6 minutes ago, DINK WHISPERER said:

I completely agree with this.

And @A-Jay to me glide baits have always been a search tool. I throw them to find fish since they rarely resist following them. After that I thoroughly break down the area and catch the followers. 

Yup ~

They are a search tool for me now too.

Because if you look for one in my rig . . . 

you'll be searching !

A-Jay

I might also add, I'm going to stop trying to force feed the bass altogether. After all my years, I'm still guilty of doing this at times. It never works out well.

I got a bait that I'll never even look at,  or even own........in all capitals CHATTERBAIT !!!!!! . LOL

 

Love Zman but couldn't wait to snag and break off the last 2 chatterbaits I owned, deliberately. 

 

I've had fisherman tell me to fish them like a spinnerbait. Nah, give me a spinnerbait. 

9 minutes ago, Bird said:

CHATTERBAIT !!!!!! . LOL

 

Ain't had a bass sniff one ?

I couldn't agree more with the ChatterBait comments! I've never had any luck with them either. I have a bunch of new Zman ones I've been meaning to unload. ?

15 minutes ago, Bird said:

Love Zman but couldn't wait to snag and break off the last 2 chatterbaits I owned, deliberately. 

What lure manufacturers don’t want you to know: all chatterbaits have a microchip embedded into their head that makes them seek out any and all timber. 
 

I really wanted to like chatterbaits. I lost one too many I guess.

Guessing mine would fall under 'approach,' too. Very guilty of being a multi-species fisherman. One of my favorite sayings is, 'Don't fight the bite." As such, if I'm out bass fishing and a school of white bass erupts, I'm all over it. Or if the bass aren't biting, I'll pull out the crappie gear and spend the rest of the day chasing slabs. So this exact thought hit me this past week, but I'm going to try and only carry gear and setups for a single species while out on the boat with the hope that if I headed out planning to target bass, then that's what I'll live or die trying to catch. Same for any other trips and species.

 

Most of my boat trips are between 3 and 5 hours, and I often end up spending an hour doing this, a couple more doing that, and before long the day is over. The positive is that I never truly blank on a trip because I can always switch to something else and catch a few of something. But so many times I came off the water and felt like I didn't spend enough time focusing on what I intended to catch in the first place...basically feeling like it was a somewhat wasted trip - and next year (this year) I've already decided will be a bass year, especially bigger bass (targeting). For me, 2021 was the year of the crappie. 

Funny thing about chatterbaits, I couldn’t catch many bass on them until this year. Swim jigs we’re my money bait but not this year. Go figure. 
Senkos, speed worms and top waters were disappointing for me this past year. Will have to see how much time they get this year. 

22 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

Guessing mine would fall under 'approach,' too. Very guilty of being a multi-species fisherman. One of my favorite sayings is, 'Don't fight the bite." As such, if I'm out bass fishing and a school of white bass erupts, I'm all over it. Or if the bass aren't biting, I'll pull out the crappie gear and spend the rest of the day chasing slabs. So this exact thought hit me this past week, but I'm going to try and only carry gear and setups for a single species while out on the boat with the hope that if I headed out planning to target bass, then that's what I'll live or die trying to catch. Same for any other trips and species.

 

Most of my boat trips are between 3 and 5 hours, and I often end up spending an hour doing this, a couple more doing that, and before long the day is over. The positive is that I never truly blank on a trip because I can always switch to something else and catch a few of something. But so many times I came off the water and felt like I didn't spend enough time focusing on what I intended to catch in the first place...basically feeling like it was a somewhat wasted trip - and next year (this year) I've already decided will be a bass year, especially bigger bass (targeting). For me, 2021 was the year of the crappie. 

Cool ~

I am really looking forward to the reports.

No doubt they'll be killer !

A-Jay

26 minutes ago, LrgmouthShad said:

What lure manufacturers don’t want you to know: all chatterbaits have a microchip embedded into their head that makes them seek out any and all timber. 
 

I really wanted to like chatterbaits. I lost one too many I guess.

Luckily I read that on here before I ever fished them. I won’t throw them near a tree, they work great in grass tho. I have only lost 3-4 (I think) in a few years of fishing them. Two were bank fishing and I knew better 

6 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Luckily I read that on here before I ever fished them. I won’t throw them near a tree, they work great in grass tho. I have only lost 3-4 (I think) in a few years of fishing them. Two were bank fishing and I knew better 

I know one place I won't get hung up with them ever again......at the checkout line at Bass pro. Lol

" Probably Wont Do That Again " would make a good country music 

song . 

13 minutes ago, scaleface said:

" Probably Wont Do That Again " would make a good country music 

song . 

Kenny Chesney  -" a lot of things different " comes to mind.

During the first year or so of the Ned up here in MI many said it was a dink technique.  I argued that the Ned caught fish of all sizes and there were more dinks than hunks.  Sure enough, the sentiment has changed and now the Ned is recognized as an effective technique for big smallies as well as small.

Deep crankbaits. I spent a good part of the past two Summers doing this and that experiment is over.  I gave it a fair shake and was not successful.  

2 hours ago, Bird said:

I got a bait that I'll never even look at,  or even own........in all capitals CHATTERBAIT !!!!!! . LOL

Sacrilege! That statement actually hurt me lol. Chatterbaits brought multiple fish over 5lbs into my boat in 2021 - one 7.9, and one 9.6 (co-angler)... I will never not have one tied on, but I get it. That's how I feel about spinner baits ! I did however just drop $200 on War Eagles with a determination to gain confidence in spinnerbaits in 2022! So, fingers crossed there!

1 minute ago, TroxBox said:

Sacrilege! That statement actually hurt me lol. Chatterbaits brought multiple fish over 5lbs into my boat in 2021 - one 7.9, and one 9.6 (co-angler)... I will never not have one tied on, but I get it. That's how I feel about spinner baits ! I did however just drop $200 on War Eagles with a determination to gain confidence in spinnerbaits in 2022! So, fingers crossed there!

Well said. 

Strangely funny how some baits seem so regional. A similar bait is the whopper plopper as many dismiss it but yet it's quite efficient around here. 

We can agree, it's called fishing and not catching.....entertaining thread. 

30 minutes ago, TroxBox said:

I did however just drop $200 on War Eagles with a determination to gain confidence in spinnerbaits in 2022!

At least you got the right brand!  If it goes south for you selling them here will be a breeze!

5 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Whether it be an approach, a technique, a presentation, maybe a particular body of water that was excessively vacant of bass or whatever,

it was mostly a negative deal and you're done with it. 

I have two things that immediately come to mind.

 

I’m done fishing before graphing a little with electronics (provided I have the time), and I’m done fishing spinnerbaits too often high in the water column. I mentioned that on another thread. Send em to the bottom, deflect off everything!

 

Edit: what I mean by wanting to electronically graph first is that I want to survey locations that I plan on fishing before I actually fish them. No casts made. The reason is because I have hunkered down in a spot that looks good thinking the baitfish will show up or that “the bass are here, I just know it!” It’s all silly talk. I should not be looking to graph only bass, I want to graph lots of baitfish… and the right kind! That is what tells me to stay.

tournament fishing has become a huge passion the last couple seasons for me. i love everything about fun fishing, but i’ve always been such a competitive person my whole life that i NEED the completion involved. it makes me want to be better, and to perform better. 

 

applying that to the topic at hand i would say 100% ignoring the “dock talk” at tournaments. to fish what i am confident in and trusting my gut. the only person i want to blame is myself if i do not perform to my expectations. 

33 minutes ago, EWREX said:

ignoring the “dock talk” at tournaments.

Oooh that's a good one! I think I'll follow suit

11 minutes ago, TroxBox said:

Oooh that's a good one! I think I'll follow suit

oh it’s a hard one lol

One thing I learned. Spend days scoping out a lake, the day, weather, and time

I wasted days fishing a lake with thousands of strippers only they were 200' down, the shallows were mud flats .

 

When I go this year the first day is to cover as much as I can, find some quite spots with creeks ,cover,and birds and head out in the mist the next day. Then sneak in. 

I've ditched my local lake completely now

 

I give up on lipless crankbaits. I've tried every which way, more colors than I care to mention, and wasted a whole lotta time. Giving all of them to my Grandson, maybe he will have better luck with them.

8 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Yup ~

They are a search tool for me now too.

Because if you look for one in my rig . . . 

you'll be searching !

A-Jay

Lol. Reminds me of an old comedy show called what’s happening. 
 

I think her name was Shirley and she asked someone to try the a dish she just finished making that she called Tuna Casserole Surprise. 
The guy tries it and remarks, “Hey… There’s no tuna in this!?”

And Shirley replied, “Surprise!”

 

Bad joke but I was lmao 

 

To the topic -

1) Reels - I’ve putting it off but I need to clean my reels. 
 

2) Got to prepare from all facets and angles to get my first bass on the standard skirted jig and trailer. It is one of the last nuts I’ve yet to crack in bass fishing.