I've never fished in winter before, this will be my first year. Here in the US Midwest I figure I have just a handful of days before either the weather gets too nasty or ice ends my chances, so I'm trying to figure out my best options for lures. What are your go to bass lures? Thanks.

Several types of hair jigs and a soft plastic jerkbait 

Blade baits are my #1, followed by jerkbaits and small soft plastics.

I'm with @DogBone_384 and @PaulVE64 but I also really like a tailspins, small underspins creeped on the bottom, and tactical bassin's version of speed cranking.  Cranking, blade bait hopping, and suspending jerkbaits are my first choices.  Get the active ones fired up and follow up with a dragged or dead sticked jig or underspin.

 

scott

I've caught alot of walleye on a squarebill this time of year while speed cranking

 

Blade bait, spoon, tube, paddle tails, 4 inch worm/grub on a jighead, small fluke/minnow bait on jig head, jerkbait, crankbait , hair jig, wobble head with craw, and just a plain ole skirted jig 

 
hmmm anything but topwater and even that works sometimes 😂 

Shaky head,Ned,jig and swim bait are my go to winter baits.

So far it's been flipping jig n chunk, paddle tail swimbait/swimjig/underspin/buzzbait/lipless/Jerkbait/beaver.

 

Our water doesn't get much colder than 48° in the winter, most winters.

 

Things I'm eager to try this winter: Spoons/Blade Baits/A Rig/Glide Bait.

Miami River in Ohio? 

Do you fish from a boat? Or Shore angler?

If the baitfish are Shad which I doubt if the water freezes, then Shad size structure spoon and tail spins work using a boat.

Cold water equals black jigs with blue trailers. The old suspending Rogue with jerk, jerk long pause jerk, jerk has caught a lot of cold water bass in blue back chrome.

Tom

Lipless, jerkbait, jig, chatterbait.

Shad Rap, Little George, 1/4 oz RatLTrap, Fat Ika on a dropshot.

1 hour ago, WRB said:

Miami River in Ohio? 

Do you fish from a boat? Or Shore angler?

If the baitfish are Shad which I doubt if the water freezes, then Shad size structure spoon and tail spins work using a boat.

Cold water equals black jigs with blue trailers. The old suspending Rogue with jerk, jerk long pause jerk, jerk has caught a lot of cold water bass in blue back chrome.

Tom

Yep. Bank fisherman. The river doesn't completely freeze but the main two ponds I fish will when it gets cold enough. I mostly use Texas rigs and swimbaits in the river. Lots of snaggy areas.

My 1st choice is a black hair jig.

Dale Hallow Tackle Punisher Hair jig ( $.270 w/ Gamakatsu hook) 3/16 or 1/4 oz Black or black-purple for cold water.

Trailer suggest Berkeley Maxscent Lil Super Trooper (2 1/2”) black.

Tom

60% Spoons

20% Finesse jigs

11.5% Jerbaits

8.5% 68 Huddleston's 

When I lived in colder states, where it would freeze. My favorite was a skirted jig( green pumpkin) with a netbait paca craw, the small or medium sized ( green pumpkin or watermelon).

Worked real slow, with pauses, twitched during the pauses. 

I use some blade baits, tailspinners, small plastic worm, plastic grub. 

Down here we mostly use the same things. Some are just tweaked a little in size and presentation. 
Timing is the biggest consideration 

 

 

 

 

Mike

Berkley Power worm worked very slowly and Smithwick Rattlin' Rouge.

Hackney's Flourcarbon Jig 1/2 Black-n-Blue 

Rage Tail Craw Blue Sapphire 

 

I change the skirt 

 

 

Just give me two rods with Oldham's jigs, another with a flipping tube, and a spinnerbait and I'm good.

 

And I usually have a rod rigged with a Rattle Trap in the rod box.

 

 

The Fat Ika has always done well for me. One of the ponds I go to is about 25 feet deep in the middle with a fountain.  If it is left on in the winter, the pond will not completely freeze. 

Jerkbaits, partial to the Strike King KVD Deep this time of year.

Blade Baits, I throw the Cabela's Mean Eye Blade Bait.

Dropshot, 6" Roboworm.

Finesse Jigs, Strike King Bitsy Bugs.

2 hours ago, riverat said:

 

Just give me two rods with Oldham's jigs, another with a flipping tube, and a spinnerbait and I'm good.

 

And I usually have a rod rigged with a Rattle Trap in the rod box.

 

 

I've wondered how well a chatterbait and spinnerbait might work in the winter. Finesse is the main thing I had heard about winter fishing.

Jig and craw on the bottom and around any vegetation, lipless crankbait, bladed jig when the spinnerbait bite starts falling off, and jerkbaits.

2 hours ago, Hook2Jaw said:

Jerkbaits, partial to the Strike King KVD Deep this time of year.

Blade Baits, I throw the Cabela's Mean Eye Blade Bait.

Dropshot, 6" Roboworm.

Finesse Jigs, Strike King Bitsy Bugs.

I love those bitsy bug jigs, they are cheap and they work. I caught a nice bass the other day on one.