I don't believe I've seen a similar thread so I thought it would be fun. AKA I'm in the office and don't feel like working. 

 

The title has prior year (PY) and current year (CY), I'll even add  to the list personal best (PB).

 

So there's three different answers you can give.

 

Name the lure that caught you the biggest bass for the PY, CY, and your PB.

 

Should be fun (unless I'm just a fishing dork).  LOL

 

 

 

I'll go first.

 

PY - white double bladed willow spinnerbait

CY - neko rig

PB - ned rig

Largemouth:

PY-1/2 oz custom made gp jig w maxscent chunk trailer

CY-1/2 oz custom made gp purple jig with a maxscent chunk trailer

PB-confirmed weight 6.5lbs whopper plopper.  unconfirmed weight 23.5" (length only) pre rigged purple with white dot worm 

 

Smallmouth

PY-3.5" cast again tackle tube on a tx rig

CY-2.75" cast again tackle tube on a 3/16 oz tube jig

PB-6.5lbs dropshot yum crawbug

PY - 1/2 oz Oyster Red Eye Shad with black stripe done down the back with marker and chartreuse stripe down sides with marker.  9 lb 3 oz.

 

CY - 3/8 oz pegged tungsten flipping weight 5/0 offset worm hook green pumpkin Magnum Speed Worm that sat in a bag with red bug and got stained weird.  11 lb 5 oz.

 

PB - (tied with CY) 7/16 oz pegged tungsten flipping weight 5/0 offset worm hook motor oil red flake Power Worm.  11 lb 5 oz.

I'm pretty sure my biggest fish for the past 5 years has been caught on a spinnerbait each year during the pre-spawn (shortly after ice off). 

 

To mix it up, both of my longest of each species have been caught on different lures. 

 

PB (length) Largemouth - swim jig (hand tied)

PB (length) Smallmouth - Keitech on a jig head

My bad, I forgot about the brown bass. LOL

 

Which is crazy because when I started this account a long time ago smallmouth were by far my favorite fish.

 

Now I'm rarely on rivers and the lakes I fish don't even have them.

 

Not even sure about my PB smallmouth because back in the day I rarely kept track.

 

I'd guess either a jointed floating Rapala caught up in Canada or a hair jig tipped with a minnow here in Iowa.

Only fished 3 outings in 2024.

PY, 5+ lbs, Swim jig, lake Cachuma

Fish 2 outings this year.

CY, 6.2 lbs, 5” Senko, lake Castiac.

PB, listed under avatar, hair jig w/ pork trailer.

Tom

 

PY-6.02 Ned Rig BioSpawn ExoNed/Homemade 1/16oz head

CY-9.72 Homemade Blk/Blue 1/2oz Flipping Jig

PB-10lb 2oz Zoom Mag Lizard Watermelonseed

 

I haven't caught any notable smallmouth the last couple years. I only remember weighing one this year that was 3.51 on a 6th Sense Provoke 106DD. Not sure I put one on a scale last year.

PY…..8.25# Rage Bug (white) sight fished off bed 

CY…. 7.13# Zoom Magnum UV Speed Worm (june bug) through submerged eel grass

PB….11.34# Culprit Fat Max ribbon tail (red/shad) over submerged eel grass 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

PY - 8.25# Toad Thumber Swamper Frog in Bad Gill

CY - 5.25#  Geecrack 2.8 Bellows Gill in AJ's Juice on a 1/8oz Ned Head

PB - 13.75#  Hand-tied White Bucktail jig with a 6 in White grub trailer

30 minutes ago, Big Swimbait said:

 

CY - 5.25#  Geecrack 2.8 Bellows Gill in AJ's Juice on a 1/8oz Ned Head

 

 

I would have never even thought about those two together. 

 

Looks like it works. 

PY- 10.1 pounds. T Rigged Junebug Zoom Ole monster.

CY- 9.9 pounds Same as PY.

PB. - 10.8 pounds 6th Sense Cloud Nine Mini Mag Square bill.

PY,  5" senko.  (yawn)

CY, Dolive Beaver 4"... the year is not halfway over...i gots high hopes this early winter...hehe.  i know a spot.  

Rage Bug

Rage Bug

Rage Bug

Last year.........Punch Rig

This year.........Rocket Shad

PBS...................Zara Spook & Arkie Jig/PacaCraw.

Love this thread — way more fun than spreadsheets 😎

PY – Weightless wacky rig, watermelon red Senko.
CY – Underspin with a 3.8" paddle tail (gotta love that flash).
PB – 7.4 lbs on a black buzzbait at sunrise. Fish exploded like it owed me money.

Let’s keep 'em coming! Curious what other folks are sticking 'em on lately.

17 hours ago, Pat Brown said:

 

 

CY - 3/8 oz pegged tungsten flipping weight 5/0 offset worm hook green pumpkin Magnum Speed Worm that sat in a bag with red bug and got stained weird.  11 lb 5 oz.

 

 

I’ll bet that was a cool looking worm!

 

It would be interesting to purposefully let 2 colors fuse and get stained like that. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

46 minutes ago, Mike L said:

I’ll bet that was a cool looking worm!

 

It would be interesting to purposefully let 2 colors fuse and get stained like that. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Mike

 

 

The experience definitely made me more open to letting plastics marinate together in bags and then using them once they're good and weird.  🥴😂

 

I would call the color Salmonella Peas

I think all 3 of mine are black and blue Yum Dinger (Senko). I bought a 100 pack from Amazon. Maybe my PY was a lizard, same colors. I only bass fished twice in 2024. My New Year's resolution was to fish more and I'm keeping it.

 

I don't really love fishing worms. it's slow and sometimes quite boring. I'd rather fish topwaters all day every day. But sometimes you gotta do what the fish want.

PY - Keitech Fat Swing Impact 3.8" - Sight Fish color - fished on a weighted screw lock hook

CY - Rage Swimmer 3.75" - Electric Shad color - fished on a Fusion 1/4 oz swimbait head

PB - Heddon Baby Torpedo - Frog Color

PY - DD on a carolina rig

CY - 6th sense hangover, close runner up hover strolling a drift fry

PB - buzzbait (stanley ribbit + small blade)

Last years best was 4lb7oz and was caught on an H20X Squarebill with the hooks tied. I lost the lure unfortunately.

 

 

This year's best, and my current PB was a 4lb11oz on an old size 6 Shad Rap that I found hanging in a tree. I didn't get a picture of it as I didn't have the phone with me, but this picture shows the lure, which I still have.