As a new-ish bass fisher, I wonder if people would care to share their "rules of thumbs" for bass fishing?

For example, as a trout fisher, I go by "dark day, dark lure. bright day, bright lure". I assume that's basically the same for most fishing.

Anything folks would care to share about how they approach bass fishing and what rules you follow when you get to the water?

Hooksets are free

You can’t catch them from the couch!

You can't cast or set the hook with a mouse in your hand.

Rock bass are imposters

There’s no substitute for time on the water

A bad day for a picnic is a great day for fishing.

My best bass days are when it's cloudy, raining, or windy. Ideally all of the above. Less people. More bites.

Matching the hatch isn't as important in bass fishing.

Bass are moody, especially Florida strain LM.

Once you're hooked on bassin, your wallet will be constantly empty. The bait monkey will tempt you into buying gear for the sole reason of acquiring more gear.

If you don't know who the bait monkey is, don't worry, he'll introduce himself soon enough.

BTW, Welcome to the largest bass fishing support group on the internet.

1-If you catch a big bass, it is all skill. If your friend catches a big bass it is all luck.

2- If you don't catch bass, it is because you don't have the right lure. Buy more tackle.

3- If you do catch bass after buying more tackle, buy more tackle.

4- You can't own to many rods.

5- Bass bite better on cloudy days, except for the days they don't

6-Bass bite better on sunny days', except for the days they don't

7-If you are catching bass, it is the right moon phase, if you are not catching bass it is the wrong moon phase.

8-If you friend catches bass and you don't, it is because the moon shines on him a different way.

9- Only fish for bass on the days ending in the letter y.

10- Lake Menderchuck is impossible to find.

11- If purple is your favorite soft plastic color, you are old

12- If Green pumpkin is your favorite soft plastic color you are middle aged.

13- If you don't have a favorite soft plastic color, you are lying

14- If you have never had an argument over what line, or knot is best, you are not a bass fisherman.

15- If you put a Diawa reel on a Shimano rod stay away from any storm clouds.

16- No matter how much you pay for a lure, you must upgrade the hooks.

17-If you don't backlash your reel, you are not casting far enough

18- If you are not hung up, you are not bass fishing.

19- Don't set the hook to soon on a topwater bite.

20- Don't set the hook to late on a topwater bite

21- There is a world of difference between a green pumpkin with black flake worm, and one that is watermelon with black flake

22- Trout fisherman will fish pink worms, bass anglers fish bubble gum worms.

23- If fishing in the day time, spinnerbaits must be white with willow leaf blades, and if fishing at night, a spinnerbait must be black with Colorado blades.

24- Chatterbaits can be green pumpkin, but spinnerbaits can't

25- Black and Blue is a great color for jigs, but does not work with crankbaits.

26- Bass hide in shady spots under overhanging tree limbs, not in the tops of overhanging tree limbs.

27- Bass always bite on the other side of the lake

28- A day with one 10 inch bass is not a skunk, so don't lose it

29- Any day you catch more bass than lures lost, is considered a positive trade deficit.

30- If you pray a big bass doesn't jump, it is ok to curse when it does.

31- Bass bite at night, so do mosquitos.

32- You will never know what day post spawn turns in to pre spawn.

33- Most days all a person needs to catch bass is a 5 inch green pumpkin Senko. A good bass fisherman doesn't fish on most days.

34- You can bass fish, and you can do yard work, but you can't bass fish while doing yard work.

35- If you show your friends a picture of a 10 pound bass you caught, they will be highly impressed, if you show them a picture your freshly mowed lawn, not so much.

36- Bigger baits mean bigger bass, that 12 pound bass a kid caught on a crappie jig doesn't count.

37- Power fishing doesn't mean you have power, it only means you hate to use a dropshot.

38- There is always a need for one more rod reel combo.

39- Bass don't care how much a lure costs, but your wife might.

40- Mortgaging your home to buy a boat is sound financial planning, doing it to buy another glide bait proves you are way to late to worry about financial planning.

41- Wind from the East fishing at it's least, wind from the west fishing at it's best. Wind from the north or south you are fishing on the wrong lake.

42- Crankbaits catch bass, more crankbaits don't catch more bass.

43- Spinnerbaits work everywhere bass are found except the Tennessee River.

44- There are no rules in bass fishing.

1. Coike

2. Coike

3. Coike

4. Coike

5. Coike

Don't bang the boat or stomp the bank. Bass can hear us.

A-B-C always be casting, I have a friend I fish with and I always out fish him because he sits there and dawdles while I’m fishing and then wants to know why we are throwing the same lure and he isn’t catching anything.

Don't worry about catching bass to start or being a hero. Learn your tackle and the feel of it, learn how to work your baits properly. Work on casting accurately.

Fish slower to start so you can get a few fish under your belt and your adrenaline pumping. I went from steelheading to bass fishing, and am way more crazy about bass fishing.

Get a solid 7' MF spinning rod and MHF casting rod to start off with. They'll cover a bunch of techniques and baits, and you can branch out from there. Trust your gut and have fun with it. Good luck!

Trout fishing and bass fishing aren’t that much different, having cut my teeth, so to speak on trout.

@10,000 lakes Bassin is a great rule of thumb, in my opinion.

I always say fish the transitions, shade line or shadows, weed line …… where a creek meets a lake or river. On the edge of an eddy or anything where there is a change.

But @king fisher advise is the logical advise.

Don’t take it too seriously, not yet, at least.

Nothing is etched in stone. Dark day, dark lure might not work today.

Its a casting contest. I can tell from a distance with a high degree of accuracy , whos catching fish, whos not and what boat I dont mind following and what boat I dont want to follow.

A Rule of Thumb??

Is that an educated one is your most important body part.

Mike

3 hours ago, bigbearstroop122 said:

A-B-C always be casting, I have a friend I fish with and I always out fish him because he sits there and dawdles while I’m fishing and then wants to know why we are throwing the same lure and he isn’t catching anything.

My very competitive friend went with me one day to a place that has good average size bass. He caught about a 4 pounder, his PB at the time, and sat down in the back seat, drinking beer and texting his buddies and talkingsmack to me. I kept casting and eventually caught one bigger. I told him to take a pic of mine and send all his buddies. I said "You can't outfish me if you don't have a hook in the water."

"Wind from the West, fish bite the best;
Wind from the East, fish bite the least;
Wind from the North, do not go forth;
Wind from the South, blows the bait in their mouth."

Check your line often especially when fishing around rocks. It takes 30 seconds to retie a lure.

Can other fingers have rules?

All fishermen lie, except for you and me and I’m not so sure about you.

Color doesn’t matter. Except when it does.

Bass don’t follow the rules.

-Learn when to hold them (keep using the same lure/bait) and when to fold them (switch to a different lure/bait)

-Even if there is only a 0.0000000000000000000000000000000001% chance that a treble hook will snag something other than a fish - it will do so

-Check your line, snaps, split rings, knots after each catch

-You will destroy more soft plastics trying to get the bait/hook out of the fishes' mouth than the fish will from just biting it

-Being on the water, sitting in silence, watching the eagles-osprey-pelicans and taking it all in is a worthwhile endeavor (and it's a bonus if you catch a bass or two)

1 hour ago, Tennessee Boy said:

Can other fingers have rules?

Pretty sure that middle one does.

😎

A-Jay

39 minutes ago, WaskaCrank12 said:

Being on the water, sitting in silence

Amen! However, this morning, a loon and I were singing back and forth. It would "oooh-whoo" and I'd reply and it swam closer and closer, curious about its singing buddy.

9 hours ago, Swamp Girl said:

Don't bang the boat or stomp the bank. Bass can hear us.

Fly fishing has taught me stealth, which I've learned is important for bass too. I always approach banks carefully and cast to them if I can before I stand there.