The thing about spinnerbaits is that they are versatile. I know that you’ve heard and read things that say they’ve been replaced by other lures. Nothing could be farther from the truth. They’ve caught bass for decades and they’ll be catching them for decades into the future. One of the best things about a spinnerbait is that it can be fished on the fall or horizontal. I’m partial to the horizontal presentation and it works best in the fall and […]
Author: Mike Iaconelli
Fall And Early Winter Bait Choices, Part 2: Walking Sticks
Last time we talked about buzzbaits. This time we’ll look at walking sticks. The allure of a simple stick sliding from side to side across the water’s surface is something we humans don’t fully understand. My thinking is that it looks exactly like a baitfish feeding along the surface. Other anglers believe it looks like something — anything — in distress so a bass strikes at it out of instinct. I say simple stick because that’s what I like to […]
Fall/Early Winter Bait Choices, Part 1
We’ve had a few cold nights here in New Jersey. Fall has arrived. I’m excited about that because it’s one of my favorite times to fish for bass. Big or little, they’re aggressive so you don’t need a tackle box that weighs 40 pounds to catch them. All you need to do is find the forage and throw any of the five baits I’m going to tell you about over the next month. You can’t put too much importance on […]
Four Knots Will Get It Done
You hear a lot about knots in this business. Everyone has their favorites and, if given the chance, they’ll tell you why. Like everyone else I have mine. But, the truth is that if you don’t want to suffer break-offs there are only two things you need to worry about: Start with good line and then tie your knots carefully. I’ve got the line part nailed. I only fish with Berkley lines. As far as I’m concerned they’re the best […]
Fall Bassin’ Calls for a Plastic Minnow-like Jerkbait
I fish a plastic minnow-like jerkbait under almost any conditions from now until the water gets real cold, and even then one will get you a few bites. The only time I don’t fish one is when the water’s real cloudy or muddy. They don’t work very well for me under those conditions. Basically, I rig my bait one of two ways. The first is with a 4/0 or 5/0 offset worm hook in the usual manner. If I want […]
Pick the Right Treble Hook
I’m asked a lot about how to pick the right style of treble hook. The answer is pretty easy, really. There are three basic styles of treble hooks. There’s the traditional round bend where the hook point is away from the shaft. That’s the first one. Then, there’s the extra wide gap (EWG) style where the hook point is bent back towards the shaft. That’s the second one. And finally, there’s a hybrid design. I use all three depending upon […]
Another Look at Blade Baits
We’ve talked about blade baits in the past but I think we should take another look at them, especially now that we’re heading into fall. A lot of guys fish blade baits only one way. They throw them out, let them sink to the bottom, rip ‘em up as hard as they can and then let them fall back down on a slack line. You can catch a few that way. There’s no doubt about that, but there are other […]
Smallmouth Bass and Scent
Those of you have been following what I write and preach know that I’m a big believer in scent products. Some anglers think they attract bass. Others think they mask foreign odors. I say that misses the point. What they really do is work. Nowhere is that more true than with smallmouth. All bass use their senses to eat. They feel with their lateral lines, they hear some way, they feel and they can see. They also have a sense […]
Spybaits are the Real Deal
I’ve talked before about how some lures and techniques travel around the world. Spybaits are a perfect example of how that happens. They started in Japan, moved on to the West Coast and are now starting to get popular in the Midwest. Spybaits are simple enough, really. They have a cylindrical body with a prop on each end. The idea is to let the lure fall to where the bass are holding and then gently bring it back with little […]
Clothes Make the Man
There’s an old saying that goes, “Clothes make the man.” That’s as true in bass fishing as it is in any other part of life, but maybe for different reasons. The first one is safety. In past blogs, we’ve talked about the importance of sunblock and sunscreen. I’m not going to repeat what I said about it other than to say that you should always use it. There are no exceptions. It’s the same with sunglasses. Your eyes matter. Use […]