait after failing to catch them on a lure several times.  I believe a bass (or any fish for that matter) will choose to eat a live bait over a lure in most instances.  There are always exceptions of course.  The question is whether or not live bait is necessary to catch fish.  The obvious answer is no, and lures are much more convenient, faster and allow an angler to cover water.

Yeah definitely. Way more casts w lures.

14 hours ago, scaleface said:

I think covering water with a bobber and a minnow would be a challenge . I even cover water fast deep, how would one do that with a minnow ? 

Covering water suggests one hasn't found fish. But to answer your question, you essentially use a really big bubba drop shot and a live bait hooked in the mouth and out one nostril (stays upright all on its own without silly knots too) with the trolling motor on high. Same thing with the bobber for higher presentations with a little weight inline between the bobber (it's actually a float) and the bait to keep it vertical. Both very popular ways to fish in the salt. Need to think outside the (Monthly Subscription) box.

15 hours ago, scaleface said:

I think covering water with a bobber and a minnow would be a challenge . I even cover water fast deep, how would one do that with a minnow ? 

Live shad with a sinker , ditch the bobber. It works 

10 hours ago, BassWhole! said:

Covering water suggests one hasn't found fish.

Not really . Its pretty common to  cover water and knock the snot out of them .

This is more of a question, what artificial can I use in a pond that has 5 and six pound bass in it but they can only be caught on live bait, when we first fished it we could catch them on senkos and pitboss, we have tried about everything that looks like the bluegill that we use to catch them, we catch 1 to 3 lb. on artificial but not the big boys, the pond has very little fishing pressure

1 hour ago, PITBOSS said:

This is more of a question, what artificial can I use in a pond that has 5 and six pound bass in it but they can only be caught on live bait, when we first fished it we could catch them on senkos and pitboss, we have tried about everything that looks like the bluegill that we use to catch them, we catch 1 to 3 lb. on artificial but not the big boys, the pond has very little fishing pressure

You should be able to catch bass on lures in a pond with very little fishing pressure. Try fishing at nighttime or try fishing with a lure that most people do not use there.

On 9/20/2019 at 12:41 PM, Pickle_Power said:

Are we on a walleye forum?  This is a hot debate in that world, but I'm surprised that it was raised on a bass forum. 

 

Artificials are obviously much more efficient for numbers of bass.

If I lived up north I would focus more on muskie and fish very little for walleye. I do not see why people make such a big deal about walleye. I have caught them, ate them on the same day and I was not impressed. Try eating a freshly caught hogfish and you see how walleye is an overrated fish.  I agree lure fishing is much more effective when it comes to catching large numbers of bass. 

Live bait fished the way it would be fished if it were artificial will out fish artificials. You will outfish the people that throw bait blindly and just sit and wait if you properly fish an artificial. That’s what I’ve seen over the years. It is way more difficult to outproduce bait with artificials. So if you are doing that, you’re doing it right.

I fished a well known Central Florida lake that has high fishing pressure from lots of people fishing with golden shiners. I tried using golden shiners there and did not get a bite in several hours of fishing. I am very experienced with live bait fishing so this was a surprise to me that these bass would not bite a lively bait but it goes to show you bass do what they want and you have to be able to adapt if you want to be successful in bass fishing. In the end of the trip I decided to use a lure I felt would do well in that lake and within minutes I started to catch some nice bass until I got my 5 bass limit in less than 1 hour of fishing. It turns out those bass are best caught with reaction style fishing techniques. 

Live bait's not fishing .... it's waiting!   ?