20 hours ago, OldManLure said:

Just curious…do you believe you could you lose confidence in a bait you had so much experience with?  And if so, what would it take to lose your confidence?

Sure. I think if you threw a confidence baits more than a dozen days without a bite when you were sure you would get one, you may lose some confidence. But you won't lose the experience so i think never back to like no confidence level such as my status with a whopper plopper. That's actually a great example because many people in my area loved those a few years ago and now I don't know anyone in the state throwing one consistently. 

I have a different take on confidence baits.  I have confidence in specific baits for specific situations.  I don’t have a confidence bait for 365 days. Each scenario generally points to certain baits and I start there but keep an open mind to making adjustments.  

No doubt that a basic Texas Rigged worm has accounted for more fish that I can recall. Curly tail or ribbon. I fully embraced Doug Hannon and his magnificent work and the knowledge he shared. Skinny water and using Rapala top water baits w hooks rubber banded up to help with not fouling the bait. Its also an excellent presentation I use Spro because they throw better and are tougher. I also swear by a tube bait, I prefer to open hook them on a proper hard bottom and they just work. Tubes are a very close second for me..
 

Rattle traps. Love to burn these and they are my #2 . I burn them along edges of ANY type of fresh vegetation, the strikes are decisive. 
 

Crankbaits are # 3. Rip rap and crankbaits.. always yield fish, seems there are always fish in and around rip rap looking for crawfish, I bang them hard against the rocks and that is a calling card to LMB. You’re gonna break some baits but I’m always aware and excepting of that. Jigs n pigs work well here and I’ve stuck some very nice LMB doing it, but line damage and snagged up jigs are often, this can be frustrating, I’ve had some heartbreaking break offs doing this. 
 

My favorite is flipping in Hydrilla , it’s just fun and rewarding. With states killing it off it’s harder to find now than ever. All of the aforementioned presentations I have no doubts to the effectiveness of. 
 

Now for the no confidence bait presentation. The God forsaken A-Rig. 
no way, no how 😂 

 

Finally, I love this sport, and as much as I love LMB fishing I’d rather saltwater fish any day of the week and twice on Sunday. Salt is where it’s at.
 

I go back a long way with Bass fishing, so I do love it and it’s obvious a lot of other folks do too. 
 

Enjoy it, no matter what you throw..

I don't think I've ever had more confidence in a bait than the black/blue Yum Dinger. It just keeps producing and big fish at that. My buddy doesn't even use them and he's seen me catch a 7-14 and a 5 lb even on it in the last month as well as a bunch of smaller bass. It's just not his favorite way to fish.

 

If I had to fish for my dinner that would be the bait.

For me it’s usually a 3/8 oz jig with a smaller plastic. If I’m around rock or wood I can slow it down and pick apart cover, and it seems to get bites even when the fish aren’t very aggressive.

If the water’s clearer or they’re pressured, I’ll switch to a ned rig and fish it slow along the bottom. That combo has saved a lot of tough days for me.